A long weekend followed by a short working week. What’s not to love?
Bank holidays are the hero of the working week. Swooping in a few times a year armed with extra time so you can finally get organised or even take a quick trip!
I always get a childlike excitement when a bank holiday rolls around. It’s reminiscent to that feeling you used to have before a cheeky inset day or half term when in school. You realise you don’t have to spend Sunday evening preparing lunches or sorting your wardrobe for the week ahead. You can go out or stay up way past your usual bed time. Goodbye responsible adult, hello 7-year-old self!
Unhealthy bank holiday habits
My only concern with a bank holiday is that (maybe it’s just me) but I can fall into unhealthy habits. I get so focused on having an enjoyable time and making the most of the time off that I can be guilty of ‘over doing it.’
Whether it’s overindulging on cocktails or dining out all weekend, I ditch my healthy living goals. If this sounds familiar to you then I want to point out this is not an effort to make you feel guilty. Hey, it’s a bank holiday, live a little! I do feel that sometimes, just sometimes I don’t want to feel sluggish the week after a bank holiday. As much as I love to indulge and celebrate the time off, I do sometimes desire a more productive long weekend.
If you are nodding along then keep on reading…
Planning a healthier weekend
Perhaps this bank holiday weekend you want to try something new. Why not use the extra day off to boost your overall well-being?
If you have been feeling rundown, unwell, demotivated or ‘in a bit of a rut’ this could be a chance to recharge and refresh.
Love the sound of getting a boost this bank holiday? You’r in luck, here are a few recommendations:
Get inspired on social media
It’s no big secret that social media is great for tips/advice and fresh ideas. Social platforms get a bad rep for promoting unrealistic lifestyles. Looking behind the mirror selfies, these platforms are full of insightful content.
YouTube and Instagram are my personal favourites. Rather than mindlessly consuming content, I like to approach these with a mission. If I’m looking for a quick energising workout then I search directly on YouTube. To optimise your social media browsing and get some inspiration look at these accounts:
- Health and fitness tips:
For healthy food inspo and fitness tip check out London Paleo Girl or Becky Rabin on Instagram. If you’re looking for a quick workout, Fitness on Toast has this brand-new lunchtime workout to try out. If the weather is nice you can even take your exercise mobile and do it in the garden!
- For a good laugh:
Take a scroll though Beige Cardigan’s Instagram feed for some light-hearted, entertaining memes. Comedian Chelsea Peretti also has an entertaining Instagram feed with some of the wittiest photo captions. If you have more a quirky sense of humour (and love Meryl Streep) then Taste of Streep might be your new favourite Instagram account.
- For project inspiration:
Doing up your house? Apartment Therapy on Instagram have some great inspiration. If you are looking for not only home but also DIY craft and style ideas then definitely check out Elsie Larson.
Re-invent your breakfast
During the week, there’s never enough time to re-invent your breakfast and mix things up. Only a few motivated individuals wake up every morning inspired to experiment in the kitchen. We get caught up with day to day activities and can fall into a breakfast rut. A bank holiday weekend is therefore the perfect time to try out some fresh new breakfast options.
If you love a bowl of morning granola, you could re-invent it. Try out this delicious chocolate tahini granola recipe. If you are a vegan, Madeline Shaw has a great vegan buckwheat waffles with cinnamon spiced apple recipe. Scour the internet to find a recipe that inspires you. Use your extra day off to have a relaxing morning enjoying a new breakfast dish. You might find something new to add to your weekly breakfast repertoire. By mixing up your ingredients, your body will thrive on getting a range of nutrients in the morning.
Have an all-natural pampering session
Detoxify your body with a pampering session full of natural bath products. Either have some ‘me time’ or arrange for a few of your friends to pop over for a relaxing evening.
If you’ve been burning the candle at both ends you could be putting your body through stress. Stress can cause all kinds of issues in the body such as muscle tension and it also lowers your immune system. Taking time to de-stress is so important. When you have a three day weekend there is plenty of time to have a mindful moment.
Give this routine a go:
- Start with a bit of detoxifying dry brushing. Use a natural bristle brush over your whole body, starting with your feet.
- Have a warm shower with lavender oil. Neom Organics has a lovely therapeutic bath and shower drops.
- Apply a luxuriously buttery post-shower body cream (ideally with essential oils).
- Put on some comfy and breathable loungewear to give your skin space to absorb the oils.
- If you have pain in your body then try these acupressure techniques. I love this acupressure guide, it even includes one for relieving period cramps.
With your body feeling calm and relaxed, indulge in something you enjoy. Dig out your favourite book, re-watch your favourite film or try out some meditation. The headspace app can help you out if meditation is new to you!
Book yourself onto a course or event.
It might sound like a weird idea because we are so used to making places FOR the bank holiday. You do however get an extra day off work, which means you have time to plan your whole month. It might feel like you are always making plans but how often do you look for NEW things to do?
Use your time off to research events. I love heading over to Eventbrite to search for interesting events. You can search by interest and by location to discover a range of events. Try also searching on Facebook to find more events, or local activities. A productive planning session means when you start back to work on Tuesday you have plenty to look forward to. The ultimate #TuesdayMotivation!
Feeling inspired
Give these tips a go to boost your well-being over the bank holiday weekend. Let us know how you get on by tweeting us @totmorganic.
