Do you believe you can transform your habits, and your health, in just 10 days? While a full transformation may take longer, and results certainly do, you can set 10 new healthy habits in motion in 10 days. And these can significantly improve health.

How, they can help you set up daily habit-based goals, one small step at a time. If 10 habits in 10 days feel like too much, consider just per week, such as 10 new healthy habits in 10 Mondays. Or, choose just 3-5 of the following list to tackle this month.

No matter how you want to do it, you can set the wheels in motion to change your health with 10 new healthy habits in 10 days. Here are 10 to get you started.

10 New Healthy Habits in 10 Days. 10 Day Plan to Improve Health

Day 1. Start Each Day with Prayer and Faith: From the Rising of the Sun

Prayer is a wonderful gift for spiritual health. Believe it or not, it can also affect us physically. It has been found to reduce cortisol and support mental and physical health!

On day one, figure out the best time to spend in prayer each day. Make it a daily priority and habit.

Prayer has been shown to increase the secretion of neurotransmitters, such as dopamine. These compounds decrease cortisol while promoting relaxation, focus, and motivation.

Day 2. Get Into the Keto Zone

If you haven’t already, take day 2 to learn about the Keto Zone and how it can affect your health.

If you are looking for an effective, healthy way to lose weight, improve overall health, support healthy blood sugars, and more, it’s a great option for you. When you get into the Keto Zone, you’ll cut out most of your carbohydrates. You’ll rely on healthy fats, moderate protein, ketones, and only small amounts of carbs for nourishment and energy.

How?

The best way to get started is to get the book: Dr. Colbert’s Keto Zone Diet Book

You will find how to cut carbs and get into ketosis. Then, continue to follow our posts, recipes, Facebook groups, and more to keep going. You can also join our FREE 21-Day Keto Zone Challenge!

Day 3. Drink Up: Aim for 80 Ounces per Day

This is a simple habit, but not necessarily easy.  Throughout your day, drink 80 ounces of more water per day.

How?

Often, it’s easier if you set up a schedule. Try to drink 32 ounces by noon, 32 ounces by 4 pm, and 16 additional ounces in the evening.

Amazing, adequate hydration supports great energy, health, and the condition and appearance of your skin.

In fact, one study found that increasing water consumption by 2 liters per day improved skin condition and physiology, even in those who already consumed high amounts of water. The researchers concluded that this increase and improvement in skin health would likely have the most positive effect on those with lower daily water consumption (1).

Water, green tea, and black tea are all great choices for overall health, skin health, and anti-aging habits.

Day 4. Stretch for a Youthful Body

One day 4, brainstorm to decide when you should add a bit of stretching each day. Just 3-5 minutes is enough. Stretch in the morning or before bed. Believe it or not, as you gain flexibility in your spinal cord, you’ll improve your posture, range of motion of your limbs, and support cardiovascular health.

Amazingly, trunk flexibility directly represents the flexibility of your arteries? As crazy as it sounds, researchers have found that poor trunk flexibility is associated with stiff arteries. This means that keeping your body flexible enough to touch your toes means better artery health and blood pressure (2).

Day 5. Activate the Cells with a Cold Shower

This habit is simple and doesn’t add time to your schedule. Choose to swap a hot shower for a cold one.

Cold showers may be slightly uncomfortable, but there is strong evidence that they are great for health.

Cold showers are known to activate skin cells, shrinks pores, and promotes a better complexion. Next, cold showers can actually increase brain activity and even reduce stress and depression according to studies (3). Cold showers may reduce chronic fatigue.

Lastly, cold showers likely support immune function. In fact, a recent study from the Netherlands found that cold showers significantly reduce sick days. Just 30 seconds or more of cold showering per day reduced sick days by 29% in the studies (4).

Day 6. Keep a Gratitude Journal and Write 5 Meaningful Gratitudes per Day

On day 6, find an old notebook or journal and begin a gratitude journal.

Gratitude is a healthy habit that can absolutely improve health and wellness. How?

First, gratitude can directly influence the quality of your sleep. A study of 400 participants found that writing gratitudes during the day and before sleep improves both the quality and duration of sleep (5). And, this study even included participants with sleep disorders. In another study, gratitude was linked to a 10 percent improvement in sleep and a 19 percent decrease in depression levels in patients with chronic disease and insomnia (6).

When you improve sleep, you improve whole-body health. Gratitude can also support:

• Immune System Health
• More Motivation for Healthy Habits
• Mental Health
• Heart Health

Want to know more? Read here to find out the ways gratitude affects health and aging.

Day 7. Proactively Learn to Make Laughter an Everyday Event

On day 7, think about laughter, and prioritize it in each day. This may mean reading your favorite funny author, spending time with a great friend, or even listening to a favorite comedian.

Why would you prioritize laughter?

Amazingly, laughter is considered an effective, non-invasive therapy for improved mental health and mood. In fact, it’s been found that laughter alters dopamine and serotonin activity, and causing an increase in endorphins. These chemicals decrease discomfort, cortisol (7), and depressed moods (8).

Day 8. Get Moving, Outside if Possible

Aside from changing your diet, adding exercise may be the most time-intensive habit on this list. But, it can absolutely improve your health.

There’s little doubt that being physically active, every day, is beneficial for your health. It works your heart, keeps blood vessels more elastic, supports a healthy weight and healthy blood sugars, and even supports brain health.

In fact, you don’t need to train for a marathon for these benefits – even walking every day can get the job done. Starting day #8, can you start the habit of a daily walk? Do you have 30 minutes, or even 3 separate 10-minute time slots for walking or another physical activity? Can you do it outside?

Here are 10 Amazing Benefits of Walking!

Day 9. Intermittent Fasting: Evening Through Mid-Morning

If you decided to enter the Keto Zone on Day #2, you can take it one step further and add intermittent fasting starting Day #9. In fact, even if you’re not in the Keto Zone, you can enjoy the benefits of intermittent fasting. How?

Around 7 pm in the evening, consider starting a daily intermittent fast to slow aging.

Why?

There are many documented benefits to intermittent fasting.

These include:

• Improve cholesterol markers
• Reduced triglycerides
• Improved aging
• Weight loss without negative cellular adaptations
• Reduced risk of Diabetes
• Reduced risk of cancer and improved treatment

What’s more,

Study after study has shown that intermittent fasting benefits body systems often affected by aging, including brain health, heart health, and blood sugars (9).

To fast 15-16 out of the 24 hours per day, finish eating at 7 pm each day, and fast with only non-carbohydrate liquids (like coffee) until 10 am or so. Then, utilize Keto Zone eating for 8 hours per day.

Day 10. Sleep Must Be a Priority –  7 or More Hours Per Night

We could all use more sleep. If you’re not getting enough, you are short-changing your health. On day 10, think about sleep and how you can consistently get at least 7 hours per night.

Good quality sleep has many health and aging benefits. These include:

• Reduced Daily Cortisol
• Better Melatonin Levels
• Less Depressed Moods
• Less Inflammation
• Healthy Body Weight
• Better Heart Health
• And More

In fact, good sleep begets good sleep, and lack of sleep increases cortisol for up to 24 hours, which then negatively affects sleep again (10). Lack of sleep has also been shown to reduce mental performance and alertness while increasing inflammation and cortisol (11).

Bottom Line

In just 10 days, you can improve your health. You can set new habits and prioritize activities that support brain health, healthy weight, heart health, and more. If you’re ready to start, just take the first step with day one. Don’t let the list become overwhelming, take it at your own pace. Each day, make your own health your priority, and proactively and systematically start 10 new healthy habits in 10 days.