How Healthy Are Your Habits?

When I tell people I’m a rower, the second thing they say is invariably, “Wow, you must be super-fit.” (The first thing is, “Really? You don’t look like a rower,” but that’s another story.) So when Simply Health laid down a challenge to bloggers to write about their top three healthy habits (as part of their Healthy Habits blog), it was pretty obvious which my first one would be, right?

1. Rowing

The thing is, I didn’t always have the exercise habit. There were always so many more interesting things to do. Like cleaning the loo. Or sorting out my council tax. So how did I get the habit? Well, first of all by finding a sport I actually enjoyed, and one that I could do outside. And yes, right now as I type, I should be at an erg training session, which kinda proves the point. The other trick is to find a sport where other people rely on you to turn up.

The downside of all this is that my house is dirty and my paperwork is a mess, but hey, you can’t have everything.

2. Water

A one-woman campaign to drink the nation’s reservoirs dry.

The last time there was a hosepipe ban, my husband suggested it was because I’d drunk all the water. And it’s true that I do drink a lot of water. Which is a good thing: if you’re dehydrated it makes you sluggish, it’s bad for your skin and it gives you bad breath.

So how did I manage to pick up such a healthy habit? Hmmm, I think it was being bored at work back in the days when I had a Proper Job. A visit to the water cooler gave me something to do. And the habit stuck. That’s fine. A habit doesn’t need to have a pure motivation to be healthy.

3. Meditation

Ommmm…..

I can’t claim this one as a habit just yet, but I’m working on it. I’m half way through a mindfulness course which involves a daily meditation as part of the deal. Now I’ll admit that sometimes my daily practice is disrupted – like when halfway through this morning’s session a bailiff knocked on the door looking for the previous tenant – and there are days when I run out of time, so the habit is a bit wobbly so far.

What I can say, hand on heart, is that on the days when I do manage it, I’m calmer, more cheerful, better able to cope with whatever life throws at me. That sounds like a pretty sound reason to stick at it. And to deal with the bailiff before he comes knocking again.

But before you start picturing me as some pious, zen-like, lentil-chomping, fitness freak, I should say that I have plenty of reassuringly bad habits. I have a penchant for pork scratchings (classy), rarely a day goes by without slurping down a glass or so of wine, and I still really, really hate the erg. It’s all about the balance.