5 Days of New Year's Essentials - Day 3: Wellness

Photo Credit

Health and wellness are the most popular resolutions people make for the New Year. You know, everyone signs up for a gym membership, starts a new diet and says "this is the year I'm really going to do it." I know this because this used to be my resolution every year. There's a big excitement of what's to come and then as you start going through the year and you're trying to work all these goals into your busy schedule, you burn out and give up. If you're lucky, you make it to February.

There's absolutely nothing wrong with wanting health and wellness to be a priority. In fact, it's a great resolution! What I find works best is making smaller, more realistic goals and as you accomplish them, you can set new goals throughout the year.

In this blog, I'll be discussing some helpful ways to prioritize your health and wellness this year!

LINKS

Workbooks: Wellness | Friendship | Faith | Motherhood

Journals/Notebooks: Rainbow Stripe | Blue Pattern

Taking time to journal each day is a great way to reflect on your goals and anything else that's going on in your life. You can work off a list of prompts or you can invest in a "workbook" journal that guides you through the process.

Simplified offers a great Wellness Journal that not only guides you through the journaling process, but also offers tips and tricks to resetting and simplifying your life. They also offer workbooks based on friendship, motherhood, faith and more.

If you want to go toward the self-guided route, Simplified also offers high quality notebooks with beautiful patterns that you can use as journals.

LINKS

Old Navy Activewear | Sunzel Leggings

If adding movement is part of your goals, having the proper attire is essential. My favorite activewear brands are Old Navy and Sunzel Leggings on Amazon.

Old Navy activewear is affordable, fashionable, and great quality. I wear my Old Navy activewear for years and even put it in the washer and dryer. They have great colors, flattering prints and styles for every body. They have inclusive sizing from XS-4X and regular, tall and petite sizes.

Sunzel Leggings on Amazon are buttery soft and come in so many colors! I also put these in the washer and dryer and they are still in great condition. Their fabric is similar to the Lululemon align fabric. Their sizes range from XS-XXL and they have several length options. They also just released a collection of jumpsuits!

LINKS

Blogilates: Resistance Bands | Kettlebell | Dumbbells | Dumbbell Rack

Sweat App

Personally, fitness is the hardest part for me. It's taken me years to find forms of fitness that I enjoy and make me feel good. It's important to understand that in order to be consistent with your fitness, you must enjoy it (trust me, there are hard days that you won't enjoy it, but you'll know it's worth it.)

What I've found works best for me, is having a small at-home gym set up. I previously had a gym membership that I enjoyed for a while, but with my current schedule, it's difficult for me to get to the gym. My little at-home gym is convenient and it's never busy (LOL) so I don't have to worry about sharing equipment!

Blogilates sells the most beautiful equipment at Target! From gold dumbbells to pastel resistance bands, Blogilates equipment will help you set the tone for your at-home gym.

My favorite workout program is on the Sweat app. I have been following Kayla Itsines and Kelsey Wells for years and it's amazing to see what they have built! The Sweat app hosts several different programs from weight lifting to pre- and post- pregnancy workout programs. They have programs for you whether you're beginner or advanced. You can choose a program that's based in the gym or your home.

I have completed the BBG program (body weight exercises) and the PWR program (gym-based). I am currently doing the PWR At Home program and really enjoy it! All that's required is some dumbbells and resistance bands. Working out with the Sweat App is like having a personal trainer right there with you! The app takes away the guesswork of workouts.

LINKS

Books: More Than A Body | Intuitive Eating

Pink Food Storage Containers | Overnight Oats Containers | Lunch Bag

I have been diet-free for almost a year! This has been a huge accomplishment for me. I have been yo-yo dieting and had a poor relationship with food since the fourth grade. The past two years I have been focused on repairing my relationship with my food. I've come a long way and am excited to continue to improve.

Some of the most important things that have helped me heal my relationship with food, besides therapy, are intuitive eating and meal prepping.

The Intuitive Eating book helps you understand the science behind the failure of diets (spoiler: it's not your "lack of willpower") and how to change your mindset around food. It's a very educational book, so I've also added in a book called "More Than a Body: Your body is an instrument, not an ornament." This is a great book that discusses the unrelenting pressures that society places on women's bodies.

Meal prepping has also been a huge help! Prepping my meals ahead of time saves me time throughout the week, saves money, and I don't have to worry about going hungry. It gives me a lot of comfort around the food I'm eating. I don't meal prep EVERY meal, since that personally seems unrealistic. I try to prep breakfast and lunch. Prepping breakfast saves me time in the morning so that I can squeeze in my workout before work. I prep lunch the night before, usually with dinner leftovers. Having a prepped lunch is important to me so that I'm not trying to rush around and find lunch while at work in the short 30-minute break.

If you're new to meal prepping, start small. Maybe choose one meal to prep or just prep ingredients!

New Year's resolutions are a great way to reset and set new goals for the upcoming year. But it's okay to start slow and work these goals into your life as you can. I hope these recommendations give you some inspiration and encourage you to take your goals at your own pace!

<3 always,

Amanda Grace