My Birth Story

Today is 4 weeks after I gave birth to my beautiful baby girl and so I decided to share a little about my birth experience. First of all, had to tell that from the beginning of my pregnancy my hubby and I were not sure completely about our due date since based on some doctors calculations and ultrasounds it could be anytime from June 30th to July 17th. Honestly, I was thinking it's gonna be somewhere between, and so was starting to count days at end of June month which made me and people around me so anxious about when the baby will come. In last few weeks I was even obsessed about finding ways to naturally induce labor since I was afraid I will pass my actual date. Of course by googling about induction, you can find a lot of information about that but I didn't want to risk my pregnancy by experimenting something new so I just continued with what I was already doing just increased a bit my daily walking, doing certain exercises like deep plie squat, stair master, trying to relax, and let it happen when it's supposed to. Actually, I also drank few cups of raspberry leaf tea since I heard that it can help with labor, can't hurt and it is tasty so I was like why not try it out, but I don't recommend nothing particular since every body is different and will respond differently.

I am thankful that I had a healthy pregnancy that allowed me to stay active and keep working as usual till the actual birth day. Since I was feeling fine, beside of course some of the expected symptoms that pregnancy brings such as feeling bit heavier, getting tired more quickly and so, but nothing restricting because of what I would take earlier time off, I kept my work schedule as usual. However, all my clients knew that I could go into labor any day so we were in contact all the time and double confirming every training day before. On Sunday the July 14th, I was feeling fine in the first part of the day, had few contractions but didn't stress about since I had almost every day Braxton contractions in last few weeks. Therefore, I confirmed all my trainings for to following week thinking that baby won't come at least for next few days. Little did I know then lol:) 

In the late afternoon I got such a huge urge to clean house, arrange every single detail and my hubby was trying to convince me to rest but I was so energized! After doing some cleaning, I started to feel some contractions and for the first time some lower back pain too. At first I thought that I maybe overdid with cleaning so I slowed down and try to relax in my bed but the tension didn't go away. I started to get little hopes that it might be finally the real signs of labor but didn't want to get disappointed and so to take my mind off we went for another walking session of that day. I was walking much slower, and I had to stop couple times since the contractions were becoming more intense and frequent. When we came back home, I downloaded an application to help me track contractions. I took a long warm shower, ate a Greek salad, and was bouncing on my Pilates ball trying to breathe deep and stay calm through contraction that were every 5,6 min apart. My hubby was thinking that I should let know everyone that I am not coming to work tomorrow and that we should go to hospital but I decided to wait a bit more so that I am completely sure that it's really happening. I guess I just couldn't believe that time to meet our baby finally came and I was so nervous. I couldn't fall asleep due to pain and anxiety till almost 3 am, and I got up at 5am as usual for my early birds clients. I felt little bit better, so I decided to go to work as planned. When I came to gym, I already started to feel again more frequent contractions but was able to manage to still train my clients. I finished with my last morning training at 10 am and went home for a break, my hubby was waiting me for a breakfast and we discussed about how I feel and that I should call doctor to let them know about my symptoms. Call me crazy but I was still thinking I can work till the rest of that day at least. I changed my mind after less than an hour since contractions were getting again very intense and I called labor and delivery. They told me that I am in early labor but I can still stay home since it is more convenient than hospital and come maybe later when I literally can't talk through contractions. I didn't believe that they meant literally not being able to talk, and that will get like that! I called my manager to let him know that I am not coming to work since I am in beginning phase of labor. 

Due to excitement I could not stay still and so we put my hospital bag into car and hubby drove me to nail appointment, which helped me to relax and little after I lost my mucus plug. That was another sign meaning that labor is really happening and I was so excited that I forgot about how nervous I was about giving birth, I was just thinking about that we will meet out princess in no time. We had a light lunch, and then on our way to hospital I informed about my situation my other clients that I was supposed to train that afternoon. 

When we came to hospital and doctor checked me, he said that I was only 2cm dilated so they can't admit me yet, but that I should go for a walk and come back in about 2 hours to see if any changes happened. We did so, we were walking around, did little shopping, bought some cute outfits for our baby. It became more difficult for me to move and I was starting to feel such a pain in my thighs as well and just generally felling so exhausted. After we came back to hospital, no much change happened, I think they said that I was maybe 2.5cm or so what made me feel disappointed since I was in such a pain and I was not even half way there. Doctor said that I go home, try to get some rest and come back in about 6 hours or earlier if I really need to. 

