Health and wellness are the two keywords to achieving a healthy, positive lifestyle…so what health and wellness activities can be integrated into our everyday life? As busy adults, college students, or whatever area we are in life right now, it is essential to stay emotionally, physically, and mentally healthy. The mind and body are always hard at work and to give you a glimpse into that, here are 70 quick health facts from The Good Body covering just about everything that goes on with our body. 

Here are some ideas for health and wellness activities that might not be the first you think of.

Spend Time With Animals

The BBC released a study that looked into looking at cute baby animal pictures and found: “Some research suggests that spending time looking at photos of fluffy animals can make us more productive. In 2012, researchers at Hiroshima University showed volunteers a series of pictures before asking them to complete a manual task, akin to the board game ‘Operation’, where they had to drop various body pieces into holes without touching the edges. Some of the participants were shown pictures of a tasty snack, while others were shown photos of adult animals and a third group was shown images of infant animals. Those who looked at cute and cuddly photos of baby animals consistently outperformed their peers.” Volunteering at your local animal shelter is also a rewarding experience but doubles as stress relief. If you are not comfortable with dealing with animals directly, take some time to look at some videos on YouTube.

Take a Cooking Class 

Whether it is virtual or in person, learning to eat healthy is a great health and wellness activity. Medical News Today reports that eating healthy improves your mood, reduces risk for heart disease and cancer, and improves your memory. You can find a list of virtual healthy cooking classes here. As far as local ones, it depends on your area and local COVID-19 restrictions. 

Try Group Meditation

Socialization and meditation are two things that can help improve mental health! In fact, Time Magazine wrote an article on how loneliness negatively impacts our mental health. Gather in a park, someone’s home, or yoga studio and practice meditation! This is an excellent health and wellness activity to include in a workplace as well. Here is a list of guided meditations from Mindful to get you started.

Stay Active 

Even if you have little to no experience in the gym, there are endless options to stay active. Not only that, there are ways to make it fun! There is horseback riding, hiking, beginner yoga, pilates, weight lifting, bike riding, or a simple walk in the park. The opportunities are there and ready to be done! The Mayo Clinic supports these activities by explaining the benefits: boosts energy and mood, better sleep, decreased risk of diseases and cancers, and so much more. This is not only beneficial but essential to your overall health. If it’s too hot outside? Check out this list of activities that you can do indoors. 

What Will You Do? 

There are an abundance of health and wellness activities to choose from which makes having a balanced life easier with these tools. Take the time to plan ahead each week to do something for yourself and to do with a group of people. What other activities do you recommend? Let us know!