Make A Resolution to Improve Your Lifestyle

Make a resolution to improve your lifestyle this year! We’ve all made New Year’s resolutions that didn’t last until the end of January because they were overly aggressive and took too much time and effort to sustain. Finding simple ways to lower stress, improve health and add to your enjoyment of life can make it much easier to sustain your resolutions and improve your lifestyle.

Simple Ways to Improve Your Lifestyle

Get More Exercise

If you’re someone that loves to exercise, you’ve probably already found ways to work exercise into your daily routine. If the thought of exercising makes you want to go take a nap, there are ways to integrate simple, fun exercise into your life. 30-minutes of walking, five days a week, mixed with some muscle-strengthening activities satisfies the CDC’s recommended levels of exercise for most people.

Walk More Often Walking is one of the simplest ways to get healthy exercise. Walking around your neighborhood is a great way to get your steps in without having to drive to the gym. There are also simple ways to add steps at work or when running errands like using the stairs instead of the elevator or parking further away from the store entrance.
Learn to Play Pickleball Pickleball is America’s fastest-growing sport. It’s easy to learn and play, helps improve and maintain physical fitness and best of all, it’s fun! From children 6 and over to seniors over 65, almost anyone can learn to play and enjoy pickleball. Find a Pickleball court near you.
Take Dancing Lessons According to an article titled Dancing as a Workout on WebMD.com, “Dancing is a whole-body workout that's actually fun. It's good for your heart, it makes you stronger, and it can help with balance and coordination. A 30-minute dance class burns between 130 and 250 calories, about the same as jogging.”

Reduce Stress

Once you decide to make a resolution to improve your lifestyle, one of the most important things you can do is find ways to reduce stress in your life.

Spend More Time Outside The desire to connect with nature is referred to as biophilia and has proven to have a beneficial effect on most people. According to the National Institute of Health (NIH), spending time outdoors can induce a number of health benefits.
Schedule More “Me” Time For many of us, our lives can be busy and stressful, and we often don’t make time to just relax and unwind. Even if we do, we often feel guilty about it. However, the stress will eventually catch up with us in small and sometimes unexpected ways. By scheduling regular “me” time, we can lower our stress levels and improve our outlook on life. This may also prove to be beneficial for our loved ones and colleagues.
Get More Sleep According to the National Institutes of Health, “… sleep deficiency can affect how well you think, react, work, learn and get along with others”. The American Sleep Association (ASA), warns that if your brain gets used to being stimulated by watching TV, using your mobile devices or working while in bed, you won’t be able to relax as easily when you go to bed, making it difficult to get a good night’s sleep. Try having a cup of herbal tea and reading a real book before going to bed, rather than watching TV, using mobile devices or browsing social media.
Get Organized Getting organized at home and work can help reduce stress which can help us feel better about ourselves and improve our relationships with others. It also makes it easier to get things done and keep our houses or apartments and workspaces clean. Take steps to learn how to get organized to reduce stress.

Make Plans to Travel

Improving your lifestyle isn’t just about reducing the bad stuff like stress, it’s also about adding more good things like going to new places, meeting new people and generally being more social. Several studies published in Psychological Science suggest that we get more happiness when anticipating experiential purchases than we do from material goods.

New Experiences Traveling is one of the best ways to experience new things, places and people. In addition to the joy connected to the anticipation of traveling, an LA Times online article references a 2013 study that suggests the benefits of travel are almost immediate and that 89% of respondents experienced significantly less stress after just a couple of days.
Be More Social Happy people tend to be more social and being more social tends to make us happier. There are many ways to increase your positive social interactions from volunteer work to joining a club centered around one of your interests. An evening on the town with friends and traveling to new places are also great ways to increase social interaction and enjoyment in your life.
Spend More Time with Family and Friends The same study mentioned above also noted that “59% of Americans dream of traveling during their retirement and the most impactful trips are those spent with family and friends”. Many of our best memories are from times we spent with our family and friends and as we get older that becomes even more important.

Epcon Communities Lifestyle

Epcon Communities builds luxury single-level homes in communities throughout the country. We offer floor plans from 1,300 to over 3,000 square feet with 2-4 bedrooms and most of our communities include resort-style amenities, so you’re sure to find the perfect fit for your lifestyle.

Many of our communities offer the following amenities to help you improve your lifestyle.

Landscaping and snow removal so you have more time to enjoy doing what you love like visiting friends and family.
Lock & leave lifestyle allows you to travel without worrying about your home while you’re away.
Sidewalks throughout the community and walking trails make daily walks easy and fun.
A clubhouse with a general-purpose meeting area and kitchen, exercise equipment and a swimming pool for additional exercise and social engagement.
Tennis, pickleball or bocce ball courts are available in some communities providing a fun way to stay in shape.
Social events provide a sense of community and make it easy to meet new friends.

Make a resolution to improve your lifestyle by contacting us and exploring all the benefits we offer.