Robyn’s Nutrition

☪️Ramadan 2021☪️

I know I am really late to post about this, but better late than never? So last year I undertook Ramadan with my partner due to his religion and culture. At first I found it really difficult to adjust to this sudden change in lifestyle, but overtime it became easier and just part of my daily life for a short amount of time.

I wanted to do a little post to educate others on what Ramadan is and the changes I personally experienced in my body.

1. Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, observed by Muslims worldwide as a month of fasting, prayer, reflection and community.
2. You fast from sunrise to sunset - yes that includes no food or water!🚰🍳
3. Eid al-Fitr translates to ‘the festival of breaking of the fast’ and this happened on the 13th May 2021 this year.
4. The date of Ramadan changes every year - This is because Islam uses a calendar based on the cycles of the Moon. It moves back around 10 days each year. 📆🌙

What I experienced:
1. Sleep - The breaking of my sleeping pattern was difficult to get used to. We had to get up around 2/3am every morning to consume food and water before sunrise which affected us both to begin with working full time too.
2. Menstrual Cycle - Due to my irregular sleeping pattern and lack of food and water in the day, my period was 4 days late. Now, normally I am on time or typically 1 day late, but I expected this to change as my body clock and normal cycles were disrupted. However, menstruating breaks your fast so I stopped partaking in Ramadan over these days.
3. Weight - I lost around 3 pounds during Ramadan. It is a misconception that you lose weight during Ramadan as you are fasting for long periods of time, but when the time comes to eat you end up eating similar to what your normal routine would be (or more.. trust me!)

Overall, I do feel a sense of appreciation after partaking in Ramadan and feel that I learn something new every time! Until next year... Eid Mubarak!☪️🤍

💡PMS and Cravings💡

What is PMS?
This stands for Premenstrual Syndrome. PMS (premenstrual syndrome) is the name for the symptoms at least 80% of women can experience in the weeks before their period.

Main symptoms:
- mood swings
- Feeling upset, anxious and irritable moods
- Tiredness
- Bloating
- Headaches
- Tender breasts
- Changes in appetite

What can you do?
- Regular exercise
- Eat a healthy, balanced diet
- Get plenty of sleep – 7 to 8 hours is recommended
- Try reducing your stress
- Take painkillers such as ibuprofen or paracetamol to ease the pain.
- Keep a diary of your symptoms for at least 2 to 3 menstrual cycles – you can take this to a GP or nutritionist depending on the problem.

Why am I posting about this?
I am experiencing this now! I’m hungry all the time and will just eat and drink anything I want at any time of the day recently - I had toast at 10:30pm yesterday to satisfy the crave! But it is TOTALLY normal and you NEED to listen to your body and what it wants and needs.

Fact: Turns out our bodies require 100 – 300 more calories during our luteal phase (the week before our period is due). This is because our Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) during this time increases by 10-20%!

Weekend photo drop☀️

I hope you all had a lovely weekend. I just wanted to put some photos on here to document my weekend.

1) Took a photo on my daily walk on Saturday. I went a new way and it just made the day a little bit more exciting.

2) When we woke up to lots of sun on Saturday, me and my partner went to a local bakery and I got the biggest Chelsea bun I’ve ever seen!

3) Just a fun photo of us👩‍❤️‍💋‍👨

4/5) I made a cookie dough tray bake with Nutella and biscoff spread - yummy!!!! Will post on my stories a little later the finished result!

This is the start of a much better year and the sun has just made everything that little bit more bearable🤍

Thinking time 💭

I saw on my Instagram yesterday a post from my friend that she’s seen a lot of posts around ‘trying to lose weight’ or ‘bouncing back’ for 21st June 2021 when we *might* be allowed back into the big wide world 🌎 and I hadn’t noticed how many posts I was seeing around this topic too since the announcement on Monday which is crazy.

Just some things to remind you...

1️⃣. You do NOT need to panic - this isn’t a deadline or goal to try to reach. There is still no guarantee that 21st June will be the ultimate end from all this (sorry to burst the bubble!)

2️⃣. You do NOT need to use fad diets to quickly lose weight - this will NOT work in the long run and is an unhealthy lifestyle to fall into overtime for long term success.

3️⃣. Don’t set goals that aren’t achievable for you. If you feel you’ve fallen out of your ‘old routine’, just start small again to get the routine back. Get back to doing 1 walk a day, do 10 minutes of skipping, maybe start Couch to 5K or buy a hula hoop - this is what I’ve done!

