I used to be a breakfast cereal person. Especially when I was pregnant and then adapting to my new life as a mom. I knew it wasn’t the best way to start my day, but I figured (1) at least I was having breakfast and (2) there are worse things I could be eating (I was eating “healthy” cereal - Catalina Crunch).
I knew I needed to start my day with more protein, but I didn’t want eggs and sausage every morning. Plus they take time to make.
I had a protein powder I LOVED years and years ago, but I had to stop eating it once I discovered I was sensitive to some of the ingredients.
I decided I would look into it again anyway because I just needed food to taste good again and be satisfying.
Turns out…they reformulated, and there’s nothing in it my body says no to! 🙌
I started having 30g of protein first thing in the morning again with my shake and MAN has this made such a difference in my day.
Here’s the linkto the protein powder (Chocolate AIVIA Plant Protein)! You get a discount by subscribing, which, let’s be honest, you’re gonna want to. Plus you have the option to cancel whenever, so why not?
I add an extra scoop of cacao powder because I like it extra chocolatey, and I add some frozen fruit because I like it a little sweeter.
Side note: At first I was disappointed that the new formulation isn’t as sweet as the old one, but I actually love that I can control how much sugar goes into my morning shake.
I also throw in a handful of organic greens because you can never go wrong with an extra serving of veggies.
I add hemp seeds for the omegas and extra 10g of protein.
I use my homemade almond milk, but any kind you want is fine. I actually just use water if I'm out of milk.
I use about 2 cups of ice because I like to feel like I’m having a milkshake for breakfast.
It’s so so yummy that sometimes I’ll have it twice in a day. On the days when I’m not sure what’s for dinner, or I’m just in the mood for another milkshake for lunch!
That dreaded question on every medical form: “Do you exercise regularly?”
Oof. Is that convicting or what? This probably isn’t something that you’re thinking of on a daily basis, but when you’re flat out asked the question, you’re forced to reflect.
“Do you exercise regularly?”
Less than 1 in 4 people do.
I feel like a big reason for this is that we are simply not taking our health seriously enough. We’re not putting ourselves first, not making ourselves a priority. We “don’t” have time - but of course we know we’re just not making the time.
You make time for what’s important to you. Period.
The other reason I can think of is that it’s just plain daunting. You feel like you have to jump right into this routine of working out an hour a day, 7 days per week - but you don’t!
This is something I’ve been guilty of, I’ll admit. I fall out of an exercise routine for one reason or another, tell myself I need to jump back in (with a consistency of 5-7 days per week) & then I procrastinate until I'm sure I can get it perfect.
I’m a master procrastinator.
I procrastinate because it’s daunting to start a “routine”.
There’s a sense of commitment that comes with the word.
But here’s the thing: You don’t need to work out every day to say you exercise “regularly”. At least that’s how I see it.
What’s important is that you start. You can start with ONE day per week. Work your way up to 3. Maybe you’ll make your way up to 5. You might even find a form of exercise that you LOVE and you actually start to crave every day!
Or maybe you’ll find a few things you enjoy and you’ll spread them out throughout the week! Especially now that spring is upon us - thank you God for warmer weather! (Hello there, walks and bike rides!)
I love to do yoga at home. It’s not a huge commitment to just roll out your mat and follow a free 15-30 minute YouTube video. GOING to the yoga studio and committing to a hour long practice, yes, can be SO good for the soul, but it’s not something I can easily commit to in this season of life.
Something I recently started is Pilates! I’ve been loving that too. It’s not something that requires a supportive sports bra, tied up gym shoes or really even much of a sweat. And yet my whole body feels “worked” at the end of the 30 minute session. That's my kind of workout.
Pretty much any form of exercise I can do barefoot is more my vibe. I know this about myself, and I work with it.
If you don't know what your vibe is yet, I encourage you to try different things until you finally find what you truly enjoy! Or reach out to me and I'll help you figure out what your workout style is!
If you loved this blog post, there's more where that came from in my free Facebook group here. You'll want to get in there soon because that's where I'll be launching a 5 Day Eczema Relief Training this month!
Want to get a head start? You can also grab my new guide on 5 Steps to Taming an Eczema Flare Up here!
I will never understand how people make plans that START at 8pm on a Friday night..
First of all, aren’t you tired from the week?
Second of all, don’t you want to have a nice Saturday morning?
I truly love mornings, but mine, admittedly, are usually rushed. I don’t get in what I’d like to get in each morning. Saturdays are my days when I can have a nice, slow morning.
If I’m up until the wee hours on a Friday night, do you think I’m getting up early Saturday to have a nice morning? No way! I’ll be getting as much sleep as I can.
