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You Don’t Have To Give Up Anything In Order To Be Healthy

May 2, 2023 by Wendy S

It’s important for you to understand that you do not have to give anything up in order to be healthy. This is where so many people go wrong because they start trying to cut out the things in life that they like. The problem with this is that it’s not sustainable, and it leads to people feeling as though they have failed when they eat a candy bar. This is not the way forward, and down below we’re going to be looking at some further information on this. Keep reading if you would like to find out more.

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Everything In Moderation

First, you should ensure that you are having everything in moderation. Too much of anything can make you sick, and that’s why you have to be cautious going forward. You don’t want to end up as one of these people who is stuck in a cycle of trying to be nothing short of a health God, only to find yourself binging and collapsing a couple of weeks later. You need to enjoy the things that you like, take days off every now and then, and give yourself a break. Moderation is the key to life, so you want to make sure that you are balancing things out as and when you need to.

You Still Have Free Time

A lot of people think that leading a healthier lifestyle is going to take up so much of their time that they are no longer going to have any for the things that they enjoy. They might think that they are going to need to spend so much time meal prepping, exercising and whatever else, and they won’t be able to do things they enjoy like hanging out with their friends. But, this isn’t true. You can save time on meal preps by doing as many as you can, and checking out my favorite crockpot recipes that you don’t have to stress about. As for exercise, you can make this fun and you can do it with your friends!

See It As An Opportunity For Your Future

The last thing that we’re going to say is that you should see this as an opportunity for your future. Instead of seeing the changes in your life as a burden or a negative thing, you could try seeing them as positives. They are stepping stones for your future and that’s exactly what you need. If you have a more optimistic outlook on life and the future of your health, then you’re going to find it much easier to make these changes, and stick to them going forward.

We hope that you have found this article helpful, and now see some of the things that you need to know about being healthier going forward. You don’t need to give up some of the things that you love just so that you can live a healthier life, because you don’t need to give up anything at all entirely. We wish you the very best of luck, and hope that you manage going forward.

How To Spend More Quality Time With Your Kids

May 2, 2023 by Wendy S

Credit – Pixabay CC0 License

Having children is the greatest journey that you’ll ever encounter. However, there is no doubt that it passes in the blink of an eye. Therefore, taking the necessary steps to maximize the joys of family life is essential for all parents. Spending more quality time with the kids should be at the very top of your agenda.

While it may feel like trying to navigate a minefield, the truth is that simple steps can make a big impact. Here are some of the most effective ways to achieve your goal.

Involve The Kids In Cooking

Young children won’t be very enthusiastic about cleaning duties, although playing games can make tidying up more fun. Thankfully, most kids are more receptive to joining you in the kitchen. As long as you make it enjoyable.

The key is to look for recipes that provide tasty results and won’t take up too much time. This peanut brittle recipe in the microwave is a great example that will soon become a family favorite. The time spent preparing the meals together should deliver magical memories.

Other options may include baking pizzas, making smoothies, and growing simple fruits in the garden.

Choose The Right Family Trips

Family days out are an opportune moment to do things you like with the people you love. Sometimes it’s great to simply see your children enjoying an activity or event that is aimed at them. In short, their happiness will put a smile on your face.

Still, it’s important to consider activities where you can participate too. Choosing camping trips instead of the hotel vacation where children spend most of their time in kids’ camps can work wonders. Meanwhile, family sporting activities are great days out.

When you look back on those memories, it’s far better if you played a central role rather than sit on the peripherals.

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Embrace Their Hobbies

One of the best ways to enjoy quality time together is to share a hobby. As a parent, allowing your child to lead the way can be one of the best decisions you ever make. The fact that they’ll associate you with their favorite pastime is a game changer.

If your child loves a particular sport, you should support them. Any artistic or creative endeavor should be embraced too. Whether it means attending parent-child classes to learn an instrument or training together in the backyard is up to you. It can become a new routine.

Seeing your child’s development, along with your own, is sure to make it more rewarding for both of you. Perfect.

Lose Unnecessary Distractions

Oftentimes in life, the biggest improvement is to remove negatives from your life. This is especially true when wanting to spend more time with your kids. While you cannot forget other responsibilities, several tasks can be dropped to save valuable time.

For example, if you spend a lot of time on social media, putting a block on platforms with these apps is ideal. Alternatively, you could look to automate daily tasks or outsource a portion of your work. Either way, the benefits will become instantly noticeable.