There are lots of ways to get back into a routine if you want to, but do it for the right reasons🙌🏼

Hi👋🏼

So I had a block for this page for a while but I’ve had a think and I want to post about 3-4 times a week instead of every day. I was really struggling with motivation and I think I’m finding it again now🙏🏼

So keep a look out for some new content soon from this page!

PS. I was out of my comfort zone taking this picture but this year is all about stepping out of my normal comfort zone!🤍

💡Butternut squash risotto!💡

Another quick and easy 30 minute recipe !Swap rice for barley to make this easy squash 'risotto' with spinach and sage. It's healthy and low in calories and fat and is also experimental with flavours too!

Serves: 2
Prep: 10 mins
Cook: 20 mins
 
Ingredients
• 2 tsp olive oil🫒
• 1 large shallot or small onion, finely chopped🧅
• 300g squash or pumpkin, cut into 1cm cubes🎃
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed🧄
• small handful of sage leaves, finely chopped🌱
• ½ tsp ground mace or a good grating of nutmeg
• 160g spinach leaves
• 2 x 400g cans barley in water, drained
• 300ml hot vegetable stock🥦
• 40g parmesan or vegetarian alternative, finely grated🧀
 
Method
1. Heat the oil in a deep-frying pan over a medium heat, and fry the shallot with a pinch of salt for 5 mins until soft. Add the squash, garlic, sage and mace, and fry, stirring continually, for another 6-8 mins until the squash is starting to soften and the garlic is fragrant.
 
2. Tip in the spinach and barley with some seasoning and the stock. Bring to a simmer and cook for 4-5 mins until the spinach has wilted. Add a splash more stock or water, if you like. When the ‘risotto’ is thick and creamy, taste to see if it needs a little more mace or nutmeg and seasoning. Stir in most of the parmesan, then top with the remaining parmesan and grind over some black pepper to serve.

Just your daily reminder to make sure you do your 1 walk a day!

Since COVID-19 and 1 walk a day being the only time we can really leave the house (within reason!), it is so important to make sure you get out, get some fresh air and enjoy the scenery!🏞

Simple benefits of waking:
- Maintain a healthy weight
- Prevent or manage various conditions, including heart disease, high blood pressure and type 2 diabetes
- Strengthen your bones and muscles
- Improve your mood
- Improve your balance and coordination.

Walking and Mental Health

A good walk can do wonders for your mental wellbeing. It improves self-perception and self-esteem, mood and sleep quality, and it reduces stress, anxiety and fatigue. 💤😖

Physically active people have up to a 3️⃣0️⃣% reduced risk of becoming depressed, and staying active helps those who are depressed recover🚶Even a short, 15-minute walk can help clear your mind, improve your mood, and boost your energy level!

Fact:
When you exercise, your body releases chemicals called endorphins. These endorphins interact with the receptors in your brain that reduce your perception of pain. Endorphins also trigger a positive feeling in the body, similar to that of morphine🌅

I feel like you can never feel worse after going for a walk, even if it’s 10 minutes! So get outside tomorrow and let me know how you get on!☺️

What is protein?

Onto our next macronutrient... protein!🥜

1️⃣. Protein is a macronutrient that is essential to building muscle mass. When protein is broken down in the body it helps to fuel muscle mass.

2️⃣. Why do we need protein?

Protein is present in every body cell, and an adequate protein intake is important for keeping the muscles, bones, and tissues healthy.

Protein plays a role in many bodily processes, including:
* Blood clotting🩸
* Fluid balance💦
* Immune system responses🦠
* Vision👀
* Hormones
* Enzymes 🔐
* Satiety - helps you stay fuller for longer💪🏼

3️⃣. Protein sources

Both animal and plant foods can be excellent sources of protein. The guidelines classify the following foods as protein foods:

* Seafood🍤
* Lean meats and poultry🍗
* Eggs🥚
* Legumes, which include beans and peas
* Nuts🥜
* Seeds🌱
* Soy products

Dairy products, such as milk, cheese, and yogurt, also contain protein. Whole grains and vegetables contain some protein, but generally less than other sources.🧀🥛🌽

Carbohydrate Myths!

