Real Tips to Keep Your Goal of Being Healthy

It's not always easy to make healthy choices. If you're working on your goals relating to fitness and overall health, take a look at these things to do and places to visit eat that may fit into your new healthy lifestyle!

Here are tips and ideas for an active, healthier lifestyle in Greenville, SC.

Get Healthy

You want to get healthy, whether that means losing weight, trying to cook more at home, eating local foods, or cutting out bad habits. But how?

This is a tough one because it involves deliberate choices throughout the day. But once something becomes a habit – whether good or bad – it’s easier to stick with.

So don’t give up! We’ve got lots of great resources here in the Upstate that can help you reach your goals, give you support, or get you motivated to pick back up and keep going or try another approach.

Losing Weight/Exercising More

The YMCA Greenville, SC – The Y is sometimes overlooked as people may want to try a hip gym or cycling studio but really, the Y has everything (and more) that you could want. There are tons of classes to take to give you that extra push, childcare (yay!), pools, tracks, weight lifting rooms, parents' night out, wellness and nutrition programs, and saunas.

Swamp Rabbit Trail – This totally free 21-mile trail runs along the Reedy River and goes through Travelers Rest, Furman University, downtown Greenville and past Cleveland Park. You can run, walk, ride your bike or walk your dog. It’s an excellent resource for anyone looking to start an exercise program!

Bike Riding – While still a little chilly to take long bike rides, there are plenty of places to use your bike to get fit and trim down. If you’re lacking a bike, no worries because there are several places that rent bikes in the area as well. Check out this list of places to bike in Greenville and bike rental locations.

Hiking – There are tons of gorgeous state parks within an hour’s drive from Greenville. Hiking is a great way to have fun as a family (or sneak away by yourself for a day in the outdoors) that is pretty inexpensive. Here are a bunch of places to go hiking near Greenville, SC.

Hiking with KidsPhoto byKidding Around Greenville

Learning to Cook and Eating Healthier

Swamp Rabbit Café & Grocery – This gem along the Swamp Rabbit Trail just outside downtown Greenville is the perfect place to grab local, organic produce, cheese, milk, meat, coffee, grain, and even beer. They also have a children’s play area and since they are on the Swamp Rabbit Trail, it’s a perfect opportunity to park the car, go for a run or bike ride and then enjoy some coffee or homemade bread- in moderation of course!

Join a CSA – A CSA stands for Community Supported Agriculture and it is essentially a buy-in between you and a farm. You give them money and they give you back what they grow or source from their farmer friends in the area. There are a number of great CSAs in the area –check out CSA Farms near Greenville, SC.

Farmers Markets – While this doesn’t necessarily help during these colder winter months, you can look forward to a host of farmers markets all around the Upstate come May through October. Fresh vegetables, fruits, and all kinds of berries and breads and coffees are available every week in Greenville, Greer, Spartanburg, Taylors, Simpsonville, and Fountain Inn, to name a few. Here's a list of farmer's markets and spots to get local produce in Greenville, SC.

Eating Out in a Healthy Way – We all know that eating out is not only expensive but oftentimes, just bad for you on a nutritional level. This article lists out healthier quick restaurant options in Greenville, SC for drive-thrus.