January is a great time to re-set and make changes to your daily habits, during the Christmas break most of us will experience a period of irregular sleeping, exercise and eating, and while it’s great to take a break from our usual daily rituals the inevitable return can sometimes fill us with trepidation but if approached positively it can provide us with a great opportunity to re-set and make changes big or small. I have a few suggestions that are small but have the possibility of providing a big positive impact on your health and wellbeing:
- Drink the recommended eight glasses (two litres) of water a day.
- Introduce two new fruit or vegetables a week.
- Walk/jog up and down your stairs at home ten times a day.
Most of us don’t drink enough water during the day even though it’s essential for optimal function of our body and can contribute to serious health problems if intake is inadequate, this is especially important as we age and thirst signalling becomes less efficient, we then need to consciously chose to drink water rather than rely on our body to warn us. Tips to encourage water intake are using a straw, having a water bottle that allows you to monitor, adding a small amount of squash/fruit juice or fruit slices to improve taste.
Introducing new fruit and vegetables to our diet is important as a varied diet ensures that we are getting adequate nutrient intake, we tend to make the same food choices based on familiarity of taste and ease of cooking but challenging yourself to try something new is a way of potentially discovering something you and your family really enjoy. Look up recipes for ideas of how you can use or just eat simply.
Incorporating any kind of physical exercise into your daily routine will have a positive impact on your health and stairs provide us with a fantastic home gym! You may be shocked how tiring this little exercise can be and is especially beneficial for those working from home, this is an accessible and quick way to incorporate some movement throughout the day, just make sure you do at least one set every day.
This little challenge can be attempted alone or in combination with other planned health changes, try to monitor your progress and treat yourself at the end of the month if successful, I would love to hear about your progress so please let me know, good luck!
MLT Nutrition 