Natasha Bernstein – Health Shales https://healthshales.com Health, Fitness and Well-Being Blog Wed, 13 Apr 2022 22:24:07 +0000 en-US hourly 1 187037073 Natural Sleep Aids: 10 Home Remedies to Help You Sleep https://healthshales.com/healthy-living/natural-sleep-aids/ https://healthshales.com/healthy-living/natural-sleep-aids/#respond Thu, 13 Jan 2022 23:02:25 +0000 https://healthshales.com/?p=471

Natural Sleep Aids: Fall asleep naturally with proven home remedies, herbal tea, and relaxing nature aids for a guaranteed night’s rest. No need for sleeping pills.

Did you know that almost half the UK population struggles to fall asleep at least once a month? And when we do drift to sleep, how many of us get the correct sleep quality that we need to endure a full day?

While prescription sleep aids are an option, they can often cause further sleep disorders and problems with our natural sleep patterns. Although not new, natural sleep remedies are finally taking the floor to improve sleep quality worldwide.

Related: How to Fall Asleep Fast: 5 Proven Sleep Techniques

Using complementary and integrative health techniques, anyone with sleep problems can now monitor their sleep disorder symptoms and identify what natural sleep remedies could help improve their sleep quality.

By following a sleep-promoting diet, consuming some simple dietary supplements, and adding some of these natural remedies to your bedtime routine, you’ll be falling asleep in no time!

Note: If you have any underline health issues or you take medication, it’s always best to consult with your doctor.

How Can I Solve My Sleeping Problem Naturally?

Don’t stress; there are many forms of natural sleep aid that can help curb your insomnia symptoms.

In this article, we’re going to tackle home remedies to help you get a good night’s sleep. However, you can do many other things to improve your natural sleep-wake cycle.

From doing regular exercise to practicing mindfulness and meditation to eating a wholesome diet, the quality of sleep we experience has to do with various factors.

These activities reduce cases of high blood pressure and help with lowering body temperature, both of which are connected to treating insomnia.

Related: How to prioritize self care

What is the Natural Drug That Helps You Sleep?

There are a bunch of natural drugs that can help promote sleep.

I like to refer to these as supplements rather than drugs to avoid confusing them with clinical sleep medicine. They’re typically safer to take and have fewer (or no) harmful side effects.

The leading supplements that are known to be natural sleep aids include:

  • Melatonin supplements – Melatonin is a hormone that controls your circadian rhythms. For chronic insomnia, melatonin supplements can help you get to sleep faster and improve the quality of your rest.
  • Gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) and 5-Hydroxytryptophan (5-HTP) – when taken together, these two amino acid supplements can increase serotonin levels in the body. Aside from being a natural remedy to reduce stress and anxiety, research suggests that GABA and 5-HTP can help you sleep deeper and for longer.
  • Magnesium supplements – Magnesium is a mineral that can be found in many foods. It activates the parasympathetic nervous system, which helps you feel more relaxed. This mineral also supports GABA neurotransmitter receptors in calming your mind. Simply speaking, magnesium in a pill form prepares your body for rest and offers enhanced sleep quality for those who have trouble falling asleep.
  • Glycine supplements – Glycine is an amino acid found in red and white meats, peanuts, and seeds. Research shows that taking this supplement before bed can help you fall asleep quicker, improve your sleep quality, and decrease daytime sleepiness.

What Can I Take to Help Me Sleep Instead of Melatonin?

If you don’t feel like splurging on supplements, there are a bunch of natural remedies to help with jet lag, poor sleep quality, or an occasional sleepless night.

(Note that if you’re struggling with sleep apnea, sleep disturbances, sleep latency or have a risk of heart disease or allergic reactions, you should seek professional medical advice and consider drug administration from a medical doctor. You might even be advised to give cognitive behavioral therapy a try, which is a structured sleep program designed for primary insomnia.)