Although it is more convenient at home, I still couldn't rest, sleep or do anything due to so painful contractions that were every 3,4 min now and some of them lasting even up to 2 min so I felt like not having a break, and starting to really feel that moment of "not being able to talk through contractions". I somehow managed to send couple emails to some of my clients with some workouts that I prepared for them to do while I'm out of work and I contacted everyone letting them know what is happening. Then I tried relaxing in warm bath which helped a little bit for just few moments but nothing could really alleviate that pain and pressure. So around 1am which was about 6 hours later as they told us, we head back to hospital where they final admitted me. I still wasn't dilated much more but the extra strong and frequents contractions made my baby little stressed so doctor wanted to keep an eye on me and baby. Also they put me on IV since it seemed like I was dehydrated although I was drinking tons of water all the time. After I was admitted, I lost track of time and just wanted that active labor to starts before I get completely exhausted what I was about to be. They asked me if I want any medications for pain that will at least help me fall asleep but I was refusing everything. 

After few hours, they put me on Pitocin to help speed up the process and they gradually increased the dose of it what made contractions even more painful. Later around on the 16th  I think around noon, I decided to try the gas mask to relieve at least some pain but it didn't work for me so I kept struggling through pain starting to feel very weak and even sick like I am going to throw up. My hubby was by my side all the time, providing me support as much as he can, and I was desperately asking that he talks to me about some of our nice memories or something that will take my mind off from pain.

 After some time, since I was still dilated only 3ish cm doctor suggested to give me some narcotic convincing me that the process of dilation will be faster if I could relax and maybe sleep a little bit to also get some energy back for the actual delivery. I accept it and I was able to sleep for about an hour or so after what I woke up screaming due to pain and they immediately checked me, I was dilated 7cm what meant I was in active labor finally! I was also surprised how much I dilated suddenly but after that it slowed down a bit again and pain was getting worse now, so when I was about 7.5cm almost 8 I think I discussed with doctor about epidural and they explained me everything about and that if I want it I would have to take it immediately before I get more dilated. I thought about how quickly I was dilating more when I get a bit of pain away, so I accepted to take a small dose if it and then if I need it more during the process I can just press the button but of course it is set up in such way that you can get more than you should no matter how much you press the button. Anyway, I was satisfied with even that little initial relief and don't remember I pressed more than one more time during the whole process, since I still wanting to have a feeling of contractions what allows for better pushing. After taking epidural, everything seems to go at least little bit faster and more manageable, I had feeling that I am again in better control of myself and that gave me more confidence and strength for the rest of the labor. When I reached 10 cm of dilation, we still waited a bit more until baby descend further down to pass that zero stage. 

The pushing phase started around 8pm, and when toward the end I was hinking I am losing strength but doctors and my hubby were so supportive all the time, and when they told me that they can see the head so it's really close, that made me smile and gave me more energy to keep going. At 21:48pm on July 16th 2019, our princess Isabella Emily Arapovic was born. She weighted 7lbs 9oz and was 22inch long. Her little cry brought me tears of happiness and made my heart so full instantly. 

The actual feeling of baby coming out from my body was such an incredible experience, mixed with so many emotions in just a few seconds. I still feel chills only thinking about it! I could not stop crying and laughing at the same time. Also when I saw our baby girl, and that she looks literally the same as she did in some of my dreams I was so overwhelmed with happiness and was just repeating to my hubby that I can't believe we made it and that she is finally here with us. This immediate chemical connection that I felt holding her is amazing.

The fact that every mother tells you how you forget about pain and any struggle you had, the moment you hold your child in your arms is completely true and I can finally say it based my own experience. I am so happy and grateful that everything went well with my whole pregnancy and birth, and so now we have our gorgeous healthy daughter that made us parents for the first time and changed our lives forever, for better.

Written by Tamara Arapovic

Healthy Hot Chocolate

Most of people love sweet drinks and food, some of them less or more but it is rare that someone doesn't like chocolate. I am definitely a chocolate lover, and if you are as well this quick recipe is ideal for you! My chocolate choice is always the one with at least 75% of cacao since I love a little bitter sweet taste. However, if you prefer more milky and sweeter, no problem because, when you are making your own chocolate drink you can adjust everything to your favorite taste. Moreover, in case you are avoiding dairy, there are still many options to make this delicious hot drink which is even healthy and provides you with minerals and fiber. So here is the list of the few ingredients you will need and instructions for preparation.