Following my post from yesterday, here are some common carbohydrates myths that people believe without understanding the science behind it!🍞

1️⃣. ‘Carbohydrates are fattening’
Carbohydrates are part of a healthy diet. Weight gain is not due to carbs themselves, but from over consumption of large portions of any type of food. Aim to eat complex, whole grains instead of refined grains. All food contains energy, and excess of energy is related to weight gain.

2️⃣. ‘Fruit is high in sugar’
Fruit contains carbohydrates in the form of natural sugar, which is much different than added sugars found in a lot of processed foods. Added sugars are what contribute to weight gain and increase the risk for chronic diseases.

3️⃣. ‘Carbs shouldn’t be eaten at night’
All carbohydrates are processed by your body the same way, no matter what time of day it is. There is no evidence to support that eating carbohydrates at night will promote unwanted weight gain.

4️⃣. ‘Our bodies don’t need carbohydrates’
Glucose, a carbohydrate, plays a vital role in every organ system in the body. From the kidneys, to the liver, to the brain, each organ uses glucose.
The easiest way for our body to get glucose is from the carbohydrates we eat.

5️⃣. ‘Can low carbohydrate diets help with weight loss?"
Carbohydrate is stored in our muscles alongside water as glycogen. Drastic reduction in carbohydrate intake will lead to glycogen depletion and fluid loss. This is not the same as fat loss and not related to health or well-being. Drastic reduction in carbohydrate intakes can affect our gut health and lead to constipation.

I hope you found these interesting - as I know I did before I knew the science behind it all!

Carbohydrates🥐

Below are some main pockets of information around carbohydrates and why they are necessary for a healthy lifestyle!

1️⃣. Carbohydrates are an important part of a healthy balanced diet. Typically, carbohydrates can be divided into the following categories:
* simple/free sugars (jam, sweets, fruit juice)
* complex/starchy carbohydrates (bread, rice, potato).

All carbohydrates will be broken down into simple ‘glucose’ or ‘sugar’ in our body. Simple/free sugars will break down quickly, whilst complex/starchy carbohydrates will break down slowly. Therefore, consuming complex carbohydrates will make you fuller for longer!

2️⃣. Why do we need carbohydrates?

There are lots of reasons why carbohydrates are essential to our diet, a few of these are:

* Providing energy and regulation of blood glucose. ⚡️
* Sparing the use of proteins for energy.🧱
* Breakdown of fatty acids and preventing ketosis.
* Biological recognition processes.
* Helps with gut function.

3️⃣. Sources of carbohydrates
- Bread🍞
- Beans
- Potatoes🥔
- Pasta🍝
- Milk🥛
- Rice🍚
- Cereal🥣
- Corn🌽

4️⃣. Fun Fact:

Some animal products contain carbohydrates! Thought you couldn’t consume any carbs from animal sources? Surprise! The lactose in milk and other dairy products is a disaccharide, which means it’s a sugar, which means it’s a carb.🥛

Macronutrients, what are they?

Macronutrients are the nutrients we need in larger quantities that provide us with energy: in other words, fat, protein and carbohydrates. These all provide your body with calories (energy) and the building blocks of cellular growth, immune function, and overall repair🧱

What calories do they contain?
* Carbohydrates contain 4 kcal per gram
* Proteins contain 4 kcal per gram
* Fats contain 9 kcal per gram (double the amount found in the other two macros)

Some people ‘count macros’ to lose weight. The balance of food groups you consume is important, as it affects how satisfied you feel with your meals and whether you are getting all the nutrients you need📔

Counting macros may involve keeping a food diary, which can help you check the balance of nutrients you are getting from your food and, over time, help you to eat healthily. There are also free apps that can help you work out the balance of macronutrients you are eating, such as high-protein or low-carb. But don’t get too hung up on the ‘perfect’ balance, as what works for one person may not suit you and it could, in time, cause bad habits ⚖️

Over the next few days I will post the main facts about each macronutrient to give you some more information about each one and why it is so important to have them in our diet! ☺️

💡Chicken and Lemon Skewers💡

These chicken skewers in flatbreads taste great as well as being healthy and an easy-to-make dinner for hectic weeknights.