These herbs and flowers are known to improve sleep and treat sleep problems. We’ll dive into these in more detail in the rest of the article:

  • Dried chamomile flowers
  • Valerian root
  • Passionflower
  • Lavender

1. Enjoy a Tart Cherry Juice Nightcap

Not only is it refreshing and delicious, but cherry juice is also a source of antioxidants that can help reduce inflammation and swelling and boost immunity.

Combined with its anti-inflammatory properties, this wonder fruit also has a high melatonin content. Together, this makes for a great sleep aid to help your stay asleep for longer.

If melatonin supplements aren’t in your price range, or if you would just prefer a natural aid to insomnia, cherry juice (or a snack of fresh cherries) is a great alternative to melatonin or valerian.


2. Eat a Dinner Rich in GABA

GABA (Gamma-Aminobutyric Acids) is one of the amino acids found in the brain that help to reduce anxiety, tension, and stress. As a result of feeling calmer, this natural product helps us sleep better.

GABA supplements are available at most pharmacies. You can also increase your GABA levels by exercising regularly and eating certain foods. For example, fish, eggs, mushrooms, tomatoes, and broccoli contain GABA.


3. Drink Calming Chamomile Tea

Chamomile tea is one of those common sleep aids that we have all heard of. It’s a herbal remedy known to reduce inflammation and stress and improve sleep quality.

Its contribution to sleep improvements is linked to the flavonoid content found in the chamomile flower.


4. Practice Aromatherapy with Patchouli Oil

I’m a huge fan of essential oils and aromatherapy before bed. Patchouli oil is a concentrate made from a plant with a woody, sweet and spicy smell.

Like cherries, the flower has anti-inflammatory properties that can help us stay calm and relaxed. And let’s be honest, one of the most significant barriers to a good night’s rest in older adults is stress!

Whether you prefer to inhale the oil through a steamer, put it in your favorite oil burner or diffuser, or rub it on your temples, it’s worth giving this natural anti-inflammatory a try.


5. Make a Tasty Tea from the California Poppy

If you’re not getting insufficient sleep, have issues relaxing before bed, or generally suffer from depression or mental exhaustion, try drinking some tea brewed from the Californian poppy flower.

This flower works with your brain’s GABA receptors to promote relaxation, and it’s particularly useful for sleeplessness caused by anxiety and stress.


6. Have a Bedtime Snack of Almonds and Bananas

Another one of the leading supplements used to treat insomnia is magnesium. If you’re on the hunt for natural supplements to help you sleep, try eating foods rich in magnesium.

My favorite bedtime combination is chopped bananas and almonds.

Bananas are high in magnesium, tryptophan, vitamin B6 and potassium. Almonds have a high magnesium and calcium content.

As a result, melatonin production in our bodies helps regulate our sleep cycles.

This dietary magnesium supplement is a tasty option for a bedtime snack that won’t break the bank or cause any bedtime stomach issues.


7. Brew Valerian Root Tea

Valerian root is a herbal sleep remedy known to help us quickly fall into a deeper sleep, and experience an overall more restful sleep.

Commonly added to dietary supplements, you can also easily brew valerian root tea to sip on a few hours before bed.

This remedy was used in ancient Greece and Rome to help with insomnia, stress, and anxiety.


8. Calm Your Nerves with Lemon Balm

Lemon balm is another natural treatment that has sleep-promoting effects. Like many other herbal remedies, this citrus-scented plant has treated insomnia since the Middle Ages.

Aside from improving general mood and cognitive functioning, about 600 mg of lemon balm in a capsule form per day can act as a mild sedative and significantly impact your stress and anxiety levels.

Alternatively, try making a tasty tea combining lemon balm and valerian, or find a good teabag version at your local grocery store!


9. Rub Lavender Oil Into Your Temples

Lavender oil is another essential oil that is commonly used to induce sleep and increase rest quality. When tested on live participants, research shows that lavender increases the amount of slow-wave and deep-wave sleep.

However, not only is it known to calm the mind and ready you for bed, but it has also been linked to increasing your energy levels in the morning.

Lavender can also be used to ease allergies and eczema.