• Raw cacao powder ( 2 tablespoons or more depending on how much strong taste you prefer)
• Fat free milk; hot water, almond or coconut milk (8oz of your choice from one of these)
• Maple syrup, honey, stevia raw sugar (1 teaspoon of your choice from one of these)
• 1/4 of vanilla extract
• Pinch of salt

1. Combine all the ingredients in a small saucepan over medium heat until it boils but no longer and keep stirring constantly. 

2. Another option is to mix all the ingredients in a blender and then heat the mixture until it boils.

3. Serve hot! If you want to add some marshmallows on top you can, but be aware that this will add in your calories intake and since it's not too healthy you should not exaggerate. However, cinnamon or crumbs of dark chocolate can always be added on the top while still keep this drink dessert as a healthy hot chocolate. Enjoy!

Written by Tamara Arapovic

Habits for a healthy weekend

Weekends are the perfect time to relax from weekly routine, but it shouldn't disturb completely your healthy habits that you try to maintain during business days. If you let yourself to easily fall in the weekends trap, you may lose a healthy rhythm as well as decrease results you got by being disciplined and working hard toward your specific goals. However, don't think that you can't enjoy with your family and friends if you follow healthy lifestyle even during weekend. Below I will share few easy tips that could improve your weekend, without feeling deprived from anything.

 1. KEEP YOUR SLEEPING SCHEDULE

This is probably not something that you want to hear for days off, especially if you get early during week, but waking up at similar time each day (even when you don't work) will help your body to maintain good rhythm for sleeping, and so you won't have too much problem with sleep when you start working again. Moreover, your day will be much longer and you will have more time to do things that you enjoy, instead of spending the whole day just laying down and sleeping!

2.  HAVE HEALTHY REGULAR MEALS

We all know how food can be tempting during weekend. You have more free time to enjoy it, so eating bigger meals can quickly become your weekend bad habit as well as unregularly nutrition since you don't have specifically organized day. For example, on business days, you may have breakfast, lunch and dinner at approximately same time, with maybe few snacks between. On the other hand, meals on days off are usually irregular with various snacks during day which are not always so healthy. In order to avoid gaining weight. losing energy and impairing health during weekend, try to eat same or even better than on week days. Don't be lazy to plan and prepare your meals, since they nourish the body you are living in!

3. STAY ACTIVE

It is well known that regular workouts improve physical and mental health, so it is highly recommended to train at least three times per week. However,  more activity is always welcome as long as you don't exaggerate and over train yourself. Weekend may be great for making up some missed training, or increase your fitness routine since you have more time to workout. For instance, you can go for longer run, cycling, swimming, playing some sports or whatever you enjoy but you don't have time for that during working days. Moreover, outside activities will be a great choice when it's sunny to also get some vitamin D which improves your overall health and mood too.
Enjoy in active weekend!

4. EAT SMART OUTSIDE

When it comes to healthy lifestyle, one of the first things that most of people think is that you have to deprive yourself from many enjoyments like hanging out all night or drinking and eating outside. The true is that moderation in will help you to make a good balance with your body and mind so make you happy and healthy. In a nutshell, stay moderate whatever are your choices, and try to follow what you want and not people around you. When eating out, tray to avoid food which is fried, buttered, breaded or too much creamy. Instead of that, strive for boiled, roasted or steamed food. If you pay little bit more attention, you will notice that actually many restaurants offer various healthy meals that you may enjoy without feeling guilty but you just need to choose the right meals for you. When it comes to drinks, if you like alcohol, again choose smartly and drink it slowly by enjoying more in your company rather than quick liters of cocktails after which you may even not remember of your night. Finally, go out little earlier in evening and then you won't necessarily go to sleep always when it sun rises and so lose all the next day!

5. PLAN YOUR TIME

Planning your weekend ahead will decrease chances of spending your days off by just thinking about what to do first and so even losing motivation for anything. Therefore, make a list about everything you would like to do when weekend comes, as well as the best order of those activities. Of course, try to be realistic, and not put too many obligations that will make you exhausted before the next week did not even start. Beside necessary tasks such house chores, big shopping at groceries or others, always include at least on thing just for your pleasure. That can be anything you enjoy to do, from reading a book, meditate, watch a movie, have a massage or attend a class of dance. Do more of what makes you happy. In that way, you will get more positive energy and feel great for the following productive week!