When combined with the active effort to improve the times you spend together, incredible results are assured.

Get More Fruit and Veg Into Your Diet

January 20, 2023 by Wendy S

It’s pretty normal for children to be picky about vegetables. But when you’re an adult, you don’t necessarily want to feel like your diet is limited by a dislike of fruits and veggies. If you feel like you don’t get enough fruit and veg, it could also be because you’ve simply fallen into a pattern of not using them in your meals. The occasional meal with no vegetables isn’t a big deal, but if you’re rarely eating them, it’s likely your diet isn’t very balanced or complete. Luckily, there are things you can do if you want to get more fruit and veg in your diet.

Image by Dominik & Frederike Schneider from Pixabay

Count Fruit as Dessert

Looking forward to your dessert at the end of a meal can be a good motivation to eat a main course that might not be that interesting. But dessert doesn’t have to be cake or something else that’s filled with sugar. Fruit can make a great dessert, or it can be included in your dessert as an ingredient. If you want to learn how to make ice cream strawberry flavored, click here for a recipe. A piece of fruit on its own can be tasty, but there are also plenty of things you can do with fruit if you want to make a more interesting dessert.

Eat Vegetables as Snacks

Snacking throughout the day can keep you going between meals. Some people even snack all day or have small meals instead of three big ones. However, many snacks can be less healthy than ideal. If you want to eat healthier snacks, both fruits and vegetables make good snacks. But fruit can be high in sugar, which means vegetables are often the better choice. They can be made more interesting with a healthy dip or combined with things like peanut butter or some seasoning to add flavor.

Image by Michal Jarmoluk from Pixabay

Try Out New Things

When was the last time you tried a new fruit or vegetable? We tend to stick to what we know, especially when it comes to preparing different ingredients. However, trying something new can open up a new world and allow you to explore lots of different recipes and cuisines. Next time you shop for groceries, consider getting something that you’ve never eaten before or never cooked with before. You’re sure to find plenty of ways to use it, whether it’s something you want to cook with or try raw.

Have Smoothies and Juices

Smoothies and juices are excellent for getting more fruit and veggies into your diet. You can put so many different things in them, from strawberries to spinach. You can make sweet drinks or go for a more savoury flavor profile, depending on what you prefer. They can be good for your breakfast in the morning, or they can make excellent pre- or post-workout fuel to give you the energy and hydration that you need. You can try out so many different flavors.

Getting more fruits and vegetables into your diet can help you be healthier and give you more energy too.

How to Cook Healthy Meals When You’re Short on Time

December 29, 2022 by Wendy S

Cooking healthy meals can be a challenge, especially when you’re short on time. It’s easy to resort to fast food or processed meals when you’re busy, but these options are often high in calories, sugar, and unhealthy fats. However, it is possible to cook healthy meals even when you’re short on time. Here are some tips to help you get started.

Plan ahead

One of the biggest time-savers when it comes to healthy cooking is planning ahead. Take some time on the weekend to plan out your meals for the week, make a shopping list, and prep ingredients in advance. This can save you a lot of time during the week, as you won’t have to spend as much time chopping vegetables, cooking grains, or portioning out protein sources. Planning ahead can also help you stay organized and ensure that you have all the ingredients you need to make healthy meals.

Keep a well-stocked pantry

Having a well-stocked pantry can be a lifesaver when you’re short on time. Keep a variety of healthy staples on hand, such as whole grains (such as quinoa and brown rice), canned beans, canned tomatoes, frozen vegetables, and nuts and seeds. These ingredients can be used to create a variety of healthy meals in a pinch. For example, you can make a quick grain bowl by combining cooked grains with canned beans, frozen vegetables, and a homemade dressing. Or, you can create a healthy soup by simmering canned tomatoes and beans with frozen vegetables and spices.

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Use your slow cooker

Slow cookers are a great way to cook healthy meals when you’re short on time. Simply add ingredients to the slow cooker in the morning, and you’ll have a healthy and delicious meal ready for dinner. Slow cookers are great for making soups, stews, and braises, which are all perfect for busy weeknights. Slow cookers are also a great way to cook tough, inexpensive cuts of meat, as the long cooking time helps to tenderize the meat and make it more flavorful. This guide on how to cook white chicken chili in an instant pot is a good example of what you can do with a slow cooker.

