By Amanda Quilling

Health Awareness Columnist

With CSUSM celebrating its 25th anniversary, we wanted to celebrate 25 ways college students can practice a healthy lifestyle.

A healthy lifestyle is much more complex than just working out and eating right. Sure, exercise and nutrition covers one aspect of a healthy life; however, there are four other dimensions we often forget. These dimensions include emotional, social, mental and spiritual health. With that, here are 25 tips for a healthy life:

1. Develop self-efficacy: Believe in yourself and in your successes.
2. Find social support: Whether it’s a group of friends or family, find people you can trust and talk to.
3. Practice yoga or meditation: Quiet your mind, take up yoga or meditate in the meditation room on campus.
4. Go outside and connect with nature: The perfect combination to boost psychological health and exercise.
5. Engage in positive self-talk: Don’t put yourself down; only use uplifting comments.
6. Sleep: Sleep allows you to cope with stress and increases productivity.
7. Maintain physical health: Hit the gym, take a bike ride or hike with some friends.
8. Make you time: This is a great way to boost self-esteem and look forward to something enjoyable.
9. Form realistic expectations: Assess what your goals are and how you can realistically achieve them.
10. Drink moderately: Only have a beer or two; the CDC recommends two for men and one for women.
11. Be mindful: Be present in the moment and embrace each new experience.
12. Eat healthfully: Eating well helps us cope with stress and keeps our body performing optimally.
13. Stay organized: Keeping a calendar or making lists decreases stress and increases time for fun.
14. Laugh: Watch a funny movie; laughter elevates your mood and immune function.
15. Leave the past in the past: Learn to resolve old problems, don’t carry pain and frustration into the present.
16. Drink water: Trade the soda or energy drink for good hydration.
17. Make sex safe: Always use protection and never do anything you’re not comfortable with. Also, refrain from risky sex when drinking.
18. Get a flu shot: With finals around the corner reduce your chance of getting sick with a flu shot.
19. Wear sunscreen: While tanning during spring, make sure to protect your skin.
20. Quit smoking: Smoking has huge health risks; seek help on campus for quitting.
21. Ask for help: Reach out for help if you need it, don’t risk getting overwhelmed.
22. Expect change: Things are always changing; the better we adapt, the more we grow.
23. Volunteer: Helping others elicits a sense of satisfaction that boosts your mood.
24. Assert yourself: Make sure the health decisions you make are your own.
25. Always keep improving: No matter how healthy we are, there are always ways we can keep improving.