Stealth Health: Get Healthy Without Really Trying


How much do you know about what makes up a healthy lifestyle? Here's a pop quiz.

a. Going to the gym.

b. Turning the jump-rope for the neighbor's kid.

c. Playing Frisbee with your dog.

2. How do you define good nutrition?

a. Eating a vegetable at every meal.

b. Eating two vegetables at every meal.

c. Drinking a fruit smoothie for breakfast.

3. Which of these is a healthy activity?

a. Push-ups, sit-ups, or running the track.

b. Walking the dog after dinner.

c. Spending Saturday afternoon snoozing on the sofa.

Believe it or not, the correct answer to every question is A, B, and C -- even that Saturday afternoon snooze! According to the growing "Stealth Health" movement, sneaking healthy habits into our daily living is easier than we think.

"You can infuse your life with the power of prevention incrementally and fairly painlessly, and yes, doing something, no matter how small, is infinitely better for you than doing nothing,
 " says David Katz, MD, MPH, director of Yale University's Prevention Research Center and of the Yale Preventive Medicine Center. 

From your morning shower to the evening news, from your work commute to your household chores, there are at least 2,400 ways to sneak healthy activities into daily living. 

If you let yourself make small changes, they will add up to meaningful changes in the quality of your diet, your physical activity pattern, your capacity to deal with stress, and in your sleep quality -- and those four things comprise an enormously powerful health promotion that can change your life.

And yes,a nap on the couch can be a health-giving opportunity -- particularly if you aren't getting enough sleep at night.

You don't have to belong to a gym or live on wheat grass just to be healthy,there are dozens of small things you can do every day that make a difference, and you don't always have to do a lot to gain a lot.

Do a Little, Get a Lot -The notion that good health can come in small tidbits is not really new. Research showing that making small changes can add up to a big difference has been quietly accumulating for a while. 

For example, a study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine in 2004 found that adding just 30 minutes of walking per day was enough to prevent weight gain and encourage moderate weight loss.And if 30 minutes is still too big a bite? Another study, published in Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, found that three brisk 10-minute walks per day were as effective as a daily 30-minute walk in decreasing risk factors for heart disease.

But it's not only in fitness where small changes can make a difference. The same principles apply at the kitchen table (and the office snack bar). Reducing fat intake, cutting down on sugar, eating a piece of fruit instead of a candy bar -- over time, these things can make a difference. A lot of bad eating habits are about not taking charge of your life, and that attitude is often reflected in other areas. On the other hand,when you make small changes at the kitchen table, the rewards may show up in other areas of your life.