When it comes to booking a holiday or retreat…
I think it is nice to ensure that your holiday is a holiday, and that your time away leaves you feeling rested and recharged…that being said a lot of us live busy lives and day to day we don’t always put enough time aside for ourself. In these situations holidays are the perfect opportunity to make time for, and enjoy exercising / focusing on your own wellbeing.
Now whilst I want to discuss how to create balance on holiday you could say it all relates to daily life. I always encourage you to strive for flexibility in your pursuit of optimal health & wellbeing… and here are just a few examples / situations where we can see both sides of the coin when it comes to looking after our health and living in the moment:
- Wear SPF and be careful, but jump from the side of the boat and when your sat outside enjoy the warming effect of sunshine on your skin 💛
- Watch your diet, but when you pick up the menu in a restaurant let yourself order and enjoy the dessert that looks truly irresistible 🎉
- Protect your sleep, but every now and then let the night carry you away and walk home via the bar that looks inviting and fun ✨
- Move your body because it feels great to do so and it gives you life, but don’t force exercise into every day of your week or your holiday 🤸♀️
- Take time to be calm and grounded but know it’s okay to go through periods of stress and worry – that might be in relation to work or maybe travel 💆♀️
You have herd of the 80/20 rule or something similar I am sure?
Try to look after your body, your health and your wellbeing around 80% of the time…the other 20% of the time – ENJOY LIFE. It passes us by very quickly and we shouldn’t sacrifice fun, enjoyment and experience in the pure pursuit of health (in my opinion anyway).
We are lucky now – I think many retreat hosts, resorts and wellbeing hotels acknowledge that green juice and intense workouts aren’t everything. The biggest thing that is going to protect your health is a stress free life, so if that means more of your time is to be spent with your feet up, or laughing in a bar with fiends then so be it.
Other ways you can ensure that your retreat or holiday experience is balanced include:
- Booking with friends – maybe your destination is a very focused health resort however if you are with friends then you take the fun with you, you make the week relaxed and you are encouraged not to take yourself and the trip so seriously.
- Look for a resort or retreat that offers more – more than just celery shots and a brutal training regime…maybe find somewhere socialising / community is important or maybe another experience like sailing, a cookery workshop or wine tasting (what ever takes your fancy).
- Find balance at home – please don’t neglect your health and wellbeing year round and hold out for that one trip that is going to ‘fix things’. Optimal health and wellbeing comes about when we aren’t stressed or worried about it, when we are relaxed, when we enjoy our food and our training…
Just maybe if that was the case at home you might not even crave a wellness holiday? I don’t mean to put myself out of business with that statement (I believe in what I share with you and I would like to think that you enjoy our trips so much you would still book) but a healthy holiday or retreat has to be supplementary to a healthy lifestyle.
If you have any questions about anything I have said here reach out to me. There are so many beautiful retreats, healthy hotels and wellness resorts that provide you with the perfect opportunity to take everything you need from your time away – so make the most of them and enjoy exploring!
