10 Healthy Things You Can do in 10 Minutes

By Brandi Koskie - senior editor for DietsInReview.com

The quickest and easiest excuse for not taking care of our health is that we're too busy or there's just not enough time in the day. But who doesn't have ten minutes? We all have ten minutes. It's possible we all have a free ten minutes several times a day. If you're not sure what to do with the spare time on your hands, put it to good use an make yourself healthier! Each of these tasks can be done in ten minutes or less and will create the foundation for a very healthy lifestyle.



1. Take a walk. You might think if you don't have a full 30 or 60 minutes to devote to a workout that you might as well not even do it. Not true at all. If you took a ten-minute walk or jog before work, at lunch, and in the evening, you'd rack up a 30-minute workout for the day. And it's totally fine to space them out. You'll appreciate the extra few minutes to clear your head, move your body and get away from your desk.

2. Make breakfast. Waiting for the carpool? Your hair to dry? Use those ten minutes to make breakfast. Eggs with a handful of fresh spinach rolled in a whole grain tortilla takes ten minutes (or less). A smoothie of Greek yogurt and fresh berries definitely takes less than ten minutes. A bowl of cereal can be poured and eaten in ten minutes.

3. Go to bed. End your day ten minutes earlier. Use that ten minutes to unwind with a book in bed, or to get a jump-start on sleep. Your body really does need as much of that eight hours as possible.

4. Wake up. If you went to bed ten minutes early, then you can wake up ten minutes early. Meditate, do yoga, take a ten-minute jog around the block, or enjoy a few extra "me" minutes getting ready.

5. Chop fruits and veggies. At the start of the week, gather all your fruits and veggies and chop them into containers that make it easy to grab and go, or grab and snack. Ball melons and keep in an accessible bowl in the refrigerator for quick and easy access. Shred carrots for a simple addition to a quick salad. Slice tomatoes for sandwiches. Chop bell peppers, cucumbers and celery in baggies for lunches. You'll free up so much more time later in the week.

6. Yoga. Surely you've got ten minutes in a day to meditate, stretch and reconnect with your body. It's a low-impact workout that can be sweat-free, so you can do it at work. Sun salutations, down-dog, warrior, triangle and even chavasana (corpse pose) can help to quickly reinvigorate you.

7. Laugh. A good giggle is good for mind and spirit, and weight loss. Laughing for ten minutes can burn up to 50 calories! Sneak a ten-minute break in to chat with a friend or even pull up YouTube videos of silly babies, animals or your favorite comedian. If anyone asks, tell them you're taking a mental health break - far better than a smoking break!

8. Read food labels. At the store, add an extra ten minutes to your shopping trip so you have time to read the labels of the foods you're buying. Low-calorie, low-fat and low-sodium are all things we know to look for, but do you read the ingredients? That can be far more telling than the nutrition facts. Things to avoid include sugar (or a sugar product like high fructose corn syrup) in the first five ingredients, anything you can't pronounce, and trans fat (like partially hydrogenated oils).

9. Read. Find a new book from the health and wellness section and learn more about fitness, women's health, metabolism or even a few new recipes from a healthy cookbook. Or, subscribe to a health, nutrition or fitness magazine. You'll learn something new, and give yourself some needed downtime.

10. Make a meal plan. Use a wipe-off board, a calendar or scratch piece of paper and create a meal plan for the week. Include breakfast, lunch and dinner. Then, grocery shop according to that list only. Then there are no excuses during the week when someone asks what is for dinner and you end up bailing to a drive-thru.


Learn more about simple ways to live a healthy lifestyle:

7 Things You Need to Know to Have a Healthy Day

5 Things to Remove from Your Diet Today

100-Calorie Snack Ideas



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