Thursday, 5 February 2015

New Year, New You! Doing 5 new small things a day could change youryear!

So I got a little side tracked over Christmas and I never go to finish my 12 Blogs of Christmas but I've finished all my exams and I'm back with some great ideas and high hopes for 2015! I've decided I don't want to make any major resolutions this year. I want to make small changes and do more of what makes me happy. The whole 'New Year, New Me' thing may be cringey to some people but why? If someone wants to better themselves, we should be encouraging them for that, and what better time than starting off fresh in the New Year! So here a 5 simple things you can do everyday that may just change your year for the better! 
1. Get organised! Keep a handwritten dated diary and start an address book with contact information, birthdays and any important dates. Phones are handy, until they die (which in the time of the iPhone is very likely). Have you ever been stuck somewhere with a dead phone and no charger, you thought you had some phone numbers memorised until you had to try punching in their digits. Even worse than forgetting someone's number, have you ever forgotten someone's birthday? I always wondered how my Mam remembered the entire families and extended families birthdays, anniversaries, phones numbers and addresses. Well she has a little red book with all this information, not more forgotten birthdays or anniversary cards 'lost in the post' because you couldn't remember the date or address. Things can often get forgotten about or even deleted from a phone by accident. These gorgeous little notebooks are from Penneys from just €2! 
2. Drink more water. Seems simple right? Drinking water and keep hydrated will improve the condition and appearance of your skin. This also helps improve concentration and weight loss as your body performes better when properly hydrated. Sometime drinking plain water can get a bit boring and often this is why people find it hard to drink as much as they should. One trick I've recently started doing is adding lemon slices, mint leaves and occasionally cucumber slices into a large water jug with ice cubes and putting it in the fridge over night, then I have a refreshing detoxing drink which will keep me going the entire next day.
3. Plan your meals. Create a corkboard with your favourite easy healthy recipes & shopping list for easy access and organisation. This will help you when shopping and over time save you money as you'll notice you won't have as much food wastage. Have some variations and switch it up each week so you don't get bored but remember to include all the major food groups. Another tip I've found super helpful is having a list of healthy snack idea on this cork board too, instead of just grabbing that packet of crisps because you can't think of any healthy snacks you'll have a list of healthy alternatives at hand.
4. Starting a coin jar. At the end of every day collect up all that annoying loose change you accumulate during the day, between pockets, coats and bags. Throw it in a jar and over a couple of weeks you'll notice how much money you've saved. Now a days you can bring money into banks and shops and get it changed from coins to notes. As the saying goes, look after the pennies and the pounds will look after themselves. 
5. Switch for 30 minutes every night. This may be the hardest one for some people. Switch off from technology at least 30 minutes before you go to bed, log off Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, turn off the TV and your phone. Choose a book that requires effort and concentration and read a little of it every day and read it from cover to cover. Switch off from technology and have some winding down time, it'll be the best nights sleep you've probably had in a long time. 
These 5 small steps could change your year and even your life for the better. Let me know of you've started doing any of these things or if you have any other New Years resolutions. 
Until next time guys, Alison x 

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