Written by Tamara Arapovic

Healthy & Delicious Snacks

You have probably heard many times so far that having regular meals is very important for your body to stay healthy and strong. However, most of people skip their meals because of various reasons. Some of the most common reason is a very busy daily schedule, overeating instead of splitting food in several moderated meals, or belief that starving will help them to lose weight.

On the other hand, while eating more often small portions during your day will improve your overall health and mood, it is also very significant what actually do you eat. Whether you want to lose, gain or maintain your weight, you shouldn't skip your meals, especially when you are very hungry. Of course, what and when you are going to eat something depend on many facts such as your activity level, current health and personal goals. One of the best thing you can do to maintain your energy at highest level during all day is to eat at similar time each day.

The following ideas of savory and sweet snacks are easy to make and so tasteful that you will never want to skip them. Since most of these snacks you can eat on to go, they may help you to maintain your organism in balance while eating healthy food regularly wherever you are, but don't forget to dedicate more time to your meals whenever you can. Although snacks make you satisfy for some time, they should not replace your main meals.

PEANUT BUTTER & BANANA

This snack will definitely keep you full and satisfied and help your body to repair and build muscles. Peanut butter is high in protein and potassium as well as banana which is also rich in dietary fiber, potassium, biotin, manganese and several vitamins  such as B6, E and C. These nutrients will improve your overall health, such as maintaining good blood sugar level, decreasing the risk of high blood pressure, and keeping your bowels healthy.


STRAWBERRIES IN CACAO

Good news for chocolate lovers is that cacao has many health benefits, so if you choose dark chocolate with higher percent of cacao content, you may improve your health and maintain desired weight while still enjoying in great taste. Beside many vitamins, flavonoids, protein and fiber, cacao contains also monosaturated fats that keep you heart healthy. The combination of melted dark chocolate and strawberries is a delicious healthy sweet treat. Streawberries are an excellent source of antioxidants, vitamin C, manganese, omega 3 fatty acids and other healthy nutrients that will keep your body healthier and even youthful.


BAKED POTATOES

The easiest way to gain weight or increase the bad cholesterol more quickly than you think is to often grab salted deep fried chips for your snack. Instead of adding additional calories without getting satisfied and even impairing your health with processed chips, switch it with baked potatoes. There are many ways to prepare this very healthy vegetable, which is full of potassium, vitamin B6 and other important nutrients for healthy body. One of the best way to keep all nutrients of potatoes is to bake them. You can even cut potatoes on several thin pieces to make it more convenient for your snack on to go.

BOILED EGGS

Hard-boiled eggs are a great source of protein, good fats and important vitamins to keep your bones strong, heart healthy and maintain or even gain more muscle mass. They will make you satisfied for longer time while also providing your body with high level of energy. What another reason do you need to quickly prepare boiled eggs for your next snack? Just stay on two to three eggs per day. Moderation is a key for everything!


QUESADILLAS

When you are looking for a very nutritional snack that will make your tummy satisfied but don't impair your diet, mini quesadillas could be the right choice for you. They can be made very quickly and easy with various ingredients. Only you need is a whole wheat flour or corn tortilla in which you are going to put some low fat cheese and vegetables you want such as beans, tomatoes, onions, avocado, spinach and others. You can also add some meat like chopped chicken or turkey. Then you just heat your tortilla to be crispy or as much as you like it. Enjoy in healthy mini quesadillas whenever you want to nourish your body in right way with great taste!

FRUIT SALAD

Fruit salad is certainly one of the best and common snack because it's easy, healthy and delicious. Since fruits are full of vitamins, minerals and fiber, they should be part of your regular nutrition. Moreover, most of fruits such as watermelon or apple contain lot of water what will keep you hydrated. Fruit salad may also be a perfect dessert because the fructose from fruits won't impair your health and weight as will the sugar you get from processed sweets. Therefore, feel free to enjoy in various combinations of fruits you like to make a tasteful snack that will improve your health and also body image. Remember to don't eat less but just eat right!

