Listen, I really wish I could live a perfectly curated, Pinterest-worthy, organic lifestyle. You know the ones you see online where everyone is always meditating, eating organic and in some sort of perfect yogi-zen mode?
Reality check, it’s not always possible.
As a Mom to a one-year old, an entrepreneur and wife on the weekends (lol), there is no possible way I can live my life super consciously all the time. As much as I’d love to make health and mindfulness a priority, life gets in the way and I’ve learned to accept that.
Over the last few months, I’ve really made an effort to incorporate a few elements into my life that help make me healthier overall. It hasn’t been a complete life overhaul, but it’s been 5 easy things that just make me feel better about the life I’m living. At the end of my day, I don’t have much effort left to give, so you know none of these are going to be very difficult!
1) Buy local, in season & freeze: It is easier to buy-local and in season now more than ever. I’ve noticed all my local grocery stores making more of an effort to showcase local produce and really highlight the foods that are in season. Here in Chicago, we also have incredible farmers markets at every corner!
Take advantage of that! Simply put, fresh produce that hasn’t travelled half-way across the country to get to your door just tastes better. Not to mention it has a smaller carbon footprint! Since eating locally really limits what you can have access to all year, I suggest you freeze some of the things you love! I’m not saying go crazy and start canning and freezing everything for the winter, but baby steps will help your overall health!
2) Have easy organic meal options on hand. One of the easiest ways you can make a commitment to incorporating more Organic elements into your life, is just by having easy products on hand that fit the bill!
For me, I’m really into Progresso’s new Organic line of soup. The six flavors are absolutely delicious and still have the same great taste, but are made with all organic (and not to mention familiar and pronounceable) ingredients! I grew up eating this soup, so to now be able to enjoy an Organic line is awesome! Their chicken noodle honestly reminds me of home and every time I eat it, I get this feeling like I should call my Mom, lol. Not only does the soup taste great, but the flavor options are classic and familiar – Ranging from chicken noodle (made with white breast meat and no antibiotics ever) to minestrone to black bean. My current favorite is the tomato basil soup! So zesty and delicious.
It reminds me of my childhood 🙂
3) Meditate every day (even just for 5 minutes): I was one of those people who never understood meditation and didn’t really believe it could work. Recently, I discovered that I couldn’t have been more wrong. Meditation comes in ALL different forms and you just have to find out what works for you. For me, sitting still for a half hour listening to “ohm” just isn’t an option, but that isn’t all that’s out there!
Lately I’ve been using this app called, Insight Timer and it’s really helped me find what works for me. I’m into “self-love” meditations that guide you to work on your self-confidence. I tend to choose some that are less than 10 minutes and it has tremendously helped me through out my day.
It’s also a perfect time to listen to those meditations!5) Grow something! When my husband came home from Home Depot last year with $500 worth of seeds and dirt, I thought he was literally out of his mind. Not only did we live on the 13th floor of a high-rise building (hello wind!), but our balcony was literally 4 feet wide. If we’re being honest, I actually threw a fit. He was nuts!
It was a lot to maintain, so this year, we scaled back a bit and are just focusing on some fresh herbs and a raspberry bush. Just having something you grow is really all you need!!!
Do you have any tips or tricks to help you add more mindful or organic elements into your life? Share them with me below!!
Erica
