SATURDAY, JAN. 4, 2025 (HealthDay News) — Some standard health tips are timeless, aren’t they? The basics of living a healthy life don’t really change. Get lots of sleep and rest, exercise, and nutrient rich food. Manage stressors and symptoms.
But as basic as those rules can be, it is still hard to practice them consistently. What’s more, wellness is more about enhancing your life than following rules. As a new year dawns, UCLA Health experts share some of their most practical and not-always-obvious feel-good advice. Here, seven smart tips from seven different health and wellness experts.
1. Keep Doing the Good-for-You Things You Already Do
“Most of what people can do to have a healthy 2025 is not much different than what they could do to have a healthy 2024: exercise; don’t smoke; drink alcohol in moderation, if at all; stay engaged; and keep your mind stimulated.
Be decent in every interaction and seek optimism every day. You may not find something to rejoice about but you may find something meaningful that may help others and yourself.” — Dr. David B. Reuben, geriatrician.
2. Honor and Nurture Your Feet
“Our feet take a pounding every day, but most of us don’t take care of our feet.
Give yourself a foot massage. It’s a simple, easy thing that anyone can do – very low cost, low investment and high yield.
There is a whole body of knowledge about reflexology, which is really acupressure points, and how you stimulate a lot of these points when you massage your feet. Get a simple golf ball or a roller, and roll each foot over it. It can be relaxing, especially if you combine it with closing your eyes and deep breathing.
I usually tell patients to massage their feet daily, but the best time to do it is at night before you go to bed.” — Dr. Lawrence Taw, director of the UCLA Center for East-West Medicine, Torrance.
3. Integrate Your Health Goals
“To me, health refers to body, spirit and mind.
For the body, it’s best to eat whole foods and incorporate some type of physical activity on a routine basis. Give yourself permission to indulge, in moderation, in foods that bring you joy.
With the mind, it’s making sure to increase awareness of helpful versus unhelpful thoughts. You need to have access to social support and to give the mind some rest by unplugging from social media and becoming intentional about focusing on present-moment interactions.
With the spirit and heart, it is finding and connecting to people, activities, hobbies, interests that nourish the soul – anything that brings connection and can foster meaning. It can be spending time with loved ones, finding connection through music, literature and art, prayer, meditation and spirituality, or community-based activities.” — Dr. Valentina Ogaryan, clinical director of the Simms/Mann UCLA Center for Integrative Oncology.
4. Prioritize Stress Management
“To have a healthy 2025, individuals should focus on managing stress through mindfulness practices, quality sleep, and strong social connections which can significantly enhance mental health and resilience. This is in addition to maintaining a healthy diet and regular exercise, of course.
When it comes to sports and athletics, focus on injury prevention, mix up workouts with cross-training, and support the body with proper nutrition and hydration.” — Dr. Marissa Vasquez, lead team physician for the LA Dodgers.
5. Savor, and Strive For, Mindful Rest
“Make time for rest. This means unplugging from time to time and just being rather than constantly doing. Practice gratitude. Even brief moments recalling things that you are grateful for can shift your day from resentment and overwhelm to a sense of peace and appreciation.
Savor the joyful moments. In addition to gratitude, there are many moments in the day when we experience joy or pleasure. Don’t skip over them. Take a moment to savor the experience, even for a few seconds. We need to build up our joy resources.
When you’re stressed, remember STOP: Stop; Take a breath or two; Observe how you’re feeling inside; and Proceed with a bit more awareness and calm.” — Diana Winston, director of UCLA Mindful.
6. Monitor Your Energy Levels
“Check in with your internal energy just like you approach your phone battery: How charged are you? Do you start the day at 100%? What depletes you and what energizes you?
Lean into the energizing practices and minimize the depleting ones. Tuning into how you moderate your energy permits you to make better choices about how you move through your day.
Take pauses and slow down. Life tends to feel loud and fast. Give yourself permission to dial down the volume and speed.”
— Dr. Elizabeth Ko, medical director of the UCLA Health Integrative Medicine Collaborative
“Put down your iPad, stand up and move.
Whatever you did yesterday — if it was walking a block, walk two today, four tomorrow; if it was a mile, walk two today, three tomorrow, and so on. Humans are great at building endurance — it’s in our DNA! Be true to your genes and move!
Be purposeful. Outside of your job, find something to do that matters: volunteer, learn a new language, put down your news and social media feeds, and pick up an instrument and learn to play.” — Dr. Jesse Mills, director of the Men’s Clinic at UCLA Health.
