The Natural Approach To Enhancing Focus, Energy, And Health — In Less Than 3 Days

We’re not fans of the term “life hack”. It’s an overused trend to refer to any advice or helpful tips as life hacks. By definition, it just doesn’t make sense! Take a look…

Hack

verb
1. cut with rough or heavy blows.
“…hack off the dead branches”
2. use a computer to gain unauthorized access to data in a system.
“They hacked into the bank’s computer”

Neither of those examples applies to self-improvement, wouldn’t you agree? Any tips that improve your life, whether personal or professional or health-related, are just that: tips. A hack sounds like something you have to force, like a shortcut to results. But we all know that there are no shortcuts to success. It takes actual effort, consistency, and dedication.

So stop trying to “hack” your life, and just start trying simple changes that will gradually improve it. That’s what this blog is about; improving your day-to-day life and helping you feel more rested and healthy, without discouraging you.

Here are three tips for a healthier life that you can implement over the course of just three days, and immediately benefit from. These aren’t temporary trends, don’t require a ton of work, and won’t be so disruptive that they become daunting and end up forgotten. They simply require a bit of discipline, just like anything in life worth doing. So if you’re interested in improving your energy, focus, and overall well-being, then read on!

The 3–2–1–0 Rule

Getting enough sleep is crucial for human health and well-being. It is as important as eating a healthy diet and engaging in regular physical exercise. Sleep plays a vital role in various physiological and cognitive functions, such as memory, learning, emotional regulation, and our immune system. Lack of sleep can lead to various health problems, including obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, depression, anxiety, and a weakened immune system, among others.

And yet, studies show that 1/3 of Americans are sleep deprived.

Now we’re not going to tell you that you need to simply sleep more, because everyone knows that. Besides, simply getting more sleep isn’t the entire solution; it’s about getting better sleep, as well. And the 3–2–1–0 Rule will help you get exactly that.

Three Hours Before Bed, Have Your Last Meal.

This is helpful because if your stomach is still digesting and processing an influx of food right before you lay down, then it won’t be as efficient and you won’t sleep well either.

Think of it as you would your computer; always finish or stop all major processes before turning it off for the night. If you really feel the urge to snack, just have a little water. But not too much, or you’ll wake up in the middle night for that too.

Two Hours Before Bed, Stop All Activities That Keep Your Mind Running.

Like your stomach, your brain needs time to wind down into an idle state if you want to get the most peaceful sleep possible. This rule ensures that your mind isn’t working on anything important or getting riled up needlessly. No more evening work, put down the controller, and finish that household project. Instead, read a couple of chapters of a book, listen to some relaxing music, or zone out to your favorite sitcom.

One Hour Before Bed, Turn Off All Screens And Lights.

If your eyes are still taking in bright lights, especially blue light(this comes from computer screens), then your brain is trying to keep up. One hour before bed is time to slow down and train your brain to recognize that this is the time to do less. If you must have light, at least minimize it to that dim lamp by your bed. And if you must look at a screen, use blue light filtering glasses or filters on your device.

When You Wake Up, Use The Snooze Feature ZERO Times.

Have you ever noticed that the more you hit Snooze in the morning, the less you feel like getting up eventually? According to leading neuroscientist Dr. Andrew Huberman, slipping in and out of sleep in the morning is one of the worst things you can do to your energy levels. If you keep telling your body that you’re not ready to start the day, then you never will be as they say; up and at ’em!

Bring A Daily Health Pack With You

I don’t know about you, but convenience plays a major role in my habits. It’s not enough to know that we need to drink more water and eat healthier foods, we have to make it easier to do. Evolution has taught us to follow the path of least resistance. Constantly refilling my water cup or picking which place near the office has the best veggie options is too much resistance when theirs work to be done! This is why building yourself a health pack and bringing it with you to work comes in super handy. It eliminates the need to pivot when you’re in the zone, getting work done.

Here’s how to do it: buy a handy Tupperware container on Amazon(or Target if you’re like me and go there way too often), pack it with some sliced-up cucumbers, carrots, broccoli, etc, then bag it with a reusable water bottle.

You can even be like my friend and use a giant 64oz jug to cut down on refill trips! Because we all know that healthier intake will make us feel and perform better, but actually sticking to it is easier said than done. Especially when a bag of Hot Cheetos and a refreshing energy drink are right there! So the key is convenience, combined with habit. Once you’ve mastered both you’ll be a well-oiled machine, literally.

Resist The Temptation: Your Cellphone

Speaking of convenience, your cellphone is much too convenient for your own good. Did you know that the average American unlocks their phone a whopping 150 times a day!? Having instant access to literally everything, from what’s going on in the world to cat videos to whatever your coworker ate for lunch, is detrimental to our mental health. Checking in on the world should be reserved for specific periods of downtime.

By habit, we tend to grab our phone at just about any waking moment that our hands aren’t currently occupied otherwise. To start fixing this for yourself, simply keep your phone at an inconvenient distance from yourself while you work. It’s that simple! I put my cell phone in my backpack, or at least a drawer in my office. This will help you cut down on the temptation to grab it and mindlessly scroll to kill time. Because when you do that, you’re killing more than time.

According to this report from PsychGuides, excessive use of our cell phones can lead to physical harm to ourselves, such as digital eye strain, neck problems(AKA tech-neck), and even male infertility. And that’s not to mention the mental harm, such as depression and withdrawals. Cellphones give us remarkable access to the world via the internet, meaning endless content to make us laugh, smile, and whisper to ourselves “That’s crazy”. When we experience this, our brains release dopamine, which is the chemical that makes us feel good. And yes, there is such a thing as too much of a good thing.

Just like any drug, if you become too reliant on it then everything else begins to pale in comparison. And who wants to go through life like that? It’s not good for our physical or mental health. So try to cut that cell phone out of your daily habits as much as you can. It won’t be easy, at first. But it will be worth it in the long run.

You Can Do It

I know this all sounds easier said than done. You likely already have your own habits and it’s hard to imagine changing things up too much. Maybe you love that afternoon Frappuccino to boost you through the end of the day. But I bet you don’t love the sluggish feel it gives you later, do you? You’re probably used to catching up on your inbox from bed before you turn the lights off.

But I bet you never get used to that morning dread of picking up right where you left off, right? The thing about routines like those is that they are habits you formed without realizing it. Just like these three tips are habits you don’t realize how easily you can replace those other ones. It just requires a bit of “stick-to-it-ivness” as my boss calls it. Because once these become your new habits, you’ll be feeling so much better every day that you won’t be able to imagine going back.

So write down these tips on a notepad at your desk, in your notes app on your phone, or wherever is handy for you…

1. Utilize the 3–2–1–0 rule to improve your sleep quality and daily energy.
2. Bring a health pack every day to make a healthy lifestyle easier.
3. Cut down on smartphone use to improve your mood and productivity.

Now for the shameless plug: having a virtual assistant on your team is the secret tip number four to a healthier life. Because we’re sure a lot of those bad habits come from feeling like you have too much to do, and not enough time to do it. So you squeeze work tasks into your evening and then stay up late trying to find some semblance of downtime.

Having an experienced, proven, and reliable virtual assistant from a company like MyOutDesk can help you eliminate those bad habits, and have more time to adopt new, healthier habits. Like the ones in this blog!

So what are you waiting for? Reach out to us and learn more about how our virtual assistants have been helping professionals just like you buy back their time(and their sanity) for over 15 years.