The new year brings a real boost of motivation for many people. While the holidays were spent with tasty food, from January onwards there is an increasing desire for a healthy lifestyle. Goals such as a conscious diet, improved fitness and sufficient sleep are now on the agenda. Our tips will help you make a fresh start!
1. Exercise and sports: How to increase your fitness level
Regular exercise is essential for a healthy lifestyle. It not only leads to an improvement in your muscles and endurance, but also has a positive effect on your cardiovascular system, your immune system and your metabolism. An actively designed everyday life also improves your mood and can drive away the winter blues in the cold season.
Whether it's endurance training or daily steps on foot - every meter counts. Exercise can be integrated into everyday life in many ways and can be a lot of fun. With good music in your ears, get off the bus a few stops earlier and cover 3000+ steps in a moderate pace within 30 minutes. If you take the stairs instead of the elevator, you will raise your pulse and strengthen your heart muscle. You can also get to work quickly by bike and have completed a workout at the same time.
Of course, the long ride with the racing bike should not be missing, because the exercise in the fresh air provides a boost to your immune system, especially during the cold season. Winter training burns more calories, challenges the cardiovascular system and thus increases performance in the long term.
2. Healthy diet and sufficient hydration
The beginning of the year is perfect for changing your diet, because after all the feasting, there is a desire for healthy dishes with plenty of vegetables that relieve the digestive tract. Seasonal products can be ideally transformed into stews and soups that warm you from the inside and are easy to digest.
Try to base your diet on simple, unprocessed foods and avoid processed products that consist of more than 5 ingredients. If daily cooking takes too much time, meal prepping offers a way to maintain a healthy lifestyle without much effort.
Adequate hydration is essential for a fit body. Two to three liters a day is recommended, especially on days with sports. Important: Hydration also plays an important role in your winter training, even if you sweat less. To ensure you are well hydrated at all times, a reusable water bottle is ideal for on the go. However, conventional plastic bottles can release plasticizers and other harmful substances into the water. Many athletes are also bothered by the taste that water takes on in plastic bottles.
The KEEGO water bottle offers an alternative: With a titanium interior, it offers a taste-neutral, healthy option for daily hydration. At the same time, it is lightweight and squeezable like a plastic bottle, so it can be easily stowed away. By the way, it's not just water that tastes great in the KEEGO water bottle. Isotonic drinks, which provide the body with important electrolytes, also work wonderfully in this practical sports companion.
3. Always KEEP GOING – small goals with great impact
There's a simple reason why New Year's resolutions often fail. Many people set goals that are too ambitious. Instead of simply integrating more exercise into their daily routine, they want to run a marathon or cycle to the nearest mountain peak. This quickly overwhelms them.
Small, achievable goals, on the other hand, keep sports motivation high and provide a sense of accomplishment along the way. Write down your long-term goals and break them down into several steps. You can master these day by day – whether it's cycling, meal prepping, or daily water intake.
Consistency is key and more important than strictness. With the 80/20 rule, you can find a balanced approach. If you manage to pursue your goals 80% of the time, you will quickly feel the health benefits.
4. Recovery: The Importance of Good Sleep
After a strenuous workout, your body needs enough time to recover. This is the only way muscles and the musculoskeletal system can regenerate and energy stores can be replenished. Sleep is essential, because during this time the body can fully activate its self-healing powers and heal small tears in the muscles.
Experts recommend around seven to nine hours of sleep, but athletes may need a little more. They even benefit from up to ten hours of sleep per night. A rested body can perform better. Incidentally, this does not only apply to your endurance and strength, because you can even internalize learned movement sequences in your sleep and thus refine coordination and technique.
5. Join a Community
With the right fitness tips, you can start your healthy lifestyle in the new year. However, to stay on track in the long term, you need motivation and perseverance. In a community, you benefit from the encouragement of others and at the same time bring a social component to your training.
Online you will find groups for almost every sport: Find your own road bike group for cycling, take part in a weekly run or meet for crossfit in the nearest park. Achieving common goals gives you additional sports motivation and brings personal responsibility. If you are consistent, you will also positively influence others.
At the start of a new year, many people resolve to live healthier lives. With a few fitness tips, sufficient hydration and sleep, as well as a simple diet, your project will succeed!
