5 Ways to Avoid Holiday Burnout
Holiday “Burn-Out” can occur for many reasons. The most common ones being stress, whether from doing too much, family situations or physical stress on our bodies from too many Christmas treats or lack of sleep. If you’re someone who’s been working hard at healing her hormones and gut and don’t want to lose ground on your progress this month, these tips are for you.
Schedule In Rest Days (and hours)
Scheduling in both rest hours and full rest days is essential to avoiding burn out while healing your hormones and gut. If you feel guilty for taking time away from social events to rest, remember that you’re doing it so you can show up better, healthier and more present later on. Don’t be afraid to say “no” to events and really prioritize the important ones to take care of yourself. The saying is very true that you can’t pour from an empty cup. So take care of you!
Don’t Stray Too Far From Your Regular Healthy Eating
Enjoy the festivities this month, but stay balanced and keep sugar intake low. Make sure your meals contain protein, fat and fibre to keep your blood sugar and energy from tanking. Your family will appreciate it too, because you’ll feel much more calm and stable!
Get your veggies in, add greens to your meals and keep up with your meal prep as much as possible. You’ll be thanking yourself next month when you don’t need to crawl out of the sugar coma you ate yourself into all of December!! ;)
If eating healthier isn’t something you’ve started doing yet, but know you need to for the sake of your sanity, this is a good time to start introducing some healthy ingredients into your meals.
Stay Consistent With Your Supplements
Something I commonly hear with my clients is that when they get busy, they forget to take their supplements regularly. I encourage you to really stay on top of this, because like good nutrition, your supplements are going to help you avoid burn out and getting sick during this busy season. Put alarms on your phone if needed and use a pill organizer. (I would be lost without mine!)
Schedule in Movement
During very busy times, or if you’re healing from adrenal fatigue and burn out, movement is still essential, but it’s ok if it looks different. Long lifting sessions, chronic cardio and intense HIIT workouts may want to take a backseat for a time while you heal. If you’re feeling run down, try different forms of mindful movement, such as walks, yoga, pilates or skating with the family!
Don’t Skimp On Sleep
This may be the most important tip of them all. If you’re not getting your usual 8 hours, you’re a lot more likely to crash and burn halfway through the month. Lack of sleep, even temporarily has been shown to raise blood sugar, suppress immunity, increase cortisol levels, impair cognition and worsen mental health. Sleep should not be optional, even during busy times. While many believe you can catch up on sleep, that’s not actually science. If you do have a late night here and there, try to at least take a quick nap during the day to recharge, don’t just wait until the weekend and sleep all day. Make quality sleep a priority!
If you’re in need of support right now, don’t hesitate to reach out to us to book a quick call. We want you feeling and functioning your best!
Asher Kleiber
Registered Holistic Nutritionist™
