Although the songs indicate it is the most wonderful time of the year, I also find it to be completely overwhelming. Last year, I nearly called off Christmas all together when it was days before the 25th December and I hadn’t even sent out my cards yet. This year is no better, as my work is still full-on and I am fundraising for VLM (my goal was to get most of it done before my running training started in January). This time of year, I am also a single mom for Oldland because my husband has an annual 10 day work trip to Morocco. What’s a person to do? Here are my tips on surviving December:
Oldland and I on a walk
Learn to say no– whether it is another holiday drinks invite, friends looking for a place to stay, invitation to take part in a secret Santa, or a holiday pot luck, put your own needs first for once. Be honest and say you are feeling overwhelmed and can’t help out right now.
Compromise- offer to meet for drinks at a time and place that suits you, set a limit on how many days guests can stay at your flat, or buy ready made food.
Spend a day in bed watching movies and eatin junk food– I hereby give you permission to do this. Once in a great while won’t kill you.
Walk more– if you can’t get to the gym or whatever your usual exercise of choice is, take time to enjoy a walk to slow down a bit and clear your head.
Sleep– for some reason, this is always the area of our lives we cut back on when we have too much to do. Sleeping more will improve your mood, make you less hungry, and help deuce the stress hormone which increases the likelihood of abdominal fat accumulation.
Nearly sleepy time
Limit drinks– sure you want to get your money’s worth out of the open bar, but is it worth it the next day when you have a throbbing headache and can’t get anything done on your to-do list. This tip has taken me many years to perfect.
Ask for experiences rather than stuff– less clutter can lead to calming environment. Accumulate memories rather than dust and skip the return lines!
Hire help– to do housework, pay for the dry cleaner to catch u up on laundry, to assemble your new idea furnature. Your time is valuable. Delegate out a few menial jobs to your partner or to hired help.
Turn off social media– get over FOMO and live in the moment as you celebrate the holidays with family and friends.
What other suggestions do you have to avoid over-committing? How do you keep sane in December? Leave a comment below and let me know.
Let’s get right to it. The days are shorter. It actually is cold now. And wet. I assume you feel like I do this time of year and just wanted to stay under the duvet all day with the electric blanket on. Here are six tips on how to stay out of hibernation.
Stay warm with merino wool baselayer and socks–I discovered merino wool years ago and have never looked back. Depending on how ‘heavy’ it is, it will keep you warm in the winter and cool in the summer. It also has the unique ability to not smell because it absorbs moisture so well, meaning there isn’t an opportunity for bacteria to start growing on your skin. I particularly like the socks for the winter because cotton holds on to the moisture (either from damp weather or sweat) which makes me cold.
Drink plenty of fluid– If you don’t carry a water bottle around with you, now is the time to get on board. Hydro Flask is a vauum-insulated stainless steel bottle that keeps drinks warm or cold (they gave me one filled with ice and it lasted through the night!) so it is a perfect vessel no mater what time of year (or beverage choice). You should still be drinking plenty of water in the colder months, even though you are not sweating as much. Carrying a bottle is super-convenient and will help you measure how much you drink each day.
Note the beer flagon/growler size
See sunlight- I am still using my Lumie alarm clock which helps me wake up a bit more naturally when it is still dark outside. I also have a Seasonal Affect Disorder lamp at work which helps the entire team during the dark months. Another way to see more sunlight would be simply to head outside for a walk on your break or eat lunch outside on the sunny days.
Stay active with home workouts with Julia– If you are anything like me, once I get home and sit down, I find it hard to get out the door again for a pint of milk, let alone the gym. That is the brilliance behind Julia’s online gym. I don’t need to rush about for a class schedule or to meet a personal trainer. Julia is my coach and available anytime I need her. Join now for free and give it a try. The workouts last 20-60 minutes making them very easy to slot into your day. You can even do them at work as some don’t require equipment. Julia is currently offering her Bronze level membership for FREE so you really have nothing to loose.
A photo posted by Mollie, the Happiness PT (@ptmollie) on
Cooking with colourful vegetables this time of year. Have you tried ‘crack vegetables yet? Sure, fruits in the summer are great, but now is the time of year to dig in (see what I did there) to the root veg selection at your local grocer. Select as many different colours as possible, and heck, pick one you have never eaten before and live on the edge a bit.