VEGGIES & DIP SAUCE

One of the lowest in calorie snack but very nutritional is mixed vegetables with some home made sauce such as avocado, spinach or low-fat cheese. There are various vegetables that taste very good with some dip sauce and they will satiate your hunger fast because of high content of fiber. Enjoy every day in different mix of vegetables like carrots, zucchini, cucumber, celery and many others. Eating vegetables on daily basis will contribute a lot to your better health, prevent you from overeating and craving for too much carbohydrates or simple sugar.


SWEET CORN

Beside it's very convenient and tasteful snack, corn has several health benefits and here are some of them that should convince you to consume it more often. Natural corn is a very good source of dietary fiber, manganese, vitamin B6, phosphorus and beta-carotene. When you cook the whole corn, its antioxidant activity is higher what protects your body from various diseases. In addition, the sweet corn is full of phytochemicals that protect healthy vision. So grab one whole corn or cup of sweet one to satisfy your tummy for your snack time while improving your health too.

NUTS & HONEY

It is highly recommended to consume every day a handful of almonds, cashews, pistachios or walnuts, because they are full of healthy nutrients like protein, various vitamins and healthy fats. Since they are easy to eat on go, these nuts should become one of your regular daily snacks. For  more sweet taste, you can add little bit of honey which is also known for its health benefits. Honey contains flavonoids, antioxidants that keep your heart healthy and reduce risk of various diseases. It is also anti-bacterial, and helpful with throat irritation.

MINI MUFFINS

Maybe you didn't expect to see muffins in the list of healthy food, but the true is that if they are prepared with right ingredients, muffins may be a perfect healthy snack to fuel your body quickly and with healthy nutrients. Since muffins can be salted and sweet, you can be creative with taste but always use whole wheat or corn flour and include healthy ingredients like vegetables, cereals, nuts, fruits, dark chocolate, and if you like it, even little bit of cinnamon for sweet and some hot spices for salted muffins that will speed up your metabolism. Just avoid additional syrup and sugar on top of your muffins.

SMOOTHIES

Don't forget this snack which is easy to make and to carry everywhere. Beside it will keep you hydrated, smoothie made with natural ingredients will nourish your body in healthy way, give you energy, help you keep the healthy weight and maintain your skin nice and clean. You can enjoy in various smoothies every day, by combining your favorite vegetables or fruits.  For example, the Green smoothie (one of possible recipe: mix spinach, romaine salad, ginger, orange and banana) or the Berry smoothie ( mix strawberries, blueberries, blackberries and raspberries) are known as detox drinks full of antioxidants that will help you to get rid of bad

toxins, burn more calories and also reduce body fat percentage.

Consume snacks in moderation, as well as your other meals. In addition, be active as much as you can. Strive for active lifestyle and good nutrition rather than sedentary life and overeating or starving.

Written by Tamara Arapovic

Perfect reasons to workout

It is common that almost everyone would like to look nice, be strong, healthy, successful, and happy. However, most of people are not aware that just one little change can actually help them to improve their life in all areas. No, it's not about some miracles, but it's feasible for everyone who is determined to live better. One of steps that you can take immediately in order to improve yourself is to include regular workouts in your life and get more benefits that you can imagine, Instead of complaining, start working on yourself and never stop to be the best version of yourself. If you already train on regular basis, keep going and stay motivated. Although people usually start training to lose weight or just improve their body image, here are some other even more important reasons why working out is great for you, beside the fact you will look better.

1. IT IMPROVES GOOD MOOD

Even though you feel sometimes unmotivated to exercise, this feeling will change in few first minutes of working out if you push yourself to start. it is known that workout boosts production of brain chemicals that will make you feel good and happy.  Therefore, don't spend time being lazy and negative, while you could feel great and be more positive after even one workout. By improving your mood, you will improve also your social life, because nobody wants to be surrounded with boring and negative people.  In addition, you can workout with your partner or friends to have even more fun.

2. IT STRENGTHENS MEMORY

Whether you are a student who need to learn so much different things, or you just have so many daily activities that sometimes you even forget to do something, regular workouts could help you to strengthen your memory and be more focused on what are you doing. Older people engaged in regular exercise are more likely to prevent Alzheimer's disease. Moreover, the productivity is also significantly improved by training what will make you more successful in everything you do.

