From Nicole Hinckley
Warm, summer weather is finally here! For many of us, the beginning of summer is an exciting, transformative time. It brings a level of commitment to reset and tackle our personal goals! Here are our favorite wellness and nutrition tips to reset for summer 2022!
- Use Your Environment to Your Advantage
Your environment has a profound impact on your mental state and behavior. Try to commit to organizing your surroundings for at least 10 minutes a day. This simple task can increase your state of well-being and help you stay motivated to tackle your new summer goals. Whether you like it or not, your environment can influence your actions. For example, if you want to make sure to drink enough water at work, try cleaning off your desk and placing a water bottle somewhere in sight. If you want to make sure to exercise when you get home, make sure to lay out your athletic gear in an obvious place. But on the other hand, if you open your pantry and see cookies first thing, your environment may be cueing you to eat them. Keep items in your environment that motivate you to achieve your goals and help build positive habits!
- Make Sure You Have Protein at Every Meal and Snack
Make sure to get your protein in at every meal and snack. Protein is essential for satiety, growth, tissue repair and so much more. There are plenty of sources of protein you can consume including meat, dairy, nuts, edamame, etc. If you engage in exercise, consuming protein after your workout is key to enhance recovery and helps build lean muscle mass. If you are considering adding a protein powder post workout, one of my favorite options is whey protein. Whey is a complete protein and one of the best choices to help put on muscle. Protein2o makes it easy to incorporate protein into your diet at any time of the day!
- Focus on What You Can Add To Your Diet
Proper nutrition can be challenging to navigate with all of the noise of the latest diet trends telling you to cut out foods and only eat certain things. Instead of focusing on what you can’t have, I recommend focusing instead on what you CAN! How can you balance out your macronutrients (carbs, proteins and fats) and also your micronutrients (vitamins and minerals). One of my favorite ways to increase your nutrient intake is to aim for eating a rainbow a day! Try experimenting with different spices to increase the flavor and the nutrient content of your food! Remember, eating healthy should taste good!
- Honor Your Hunger Cues
The more you honor your hunger cues, the easier it is to stay in control and not overindulge. When you eat before you have let your body become too hungry, you are more likely to make better food choices, maximize your energy, and prevent overeating. Most people think of hunger as just a rumbling stomach sensation, but it can also present itself as tiredness, crankiness, intense cravings, headaches and more. The goal is to continually refuel your body, so you never feel too low or too high. I challenge you to brainstorm other ways in which hunger presents itself in your body.
- Stay Hydrated
Staying adequately hydrated is key to feeling your best. Dehydration can lead to a decrease in performance, cognitive function, constipation and more. Keeping a water bottle with you at all times will make it more likely for you to meet your hydration needs! Most males need about 3.7 L of water and most females need about 2.7 L of water per day. Your fluid needs are met not only from liquids but from the food sources you consume as well. Also, keep in mind for the summertime especially, your fluid needs will increase if you sweat and/or are in the heat or humidity! If you are tired of water, try adding in a Protein2o!
