Habits for Health

This article was originally published on bmf-tech.com.

Documenting my habits for health. Partly poetic, with the hope of future reflection and improvement.

Disclaimer

I cannot guarantee the accuracy (≒evidence-based) of what is written in this article. It is merely my "judgment" based on what I have researched and practiced.

About Me

A 31-year-old (as of 2024) who considers health a hobby. I work as a software engineer, primarily desk work. I tend to worry when I see unhealthy people.

What is Health?

Refer to japan-who.or.jp - Definition of Health.

Health is not simply the absence of disease; it is defined as a state of complete physical and mental well-being.

Why Health?

Why is health important? Why should we raise health awareness?

From my university days to about my third year as a working adult, I led an unhealthy lifestyle (regretfully), but gradually my health awareness improved.

• Feeling unwell, poor condition, low performance.
• Hangovers are tough. Shouldn't have drunk.
• My body shape is a bit... off?
• Health check results aren't bad, but are healthy habits established...? Not really. At this rate...
• Tend to accumulate stress. Want to release it effectively.

Such small changes gradually altered my awareness.

Compared to before, I think my health awareness has significantly increased.

If asked now why we should value health and invest in it, I would answer:

"Because I want to enjoy my life to the fullest."

Life may feel short in terms of time, but in terms of distance, it's long, like a marathon.

Depending on individual values, I believe that being able to run steadily for as long as possible leads to happiness in my life.

The longer you can stay healthy, the longer you can enjoy life proportionally.

Enjoying life means, for example, playing a lot with family, working hard at a rewarding job, or fully enjoying hobbies.

I believe health is the foundation that supports such things.

Health and Evidence

For thoughts on evidence, refer to The Complete Guide to Health Technology.

cf. bmf-tech.com - The Complete Guide to Health Technology

It's not easy to conclude what is good or bad for health.

There are more things like "this might not be good" or "it may not be good in some cases" than things that are "clearly not good."

The fields of medicine and public health, though outside my expertise, are evolving daily, just like the software world, and what is considered "correct" or "good" today may not be so in the future.

Therefore, updating knowledge and making judgments at one's own risk are necessary.

I place a certain level of trust in information from sources like WHO and the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, but I don't take it at face value and sometimes pay attention to the latest research or related information.

Health and Investment

Health is like cumulative investment; you don't get returns just because you worked hard for one day. (Though whether you get significant returns from cumulative investment is another question...)

It's something that requires long-term conscious effort, so it's better to start now rather than later.

I believe that most of human daily life is made up of habits. Health can be improved by reviewing daily habits and trying to establish them.

Health Habits

The introduction has become long, but I will categorize and document the health habits I am actually practicing.

The returns I feel I am getting from these health habits include:

• Less fatigue. Recover well every day.
• Lots of stamina!
• Less stress accumulation
• Stable and easily heightened concentration
• Stable daily physical and mental condition
• Able to wake up at almost the same time every day without an alarm
  • Zero stress from morning alarm alerts
  • Waking up naturally rather than forcibly, leading to better wakefulness
• No alerts (like needing tests or retests) in health check results
• Less prone to catching colds (though not entirely confident about this; you can still catch a cold even if you're careful about health.)

In my teens and twenties, I thought "what's the big deal, that's normal," but as humans age, they gradually decline, so I believe it's useful to resist aging by establishing habits early. (Realized this a few years ago.)

Even things that seem normal require a certain effort to maintain that normalcy.

While it is challenging to reach the point of habit formation, once it becomes a habit, maintaining it doesn't feel that difficult. In my habits, there is little hardship, even if there is some patience.

Tips for habit formation are introduced in a rational way in The Complete Guide to Health Technology, so please refer to it.

I hold no critical opinions or thoughts towards those who do not have the habits listed here, nor do I have any negative feelings towards people with different health habits. It is merely something I am pursuing of my own volition. Also, these are the things I am currently working on, and they may change in the future. If there are habits that are clearly problematic, please let me know with evidence.

The habits listed are based on information from sources like WHO, the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, and other books, and are pursued at my own discretion. It is cumbersome to attach information sources for each item, so I will omit them (you should be able to find evidence or research by googling or in books... not everything can be definitively stated as scientifically healthy. Rather, there are things that cannot be definitively stated or may be negated by new research findings).

Exercise

I engage in exercise habitually.

• Walking
  • Aim for over 8500 steps a day
  • Measured with Fitbit
  • Consciously use stairs, walk instead of using a bicycle
• Standing
  • Consciously balance time spent working while sitting and standing
  • Felt a decline in leg strength with remote work, but feel it has improved with more standing time
  • Utilize Fitbit's exercise alerts
• Gym
  • Not strictly scheduled, but about 2-3 times a week
  • Balance training with running, free weights, machines, bodyweight exercises
  • Kickboxing with a sandbag at a non-boxing gym (only for a few minutes...)
  • Recorded with Fitbit
• Running
  • Run about 2-3 times a week
  • Want to train cardiovascular function, but not sure if it's effective as I don't run long distances
  • Enjoyable as I see improvements in stamina
• Other
  • Count household chores, shopping, and playing with children as exercise (due to the physical activity involved)
  • If not counted as exercise, it's hard to control fatigue recovery (adjust exercise volume)
    • ex. Busy with chores today, did a lot of standing, so I'll skip the gym

Diet

Stabilizing diet is particularly challenging compared to other habits. It's quite difficult to maintain a stable diet due to temptations like appetite and busyness. Sometimes it gets disrupted, but I try to balance it when that happens.