10. Boil Passionflower to Make a Natural Sleep Medicine

Also known as incarnate, passionflowers have a range of health benefits that include helping people fall asleep faster.

Passionflower is another herb that boosts your brain’s GABA levels. As a result, this slows the activity in your brain and readies you for bed.

If you have trouble sleeping, passionflower can calm your mind and set you up for a good night’s rest.


It’s always a good option to try a natural sleep aid to improve sleep quality. Supplements are a top option for those with a budget, but even natural sleep aids can hugely impact subjective sleep quality.

For more sleep hacks, watch the video below:


If you have severe issues with sleeping or experience severe insomnia, I recommend contacting your doctor to provide medical advice.

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The 12 Best Yoga Videos on YouTube (Great Workout) https://healthshales.com/yoga/youtube/ https://healthshales.com/yoga/youtube/#respond Thu, 13 Jan 2022 19:44:34 +0000 https://healthshales.com/?p=419

Best Yoga Videos on YouTube: 12 of the finest yoga videos, the greatest classes, and the top YouTube channels follow to ensure you have the best yoga workout every day (beginner-friendly).

YouTube yoga videos have taken the world by storm. If you don’t already have a favourite YouTube yoga channel saved onto your favourites tab, you will by the end of this article.

From yin yoga to restorative yoga to vinyasa yoga to hatha yoga to Kemetic yoga, there’s a good reason every second friend you chat to is practising this art form of exercise. Quite simply, the benefits are enormous. Yoga is known to improve your mental health and wellbeing as well as help with weight loss and overall body fitness.

Whether you choose to lay your mat out after a long day at work or before the sun rises with a morning yoga practice, yoga can have a significant impact on your mood and health.

Which Yoga YouTube Channel is Best?

Depending on whether you’re looking for a strenuous workout or a grounding flow, there are tons of channels and videos catering to different needs on the internet.

The best yoga channel on YouTube is Yoga with Adriene. Not only because she instils a sense of calm in me from the moment she starts to speak, but because she provides a well-rounded variety of videos on her channel.

Whether you are experiencing pain in your lower back, are craving a good stretch or need a full-body workout, Yoga with Adriene has you covered.

Is 15 Minutes of Yoga a Day Enough?

If your aim is to get super fit or lose weight, I would recommend doing between 4 and 5 hours of core or power yoga each week.

However, if you’re after a relaxing grounding session, 15 minutes of restorative yoga or stretching each day can add huge value to your mental health and wellness.

Yoga practices are known to be deeply calming and increase positive vibes all around. Better yet, yoga can be a life-long practice that you can modify to suit your body and fitness as you get older.

What are the Most Effective Yoga Classes?

Not only is yoga incredibly good for the mind, soul and body, it’s also a workout that you can do just about anywhere there is enough space to roll out a yoga mat.

On top of this, it’s really easy to find good YouTube yoga channels to guide you through your at-home practice. In my opinion, the most effective YouTube classes are full-body workouts. These physically demanding flows include core vinyasa flows and acro yoga for more advanced yogis, and ashtanga and Iyengar for beginners.

If you want to break a sweat, follow along as we uncover the 12 best yoga classes and YouTube yoga channels with the world’s best yoga teachers across the internet:

1. Beginner Yoga with My Peace of Mindfulness

If you’re a yoga newbie, My Peace of Mindfulness is the Youtube channel for you. Primarily a mindfulness & meditation channel, they also have a range of beginner yoga classes with professional teachers.


2. Morning Vinyasa Burn with Yoga Dose

Yoga Dose self-defines itself as ‘the place to get strong, and stay flexible’. And really, isn’t that what we’re all here for? While many yoga teachers add in a few relaxing breathing practices and yin flows, Yoga Dose is all about the burn.

Watch this video, and scroll through their list to find some intense morning yoga workouts which will get you ready for the day. While you don’t have to be fit or flexible to try these flows, you should definitely be ready to sweat it all out and feel the burn!


