As we head into the cold winter make sure to take time for wellness with these 7 tips
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As I look at the 10-day weather forecast, I am reminded that winter will be here soon. I am a summer person and I dread the cold winter days for so many reasons. Winter brings a chill in the air and means no more being able to wear shorts and tank tops. Winter means having to close all the windows in the house and not enjoying the fresh outside air. The cold days that begin with no sunshine make it hard to get out of bed while the cold temperatures outside mean less time spent outside. Then there is the way to many layers of clothes that I have to put on every day. Winter also means more cloudy days of no bright sunshine so my SADD kicks in and I long for summer again.
Winter is a time of year that we should give our wellness routine a boost. If you don't have a wellness routine, now is the perfect time to start one. Practicing wellness will help your body be stronger and that will help with many things like immunity, stress, mood, and more. It is amazing what some simple wellness things can do for the health of our bodies.
1. Take Time For Yourself
Winter was made to be a time for our bodies to slow down and rest. Now that the cold weather keeps us inside more this can be an opportunity to take some time for yourself. For some people that may be a hard thing to do as you may have kids or other things that seem to fill up your day. Taking time for you is so important to your wellness. Think of something that you enjoy. That enjoyment could be as simple as sipping a warm cup of coffee to traveling to the beach. Now think about how you can do something every day for you. Your wellness matters and you need to not feel guilty when you love yourself.
If you are a busy mom and the kids don't nap, enjoy that cup of coffee while they are playing outside or watching TV. Maybe it is a TV show that you like or taking a long bath. Parents need not feel guilty about their kids watching TV if that means you can take some time for you. If you have a busy workday and don't think that you can find time for you, take 5 minutes to do something that brings you pleasure. For me, that can be just sitting outside listening to the birds sing. Then once a week take some more time and do something that brings you joy, like taking a bike ride or getting your favorite flavor of ice cream. When you learn to love yourself, you can then love other people more.
2. Eat Healthy When You Can
While healthy food is best for our wellness, there will be days that you don't eat 100% healthy food. That is ok and food is meant to be enjoyed. So go ahead and enjoy that occasional piece of cake or slice of pizza and focus on healthy nourishing food most of the time. Our bodies run better and can fight off germs better when we feed it food that is full of healthy nutrients. Fruits and veggies are loaded with vitamins and minerals that do so many things for our wellness. Protein is good for our muscles and whole grains give us fiber and lasting energy. Sugar is not good for our wellness as it can weaken our immunity so enjoy healthier treats like these Healthy No Bake Salted Chocolate Brownies. Maybe try replacing the sugar in your daily coffee with a natural zero-calorie sweetener like monk fruit. Yes, coffee is a healthy drink as it is loaded with antioxidants. So enjoy a glass of homemade cold brew coffee which is smoother and less bitter than regular coffee. So you may end up using less sugar. Instead of potato chips, enjoy some wheat crackers.
How sugar can harm the body
3. Be MindFul Of Stress
Stress is not good for your body but it is a thing that is hard to avoid. Stress can cause your body to ache like neck and back pain. Stress can weaken our immune system which makes our body more susceptible to colds, viruses, and diseases. We need to learn ways to cope with the stress in our daily lives so it does not control us. When you are feeling stressed, take deep breaths, listen to calm music, go for a walk, or apply CBD infused topicals. CBD topicals can be used for more than pain and sore muscles. I like to rub a CBD lotion on my neck and shoulders when I am feeling stressed. I breathe in the scent of menthol and that helps me to take deep breaths. The camphor and CBD oil start working to relax my neck and shoulder muscles. Within minutes, I feel the stress leaving my body.
4. Seek Out Quiet Moments
With everyone at home, the house may always be a source of never-ending noise, and finding quiet moments may be hard. Seeking out quiet moments is a great way to relieve stress and bring some balance to your body. That quiet moment can be a short or long time. Even if you have to lock yourself in the bathroom to have a couple minutes of quiet, just do that. Most days my quiet time is me staying up 30 minutes after everyone goes to bed or while I am outside running.
This time does not have to be 100% quiet but just move away from all the noise for a while to take some deep breaths. I like to work upstairs away from everyone else in the house as noise makes it hard for me to think. I have also put on my headphones so I can drown out the noise with quiet music. It is amazing how music can bring happiness to your body and also wellness.
5. Get Up And Move
Our bodies were made to move and fitness should always be a part of your wellness plan. Exercise benefits the body in so many ways. Thirty minutes of exercise a day can keep our heart healthy and our muscles strong. Working out can also help our mind feel good. It is amazing how a walk outside can change my mood and give me the energy to get things done. I prefer to exercise first thing in the morning as morning exercise is good for the mind. If you don't have time to exercise in the morning or even throughout the day, think again. Check out these exercise tips for stay at home moms and 13 tips to sneak in a workout. Just give exercise a chance and see how it makes you feel. If exercise leaves you with muscle pain, just rub some natural CBD sports lotion on before or after your workout. Danu Apothecary's CBD Sport Cream is formulated to support healthy muscles and it has a nice scent. I love how it absorbs without feeling greasy on my skin. My muscles start feeling better within minutes.
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6. Get Sleep
Sleep is another item that is a part of a wellness routine. We all know that our bodies need sleep for our wellbeing, but getting the right amount of sleep can be difficult for some. There can be many things that can be affecting our sleep including kids, work, and health problems. Sometimes some simple sleep tips can help us get our 6- 8 hours and sometimes a new mattress or bamboo sheets can help one fall asleep faster. I tend to have problems falling asleep and I have found that CBD is the one thing that helps me fall asleep when my body won't let me sleep. My favorite way to take CBD supplements is a flavored CBD gummie that tastes like strawberry lemonade. Gummies are an excellent way to try CBD for the first time as they usually have a lower amount of CBD oil. For me, 10 mg of CBD is all I need to help my body relax so I don't stay awake all night tossing in bed.
7. Take Supplements
Wintertime is a time that more people catch colds and viruses. With the current lung virus pandemic, it is even more important to focus on a healthy lifestyle. Making sure to wash our hands often and wearing a face mask is important as well as avoiding large crowds can help with our wellness. Taking supplements can also help our immunity. Check out some of my favorite supplements and natural products that you need for cold and flu season. Now is a good time to stock up on elderberry syrup and vitamin C. I like to make homemade elderberry gummies for my kids as part of their winter wellness.
Another supplement that is useful not only for the winter but also year-round is one that I use for healthy joints. As we get older, our knee and other joints in our body tend to need extra care. We use our joints more than we think with walking, sitting, running, and bending. So that puts wear and tear on them and the cartilage. We older folks may start feeling discomfort and pain when we exercise or even just walking. So now is the time to start taking a Joint Health supplement to protect joints from damage due to exercise. So you don't have to experience painful or stiff joints.
Previnex Joint Health Plus contains a unique blend of clinically proven ingredients to provide the fastest joint relief and protection possible. I like to think of this supplement as my healthy aging supplement that allows me to keep running. I discovered joint supplements several years ago when I suffered from a running injury and they gave me awesome pain and swelling relief while my injury healed. This running injury made me realize that my joints were not getting any younger, especially my knee joints. So I realized that if I wanted to keep running I needed to continue to use joint supplements. I faithfully take my Previnex Joint Health Plus every day as I know it works to repair the cartilage in my joints. If I miss a couple days of this joint supplement, my knees start making that clicking noise and I can feel the stiffness when I squat. So these are just some of the many ways that you can practice wellness for winter. When you take time to love yourself and give your body some self-care you are living a healthy lifestyle.
