Happy Healthy New Year

After all the celebratory meals and seemingly endless piles of crisps and chocolate that Christmas and New Year bring, January is the only time of year I find myself actually craving healthy food and exercise. A New Year’s weight-loss resolution might be a bit of a cliché, but whether it turns into a permanent change or not, a few less calories and a bit more exercise will give your body a welcome break from all that over-indulgence and a much needed energy boost during the dark month of January.

Top tips

1 – Treat yourself to some really good-looking fruit and build an impressive display in your best fruit bowl. The more tempting it looks, the more likely you are to snack on it throughout the day. Just ask yourself – would you really have eaten all that chocolate over the holidays if it had been hidden away in a cupboard?

2 – Asian flavours are your friend when it comes to healthy food. Think of all those cleansing yet tasty udon noodle soups, zesty Thai salads and crunchy stir-fries and you’ll soon be lured away from the stodge of traditional winter fare. Asian food tends to be quicker to cook and has a higher veg-to-meat ratio – just make sure you have a few staples like ginger, chillies, sesame oil and miso paste in the cupboard and you’re good to go.

3 – Join the Sports Centre. No amount of healthy eating will cancel out the need to get your body moving, but luckily the more you do, the more enjoyable it becomes. If you’re not a gym person, take advantage of the fitness classes, join the badminton or squash club or even check out their climbing wall. As someone that hates getting hot and sweaty, my personal preference is for swimming – the only exercise which is self-cooling, plus you can pretend you’re a dolphin in an Attenborough documentary (or is that just me?!).

4 – Get the right kit. Whichever exercise you choose, treat yourself to some nice new clothes and you’ll feel much more inclined to put them on, get out there and do it! Just because you’re swimming for exercise doesn’t mean you have to wear dull functional swimwear. Pick something you’d like to wear to a spa or on holiday and make the whole experience seem more of a treat.

5 – Be prepared. Don’t forget, when you get home after some virtuous exercising, you’re going to be hungry. To avoid ruining all your good work, make sure you have something healthy to munch, close at hand when you get in. Some invitingly chilled juice in the fridge also goes a long way, though make sure you drink plenty of water first.

***

Is there a favourite food that you’ve resolved to give up or are you a fan of enjoying all things in moderation?

Watch out for next week's post featuring my delicious Crunchy Asian Salad!

Happy nibbling!

Fiona B x