It doesn’t matter whether or not you’re trying to lose weight or ‘get in shape’; exercise is vitally important for our physical and mental health and overall wellbeing.
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New Year’s Habits 2012: #3
(This one is a little late to be sure because I formed this habit about half-way through January. Nevertheless, here it is!)
#3 Get fully dressed, with make-up and hair done, every day
Why: I got this habit from the FlyLady. Getting ready each morning, so that I’m ready to walk out the door at any moment, helps me to start my day right with the purpose and mental energy I need - certainly a lot more than if I stayed in my pajamas. And this includes the weekends!
How: Again, as recommended by FlyLady, I lay out my clothes the night before so all I need to do is get up, get showered and put them on in the morning. I then make myself stay in the bedroom until my hair and make-up is done - and then that’s it, I’m ready for the day.
Brighten up your home during winter
If you’re like me and live somewhere that has limited amounts of daily sunshine during the winter (that is, if the sun even comes out!), then you know how depressing it can be to live in a house that sees about 2 hours of natural light coming through, with the remaining time requiring the lights to be on.
Now last year I talked about using a dawn simulator alarm clock to help you get up during these dark winter mornings, and I recommended using a daylight bulb so that it recreates the same colour temperature as sunlight. (Still highly recommend the whole thing - using it every day at the moment.) But what about once you’re up?
Well recently I purchased a few daylight bulbs to replace the some of those around my home and it has massively helped brightening up the place, instead of that perpetual dull yellow light you get from normal bulbs.
I bought mine from Ryness.co.uk as they seemed to have the best value, but you can also get them from Amazon and other specialist stores. They’re obviously more expensive than regular bulbs - but they’re energy saving, they last a long time and they will generally help with a better sense of wellbeing. A good investment in my opinion!
Dawn simulator helped me through the winter
At the beginning of the year I purchased one of these:
It is a dawn simulator alarm clock (the one above, the one I bought, is made by Androv) and I got it after hearing about how great they are for helping with SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder) and just the general lack of energy and motivation that comes with having to getting up in the dark during the winter days.
The way it works is that it simulates the sunrise in your room, starting off with a very dim light and working up to a full bright light when you have set the alarm to go off. There is also a selection of natural sounds to wake up to; I personally prefer the ocean waves or the morning birds.
And I have to tell you that during the short, dark days over the past 2 months, it has really made such a difference to how I feel in the mornings - both in terms of energy levels and mood. To wake up in the winter to a bright room with the sound of waves crashing or birds singing is indescribably wonderful!
I also purchased the Androv Dimmable Daylight Bulb to go into the dawn simulator, which means that the light I get is a full spectrum and the same colour temperature as noon daylight. (You can also use a Full Spectrum Daylight Bulb.) And it doubles up as a lamp!
Overall, it is brilliant and I now cannot imagine living without it.
