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Thank you to Vitacup for sponsoring today’s post!
Let’s be real, your twenties can be a seriously crazy time. Learning how to be an adult. Balancing work, social life, bills, and a million other things. Switching from a college schedule to a “grown-up” schedule. I’m going on 27, and I still don’t feel like I have it all figured out.
One thing I have learned though, is that I really need to make the effort to take care of myself. I feel significantly better when I do, and notice SUCH a difference when I don’t. It affects my mood, how I feel throughout the day, my work performance, even my relationships. It’s definitely worth the effort and extra time, and most of these don’t even require that much extra time anyways.
Keep reading to find out the most important habits I’ve adopted (or am working towards adopting) that have made such a difference in my life!
1. Daily Vitamin
A super easy way to take better care of yourself is to incorporate a daily vitamin. Vitamins are found naturally in our food, but many of us aren’t getting the recommended daily amount. There are all sorts of vitamins, each one helps our body function properly in one way or another, and being deficient in any leads to a wide range of negative effects. Google it if you feel like being terrified.
Taking supplemental vitamins is a great way to ensure you’re getting what you need, even if you’re lacking it in your diet. You should still strive to eat nutrient rich food, but taking a vitamin is an easy way to fill in any gaps that may be there.
Vitacup makes it SO easy to make sure I’m getting daily vitamins. They add a blend of vitamins to each of their different coffee roasts! I never forget to have my coffee every morning, so switching to Vitacup makes sure I’m always getting my vitamins! The vitamins are blended right into the coffee, so there’s no weird aftertaste, I never even notice it in there. Also, certain multivitamins I’ve taken in the past have given me an upset stomach or nausea after I’ve taken them, but I’ve never experienced that with Vitacup. Bonus points for the single use pod being recyclable!
Looking to try out Vitacup? Use IVY25 for 25% off your purchase! (Note: only valid one-time, not on subscription and not valid on bundles)
Check my Instagram for a giveaway with Vitacup!
2. Good Nights Sleep
In college, my schedule was all over the place. It was definitely unbalanced, but I guess I was young enough that it didn’t affect me all that much, or I was just too lazy to care and change it. I would stay up late most nights, either working on an assignment, or just goofing off online. The next morning I’d sleep in as long as I could, or somehow wake up for those dreaded 8 ams, and nap at some point during the day. I honestly do not know how I kept that up for my college career.
Now, I know better. If I get any less that 7 hours, I simply cannot function properly the next day. 8 is my ideal number, but 7 is the absolute minimum. I just turn into a straight zombie. I’m a part time nanny and part time blogger, and not getting enough sleep means that I’m not alert enough to care for 4 children, and I have a lot less patience with them. Or, I can’t think clearly enough to properly run my blog.
Developing a regular sleep schedule has been so crucial for me to be a normal functioning human. I try to go to bed around 9:30 or 10:00 pm every night. Even on the weekends, I try not to go to bed too much later than my regular time. It does take some time to adjust to, but it’s been worth the effort in my daily energy, job performance, and mood.
3. Drinking Enough Water
Water is so important in making sure your body is running smoothly. It helps your organs function, hydrates your skin – which can help keep your skin more youthful, aids in digestion, prevents constipation, effects brain function, can help prevent headaches, keeps you fuller for longer, increases energy levels, and so so so much more. Water is where it’s at!
An easy way to make sure you’re drinking enough is to always have a water bottle with you! Keep one at your desk, and you’ll mindlessly take sips more often than you realize. If you’re not too into the taste of plain water, there’s lots of things you can add in to jazz it up a bit. Pretty much any fruit will add some natural flavor to your water. Tea leaves work too! Although, I recommend decaffeinated, because caffeine dehydrates you. Get creative with the combinations! I love adding cucumber, watermelon, and lemon into my water. So refreshing, especially in the summer. Plenty of bottles even are made with diffusers, so you can easily add whatever you want to your water.
4. Taking Proper Care Of Your Skin
We’re unfortunately getting into the age where it SHOWS if you’re not taking care of your skin. It can be in the form of wrinkles, dryness, or just general dullness in your skin. If you’ve ever wondered at what age you should start incorporating anti-aging products, the answer pretty much is ASAP! Never too early. I didn’t think I needed to at all, but I’m definitely starting to see some signs of aging going on, and wish I had started sooner.