3. Total Body Yoga Flow with CosmoBody (and Tara Stiles)

Dive into the week with this total-body flow. Cosmo Body was created by the Cosmopolitan conglomerate to influence their following to keep fit without having to spend time at a gym, or paying high membership fees.

The platform collates tons of videos put together by a variety of personal trainers and yoga teachers. This 30-minute workout is one of my favourites because it’s quick, and is all about letting go of your day so far.

If you’re struggling with procrastination or motivation, this video will help you reset and recenter for the rest of the day.


4. Deep Stretch Yoga by Yoga with Kassandra

Stretching is essential for good health. In fact, keeping flexible can help your body protect itself from certain injuries and pain. It is also known to improve your posture and balance and therefore increase your overall physical strength.

Flexibility is exactly what our bodies need to help our sore ligaments and creaky joints out. Not only will this video by Yoga with Kassandra make you feel like you’ve just had a deep-tissue massage, but it will also increase your overall fitness levels.


5. Yoga for Back Pain by Yoga with Adriene

It’s no secret that Yoga with Adriene is my personal favourite yoga teacher and personal trainer. She runs the best YouTube yoga channel for anyone looking for a wide range of yoga practices, from beginner through to advanced poses.

Many of her home yoga videos put a focus on different parts of the body. For example, this video is crafted for beginners and will help relieve lower back pain. It’s basically like a free physio session, and even if you feel too sore to get moving, this video will leave you feeling relieved of your pain.


6. Lengthening Yoga and Guided Meditation Practice with Caren Baginski

Yoga is all about taking a holistic approach to life, and it goes without saying that eating properly, doing exercise and keeping your mind active through meditation go hand in hand for a successful yoga journey.

Caren Baginski’s channel curates guided meditation videos together with full workout classes. This video is a great combination of the two and will help you feel more relaxed and grounded, while also helping you break a sweat.


7. Basic Yoga for Complete Beginners by Yoga with Adriene

Calling all yogi beginners! Yoga with Adriene is a great YouTube channel that guides a wider audience through yoga practices.

Don’t get me wrong, Adriene is known for making that booty burn, and can definitely turn up the heat in more advanced sessions, but many of her classes are catered to beginner audiences. This flow is one of them.

Adriene herself is super down to earth and will make you feel at ease from the moment you unfurl your mat. On top of this, she’s clear and concise when she speaks, and will easily guide you through this beginner practice with her calming voice.


8. Power Vinyasa for Increased Energy with Briohny Smyth at Alo Yoga

If you’re after a solid free workout, we have you covered. Briohny Smyth works out of her flagship studio in Beverly Hills, but if you would rather practice over the web, this 30-minute vinyasa flow will be sure to raise your heart rate.

Power vinyasa is basically vinyasa, just sped up (and often done in a hot studio). It offers a cardio workout and is great for endurance and strength training. Aside from the obvious health and wellness benefits, vinyasa yoga is known to help increase your stability and balance, and lower your overall stress and anxiety levels. Sounds like we could all use one of these sessions!


9. Acro Yoga Beginner Flow with Koya Webb

While you might not believe acro yoga to be an option for beginners, this flow was designed for first time acro’s. In fact, one of the partners in this video has never done acro yoga herself. We all have to start somewhere, right?

Aside from her free video content, Koya also does private coaching for anyone interested in acro yoga. This type of partner yoga depends entirely on trust between two people and is a great exercise for an open heart.

Not to mention, it’s clear that it’s also a strong workout that requires a bit of flexibility, and will help increase your overall fitness if practised continuously.


10. Morning Yoga for Flexibility with Tara Stiles

Tara Stiles is a yoga instructor and the founder of Strala Yoga. Strala is a series of yoga studios and an online database that posts videos ranging from relaxing meditations to tai chi to body positive yoga.

Although she charges a fee to access her platform, she does also have a YouTube channel where she posts quick 5-10 minute flows for anyone to do for free.

This practice is great for improving flexibility in the morning and will help open up your neck, spine and hamstrings after a long sleep.


