As the sun sets on another year (where does the time go?!) now is a great time to reflect on the past 12 months.
How we can learn from our experiences and begin a fresh, healthy and happy 2017? Here are a few lessons learnt by the IQS community. What are yours?
Lesson #1: Your to-do list is NEVER going to end.
“It’s up to you to prioritise you. I’ve learnt that I need to make time to do the things that nourish my own well being, whether it’s reading in the hammock or belting out some karaoke tunes!” – Erin Barry, food blogger and IQS ambassador
Lesson #2: Exercise for wellness, not weightloss.
“For years I made exercise miserable for myself, thinking I had to be able to do extreme cardio to be fit. Naturally, this didn’t work. I was exacerbating injuries, self-flagellating and, through all of it, extremely unfit.
“I had to find exercise that worked for my body. Nowadays I do gentle stuff, like yoga, and I walk everywhere I can. I’m fitter – and happier – than I’ve been in years.” – Rachel, writer
Lesson #3: You’re not always in control (but that’s okay).
“Having a miscarriage and falling pregnant again in 2016, has taught me that you don’t have control over everything that happens with your body.
“You can just do your best – good health is all about consistency above perfection.” – Angelique Panagos, nutritionist and IQS expert
Lesson #4: Never stop experimenting.
“Adding kombucha to your green vegetable smoothie gives the best ever fizzy lift. I discovered this quite by accident.” – Sarah Wilson
Lesson #5: Less really is the new more.
“We are taught these days that accumulating things affords a better life. The opposite seems to be true (for me, in any case).
“If you have hundreds of items sitting in storage boxes or going unused, it weighs you down emotionally. Experiences over things is the new mantra around my house.” – Miss Marzipan, recipe developer, food stylist and IQS ambassador.
Lesson #6: Health is not a number.
“Like many people before me, I’ve had a love/hate relationship with my body. And the food I put into it. This year, I finally came to terms with the fact that I can’t measure my health – or my self worth – by a number on a scale.
“Health is really about knowing I’m doing the best I can by my body, providing it with the nourishment it needs to work at it’s best.” – Camilla, senior writer and editor
Lesson #7: Persistence pays off.
“I have had ulcerative colitis for more than 20 years. For the last four and a half years I’ve quit sugar, eaten low FODMAP whole food and focused on regular exercise.
“After a routine colonoscopy this year, my results came back with the all clear. My colitis was not present. It really goes to show – food is thy medicine.” – Diana Tencic, fitness and food coach and IQS expert
Lesson #8: Spend more time outside.
“I found out this year that the average person spends just 10 per cent of their entire life outside. Now I make a conscious effort to get out whenever I can.
“Breathing in the fresh air, getting plenty of sunshine and touching the earth keeps me grounded, gives me more energy and regulates my sleep/wake cycles.” – Meg, food and recipes manager
Lesson #9: Nobody else has a body like mine.
“No one knows my body quite like I do. I know when I’m under-nourished, I know when I’m not getting enough sleep and I definitely know when I’ve eaten too much sugar… hello pimples!
“Listen to your own body; it will always tell you what it needs.” – Maddy, office manager
Lesson #10: Build your health on small rituals.
“Form habits that support those practices you want to partake in. When I get up and go outside to exercise every morning, it’s not something I think about. It’s something I just do.
“Forming small habits all the time makes the journey of change to a healthier lifestyle so much easier.” – Jenny Barrow, slow food Instagrammer and IQS ambassador
What did you learn about your health this year?
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