Whether you have dry, oily, or combination skin, it’s important to find the right products for you. At the basic level, you need a cleanser, and a moisturizer. There’s plenty of serums, oils, and products you can add in, but a good cleanser and moisturizer are the solid base of skincare. It’s important to clean and moisturizer every morning and night. And PLEASE do not go to sleep with your makeup on!
5. Using A Daily SPF
This goes along with taking proper care of your skin, but I felt like it was so important it deserved it’s own shout out: USE SPF! Sun damage = wrinkles! Besides the aesthetics, it’s also super important to prevent skin cancer. My dad recently had to get a chunk (tmi) taken out of his nose from skin cancer. Luckily, that was all that had to happen, but it’s still quite scary. Do yourself a favor and take the necessary preventative measures. Your older self will thank you!
I’m Irish aka super pale, so for me, I don’t get tan anyways. If you’re worried about a lack of color, opt for a spray tan! I know it’s not the same, but, like I said, your older self will thank you for the lack of wrinkles and skin cancer!
6. Paying Closer Attention To Your Diet
Remember the days of daily top ramen and junk food on the regular? I miss them. But, I’ve unfortunately found that the older I get, the more of an impact these nutrient deficient foods have on my body and energy levels. The crappier my diet, the worse I feel. Now, that doesn’t mean my diet is 100% perfect and I eat clean every single day. But I’ve found that incorporating more nutrient rich foods and only indulging every once in a while to be what works for me.
Sugar is a big one I try not to have too much of. It’s doing you absolutely no favors, and can lead to some serious negative health effects. I definitely don’t completely avoid it, but I do try to limit it. Try paying closer attention to the sugar in your food, I bet you’d be shocked at how much you’re actually eating.
In terms of foods to incorporate into your diet, definitely try to pay attention to fiber and protein intake. Fiber helps with digestion and fullness. Protein also helps with fullness, energy, and lots more. Lessen the processed foods, add in the fruits and veggies. None of this is new information, but trust me when I tell you that you will feel a difference when you add more nutrient rich foods into your diet. But like I said, BALANCE is key. Don’t feel you need to completely deprive yourself. It’s about making the little changes.
7. Incorporate More Physical Activity
Some people naturally are active, but for plenty of others, it’s something we need to work on developing as a habit. I fall into the latter. But, the more active I am, the better I feel, better I sleep, and obviously my clothes fit better. Plus, adding in physical activity helps prevent some diseases, cancers, strengthens your body, and can help you live longer! We all know it’s good for us.
Now, if you’re one of those people who have to work at making it a habit, I do have some tips. First, read THIS post where I talk about how to make exercise suck less. Second, don’t think you need to develop a gym routine in order to be physically active. There’s plenty of little changes you can make that can add up. Taking the stairs. Parking further away. Instead of meeting up with a friend for drinks, switch that to taking a walk to catch up and chat. Walk or bike home from work, if that’s an option. Start with one day a week where you incorporate some type of physical activity, and work up to two days, then three, and so on. Find something you love, even if it’s super low-impact, and do it on a regular basis.
8. Regularly Visiting Your Doctor And Dentist
This one is the hardest for me, to be totally honest. I think it’s a combination of my social anxiety causing me to have a really hard time making appointments via the phone, not wanting to pay the money necessary to visit the doctor or dentist, and simply because it’s usually an unpleasant experience. But, I’m really trying to be better about it.
Not staying on top of either ultimately just will lead to many more issues down the road, should there be something that goes undiagnosed. See your doctor, make sure everything is in good working condition, and it’s one less thing you need to worry about. Same with the dentist. Get those teeth checked, make sure you don’t have anything major going on cavity or otherwise, and you can rest easy knowing you have a healthy set of teeth!
Thank you so much for reading! I hope this list helps. Please, do not feel overwhelmed if you’re not doing any of the above. Small changes and balance is what it’s all about!
PS – Don’t forget that if you’re looking to try out Vitacup? Use IVY25 for 25% off your purchase! (Note: only valid one-time, not on subscription and not valid on bundles)
Well, I didn’t do a single one of these while I was in my twenties. Oops. Though I have taken up several healthy habits lately. Better late than never, right?
It’s never too late 🙂
Great tips! And coffee with vitamins sounds so intriguing haha, I just don’t have this fancy coffee machine 😀 another thing that you reminded is dentists. Ugh hate them. 20’s are a ride, I’m not even 22 but I feel like a nanny already haha.
Laura /https://laustworld.blogspot.com/?m=1
They have mini Keurigs that are pretty inexpensive, totally worth it! And it keeeeeps on being a ride, let me tell you!