Tip 4:
Bed before midnight!
Sleep is just as important as diet and exercise and when we lack it, it can honestly feel like our whole world is crashing in around us. On top of that, people who don’t get enough sleep are more likely to have bigger appetites due to the fact that their leptin levels fall (leptin is an appetite-regulating hormone) promoting appetite increase. Making your sugary cravings rise and Tip 1 harder to follow (view previous blog post)!
It has been proven that Sleep deprivation causes your heart to have to work 10% harder the following day, which over a life time can cause heart failure and chronic fatigue, among many other issues. Fact: You CANNOT train your body into sleeping shifts.
As the seasons change and the nights get longer, it is fairly crazy to assume that humans are not related to animals in the sense that, we naturally go into a state of hibernation and needing or wanting to sleep more without quite understanding why. Feeling more lethargic is supposed to happen as it gets darker, so go with it!
Got an early start so no time to catch up? Go to bed before midnight! You will be amazed at the difference it makes, and our body clocks will naturally reset around that time meaning that; so long as you’re having fairly positive thoughts when you wake up, you won’t be carrying the shit from the day before into your next 24 hours.
Every hour is crucial in getting you through this season, and the more of those hours you spend sleeping, the happier you’ll feel!
Tip 5:
Start your resolutions now!
The saying ‘Summer bodies are made in winter’, as undermining as it may sound, has a fair amount of truth to it.
If Tip 2 gave you a boost of inspiration for January, then hopefully this should narrow down your workload as well. If you start your crazy work out regime now, bar a few days off around Christmas, then the thought of January will be filled with less dread and worry, as less roll pinching, dieting and gym hours will be spent! Instead, think; extra hour in bed before work, holiday break at the weekend or a cheeky bit of cake with your friends after work, instead of some far out juice cleanse and an hour of un bearable hot yoga down the road.
All in all, life works best when it has balance. And to be honest, Christmas time screams everything but that.
If you can begin doing a lot of things you have planned for January now, or even just plan what you want to get out of next year, then Christmas can still be a break, and January won’t feel like as much of a hell hole either!
So here’s a toast, to a smooth, energised build up to a de stressed Christmas, followed by and exciting year to follow… especially January!
Thank you for reading! We hope you found this helpful, and as always would love your feedback, please do let us know your thoughts in the comment box below!
Photo1 by: Orillo Productions
Photo 3,4 by: Eva Pawl
Clothing by: League Collective
