Simple Ways To Feel Good This Winter

We’re in the thick of it, now.

Winter, I mean.

This is the hardest part, right?

The holidays are past, but it’s still dark and cold.

It feels like spring is eons away.

The temptation to hibernate is oh-so-real.

The thing is, winter truly is a season for rest.

Nature is guiding us to slow down and take stock.

Inviting us to go inward and take really, really good care of ourselves.

Which also means that we keep doing the things we need to do to stay well and whole and healthy, even if the temptation to pull on a wearable sleeping bag and binge Netflix is real.

Look. I get it.

Winter is not my favorite season, either.

I crave the long, sunlit days of summer.

There are days that all I want to do is pull on comfy yoga pants, thick socks, three layers of sweatshirts, and hide on my couch not doing anything but counting the days until spring.

But that’s not the life I want to live.

When spring does arrive, I want to be fit and ready to get outside and do all the things I love to do.

I want to have energy and be my best self.

Which doesn’t happen when I’ve been eating junk or skipping workouts.

So I hold fast to my feel good morning routines.

Here are some of my tried and true ways to keep healthy and well during the doldrums of winter:

• I start the day by drinking a cup of hot lemon water with cayenne pepper while my coffee brews.

• I read my goals first thing and visualize my day.

• I meditate.

• I workout.

• I get dressed with care.

These routines connect me to my days, ground me in my life.

I don’t do them out of some abstract idea of “should” but because they are innately tied to my ability to live my life fully and on terms that I choose for myself.

My wellness doesn’t get set aside merely because the days are shorter— my health is always important to me because this is the only body I have, the only one I get to live this life in.

Seasons always change and this one will shift, too.

But while winter is still here, let’s make sure we’re not missing out on living our lives and caring for our bodies and minds.

So let’s get up and embrace the rhythms we need to to make the most of the day ahead of us.

Health and happiness always.