11. Pilates Inspired Yoga Practice by Move with Nicole

I like to think of yoga and pilates as siblings. They both offer some of the best low-impact workouts and if practised together, can have a range of benefits for the body and mind.

Nicole McPherson is a barre and pilates instructor with a passion for yoga and all things fitness. She posts videos and classes on her channel that fuse these three workouts together, creating the ultimate workout that will get you fired up for the day.


12. Full-Body Core Yoga by Yoga with Tim

This YouTube channel posts free weekly videos that yoga instructor Tim claims will not only keep you fit and healthy but also change your outlook on life. Tim helps to guide you through your spirit voyage, from refining your breathing techniques and focus to ensuring your muscle alignment is perfect.

In this full-body workout, Tim uses the whole body and puts special attention on alignment in his poses. After all, yoga is all about alignment. Once you have that pinned, the fitness will follow!


Whether you’re a beginner or an advanced yogi, these yoga videos will be sure to give your body just what it needs. Grab your mat and get moving!

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9 Ways to Prioritize Yourself (Easy Self Care Routine) https://healthshales.com/healthy-living/prioritize-your-self-care-routine/ https://healthshales.com/healthy-living/prioritize-your-self-care-routine/#respond Thu, 18 Mar 2021 20:07:47 +0000 https://healthshales.com/?p=375

How to Prioritize Self Care: easy ways to make self-care a part of your daily routine. Learn to nurture your emotional, physical & mental wellbeing by prioritizing self-care and taking care of yourself.

Caring for yourselves takes patience and time, and while our modern lifestyles often force us to neglect our physical and mental health, we need to make a conscious effort to spend time looking after our bodies, minds, and souls.

Self-care should never be an afterthought and should be a high priority for everyone. Simply setting aside time to take care of yourself is the first step to prioritizing self-care.

What exactly is self-care?

The World Health Organization has defined self-care as “the ability of individuals, families, and communities to promote health, prevent disease, maintain health, and to cope with illness and disability with or without the support of a healthcare provider.”

While its scope is broad, caring for yourself involves actively taking the time to look after your mental, physical, emotional, spiritual, and social self to improve your general well-being and life satisfaction.

What are the five types of self-care?

From taking a few minutes a day to meditate, to eating healthily, to getting enough rest, self-care comes in many shapes and forms:

  1. Emotional – To understand our deeper selves, what we want in life, and how we plan to get there, we need to reflect on our emotions. This type of self-care helps us to connect to and process our emotions. Writing in a journal and engaging in a creative hobby are examples of emotional self-care.
  2. Physical – Managing our physical health has a ripple effect on our mental wellbeing. Physical self-care ideas include joining a yoga class or fitness class, sleeping enough, and eating healthily.
  3. Mental – Stimulating our minds by reading, educating ourselves, and interacting with interesting people is essential to our overall well-being.
  4. Spiritual – Thinking of the bigger picture by engaging in meditative practices and spending time appreciating nature forms a big part of our understanding of the world and our place in it.
  5. Social – We should spend time with those we love and care for to enhance our social relationships.

1. Learn how to say ‘no’

A pivotal lesson you’ll learn when prioritizing your time is learning to say ‘no.’ Whether your friends are probing you to join them on a night out or whether your boss is making you work too many overtime hours to count, it’s essential you know when to say ‘no.’

If you don’t manage to say ‘no’ to people too easily, you’ll end up spending your time doing more for others than for yourself. Eventually, you’ll build up resentment towards those people and even yourself and perhaps explode at an unexpected (and often inconvenient) time.

Your best bet is to ensure you don’t reach your breaking point by turning down invites and declining work to give yourself time to make your own routine a priority. It’s an empowering action to establish boundaries with those you love and those you work for.

As counteractive as it might be, saying ‘no’ when you need to can be more beneficial to both sides of a relationship than resentfully saying ‘yes.’

What does prioritizing yourself mean?

