If you were to ask any random person you met what one of their goals in life was, there is a good chance they would give the patented "I want to be happy" answer. While there is nothing wrong with wanting to be Happy, research has shown that the majority of us searching for the elusive "Vitamin H" have misconceptions of where it actually comes from. Countless studies have shown that the majority of people, regardless of age, sex, income status, or education, already have all of the tools and resources necessary to live happier and healthier.

So what actually makes human beings happy? What things take the chronic "bad stress" out of our days so we can lengthen our lives in the process?

Getting over the use of clique answers like more money, more recognition, bigger houses, faster cars, or the next version of the iPhone can be a daunting task, as these are the things most of us are blinded with everyday with the growth of social media and social pressures alike. These things aren't inherently "bad" but they are not necessities for better happiness and longevity. What if simplification was the real answer to getting anything we wanted, including happiness?

Today you are about to read 5 things you ALREADY KNOW. Thats right, these things are so obvious and so simple that if we all just took the time and acted upon them, our country wouldn't be the overworked, overweight, overmedicated, and overly-grumpy society that reality shows it has become today.

Do you want to live a longer and happier life for free or darn close to it? DO these 5 things.

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1. Sleep - most people can name their favorite sports team in no time flat, followed closely by their proud allegiance to a much more dangerous team: #teamnosleep. When people are questioned about their lack of sleep, the excuses start pouring in as to why more quality time can't be spent with head on pillow. What can be worse than the people choosing not to sleep in favor of longer working hours or Netflix re-runs are the ones who are trying really hard to get more shut eye but can't, due to years of hormonal imbalance and circadian rhythm dysfunction. Chronic sleep deprivation is nothing to cheer about, as it's been proven to shorten people's lifespan and dramatically decrease cognitive ability and mood. Once we recognize the vital human need for more sleep, we can start to do something about it.

Takeaway: Sleep is not a want, it's a need. If you want to feel better and potentially live longer, you have to put more priority into getting to bed on time. Are you ready to hop off the #teamnosleep band wagon or for ways to improve your shut eye? Check out this handy resource

2. Socialize - human beings are social creatures, and the day we disconnect and lose the freedom to communicate with our fellow beings, things look gloomy on the happiness and longevity front. You see, in this most digitized age in human history, our ability to communicate has not gotten worse, but our willingness to actually do it has! We opt for email, text, FB, snapchat to share messages instead of real skin to skin, "moving of the mouth with sounds coming out of said mouth" interaction. These newer ways to communicate are not bad, but they are literally taking the place of real conversations where real emotion and real progress in relationships can be found.

Takeaway: If you want true happiness (which has been shown to add years to your life by the way), start talking to people again! It's that simple!

3. Eat a variety of colorful foods - we've all heard a version of "health is your first wealth" sometime in our lives, and it's definitely not going anywhere. With all of the information out there regarding food and diets, we are not going to give you a laundry list of things to NOT EAT(!) to drive you up a wall. Instead, we will go over one universally accepted truth found in all food studies ever done: people that include a wide variety of plant-based foods (fruits, vegetables, etc.) live a higher quality of life. When you feed your body whole, nutritious, colorful foods, the brain fog goes away and you can focus more on building a life you want, instead of focusing on what you don't want.

Try this: For 10 days, see how you do eating 90% of your food from plant based sources. Your mind and body will thank you!

4. Get up and move - multiple forms of physical activity, not just lifting weights and sprinting (although we love those at TFW!), can turn your frown upside down and add years to your life. The best thing you can do is something you enjoy with people you enjoy (see #2)! Your mind, body and spirit require movement throughout your waking hours to keep your joints healthy, your muscles strong, and your posture optimal - all which will make you feel pretty darn good.

Try this: grab a friend and try a new group fitness class, go for a walk, or join a city recreation league for fun! On top of that, make sure you are mindfully moving throughout your workday instead of staying glued to a chair all day!

5. Be uniquely YOU - nothing dampens a person's happiness more than living somebody else's life in their own body. This is evident in person working in companies that they hate, for bosses they hate, for nothing but a paycheck and the occasional company-sponsored "happy" hour. This is evident in our youth who are boxed up in institutions telling them what they should learn in order to be successful. This is evident in the dreamers, who is the person with incredible thoughts and aspirations to make the world a better place, but falls short because they forgo the most important ingredient: doing. Life should be spent building up others and making the world a better place, and that is very hard to do when we are unhappy with the person we are choosing to be! YOU have a unique gift, a unique character that the world wants, no, NEEDS to see come out of their shell! BE YOU!

Try this: What is one thing you could do today that you've been wanting to do for a long time?

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We want to help everybody we meet live a longer and happier life. When you keep things simple it's actually not as challenging as it sounds! What is one thing you could do today to be happier? What is one thing you could do today to potentially lengthen your time on earth? Print off this blog as a reminder to do one of these (ideally ALL of them!) everyday!

Ready for a fresh start with your health and happiness this Spring? Training For Warriors-South Metro is now taking 10 new students in our 30 Day Spring Fever program! Fitness coaching, nutrition coaching. lifestyle coaching - all rolled into a super-inviting community in Savage, Minnesota. Want more information or ready to sign up? Fill out this form and we will contact you ASAP!

Live Longer, Live Happier with These 5 Things