3. IT REDUCES STRESS AND INSOMNIA

Stress at work, in relationships, or with daily activities usually leads to constant pressure, lack of sleep, then fatigue, and all that can cause various diseases. It's very difficult to avoid completely every kind of stress, but reduce it on minimum is definitely possible with regular physical activity. When you feel stressed, instead of fighting with everyone, or even worse, keeping the angry inside of you, try to get rid of stress by working out. Training doesn't always mean hard workout in gym, so feel free to do whatever you prefer to stay active. If you love to dance, take Zumba classes or go jogging by listening your favorite music. When you train, your body releases hormones endorphins, known as hormones of happiness, so you will be in better mood, and your sleeping won't be so much disturbed. Once you feel rested, and relaxed, you will be ready to solve any problem.

4. IT INCREASES SELF CONFIDENCE

People who train regularly have more self confidence not just because they are more satisfied with their body image, but also they are more positive and aware how much their body are strong what makes them feel good about themselves. This good feeling of your own power may help you to act more confidently in every situation and so achieve your desired goals in all areas of your life. Always believe in yourself, workout often, and never give up.

5. IT BOOSTS ENERGY
Are you one of those people who feel tired in the middle of your day? Instead of just grabbing immediately cup of coffee, energized drinks or eat too much sugar, include workouts in your routine. Even short training regularly can increase your level of energy, by improving your muscle strength and endurance. Exercising delivers nutrients and oxygen to your body tissues, and then your cardiovascular system works more efficiently, what gives you more energy during your day. You will be able to do much easier your daily tasks and feel great. Enjoy in more productive days!

6. IT SLOWS DOWN
We can't avoid some natural process like aging, but did you know that looking and feeling younger could definitely be achieved with regular exercising? Physical activity improves blood flow, what helps your skin to be nourished and more vital. Beside providing oxygen, blood flow is very important in helping out to carry away free radicals from your working cells. However, nutrition is also significant to maintain nice and healthy skin. Therefore, try to eat healthier and train regularly to keep your youngest as much as possible.

7. IT KEEPS HIGH IMMUNITY

There is one good and true quote ''In healthy body is a healthy mind." Various researches suggest physical activity as one of the best fighter against diseases. Working out at least 2 to 3 times per week will reduce your sick days by improving your immunity and increasing your ability to fight against viruses and bacteria. What a better reason to start training right now? Live longer, healthier and happier!

Written by Tamara Arapovic

Stay healthy while traveling

Traveling may be fun and interesting but also uncomfortable and exhausting sometimes. Besides it depends on whether you are traveling for your own sack or for business, your travel habits could affect your traveling experience as well as your health and body shape. For instance, if you travel is based on relaxing vacation, you could come back home with few more pounds and maybe even more tired. Generally, most of people imagine the best vacation by just laying down, eating lot of food and consuming more alcohol drinks. On the other hand, if you are traveling for business, you may not have time to eat and relax at all, so your body will be exhausted and metabolism will probably slow down because of unregular meals and sleep. Finally, your body is the reflection of your actions, so why not having a healthy and beautiful body along with good trip? Here are some of useful tips that could improve your travel experience and help you stay in shape and healthy even during traveling.

PLAN EVERY DAY

Did you know that many people are eating often from boredom or stress? If you have too much time during your day when you are not actually busy, it is very likely that you will eat whatever is available for you at that moment although you are not really hungry. The similar habit could happen in stressful situations, where people crave for food with hope they will feel better after eating. However, the true is that eating more than your body needs can make you feel only more depressed and deteriorate your health. Therefore, to avoid boredom and also stress the best would be to plan your days in ahead so you will have less time to eat unnecessarily and also avoid pressure for business or other stuff that make you nervous because a good plan of action will make you feel more confident.

MAKE YOUR SNACKS

Another advice, similar as planning activities, would be to make your own snacks in advance. Since you never know what food will be offered during your traveling, it is smart to always carry with you at least some small healthy snacks. That's can be whatever you want from packet of fresh fruit, nuts, muesli bars, or small sandwiches, everything which you could carry on your travel. In that way, you won't skip your meals, eat food you don't like or just spend too much money for food that you could prepare cheaper. Once you get adjusted to great benefits of homemade snacks to go, you will love it and carry with you wherever you go.

