11 wellness tips that promise to boost both your physical and mental health

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If you're anything like us, you'll love scrolling simple, easy-to-implement wellness tips that boost your day-to-day quality of life.

A bit like self-care ideas, incorporating wellness into your morning routine, daily life, and wind-down can boost both your physical and mental health.

But with close to four million results for "wellness tips" on Google, where do you start? And how do you sieve the genuine, qualified experts from the click-bait sensationalists?

By letting us - and our expert-led panel of pros - help. Keep scrolling for wellness tips from:

• Kayla Itsines, personal trainer and founder of SWEAT
• Alice Liveing, personal trainer
• Doctor Sophie Bostock, sleep expert and founder of The Sleep Scientist
• Doctor Julie Smith, clinical psychologist and author of Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before? 
• Rhiannon Lambert, nutritionist, and author of The Science of Nutrition
• Sara Kuburic, existential therapist
• Frederique Murphy, leadership mindset strategist and author of Lead Beyond The Edge
• Lizzie Slowe, equine therapist, chi kung master, and author of The Living Art of Chi Kung
• Cristalle Hayes, existential and trauma-based psychotherapist and author of Angry Mother Assertive Mother
• Kate Griggs, dyslexia advocator, founder of Made By Dyslexia charity, and author of This is Dyslexia
• Mimi Nicklin, empathy advocate and author of Softening the Edge.

Remember that it’s so important to make space for self-care - especially when life gets busy. The tips below only take five or so minutes every day but promise to massively boost your overall wellbeing. Don't miss our health editor's fitness tips, and guides to reiki healing, and yoga poses, while you're here.

What is wellness? 

Good question. One mass study of 30,000 participants found that there are ten main markers - social connectedness, lifestyle behaviors, stress and resilience, emotional health, physical health, meaning and purpose, sense of self, finances, spirituality or religiosity, and exploration and creativity.

The research was conducted by a team from Stanford University, led by Catherine Heaney (PhD), who worked to both define and measure global wellness.

Wellness tips: 11 to try tonight 

1. Schedule in your workouts

You know that working out boosts your endorphin levels, but if you struggle to find exercise motivation, trainer Itsines has got a wellness hack for you.

Which is? "You can always find time - unless you are the parent of a newborn child!," she laughs. "Schedule in your workouts - so two or three appointments a week - like you would with a doctor's appointment."

Then if you cancel the first workout, you'll at least show up to the second or third, she shares. Smart. Don't miss our guides to the best full body workout, glute workout, and lower body workout, while you're here.

2. But also be flexible 

Not literally - although the splits are very wellness.

Flexibility in life, with your food choices, and with your workouts is important for maintaining your mental health, shares trainer Liveing. Sure, working out and eating well can boost your general wellbeing, but being too strict with what you eat and how often you work can be detrimental, she goes on.

"Do you feel a sense of anxiety or stress when you miss an exercise session or can't go to the gym?," asks the trainer. "Or, does exercise impinge on going out, or socialising with your friends, or enjoying your life? That's a warning sign," she continues.

Instead, embracing a more mindful approach to movement - that is, moving when you feel like it and doing what workouts you fancy - is a surefire way to make sure you're enjoying the impacts of exercise without risking exercise addiction or becoming too regimented with your routine.

Wellness is all about balance, after all - which means prioritising workout recovery, R&R, and downtime, too.

3. Prioritise sleep

An obvious but essential component of any healthy lifestyle? Sleep - and lots of it.

Doctor Sophie Bostock - otherwise known as the sleep scientist - talks about this regularly, and recently shared on Instagram that those of you who get less shut-eye may be consuming 300 to 400 more calories throughout the day.

4. Remember that all movement counts as movement 

As psychologist Smith points out, physical movement normally always helps. It doesn't matter how you move, as long as you're making time for movement most (although not every) of the time. That can be in the form of Pilates, yoga, Zumba, or walking (don't miss our guide to the best UK hikes, here).

"You might put on your favourite music once a day and dance around the house, or clean, or paint - whatever it is you enjoy, but at the same time, you're moving your body. It doesn't have to be on a machine counting reps. Our brain works better when our bodies are moving, so be creative if you need to."

5. Workout what works for you

One of the most important wellness tips? Don't just copy and paste someone else's workout or diet, as your body will respond differently to other people.

Every body is different, and will deal with food, sweat sessions, stress and more differently - trial and error is key here.

6. Dial down the negative self-talk

"When we fail, we speak to ourselves in a way we would never speak to anyone else ever," shares existential therapist Kuburic. "We point out our flaws, shortcomings, past mistakes, and are critical, mean, and disrespectful."

Top tip: Try both identifying and then reframing negative self-talk, when you notice it happening. Remember: you are not your thoughts.

7. Visualisation meditation

Ever tried shutting your eyes, thinking of nothing, and drifting off - not to sleep, but to a more peaceful headspace? The benefits of meditation are widespread, but it's not for everyone.

That being said, strategist Murphy reckons it's worth weaving in mindfulness in your day-to-day activities, which is where visualisation comes in.

"Visualisations are a form of meditation where you actively imagine. Via fMRI scans, scientists have found that it can alter your brain by strengthening the neural connections in your so-called "assessment centre", which is responsible for reasoning," she explains. These changes allow you to gain better control of your reactions, making you less in your head and reacting more rationally, she concludes.

8. Remember to pause

Sounds obvious, actually... isn't prioritised as much as it should be, as life often gets in the way.

"Pause and purposefully take a moment before you do anything: respond, act, re-act, overthink, or panic," advises Slowe. "Carve out a moment of space - a rare commodity - to notice how you actually are in your body and mind."

Try this: Take a literal step back, if you can, inhale deeply and sigh your breath out, letting your shoulders drop and relaxing your jaw. Our guide to breathwork training might help, too.

9. Treat yourself with compassion

Similar to identifying and reframing negative self-talk, Hayes' wellness tips span trying to speak to yourself with compassion as much as possible.

"The more you speak to yourself with compassion, the better it is for your wellbeing," she shares. "For example, are you struggling to get yourself to the gym? Don't tell yourself that you are disgusting and need to exercise. Tell yourself that you a worth looking after and that you value your body enough to exercise. How you speak to yourself has a huge impact on overall wellbeing."

10. Take time out

There's a recurring theme from our experts here - rest is as key to boosting your health as being go, go, go. "I recommend you regularly take five minutes time out to reset and calm your mind," shares Griggs. "It's a fantastic way to avoid the sense of overload that leads to stress."

Try this: Just like you'd schedule in an appointment (or workout, as above), schedule in time to sit quietly every day.

11. Connect with others

And finally, did you know? Good Therapy, an online association of mental health professionals, reports that people with high levels of empathy have larger social circles and more satisfying relationships.

"As women, we thrive when we are connected, and this research highlights our need to be surrounded by loyal and steady friendships with our need for higher empathy," explains Nicklin. "We aren’t meant to face things alone, and when times get tough, this need to connect to others is even higher."

Try this: Do remember to check in with your loved ones - be that friends or family - regularly. Social connections are one of the core components of wellness, yet are often forgotten.