5 Healthy Ways to Add a Little Adventure into Your Everyday Life

Happy, happy Friday! And Happy Labor Day weekend to my fellow Americans!

Hope that you’re looking forward to your long weekend. My hubby has come down with a nasty cold for what will be the first weekend we’ve had together in a month – so I’m just trying to allude the sickness and hoping that he gets better ASAP so that we can have some fun!

Speaking of fun, I definitely consider myself to be a fun, adventurous person. While I’d love to go on a trip every month or jump out of a plane or some other daredevil activity every week, that isn’t really feasible. So, even during the week when I’m busy with normal things like work, I like to add a little spice to my life in small ways.

I think that one of the major ways you can live life to the fullest is to make every day an adventure in some way. I was recently thinking a lot about this, and I thought I’d share with you guys some ways that I add some excitement to my everyday healthy lifestyle.

#1 – Try a new walking/hiking trail: Since I take my dog for a long walk on a daily basis, I like not only having numerous routes that we take, but also trying new trails to switch it up.

The other evening at a nearby park we often frequent, I spontaneously turned left when I usually go straight. Was it an earth-shattering adventure? No, but it gave us a change of scenery to enjoy.

#2 – Try a new recipe: Eating the same meals over and over is borrrring. Sure, everyone has their favorite go-to foods and meals, but not only is it fun and different to try out new recipes, it also helps to provide your body with a wide variety of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants that enable you to function at your best – not to mention that it helps to expand your kitchen maven abilities.

My most recent new recipe creation was the above pictured Mediterranean Freekeh Salad. Freekeh was also a brand new food to me last week. You can try it too by entering my giveaway to win a package of freekeh!

#3 – Get out of your workout rut! Go to a new exercise class, or a challenging one that you haven’t done in awhile. Switching up your workout routine not only keeps things interesting, it keeps your body guessing and working harder too.

This week I kept not being in the mood to workout (although I kept pushing through!) and felt kind of bored, so I made a return to the Megaformer machine for a killer Pilates class yesterday. I hadn’t done a class in a few months, and whew, it was tough!

I also keep things adventurous with my yoga practice. I’m always trying different classes, especially right now since I’m trying out a site called Yoga Download (more on that to come!) with lots of class options. I also make an effort to intentionally try new poses often to keep pushing my limits and expanding what I’m capable of. My latest new pose that I worked on was transitioning from side crow to scissor legs side crow:

#4 – Go on a mid-week date. It’s always fun to deviate from your weekday routine and take some time to go on a date – whether with your partner, friend, family member or solo.

Earlier this week I had a girlfriend over for lunch poolside in my backyard. We both work from home, so it was sort of a ‘working’ lunch and wasn’t all play, but it was so nice to soak up some sun and catch up in the middle of the week.

Some other personal examples are when my hubby and I fit in a dinner picnic on the beach this summer for a weekday sunset, or when we recently went to a nearby tennis match on a random weeknight:

Even if you don’t have time or resources for a whole date per se, there are still ways to keep things adventurous. Maybe you can set up a nice dinner on your patio outside for a change, snuggle up to your spouse to watch a movie together, or give yourself some at-home spa treatments to relax.

#5 – Treat yourself to an indulgence you usually save for the weekend. Sure, you might not be able to sleep in during the week when your alarm clock is reminding you that you have this thing called a j-o-b or if your kids are beckoning you to feed them breakfast, but what are the ways you can treat yourself a bit on a random Wednesday night?

For me, it’s sometimes a glass of wine to unwind, or a quick trip to the beach to get my toes in the sand. I also love baking and find it relaxing, so sometimes I’ll bake on a random weeknight if I feel like it. Last night I made banana almond butter muffins at 10 pm, and then I had a newly baked muffin as part of breakfast this morning.

Tell me.. How do you add a little adventure to your everyday life? 

---

 

PS – Did you know that I 1:1 health coaching services? If you’re looking for support in developing a healthier lifestyle, check out my coaching page and email me @ nicole[at]foodielovesfitness.com. I offer free initial consultations!