Pick up an old hobby– You probably don’t feel like going out quite as much as you did the summertime. You will need a new way to fill up your time did you love to read as a child.? Or take ballroom dance lessons at uni? Or did your grandmother teach you how to knit when you visited her during summer holidays? Keeping the mind active and doing things you enjoy is just as important as being physically active. You will meet new people as you take up your favourite pastime, rediscover a lost passion, and maybe even get a confidence boost if you find you still have a talent for it. How cool would that be?
These are just a few tips and perhaps you may have heard them before. Dd you act on them? Did you take control and make positive changes to feel better and stay fit? One of my favourite quotes is ‘if you do what you have always done, you will get what you have always got.’ Remember your goal is health and happiness, so take the first step today. And of course, let me know how it goes. Hydro Flask kindly gave me their bottle to try out. All opinons are honest and my own. This post also contains affiliate links. These are at no additional cost to you, but help maintain the cost of running the blog and supporting my activewear purchases.
Let’s get right to it. The days are shorter. It actually is cold now. And wet. I assume you feel like I do this time of year and just wanted to stay under the duvet all day with the electric blanket on. Here are six tips on how to stay out of hibernation.
Stay warm with merino wool baselayer and socks–I discovered merino wool years ago and have never looked back. Depending on how ‘heavy’ it is, it will keep you warm in the winter and cool in the summer. It also has the unique ability to not smell because it absorbs moisture so well, meaning there isn’t an opportunity for bacteria to start growing on your skin. I particularly like the socks for the winter because cotton holds on to the moisture (either from damp weather or sweat) which makes me cold.
Drink plenty of fluid– If you don’t carry a water bottle around with you, now is the time to get on board. Hydro Flask is a vauum-insulated stainless steel bottle that keeps drinks warm or cold (they gave me one filled with ice and it lasted through the night!) so it is a perfect vessel no mater what time of year (or beverage choice). You should still be drinking plenty of water in the colder months, even though you are not sweating as much. Carrying a bottle is super-convenient and will help you measure how much you drink each day.
Note the beer flagon/growler size
See sunlight- I am still using my Lumie alarm clock which helps me wake up a bit more naturally when it is still dark outside. I also have a Seasonal Affect Disorder lamp at work which helps the entire team during the dark months. Another way to see more sunlight would be simply to head outside for a walk on your break or eat lunch outside on the sunny days.
Stay active with home workouts with Julia– If you are anything like me, once I get home and sit down, I find it hard to get out the door again for a pint of milk, let alone the gym. That is the brilliance behind Julia’s online gym. I don’t need to rush about for a class schedule or to meet a personal trainer. Julia is my coach and available anytime I need her. Join now for free and give it a try. The workouts last 20-60 minutes making them very easy to slot into your day. You can even do them at work as some don’t require equipment. Julia is currently offering her Bronze level membership for FREE so you really have nothing to loose.
A photo posted by Mollie, the Happiness PT (@ptmollie) on
Cooking with colourful vegetables this time of year. Have you tried ‘crack vegetables yet? Sure, fruits in the summer are great, but now is the time of year to dig in (see what I did there) to the root veg selection at your local grocer. Select as many different colours as possible, and heck, pick one you have never eaten before and live on the edge a bit.
Pick up an old hobby– You probably don’t feel like going out quite as much as you did the summertime. You will need a new way to fill up your time did you love to read as a child.? Or take ballroom dance lessons at uni? Or did your grandmother teach you how to knit when you visited her during summer holidays? Keeping the mind active and doing things you enjoy is just as important as being physically active. You will meet new people as you take up your favourite pastime, rediscover a lost passion, and maybe even get a confidence boost if you find you still have a talent for it. How cool would that be?
These are just a few tips and perhaps you may have heard them before. Dd you act on them? Did you take control and make positive changes to feel better and stay fit? One of my favourite quotes is ‘if you do what you have always done, you will get what you have always got.’ Remember your goal is health and happiness, so take the first step today. And of course, let me know how it goes. Hydro Flask kindly gave me their bottle to try out. All opinons are honest and my own. This post also contains affiliate links. These are at no additional cost to you, but help maintain the cost of running the blog and supporting my activewear purchases.
