Lent is just around the corner, with the traditional period of fasting starting on 5 March this year. It’s a six-week block when many people give up everything from alcohol to chocolate and all kinds of things in between.
The thing is (and we all know this really) that giving up something for six weeks might help in that time, but if you just go back to your old habits after lent is over there’s really not much point. Plus, going cold-turkey can mean that you’re more likely to binge on whatever you’re craving.
So, how can you use lent as a springboard to being healthier – and make changes that you’ll continue with after it’s over? Nutritionist Jenny Gough offered some tips in a recent article for Women’s Health.
She pointed out that it’s not always about giving something up, but moderating your consumption of it. Coffee is a great example, and she recommends that instead of swearing off it completely you should just limit yourself to drinking it mid-morning and not later in the day.
Another great tip is to commit to going meat free one day a week. However, you need to make sure you replace your meat with healthy sources of protein.
“Make sure you replace it with good sources of vegetarian or vegan protein, such as eggs, yoghurt, nuts, seeds, beans, lentils and tofu,” Ms Gough suggested.
There’s a lot of information out there about how to improve your diet, and last year I talked about some of the main dietary strategies out there and how you can make them work for you. And that’s key to this – whatever diet you’re following it needs to be sustainable for you and your lifestyle.
Getting support from a health coach like The Women’s Wellness Coach can also be invaluable in keeping you on track with any healthy lifestyle changes.