by Heather Williams

Our bodies are made of 75% water, so that should tell you this plain liquid is pretty important to our health. While drinking a certain number of glasses a day isn’t necessary, you should try to choose water whenever you’re thirsty. 

In the search for the perfect body or successful career, there might be some ways you’re damaging your health and don’t even realize it. Let’s be honest- most of us get busy and have very little time to dedicate to maintaining a perfect body all the time. Not to mention, we have to make money, so we put a lot of energy into our careers. Yet in the process of running the rat race of life, it can lead to poor health quickly without you even having time to notice. Be sure in the midst of your busy schedules that you’re aware of these ways you’re damaging your health without even realizing it. If you’re guilty of any of them, it’s time to take a few steps back and get yourself focused again so you can be your happiest, healthiest self!

1. YOU DON’T EAT ENOUGH

One of the worst ways you’re damaging your health without realizing it is if you don’t eat enough. Whether it’s due to a fear of calories, a diet you’re on, or you just lack the time, not eating enough is bad for you all the way around. It stalls weight loss, lowers productivity and energy, and ruins your mood. Not eating enough can also cause your muscles to breakdown, your brain to age, and even causes digestive problems. Be sure to eat at least 300-400 calories per meal and don’t fear snacks as long as they’re healthy.

2. YOU DON’T SLEEP ENOUGH

Listen, dear- burning both ends of the candle won’t make you more successful and it certainly won’t make you healthier! Staying up late and getting up early actually changes your metabolism and the way your brain works. It makes you hungrier, moodier, lowers your metabolism, creates mental fog, and causes your body to produce more stress. Getting 7-8 hours isn’t negotiable- make it a priority!

3. YOU’RE ALWAYS ON A DIET

If you’re eating low-carb one week, low-fat the next, or doing some sort of cleanse in a month, you’re just asking for trouble. Constantly changing your diet confuses your body, especially when taken to extremes. Different diets work for different people so when you find one that works, give it at least a couple months and stay on it.

4. WORKING OVERTIME EVERYDAY

Pulling a few extra hours one or two days a week at the office isn’t a bad thing. It’s when you make it a habit of it that it becomes a problem. Not only does it tax your body, but it also makes you less productive. It means you don’t have the time you need to eat healthy, exercise, and get a good night’s rest because you’re working nonstop.

6. YOU DON’T DRINK ENOUGH WATER

Our bodies are made of 75% water, so that should tell you this plain liquid is pretty important to our health. While drinking a certain number of glasses a day isn’t necessary, you should try to choose water whenever you’re thirsty. Water keeps you hydrated, energized, and less likely to dig into the cookies and chips.

7. YOU DON’T EAT ENOUGH FAT

Not eating enough fat is also something you might be guilty of without realizing it. You need to eat plenty of healthy fats from fish (or take a supplement), raw nuts and seeds, raw coconut, olives and olive oil, avocados, and even organic eggs to give your body the fats it needs to be healthy. Why? Healthy fats actually help you think more clearly, they energize you, they help your digestion, and they even help you lose weight and eat less sugary foods. Just avoid the fats in processed foods and you’re good to go!

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