Maybe you’re reading this and you just think I’m 90 years old. Maybe you’re reading this and you actually relate to what I’m saying.
I imagine if you’ve gotten this far, it’s probably the latter. :)
You’ve probably guessed by now, that my answer to the question “When do you truly set the tone for your morning?” — The night before.
If I go to bed past 10, I am NOT going to have a nice morning.
Yes, I can wake up and “decide” to have a good day. I’ll drink my lemon water and hopefully get a few stretches in, but I’m not going to enjoy my morning as much as if I’ve woken up feeling refreshed.
And if it’s a Saturday morning, by the time I’m out of bed the morning is almost over. (Yes, I realize this won’t be the case once baby is here — I’ll just be downright EXHAUSTED. Another blog for another day. :) )
For me, it really is true that no matter how much sleep I get, I’m going to be tired the next day if I’m in bed past 10.
So — how to do ensure a good night’s rest?
#1: Go to bed at a decent hour.
For me, this is SLEEPING by 10. BUT I’ve noticed I get especially good rest if I …
#2: Read before going to sleep.
Not on your phone. Not on a kindle with a light up screen. A book. A magazine. Something that’s not electronic. Because not only does the blue light make your brain think it’s still daytime and therefore not time to wind down and go to sleep, but also the EMFs disturb your quality of sleep. Which leads me to…
#3: Keep electronics out of the bedroom.
Get yourself an actual alarm clock rather than setting it on your phone and putting it on your bedside table. Not only will you be tempted to scroll through your phone until you fall asleep, but any notifications will likely wake you up as you’re drifting off to sleep. If you have a TV in your room, turn it off at LEAST an hour before you shut your eyes. If the router is in your bedroom, unplug it.
If you loved this blog post, there's more where that came from in my free Facebook group here. In there, you'll even find Make Mornings Lovely: A 7 Day Challenge, so hop in there now and start loving your mornings.
First of all, if you missed last week’s post, hop on over to Step 1 of My Gut Healing Journey to get yourself all caught up.
Now that we’re all on the same page, I’ll continue.
I learned about the importance of organic. I was shocked to find coffee beans are actually one of the most heavily sprayed crops, so I always look for organic coffee. This can be slim pickin’s at a lot of grocery stores, but Trader Joe’s especially, I know for a fact has delicious organic coffee!
Now let’s talk about coffee for a second. I know this is a huge fan favorite, BUT (especially if you’re on a journey to heal your gut or you just have a history of digestive issues) this is not the best thing to have first thing in the morning. This isn’t the first thing you want in your stomach, especially if you took a probiotic the night before (which I hope you did! Especially if you know your gut health needs extra support).
The thing about having coffee first thing in the morning is it can wipe out all the good bacteria that formed in your gut from your probiotic the night before. So it’s almost like the probiotic was a complete waste of your time and money.
Lemon water is the best thing to start your morning with! And next is your breakfast.
I learned about the Dirty Dozen list from my health coach. This is a list of fruits and veggies that have the highest pesticide count; therefore, these are the ones you’ll want to buy organic if your grocery budget is tighter. If you’re able, 100% organic would be ideal!
Pesticides wreak absolute havoc on your gut.
If you’ve clicked the link to the Dirty Dozen list above, you know that dark, leafy green are on that list. Which brings me to our morning shake.
Last week we talked about how important it is to eat plenty of veggies. Your morning shake is the perfect way to get veggies in first thing.
Here’s the recipe I use:
6 oz water
4 oz almond milk
1 c ice
1 large handful of ORGANIC dark, leafy greens
⅓ c fruit (berries are great, but I usually use pineapple)
1 scoop protein powder (I use Truvani but Nature’s Sunshine is also super yummy)
3 tbsp hemp seeds
You can play with it to your liking, but make sure you get your protein in there and don’t leave out the greens!
Now that we’re all on the same page, I’ll continue.
I learned about the importance of organic. I was shocked to find coffee beans are actually one of the most heavily sprayed crops, so I always look for organic coffee. This can be slim pickin’s at a lot of grocery stores, but Trader Joe’s especially, I know for a fact has delicious organic coffee!
Now let’s talk about coffee for a second. I know this is a huge fan favorite, BUT (especially if you’re on a journey to heal your gut or you just have a history of digestive issues) this is not the best thing to have first thing in the morning. This isn’t the first thing you want in your stomach, especially if you took a probiotic the night before (which I hope you did! Especially if you know your gut health needs extra support).
The thing about having coffee first thing in the morning is it can wipe out all the good bacteria that formed in your gut from your probiotic the night before. So it’s almost like the probiotic was a complete waste of your time and money.
Lemon water is the best thing to start your morning with! And next is your breakfast.
