In Part 1 of our holiday health feature we covered the flight, your digestive system and how to stay hydrated. Here we complete the tour with holiday beauty tips and how to make the most of your trip by boosting your energy levels so you don’t spend the whole holiday asleep!
The Summer Glow
Maximise on the benefits of more fresh air, sun, swimming and your strappy sandals by taking our holiday beauty tips:
- Pack a small jar of coconut oil, which is a perfect all-round beauty product. Use as a cleanser, eye makeup remover (with a muslin cloth or cotton wool pads), as a moisturiser for face and body, and as a deep conditioner to protect your hair from pool chemicals or sea salt.
- Start taking Organic Burst Chlorella before your holiday and bring the bottle with you - it contains zinc and Vitamin B2 that help promote beautiful, radiant skin.
- Protect your skin by eating extra Vitamin C rich foods the week or so before you go away. Berries, broccoli, spinach, and lemon juice are all wonderful for Vitamin C and other antioxidants, which are so important for healthy skin. We like to nourish our skin after being in the sun with a few drops of sea buckthorn or rosehip oil that contain Vit C along with essential fats, our favourite is Pai BioRegenerate Oil. For ultimate radiance, we love taking Organic Burst Acai capsules for one week before and throughout the holiday.
Don’t Let Lethargy Win
In Part 1, we talked a little about the stress hormones: If you’re wired and stressed, your adrenalin and cortisol levels drop steeply on holiday. This not only leads to an immediate lack of energy, but also, because of the impact on the immune system, you may start to feel headachy, or generally a bit grotty.
How to minimise the chance of this happening on your precious time off?
- Support your body’s natural stamina. Organic Burst Maca, also known as Peruvian ginseng, is an adaptogen, which means it helps you to deal with external pressures, maintaining your endurance.
- It’s not only mental and emotional pressures that put a strain on our bodies, but also every time we drink a coffee, sugary foods and even diet carbonated drinks, stress hormones are stimulated. Try to cut down on these a week or two before you go away.
- Try not to starve yourself with a drastic last-minute bikini diet just before you go away. Stress hormones are produced when you don’t eat, so you’ll be putting a lot of pressure on your body if you diet in this way. Equally, a crash diet means you may become low in certain nutrients, which could, in turn, make you feel exhausted and ill. For a better way to a flatter tummy, challenge yourself to cut out sugar and grains for a week before your trip. Replace these foods with extra dark green leafy vegetables (kale, spinach, rocket, watercress), gut friendly foods like soaked chia seeds (for soluble fibre), natural yoghurt and a good quality probiotic supplement.
Surf’s Up
For the busy bees among you - whether you have a full schedule of activities, you fancy trying something crazy like kite-surfing or jumping up and down off your lounger every 5 mins to deal with a toddler-based crisis, here are some ways to keep you going:
- Eat enough protein through the day, this may be some Greek yoghurt with your breakfast, a handful of nuts, fresh fish for lunch and a local cheese speciality in the evening!
- Holidays mean we sometimes forget our good habits and reach for the croissants (and even cake) at the breakfast buffet, indulge in ice creams and syrupy cocktails, which all play absolute havoc on energy levels - the irresistible urge to snooze on your lounger might mean you're having a sugar crash! Try choose less sugary foods and drinks, and feel the difference.
- Include a few well-timed snacks in your day to keep you lively, instead of ice cream choose some fresh melon from the fridge, and mid-afternoon go for a portion of fresh seafood or a light salad.
- Energise by squeezing in some fitness with a mini circuit of strengthening exercises such as push-ups, tricep dips, lunges, squats and crunches in your room or on the beach (if you're confident!) each day. You don't need to run for an hour in the heat to stay fit while you're away, and moving your body, increasing your breathing rate will oxygenate your cells and make you feel fab.
