- Jun 7, 2017

6 Common Lifestyle Mistakes to Avoid

Updated: Oct 16, 2022

Are the health trends really sustainable? In this post, I’m going to cover some of the common mistakes you keep making that are impacting your well-being directly and indirectly.

If you own a phone, you 100% have heard of the latest diet trend, workout routine, superfood, and tricks for living healthier and may even be chasing some of them yourself.

I’m here to tell you, even if you decide to follow these fad diets and lifestyle models, 9 out of 10 times you will end up feeling they aren’t sustainable and cannot be considered as a maintainable healthy lifestyle change.

That’s why in this post I am going to share with you 6 Common health and lifestyle mistakes you could be making.

My goal is for everyone to succeed with the healthy lifestyle they are dreaming of and to feel nourished, alive and good about themselves on a daily basis by building small habits.

Read My article titled “A Realistic And Easy Way To Break Bad Habits Today”

6 Common Lifestyle Mistakes

1. You forget to drink water first thing in the morning

One of the very common mistakes I notice in my clients is that they often get so busy that they forget to get enough water! Not hydrating your system throughout the day can lead to many health issues overtime. Breaking the habits of drinking beverages that dehydrate our system like soda and coffee is part of this step too.

Replenishing your supply first thing in the morning is a good small habit you can start building. Trigger yourself by leaving a big glass by your bed for the morning. You can do what I do, and get a big travel mug with a lid. At night, I fill it up with water, and in the morning it’s waiting for me.

Don’t forget that for every black tea or coffee that you drink you need two cups of water to rehydrate. It’s another common mistake to rely on caffeinated or sugary drinks for hydration. Through the day, I put my large water bottle next to my laptop so I never forget to hydrate and flush the toxins out.

meal prepping

2. You don’t plan your meals

Having a plan makes it easier to make good choices. The second common mistake you might be making is that you are not prepared. Plan easy and healthier recipes you enjoy ahead of time and focus on making those for the week. You can spend a few hours over the weekend, to prepare at least some of the ingredients of your meals and have them ready in the fridge. This will make cooking or meal prepping on weekdays quicker and smarter.

For instance, if you are eating a whole food plant-based diet like me, batch cook your legumes and sweet potatoes, or rice ahead of time. Can you imagine, how easy putting together hearty wholesome meals like stir-fries will get if the protein and starch of your meals are ready to go?

I love stir-fries because you can throw in any vegetables you have.

3. Your snacks are filled with refined sugars and oils

Again being prepared will leave no room for excuses for eating unhealthy all week long.

Highly processed and packaged store-bought snacks are loaded with refined oils, genetically modified corn by-products and different sugars. Making an effort to swap the habit of eating sugary snacks with healthy ones is a huge favor you do yourself and loved ones. I make my own trail mix and I portion into containers or mason jars for a go-to snack.

Make snacking simple and healthy by having fruits and cut veggies and homemade dips already placed into divided out Tupperware containers so you can grab and go during the week.

4. You stay up late and don’t go to bed at a reasonable hour

Scrolling on social media can be a way for so many to wind down. But this habit is harming your mental and physical health extensively.

The blue light from devices mess up your circadian rhythms, which are responsible for regulating sleep and wake cycles. Being exposed to blue light before bed has been shown to reduce or inhibit the production of melatonin, a hormone critical for sleep function.

Imbalanced hormones will affect your energy levels the following day, moreover, when you don’t get enough sleep you will crave more sugary treats throughout the day.

A 2010 study involving both healthy men and women showed that even just one night of sleep deficiency (four hours per night) put the body into an insulin-resistant state. A 2015 small randomized crossover study confirmed these results and went one step further to explain that “short sleep duration is associated with an increased risk of type 2 diabetes.”

5. You eat right before bedtime

Remember your digestive system needs between 30 minutes to 6 hours to break down and digest what you have eaten depending on what food you consumed. Eating too late is one of the common mistakes our daily routines or work schedules force upon us.

If you eat too late before sleeping, you’re more likely to have an unrestful night of sleep because your body is hard at work digesting that late-night snack or heavy high-fat food. Even if you think you sleep well, several studies have shown the negative effects of eating late. Weight gain, disrupted sleep cycle, digestive disturbances like GERD and acid reflux, memory and concentration problems are only a few which I’m sure no one likes to deal with in the long run.

Give your body at least 2 hours time to digest before going to bed. You’ll feel better I promise.

late night eating, friends having pizza, popcorn and snacks

5. You don’t start small and forget about taking baby steps towards health

This is one of the common mistakes I was sucked into all my adult life. For me originally, that was building an energizing and efficient morning routine to make the best of my golden hours, which was something I had NEVER done in my life before. I made my first goal and committed myself to try habit stacking: first to meditate, then to write and then to workout every morning for that first 6 months.

It was more motivating for me to set a goal. But, because I broke it down into baby steps that felt right and fun to me, I was able to stick to building a solid morning routine which has become one of my non-negotiables and has resulted in a lasting lifestyle change.

Choose a specific goal with a deadline and a plan to achieve that goal. If you try to change everything at once, you will get overwhelmed and give up. Stick to just a few simple swaps and build from there. Maybe your goal is to be able to do 10 correct push-ups at the end of 90 days. Be gentle with yourself and progress at your own pace.