7 TOP TIPS ON HOW TO BEAT THE FINAL LOCKDOWN SLUMBER + BLOOM INTO SPRING
It’s been a long time coming but there is now some light at the end of the lockdown tunnel. While it may still feel a little out of reach, it’s in our sights (even at a distance!). Our experts here at wellness portal Balance + Glo wanted to share their best tips on how to get through the next few months to beat the lockdown slumber as we reawaken and reinvigorate our mind, body and soul for Spring.
Over the last few months maybe you’ve noticed a few of these feelings below:
Life feels like hard work
You feel overwhelmed
You feel tired
You’ve lost motivation and direction
Do any of these sound familiar? We’ve all been there over the past year - pandemic fatigue is the real deal!! Luckily, this time of year is also a great opportunity for personal transformation. The symbolism of new life that Spring holds is one that can encourage you to take time out for you, to create habits that boost your energy, lift your spirits and face the next few months with a huge dose of positivity. Together we can do this.
To help support you, here’s our experts tips for getting your mojo back in time for Spring and that will support positive changes in your life.
1. Move for Joy
Think about your current choice of exercise - does it feel good!? Does it make you smile? Lockdown has changed how we move, and when we move and sometimes it’s become a bit repetitive, maybe the exercise you used to enjoy just doesn't do it for your anymore. Balance + Glo Head of Fitness and Cofounder Evelyn Joyce suggests a little bit of everything in small doses to help bring joy back into your exercise regime ‘ Time in nature, short burst of energetic activity to release endorphins, yoga for mindfulness and strength exercises that will boost both body and mind.
2. Make space for You
Balance + Glo’s Health Coach Lou Murray suggests this may seem like a no-brainer, but it’s important to be intentional about this given how our culture operates in the over planned, too-busy mode. Time and space doesn’t just mean to make time for yourself and the things you love to do. Set aside time without distractions—to detach from the nonstop electronic and social demands on daily life. Therefore, this also means to carve out the time away from your social media, and steady stream of texts, calls, and emails. When you are at the mercy of notifications, it means you are living according to someone else’s agenda. When you detach from these things, you are in charge of your time.
3. Add MORE into your Diet
Health Coach Louise Murray is all about adding MORE into your diet. Forget the fad diets or cutting out certain foods, Lou suggests its more about adding in the good mood boosting food. What you eat can lift your mood or deplete it. Your mood is really affected by what food you do or don't put into your body. She suggests eating more foods that make you feel uplifted and positive for a longer period rather than those that give you fake energy surges. She suggests mixing up your latte - instead of drinking caffeine, which can cause stress and anxiety - try swapping out one of your coffees to one of these - cacao latter, turmeric latte or beetroot latte!
4. Write it down
Journalling doesn’t have to be long and laborious - actually gratitude journalling is one of Head of Yoga Jenny’s favourite things to do each morning. Pull out your notebook and write down all the progress you have made and the things that you are grateful for. It can even just be 3 things. - like the sun shining through the window, a cup of tea in bed or your lovely warm duvet. When you highlight the things that you appreciate in life, it allows you to gain lots of lovely perspective and to create positive energy for your day ahead. And if you feel positive this positivity spreads to those around you too.
5. Getting a Good Nights Sleep is important
Ever tried a Slumber inducing Yoga Nidra ? Head of Yoga and Cofounder Jenny Stewart suggests just a 10 minute recording will get you into a deep place of relaxation to send you off into the land of nod. It has been found to be beneficial for both body and the mind. This includes improving focus and attention, alleviating sleep issues, tension, anxiety, and stress. It is a lying down form of meditation that uses the whole body as a focus of awareness. The theory behind Yoga Nidra is that it works on something called our body of energy or life force. In India, this energy is known as prana, and in China it is called chi. It’s a state of deep relaxation, it will feel a bit like a conscious sleep.
6. Take a Moment to just breathe
We take about 17000 breaths every 24 hours. But how many times do you actually take a moment to notice it? Head of Yoga Jenny, suggests taking a moment right not, stop now and take a deep breath, close your eyes and start to focus on your inhales and exhales through the nose. Inhale for a count of 4. Exhale for a count of 4. Repeat. When we connect with our breath, we connect with the parasympathetic nervous system - our rest and digest system. Simply taking 10-minutes a day to focus on your breath can lower blood pressure, improve anxiety, lower depression, increase focus, and better overall wellness.
7. Do something new or creative
Do you ever feel stuck in a rut or routine? Spring brings us a time to leave behind bad habits and what doesn’t make you feel good and step into a new season and find those things that do! One of our favourite activities is painting - this focus towards one central topic relieves stress on the mind, and in turn relaxes the body. It’s almost like a form of meditation for your body and mind. You can join resident Balance + Glo artist Bethany Mercer for mindful mandala workshop as part of our Spring reawaken retreat. Give it a go and see how you feel.
As we head into the new season, it’s important to be really aware of what feels good and what doesn’t, of what makes you happy and what makes you sad, of what brings you joy. By reawakening body and mind, you may be surprised by how much has been holding you back … and by how quickly you feel reinvigorated when you let go and practise the tips above!
Join the team of experts at Balance + Glo for their Virtual REAWAKEN Retreat on Saturday 13th March on The Online Studio. Bringing together a host of expertise from fitness, to nutrition, yoga, and more! PLUS YOU GET 1 MONTH FREE ON THE ONLINE STUDIO (worth £30) + a GOODIE BAG sent to you as part of your ticket!