A little while ago, I found myself in the same boat. After a certain point, enough was enough. I decided that I needed a change, before my dopamine-addicted brain and oversized belly spiralled further out of control. 

I desperately needed a shake-up, but I wasn’t interested in Mark Wahlberg’s 4 am gym sessions or this week’s trending fad diet (it’s carnivore, just in case you’re interested). I wanted to find the most efficient, impactful ways to trigger positive, long-lasting changes to my health and lifestyle as a whole.

Here’s what I came up with…

I Started Running

No, I’m not training for an Iron Man, marathon, or even a 10k. When I started running, I just wanted to give it a go. My goal was to go on one 30-minute run every week – distance wasn’t the main factor. 

I needed to burn calories, and going for a run certainly helped with that. On an average 30-minute run, I burn around 500 calories. Granted, I’m a bit taller than average, but it delivered on the weight loss front. As long as you don’t push yourself too hard, you don’t want to risk any muscle pain. 

One thing that I didn’t expect was the lightning bolt of motivation that struck with every single run. Maybe it was just endorphins, or maybe it’s something to do with the satisfaction that comes with keeping up a run around the city on a sunny day. Either way, that motivation bled into other areas of my life and inspired me to continue on my path to a healthier, happier life. 

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I Sorted Out My Gut Health

Here it is. The obligatory diet-related section of the health article. But I want to zone in on the north star that guided all of the changes to my diet, because I didn’t eliminate food groups like fat, carbohydrates, or red meat. I wanted to optimise my diet and evolve it into something that I could actually stick with.

That meant targeting my gut. You see, our guts aren’t like other body parts. They’re bustling ecosystems that are home to trillions of tiny microbial workers that help break down our food. I could go into this more, but a lot of it comes down to this: if these helpful little workers are healthy and happy, so are we. 

The changes I made to my diet weren’t exactly earth-shattering. I reduced the amount of ultraprocessed foods I was eating: frozen foods, like pizzas, fried chicken, and chips, were out. Fibre (often in the form of bananas, lentils, and vegetables) was in, along with probiotics and fermented foods, like kimchi, sauerkraut, and kefir yogurts.

Now, not only have I lost weight, but bloating and inflammation are down, and maybe it’s just a placebo effect, but I’m feeling better mentally, too. 

I Prioritised My Sleep

Back before I decided to turn my life around, I always thought I was a night owl. I’d stay up late every night without fail, often scrolling through my phone into the early hours of the morning. At the time, I thought that five and a half hours of sleep was enough to feel refreshed for the next day.

I’ve never been so wrong in all of my life. Changing up my bedtime routine and sleep schedule was probably the easiest change I made, and on top of that, I’d also say that it was easily the most impactful. 

I set myself the goal of getting a consistent 7-9 hours of sleep every night (8 ideally). I knew it wouldn’t be easy at first, but I deployed some strategies to help make it a bit easier. 

The first one was the most difficult for my rotted brain: no screen time within an hour of going to sleep. Your phone is bad for your sleep, and there’s some science to back up why. 

At night-time, our brains should be producing melatonin, the drowsiness hormone, which makes us feel tired at bedtime. The problem with phones is that our brains mistake the backlight on the screen for sunlight, which actually causes the brain to halt the production of melatonin and stops us from feeling tired altogether.

So no phone time. I replaced it with a book, which I actually enjoy more (as an aside, I’d highly recommend something like Red Rising or Mistborn to anyone wanting to get into reading). On top of that, the next sleepy change was a straightforward one: go to sleep and wake up at the same time every day. 

Getting a consistent night’s sleep helps to regulate our body’s circadian rhythm, which makes getting to sleep easier and easier, and helps to regulate metabolism. 

Closing Thoughts

So, there you have it. 3 positive changes that can make you happier and healthier in under 30 days. Please note, you don’t need to take everything I’ve done and copy/paste it into your life. We’re all different, so just give some of them a try and see if they work for you, whether you try going for a 15-minute run, start snacking on kefir yogurts, or focus on getting a consistent 8 hours of sleep.

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