Spring is the perfect time to break away from any bad habits you may have developed over winter and get your health back on track for the summer.
Now that the long dark months are over, it’s time to take a look at your health, just like you do your home. Giving your body a spring clean is a great way to undo any bad habits that may have crept in over the winter and set up practices to make you feel happy and healthy.
Take stock
The first step of a new regime is to look at what you’re currently doing and identify any areas that could do with some improvement. These can include exercise levels, what you’re eating and even when you’re consuming it.
Think of it as a sort of health audit and take a note of:
- How much exercise you’re doing
- Your eating habits, including number of calories, types of food and timings of meals
- How well you’re sleeping
- The amount of water you drink
- Your stress levels
Identify areas in need of improvement
Once you’ve got a good overall picture of how your health is looking, it’s time to get down to the specifics. The data you’ve collected will help, but so will a few moments of contemplation. If there are any ways you feel your body is letting you down, it could be down to a lifestyle factor.
Feeling tired a lot could be related to diet, sleep or even the amount of exercise you do. This last factor may seem counterintuitive, but exercise has a direct effect on the central nervous system and boosts energy levels.
Put good stuff in
Spring cleaning your body means tidying away unwanted things and replacing them with things that will serve it well. Of course, diet is a key factor in this and spring vegetables and ingredients are a great antidote to the heavier food that tends to be consumed during the winter months.
Eating with the seasons allows Mother Nature to improve your health instead of fighting her on it. Always remembering to eat the rainbow helps too, as the natural pigments in foods come from different nutrients that all have a role in the body.
Rework your fitness routine
Now that the clocks have changed and the structure of the day is quite different, you may want to adapt your fitness regime to suit the daylight hours and better weather. This may mean fitting in a workout in the evening or even taking your exercise outdoors.
The seasons offer a good opportunity to mix things up and if you have become a bit stale in your habits, it’s the perfect driver for change. You can be more spontaneous too, seizing a sunny day to go for a run or taking advantage of increased energy levels.
Be allergy ready
As the months start to get warmer, allergies can ramp up, so it’s a good idea to get a head start on them. Don’t wait for the first signs of hay fever to arrive before starting to take medication for it, as this will make it less effective. And it can be hard to achieve your fitness goals if you’re sneezing and your eyes are streaming.
Prep your home too, dusting off blinds and turning over bedding to prevent particles building up. You may want to use springtime to implement a new laundry routine too, so that anything from outside doesn’t hang around in the house for too long. Having a strategy will help you to beat any seasonal discomfort you usually experience.
