We're all getting older--Hello, March, 2016!--and it's about time we started adding some positivity into our lives. We all scroll the, more or less, same Instagram feeds. Workout pick...awesome food pick...hot selfie...workout pick. After a while, subliminal stuff like this starts to take hold. Why don't I look like that? Why don't I eat food like that? Even on the most basic, shallow level, we all want to do better and add things to our lives that make them more meaningful, more fulfilling. Of course, there are ways to do this without starting a health and fitness blog or going vegan for the next 20 years. Here are five quick ways to add things to your routine to de-stress, tone up, and add some light to your wild day-to-day.
1. Do and online workout tutorial or class a few times a week.
Did you know there are like...a million free videos on Youtube for yoga, pilates, or some other benign thing like a "Brazilian butt blaster workout"? It's so easy to find 20 minutes after your work day or in between classes to lay on a mat and "engage your core"--whatever that means. If you start now, 'You' in a month will be all the more grateful.
2. Delete the people you can't stand on social media without hesitation.
Do you still follow your ex-boyfriend from high school who dates a supermodel now and drives you crazy with his gorgeous Parisian Snapchats? DELETE HIM! Why are you wasting time looking at pictures, videos, moments of others' lives that make you feel crappy? Even if it feels like a fleeting second of longing, shame, guilt, whatever...It adds up. Release that part of your life and don't look back.
3. Add some form of self-love to your week.
If you love to eat burgers, eat a burger. If you love the way you feel after a pamper session or getting your nails done, do that! Set a side a few extra dollars a week to treat yourself to something nice, even if it's a small snack on the way home from work.
4. Add something spiritual, even if you don't follow any current form of spirituality.
A quick meditation every morning or a moment of reflection before you end your day can make all the difference. Even without it being religious or purely spiritual, a stolen moment for just yourself is a good way to check in with your head and heart and find balance before you finish off the day.
5. Put your phone and/or laptop away an hour before you go to bed. Seriously.
This might be the hardest one to follow, honestly. It's so simple and comfortable to end your day with what is familiar: your favorite channel, account, profile. But it's not good for you! And it is also insanely easy to get sucked in to the black-tech-hole and wake up feeling like you really wish you had gone to bed on time. Just put it down, plug it in the wall across from your bed. The bags under your eyes will thank you.
