Pace yourself on the path to good health

With January safely over, now could be the perfect time to set long-term health goals

expert Monica Price

January is the winter month known for setting New Year’s resolutions, starting a new diet, and contemplating changes to improve your health and wellbeing.

Yet, rather than setting yourself goals in January that may be difficult to achieve, why not use February to look at more realistic goals to help you to feel better about yourself.

Try the SMART approach – Small, Manageable, Achievable, Realistic and Timely.

Starting with food, instead of starting a new ‘fad’ diet, simply make your diet healthier – by adding more fruit, vegetables, fish, lean meats and plant-based foods to your weekly menu.

Nutrients

Cut down on your sugary food and drink. Too much sugar in your diet can not only lead to weight gain, but also affects the way your pancreas produces insulin, increasing your risk of Type 2 Diabetes

Use your freezer as your friend and cook more than you usually do. You can then portion these into containers and you are ready to have a healthy meal in minutes when you don’t really want to cook.

Try making delicious and tasty vegetable soups. You can add any leftover vegetables, beans, lentils, spinach, watercress, onion and garlic for a dish packed with essential nutrients. Instead of eating your fruit cold, why not slice and warm it up? Good choices are apples, fresh or frozen berries, pineapple or orange. These can easily be frozen so you have them to hand. Try swapping just one or two of your snacks high in fat, sugar and salt to a healthier option.

Keep your body hydrated and drink more water. Your body is mostly made up of water –nearly two-thirds – so it’s important to aim for six to eight glasses a day. Try having a glass of water, instead of a fizzy drink or coffee for example. Add fresh fruit to your water to change the flavour. Hydration is needed for your heart and circulation, digestion, for temperature control and for our brain to work well. Moving on to exercise, in these darker days do try to go outdoors as much as you can during daylight hours, and embrace nature.

A short walk or cycle ride is not only good for your body, but exercise helps to release

If you are unable to go outdoors, make sure you have plenty of indoor plants. They not only look nice, but research has found that friendly bacteria in plant soil (Mycobacterium vaccae) trigger the release of serotonin, which can help alleviate symptoms of low mood and depression. Variety is important, so take up a new hobby that you really enjoy. You are more likely to stick to it if it’s something that makes you happy. Remember – you have a whole new year to

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You Like To Stop Worrying About The Cost Of Living? Earn

Consider becoming a host family and earn up to £352 per week

Find out more..

We know many people will be curious about hosting and what it entails, so we’ve shared what families wanted to know before embarking on their rewarding cultural experience with ISE!

Q : Where are the students from ?

A : ISE works with specialist Educational Tour Operators based in Europe. Our students are mainly from France, however we also welcome Dutch, German, Polish and Czech groups. During the summer stays we host Italians and Spanish students too. We pride ourselves on working with Industry leaders who share the same core values and professionalism as ISE. All of our partners have been successfully placing students in the UK and all over the world, for over 40 years.

Q : When do you get the students ?

A : Our short stay students come throughout the academic year. Our main season is from February to the end of June, where we welcome groups weekly. However, we also host groups thoughout the Autumn/Winter term too.

Q : What age are the pupils?

A : They are secondary school pupils (Years 7 – 13). They travel by coach and are accompanied by their teachers. We welcome different schools in different year groups each week.

Q : How many students can I host?

A : We can place 2, 3 or 4 students with each homestay host. There is no requirement for them to have a bedroom each and are happy to share a room/s.

Q : Who can apply to be a homestay host?

A : Hosting can suit anybody that can provide a warm welcome and a clean, safe and inviting environment. Single people, couples, retired people –with or without chidren/grand children can all make super hosts!

DURING THEIR STAY :

Q : How does it work when they are here?

A : Our groups arrive by coach on a Monday evening and they stay for 3 or 4 nights, departing on a Thursday or Friday morning. Families drop their students off each morning at 7.30am & collect them at 7.00pm. Our main meeting point is Sainsbury’s Car Park in Tunbridge Wells (Linden Park Road)

Q : What do they require :

A : Their requirements are :

• To be welcomed by kind, friendly, reliable & honest people

• A bed each

• To be able to shower once a day.

• Their meals (quick breakfast, packed lunch and dinner)

• To be dropped off and collected from the meeting points on time.

Q : How manageable are the expenses ?

A : Very! Our most experienced families who have continued to host throughout the cost of living crisis have said that the additional income is invaluable to them & that it has definitely been worthwhile during these hard times to be able to earn up to £352 for four nights.

We have hopefully answered some of the immediate questions that come to mind, but we would really welcome anybody interested in hosting with us to get in touch so we can have a chat and talk you through the process in more detail.