Are you wondering how you can be healthy this December? This week, we’ll be discussing some tips you can try incorporating into your day and maybe even carry over to the new year.
Pay attention to your mental health. Around this time of year, late fall and early winter, some people begin to experience seasonal affective disorder (SAD), a type of depression, according to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIH). Take a look at our Emotional Wellness (SAD) blog to get more information on SAD and some tips on coping with emotional wellness and mental health. After all, your mindset plays an important role in your overall health.
Create a consistent routine. Routines are helpful and beneficial to have and follow as they allow you to know what to expect. This can reduce stress levels felt when trying to decide what you need to do and when you need to do it. Oftentimes, people may skip out on their exercises or eat unhealthy meals (because they were unable to meal prep) due to lack of time. With a proper routine in place, you can plan in advance so things like that won’t happen. If you’d like some tips on how to build your own routine, take a look at our Healthier Routines Made Simple and Creating Your Regular Physical Activity Routine blogs. For tips you can incorporate when creating your routine, take a look at our Sleep and Exercise Healthy Holiday Routines blog.
Don’t skip meals. While skipping meals may reduce your overall caloric intake for the day, it can do more harm than good. For starters, “while skipping meals may reduce energy intake and could help reduce weight over time, the quality of the food consumed declines, which may impact health negatively over time.” (Zeballos & Todd, 2020) This could be because certain healthy foods are more likely to be eaten at other meal times during the day. In addition, as skipping meals causes there to be longer intervals between meals, it can “contribute to one’s consuming more energy content and with lower diet quality.” (Zeballos & Todd, 2020). This can mean that one’s chances of eating non-nutritional foods increases when meals are skipped. Also, it is beneficial to have a consistent eating schedule as it allows your body to know when to expect food so you don’t snack too often or mistake different signals/cues as hunger. Another thing to consider is this: “In this large, prospective study of US adults aged 40 years or older, eating one meal per day was associated with an increased risk of all-cause and CVD mortality.” (Sun et al., 2022). Not only is the meal quality lowered, the effect on your long-term health can be detrimental.
Pay attention to the time of day you exercise. The time of day you exercise can indeed make a difference. “Morning exercise in women, enhances total and abdominal fat loss, reduces blood pressure, and increases lower body muscle power, whereas, evening exercise greatly increases upper body muscle strength, power, and endurance, and enhances overall mood. For men, evening exercise lowers systolic blood pressure and fatigue, and stimulates fat oxidation compared to early morning exercise.” (Arciero et al., 2022) Depending on what aspect of your life you are trying to improve, you can try working out at different times of the day. Keep in mind that some things may work better than others for different people; thus, try finding what works for you. In addition, the type of exercise you do matters as well.
Overall, take some time to wind down and relax by yourself, or with family and/or friends. Get to learn more about yourself and what you are capable of. Remember, only you can be the best you!
Arciero, P. J., Ives, S. J., Mohr, A. E., Robinson, N., Escudero, D., Robinson, J., Rose, K., Minicucci, O., O’Brien, G., Curran, K., Miller, V. J., He, F., Norton, C., Paul, M., Sheridan, C., Beard, S., Centore, J., Dudar, M., Ehnstrom, K., Hoyte, D., Mak, H., Yarde, A. (2022). Morning exercise reduces abdominal fat and blood pressure in women; evening exercise increases muscular performance in women and lowers blood pressure in men. Frontiers in Physiology, 13. https://doi.org/10.3389/fphys.2022.893783
Sun, Y., Rong, S., Liu, B., Du, Y., Wu, Y., Chen, L., Xiao, Q., Snetselaar, L., Wallace, R., & Bao, W. (2022). Meal Skipping and Shorter Meal Intervals Are Associated with Increased Risk of All-Cause and Cardiovascular Disease Mortality among US Adults. Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, S2212-2672(22)00874-7. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jand.2022.08.119
Zeballos, E., & Todd, J. (2020). The effects of skipping a meal on daily energy intake and diet quality. Public Health Nutrition, 23(18), 3346-3355. doi:10.1017/S1368980020000683
- Click here to watch the Latest Sweet Life Wellness Podcast Episode on How to Enjoy Mindful Eating.
- Click here to listen for FREE on Apple Podcasts.
- Want to listen for FREE on Spotify? Click here.
Kay Loughrey, MPH, RDN, LDN
Transformational Speaker, Breakthrough Coach, Nutritionist-Dietitian
Thank you for reading this blog post. Join the Sweet Life Newsletter to stay up to date on blog posts, events, and other ways to live your best sweet life.