August is National Wellness Month. Here are Griff II’s top five tips for promoting self-care, managing stress, and promoting healthy routines.

Drink More Water: Whether canine or human, hydration is important for the mind and body—especially during the dog days of summer. Water is key to digestion, moving nutrients through your body, lubricating your joints, helping keep your skin clear, and can help with weight loss—if that is a goal of yours.

Play Outside More: Fresh air is good for the body and mind. Spending time in nature has been shown to lower blood pressure and heart rate, manage stress, improve memory, and elevate your mood.

Go for a W-A-L-K: Walking is simple, free, and it benefits you in many ways–it benefits your mental health, helps manage weight, gives you more energy, and assists with pain management. If you are not a regular walker, now is a great time to start. Just a 30 minute walk a day will render benefits.

Take a BIIIIIIG Stretch: Griff II strongly recommends that you start each day with a good stretch. Regular stretching helps preserve mobility, keeps your muscles flexible, and protects your joints and muscles from injury. Griff II suggests, and experts at Harvard Medical School agree, you focus on your lower extremities (calves, hamstrings, hip flexors in the pelvis and quadriceps in the front of the thigh).

Take a Snooze: Sleep plays a huge factor in our mental and physical well-being. Making sure you get enough sleep will help you keep your weight steady, reduce your risk of depression, help manage anxiety, keep your memory sharp, and your immune system strong. Griff II recommends you maintain a pattern of going to bed at night and getting up in the morning around the same time every day. We’re creatures of habit—this is a good habit to cultivate.

— Linda Feiden, Human Resources