Guide to Health and Wellness

As 2024 begins, many people use the new year as a fresh start in areas of health and wellness. “The connections between mental and physical health are more significant than science and medicine has given credit for in the past,” says Jonathan Cogburn, Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, who has worked in private practice and educational support roles in the Abilene area. These five simple practices will jumpstart your mental and physical health this new year.

5 Simple Ways to Live a Healthy Lifestyle

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1. Get an alarm clock. Sleep is a vital part of our lives, and our sleep has suffered as our cell phones have become addictions. One way to sleep better is to charge your phone away from your bed and go back to using a traditional alarm clock. The Sunrise Alarm Clock uses a dim light that gets brighter to gradually wake you up before the alarm sounds. This is a great alarm clock for children and adults, but any traditional alarm clock will work. The goal is to not have your phone be the last thing you see at night and the first thing you see in the morning.

2. Add a vegetable into your life. “Instead of focusing on what you shouldn’t eat,” Jen Gorman, MS, RDN, LD and Nutritionist with the Abilene Beauty Bus says, “focus on the delicious, fresh, and nutritious foods you should be eating MORE of.” The start of a new year is an opportunity to refocus on health and wellness, but often that looks like getting rid of, avoiding, and saying no. Reframing a healthy diet looks like saying yes to healthy foods. Head to your favorite grocery store, meander around the veggie section and add color to your plate. Green vegetables pack a lot of vitamins and fiber. Gorman says, “Stay positive this New Year and fuel your body with fresh, vibrant vegetables every day!”

3. Exercise. Leo Simonetti, owner of The Performance Lab gym, explains, “Exercise is great, but it looks different for everybody. Of all the different things out there, the most important thing is consistency in a workout routine.” Dance in your living room, practice yoga at Hotworx or pilates at Club Pilates, walk briskly around your neighborhood (invite a friend to join you) or one of the many walking trails in town (Lunsford at ACU, Red Bud Park trail, Cedar Creek Walkway, to name a few), swim at the Hendrick Health Club, work out at home with an online routine, begin a new active hobby like Tae Kwon Do at Team Chip, vacuum your house, take up Pickleball, jump on the trampoline with your kids, take classes at a gym (there are so many options with varying levels of cost), hike at the Abilene State Park. 30 minutes of moderate exercise at least three times a week is what Simonetti recommends.

4. Create a new bedtime routine of reading instead of scrolling for better health and wellness. Now that your phone is charging in another room, instead of scrolling right before sleep, grab a book and an amber book light. The staff at the Abilene Public Library gathered data on the number of physical items checked out by month in our local libraries. The highest volume of books is checked out in the summer months. Schools are out of session, and children check out books in the community libraries instead of at school. But books are not just for children. Adults can get back to the childlike wonder of getting lost in a good novel. Summer also encourages a culture of reading on vacation to relax. Why not relax now? Keep a list of books you would like to read, check those out, and read a chapter or two before going to sleep. Since borrowing volume is almost 20% lower in January and February, chances are your book is available at one of Abilene Public Library’s local branches.

5. Meditate or practice regulating your breathing. “Wisdom literature has described the benefits of different kinds of meditation for thousands of years, and it’s exciting to see scientific evidence of those benefits come to light,” Cogburn explains. One of the best protocols Cogburn recommends is daily “4-7-8 Breathing,” especially before bedtime. Breathe in for 4 counts, hold for 7, and exhale for 8. Start with four cycles and work up to eight. This prepares your body for rest and sleep. Alternatively, if you feel anxious during the day but need to stay awake, practice Box Breathing. Inhale for 4 counts, hold for 4, exhale for 4, hold for 4. Repeat four times.

Choose one or more of these practices to improve your health and wellness to incorporate into your New Year’s Resolutions and pay attention to growth. Cogburn recommends making a habit of mentally checking in each week, asking yourself, “On a scale of 1-10 (with 10 being Very Good), how did I feel before starting this work, compared with now that I have been working to improve?”

By Laura Daulton

Related: Ask the Experts: Mental Health in Abilene TX