Serves: 4
Prep: 20 mins
Cook: 25 mins
 
Ingredients
• 1 small pack mint , leaves picked
• 150g natural yogurt , plus extra to serve (optional)
• 1 lemon , zested and juiced🍋
• ½ tsp ground cumin
• ½ tsp ground coriander🌿
• 2cm piece ginger , grated
• 4 skinless chicken breasts, each cut into 6 pieces🍗
• 4 wholemeal flatbreads or pittas🫓
• 2 Little Gem lettuces , sliced🥬
• 1 small red onion , sliced, to serve🧅
• pickled red cabbage , chilli sauce and hummus, to serve (all optional)

• You will need
• 4 metal or wooden skewers
 
Method
1️⃣. Chop half the mint and put in a bowl with the yogurt, half the lemon juice, all the lemon zest, spices and ginger. Mix well and season with lots of black pepper and a pinch of salt. Add the chicken pieces, mix well and put in the fridge for 20-30 mins. Meanwhile, soak 4 large wooden skewers in water for at least 20 mins (or use metal ones).
 
2️⃣. When you’re ready to cook the chicken, heat your grill to a medium heat and line the grill tray with foil. Thread the chicken onto the soaked wooden or metal skewers and grill for 15-20 mins, turning halfway through, until browned and cooked through.
 
3️⃣. Warm the flatbreads under the grill for a couple of seconds, then serve them topped with the lettuce, chicken, red onion, remaining lemon juice and mint, and any optional extras such as extra yogurt or pickled cabbage, chilli sauce and hummus.

💡Super Salad Wrap💡

It’s so easy when working from home (especially during the pandemic) to over run, stick to the same normal foods that you maybe could only have in the office or are stuck in the routine of having sandwiches! Make an exciting vegetarian salad wrap with crunchy veg for texture and a good hit of cheddar cheese 🥗🧀 to spice up your normal routine!
 
Serves: 1
Prep: 5 mins (no cooking)
 
Ingredients
• 1 tortilla
• 2 tbsp hummus
• 1 lettuce leaf 🥗
• ¼ carrot, shredded or grated 🥕
• 4 cucumber sticks and/or 2 avocado slices 🥑🥒
• 1 tbsp fresh tomato salsa or chopped tomatoes🍅
• handful grated cheddar🧀
 
1️⃣. Lay the tortilla out flat on a board, spread the hummus on the bottom third and put the lettuce on top. Arrange the carrot, cucumber and/or avocado in a bank on top of the lettuce and spoon the salsa on top. Sprinkle on the cheese.
 
2️⃣. Fold the bottom of the wrap up just over the filling, fold the sides in and then roll the wrap the rest of the way up. Cut in half or into pieces as shown. Either put straight into a lunchbox or if halved, wrap in wax paper first.

4️⃣ of your 5️⃣ a day it is a quick and easy option and tastes super refreshing!

💡Easy Dinner Idea💡

Potato and Lentil Curry🥘

Potatoes make a wonderful ingredient in curries, absorbing all the spicy flavours and adding substance.

Serves: 4
Preparation: 15 minutes
Cook: 40-45 minutes
Fat: 2.2g🟢
Saturates: 0.5g🟢
Sugars: 8.3g🟢
Salt: 1g🟢

Ingredients:
- 1 tsp sunflower oil
- 1 onion, chopped
- 1 tsp mustard seeds
- 2cm fresh ginger, peeled and grated
- 1 tsp chilli powder
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- pinch turmeric
- 6 tbsp fresh coriander, leaves and finely chopped stalks
- 200g chopped tomatoes
- 2 tbsp tomato purée
- 125g yellow lentils, washed and drained
- 600ml vegetable stock
- 900g floury potatoes, peeled and cubed
- fresh coriander leaves, to serve

Method:
1️⃣. Heat the sunflower oil in a medium saucepan. Add the onion and fry for 2-3 minutes. Add the mustard seeds, ginger, chilli powder, coriander, turmeric and fresh coriander and continue to fry for 1 minute.

2️⃣. Add the tomatoes, tomato puree and lentils to the pan and pour over the stock. Bring to the boil, reduce the heat, cover and simmer for 25 minutes or until the lentils are almost tender.

3️⃣. Stir in the potatoes and continue to cook for 10-15 minutes until tender. Stir through the coriander leaves and serve with a yogurt raita.

💡National Apricot Day - Breakfast idea💡

🟠Apricot porridge with toasted seeds🌱🥣

Well, in honour of National Apricot day today it was only right to give you a recipe that includes apricots and is quick and easy and will get you right ready for the day!