KEEP A GOOD BALANCE

Needless to say how difficult is to stay away from various interesting food and drinks that we face during traveling and at final destination. For example, people who are staying at hotel with all inclusive service have more temptations to overeat since many tempting food is available for them. Actually, we all love to try new food and drinks when we travel to new destination and that's completely fine but the moderation is the key of everything. If you want a delicious piece of chocolate for dessert, take it and enjoy but skip then one cocktail or increase your physical activity to keep the balanced organism and healthy body. Moreover, make sure that your nutrition doesn't change too much when you are away from home. Your body would be thankful to you for not stressing it additionally since travel is by self already sometimes stressful because of changing climates and daily routines.

MOVE MORE

Long trips can make your body so stiffed while decreasing also well blood circulation. To avoid that you should move whenever you can. For instance, if you are flying in airplane, go for a short walk every 45-60 min. Since in buses walking is not so feasible, then just stand up for few minutes in order to prevent too much swollen legs later. If you are driving a car, it would be easier for you to decide when to make breaks so take advantage of that and stop about every two hours to relax your body and brain from driving. Some light stretching is also recommended to practice during longer traveling.

WORKOUT ANYWHERE

When it comes to travel, working out is usually the last thing that will come to your mind. However, if you have a long break with training, you will may found even more difficult later to come back to your workout routine. In addition, you could lose little bit of shape you were working so hard to get so why then just not maintain your current fitness level? It is not necessary to spend most of time on your trip to train. Only you need is a good effective and efficient bodyweight workout that you can do anywhere from hotel room to the beach. This kind of workout is ideal for business trip when you don't have too much time for yourself. On the other hand, if you are on vacation and you have more time, then strive to stay physically active in various ways. In order to increase your activity level, beside usual workouts, you could go for a walk more by discovering new places, or trying new interesting activities. For example, on summer you can play volleyball or other sports at beach or try fitness classes in water, while in mountain, challenge yourself for skiing or some hiking in snow.

STAY HYDRATE

Keeping your body always hydrated is so important especially when you travel. Waiting to be very tirsty before drinking water is a sign that your body is already dehydrated what could cause you many health problems and impair your good mood. For instance, you can have hard headaches and sometimes even lose conscious. Your energy level would be also reduced so much that you could be more tired than usual. Instead of getting dehydrated and then trying to make it up with liters of water in short time, try to split your daily amount of water in small sips during all the day. When you travel, you will probably  need even more water so never forget to carry bottles of water with you.

REST AND SLEEP

Beside being active, your body needs a well rest and sleep in order to stay fit and healthy. Although changing climates, nutrition, daily routines, and sometimes even excitement can disturb your sleep, you should try to rest as much as you can. For some people it is easy to fall asleep during traveling while others face difficulties to relax when they travel. If you are some of those who don't feel enough comfortable away from home, you should practice little routines that will help you to sleep well and relax wherever you are. Do something related to your sleep at home such as drinking tea, reading something, watching a movie or whatever that will remind you to your home night routine. During travel, you could rest and maybe even fall asleep by using little portable pillow to put behind your neck and listen to the relaxing music. By that, the time will pass faster and you may feel better.

Written by Tamara Arapovic

Reduce stress in several steps

Everyday more and more people face to daily stress which becomes hard to overcome. We can't avoid all daily situations that provide stress such as traffic jam, waiting in long queues, short deadline at work, plenty obligations about family and house and so on. However, we shouldn't let stress to become chronic in your life, because it disturbs your emotional feelings, but more important it also affects our health. If you don't learn to cope with daily stress, you could even lose completely the control of your life.
Since we are all different characters, we have also different approaches to specific situation. Some people are more sensitive while others are less susceptible to the stress. It is difficult to change your personality but there are certainly some steps that everyone can follow in order to have more peaceful, happier and healthier life. 

POSITIVE ATTITUDE

The first step is to understand and believe that you deserve the best and you can have and do whatever you decide. With negative attitude and lack of confidence, you prevent yourself to achieve your desired goals before even starting to work for them. Believe in yourself even when others don't. There is always going to be some problems or people who maybe won't like to see you succeed but you should stay strong and positive looking good sides even in failures and keep only right people near you. Don't let anyone to bring you negative energy and unnecessary stress. Everything happens for reason even though sometimes you don't understand immediately why. Therefore, if something is not going as planned, and you did everything you could to make it the best, then don't blame yourself and put additional stress in your life for something that you can't change. Believe in positive instead of torturing yourself with negative thoughts. Finally, everything will come at right place at right time. The stress won't help you at all while positive attitude could improve your life so much.

