The 30 After 30 Rule
Age 30 is a milestone age—mainly because your body changes drastically at this point and your lifestyle may require some tweaking.
Here’s 30 things you should prioritize once you hit age 30.
Maintain a Proper Weight
Once you hit 30, you have to start paying closer attention to your weight. This is because once you hit 40 and beyond, it becomes increasingly harder.
This is when you want to start a regular exercise routine that can follow you throughout the next few decades.
Prioritize Exercise
As mentioned, exercise is important to your overall well-being, and once you hit your thirties, habits can be challenging to form. Making exercise a habit is your key to keeping it a priority.
Learn to Sleep
Your twenties are long gone and your body is changing. Sleep—or lack thereof—starts to affect you in ways it never did before.
Learn how to fall asleep in 30 minutes or less. Set up a specific sleep schedule (aka bedtime) and stick to it.
Not getting enough sleep can greatly increase stress.
Find a Relaxing Practice
We’re talking deep relaxation here. Rest should be a part of your daily life, and finding ways to alleviate stress is even more important.
Try yoga, meditation, or journaling to boost relaxation.
Take Care of your Skin
You may have gotten away with a minimal (or non-existent) skin care routine until now, but once you hit your thirties your hormones change and your skin starts to bare all.
Now is the time to implement an effective skincare routine that consists of hydration, sun protection, wrinkle reduction, and more.
Eat Your Vegetables
This is ongoing advice that you’ll hear from toddlerhood to adulthood, simply because it works.
Eat plants—according to various studies, vegetarians have the healthiest arteries and a low risk for heart disease. So fuel your body with fruits and veggies as often as you possibly can.
Hydrate
Staying well-hydrated is an important way to prevent age-related conditions like kidney and heart disease, as well as obesity and various skin conditions.
Drinking enough water is imperative at any age, but after age 30 your skin begins to lose elasticity and requires more water.
Most people should drink between 4 and 6 cups of water a day.
Start Screening & Testing
You be “only” 30, but this is the time when illnesses, such as diabetes and high blood pressure, may be already starting in your body.
If you have any family history of cancer or heart disease, now is the time to get preventative tests done.
Book your annual physical, and always follow up.
Master the Art of Time Management
Stress is often a result of poor time-management. And once you reach age 30, life somehow becomes increasingly busy. To avoid feeling burnt-out all the time, get yourself organized and prioritize time management.
Quite Smoking & Reduce Drinking
We already know that people who smoke and drink often have a greater risk of premature mortality than people who don’t.
But these activities can also cause premature aging—think, wrinkles and sagging.
Cut down on these habits as much as possible—or quit entirely if you can.
Take Care of Your Teeth
The older we get, the weaker our teeth get. The enamel wears down and our gum tissue recedes—which can both make you more prone to dental problems.
The more teeth you have in old age, the longer you may actually live. So brush and floss daily, and see a dentist regularly for cleaning and oral healthcare.
Maintain Friendships
Once we hit 30, our busy lives take over and our friendships lag behind. But did you know your immune system works better when you feel connected to other people?
Your social and emotional health does wonders for your overall body health, so prioritize your friends as much as possible.
Know Your Health History
It’s important to know your medical history, your risk factors, your medications, and family history.
This will help you identify health concerns that may pop up in the future, and can help decide what preventative tests you may be able to get.
Balance Home and Work
Your 30s are when your career might really take off. It is also when you might be in a serious relationship, marriage, or having kids.
Maintaining a balance between your home life and work life is critical. Take a moment to reflect and make changes where possible.
Read More Books
Reading every day is good for your brain, and after you reach age 30 you will need to exercise your brain more than before in order to keep it sharp.
Choose books that are more challenging to understand. This will also improve your focus and work your memory.
Get Out of Debt
Debt can be crippling for many reasons, but how it affects your mental health is probably the worst. Many people in their thirties are struggling with various forms of debt ranging from student loans to mortgages. And the worst part is, more debt will likely come.
If you don’t get a handle on your debt now, you’ll be paying it off for the rest of your life.
Save Money
While you’re paying down your debt, you should also start putting some cash aside for savings. Obviously, this is easier said than done—especially in today’s world—but any amount counts.
The easiest way for most people is to have a small percentage of their paycheck automatically deposited into a savings account each pay period. It will add up quicker than you think!
Learn Something New
Again, keeping your mind sharp is imperative as you age. What better way to do that than to learn something new.
This can easily be done by taking an online course, attending a workshop, or even just joining a local art class or something similar.
Find a Hobby
Life in your thirties is busy, and full of responsibility. It’s important to make time for something that you enjoy—particularly something that is more for fun and passion. It doesn’t need to serve a purpose—meaning it doesn’t have to make you money or save you time, it just needs to be an outlet, or an escape from reality.
This will greatly reduce your stress levels.
Take a Solo Trip
Thirty-year-olds often report feeling like they are in overdrive all the time, living to please everyone else from their bosses to their spouses.
Take some time just for you, to find yourself again. Whether it be a solo spa day, or a full-on unaccompanied vacation—some time alone will do you good.
Forgive Yourself
Many people hit 30 and start feeling regrets for all the things they should have done by this point. This is the worst thing you can do.
Focus on your achievements and your future goals. Forgive yourself for what holds you back and focus on the road ahead instead.
Wake Up Earlier
While we are prioritizing our sleep, we also need to ensure that we have proper sleep schedules in place.
Sleeping in until noon is a thing of the past, sorry folks. Once you hit 30 you start to see the value in mornings.
Make Friends With People Older Than You
For most people, your friend group starts with your age group and stays that way for quite some time. But once you reach 30 you should consider making friends with people a bit older, too.
By making friends with people, you look up to you add new dynamics to mentorship, and it also broadens your social circles.
Find Contentment
At this point, it’s important that you stop comparing and stop judging. Find contentment in your life, even if you haven’t yet reached all your goals.
Finding the balance between ambition and contentment isn’t easy, but it’s part of living with big dreams.
Stay Current
Reading the news isn’t always recommended these days, but staying current with what’s going on around you is important. Find appropriate sources and maintain an understanding of the world as it is happening.
You can’t change the world if you know nothing about it.
Unplug…Often
It’s easy to get stuck in a pattern of working long hours and being tied to your devices. Binge watching Netflix might sound relaxing, but a break from technology can do more good than you think.
Make time every day to unplug and unwind. Go for a walk or go sit outside in the sun—but leave your phone inside.
Be Intentional With Relationships
After 30, most single people express wanting to become more serious about their dating habits. Think of what you want your future to look like and don’t waste your time of people or things that don’t align.
Buy Things That Last
Typically, people in their twenties buying high-quality items aren’t always practical as they are settling into new careers or establishing financial wellness. But once you hit 30, it’s time you start thinking about sustainability—which will save you money in the long run.
Purchase items with intention. Buy what you need, and pay attention to quality and value.
Pursue a Life Dream
Well, it’s official, you’re not getting any younger. So, those dreams you have, start making them happen.
Whether its writing a book or buying a house, now is the time to start making an actual plan to crush those goals
Pheelings media, Shutterstock.
Stop People Pleasing
This may be very challenging for some, but once you hit 30 it’s time to stop worrying about everyone else and focus on you. This is also the time when you can start choosing your friends and contacts more carefully and surround yourself with like-minded people.
