2020 is right around the corner (😱 tomorrow nigh)
We are starting a new decade and with it comes a great opportunity to start taking charge of your health.
But how?? "There is so much work to catch up on", "I can't handle setting foot back into the kitchen!", "It gets too dark too early to exercise after work!"
First of all, no more excuses. They don't help anyone. I am also guilty of making excuses!
Second, getting back into a routine is not meant to be hard, it's supposed to be routine. So as long as you can keep up your routine, whether it be going to the gym, preparing meals ahead of time, getting more sleep, brushing your teeth... be sure that it happens for 8 days straight, just like Chanukah minus the jelly donuts.
That is a routine! (You passed the lazy weekend mark.)
"Live the questions now, perhaps then, someday, you will gradually, without noticing, live into the answer." - Rainer Maria Rilke
So what now??
1. Set an early wake up!
Now that we have pushed the clocks back, losing day light at the end of the day, getting up at 5:30 am shouldn't be so hard, it is pretty light out... I'm just joking, partially... Starting the day off with exercise means that you don't have to worry about fitting it in later in the day. That means that you have no excuses for pushing it off. Plus, once you wake up every day at 5:30 for 8 days straight, it'll seem like a piece of cake (not literally).
2. Prepare your food the night before.
Now that you are waking up early to get in a workout, you will save time by setting up your food for the next day the night before. Some people even plan the whole week's meals on Sunday, but that may be a bit too extreme for some. Pack lunch and snacks for work and a post-workout breakfast. Make sure that your snacks consist of some fruit and possibly nuts, its good to get in protein during your small meals. Make sure your lunch has a combination of protein, carbs (sweet potato/brown rice) and good fats (avocado). Your post-workout breakfast should also have a combo of protein and carbs.
3. Mix it up!
If you end up doing the same thing day in and day out, you will get bored, fed up and most probably not be able to keep up with your routine. So, mix it up. Don't eat the same thing every day for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Don't do the same workout every day, change the type of exercise you do each time you work out. If Sunday is cardio (running/walking, biking, swimming, dance class, aerobics), do some weights on Monday. Yoga on Tuesday and back to cardio on Wednesday... You don't have to work out every day, your body needs a rest. 3-4x a week is more than enough. You also can get a great workout in in just 20 min, there is no need to spend hours at the gym doing the elliptical for 90' and then 1000 sit ups.
4. Drink more water than coffee.
If you do any of these suggestions, the most important one is to get at least 8 glasses of water into your body a day. Water that is not mixed with anything else. Not juice, not coffee, not tea, not soda. Water. Even more important than sunscreen.
There you have it, a few tips on how to start or get back into a healthy routine.
Stay tuned for more!