As a parent, it’s easy to let your health and well being slip out of your focus. You’ll be busy doing all sorts of other things, such as the school run, working, keeping the house clean, getting your kids to their extracurricular activities and so much more. But your own health should be a priority too, as this will allow you to lead the best quality of life, as well as increasing your chances of a long and healthy life. There are many areas you can focus on to achieve all of this. But here are a few you might want to try out to begin. They’ll make a huge difference, so they’re definitely worth giving a try.
Creating a Consistently Healthy Diet
Chances are you focus a lot on ensuring your kid gets a good, healthy and well rounded diet. But when’s the last time you considered your own diet? All too many parents simply pick at their kid’s food while they’re cooking or eat up the leftovers. This won’t do. Instead, you need to make sure that you’re eating well consistently too. This means planning and preparing quality meals for yourself, as well as your children. Make sure that you’re hitting your recommended calorie count and ensure that your meal are varied and balanced. Get your five portions of fruit and veg a day. Consider superfoods for nutritionally dense snacks. Incorporate gut healthy foods, such as kimchi, or drinks like kombucha, into your routine. Small steps can make a big difference when it comes to your diet.
Coming Up With a Regular Exercise Regime
Exercise is essential to a healthy lifestyle. This isn’t news to any of us. But so few of us actually keep up with our exercise commitments. When it comes down to it, the rules with exercise are pretty simple. You should be trying to get 150 minutes of moderate aerobic exercise each and every week. This doesn’t mean hitting the gym religiously for a couple of weeks in a row, then letting it roll off. It’s much better to exercise little and often in a sustainable manner that ensures consistent exercise. The key to this is doing exercise you enioy. Now, you may be thinking there simply isn’t any exercise you’d actually enjoy. But chances are, you’ve been trying the wrong types of exercise. You don’t necessarily have to hit the running machine, a static bike or other common form of fitness to get your fix. Instead, think about what you want from your exercise routine. If you enjoy socialising, adding a social element to your fitness can really help to boost your enthusiasm and morale. Meet up with a friend for a chat and a brisk walk. Join a fitness class where you can get to know others in your group while you work out. Join a sports team where you can build a sense of team spirit and community. Another alternative is the home workout. Often, people lack the get up and go to get themselves to a gym or other fitness centre. If this is you, work out at home instead. There are countless online tutorials you can follow for guidance.
Pinning Down a Skincare Routine
Skincare doesn’t feature too highly in many people’s list of priorities, but you need to remember that your skin is the largest organ in your body and you need to give it good care to avoid skin complaints and skin conditions. Speaking of skin complaints, start out by taking note of any recurring issues and consulting your doctor if they cause discomfort or blemishes that make you feel uncomfortable. Acne, psoriasis, eczema, rosacea and other conditions are all common in adults. Your doctor will be able to diagnose them and provide the right path to treatment, such as Bodewell calming cream for psoriasis. Once you have skin complaints under wraps, it’s time to create a regular, daily routine that will provide your skin with what it needs. Start out by determining your skin type. A dermatologist will be able to help identify normal, dry, oily or combination skin. They will also be able to recommend a routine that works for you. You’ll likely need a good quality face wash, a toner and a moisturiser. If you want to go all in, and have the budget, you can also explore exfoliators, night creams, eye creams and more.
Rest and Relaxation
Rest and relaxation may seem a thing of the past when you have kids. You get woken up early in the morning, you need to constantly entertain and you have a lot of responsibility permanently on your hands. But you do need to incorporate a little recuperation into your routine every once in a while, at least. Failing to relax can result in burnout, which isn’t good for you or your kids. Find ways to make this work for you. Whether you take this opportunity when the kids head to bed, grabbing a book, watching a TV show, running a bath or simply getting an early night. See if you can arrange childcare for a day spent doing whatever you want – the spa, meeting friends, going for lunch, whatever. You need to take time to catch back up, let your hair down, relax and not have anything you need to do every once in a while.
Emotional Wellbeing
Take time to consider your own emotions. You need to be emotionally well as well as physically well. This can mean taking some time to yourself, as outlined above, or seeking out therapy for deeper rooted issues that are causing you ongoing stress, sadness or other negative emotions. Practices such as mindfulness can prove extremely useful for many people too. At the end of the day, everyone’s emotions vary and we all manage our emotions in different ways, so it’s up to you to determine what’s healthy and what you might need to change or need assistance with.
These are some starter steps that should help you on your journey to better health. Give a few a try and see how you get on?