Bruce Bucks

Today’s post is going to focus on habits that you can build into your life that will drastically change your life in some shape or form. Some of these habits have immediate results, while other habits will have long lasting results in the future. Some of these habits are selfless habits that will change the way we live as a world of people. Here are my 5 Habits that will Change Your Life:

Save at least 10%:

One habit that could drastically change your life is saving 10% of everything you make. Some experts will say that in today’s world 10% isn’t nearly enough, but I would argue that 10% is a good place to start. The minimum you should be saving now is 10%, but if you are already in your early 40′s with very little savings then you might want to increase it. Columnist Liz Weston provided this rule of thumb:

“Save 10% for basics, 15% for comfort, 20% to escape. This rule of thumb works pretty well if you start to save for retirement by your early 30s. Saving at least 10% of your income ensures you won’t be eating pet food. Fifteen percent should get you a more comfortable living, while 20% gives you a shot at an early retirement (and yes, you get to count employer contributions as part of your percentage). Wait just a decade to start, though, and you’ll need 15% for basics and 20% for comfort; an early retirement may not be in the cards.”

Saving money is an important habit to maintain throughout your life. Your diligence in saving money and being a good steward of your money will change the way that you live. You will have more money to give away, you will have money to provide opportunities and experiences for your kids and family members. You will be able to go and see places that you never would have experienced without your savings.

Exercise for at least 30 minutes everyday:

You will change your life if you spend at least 30 minutes of your day exercising. The benefits include reducing the risk of cancer, type II diabetes, lowering your blood pressure, building muscles and stronger bones, and reducing your stress level. To be honest I don’t care how important you are or how busy you are, we all can find 30 minutes in our day to exercise.

Find ways to integrate your life into your exercise routine. Walk your dog for 30 minutes, have your kids walk with you to the park and back, or instead of going out on a date with your spouse go hiking on Saturday morning. Adding just 30 minutes of exercise a day will change your life, because you will prevent disease and promote long lasting life.

Eat more vegetables and less meat:

Fruits and vegetables provide better nutrients for your body than meat does. “A diet rich in fruits and vegetables plays a role in reducing the risk of all the major causes of illness and death,” says Walter Willet, Head of the Nutrition Department at the Harvard School of Public Health.  When comparing men and women who eat a lot of red meat with those who do not, those who eat more meat have a higher risk of cancer and heart disease.  The other benefits of fruits and vegetables is that they cause a lot less harm on our environment. The amount of money, water, feed, and land that goes into feeding cattle in the US is overwhelming. I heard once, and I can’t remember the source, that if we took the grain that we use to feed our cattle, we would have enough food to the feed the whole world. Eating more vegetables and less meat no only can change your life, but it could also change another person’s life.

Floss daily:

This daily habit is directed at me. Although I brush my teeth everyday, sometimes even twice a day , daily flossing has never been a part of my routine. Flossing daily has been said to add years to your life. I am not going to try and prove that to you today, but I will say that flossing daily does have its own benefits. Flossing daily prevents tooth decay, it prevents gingivitis and periodontitis (tooth loss), and it prevents bad breath. If those reasons are not enough for you to floss more, then you might want to stay single the rest of your life.

First of all, I would like to keep my teeth throughout my life and I also want my wife to be able to kiss me without being confronted with the breath of death. Floss daily people, it could literally change your life.

**Pause here! Go Floss! I just did.**

Get 7 hours of sleep:

If you live in my house, you would know that I love sleep. You would also know that I am one grumpy man if I do not get at least 8-9 hours of sleep. I just enjoy having plenty of time in my bed sleeping. Sleeping is one of those highlights in my day. Well according to researchers at West Virginia University my 8-9 hours of sleep is too much sleep.

“People who sleep more or fewer than seven hours a day, including naps, are increasing their risk for cardiovascular disease, the leading cause of death in the United States, a study published Sunday shows.” -Discovery.com

According to those researchers 7 hours is the perfect number. I would definitely rather get more sleep than not enough sleep. I would assume that sleep deprivation was worse for you than too much sleep. I’ll see what I can do to limit my consumption of sleep each day .

Obviously it would be pretty hard to integrate all these habits into our daily routine in one day, but maybe today you can choose one habit to focus on, and work to build that habit into your daily life.

-Matt

[Photo Credit: existingstricky.blogspot.com]