5 Simple Changes To Make Yourself Healthier and More Fit

A majority of people think that being fit and healthy all boils down to giant changes such as working out consistently, switching to a purely healthy diet, or heck, even being an athlete.

Breaking news: it's only a small portion of overall fitness.

A lot of people I know who do all these things still don't consider themselves healthy and fit because they're not at their target shape, weight, or fitness level yet. What could have possibly gone wrong? A discussion revealed that it's due to the small things and habits that continually affect their fitness journey: they work out consistently yet they either snack on junk food to death, continually subject themselves to stress, or slack off.

Your time in the gym is only a minute portion of your fitness journey; it's in the everyday that makes the most impact; simple, everyday things and habits; when you exit the gym, what and how much do you eat? On your off days, do you go the extra mile to burn a few more calories? How do you manage stress?

Believe it or not, these small things can greatly affect your fitness and health; they may be little and seem insignificant, but if compounded, they become big and considerable. If you find yourself in a plateau or you think your fitness journey is too slow or not going anywhere, then it's time to focus on the small things and detail your strategy.

Here are five simple changes that will make yourself more fit and healthier:

1. TWEAK YOUR CALORIES

- Let's be honest. Life is so much better if you can eat what you want and I will drink to that. Call me an anti-fitness adviser, but I'm advising you to eat whatever you want not because I'm after the taste of food, but because I'm after the good feeling that comes with it; it's also important to feel good!

But the secret to staying fit while eating what you want is to tweak your calories. Go for bite- sized versions of your favorite chocolate. Want a milkshake? Get one and drink half only. Treat yourself to a cheat meal once a week. Opt for brown sugar/artificial sweetener instead of white sugar or sugar syrup. Switch to Basmati rice instead of regular rice. You'll be surprised what tweaking calories can do to aid you in weight loss.

2. SNACK HEALTHY

- If you're a snacker, whether you eat your 3 big meals in smaller portions throughout the day or you just like having two extra, small meals on each day, go for healthy snacks such as yogurt, granola, carrot sticks, celery sticks, fruit, or nuts; they're more filling and healthier.

3. SAY NO TO STRESS

- Learn the art of letting go, of breathing, of taking a breather, of meditation, of anything that will help reduce and get rid of stress. How is this important to fitness and health? I have read in various medical literature that stress induces the hormone Cortisol, which holds fat in the body. Go figure.

4. FIX YOUR POSTURE

- Stand straight. Tighten your core. Roll back your shoulders to avoid slouching. Bad posture has long- term negative effects on your health and body, which in turn will affect your performance.

5. WALK!

- On my off days, I still try to burn more calories without actually kicking my arse in the gym. Walking is the answer. NEPA or Non-Exercise Physical Activity, is one of the best ways to shed excess weight and burn more calories without stressing out the body through strenuous activities aka exercising.

Whenever I get the chance, I walk to burn more calories: I walk to work, stroll around the mall non- stop for at least an hour (it's not boring because there are a lot to see, trust me!), have myself dropped off a block away from my actual location so I can walk, or walk my dog.

If you're not yet sold on the idea of walking and walking on your non-workout days as one of the best ways to become more fit, then you have to download Philam Vitality App to hopefully inspire you to take your fitness journey to the next level because when you do, you will be rewarded!

Philam Vitality Active is a fitness app that provides incentives when you become more active. Whenever you run, walk, or dance, you get the chance to earn points that will allow you to redeem various rewards.

Allow me to guide you through the process of signing up and I'll share my thoughts and experiences with the app briefly below as well.

First, download PHILAM VITALITY ACTIVE app; it is available at Google Play and Appstore. It's free!

Sign up for an account. A confirmation message will be emailed to you; just follow the steps in there to activate your account. 

Log into the app. The app will ask you a series of questions regarding your fitness activity, level, and health status that they will record to help you keep track of your journey; your vitality age, according to them, will also be revealed when you have accomplished the initial questionnaire; when you get a number that's higher than your actual age, then you gotta start getting fit or increasing your activity!

Next, link the app to another fitness app; the fitness app will count your steps and Philam Vitality Active app will compute your points, based on the incurred steps.

I'm using an iPhone and I've used Apple Health app, which is pre- installed in the smartphone, as my fitness app of choice. There are other apps to choose from and use such as Strava; there's also a handy list of preferred fitness apps within Philam Vitality Active app to help you choose.

Now here's the exciting part: collecting points for incentives! For every 7,500 steps, you will get 50 points. Each number of points has a corresponding reward; the higher the points, the better the list of rewards to choose from. You can also create teams and compete with friends; this should be a very fun activity among your group!

Here's a list of rewards that you can redeem using your points:

Free P200 text and call credits on Globe postpaid plan 

Free P200 text and call credits on Globe prepaid plan 

Free P200 call and text on Touch Mobile prepaid 

P200 hotel/resort accommodation voucher from Agoda 

Free movie from BlinkFree entrance to the dome theatre of Exploreum 

Free Grab car ride up to P200 (available in Metro Manila, Cebu, and Bacolod only) 

Free one bowling game at SM Bowling 

Free 2D ticket at SM Cinemas 

Free one hour ice skating at SM Ice Skating

Awesome, right?

Here are my thoughts on the app:

- I love that the app encourages people to walk more and be more active, and the incentives greatly help in the process

- It's secure and easy to use

- I love that it promotes camaraderie among friends

- I love that it encourages an alternative recreational activity among friends

- Device needs to be close to you to track steps

- Workouts such as Crossfit, strength training and conditioning, Powerlifting, Boxing, Muay Thai, and movement- heavy exercises may not allow smartphone use when working out, therefore steps incurred may not be counted because device is not close to the body; for workouts like this, fitness trackers like Garmin or Fitbit are needed

So there! Walk now, get rewarded later. If you want to know more about the app, visit PHILAM LIFE on Facebook. Check out their website at philamlife.com/vitalityactive.

What small changes are you currently doing or will do in order to improve your fitness and health? Let's talk about it!

DISCLOSURE: This post is brought to you by Philam Life and The Beauty Junkee