Prioritizing yourself means considering everything your body needs and making sure you get it. Giving yourself the time of day and attention to focus on what you need by spending time working on your goals, desires, and self-care routine.

Why is it important to prioritize yourself?

If you’re prone to giving more of your time and love to those around you, you might be neglecting your own self by falling short of your goals, hopes, and dreams in the hope of lifting those around you instead.

4 reasons you should be prioritizing yourself:

  1. You need to reach your personal goals.
  2. You can’t be expected to give to others without giving to yourself.
  3. You must love yourself foremost before you turn your attention elsewhere.
  4. The bottom line is that the only person who will prioritize yourself the way you need is you.

Is it selfish to prioritize yourself?

While it might seem selfish and counteractive to take some time for yourself rather than spending it on someone else, it’s in fact highly productive and will help your relationships in the long run in a variety of ways.

  1. Spending time focusing on and improving your own mental and physical health improves our general wellbeing and makes us more pleasant to be around.
  2. We are less likely to resent our loved ones if we feel we aren’t forced to always do what they want, on their time.

How to prioritize yourself?

The best way to prioritize yourself is to decide what your body needs, set time aside, and give yourself what your body requires.

From eating healthy food to regular exercise and meditation to getting an adequate amount of sleep each night to create a self-care routine, you should start doing more of what you enjoy and crave and less of what you don’t.

While there will always be certain things we need to do which cannot be avoided, you’ll be surprised at how much time in your day you can free up for your own self, by saying ‘no’ to the things that don’t bring you joy.


2. Journal your short term goals

When we talk about goals, we often refer to long-term plans. It can be daunting to think about where you might be in 5 years, and when prioritizing our self-care routines, it’s more beneficial to focus on our short-term aspirations.

Consider what you would like to achieve at the end of each hour, day, and week. Journal these thoughts and add them to a weekly planner. Research shows that keeping a weekly or monthly calendar or a to-do list helps you manage your time better while improving your productivity levels. It can also be a great stress relief to check things off your lists.

When we write down our hopes and dreams on paper, we are more likely to seriously consider them in our daily activities and are constantly reminded of what steps we need to take to make our goals a reality.

It’s important to pay attention to how you feel and reflect on your progress, making sure not to put extra pressure on yourself and prioritize your health over your career and social aspirations.

How do you decide on your priorities?

The best way to figure out what you should prioritize is to take a moment to think about what your mind, body, and soul crave. Whether you need better nutritional attention, and more sleep or crave some simple alone time, make time to accommodate yourself.

Add simple activities, such as an afternoon nap or time to cook a healthy meal to your self-care routine. By giving your body, mind, and soul what it needs, you’ll be improving your overall physical and mental health while making yourself more approachable for yourself (and others).

How do you prioritize your personal goals?

If you’re wondering how to prioritize self-care, the best way is to set physical time aside to achieve your goals. We must ignore the critics; and compliment ourselves on our achievements, however small they may be, while giving ourselves adequate time to achieve the goals we set ourselves.


3. Start a self-care routine

A self-care routine is a great way to set aside time to improve ourselves and our happiness.

Checklist to start a self-care routine:

  1. Find what makes you feel most centered and satisfied.
  2. Brainstorm how you could incorporate what you enjoy doing into your daily life more.
  3. Schedule time to relax and find ways to unwind.
  4. Set yourself self-care aspirations.
  5. Check in with your progress and see what you are managing to do right and what you aren’t giving yourself enough time and space to do.
  6. Keep adjusting your routine to better fit in with your daily tasks and schedule.

What are good self-care ideas?

  • Do physical exercise, but don’t overdo it.
  • Meditate daily.
  • Try this self care shower routine.
  • Engage in a creative outlet or hobby to get your creative juices flowing.
  • Make sure you get between 7 and 9 hours of good quality sleep each night.
  • Laugh every day.
  • Spend time outdoors and in the sun. Experts state that getting between 10 – 30 minutes of sun exposure each day can increase our vitamin D levels.
  • Make time to cook and eat healthy and nutritious food.
  • Spend time with people who bring you up and avoid those who bring you down.

