Hi everyone! This week is unique because we have two lifestyle posts, but I'm so inspired!

After my wishes to you for Valentine's Day, I wanted to come back and focus on the main reason why I decided to include the lifestyle in this blog. 

When I first started blogging, I was so lost. I had no job, my life was upside-down, my body was messy, and I was looking for a path to recover in all the aspects of my life. So, I started paying attention to my daily habits, focusing on what made me feel good and writing down everything that made me feel inadequate or sick. This process is still going on even if I'm more aware now. 

What I learned about my lifestyle is crucial for my mood and confidence. So, I hope that these three habits that help me with my health journey can inspire you! 

Let's start with three things that made me feel uncomfortable. The first one is food. Since I was a kid, my relationship with food has been hectic. As a result, I got bloating, weight swings, lack of confidence, and deep sadness for everything. As you can imagine, fitting in my clothes was a constant battle. Going shopping was a nightmare. I wasn't confident with my friends for my body, and I didn't feel beautiful. 

The second thing that drove me crazy was building some routines to help me navigate the hectic days I was living. I felt all over the place from the early morning to bedtime. I tried every kind of productivity tips and tricks I found to feel accomplished. But I was unhappy, disappointed, and permanently tired. 

Last but not least, my mood was my best and worst friend. Whenever I felt happy, everything was sensational. I felt like I could conquer the world if I wanted. But, if my mood was terrible, I could hide in my bed for an entire day or cry myself to sleep. No compromise; I was either on the highest ground or on the lowest point of my life. 

So, what to do to fix these problems? 

Food

As you can imagine, I tried lots of diets. But I noticed that I could lose the first kilos pretty quickly, but I stopped and slowly gained weight over again at a certain point. I didn't realize that the diets were wrong until six months ago. I was convinced that I was the problem, that my body was unable to lose weight. But six months ago, I decided to try again with a new nutritionist. He is helping me find a balance between food and my body. I love that he customizes a series of eating habits on your specific body type. His rules are so easy, and you can have a life while you're on a diet. I'm not going into further details because everyone has different needs.

I'm gradually losing weight because I don't have specific deadlines. I want to listen to my body's needs and walk on this path for my health, not my look. This last sentence is a massive milestone for me because I've never thought to say anything like that. Since I started thinking this way, I noticed a few changes. For example, I don't cry in the fitting room because the clothes don't fit me. Or, if I'm craving something because of hormones or it's a special occasion, I indulge without a sense of guilt. I used to hate myself for the cheat meal or to crave something.

My body has been through a lot recently, and I love it even more now. It survived an unbelievable pain, and now it's able to move forward. So, I promised myself to never go back to restrictive diets or unhealthy relationships with food. 

Routines

Building a routine may seem easy for my lifestyle because I have a corporate job with fixed schedules. But I'm going to change your mind! My old self used to pack the calendar with a million different tasks, appointments, to-dos. My day used to start at 6/6.30 am and end at 12 pm or later. My sleep routine was out of control because I knew that my body and mind needed at least 8 hours of sleep, but I was forcing myself to sleep 6 hours or less to feel productive. I was convinced that from the moment I opened my eyes, I had to be productive, super active, and quick in everything. When the pandemic hit, I finally started to slow down, enjoy the moment, listen to my daily needs. So, my mornings are so much slower than before. From the moment I wake up, the only task I have is to eat breakfast. I allow myself to do breakfast in 30 minutes, more during the weekend. It's the perfect time to set, eat, and drink my tea while I watch something to escape and dream. 

I'm still working on building sustainable routines. This month is so chaotic and unusual for me, but March is going to be more regular. So, it's the perfect time to set up my new Mind Your Business planner (click to pre-order it!). I want to learn how to time-block my day. If you have any advice, please share them in the comments below! I'm so into time-blocking at the moment!

Mood

My mood depends on so many factors: weather, hormones, food, sleep, and so on. I can't control everything, but I can manage somehow how I react to things during the day. 

Working on my mood is the biggest challenge for me, but I'm so happy at the same time. For this issue, I'm seeing a therapist. He's helping me so much. I feel more serene, calm, centered than I've ever been. Thanks to him, I know myself in a deeper way, and I love myself like I've thought I could. I can't stress enough how important it is to go on therapy even if you don't have a specific mental health issue. 

Three habits to help a healthy lifestyle

So, here we are at the end of this endless post for today! During this time, I learned that there are three habits that help me with a healthy lifestyle. The first one is plan, plan, plan. It can be meals, daily tasks, gym time. My first suggestion is to plan everything. You can do it on your digital calendar, on a beautiful agenda, or both. But write down everything you want to do. You'll have a clear vision of what your day or week is going to look like; you'll be able to set time for rest or fun; you'll say no to things that don't fit on your agenda. Last but not least, your mind is going to be light, and you won't feel overwhelmed. 

The second crucial habit is to listen to your body. It's your most important friend, and it'll tell you everything you need to feel on the highest ground. So, don't punish it or battle it. Go with the flow, and if you need a slower morning, take it! It's your life, your time, your body, your happiness!

Finally, and this is one of the most challenging habits for me, let it go. Just let all the things you can't control go away from your mind. Keep thinking about how you can react to events in a way that is healthy for your body and mind. This is the most important lesson I learned. How you choose to react affects your body and mind. If you care more about feeling angry with the guy who stole your parking, you'll feel more tired because your body needs to fight the tension you created instead of enjoying a beautiful happy hour! All of our emotions, reactions, thoughts produce hormones in our body. We can control this and choose to produce only the beautiful, healthy, and happy hormones that make our body glow from inside out!

What are your habits?