Every year there is a massive waterfall of new health and wellness trends, all claiming to hold the secrets for a longer, happier life. But they can’t all be right, can they? If you’re trying to become a better you in 2021, it’s important to understand which trends are the right ones for you. Becoming your best self won’t happen overnight, either. You’ll need to really stick with something throughout this year to see if it’ll benefit you, and that means picking something that will be a sustainable change for you. This list will give you some ideas of changes you can make to achieve your best self.
1. Losing Weight
Let’s face it, one of the most popular New Year’s resolutions is weight loss. For good or bad, this is a trend that’s guaranteed to stick around for a long, long time. But most people approach this goal with the wrong mindset or methodology. They’ll go on a crash diet, cutting out an entire food group, and spend hours on the treadmill, and wonder why it’s so hard to maintain their goals. If weight loss is your goal for 2021, it’s best to begin by understanding what this goal really means. Losing weight could mean losing fat, water weight, or even muscle if approached incorrectly.
To ensure the weight you’re losing is solely fat, it’s usually recommended to do some nutrition research to learn what can support healthy fat loss, like tributyrin benefits, and the best workouts to maintain muscle, such as weight lifting and functional training. A great trend coming up for 2021 is to drink less, by doing “dry January” or just keeping the alcohol consumption for weekends. This is a great way to cut out a huge source of calories that won’t support healthy weight loss.
2. Getting Outside
In 2020, it’s probable that many people were indoors more than they were outdoors, and felt the negative effects of limited time in nature and a lack of Vitamin D. So it’s no surprise that a lot of trends for 2021 involve the great outdoors, doing things like hiking, camping, and even gardening. In fact, gardening is probably going to see a massive spike in 2021, as many people start incorporating more fresh vegetables into their diets and want to try growing some themselves.
Gardening has a ton of great health benefits, helping to lower stress and boosting your mood, and even strengthening muscles in the arms and back. If you have an empty patch of yard, you should try a few easy plants, like string beans or pepper plants. Even apartment dwellers can jump on this trend with indoor herb gardens and mini greenhouses. Whatever your resolutions are for 2021, try incorporating the outdoors to really feel the benefits of leaving your comfort zone.
3. Prioritizing Sleep
While it may be tempting in a world of nine to five jobs and to-do lists to neglect sleep for more productivity, there’s an overwhelming amount of research to suggest that getting your eight hours of sleep at night is essential to staying healthy and happy throughout your life. Lack of sleep can cause stress, lead to heart problems, and has even been linked to the development of age related brain disease.
If you’re a busy person and don’t have time for the more time-consuming trends for 2021, give this one a try. Research says that something as simple as leaving your phone behind when you go to your room for sleep can help you fall asleep faster and better. Maybe you’re one silk pillowcase away from the best sleep of your life, but you’ll never know unless you try it out for yourself!
These are only three trends out of the many hundreds you’ll see in 2021, but they’re among the most effective if a real life change is what you’re hoping for this year. So take some time to decide what you’re missing in your life and get busy getting well for 2021.
