At SISTERLY we’re not hugely enthusiastic about January resolutions which often get abandoned by February. Why set yourself up for a fall? Instead, we’re all about easy wins that are simple to achieve, even alongside a busy schedule. Here’s how we plan to roll for 2024….
WIN 1 – Reset your circadian rhythm to get your immune system, sleep, energy, and hormones on track for a smooth 2024
By the end of January, you want to be feeling full of energy, resilient to infections, and emotionally balanced across the month. Get your sleep-wake cycle in place and you’re more likely to win in these areas of wellbeing. The best way to reset your circadian rhythm is with a structured bedtime routine, you’ll find a helpful list of bedtime tips in Step 1 of the SISTERLY Stress Protocol blog.
Boosting your magnesium intake is hands down one of the best nutrition strategies for aiding sleep, melting stress, and relaxing muscles, mood, and mindset. Increase your green leafy veg nuts and seeds and remember, The Elevator contains 150mg of magnesium, from magnesium citrate. Which magnesium is best for sleep and anxiety? Any form of magnesium that’s highly absorbable, like magnesium citrate, is the best option to quickly replenish magnesium levels.
Whereas magnesium helps the body wind down, the best vitamins for energy are B vitamins and Co Q 10. The Elevator contains all of these, plus zinc which aids hormone balance.
WIN 2 –Make 2024 all about small micro habits that effectively drive your wellness forward.
Forget stressful and unrealistic macro lifestyle changes, here at SISTERLY we advocate small incremental changes that are easy to implement. Over time, these micro habits work because they deliver big health benefits from reducing stress to improving your mood, energy, fitness and weight management. Here’s a few examples to get your started…
- MICRO DIET - If you don’t have the time or the energy to take on a new dietary regime, just change one thing. Swap your afternoon snack for an apple. This small change over a whole year is a massive win for a healthier diet!
- MICRO EXERCISE - If you can’t make it to a fitness class don’t sweat, just commit to a 20-minute walk a day. Over a year, that’s a lot of extra steps and a real win for your fitness and your mental health.
- MICRO SUPPLEMENT – instead of taking handfuls of different nutrition supplements, sign up for a subscription to The Elevator. This micro habit is a real win in terms of providing your body with the comprehensive nutrition support it truly needs.
WIN 3 - Whizz up a green smoothie for an impressive cleansing breakfast health hack.
Dust off your Nutribullet, it’s time to rebalance your internal pH after indulging in acid-forming festive foods and booze! With the right ingredients, green smoothies can be phenomenally cleansing and with a SISTERLY supercharge by adding The Elevator and gain 24 key vitamins and minerals required for optimal female health, that’s a January win for sure! To get you started our SISTERLY Green Goddess Smoothie is bursting with benefits including:
- alkalizing green veggies to help cleanse away toxins of 2023.
- fibre to keep you feeling fuller for longer.
- natural electrolytes for early morning hydration.
- live, friendly bacteria to support your gut microbiome.
Green Goddess Smoothie Recipe (serves 1)
200ml coconut water
1 sachet The Elevator
¼ avocado
Juice of ½ lime
Handful of fresh or frozen spinach
Small handful of fresh flat-leaf parsley
2 tbsp live natural yoghurt (dairy or plant-based)
2 tsp chia seeds
3-inch piece of peeled cucumber
½ inch piece of peeled root ginger
½ a ripe banana
Squeeze of honey (optional)
Method – Simply add all the ingredients to the Nutribullet or high-speed blender and whizz until smooth. Pour into a glass and enjoy!
Bursting Berry Smoothie by Holly White (Serves 1)
If green veggies aren’t your thing, then try this smoothie bursting with berry goodness, created especially for SISTERLY by renowned Vegan Chef, Holly White. The natural red and purple plant pigments found in berries, called anthocyanins, help protect cells from oxidative stress and support the immune system in fighting infections.
50g soaked almonds
100g fresh or frozen berries
1 banana - fresh or frozen
2 pitted medjool dates (or maple/agave syrup to taste)
300ml plant milk
½ tsp extract
Topping: 1 tbsp goji berries
Method - Simply blend all ingredients together in a high powered blender. Add a little more water if you want a thinner smoothie. If you’re using maple or agave syrup, blend it in a teaspoon at a time, until your desired level of sweetness is achieved. Top with goji berries.