BREATHE DEEPLY
Generally, people lose control and face stress when they feel powerless to manage some situations. One of the easiest helpful things in that moment is deeply breathing. Mediation is a great practice to improve self control and so reduce stress. Combine yoga exercises with meditation will give you even better results because of the well balance with your body and mind. Therefore, next time when someone or something make you do angry that you get feel as you will stay out of air, just close your eyes and breath deeply by also counting slowly on your head up to ten or more. This may sounds absurdly, but it really works if you practice it in right way. Additionally, it could prevent you from saying something just under influence of anger.

LISTEN TO A MUSIC
Another thing that seems too easy to be true but has a great effect in stressful situations is listening to a music. Since music has a calming effect on your brain almost immediately, you should always have near you some of your favorite music so you can relax wherever you are. In addition, music improves your mood and give you more positive energy. According to some researches, people who enjoy often in music are less likely to get nervous easily. Therefore, do not wait some special occasion to afford you relaxation with music and make your best play list with could wake up, workout, clean your house and reduce stress when you feel it.

SOCIALIZE
Friends are very significant in everybody's life. Usually people who have better social life have less risks of depression. Talking with others about your problems fears, concerns or anything that is bothering you, help you to relieve your pain or worry.  Your friends can be more objective than you, and so help you to understand better your own situation. Moreover, if you have good friends, you could probably expect from them sincere advice as well as any kind of help. The same is with your family, so try to always be surrounded with nice people who care about you. People around you could really be a gift from life or pull you down so carefully choose your most close circle of people. When you want to share some feelings or just talk about something, don't hesitate to call someone of your beloved. Right friends or family members will never let you alone when you need them. However, make sure that you spend time with friends and family whenever you can and not only when you are not in good mood. Therefore, improve your social life by enjoying and relaxing as often as possible, what will definitely reduce your stress.

WRITE A DIARY

Have you ever thinking about everything you passed in your life so far including all nice and bad situations? Many people forget how grateful they should be for some things or proud of themselves for all they achieved. One of great way to see how your life is improving and also drive away little bit of your stress is to write regularly a diary. Although it seems maybe helpless writing down all your important thoughts, and daily experience may help you to reduce daily stress. In addition, you will have a better control under your life when you know exactly how is going. When you write about what is bothering you, the effect is similar as talking to someone. You will decrease a pressure inside you and while reading later your own words you may be more objective about your situation. That could help you to think more clear about everything and so make better decision.

DRINK TEA
It is already common that drinking tea may help people to fall asleep, cure some belly pain, or lose weight, but did you know how much influence has tea on reducing stress too? Herbal tea has several soothing qualities that act immediately on your calming. Moreover, if you prepare a tea by yourself, you may reduce little bit your stress even before drinking it. That's because your brain gets information that soon it will be relaxed, so the stress is slowly getting down since you take kettle. However, that maybe won't work always especially when your stress level is very high. Additionally, since some teas contain caffeine, stay moderate or strive for decaffeinated teas because too much caffeine could make you sometimes even more aggressive.

WALK, RUN AND TRAIN
When we get nervous and stressful, our organism feels attacked so it starts it's defend what produce various uncomfortable feelings for us. One of things that you can do at this moment to return your body in normal condition is to walk quickly on fresh air. By that action, your body will slowly regain the needed balance and your brain will also be more relaxed so think more positive and clear.  Brisk walk or running can reduce stress faster than just sitting and constantly thinking about problems or people that made you feel stressful. As soon as you regain control under yourself, you will be able to solve everything and feel good. In addition, being regularly physically active and workout at least three time weekly will help you to keep positive energy and more calm attitude in bad situations.

LAUGH EVERY DAY
Finally, there is no better way for reducing stress than sincere laughing. As adults, we all get too busy with our jobs, daily activities and pursuing better future while forgetting to enjoy in our present. If you are one of those  people who don't remember when they had great fun last time, you should have it as soon as possible! Don't wait to be under stress for doing something relaxing. Although, laughing by watching a good comedy can help you feel better in stressful moment, you should also laugh more often to prevent too much stress. Never feel guilty for spending time in fun atmosphere enjoying with friends and family, by watching movies or just doing what you love. Beside it reduces stress, improves your mood, makes you feel and look younger, sincere laughing can also prolong your life. Therefore, surround yourself with positive people, do more of interesting and fun activities that will make you to laugh from you heart!

Written by Tamara Arapovic