• Timing
  • Eat meals at the same time every day as much as possible
  • Contributes to blood sugar stability (apparently)
  • Eat when hungry as much as possible
  • Different level of nutrient absorption (apparently)
• Frequency
  • Three times a day
  • Don't change the number of meals, but adjust the quantity
    • ex. Ate too much at lunch, so reduce carbs at dinner
• Quantity
  • Eat until 80% full
  • It was hard to get used to this. I used to eat a lot...
  • Got used to it by increasing chewing, eating low-carb foods when feeling unsatisfied, filling up with vegetables, etc. (Did my stomach adjust to the right size??)
    • I eat quickly, so I try to be careful, but there's room for improvement
  • Eat slightly more in the morning and afternoon than at night
    • More active during the day
• Food
  • Consume 350g (about two handfuls) of vegetables a day
  • This is difficult. I don't really understand the sense of it lol
  • Keep the fridge stocked with vegetables to ensure vegetables are consumed at every meal. Make dishes with more vegetables than meat, etc., and I think I'm managing quite well. Probably... (Not measuring, so not confident.)
  • Rich in color
  • Buy colorful vegetables with nutritional balance in mind, try buying vegetables other than routine ones
  • Reduce salt
  • Try to get daily salt intake close to WHO standards
  • Don't use a salt concentration meter strictly, but check the salt content of seasonings and ingredients, use measuring spoons properly
  • If I feel I've taken too much, I increase vegetable intake to "excrete salt" (not sure if this is medically credible.)
  • Eating out tends to be high in salt
  • Greatly reduce frequency of extremely high-salt foods like ramen, leave the soup, etc.
  • Buy reduced-salt products
  • There seems to be research suggesting you can get used to slightly reducing salt intake
  • Personally, I feel it. You really get used to it. To the extent that I can eat vegetables with just olive oil? (The degree to which the taste of the ingredients is sufficient increases?)
  • Rice
  • Add barley when cooking white rice, sometimes brown rice
  • Not entirely unconcerned about arsenic in brown rice, so don't eat it every day. It doesn't seem like there's definitive evidence on this, so honestly, I don't know.
  • Meat
  • Avoid processed meat
  • Eat red meat (beef, pork, etc.) but more chicken
  • Avoid consuming too much fat
  • Fish
  • Eat meat and fish in balance, ideally with a slight preference for fish
  • Tends to be about half and half, or more meat
  • Fish is expensive
  • Be mindful of purines (don't overeat)
  • Be mindful of salt (fish tends to be high)
  • Dairy
  • Eat yogurt almost every day
  • Drink milk almost every day. Though my height won't increase anymore.
  • Fruits
  • Want to eat daily for vitamin intake, but... expensive
  • Snacks
  • Rarely
  • Tend to eat when tired, but avoid as I tend to overeat
  • Occasionally eat low-carb foods if I feel I need calories due to exercise or condition
  • Sweets
  • Eat one sweet on weekends as a weekend treat
  • Strictly limit to enhance enjoyment as I tend to overeat
  • Drinks
  • Water, sparkling water
    • Mostly drink these
  • Don't drink juice
    • Avoid due to high sugar content
    • Tend to drink too much
  • Don't drink alcohol
    • Occasionally drink non-alcoholic beverages
  • Caffeine
    • Be mindful of not consuming too much caffeine from tea or coffee
    • Don't drink daily. Opt for non-caffeine options.
    • Don't feel the benefits of caffeine (increased concentration, reduced fatigue, etc.), so rarely feel the need to consume it actively
• After meals
  • Try to stand and be active
  • Avoid blood sugar spikes (apparently)
  • Actively engage in walking, chores, standing work

Sleep

Sleep is as difficult to control as diet. I finally managed to completely adjust my habit of staying up late thanks to the birth of my child, which helped. (Child-rearing forces a sleep cycle adjustment, making it easier to correct.)

• Time
  • Be in bed by midnight
  • About 6.5 to 7 hours of sleep based on Fitbit
  • Feel rested even without 8 hours of sleep, but think a bit more sleep would be good
• Bedding
  • No particular preference, but don't use overly cheap items
  • Think spending more might further improve sleep quality, but wallet is tight
• Before bed
  • Avoid blue light before sleep
  • Avoid coding, opt for reading paper books, etc.
  • Absolutely don't use smartphone once in bed (iron rule)
  • Tend to do this, but believe it affects sleep quality
  • Feel sleep onset improved since stopping (exercise and other factors may also contribute)
  • Adjust lifestyle rhythm to have about 2 hours between bath or meal and sleep
  • Not possible when returning home late

Stress Management

Understand the nature of my stress and change thoughts and actions to relieve stress or avoid accumulating it.

• Moderate exercise, diet, sleep
• Positive thinking
• Plan enjoyable activities
  • Schedule enjoyable activities weekly, monthly, yearly, or create routines
  • Having something to look forward to helps maintain a good mood
• Mindfulness
  • Occasionally try it, but feel it only works when extremely tired
  • Want to try it continuously to see if there's any change

I only do things that seem to be commonly written in books, but ultimately, they seem to be the most effective.

Measurement

Things I do to measure health.

• Health checkups
• Weighing
  • Pay attention to whether I'm at a healthy weight or BMI
• Fitbit
  • Record exercise and sleep
  • Recording promotes habit formation and reveals areas for improvement

Thoughts

After writing everything down, I feel like I'm not doing much, and wonder if I can improve more, so I want to update if I find good habits.