See Holly.ie for details on Holly White's vegan cooking classes and more plant based recipes.
WIN 4 – Smart-thinking professionals and schedule-juggling mums can fire up your grey matter with sea vegetables rich in iodine.
After a nice long cognitive rest over the festive period, going back to work can be a bit of a jump start for the old grey matter. One win to clear brain fog, improve concentration and upscale focus, drive and motivation (all signs of an underactive thyroid) is to tap into the cognitive power of iodine. This little mineral impacts the brain indirectly by supporting thyroid activity which kicks the brain (and the body) into action, influencing memory and brain activity. Studies show that even mild iodine deficiency reduces IQ by 10-15 points!
Iodine is naturally found in fish and sea vegetables (think seaweed) but if you’re not a fan of fishy flavours, then just one sachet of The Elevator provides you with 75mcg iodine, without any fishy fuss.
WIN 5 – Get intermittent fasting or ketogenic savvy to shrink that post-festive muffin top.
Intermittent fasting has proved to be an easy way to lose weight, if done sensibly. Studies show that the best intermittent fasting schedule for women is a 14-hour fast followed by a 10-hour eating window. A longer fasting period could disrupt your female hormone balance, so don’t be tempted to follow an 18 6 intermittent fasting strategy.
There are different stages of intermittent fasting, at the basic level you’re just getting used to the fasting and eating windows, finding times that work best for your schedule and lifestyle. You can progress into a keto reset diet within your eating window, to turn up fat-burning.
For keto breakfast ideas that won’t break your fast, The Elevator contains zero sugar, zero carbs and zero calories. Whatever you choose for breakfast or brunch, you can enjoy The Elevator without any concerns.
WIN 6 – Make plant foods a priority and become a flexitarian with stints of following a vegan, veggie or Mediterranean diet.
We’ve talked about the benefits of a Mediterranean diet in our 2023 blogs so we’re big fans of plant foods and their incredible health-promoting benefits. The World Health Organisation (WHO) advocates five portions of fruit and vegetables a day and this is a good place to start. However, if you reached this goal last year, then make 2024 more plant food focused. After all, recommendations in Holland are six a day, in France and Canada it’s 10 a day and in Japan, it’s a whopping 13 portions a day. Studies show that Japan has a high life expectancy and some of the lowest mortality rates for heart disease and cancer, particularly breast and prostate cancer.
For culinary inspiration with plenty of plant-based meal ideas that are quick and easy to achieve SISTERLY loves
- Holly White - Vegan-ish
- Leon – Happy Salads
- Melissa Hemley – Eat Green
- Dale Pinnock – Plant-Based Diet
- Dr Rupy Aujla – The Doctors Kitchen
- Georgina Hayden - Nistisima
What is a flexitarian?
2024 is all about being flexible, recognising how you feel and providing your body what it needs.Becoming a flexitarian means you can be vegan or vegetarian and incorporate meat, fish, dairy products or eggs into your diet whenever you feel like your body requires a protein boost. At SISTERLY, we consider this to be a very sensible style of eating.
WIN 7 - Make 2024 the year to embrace the benefits of tracking devices to boost your health and fitness gains.
What we intend to do, what we think we are doing, and what we set ourselves to achieve often differ greatly from what we actually do! Wearable devices, phone apps, and smart scales are fantastic tech tools for ‘live’ insights into your fitness habits, daily achievements, and health stats. At the beginning of 2024, note your current baseline for daily steps, fitness level, BMI, % body fat, heart rate, sleep quality and quantity, and more, depending on your device.
Then set realistic monthly targets to help progress your health, fitness, eating habits, stress, mindfulness and sleep. All this clickable, instantly viewable, digital data helps build motivation and keep you on track.
At the end of 2024, you can look back across your data and celebrate your achievement no matter how big or small. The little health habits implemented during these early months help keep your female health on track with The Elevator supporting you along the way.
