Durban - Here are 15 tips to help busy women balance health, time management and stress.
1 If you’re on a budget, train at home: A few pairs of dumb-bells are all you really need for an effective home workout. If you feel you need supervision, invest in fitness DVDs or browse online for full video workouts.
2 Replace diets with small swops: Small healthy swops can transform your eating habits easily – no diet needed! Replace table salt with Himalayan rock salt, cook with coconut oil, and skip added sugar or use natural sugar replacements wherever possible. Avoiding refined carbs like white pasta and bread and rather incorporating grains like quinoa, oats and barley will do wonders for your waistline and energy levels.
3 Have a wind-down routine before bed: You may feel productive sparing a few extra hours of sleep, but your cognitive functioning, memory and performance are guaranteed to suffer. Dim the lights an hour before bedtime, skip stimulating activities like work or browsing laptops, and sprinkle a few drops of lavender oil on your pillows.
4 Eat consistently: You can eat your way to lower stress levels and higher energy. Low GI meals keep your blood sugar levels moderated, and snacking frequently will keep you energised throughout the day. Juice your veggies each morning if you anticipate not having time to fit in a balanced meal.
5 Start gift shopping now: Staggering your holiday gift shopping does wonders for your budget and your stress levels. Give the last-minute queues a skip and start organising presents for loved ones now. Keep a list on your phone so you can jot down any brainwaves without forgetting. Gifts bought online, spa vouchers and tickets to concerts or events are all delivered to your door.
6 Exercise for energy: Much of our energy – while also influenced by diet, lifestyle and fitness levels – relies heavily on brain function. Exercise plays a huge role in this, from stabilising your mood and organising your thoughts to destressing and boosting energy levels. If you think you don’t have time, remember you will be far more productive afterwards, saving you time overall.
7 Save time on workouts: Skip isolated exercises and long, medium intensity cardio. Fast results are won with compound exercises (strength exercises that work multiple muscle groups at once) and by including sprinting intervals into steady-state runs to get you into your fat-burning zone.
8 Make “happy” your default setting: An increase in positive thoughts has been proven to build resilience and your ability to be solution-focused. Working to remain positive in stressful situations, to bite your tongue when feeling annoyed, and to mindfully acknowledge each negative thought and follow it immediately with a positive one, are all tools to becoming more constructive. This is an important conditioning tool that can take time to implement, but the long-term benefits are worth it.
9 Check your iron and vitamin B12 levels: Women often don’t meet their daily recommendations of these two nutrients and energy levels can suffer as a result. A deficiency in vitamin B12 has also been linked to higher stress and depression levels. A simple test can confirm whether or not you are meeting your daily needs.
10 Cook more than you need: This will save you from resorting to unhealthy take-aways when time is limited. Soups, casseroles, stews, curries, mince and savoury muffins all freeze beautifully.
11Shop online: Almost all grocery chains now offer the option to order online with a small delivery charge of R40 to R60. This is so worth it, as it prevents you from buying things that weren’t on your grocery list, as well as saving travel time. The delivery fee works out to what you’d pay on petrol anyway.
12 Modernise your kitchen: A few gadgets can add some serious health and time-saving benefits to meals. Steamers give you cooked veggies in 10 minutes; liquidisers blend up your nuts, seeds, fruit, oats and yoghurt into instant smoothies; and juicers are an absolute must when it comes to upping your raw veggie intake. Airfryers are another lifesaver, allowing you to prepare entire cooked meals with almost no oil – or supervision.
13 Breakfast: It doesn’t have to be your biggest meal, but after a night’s sleep where the body has fasted and the metabolism has slowed, it needs a jumpstart. Forcing your body to metabolise food in the morning lets it know that the “fast” is over, and provides the fuel you need to start an active day.
14 Cut down on TV time: Not only is it a black hole for valuable time, it can hinder a good night’s sleep. Cut back on your screen time and you’ll be amazed at the time you free up to get other things done. If you can’t resist your favourite programme, double it up as exercise hour.
15 Renew your energy: Sometimes a shift in focus or activity can be the energy refresh you need. It could be a 20-minute power nap, 10 minutes of meditation, a 5-minute walk, or even half an hour of reading. Whatever the break is, a short switch in your concentration from one task to another can be all it takes to replenish your energy levels and focus on the task at hand.
Sunday Tribune