I’m just mind blown. I can’t believe that it is the last day of January already. Time is flying way too fast. I feel like I haven’t got a grasp on 2016 yet. Although, not once have I written 2015 – massive achievement.

At the start of the year as everyone was making new years resolutions, I had a think about what I would like to work on this year. I have a shocking posture so I really need to work on that. Just like at the start of 2015, I need to work on eating more slowly. I also endeavour to wear clothes that actually fit me, not clothes that used to fit me; that’s part of being more body positive. I also really should believe in myself more. So I’m working on these, plus one more (tba), slowly.

But I have found I have started doing other things also, more unintentionally.

1. Floss

At time of writing I have flossed my entire mouth every day. 31 days. I’ve used over 1.2 metres of floss. I don’t even think that happened in 2015. Not joking. Daily flossing of the entire mouth has never been my thing. Ask my mum. Ask my dentist.

But for some reason unbeknown to me, on the 1st of January I woke up and decided to floss, and have just kept doing it.  In fact, somedays I even floss twice. A-mazing. I understand that this may not be a big deal or anything to you (my mother’s reply at day 16 was ‘I floss every day’), because we all know that flossing is essential to good oral health & preventing gum disease, and we should be doing it once per day. (fyi – before you brush, preferably) But I know there are many people out there like me that floss less than what they tell the dentist.

I also added floss to my shopping list. Unlike shampoo bottles and tubes of tooth paste, once the floss runs out, you can’t squeeze every last drop out, it’s all over. So to enable my consistency, yesterday I purchased myself another 250 days of guaranteed flossing.

FYI – here’s a little guide on how to floss I found whilst searching for flossing stats.

2. Leave the dietetics office on my lunch break.

Yes, I’ve become one of those desk lunch people. In our office we have a fridge, microwave and cutlery which are very much enablers to desk lunches. It’s become very easy to come back from the wards starving & start eating whilst typing up medical notes. Very easy.

But 2016 and this glorious weather has seen me actually make the effort to leave the office and take my half-hour lunch break in the underused courtyard off the allied health building. And I love it.

Enjoying lunch in the fresh air with colleagues gives my brain a break from typing ‘AIDET completed, clinician explained role…’, emails or stats *cringe*. I find I eat more mindfully. Sometimes I’m too focused on ensuring my spelling is top notch to notice the delicious perfectly-roasted pumpkin in my salad. Lastly, I feel more refreshed when I’m back and ready to power through the afternoon.

3. Started running again.

This one was intentional.

I used to run, a lot. But as of recent on return from Europe trip early 2014, I lost my mojo, assumed I couldn’t run after five weeks of eating and touring Europe,  and really just walked with the occasional run.

But I actually love running. It makes me happy, and I find it is better on my mental health than walking. My thoughts are different as I run, more positive. Yeah sure, those first 3km are always hard. I always feel like I’m questioning what I have done in life to deserve such pain. However from then on, it’s a joy and the perfect start to my day. I know running isn’t for everyone (and I’m not saying you should run to be healthy), but I’m choosing an exercise regime that works for me, what I enjoy and what’s not a chore.

4. Use hand cream.

This is where I stop and go I now am officially old. I have hand cream in my desk draw and in my hand bag.

But seriously, Avagard is soul sucking and takes away the life of your skin.

Your hands become dry and horrible. It’s hard to deny you need hand cream.

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My point is: being healthy is more than the food you put into your mouth and the number of workouts you do in a week. It takes more than food and exercise to be physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually & socially healthy. I just feel that maybe many have got caught up in social media feeds of acai berry smoothie bowls and Kayla Itsines bbg transformations, and lost sight of the bigger picture.

Have a wonderful week.

Emma xo