Use convenience items

While it’s always best to cook from scratch, there are some convenience items that can help you save time without sacrificing nutrition. For example, pre-cut vegetables and fruit, rotisserie chicken, and canned tuna can all be used to create quick and healthy meals. Just be sure to read the labels and choose options that are lower in sodium and added sugars. Pre-cut vegetables, for instance, can be added to stir-fries, omelets, or grain bowls to add nutrition and flavour without requiring any prep time.

Try one-pot meals

One-pot meals are a great option when you’re short on time, as they require minimal prep and clean-up. Some examples include chili, soup, and pasta dishes. These meals can be made in advance and easily reheated for a quick and healthy dinner. One-pot meals are also a great way to use up any leftover ingredients you have in the fridge, as you can throw them all into the pot and create a delicious and nutritious meal.

What To Wear On A Flight: Your Next Trip Sorted

November 16, 2022 by Wendy S

Photo by Killian Pham on Unsplash

When it comes to flying, throwing on any old outfit and hoping for the best isn’t always an ideal strategy. Sure, modern planes are super comfortable, but it’s not like you’re just taking a trip on the local bus. When you fly, you’re always on an adventure, whether you’re travelling for business or pleasure. Therefore, you need to be prepared.

Don’t worry, though, if you’ve never thought about this before. This post is here to help. In it, we take a look at some of the things you’ll need to wear on a plane to make the trip a breeze. Let’s take a look.

Plenty Of Layers

Imagine you’re flying from Lapland to Lagos. The temperature differential is enormous at any time of the year, probably over 30°C.

That’s why it’s a good idea to pack plenty of layers. You never know when you’re going to feel cold, and when things will be absolutely baking hot.

Beware of flight transfers. Aircraft air conditioning doesn’t always regulate the temperature perfectly, particularly if the new plane has been sitting on a hot runway for several hours before you board.

Good items to take along with you include shawls, wraps, cardigans, and sweatshirts. If you get too hot, you can take layers off and keep them in your hand luggage. Remember, aircraft air conditioning systems can feel a little cold to some people, particularly if you are sensitive.

Loose-Fit Clothes

Blood clots in the legs are a risk for passengers who spend a lot of time remaining absolutely still in aircraft seats for a long time. That’s why it’s a good idea to wear loose-fitting clothing. You want to ensure that you impede your circulation as little as possible.

Pay particular attention to tightness around the ankles. Ideally, these should be free from obstruction so the blood can easily travel back from the feet.

Wear Slip-On Shoes

When you’re running to gates and trying to find your seat in narrow planes, the last thing you want to worry about is tying your shoelaces. Stooping down to tie wayward laces could actually be a hazard.

For that reason, slip-on shoes make sense. And while they might not be the most stylish, they are certainly practical for the airport experience.

Take A Scarf With You

Take a wide scarf with you on the plane so you have something that can transform into either a shawl or a blanket. If you sleep in your seat, you’ll notice that your body temperature drops significantly so you’ll want something to keep you warm. Choose a sweat-wicking fabric if you can, meaning no nylon.

Slim Backpack

Look for a slim backpack for all your carry-on essentials. You want something with plenty of room for a laptop, headphones, and a shawl, but that won’t get in the way when you are trying to find your way to your seat.

These days, there are plenty of brands offering slim backpacks exclusively for travel purposes, so take a look and see what’s available. Look for bags with pouches for the specific items you travel with.

T-Shirt

When it comes to flying, you don’t want to wear anything too fancy. A simple Nike t-shirt will suffice. You can save all your elegant outfits and dresses for when you arrive at your destination. You want something that can cope with food being spilled on it during turbulence and you can easily wash when you arrive at your new location.

A Warm, Neutral Outer Layer

Even if you are travelling between tropical destinations, it’s still a good idea to take a warm outer layer with you. Gates next to air conditioning vents can get pretty chilly.

Look for something neutral that won’t make you stand out. Also, go lightweight. You don’t want to feel even more burdened than you already do.

A Jacket With Pockets

Lastly, if you have a lot of luggage, you’ll want to take a jacket with you that has a lot of pockets. This way, you can load it up with a bunch of trinkets and avoid hand luggage weight limits.

Just be sensible with how you load it. Fill pockets with small but heavy items that people would usually carry around with them. Don’t try to fit your laptop between the seams. Security probably won’t appreciate inventiveness like that.

Today, there are numerous high-quality jackets on the market with plenty of external and internal pockets to choose from. Most have pockets large enough for the biggest smartphones and standard airline tickets.