My American style teeth often get comments. Every time I go to a new dentist, the hygienist is confused as to why so many of my teeth are missing (small jaw + big teeth = 4 tooth extractions on top of my wisdom teeth). I had a palette expander, two sets of braces, and a retainer when growing up. The braces left small stains on my teeth but since I don’t drink coffe or tea (just a lot of Diet Coke) my teeth are fairly white. But not as white as people who get their teeth whitened, which sometimes seems a bit unnatural in appearance. As my smile is one of the first impressions, I was keen to see if I could improve it,
In the past, I have tried the home whitening kits that are a little piece of film you leave on your teeth but I never stuck with it long enough to see any results. I have longingly looked at Groupon deals for laser teeth whitening but they all seem too good to be true. When I saw CB 12 White Mouthwash though, I was intrigued. Could a mouthwash give me whiter teeth in less than 2 weeks? It also claim to boost fresh breath. I have always had bad breath, so this aspect of the mouthwash also appeaped to me. In 5th grade, I used to carry around breathspray because gum wasn’t allowed at school. But then they banned the breathspray because it had alcohol in it, so I was back to square one.
Here is a photo of my smile from 2 August 2016, before I started using CB 12 mouthwash:
I used a piece of paper to have standard of reference for white.
And here is my after photo from 17 August 2016, after using CB12 mouthwash twice a day:
My husband agreed that after a week my teeth looked whiter (and I am pretty sure he didn’t know I was testing a product). When I woke up each morning, my mouth didn’t have a icky taste (but don’t worry- I still brushed my teeth before I set off to work). Luckily people in London are too polite to tell me when my breath is bad so I don’t know if anyone else noticed a change in my breath. It was easy to incorporate CB 12 mouthwash into my morning and evening routines. I took it on holiday to Ireland with me too. I just decanted how much I needed into a smaller bottle to bring in my carry on bag.
The one thing I would suggest is that it would be great if the bottle cap could also be used to measure out the suggested 5ml portion. I guess-timated with the cap, but it seemed like I loss some liquid down the side every time I used it.
Overall, I am really pleased with CB 12 mouthwash. My husband was impressed too and wants to buy some for his British teeth. If he does, I will follow up with more before and after photos as he is a coffee and tea drinker.
CB 12 kindly gifted me a bottle of CB 12 mouthwash. All views are honest and my own.
My American style teeth often get comments. Every time I go to a new dentist, the hygienist is confused as to why so many of my teeth are missing (small jaw + big teeth = 4 tooth extractions on top of my wisdom teeth). I had a palette expander, two sets of braces, and a retainer when growing up. The braces left small stains on my teeth but since I don’t drink coffe or tea (just a lot of Diet Coke) my teeth are fairly white. But not as white as people who get their teeth whitened, which sometimes seems a bit unnatural in appearance. As my smile is one of the first impressions, I was keen to see if I could improve it,
In the past, I have tried the home whitening kits that are a little piece of film you leave on your teeth but I never stuck with it long enough to see any results. I have longingly looked at Groupon deals for laser teeth whitening but they all seem too good to be true. When I saw CB 12 White Mouthwash though, I was intrigued. Could a mouthwash give me whiter teeth in less than 2 weeks? It also claim to boost fresh breath. I have always had bad breath, so this aspect of the mouthwash also appeaped to me. In 5th grade, I used to carry around breathspray because gum wasn’t allowed at school. But then they banned the breathspray because it had alcohol in it, so I was back to square one.
Here is a photo of my smile from 2 August 2016, before I started using CB 12 mouthwash:
I used a piece of paper to have standard of reference for white.
And here is my after photo from 17 August 2016, after using CB12 mouthwash twice a day:
My husband agreed that after a week my teeth looked whiter (and I am pretty sure he didn’t know I was testing a product). When I woke up each morning, my mouth didn’t have a icky taste (but don’t worry- I still brushed my teeth before I set off to work). Luckily people in London are too polite to tell me when my breath is bad so I don’t know if anyone else noticed a change in my breath. It was easy to incorporate CB 12 mouthwash into my morning and evening routines. I took it on holiday to Ireland with me too. I just decanted how much I needed into a smaller bottle to bring in my carry on bag.
The one thing I would suggest is that it would be great if the bottle cap could also be used to measure out the suggested 5ml portion. I guess-timated with the cap, but it seemed like I loss some liquid down the side every time I used it.
Overall, I am really pleased with CB 12 mouthwash. My husband was impressed too and wants to buy some for his British teeth. If he does, I will follow up with more before and after photos as he is a coffee and tea drinker.
