Healthy ways to enjoy summer
“The holidays are often a great time to practise taking more time for yourself and looking more positively at what you’ve achieved in the year so far. Take the time to relax – and find things to do every day during your holiday that are challenging yet realistic and bring both positivity and energy to your life.”
Summer is finally here! For many of us, summer is extra special this year, as we welcome the sun, warm weather and socialising back into our lives again. After such a strange year, summer represents freedom, particularly the holidays, when we can enjoy sunny days swimming in cool lakes and balmy evenings together with friends and family. The past months have been challenging in many ways, from navigating work and the home office to constantly adapting to new rules and dealing with an increasingly digitalised daily life with a lot of screen time. For some people, the holidays represent an excellent opportunity to establish new routines, while for others, the holidays represent a challenge when it comes to maintaining the good routines they’ve already established – especially when there are so many other things that need to be done throughout the day.
Summer – a chance to build up a little extra energy
I’m frequently asked about the best ways to maintain good, healthy habits during the summer. Many people look forward to their summer holidays for a very long time. However, since the holidays make up only a limited part of the year, people can also find them overwhelming due to their expectations of themselves and other people – not to mention all the social obligations, such as coffee dates, barbecues, visits to friends and relatives, or even just enjoying a delicious dinner at a summer restaurant. Not only do these social occasions tend to be a great source of happiness, as well as being vital to our physical and spiritual well-being, they also often involve delicious food and drink. Moreover, summer is also important as it can provide an opportunity to properly relax and let go of all the residual stress after an intense spring, as well as build up some extra energy before autumn arrives. If you live with your family, you may enjoy the time when everyone is together but also struggle to get some time for yourself, particularly if you have small children. Stress-related illness is one of society’s biggest challenges and something that takes a toll on the quality of life of those who struggle with it. Therefore, it’s important that we find a lifestyle that works in the summer and actually helps us to unwind and reduce our stress levels. We need to find a balance that enables people both to enjoy socialising and other fun activities and to maintain certain routines that contribute to our well-being and our ability to build up a little extra energy. Think of summer as an opportunity to develop new habits that are well suited to this particular period and set your expectations accordingly. Summer offers so many possibilities that are positive for our well-being and health and that we sometimes don’t even consider, even though this is the only time they may be possible.
Set the tone for the day with a fantastic morning routine
One of the great things about summer and the holidays is that daily routines don’t have to be so rigid, and things don’t necessarily have to be done according to our normal schedules. Being able to relax and be more spontaneous is a wonderful feeling and this is a freedom that everyone needs. However, a little routine and regularity do our body and soul good, so it’s important that we find a balance that works and gives us a bit of both. Therefore, it may be advisable to start the day with a morning routine that works for you and your family, as this sets a positive tone for the rest of the day. This routine doesn’t have to be complicated – just a few things to boost your energy and well-being. Moreover, it’s not a problem if things don’t go according to plan one day. Personally, I usually wake up without an alarm clock during the holidays, and often before the rest of my family. I quietly get up and enjoy the calm. This time is also a great opportunity for me to move in some way, and I often go for a run or a brisk walk or do some exercise. Half an hour is normally more than enough, and I feel fantastic afterwards. Then I have breakfast with my family and eat something we all enjoy, such as oatmeal topped with fresh Swedish berries or yoghurt with muesli and berries. Last but not least, I enjoy my first cup of coffee of the day! This routine means that I start my day ready for anything that may happen, preferably spontaneously.
Some tips for a healthy holiday:
Have realistic expectations – Find what’s important for you. Look at summer as a stress-free opportunity to cultivate relationships with your friends and family, and even to try something new. There is strong scientific evidence that a good social life contributes to a healthy body and soul.
Have a goal to keep moving every day – Remember that physical activity doesn’t have to be exercise but anything that gets your body moving. Aim to be active every day for a while – every little counts. Summer provides excellent opportunities to go outside and get some rejuvenating fresh air by taking a walk in the forest or by the sea, cycling, swimming or playing football, tennis, “brännboll” or something else with friends or family. Maybe you could even do some gardening.
Choose colourful food – Summer is the perfect time to snack on fresh fruit, berries and vegetables in all the colours of the rainbow. Mixing different colours is a great way to nourish both body and soul, and many people find it easier to eat this way in the summer. Think Mediterranean diet.
Prioritise your sleep – Brighter evenings and nights have a negative impact on melatonin, the “sleep hormone”. Combined with a rich social life, this can often make it difficult to go to bed and, above all, get enough sleep in the summer. It can also be easy to think that we don’t need a lot of sleep in the summer, which is wrong. Therefore, make sure that you, and particularly your children, don’t run out of energy by having calmer evenings from time to time to ensure that you regularly get the sleep you and your family need to be well rested. This will in turn enable you to get more out of your holiday in general. This is also an opportunity to find your next favourite book, as reading can be an excellent way to wind down and prepare for a good night’s sleep.
Choose the occasions when you enjoy alcohol – For many people, it just isn’t summer without a glass of wine or another type of alcohol in social situations. When the evenings get long, alcohol consumption can easily become excessive, and the result is that you fall asleep more easily but experience more disturbances during the second half of the night, which can wake you up and mean that you’re still tired the next day. By choosing when you drink, quenching your thirst with water, picking the alcohol you drink and not drinking too late at night, you can still enjoy a drink without compromising on your rest.
Take ten minutes to be in the now – Being in the moment for as little as ten minutes, otherwise known as “mindfulness”, can reduce our stress hormones. The majority of people find ten minutes more than doable, and the easiest way to do this is to connect it with something else you do regularly and do it before breakfast or after lunch, for example. You can meditate, do yoga, do light breathing exercises or just enjoy the silence and perhaps the beautiful nature.
Find a routine to structure your day around! – It’s often beneficial to have some regularity in life. For example, choose a good morning routine that sets a good tone for the rest of the day.
Think “lagom” – Find the right “mindset” and let go of the “all or nothing” attitude. The Scandinavian concept of “lagom” (meaning “just right” or “in balance”) is a good basis for restoring well-being and energy during the summer.
My advice:
Let summer and the holidays be an opportunity to try new things. Think “lagom” and “a little and often”. Achieving more can be a bonus. Remember that a good social life with your family and friends can have a positive impact on your health, and the holidays are often when we have the opportunity to see them, which has plenty of value in itself.