If you’re ready to create a self-care routine, check out the 30 day self-care challenge by What’s Good?.


4. Pay attention to the way you feel and switch up your schedule

While habits can be comforting and convenient, it’s important not to become complacent in our daily activities and to continue to challenge ourselves to be the best we can be. The best way to do this is to explore new ways of doing things by adding, removing, and switching our daily schedules.

Doing things differently helps to take us out of our comfort zone and activate different parts of our bodies and brains. Changing our routine can help us figure out how to better achieve our goals by learning from experience.

5 tips for switching up your daily self-care routine:

  1. Visit new places.
  2. Join a new gym/exercise class.
  3. Explore your own area by walking new routes (safely).
  4. Explore cooking different meals.
  5. Do your grocery shopping at a different store.

5. Create a ritualistic bath time

A great form of self-care can be found in a good cleansing ritual (physically and mentally). Schedule time to indulge in a warm bubble bath, light some candles, add some essential oils to your bath, and enjoy the soak.

While cleaning ourselves has obvious benefits of hygiene and self-love, while making us feel refreshed and renewed, it’s also a great way to moisturize and hydrate our skin and hair.

A warm bath is associated with reducing blood pressure, easing breathing, relieving muscles and joints, and maintaining our bodies’ natural temperature.


6. Pay attention to your social media screen-time

One of our generation’s greatest challenges is monitoring and controlling the amount of time we spend scrolling through our smartphones.

Being in constant contact with our closest friends and watching what total strangers do on an hourly basis can cause us to compare ourselves and our lives with other people.

This brings us into a negative cycle whereby we feel the need to constantly ‘watch’ and aspire to other people (often ‘influencers’). However, it’s important to remember that ‘influencers’ are there to do just that – influence, and their daily lives hardly look like what they portray on their social accounts.

The benefits of limiting time on social media:

  1. You’ll spend less time comparing yourself to others and more time focusing on your own wellness.
  2. You’ll better protect your personal privacy by not revealing where you are and what you are doing at all times.
  3. It will free up significant time to spend on yourself or with loved ones. The average young adult spends an average of 3 hours and 15 minutes on their phone each day.
  4. You’ll live more in the moment and be more aware of your surroundings. At the same time, you’ll be less likely to obsess over the past by searching for old friends and ex relationships on your social media.
  5. Your overall happiness and mood will improve as a direct result of the above.

7. Plan your meals to spark your creativity and give you energy

Eating healthily offers a myriad of benefits for our bodies. From increasing our energy levels, immune system response, moods, heart and organ health, as well as aesthetic looks, it’s the one action we should all focus our attention on.

I try to plan my weekly meals, writing down the healthy ingredients I wish to consume, matched with unique and delicious recipe ideas.

While cooking nutritious food, which increases your energy levels, you’ll have a chance to use the creative side of your brain, all while learning and improving a new skill!


8. Carefully choose who you want to spend your time with

Like saying ‘no’ to things that don’t bring you joy, we must make our time a priority by spending time with those who lift our spirits and make us happier while limiting the time we spend with toxic friends make us feel unworthy.

This is a more difficult commitment to make than expected, as it can be hard to decline invitations and avoid toxic relationships. However, the benefits from surrounding yourself with positive people who bring you joy and confidence will be life-changing.


9. Schedule a few minutes a day to relax

It might sound crazy, but with a busy work and social schedule, it’s important we pencil in time to relax. You won’t benefit from running from one activity to another if you don’t give yourself downtime to unwind in between!

My favorite time to relax is usually at the end of the day when I have completed everything I need to do. By winding down before you head to sleep, you’ll also increase the quality of your sleep.

The line between prioritizing self-care and selfishness isn’t as thin as it seems. Learning how to prioritize self-care and taking care of yourself is essential to maintaining a healthy body, mind, and social relationships.

Meditation is a great way to relax your mind and practice mindfulness. You can listen to these guided meditation videos daily for great results.

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