Tips for Looking and Feeling Your Best in 2017

The New Year has arrived and resolutions are in full swing – what will I aim for in 2017, lose weight, follow a detox plan? In the past, you name it I’ve promised I’ll do it! Not this year!

Contrary to popular belief, depriving yourself of the things you love is not the most effective way of losing weight. Deprivation can set up a cycle of loss, longing and then guilt ridden binging. Not everyone can go ‘cold turkey’ and stick with it for long enough to make significant changes to our health.

A couple of years ago I was tired, really tired! I Googled ‘tired, working Mum’, and there were lots of Mums like me, with blogs and articles about how tiring and stressful their lives were. As I read them I just couldn’t accept that this was normal but I questioned how was I going to get through everything I needed to do in a day and be a pleasant person, if I felt so horrible? Suddenly my ideal weight loss goals and looking amazing dropped from my priority list. My main focus became to feel better. A simple change in focus to health and wellbeing transformed the way I felt about food and life so dramatically that I doubt I’ll ever go back to the way I was before.

I became aware that I placed a lot of negativity on food and I worked on shifting my goals to creating an abundance of energy. To do this I needed to allow food into my life in abundance. I gave myself permission to eat! The idea that food is fuel is a good concept to live by. I’ve honestly never felt better now that I eat clean, healthy, whole foods. Eating yourself to a healthy you is not a new concept but it was to me. The integral concept in this new way of eating, and one that must be followed, is that not all food is created equal. It’s not possible to eat a packet of Tim Tams a day and expect to feel amazing! When I feel a sweet craving coming on, I find a treat that has the highest possible nutritional value and eat some of that! Food has a big impact on the way we feel so if you want to enjoy all the benefits of a healthy, happy, and energy filled life, you need to take care of your mind and body, and the key to doing that effectively is to eat better.

Here are some tips for feeling and looking good in 2017:

Change the way you see food. How you eat is a direct reflection of how you think and feel so swap a depravation mindset to an abundance mindset – feed your mind, body and spirit with the highest quality nutritional food possible.

Introduce raw vegetables at every meal.

Switch to whole foods. Make most meals and snacks yourself and if you buy something from the supermarket make sure it has 6 ingredients or less.

Moving is good for you, move everyday in any way that feels good.

It takes some time to switch to eating clean; take small steps and swop the low nutritional value foods for something similar but healthier for example milk to dark (70% cocoa) chocolate.

Relax and re energise. Have a bath with magnesium ‘epsom’ salts at least once per week, this will help you relax, sleep better, and create more energy.

Enjoy the journey to better health in 2017!

Catherine x