Good health is the result of many factors. Genetics and past experiences can’t always be undone, yet what makes the biggest difference in better health are the choices we make now and the habits we form.

Courtesy 123RF/Cathy Yeulet

That’s good news. It means we’re not as much victims as what it often seems like. Making better choices each day, taking simple steps and doing them consistently over a long time will make huge differences in the overall quality of your life.

I recently shared five sets of numbers that I believe are helpful to monitor in your journey toward better health. They were mainly medical diagnostics.

Here are five other numbers I watch. They are more goal-oriented, proactice lifestyle measurements I use to give my body, mind, and spirit the essentials for better health.

5 Numbers To Maintain A Healthier Lifestyle

1. Hours of sleep per night. We are a sleep deprived society. We need good sleep and in sufficient amounts regularly to recharge and heal. While individual needs may change with age, seasons of life, work load, and emotional stress, you would do well to strive for 7-8 hours nightly. Don’t make the habit of cutting it short during the week and attempting to catch up on the weekend—it doesn’t work in the long run.

2. Ounces of water. Made up of approximately 70% water, your body needs a steady intake of good, pure water to stay replenished. Again, most people are mildly dehydrated. The rule of thumb is half your body weight in ounces each day; e.g., if you weigh 160 pounds, you should drink 80 ounces of water. Of course, needs may vary accordingly to climate and work load, but use this as a guide and you’ll probably be better off than what you are currently.

3. Steps in a day. Most of us have become too sedentary. The advice we hear more and more is MOVE! Get out of the chair often—once or twice an hour—and move, stretch, walk. You could exchange “steps in a day” for 30 minutes of walking each day. I do that but keeping track of steps each day monitors movement in general and not just your actual walk breaks. Fitness wearables and smartphone apps make this easy. A common goal proposed is 10,000 steps a day. Start with more than you are currently, then increase.

4. Hours each week with family/friends. Amazingly, our overall health is dramatically affected by quality relationships. Habits like eating a meal together as a family each day, a date with your spouse once a week, some special time each week with a child all add up. Proximity isn’t what counts—it’s about actively engaging with another in conversation or fun activities together. 15-22 hours a week with family members or close friends is a good target.

5. Minutes each day in spiritual disciplines. You not only live in a physical body and have a mind, you are a spiritual being. You’ll never experience optimum health if you neglect the spiritual you. Daily spiritual disciplines such as prayer, meditation, reflection, journaling, and reading the Bible should have a priority in your schedule. And certainly the list would include weekly worship services. 15-60 minutes daily will help manage stress and support your other healthy habits.

Good health is a matter of taking steps, making better choices, and forming habits that provide what a person needs for spirit, soul, and body.

If one of the above got your attention, give it a bit more attention this week. What gets measured, gets monitored. Keep taking better steps forward.