7 Tragically Bad Health Habits For Your 30s

Are you guilty of these bad health habits for your 30s? I know I surely have been. And now I’m making changes to positively improve my life going forward.

One thing about entering your 30s? You realize your need to take more serious care of your health.

Sure, we knew this in our 20s. But did we really pay attention? Or as much attention as we should have? I know I didn’t. I thought I was invincible in my 20s… and my 30s are teaching me that I’m not.

Is that a bad thing? No! It just means it’s time for me to get more serious about my health, in all aspects of the word.

So to help you out – and to help me out too TBH – I wanted to talk about some bad health habits that we should stop doing – or minimize doing – in our 30s. What are they? Here are some big ones that I’ve personally learned.

Disclaimer: I am not a doctor. This is just from personal experience and/or things I have learned from others.

7 Tragically Bad Health Habits For Your 30s

1. Not Being Sun Safe

OK Gen Z is all about this and for good reason. Us 30-somethings? Not so much. If you’re anything like me, you spent your teenage years and early 20s (maybe even bond that) in a tanning bed. It was all the rage! Thank you, “Jersey Shore” for our “gym, tan, laundry” mantra. But now we know – and let’s be honest, we kind of knew it then too but ignore it – tanning beds really were not good for our skin.

You also may have been guilty of lathering on tanning oil or baby oil and sitting out in the sun. Not only can this all cause sun damage and wrinkles, but it could cause cancer too. Those are things we’re taking more seriously in our 30s, aren’t we? I know I am – I don’t leave the house anymore without SPF on my face, no matter what the season is!

2. Not Exercising

In our 20s, we could eat and not gain weight – or not gain a lot of weight. If that’s still you in your 30s, man am I jealous. It’s not me! I cannot eat and drink like I used to. There’s such a big consequence.

I started exercising more in my 30s because of that and because I knew it was important to get moving daily. Starting now in my 30s will help set me up to continue movement as I grow older, and we all know how important movement is to all parts of our health.

3. Not Eating Right

Again, my body is not like it was. All those 2 AM slices of pizza after a night of drinking used to not stay on my body… now they do. Plus, it’s just not good for my heart health, is it? That’s something I know and actively think about in my 30s that I didn’t pay any sort of attention to in my 20s.

Not eating right in your 30s can have a big negative affect on your body, your heart health, and all sorts of other kinds of health. Eating right looks different for everyone as every body is different, but get those veggies in and try and cut back on those midnight munchies.

4. Drinking Too Much

No, you don’t have to stop drinking – I would never say that. But my drinking habits have totally changed in my 30s compared to my 20s.

My 20s, especially my college years, were all about partying and not caring what I was drinking, as long as I was drinking. And yes, that included mixing all different kinds of alcohol… and even jungle juice (IYKYK).

Now, if I were to mix alcohol, I’d be down for the count sick that night and the next day. Even if I drink too much in one night, I could be down for the count for days. The hangovers are so much worse.

5. Not Setting Boundaries

No, this doesn’t really have to do with physical health, but who said we were just talking about physical health? Setting boundaries is so important to your mental health, and your 30s should be about taking your mental health seriously too.

In my 20s, I didn’t feel like I was “adult” enough to set boundaries. Silly, right? But I started setting them in my 30s, and the difference is remarkable. There’s definitely been a difference in my mental health and an increase in my happiness level.

6. Not Being More Positive

I don’t know what it is, but at least for me in my 20s, I had a chip on my shoulder. I felt like the world owed me something. I was not a very positive person and I could be argumentative. I didn’t realize the weight all of those negative thoughts and emotions had on me until I “grew up” for a lack of a better term.

In my 30s, I’ve become more positive – not like excessively, but much more than I was, and I really can feel the difference on me both physically and mentally.

Plus, being a more positive person just attracts more good people to you – and we can all use good people in our lives! I’ve learned that happiness is contagious.

7. Surrounding Yourself With The Wrong People

You may have heard the phrase “your network is your net worth” and it’s so true. The people you surround yourself with have such an impact on you, without you probably even realizing it.

I surrounded myself in my 20s with the “fun” crowd, the people who liked to go out, party, and didn’t take anything too seriously. That was great for then – but totally not what I wanted in my 30s.

Now I surround myself with people in the same phase of life as me – hardworking, wanted to grow professionally, wanting to start a family, and so on. Having this network is like a little village I can lean on. Our hard work and attitude rub off on each other and encourages each of us to want to be better people. That’s something I didn’t have – and was totally not thinking about – in my 20s.

What Bad Health Habits Do You Still Have In Your 30s?

These are habits I’ve actively tried to change in my life as I grew out of my 20s and into my 30s. What habits are you hanging on to that you need to change?

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