The summer season is the perfect time to get outside and enjoy yourself, but it can also be a time where we look inwards at our unhealthy habits. Summer shouldn’t suddenly make you critical of your lifestyle or body, but it can make us recognize how much time we spend outside being active and how we feel a bit lighter and healthier in the sunshine.
Whether it’s sport, travel, or social events, there’s nothing better than glorious summer weather to get you in the mood to make some healthy changes. We’ve come up with 10 tips for healthy living all summer, which will enable you to stay active and feel good about yourself.
10. Eat lots of fresh fruits
Fruits are the perfect healthy food for the summer months. They’re tasty, refreshing, and nutritious, offering a whole host of vitamins and minerals.
Most fruits contain heaps of antioxidants, which reduce free radical damage in our bodies. Free radical damage is widely linked with tissue damage and many age-related illnesses, so reducing the build-up of excess free radicals is vital to maintaining a sense of vibrant, youthful health. Fruits offer the perfect combatant to free radical damage, by providing a natural delivery system for antioxidants.
The perfect summer fruits for antioxidant delivery are berries and they are in season over the summer. Consuming a daily cup of fresh berries provides all the antioxidants you need to maintain your youthful vigor while staying active. Any berries will offer these benefits – strawberries, blackberries, blueberries – whichever you find the tastiest.
As an added benefit, fruits also contain fluids and electrolytes, which support you in staying well-hydrated during periods of increased heat and sun exposure. They also contain lots of fiber, keeping your digestive system running smoothly and reducing bloating, enabling you to look and feel your best when potentially wearing less.
9. Protect your eyes
We’re often so keen to get outside when the sun comes out that we forget to do the essentials for health maintenance. Protecting our eyes is often a key habit that gets overlooked.
It’s easy to forget that the sun is actually a star and is beaming down intense solar radiation towards the Earth’s surface, much of which is able to reach our eyes on a clear day. Our eyes haven’t evolved for constant exposure to this solar radiation and can wear out or become damaged over time. It’s vital to take the necessary precautions to protect them.
Excessive exposure can lead to issues that range in severity from the development of wrinkles around the eyes to severe cataracts, where the lens of an eye becomes clouded.
To prevent such optical issues, it’s essential to protect your eyes when spending long periods in the sun. Wearing eyewear that blocks harmful solar rays is the best way to achieve this protection. Proper protective sunglasses should block at least 99% of both UV-A and UV-B rays from reaching the eyes.
8. Maintain a positive mindset
This is a top tip for healthy living and optimal wellbeing in general, so it should come as no surprise that it’s also important during the summer months.
Developing a positive mindset is the key to achieving the mental strength and resilience required to get you through difficult times. There may be times in the summer when you have certain responsibilities that prevent you from making the most out of the weather and spending time with your loved ones, but with a positive mindset, you’ll be able to see the bigger picture with an optimistic, cheerful perspective.
This mindset also allows you to enjoy the positive times even more, as you’re more trained in the practices of gratitude and appreciation. You’re more likely to sit back and truly appreciate those beautiful moments spent outdoors with your loved ones, rather than simply worrying about going back to work or at what point the weather’s going to turn.
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7. Keep your alcohol consumption in check
Again, another habit that’s great for your health all year round. However, this one can become much more challenging in the summer months.
With a wide increase in parties, barbecues, and general outdoor get-togethers, it can be so easy to overindulge in alcohol when you’re having a great time. However, overconsumption of alcohol is terrible for your health. Not only will you feel much worse for a few days after, thus decreasing your chances of exercising or enjoying yourself on those follow-on days, but it can also cause serious damage to your body in the long term.
6. Stay hydrated
Your body can lose vast amounts of water in the summer, sometimes without you even realizing it until it’s too late.
It doesn’t matter whether you’re socializing, exercising, or traveling, increased temperatures will lead to your body sweating a whole lot more than usual. This can lead to dehydration and heatstroke, with symptoms ranging from headaches and nausea to fainting and difficulty breathing.
By drinking lots of water throughout the day, you can prevent the onset of dehydration and keep your body working at its best. We recommend purchasing a large reusable water bottle that is large and yet easily portable as this will make it much easier to get your drinks in. They don’t have to be expensive, although a nice stainless steel water bottle with a top handle is worth the investment.
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5. Treat yourself to a DIY spa day
Sometimes the summer months can be taxing on our bodies. Constant outdoor activities and exposure to intense heat, salt or chlorinated water, and creams of all types can lead to our skin and tissues needing a little R&R.
Treating yourself to a DIY spa day can be the perfect antidote, giving you time to look after your body and recuperate from all the outdoor fun. You can even have a few friends round for a DIY group session or treat yourself alone one night if you need peace and quiet.
DIY spa day activity options are endless from pedicures, manicures, and facials, to making your own homemade body scrubs.
4. Don’t skimp on sleep
With the sun setting so late and rising so early, it can be a challenge to catch the usual amount of z’s. The desire to stay up later than normal is triggered or worsened by the feeling that it’s still daytime, and the early morning sun can make you want to get up and get busy way before you normally would.
However, getting enough sleep is absolutely critical to maintaining your mood, energy, and vitality, throughout the day. Without it, your hormones start to become imbalanced, which affects nearly all of your bodily functions, from your capacity to handle stress to your ability to manage blood sugar levels and hunger.
Getting enough sleep is essential for healthy living all summer. This way, you’ll have the energy, vitality, and overall health to get the very most out of your summer.
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3. Wear mineral sunscreen every day
One of the healthiest decisions you can make over the summer is wearing sunscreen every day. However, it goes a step further than that because of common ingredients in sunscreens on the market. Many “thin, sheer, or chemical” sunscreens contain ingredients that are not good for us. As a result, it is safer to use any sunscreens for your face and body that say “mineral” on the bottle. This means that the main ingredient is zinc oxide, which is the most pure and basic form of sunscreen we can use. We love this safe and hydrating one from CeraVe. Your skin will thank you.
2. Move your body for at least 30 minutes a day
In the summer, it’s easy to get outside and go for a walk even if it’s with your dog, children, or neighbors. As a result, movement doesn’t have to be draining. By making the commitment to get outside and be active whether it’s running, walking, or cycling, you’ll be a healthier, happier version of you. Plus, fresh air does wonders for the mind-body connection and helps you get a daily dose of vitamin d that will improve your overall health.
1. Spend time by a body of water
This tip might seem obvious, but our reasoning may surprise you. We might all prefer and look forward to spending time outside near a body of water in the summer. But, have you ever wondered why? Studies have actually shown that being near a body of water can decrease your levels of stress and anxiety. This is why, regardless of where you live or whether you can afford to take a beach vacation, you should spend more time by the beach, lake, a pond, or even a pool this summer. Your overall mental health will improve and lean into the relaxation that water can provide.
Conclusion
There are some key considerations that must be taken into account to ensure that you’re maintaining and optimizing your health. It’s so easy to get carried away with exercising, socializing, or simply catching some rays that you skip the essential health precautions. It’s also easy to get caught up with work or your children, which can keep you indoors and failing to put yourself first. However, doing so will cause you to feel worse both physically and mentally and likely miss out in the long run. We recommend keeping these tips in mind so that you can prioritize healthy living all summer.