A few changes I made for a healthier lifestyle

I am in no way a health freak but since June last year, after receiving a little health scare from my doctor, I have implemented a few lifestyle changes that have made a noticeable difference. Not only do I feel better, and suffer from less headaches but I also feel more energetic. An added bonus to all of this is I have also lost 4.7 kg’s. As much as I would like to wait before I publish this post so I can give you a round number of 5 kg’s, there is no better time than now to share some healthy lifestyle inspo with you. I didn’t do anything drastic, like cut out food groups and starve myself. Instead, I still enjoy delicious food and yummy things, but I made the following lifestyle changes that are now permanent habits:

I walk everyday

My goal is to do a minimum of 10 000 steps a day. Even if I do a 30 minute workout, I still make sure I do a total of 10 000 steps. Thankfully I live in a complex so I am able to go for walks all the time, even at night after dinner I go for a stroll! I’ll even walk on the spot for 10 minutes at a time every so often just to add to my daily steps! I also do the ParkRun every Saturday morning which I love! The ParkRun sets a positive tone for the week ahead which makes me feel so good and ready to tackle anything!

I sip on green tea throughout the day

Green tea is known to be the healthiest beverage on the planet. So I consciously choose to sip it throughout the day. Not only does this add to my daily intake of water which is great but I am also reaping the benefits of green tea. The one thing I must say though is I don’t drink plain green tea. I just cannot stand the taste! So I drink all different flavours like mint green tea or apple and pear green tea. I did a blog post on my favourite flavoured green teas, which you can read here.

I choose fresh fruit over sugary or salty snacks

I have always always loved fruit, so this change isn’t such a biggie for me. When I was small I would only eat fruit and not normal food. I keep a variety of fresh fruit in my fridge to always reach for when I need a snack and I get peckish. From fresh grapes to apples and even pawpaw. My favourite though is watermelon, mangoes, peaches, litchis – yip, all the summer fruits. In the good old days (before June last year) I would always want something sweet after a meal, so I would either have ice cream or a chocolate. Now I have fresh fruit!

I halved the sugar in my coffee

I went from putting 2 teaspoons of sugar in my morning coffee to now putting half a teaspoon of sugar. I like my coffee a bit sweet so I don’t know if I will ever be able to have no sugar at all, but for now this little adjustment makes a big difference.

I eat a lot more vegetables

I make a conscious effort now to eat at least two vegetables with every meal. So for breakfast I will have a green smoothie using spinach and celery. For lunch I will try have a nice juicy salad or leftovers from the night before with at least two vegetables on the side. And supper the same thing. I just feel so much better knowing I’m feeding my body with a variety of nutrients from all the vegetables and not just putting food in my mouth that doesn’t do my body any good.

I still indulge but I don’t over indulge

What is life all about if you can’t enjoy yourself and indulge here and there. I still love my food and life is way too short to refuse delicious things. I love my chocolate, my pasta and I love my desserts so I still choose to indulge but I won’t over indulge and eat it all like I have never seen food before (like the good old days). I can definitely say, it is all about balance because it really is!

♥