With the New Year here, there is quite often so.much.stress to achieve all the resolutions and to loose weight, get hella toned, stop drinking, be healthier, start a new business, learn French, Italian, Spanish even! Travel the whole of India, pay of your mortgage and get clear skin. None of that is realistic, and we put so much pressure on ourselves to start the year in a perfect way. There are so many pressures put on us from the Media, for us to have the perfect body and eat only salads. However, this is not sustainable or healthy for our mental health. It is all about eating in moderation, eating what you enjoy and exercising because you want to which can be so beneficial for a clear head and give you a boost of serotonin we all need in January.

We’ve said this multiple times before, but exercise is a great for your body, and is the perfect way to help clear your head. It gives you a natural high which is just what everyone needs in the New Year, especially with the current state of the world. Walking is extremely underrated, and really can make all the difference. How about challenging yourself to reach your 10,000 steps a day? It’s all about getting you up and out of sitting at a desk hunched over all day. 

If you wish to challenge yourself a bit more but you are not sure where to start, the ‘Couch to 5k’ is a great place to start. This is a 9-week programme which gradually builds you up to be able to successfully finish a 5k run and it doesn’t chuck you in the deep end. You can start this programme even if you have no experience at all with running, all whilst being able to listen it to the ‘podcast style directions’ which tell you how long to walk or run for. It also gives you plenty of tips and encouragements. This is ideal if you’re a beginner.

Meditation and Yoga is something we practise on the regular and is something that we have found huge benefits from. They both focus on breathing techniques and holding positions, which really pushes you to get fully in tune with your body. This can be extremely useful for those who suffer with anxiety, as the breathing techniques help a huge amount with calming down during an episode and bringing you back to ‘reality’. Yoga also increases your flexibility, as well as improving your core strength, through slow and controlled movements.

Drinking enough water is something that is quite commonly overlooked! Ideally, you should be drinking 6-8 glasses of water a day (1.2 litres). Water is so important to help your body function with assisting your digestive system, helping you absorb nutrition and reduce headaches. Drinking water is crucial for so many factors as it makes up 60% of our body and therefore, should not be something that is overlooked. If you struggle to drink enough water, try getting a new water bottle with markings on to help you keep on track drinking throughout the day.

Vitamins can be something we are all lacking. Whether it be Vitamin D which we naturally find ourselves deficient in, during the darker winter months. Or other vitamins, that you find are more suited to you. You can buy multivitamins which hold all that you need. Vitamins are found in specific foods such as Vitamin C in orange juice, Vitamin D in Mushrooms, and Iron within red meats and fish. Vitamins can be especially important if you are vegetarian or vegan as you may not be receiving all the natural vitamins you need, i.e Vitamin B12. This can help your immune system and assist with other body issues such as tiredness. Have a little look at what foods contain what vitamins, and try and up your intake that way before looking into supplements.

Lastly, with the new healthy goals and dreams we’ve set out to achieve, eating well for less is a great way to start. After Christmas we can sometimes find ourselves with a little less money than before Christmas, which is nothing to worry about. But sometimes you just need a little inspiration with ideas of what you can whip up in the kitchen. There’s always been this idea that eating plant based is expensive, which is something I’ve always found to be some what of a lie. It’s inexpensive and easy to whip up big batches of protein packed pasta, risottos, veggie curries, chilli’s etc. And in January, we all want the added extra of warm, delicious comforting food.

Below is an example of healthy, inexpensive, delicious, nutrient packed meals you could try making. It is important to be eating your 5-a-day of fruit and vegetables to help keep your body fit and healthy. Especially in the winter months with many illnesses and of course still the threat of Covid-19.

Breakfast

Chocolate Overnight Oats

Method

• The method for this is so simple, put all the ingredients into a jar/container

• Place in the fridge overnight

• And eat in the morning!

Ingredients 

• ½ cup of old fashioned rolled oats

• 1/3 cup plain Greek yoghurt

• ½ cup milk

• 1tsp pure vanialla extract

• 1tsp maple syrup

• Pink of salt

• 1.5 tsp cocoa powder

• Optional toppings – sprinkle of cocoa powder, chocolate chips.

Lunch

No-Cook Burrito Bowls

Method

1. Gather four meal prep containers add 1 cup of diced chicken, ½ cup sweetcorn, ¼ of shredded lettuce

2. Divide the can of beans between the four containers

3. Divide the sundried tomatoes between four containers

4. Top with 2tsp salsa and ¼ of the diced onion

5. Store in the fridge until ready to eat

6. This is a great meal to meal prep, so that you can easily grab your lunch and spend a little more time outside walking, reading, or relaxing.

Ingredients 

• 4 cups of cooked chicken

• 2 cups of frozen sweet corn

• ½ cup sals

• 1-14oz black beans (or any beans of your choice)

• 1-7oz sundried tomatoes

• 1 head romaine lettuce

• 1 onion

Dinner

Butternut & Blue Cheese Risotto

Method 

1. Preheat the oven 180 degrees

2. Place the butternut squash in a 2.5 litre ovenproof dish, drizzle with oil and roast for 15 minutes

3. Melt butter in a saucepan and cook onion and garlic for 5 minutes

4. Stir in the rice and sage and cook for 30 seconds

5. Add wine and bring to a simmer and cook for 2 minutes

6. Add the rice mixture to the ovenproof dish and pour over the hot stock

7. Bake for 40-45 minutes until the rice is tender and the stock is absorbed

8. Scatter over the cheese and dish up

Ingredients

• 1 butternut squash

• 1tsp olive oil

• 25g butter

• 1 onion

• 2 cloves of garlic

• 300g risotto rice

• 20g dried sage

• 200ml dry white wine

• 1litre vegetable stock

• 150g blue cheese