CB 12 kindly gifted me a bottle of CB 12 mouthwash. All views are honest and my own.
Vibration training gained popularity with Russian athletes in the 1960s and has been around ever since (1). Today you can find Power Plate® machines in your local gym or fitness boutique. They have even just released a Personal Power Plate®, weighing 18 kg, that will fit under your bed or in your cupboard. There are numerous benefits to vibration training, including increased circulation, improved flexibility, reduction in cellulite, speeding up recovery, boosting endurance, and improving core strength and stability (2). It can also be a great benefit when strength training in the gym. In 15-30 seconds you can pre-activate your muscles which will in turn, increase your power and range of motion (ROM). In a 2016 study, Dallas, et al. (3) found direct pre-activation resulted in increased flexibility and explosive strength in the legs of divers. This affect last up to 15 minutes following exposure to vibration. The pre-activation in this series were 4 sets of 30 seconds with 30 seconds rest in between, with a different exercise for each set (static squat, dynamic squat, and lunges on each leg).
How can you pre-activate? Hop on to the Power Plate® in your gym and either hold a static pose or a simplified version of the move you are about to perform, such as squats, without the weights. Even if you have to wait a minute or two for the lifting equipment to become available, the benefit of the vibration training was found to still be available up to 15 min (3). In other research studies, vibration training has been shown to improve muscle activity, force, and power (4).
What is the physiological reason behind this? Dallas et al. (3) hypothesise that the vibration helps the stretch reflex loop in the muscle fiber. Vibration training also raises muscle temperature and blood flow to the muscle which helps with ROM (4) The neurological system may improve motor unit synchronisation and help further develop the central balance neuropathways (5).
By using a Power Plate® during your workout, you can reduce the length of the session. The vibration makes the workout more intense, activating all muscles in body. Even if the exercise you are doing doesn’t target another part of the body (for example, a bicep curl), another part (the core) is still engaged. Older people who have trouble with their balance or people who take part in sports that require a lot of agility (trail running, parkour, tennis, basketball, football) will see rapid improvements in their sports performance once they started using vibration training. A 2016 study (6) found that Elite male soccer players improved their stability when they had a short vibration training session of 3 x 60 seconds with 60 seconds rest in between trials after a 10 minute warm up on a stationary bicycle. Additionally, both the elite and amateur male soccer players improved their anterior Y balance test reach distances, which is an indication of improved flexibility. This increase in stability, flexibility, and balance can help reduce the risk of injury in the long term, such as during a match.
There are several contraindication for vibration training. People who are pregnant, have cancer, broken bones, a recent IUD insertion or have a pacemaker should not use the machines. Never use the machine barefoot and always use the mat if you are sitting on the machine. Some people find the vibrations too intense on first use. To help the body become accustomed to the new sensation, you can stand on the mat during the first few sessions to dampen the intensity. Also, rock back and forth on your feet from heels to toes to explore how the vibration travels differently through the body depending on body positioning. Standing straight up will allow the vibration to travel right up to your head, so aim to keep the knees soft.
The vibrations are not something you will have experienced before, so it may take some time to get used to. Once you are used to it, vibration training is a proven way to make use of your limited time in the gym. The long-term improvements in flexibility, strength, and stability will be an asset to your performance goals.
References 1 Biermann, W. 1960. Influence of cycloid vibration massage on trunk flexion. American Journal of Physical Medicine (39): 219–224. 2 https://powerplate.com/ 3 Dallas, G., G. Paradisis, P. Kirialanis, V. Mellos, P. Argitaki, and A. Smirniotou. 2015. The acute effects of different training loads of whole body vibration on flexability and explosive strength of lower limbs in divers. Biology of Sport. 32(3): 235-241. 4 Sands, W.A., J.R. McNeal, M.H. Stone, G.G. Haff, and A.M. Kinser. 2008. Effect of vibration on forward split flexibility and pain perception in young male gymnasts. International Journal of Sports Physiology and Performance. 3(4):469-481. 5 Ronnestad, B.R. Comparing the performance-enhancing effects of squats on a vibration platform with conventional squats in recreationally resistance-trained men. Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research. 18(4): 839-845. 6 Cloak, R., A. Nevill, and M. Wyon. 2016. The acute effects of vibration training on balance and stability amongst soccer players. European Journal of Sport Science. 16(1): 20-26.
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