A stressed out mind often comes with a stressed out body. Therefore, hold on to your lounge wear! Invest in a good bed, sleep well and rewind as often as possible. And this has to do with style -how? Simply because, if you don’t feel good you’ll not look good. And if you think you look worn out, you’ll feel even worse. It goes both ways! You need to possess inner strength to enjoy the very best version of yourself. Keep in mind that your body will be your private vehicle for your entire life. YOU ARE THE VIP. Reward yourself with a healthy life: exercise and choose pure & colorful fuel. You will thank yourself later.
Our bodies can really play tricks on us. My 40+ body went on a hormonal rollercoaster ride a few years back. Too much was going on and my metabolism simply hit the wall. I personally had to study hard and change my lazy routines to get back on track! I wanted to feel my body and hormones working with me -not against. I really learnt a lot, mostly to listen. There is a lot to consider, when you are looking for a healthy, balanced & ”hormounious” lifestyle!
Hanna Antti-Poika (Sports Lady) showed me the benefits of deep stretching; how effective, calming and tension releasing it really is. A good night’s sleep is crucial for my body to recover from negative, and also positive stress.
Some helpful tips to keep your waistline at 40+:
-Eat lots of colors; roots and vegetables
-Avoid refined sugar, white bread, pasta, rice, fast carbs -specially in the evening! Fast carbs turn into sugar in our bodies and sugar (if not used as energy) will turn into fat.
-Berries are great evening snacks! Keep in mind that fruits contain sugar…
-Minimize red meat, alcohol, drugs (+ unnecessary medication) … We all know this!
-After a work out you have max 45min to refuel! You need water, protein and slow carbs to recover and restore muscle. Never skip this!
Keep track of your menstrual cycle
My Pilates instructor Paola (Paola’s Wellness) really got my attention. I’ll share her insight here, because I really think this makes sense….Period.
-Divide your cycle (normally M21-35 days) into approx. 4 weeks
-Mark your ovulation (normally 14-17 days from first menstrual day M1).
During week 1-2: Your body is in a low hormonal phase; you have now the energy to work out as hard as you want to, lift higher weighs, run & dance as much as you can! Give in to your energy levels 100%, be super active and social as well!
After ovulation You need to listen to yourself. Calm down a bit.
During week 3: your body will slowly go into a high hormonal phase. You should work out, however with less weight and don’t push yourself to your limits anymore! You want to burn fat –not your much needed muscles! Pamper yourself with healthy dinners, baths or body treatments.
During week 4: you need to take it even easier. No heavy training at all. During the PMS phase low energy workouts, like yoga, easy pilates, swimming, long walks are enough. When realizing this you will accept your training efficiency (or the lack there of!) as well as your mood swings in a new way. Simply be aware!
How to adapt this into your style & wardrobe concerns? Go shopping during week 1 & 2. The mindset when you’re out and about shopping is so important. If You feel bloated, crappy and sad, you might be ending up with something that doesn’t speak your need or even your aestetic language. In other words: analyze your cycle to avoid having buyer’s remorse… due to PMS.