For me, the holidays are always a time for overindulgence. Try as I might to keep myself in check, I find myself enjoying second helpings of stuffing (my favorite!), extra glasses of wine (red, please), and staying up late connecting with friends and family. It's a time where I easily overextend myself and find myself not feeling like I typically do when I'm on top of my healthy habits.
Regardless, there are still a number of things that I do to counterbalance the extra snacks and drinks during the holidays to keep myself feeling pretty good. Since it's that time of year, I figured I'd share some of my favorite ways to support health in mind, body, and spirit during the festivities.
Hydrate early and often
Staying hydrated is one simple way to support your body in its detoxing process as well as keeping yourself in flow. Because the holidays are a time of travel and eating different food, it can also lead to constipation and dehydration. That's why hydration is key to keep yourself regular. Plus, you'll feel better and won't find yourself snapping at others or starting mini arguments. You'll be more in your power.
In addition to drinking lots of water, I also keep my 32 oz Kleen Kanteen thermos filled with warm nettle tea most days. Nettle is a whole body tonic that supports the lungs, stomach, and urinary tract. I drink this throughout the year but find it more important and helpful in spring, fall, and winter for its nourishing properties.
Buy vibrant dried leaves from your local apothecary if you have one; otherwise, support a small business like Foster Farm Botanicals in Vermont or Oshala Farm in Oregon (these are my two go-tos for the herbs used in Lagom Body Co. products).
Lately I've been staying away from coffee but I've replaced my caffeine habit with matcha tea lattes. I exclusively use Mizuba Matcha out of Portland. In a blender, I add 1 teaspoon of Mizuba Culinary Matcha, 1 teaspoon of monk fruit sweetener, and 8-10 oz of hot organic almond or coconut milk. Blend on high for 45 seconds. Pour into your mug and enjoy!
Matcha tea is also known for its detoxifying effects. I take a practical approach to detoxification where I work on supporting my detox pathways and organs of elimination every day. Everything on this holiday self-care list is going to help keep the detox pathways open which is essential for optimal health.
Keep up on multivitamins, vitamin D, and other supplements
The winter is not a time to skimp on the vitamin and supplement game; in fact, it's an important time to stay in flow with your healthy habits and rituals. By doing so, you improve and support your immune health.
During the winter, I continue to take my multivitamin, vitamin D, krill oil, and ashwagandha every day to support my overall health in addition to a sluggish thyroid. Plus, a daily probiotic (I use Seed) for improving gut health.
If I know I'll be drinking, I make sure to take my multivitamin for the B vitamins. If I find that I'm staying up late and drinking a bit too much wine, I will drink a glass of water before bed.
I also take activated charcoal, which supports the body's natural detoxification process. Just know that if you put anything else in your gut within 4 hours on either side of taking activated charcoal, you will cancel it out due to activated charcoals adsorption properties. So just don't take your activated charcoal with your B vitamins or any other medication.
I take the krill oil for skin, hair, nail, brain, heart, and eye health. I'm taking a therapeutic does of ashwagandha to naturally boost my thyroid as I was recently diagnosed with subclinical hypothyroidism.
Sleep hygiene
Sleep is essential for holistic health. Without adequate sleep, our mind, body, and spirit suffers. And this is another thing that is FREE. And while uninterrupted sleep isn't always possible (shout out to all the mamas out there!), we can still create healthy habits around sleep so that we aren't damaging it further.
During the holidays, passion flower tincture has been shown to help ease into sleep and keep you asleep, so this can be helpful if you're traveling a lot and struggle with sleeping in new spaces.
I also never travel without ear plugs or an eye mask. Melatonin is another option to support the sleep cycle but I haven't found it to work for me.
Outdoors and movement
No matter what, I make sure to get fresh air and movement through the holidays. This is one way I stay connected with myself and develop healthy boundaries. It gives me time to be alone and to connect with the season. A brisk walk through the neighborhood or the woods does the soul good.
If I'm traveling, whether somewhere new or not, I look at the satellite image of the area and find a new green space that I haven't been to yet to explore. Better yet, bring someone you love along with you and explore the season together.
Switch up my skincare routine for nourishing and protective properties
It's no secret that you and I use our skincare rituals as self-care no matter the season. Because the holidays are busier than normal and typically tend to be filled with travel and cold, dry weather for me, I bring along a bag of my go-to winter skincare products:
- Seatide Daily Cleanser for daily deep nourishment and cleansing.
- Sunspell Body Nectar for head-to-toe moisturizing nourishment.
- Meadow Rose Restore Cream for hydrating and repairing.
As you can see, there are a number of things that you can do to support your holistic health through the winter. I hope that one of these ideas inspires your self-care routines this holiday season.
Wishing you healthy and happy holidays,
Kristen
