A few weeks ago I wrote about my intention for wellness in 2017. It’s now been 21 days since that original post and I thought it was a good time to check in with you to share how I’ve been doing. In that post, I set six mini goals to set my foundation for improved wellness. Those goals were:
- To go to bed earlier
- To drink more water (especially on the weekends)
- To take daily vitamins/supplements
- Create a habit of a daily yoga practice
- Try new recipes
- Strength train at least once/week
I’ve been doing a fabulous job of going to bed earlier, and have only been up past midnight 2-3 times this month. Mind you, I’m not “asleep” before midnight, but being all settled in bed reading before the clock strikes midnight is a definite improvement for me! Since I started paying more attention to how much water I’m drinking (particularly on the weekends), I’ve discovered that I have been doing a better job than I initially thought. It certainly helps that I drink a lot of herbal tea so I feel like I’ve been pretty successful on that mini goal as well.
I’ve also done a fabulous job remembering to take my vitamins and supplements every day.
There are so many options and information available about vitamins and supplements, it can be pretty overwhelming trying to determine what products are right for you when trying to live a healthier lifestyle. Jamieson’s experts make it easy for me by identifying the four products that best meet the health needs of Canadians and those are the supplements I’ve been taking daily for the past 21 days.
When it comes to starting a healthy lifestyle, 40% of Canadians are overwhelmed and don’t know where to begin. One easy way we can all start to live a healthier lifestyle – no diet or exercise regime required – is by taking the vitamins and supplements that we need to ensure our body is getting all the nutrients it requires.
But where do we start? If you are like 44% of Canadians, you are unsure if you are taking the correct vitamins and supplements for your needs, and nearly one-third (31%) don’t take any at all because of this uncertainty. That’s what I particularly like about this line, it takes the guess work out of it as the four products are things that we can all benefit from taking on a daily basis.
Since taking this line daily, I know that I am covering any gaps in my nutrition with the multivitamin, providing my gut with the healthy bacteria it needs to function properly, reducing body inflammation with the added Omega-3’s, and combating the winter blahs (among other health difficulties) with Vitamin D.
I’m generally the sort of person who fills up their vitamin container and then forgets to take them half the time. Since starting this challenge I found I didn’t miss a single day. Perhaps having this fun advent-like calendar for my daily vitamins has helped, and I’m hoping now that I am going back to filling my own weekly vitamin container that I’ve created the habit and will naturally remember to keep taking them.
It’s hard for me to say how much difference I noticed from taking the vitamins, but what I can tell you is that the multivitamin didn’t upset my stomach like many brands do (something in the coating in many other multi-vitamins I’ve tried doesn’t agree with me), and I didn’t notice any aftertaste from the Omega-3 supplement – something I know can be an issue for people. I know I don’t get enough Omega-3’s in my diet and I’ve been turned off by the size of the capsules in the past, but I found these easy to swallow.
I’m going to skip over the yoga goal for a moment and go to number 5 – try new recipes. This month I’ve tried three new recipes, and all were a hit! I made a baked apple oatmeal from the Oh She Glows cookbook, 
a new soft pretzel recipe I found online
and Peanut Butter Cookie Dough Bites also from the Oh She Glows cookbook.
It’s fun trying new recipes, and I think I need to continue to commit to trying a new recipe each week as it’s just so easy to get stuck in a recipe rut!
And then we come to the yoga and strength training goals. I’d say I’ve got about a 50% success rate when it comes to a daily yoga practice – which is certainly an improvement, but it still needs work.
One thing that has really helped is allowing myself to focus on a more restorative practice versus a strength building practice. Especially on days when I’ve taught three classes, knowing that I can relax in pigeon for a few minutes instead of busting out a bunch of sun salutations certainly makes it a lot easier to convince myself to get it done.
And on the strength training side, I managed to get in two strength training workouts, when my goal was three. Not too bad, but also not that great. These two will be my big focus moving into March. I still plan to continue with them all but these two seem to be the biggest struggle for me.
Certainly, all of my goals are important to improving my personal wellness, but without a doubt, the easiest one to implement has been taking my vitamins and supplements. It takes less than a minute and is absolutely essential in my journey to improved wellness.
January might be over, but every day, every minute, every second is a chance to change your life. If you want to make 2017 the year that you improve your health and wellness, then act today. Adding the Jamieson Essentials line-up to your morning routine is one of the easiest first steps to achieving that.
The first three weeks of a new habit are often considered the most essential and I’ve enjoyed bringing you along on this journey with me. That’s why I’ve decided to continue to share my journey to wellness in my daily Instagram stories – and don’t be afraid to call me out if you think I’m slacking. Chances are I’ll need the push now and again!
Disclosure: This is a sponsored post for Jamieson Essentials, all opinions expressed are entirely my own.