Returning to Simplicity

After the first big holiday of the season, many of us are ready for a little return to simplicity. After eating more than usual, drinking, and even talking in excess with friends and family, we all might be feeling rather drained. We suggest these simple life hacks: cut back on meal size, return to exercise, introduce cleaner products to your diet, and feed yourself brain food.

By thoughtfully considering all the components of our day we can make healthy choices that positively impact our body, mind, spirit, and energy. Putting clean foods into our bodies, reading more, rejecting screen time, and remembering to move are all great ways to get back on track after the Thanksgiving festivities. To help our readers with this transition, we’ve come up with some fun tips and recipes to put into play over the next few months. After all, the holidays have just begun!

Less is More

As Americans, we consume meal portions that tend to shock the rest of the world. Normalcies like huge pasta dishes, sandwiches the size of our face, and the general encouragement for second helpings is all part and parcel of our unique American culture.

But what has all this excess eating really done to us physically and mentally?

Consuming more food than we need has many negative consequences on our bodies. It puts a strain on our digestive tract, naturally expands our stomachs, causes lethargically, and in general, wears us down faster than eating appropriate portions. By decreasing meal sizes, we can give our bodies a chance to absorb all of the important nutrients our food provides without taxing our hard-working digestive system. We can still eat the same foods, but just cut back on portions. Over time, our stomachs will adjust to the new portion size and begin to work efficiently again. Though you might feel slightly hungry for a few days, your body will get used to it and begin to function at a high capacity, and thank you for the break! No more feelings of being sluggish from the extra work or weight when you reduce portion size.

Healthy Habits!

When the days get shorter and the temperature gets colder it’s easy to become uninspired to exercise. Most of us have a seasonal inclination to hole up, get cozy indoors, and pass the time with distractions. But if you can challenge these tendencies you’ll probably be happy you did! That also means being aware of your daily screen time and how you spend your waking hours. You can even set a reminder on your phone that will cut off your ability to use certain apps after too much use. This helps in regulating how many hours you’re spending on each app per day and when it’s time to transition to other activities. So, here are a few home activities to keep you feeling fit:

• Yoga from home with morning coffee
• Light weightlifting with hand weights
• Jump rope (alone or with the kids)
• Dust off old pilates videos 
• Crunches and pushups in the morning
• Clean the house! Scrubbing, sweeping, and vacuuming is great physical work
• Walk the dog(s) more often than usual
• Bike ride

You Are What You Eat!