Wellness for Your Wedding Journey and Beyond

It’s time to meet the healthier and happier version of you!

Summer is here, and so is wedding season. So that means you’re either crushing your 2018 health goals and seeing results, or you’ve become completely overwhelmed and said, “to heck with this, this year just ain’t it.” If the latter sounds like you, don’t stress. There’s still hope! If not, congratulations to crushing your goals! Wherever you are on your journey, here are some to things to consider as you continue to progress towards a healthier version of yourself.

What’s Your Why?

The big day is here! You’ve the secured the dress, now you must secure the look. Realistically, if you do put in all of the work to get fit for your wedding, why let all that work be washed down the drain? It’s like finishing a degree and at commencement saying, “Hey, I actually don’t want the sweat, blood and possibly tears that went into accomplishing this feat.” Find a deeper reason to connect to why you want to change your body to make this a real and sustainable lifestyle shift.

Research shows a direct correlation between sedentary lifestyle and increased cardiovascular risk and diabetes. In addition to that, the activity level of children partially depend on their parents’ level of activity. People of the diaspora are hereditarily plagued with both life-changing diseases. So, dig deep for your reason. That way, when things get challenging, you’ll have a solid foundation to keep you strong throughout.

Check Your Mindset

Does the idea of working out or eating vegetables feel like a flashback to your least favorite childhood chore? Bump that! Find a way to love it! The phrase “fake it until you make it,” is very applicable here! I’m not encouraging you to eat anything that doesn’t bring you joy, but I do encourage you to speak things into existence.

If you’re on the fence about freshly made nutrient-dense dishes, head to yelp with an open mind or find a cooking class and discover things that you do like. Very soon, you’ll be eating maple syrup-roasted Brussel sprouts and blending chia seeds in your vita- mix. I’ll say it again! Try new things to figure out what you do like! You really don’t know until you try it. Boxing or pole dancing classes look intimidating until you try a class out and realize how happy you are that you took the plunge.

For long term sustainability, the bottom line is to seek out the food and physical activity that you genuinely enjoy that makes you both feel and look good.

Slow and Steady Always Wins the Race

Old habits are like a mosquito bite on your knuckle, just plain annoying. They don’t go away overnight, but keep tending to them, and they’ll eventually disappear. Be diligent, but also be very patient with yourself as you respect your journey on all fronts. With balance being one of the pillars of your lifestyle shift, I suggest gradually making small changes.

This month, focus on trying a new physical activity and incorporating more green foods into your meals. Without judgement, evaluate your progress and joy and then you decide what you’d like to explore next. Think of your journey to a holistically healthier you as a huge project that will get you to that next level in your life, but it has a five-year production timeline. Map it, visualize it, and get it done.

Lastly, make time for your health. Re-evaluate your priorities and take your workouts and food choices as seriously as you do your day job. Staying healthy is work until it is embedded into your lifestyle. Take a deep breath, put in the work, and enjoy the journey to a healthier you!

Sabine Smith is a Functional Nutritionist & Movement Consultant specializing in Clinical Nutrition, Herbal Medicine, Pilates, and Yoga. She’s passionate about empowering others to live a holistically healthy lifestyle. Find out more at thewellnesssage.com.