A happy and healthy woman looking out to a peaceful sea and sky

Starting a Healthy & Happy 2020

 

The New Year always brings fresh energy, full of new beginnings and positive attitudes. It’s a chance to improve aspects of your life and stop any negative habits you don’t wish to bring with you into the next year. One resolution at the top of many people’s lists is to live a healthier lifestyle. January is the perfect time of year to harness your motivational energy from the New Year’s celebrations and use it to propel you towards starting a healthy and balanced diet.


Eating healthily can be a challenge many people face for different reasons, whether you’re stuck in a cycle of consuming too much junk food or simply lacking motivation to prepare more nutritious meals. Some people may want to lose weight, gain muscle or just feel fitter in general.

 
happy food book on table at Vinegar Hill

Tips to start your Healthy Lifestyle Journey

 

1. Drink plenty of water. We know you already know this one, but it is by far one of the most important steps in order to improve physical aspects of your life. Drinking around two litres of water everyday can help with concentration and mood levels, boosting metabolism, reducing some health risks and keeping you hydrated throughout the day. 


2. Eat smaller, more regular meals to keep energised and full through the day. This is great for avoiding overeating and keeping your metabolism up. 


3. Daily exercise is a brilliant way to stay fit and see results when paired with a healthy diet. As little as 10 minutes of exercise per day has been shown to improve energy and mood levels, memory and overall health. Try walking to the supermarket instead of driving if it’s within walking distance. If the supermarket is too far away to walk, park further away to carry your shopping to your car as exercise. 

 
fresh fruit for a healthy life

More and more people have been embracing a vegan diet, as another way to live a healthier and satisfied life. 

 

Veganism is a plant-based diet that is defined by the absence of meat and other animal products. It has been proven to help maintain a healthy body weight and blood pressure, as well as being a step forward in terms of climate change and the environment. This month has been named Veganuary by some, a time for people to try eating healthy vegan meals. The challenge is to only eat vegan food for the month of January, which can sound quite daunting when you start. If you don’t think you’re quite up to eating fully vegan, you can always ease into it by trying a few vegetarian dishes or by eating meat-free a few days a week.

 
vegan and vegetarian books at vinegar hill

Tips for starting a meat-free diet during Veganuary*:

 


1. Ease into the diet at your own pace and don’t worry if you eat some meat when you start  


2. Eat foods that are high in fibre such as oats, beans, vegetables and wholegrains to always feel full 


3. Eat foods like nuts, seeds, kale and spinach to keep a high amount of protein in your diet 


*sourced from the book ‘How To Go Meat Free

 
cucumber and avo smoothie

Orange & Peach Smoothie Recipe


Apart from the fact that the combination of sour orange and sweet peach is very tasty, this smoothie is a proper vitamin bomb, packed with vitamin C.


Serves 2 


You Will Need: 

3 oranges 

2 peaches 

1 passion fruit 


1. Peel the oranges, peel and stone the peaches and scrape out the seeds and pulp from the passion fruit. Blitz in a blender or juicer and serve. 


This delicious smoothie recipe is from the ‘Very Veggie Family Cookbook’, a vegetarian meal book with recipes to feed the whole family.

 
fresh vegetables

As great as resolutions are to kick start your self-improvement journey, health should be prioritised no matter what time of the year it is. 


Remember that even if you lose motivation and stray from your diet or fitness intentions, there is never a wrong time to start again. To help you keep focussed on your lifestyle goals, here are some diet and recipe books we can recommend to help with meal ideas and inspire you to lead a healthy lifestyle. 


Good luck and let us know how you get on in the comments below! 

 
 
 

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