Six ways to get your day off to a healthy start and feel great!
Want to start your day off on the best foot possible? Here is what you need to know for a great morning routine and for maintaining a healthy lifestyle.
1. Drink a glass of lemon water before breakfast. This increases your
hydration right away, helping to boost energy levels and improve organ function. By
adding lemon slices to your water, it increases your vitamin C intake, which is important
for immune function, healthy bones, muscles and wound healing. Lemon water also promotes healthy
liver function (detoxification) and digestion for the remainder of the day.
2. Eat breakfast. By eating in the morning (within an hour of waking up), you are less likely to overeat throughout the day, and another benefit is it kick starts your metabolism.
3. Pass on the “desserts” for breakfast. In North America, it is all too common to eat baked goods for breakfast, such as muffins, croissants, or donuts to go along with a morning coffee. This is not the best way to start your day as it provides a quick boost of sugar, leading to an insulin spike and then a crash effect a few hours later, making you feel groggy and still hungry. Instead, try eating foods that are high in protein along with healthy fats. For example, two eggs with a side salad dressed with extra virgin olive oil, or half an avocado spread on whole wheat toast can make you feel fuller for longer.
4. Eat colourful foods. Get your daily dose of essential vitamins and minerals by eating all the colours of the rainbow through various fruits and vegetables. The more diverse the colours are, the wider the range of of vitamins and minerals that you’ll be getting. Think of the wide variety of colour available – from bananas, red peppers, orange peppers, kiwis, blueberries, spinach, radishes, cucumbers, beets and grapes – to name a few. Bottom line: keep it colourful to keep it healthy!
5. Don’t eat the exact same foods every day. You may have a healthy breakfast routine such as eating greek yogurt and berries for breakfast everyday, but your body needs variation. If we eat the same thing day after day, our bodies get too used to it and we don’t extract all the nutrients we need. Consider a three or four day food cycle variation whereby you eat different breakfast meals throughout the week, avoiding any repeats two days in a row.
6. Schedule in your exercise. Too many of us don’t exercise enough (30 minutes for three times a week is the recommended minimum). It’s all too easy to skip out on exercise when it’s raining, snowing, or you’re just too tired after a long day. To combat those roadblocks, schedule in exercise each week and prioritize it as you would for a business meeting or a medical appointment. Once it is scheduled in, you’ll be more likely to actually follow through with it.
For additional advice on how to start your day off great contact us today to book an appointment.
