Rejuvenate from the cold slump with these simple rituals

February could be your month to turn things around and create a positive, vibrant healthy lifestyle.

 

The days are becoming longer again and the bodies’ adaptability to the winter months have already taken place during the autumn. February traditionally is the time when the body can encounter low energy and sensations of being “rundown” possibly with coughs, colds and even influenza, often combined with low moods or depression.

 

 

These symptoms can be due to the dark winter months and lack of sunshine, the cold weather and possibly not eating and living as healthily as one can do in the warmer summer months on a day-to-day basis. This is the time one has to rely on the reserves of energy created from harvest time at the end of last summer.

Perhaps its time to research different detox techniques, create a healthy regime and incorporate it into your daily routine, encouraging rest, eating well and also taking care of your emotional well being.

 

Healthy living can help one experience happiness and fulfillment. There are numerous ways to do this simply with diet and exercise. Plus there are many different forms of healthcare available, to ensure the bodies’ adaptability to the cold and dark is at its prime, inspiring health and wellbeing.

 

Here are some easy to manage tips for general well being during these long winter months:

 

  1. Cut back on alcohol intake and avoid toxins. Alcohol can disturb the sleep and is dehydrating. Keep hydrated. Drink plenty of water. So easy to forget when it’s cold outside.
  1. Its always advisable to exercise regularly, even a ten minute brisk walk a day can be beneficial to the heart, keeping the circulation going and clearing the mind, inspiring ones imagination.
  1. Eat plenty of leafy green vegetables, super foods and antioxidants.
  1. Up your Vitamin C and D intake, there are some great products in the health food shops and chemists. Juicing or using a Nutri-bullet is especially helpful for upping your vitamin intake and ensuring you’re having at least “three a day.”
  1. The digestive system needs warmth! Eat root vegetables in the winter months to warm the digestive system. Drink warm drinks such as herbal detox teas, which eradicate mucous build up and flush toxins from the body, ensuring regularity in the digestive system.
  1. Make time for skin brushing in the mornings (or at some point during the day) for extra lymphatic drainage using upwards motions towards the heart, keeping the skin freshly exfoliated and the lymphatic system energised.
  1. Cut back on carbohydrates and sugary snacks. Having a tangerine or celery stick instead, is a good calorie free alternative.
  1. Using “good” oils like olive oil, coconut oil or a naturally pressed sunflower oil, keeps joints mobile and inflammation down.
  1. Having a sauna or steam at least once a month can help the body relax. Sweating maximises helps to release toxins and encourages a deeper sleep.
  1. Have a Holistic or deep tissue massage, to encourage the muscles to relax and the body to rejuvenate.

 

Get creative and be inspired.

By Annalisa BlakeMassage Practitioner and Homeopath