I learned about the Dirty Dozen list from my health coach. This is a list of fruits and veggies that have the highest pesticide count; therefore, these are the ones you’ll want to buy organic if your grocery budget is tighter. If you’re able, 100% organic would be ideal!
Pesticides wreak absolute havoc on your gut.
If you’ve clicked the link to the Dirty Dozen list above, you know that dark, leafy green are on that list. Which brings me to our morning shake.
Last week we talked about how important it is to eat plenty of veggies. Your morning shake is the perfect way to get veggies in first thing.
Here’s the recipe I use:
6 oz water
4 oz almond milk
1 c ice
1 large handful of ORGANIC dark, leafy greens
⅓ c fruit (berries are great, but I usually use pineapple)
1 scoop protein powder (I use Truvani but Nature’s Sunshine is also super yummy)
3 tbsp hemp seeds
You can play with it to your liking, but make sure you get your protein in there and don’t leave out the greens!
That's all for now, but be on the lookout for part 3 next week!
If this was helpful for you, join my Facebook group where you can find more wellness tips – free of charge. <3
You can also grab my free guide on 3 Easy Steps to Lose Weight and Feel Amazing here.
Stress management is huge. It impacts your whole world. How you talk to others, how you talk to yourself, how your food digests, the overall health of your body.
A body with well-managed stress is a lot healthier than a body that’s in fight or flight all the time.
And if you’re having gut health issues (eczema, acne, anxiety, headaches, fatigue), it’s that much more important to get your body out of fight or flight and into rest and digest.
Not to mention you just FEEL a million times better when you’re managing your stress appropriately.
Here are some of my favorite ways to manage stress:
1. Meditation
This is something I’ve only just started doing, but I’m already a huge fan. I’ve been starting with a 10 minute guided meditation, and I notice a massive difference in my stress (and patience) levels. I’m less likely to be triggered by things that usually annoy the heck out of me when I’ve done my meditation that morning. And I’m only 4 days in.
2. Yoga
It’s the stretching and the breath work. I have a feeling of zen I carry with me when I finish my yoga practice.
3. Connect with the Earth
Take your shoes and socks off, stand in the grass & just feel for a few minutes.
4. Essential oils
There are the obvious ones like Stress Away and Lavender, but Palo Santo and other tree oils are very grounding. Frankincense is another one that’s earthy and grounding. Valor and Peace & Calming are great ones to use too. Diffuse them, rub a couple drops together in your palms and take the scent in, put a drop or two on your wrists - there’s really no wrong way to do it. As long as you’re breathing in the scent, it’s working.
5. Sleep
Sometimes, you just need a good sleep. Take a nap, get 8-9 hours in, or just get under the covers and rest your eyes.
If you can find a way to work these into your daily routine, you'll be much better off - I promise! Which of these do you see yourself working into your morning routine? Your wind down routine? What are some of your favorite ways to manage stress? Let me know in the comments below.
A body with well-managed stress is a lot healthier than a body that’s in fight or flight all the time.
And if you’re having gut health issues (eczema, acne, anxiety, headaches, fatigue), it’s that much more important to get your body out of fight or flight and into rest and digest.
Not to mention you just FEEL a million times better when you’re managing your stress appropriately.
Here are some of my favorite ways to manage stress:
1. Meditation
This is something I’ve only just started doing, but I’m already a huge fan. I’ve been starting with a 10 minute guided meditation, and I notice a massive difference in my stress (and patience) levels. I’m less likely to be triggered by things that usually annoy the heck out of me when I’ve done my meditation that morning. And I’m only 4 days in.
2. Yoga
It’s the stretching and the breath work. I have a feeling of zen I carry with me when I finish my yoga practice.
3. Connect with the Earth
Take your shoes and socks off, stand in the grass & just feel for a few minutes.
4. Essential oils
There are the obvious ones like Stress Away and Lavender, but Palo Santo and other tree oils are very grounding. Frankincense is another one that’s earthy and grounding. Valor and Peace & Calming are great ones to use too. Diffuse them, rub a couple drops together in your palms and take the scent in, put a drop or two on your wrists - there’s really no wrong way to do it. As long as you’re breathing in the scent, it’s working.
5. Sleep
Sometimes, you just need a good sleep. Take a nap, get 8-9 hours in, or just get under the covers and rest your eyes.
If you can find a way to work these into your daily routine, you'll be much better off - I promise! Which of these do you see yourself working into your morning routine? Your wind down routine? What are some of your favorite ways to manage stress? Let me know in the comments below.
If this was helpful for you, join my Facebook group where you can find more wellness tips – free of charge. <3
You can also grab my free guide on 3 Easy Steps to Lose Weight and Feel Amazing here.
