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We are at that time of year again. Christmas is only a few weeks away. There are gift decisions to make, presents to buy, cards to write, guest lists to organise, Christmas parties to go to, food shopping to do, decorations to put up....the list goes on and we have to do all of this in addition to our normal, everyday, hectic lives.
It is no surprise that it is the most stressful time of year. By the time Christmas day is here we all feel we deserve to indulge ourselves. After all we have been through so much. But what does all this stress and indulgence do to our bodies? Wouldn’t it be a good idea to include in the ‘To Do’ list ‘Prepare Myself’!
This doesn’t have to mean dieting or detoxing before hand. That would probably just compound the stress and pile on the guilt of the impending indulgence. Think of it more like taking a step back and looking at ways to improve your own body’s efficiency so it can cope better with the extra stress that is inevitable at this time of year.
Our holistic advisor Angie Crowne has some suggestions to help:
1. Set your alarm clock 10 minutes early and use the time to breathe in and out deeply and slowly. This will prepare and calm your mind ready for the day, allowing you to clarify your thoughts and consequently be more productive and efficient.
2. Make lists especially before going to sleep at night. This helps to take the strain out of remembering what you have to do and consequently allows you to rest your adrenal system a little and aids restful sleep.
3. Get out and take a 20 minute brisk walk even if it is round the shops. There is no better way to keep healthy and release stress.
4. Eat foods such as grapes to keep you calm, kiwi fruit to give you energy, tomatoes and cucumber to keep blood pressure in check and mangoes to help mop up the free radicals. If you aren’t keen on eating fruit and vegetables, juice them or try making yourself a smoothie each day for breakfast. It is a great way to eat raw foods like beetroot that are so cleansing for the blood and immune system and delicious as juice without the goodness being destroyed by the cooking process. In fact substituting one meal a day with a freshly made smoothie or juice is a great way to pack your body with nutrients and give a mini detox once a day.
5. Also don’t forget that we are impacted not only by what we put in our bodies but what we put on our skin. Many ingredients in cosmetics and skincare products are absorbed though the skin into the blood stream putting a huge strain on the body systems. Doesn’t the body have enough to deal with at this time of year without bombarding it with potentially toxic chemicals? Paul Penders skincare products are all made from raw all-natural ingredients that are not heated above 35 deg.C, so the goodness of these ingredients is not destroyed by processing.
Historically the most stressful day of the year is 5th January. Don’t allow this to be true for you. Prepare your body now and make sure you are ready to start the New Year feeling good about yourself.
