Sticking with those grand goals we all love listing at the beginning of each new year often proves to be impossible. But what if you made it a little easier for yourself when it comes to health and wellness goals? With these simple swaps, you might surprise yourself by the end of the year!
Instead of fixating on a gym, make all your workouts count
Don’t get us wrong – becoming a gym regular is amazing! It’s effective, it’s healthy, it’s competitive and also, how great are gyms for making new friends? But sometimes finding the time and determination to get there becomes impossible. Bad weather, lack of sleep, an unexpected baby shower for your bestie – and here you are, skipping who knows how many sessions in a row.
But is your gym time really the only time during the week you work out? What about those hiking trips with your friends you take every other weekend? We bet, you break a sweat there the same way you do at the gym! Or maybe you love singing songs from Frozen and dancing your heart out with your kids before bedtime? Don’t discount these activities! If you’re burning calories, if your body is getting some movement and getting stronger and fitter – you more than deserve to tick that workout box on your weekly to-do list.
Instead of banning social media, set healthy boundaries
Spending too much time online is not good for our mental health, our productivity during the day and even our skin colour. Some people recommend getting rid of your social media accounts entirely but do you really need to be that radical? Simply limiting the time you spend on Instagram or Facebook will already be beneficial and doesn’t require sacrificing all the online friends you’ve made and all the role models that keep you inspired, motivated and who teach you something new.
For example, allocate an hour daily after dinner for browsing your fav accounts – that’s all you really need! If you don’t trust yourself not to get stuck online, you can set up a time limit or a reminder inside the app:
Find the menu in the top right corner of your Instagram account.
Click on Your Activity.
Click on Time Spent.
Find ‘Manage Your Time‘ section – from here, you can either set up a reminder that will notify you
when your allocated time is over or you can even set up a daily time limit for this social media!
Instead of eating less unhealthy food, eat more healthy food
When we decide to ‘eat healthier’, that often means cutting out sugar, junk food and anything that is not considered ‘healthy’. As a result, we focus on all the food we don’t allow ourselves to indulge on, mourning the loss of our little guilty pleasures and feeling miserable because of it.
Instead of focusing on all the deliciousness you are not allowed to eat, enrich your diet with all the ingredients that are healthy and nutritious – vegetables and fruits, grains and legumes, lean proteins. Trust us, if you happen to enjoy a cheeky ice cream on the beach after a healthy lunch and not after scarfing down half a pizza, you’re still winning at life!
Instead of becoming a morning person, start your morning right
It’s not about the WHEN, it’s about HOW! Waking up earlier won’t automatically make you a more productive, energetic and happy person. After all, our bodies function differently and if waking up too early makes you groggy and lazy, there is no need to force yourself.
Instead, create a proper morning routine – start your day with a nice meditation or a quick stretch, allocate some time to journal your goals and dreams, cook a hot breakfast and eat without rushing. It doesn’t matter whether it happens at 5am or 11am – if you’re energised and look forward to starting a new day after your morning routine, you’ve done it right!
Here are a few morning habits of successful, productive people to adopt.
Instead of a complicated night-time skincare routine, make sure your face is clean and fresh
A 10-step night-time skincare routine seems to be the perfect way to wrap up a successful, healthy, balanced day. But let’s be honest, if you’ve poured all your energy into making today count, you’re probably tempted to walk past the bathroom and crash into bed right now.
Make it simple, and commit to at least washing off your makeup or quickly washing your face with a light daily cleanser. Your skin will be grateful for letting it breathe and rest at night!
If applying a skincare product or two doesn’t seem too daunting, here are some amazing night-time skincare products.