Serves: 2
Time: 10-15 minutes
Fat: 5.8g 🟢
Saturates: 0.8g🟢
Sugars: 14.6g🟢
Salt: 0.02g🟢

Ingredients
- 50g ready-to-eat dried apricots
- 150ml orange or apple juice 🍊🍎
- 50g porridge oats🥣
- 15g mixed seeds, toasted

Method
1️⃣. Place the apricots in a small pan and cover with the juice. Bring to the boil and simmer for 5 minutes.

2️⃣. Set aside for 10 minutes, then place in a food
processor or blender and blend to form a purée.

3️⃣. Place the oats in a small pan, cover with 600ml of water, then place over a low heat and cook for 3–4 minutes.

4️⃣.Stir through half the apricot purée, divide between 2 bowls, then top with the toasted seeds and a swirl of the remaining purée.

Health benefits of porridge:
- It is a great source of carbohydrates and fibre and are loaded with vitamins and minerals.🌾
- Porridge may help you lose weight by making you feel more full. It does this by slowing down the emptying of the stomach and increasing production of the satiety hormone PYY.⚖️

💡EASY LUNCH IDEA💡

This is a super quick and easy lunch idea that is fresh and packed full of protein, omega-3 and fruit and vegetables!

Chickpea and tuna salad 🍣🥗

❗️Nutritional Information❗️
Serves: 2
Calories: 332kcal
Fat: 9.8g🟢
Saturates: 1.3g🟢
Sugars: 7.4g🟢
Salt: 0.2g🟢
4 portions of fruit and vegetables

Ingredients:
- Grated zest of half a lemon🍋
- Pinch of black pepper
- 20ml extra virgin olive oil🫒
- 1 small red onion, chopped finely 🧅
- 180g red cherry tomatoes, chopped into quarters🍅
- 50g cucumber, chopped 🥒
- 1 x 400g tin of chickpeas in water drained (drained weight is 240g)
- 1 x 200g tin tuna in water, drained (drained weight is 150g)🍣
- 150g salad leaves/lettuce 🥗
- 2 x lemon wedges 🍋

Method:
1️⃣. Add the lemon zest to a large bowl with the pepper and olive oil.

2️⃣. Next, add the red onion, tomatoes and cucumber and mix well and leave to infuse for a few minutes

3️⃣. Add the chickpeas and tuna and fold gently so everything is coated with the dressing.

4️⃣. Toss the salad leaves and divide into 2 lunch boxes with a lemon wedge for seasoning. You can add avocado or a sprinkle of cheese on top for taste too if you would like.

Tuna is super rich in omega-3 fatty acids which is beneficial as it helps reduce the level of omega-6 fatty acids and LDL cholesterol which accumulate inside the arteries of the heart. Consuming omega-3 can reduce the rate of developing cardiovascular disease and reduce the risk of heart attacks❤️

Chickpeas are a rich source of vitamins, minerals and fibre and can help improve digestion and aiding weight management. They are high in protein and are an excellent replacement for meat in vegetarian and vegan diets! ⚖️

When I asked what people would like to see more of on this page, frequent responses were how to lose the ‘Christmas pounds’ or generally lose weight to start the new year. Below is some information on how to work out your recommended calories if you are interested in losing weight and some tips too!

1️⃣. Be in a calorie deficit - This is SO important and the ONLY way that you can lose weight (fat specifically). I often hear people say ‘I’m cutting down on my food and drink intake but I am not losing weight, why is this?’ and to put it bluntly, you aren’t cutting down your calories enough to be in a calorie deficit.

2️⃣. What is a calorie deficit?
A calorie deficit is where the intake of calories is lower than the calories expended through activity. Now this can mean two things: 1) you need to decrease the amount of calories you are consuming through food and drink, 2) you can increase the amount of calories expended via exercise and maintain your current calorie intake.🏃

3️⃣. How to work out your recommended calories - See picture 2. The number you get from this calculation is the total number of calories needed to maintain your current weight. ✖️

4️⃣. To lose weight - If you are interested, the recommended guideline is to lower your calorie intake by at least 500 calories per day to lose around 1 pound of fat per week. For those who want to lose more weight, it is recommended to go above 500 calories but do not exceed a 1,000 calorie decrease.

This is only an introduction to this topic but if you have any questions about this section please drop me a message☺️ and I will be giving more tips and information in time around this topic so keep a look out!

Super Easy Breakfast Idea!🥣

Microwaveable Apple and Cinnamon Fruity Porridge - and super yummy!

