Hi friends!!!!
Today's blog is all about my top health and lifestyle tips!
I want to start off by saying my biggest health tip is to make sure you establish a decent sleeping schedule. I think of the biggest things humans do is not get enough rest and have very irregular sleeping schedules. This is not good!! Yes there are days where it's okay to stay up later and study or party, but we need to be getting our rest so we don't wear out our bodies. It is one my new year resolutions to start getting up earlier and having more of my day to be productive. That means for me that I need to start going to bed earlier and having a stricter sleeping schedule than I have been having.
Also, a helpful anxiety tip that I use when I have a very stressful jam packed week is to write down everything you're stressing and anxious about out on a piece of paper then put it away and leave it for tomorrow to focus on sleeping.
Another, cliche, but helpful tip is to have some space where you write down all your due dates and reminders. I use a planner to help organize my thoughts, but I have also found that making daily to-do lists in a journal also helps me get things done for that said day.
When you have something to study for or focus on, I think it's always a good idea to put your phone out of sight and out of mind! I know this is hard to do, but if it is close to you and it goes off, you will be tempted to stop what you're doing and look at the notification, then you get sucked into scrolling tik tok and completely off task! I always put my phone on "Do Not Disturb" so that I won't hear anything buzz and I put it somewhere where it won't be easy for me to reach for and grab. It helps to just leave it in a completely different room than where you are trying to study.
Another study tip that helps me is to know what environment you will actually be productive in and what environment will distract you. For me, I know that I don't study well in my room because I get easily distracted with what's around me. I usually have to take myself to somewhere where there is no distractions. Studying at the Library is a great place for me and also helps because other people around me are doing the same thing so I feel motivated to study.
Something else I wanted to share with you guys are some easy snacks and recipes that are yummy and healthy. Another resolution I have is to make sure I am not eating out as much and committed to healthy eating.
Snack ideas:
-apples with peanut butter (or Nutella) and chocolate chips for something sweet to add to the top. This snack always helps cure my sweet tooth without racking up the calories.
-smoked hummus with cut up bell peppers on top of a cracker.
-I am a huge cheese girl!! So grapes and a small cheese plate is always a go to when I need something filling until my next meal.
Breakfast ideas:
Quick & Easy:
2 hardboiled eggs and 1 cup of fruit.
The Not All That Breakfast:
two eggs, link of turkey sausage and toast with butter & jam.
The Perfect Yogurt Parfait:
greek vanilla yogurt, honey, your choice of granola, strawberries, blueberries, & chocolate chips.
My Protein Shakes always help me get a great start on my day. My recipe is 15 grams of protein powder, 1/2 cup of blueberries and strawberries (or whatever fruits you want!), a couple of ice cubes, 1/2 cup of almond milk, and 1/4 cup of greek yogurt. Sometimes I will even add in some vitamin boosts if I know I need it!
Lunch ideas:
Vegan Friendly:
veggie burger with brown rice and bbq sauce for flavor
Panera Want To Be:
1 cup of butternut squash soup and half of a sandwich
Dinner Ideas:
One Pan Deal:
2 breasts of chicken (seasoned), lemon, asparagus and one yellow squash sliced up. Place both the chicken and veggies next to each other in the pan. Squeeze one lemon over the pan and some seasoning (you chose what seasoning, but please season LOL) to coat. Begin on medium high and cook for about 15 mins, flipping the chicken every so often.
Pot Roast (Great for long days):
2-3 lb of cooked beef stew meat tips ...add more pounds for more people depending on how many guests you're serving!
Whatever seasonings you use.
3 carrots cut up to whatever size you prefer, I usually do bite size.
3 potatoes to cut up into 4ths
1 white or red onion
4 stalks of celery cut up into tiny pieces
1 package of stew or beef broth or chicken broth
Cut up above all of the ingredients and combine with the broth into crockpot, Add seasoning of your choice, then set to low and leave to cook for 6-8 hours. Come home and dinner is ready!
Some of the last things I will talk about are just 5 easy ways to stay happy and focused this year in your day to day:
1 .Do a couple of things a day that is completely for you and something you really enjoy doing. Sometimes this can be hard to remember to do if you get super busy...other times it's super easy to do!!
2. Exercise weekly in any way! Even if it just starts as a walk or a five minute at home work out! You'll build your way up to more of a consistent and longer work out. Working out is taking care of your physical and mental health.
3 .Eat healthy, but allow yourself to give into your cravings. I really like the 80/20 rule where you eat good 80% of the time and 20% of the time give into your cravings. It's okay to treat yourself with a fast food meal or dessert.
4. For people with anxiety and experience panic attacks, when I feel myself start to get really upset or anxious I use the 5 senses to calm me down. Find something you can hear, taste, feel, see and smell that is the environment around you. It helps you get a sense of grounding in the present and helps you take your mind off any racing thoughts. This has really helped me personally in the past and I hope it helps you.
5. Have your friends and family hold you accountable on your goals! Telling someone and having them remind you is a great way to get it done without falling off track.
I hope this helps friends!! Let me know your favorite health or lifestyle tip!
I hope you guys are all doing wonderful and having a great start to your 2024. Reach out to me ANYTIME on social media if you wanna chat or need a friend.
May we all kick ass at this thing we call life...
also, don't forget to always choose kindness and love in all you do.
till next time...
xoxo,
Unapologetically Rachael
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