Quit smoking. Stop Drinking. Lose 20 pounds. While all that is necessary and will undoubtedly result in long-term health improvements, it is time-consuming, requires almighty willpower and impossible to achieve any improvement in a day.  But what about simple improvements that you can do for yourself today that would make a world of difference to your mind, body and soul ? yes, you can and yes they exist!  In this article, we bring you  11 simple and easy lifestyle changes that will improve your health. Pick one or two or all of them, make them a habit.   Even one of these changes can make a tremendous difference. Soon, your discipline level and self-confidence will rise where you will start believing that you can do anything, and quitting those darn cigarettes won’t seem that dreadful. But let’s begin with the little things first…       Drink More Water Our lives are so busy, and drinking water isn’t necessarily in your priority list. However, it will eventually take its toll on you, where dehydration affects your organs, skin and your mental awareness Our body is composed of 60% water, and for it to function optimally, you need to maintain a Healthy amount of hydration, all the time. To do this, start early,  drink some water as soon as you get up – you have spent (hopefully) eight hours without a single drop. Your body and organs will thank you for it. Adding some lemon in your water is also beneficial for your digestive system.  You should continue upping the fluids throughout the day. Try not to wait until you feel thirsty. If you feel thirsty, you are already dehydrated, the goal is to prevent that from happening. How much is enough? For men, depending on your weight and height, approximately  3.7 liters per day, for women, 2.7 liters. Sounds like a lot, but it is probably a little more than you are already drinking. The 8×10 rule helps, and is easy to follow – you just drink 8 ounces (250 ml) of water, 10 times per day, and you are good. It’s not just water, any fluid counts, the only exception is alcohol, which will dehydrate you even more. Also, this is a recommended amount for most people, but if you exercise, are involved in other strenuous activities, or work outside on the sun, you will need more fluids to rehydrate. Also, drinking your water strategically, for example, drinking thirty minutes before a meal can actually reduce your appetite, helping you lose weight.       Sleep An Hour More Sleep is so important, and yet, so many people don’t get enough of it. Too many of us treat sleep like wasting time and choose to get an extra hour of TV time, instead an extra hour of sleep. It’s bad enough that getting quality sleep seems to be an impossible task for some people with distraction and causes such as; sleeping with your stomach full, blue lights from your mobile/ computer, snoring and stress.  These factors can make you tired, unfocus and unsettled. Getting this right is easy. First, unless you are already getting eight hours of sleep, aim to add one hour more. So if you are sleeping four hours on average, push that to five. Next, you need to set up a sleeping schedule – going to sleep, and waking up at the same time will help your body to get in a rhythm, and you will feel less groggy after waking up. After doing that for a while, you will notice that you will sleep and wake up roughly at the same time, even if you forget to turn on the alarm. Also, to get quality sleep,  avoid eating a few hours before going to bed and put away all your electronic devices. Try not to sleep with them! Better still, if you can try to meditate or simply just relax before your sleep. You will start noticing the benefits after a few days.     Eat Breakfast Once you have established a sleeping pattern, you can do the same with meals. Adding a tasty but healthy breakfast at home will help you keep the weight down. Breakfast will kick-start your metabolism, turning on the calorie burning furnace. It will help you start your day energised. Eating the right food for breakfast can also increase your focus, keep the energy level steady and keep you satiated until lunchtime, which means, you would be less likely to choose naughty food for lunch. It would be ideal to eat breakfast right at home before you head out. But if that is not possible, or you don’t want to wake up earlier, don’t want to wash the dishes or similar, make something healthy in the evening before and eat it once you get to your destination. Avoid fast food – the last thing you need is to overdose your body with lots of sodium first thing in the morning.     Walk How many times have you vowed to start going to the gym and work out-serious-as-shit, only to find every excuse under the sun and just ended up not going? Well, not working out doesn’t make you a bad person, some people just don’t like the pain or just don’t like to sweat. But that said, you still do have to lead an active style to stay healthy. The Japanese haven’t always been the gym going type of people, but they are super healthy and live a long time! It’s the food they eat and the amount of walking they do! Walking is low impact, and you are less likely to injure yourself. Second, it’s easy, if you are reasonably fit, you can do it, and you’re probably already doing it every day, but not enough. Start with 30 minutes of walking per day, and slowly move that to one hour, that’s it. This is doable by getting off the subway one station earlier, and walking to your office, and doing the...

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