This is a quick and easy breakfast idea that is ideal for a healthy start on these cold mornings during winter.

Serves: 1
Prep and cook time total: 4 minutes

Health facts:
- 202 kcal
- 3.7g fat🟢
- 0.8g saturates🟢
- 10.2g sugars🟢
- 0.01g salt🟢

Ingredients:
- 35g porridge oats 🥣
- 1 tsp artificial sweetener (sugar if you don’t have an alternative)
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1 small apple, chopped into cubes🍎
- 25ml semi-skimmed milk🥛

Method:
1️⃣. Add the porridge oats, sweetener, cinnamon and apple to a mug and mix together.

2️⃣. Add 100ml water and cook in the microwave at 800W for 2 minutes

3️⃣. Add the milk, mix and sprinkle over cinnamon to taste.

4️⃣. You can add an optional teaspoon of pecans butter or pecan nuts on top if you would like.

I hope you enjoy ☺️

Want a super easy recipe to change up your lunches? Look no further!

Carrot and Parsnip Soup🥕🥣

I don’t know about you, I still had some carrots and parsnips left over in the depths of my fridge and I didn’t want to just chuck them away so I decided to make a quick and easy soup that I can have on my work lunch break that is super cheap to make too!

Serves: 4
Time: 45 minutes

Ingredients:

* 2 tbsp vegetable oil
* 1 large or 2 medium onions, chopped 🧅
* 500g carrots, roughly chopped 🥕
* 500g parsnips, roughly chopped
* 1 tsp ground turmeric, optional🌶
* 1 tbsp ground coriander
* Around 1.4 litres vegetable stock (use gluten-free stock if required)
* juice of ½ lemon 🍋
* 1 tbsp natural yogurt, to serve per bowl
* coriander leaves, to serve

Method:

1️⃣. Heat the oil in a large saucepan.

2️⃣. Add the onions and a pinch of salt, and cook for 5 minutes over a medium heat until starting to soften.

3️⃣. Add the carrots, parsnips, ground spices and ginger and stir well to coat. Cook gently, covered, for 10 minutes, making sure the spices don’t catch and burn. This helps to bring out the full flavour of the vegetables.

4️⃣. Add the stock, bring to a simmer and cook for 15-20 minutes or until the vegetables are completely tender.

5️⃣. Blend the soup until smooth, then adjust the seasoning and consistency, adding lemon juice to taste and extra water if the soup is too thick.

❗️Tip!❗️
The soup will last 3-4 days in the fridge in a sealed container or it can be frozen and defrosted overnight ready for your lunch break ☺️

Lockdown #3... here we go again🔒

So it was announced yesterday that we are again going into a nation wide lockdown (although I feel we all maybe expected this?). It is very frustrating and distressing to so many of us and there is a lot of uncertainty moving forward into the new year of what is to come.😖

But please do not lose hope. Things may feel hard right now but this situation is unusual and it will not last forever- hopefully we are nearing the end of the tunnel with vaccines being rolled out and preventing further spreading of the virus as much as we can.🦠

I thought it was only necessary to give some tips on how to take care of your mental well-being during this difficult time, especially as we are still in winter which affects some people’s mood in general anyway.❄️

1️⃣. Meet... virtually!- As we cannot meet large groups of people in public anymore, try to connect with family and friends as regularly as you can. I meet regularly with my friends and family over Zoom and we take it in turn with quizzes - it gives us all lots of laughs and for a moment you forget about what’s happening in the big wide world. 💻

2️⃣. Talk - it’s the best thing to manage mental well-being. A lot of people think that they are the only ones feeling a certain way, but once your feelings are shared you will quickly find that so many others feel the same (remember, we are all in the same boat!) 🗣🛶

3️⃣. Relax - As we are still in winter, the days are shorter and the natural daylight hours are limited. Try something new. It could be arts and crafts, DIY, yoga, writing/making a journal to look back on once this is over or maybe even meditation! 📔🎨

4️⃣. Set realistic goals - If you’re struggling with low mood and self-esteem, it may feel like you are failing at everything and this is not the case. Small goals such as make the bed to start your day, cook yourself a hot meal or do your 1 walk a day will boost your energy and confidence. 🥅🛏⚡️

5️⃣. Anxious? - I recommend doing a puzzle. This can work as a distraction for your mind and can help you find comfort. Also, try to make mindful choices of things you can control in your life, write these down and recite them!🧩