You're on Your Own! Now what?

The most important aspect of living alone is keeping active.

There is no one around to keep you on track or take care of you if you’re sick. Sign up at a gym. Try going to aerobics classes, clear your mind with yoga, or build strength while weight training. Make the gym your second home. A good workout lasts for at least 30 minutes. People who live alone should work out at least four times a week. No matter how busy you may think you are, going to the gym will keep you on track at work by allowing you time to focus on feeling good about yourself. Setting personal goals, whether it involves losing weight, bulking up, or training for a marathon, gives you a reason to shine.

Eat healthy.

There is no point spending tons of money on a variety of the best fresh ingredients and spending hours cooking masterpieces on the stove when there is no one around to taste it. But settling for take-out every night isn’t good either. Having no one to cook for means you’ll find yourself eating microwave dinners and fast food. Schedule a half hour a day to make a healthy dinner for yourself. It doesn’t have to be “health food.” Just make sure you are getting a well-balanced meal which will include each of the five food groups. If you don’t want to use your stove, find microwave cooking recipes. What you put into your body helps determine how you feel and can affect your mood. Even if you have a fast metabolism rate, you should still watch what you eat. There are several foods that are high in protein and low in fat that are easy to prepare. Cook up some shrimp or skinless chicken with your spaghetti. Put some spices on pork chops and grill outside. It can be easy to become depressed and feel hopeless. Spending just a little bit of time to make a nice meal can help make the whole day better.

Clean up after yourself.

Just because there is no one around to see your mess, doesn’t mean your apartment isn’t messy. You’ve heard the phrase, “Your mama doesn’t live here.” But she may visit at some point, and you don’t want to be caught off guard when she asks to use the bathroom. Spend some time every night organizing your clutter, and spend some time every week with some Scrubby Bubbles and Windex. Even if you never have a visitor, it will make you feel proud of your humble abode.

Take care of someone else.

Living alone should not mean you only care about yourself. Whether you get a dog or a cat, someone needs to rely on you. Volunteering is the best way to give back. Help out at the local food pantry or become a big brother or sister. It only takes a few hours, one day a week. You may be surprised at how many organizations are desperate for volunteers. All you have to do is ask, “How can I help?” Be up front about how much commitment you can give. Saying you want to help and actually helping are two different things. After you volunteer a couple times, you’ll learn just how rewarding the experience can be for you and those you are helping.

And finally, get out!

Living alone makes it easy to become a hermit. Even if you have to go to the movies by yourself, get out and do something new every week. You don’t need a friend with you to go out in public, so don’t use that as an excuse for staying in. Go to the art museum, attend a city council meeting, go hiking, or try painting. Expand your mind by tuning into something other than reality television shows. This is time to focus on what you want to do with your life. Down the road when you have a spouse and kids taking up all your attention, you don’t want to say, “I wish I would have done _____ when I had the chance.”

Lindsey Mastis is a news anchor and reporter for a local television station in Illinois. She holds a B.S. in journalism, and has interned at ABC and FOX 2 News. In her free time, she enjoys travel, scrapbooking and good music.

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