With the world seemingly in disarray and the cost of living crisis weighing heavily in the UK, it’s incredibly easy to allow our health to take a back seat. Whether it’s having a few glasses of wine at night to self-medicate or lacking the motivation to go to the gym, in times of stress, self-care often goes out the window. Being aware of the problem is half the battle, so here are 10 ways you can kickstart your way to a healthier lifestyle.
Mission nutrition
It’s always about the little things and there are plenty of simple ways to start off with. When it comes to nutrition, Dr Helen Hartley, associate medical director at Aviva Health, encourages us to “eat the rainbow”, which frankly sounds delicious. She recommends trying to eat different-coloured vegetables during the week as a way of upping our intake of nutrients and fibre, and reducing our consumption of processed foods and saturated fat. “See how many vegetables you can squeeze into a home-made tomato sauce to use in soup or as a pasta sauce.” And don’t forget, frozen vegetables are a great option, if you’re on a budget. She suggests switching to mint tea or a fruit tea instead of black tea or coffee to avoid adding sugar, which will help our teeth and our waistlines. Hartley also recommends having a “meat-free Monday”, or any day of the week for that matter, which has the added bonus of helping the environment.
