Be your best self.

How To Get Your Shit Together In May

How To Get Your Shit Together In May
Carly Jacobs
E

very month I like to set some goals. Who doesn’t love the start of a new month? It’s like a fresh sponge cake just waiting to be iced or a shiny new notebook covered in cellophane that you can just rip off and dive right into. I also like to look over the previous month to see how I did on those challenges…

I set 3 challenges in April

– to take it easy over Easter with overindulging and alcohol
– to exercise for 20 minutes every day
– to be grateful for one thing every day

I was almost perfect with these challenges but I was very unwell with an awful cold for a full week in April so I had to take a break from my 20 minutes a day. The moment I was well enough, I jumped straight back into it though and I always made sure I did my 10,000 steps every day too. It’s important to remember not to give up when you hit a snag. It’s better take a break with a goal and get back to it when you can, rather than give up on it completely. On that note, here’s how to get your shit together in May… who’s with me?

 

#packagefreesnacks

1. Only Eat Fresh and Healthy Snacks

I did the Whole30 in February and I felt brilliant but the only thing I really changed was that I wasn’t eating my raw food bars and protein snacks. I eat very well but sometimes I’m a bit lazy and I’ll grab a protein bar for morning tea when I should really be having some veggie sticks or fruit. So for the month of May, I’m only eating package free snacks. No biscuits, chocolate bars, crackers, store bought popcorn, protein bars, sugary single serve yogurts, health bars or soft drinks. Want to join in with #packagefreesnacks? Just snap a picture of your package free snack (vegetable sticks, boiled eggs, home made dips, home made yogurt) and pop it up on Instagram with the hashtag #packagefreesnacks.

 

#mindfulinmay

2. Meditate for 10 Minutes Every Day

I’m joining in with my mate Ellen from Potential Psychology’s team for Mindful in May. You make a donation and join the team or go it alone to challenge yourself to mediate for ten minutes every day in May to raise money for Charity Water who provide clean drinking for people in need. It’s a bonza initiative and one I can totally get behind. If you want to join, pledge your donation here, snap a pic a day of your moment of zen every day and pop it up on Instagram with the hashtag #mindfulinmay.

 

#makeaheadmeals

3. Cook 1 Make Ahead Meal Per Week

We are totally out of control in our house (such is life when your partner is an app developer and Apple releases a watch!) at the moment and the one thing that has been saving us from a steady diet of toast has been make ahead meals like vegetable bakes or stew. This May I’m going to make at least one make ahead meal per week so I always have something healthy to pop in the microwave when I don’t have time to cook. If you want to join in the challenge just snap a picture of your #makeaheadmeals and pop the photo in Instagram.

[divider type=”standard” width=”1/1″ el_position=”first last”]

What are your focus areas for April? Anything you need to change to get your shit together this month?

 

[divider type=”standard” width=”1/1″ el_position=”first last”]

P.S Don’t forget to follow Smaggle on  Facebook and sign up for the Smaggle weekly newsletter so you don’t get all FOMO about missing out on awesome life hacks.

31 Comments

  1. Woo hoo! Aside from our meditation gig I’m going to continue meal planning because I’ve been doing it for two weeks now and it helps A LOT.
    I’ve also kicked off a weekly ‘get it done’ challenge for our mentoring group so they’re going to be stuck with me doing that every Sunday for the rest of the month ???? x

    • Author
      Carly Jacobs 9 years ago

      Oh that’s a great idea! Is this on your blog? Tell me more about it? I totally did my body scan this morning and it was rad. I’m going be so freaking zen this month.

  2. Anna Buckley 9 years ago

    The make ahead meal, couldn’t agree more!
    What I try to do is make more than just one meal, a double quantity that I freeze for later. But remember to freeze it first or you find that somehow it will disappear over the course of the night, sneaky trips back to the kitchen, a little here a little there…so much for mindful eating.
    My favorite dish to bulk prepare is this http://annabuckley.com/2015/03/17/one-pot-wonder-spicy-chicken-and-chorizo/

    PS Hope the App project is going well x

    • Author
      Carly Jacobs 9 years ago

      Oh that looks super yummy! I’ve been making lots of chicken lentil stews and things recently and they’re the best! Mr Smuggle loves them and they’re so good to just have sitting there ready to be heated up.

  3. Dr stumpy 9 years ago

    Downloaded Buddihify. It is my new BBF! I’m with you on mindfulness in May (although I don’t do Instagram so I’ll be off line

    • Author
      Carly Jacobs 9 years ago

      I love Buddify! I listen to their wake up tracks every morning. Such a brilliant way to start the day!

  4. Vivienne 9 years ago

    Love the package free snacks and meal ahead idea… those things get to your body and the wallet without realising it…
    Couple of weeks ago I raided the last box of homemade frozen meals and trying to get back to thepar level is a sure win!

    • Author
      Carly Jacobs 9 years ago

      Oh good! I always feel so rubbish when I eat too much packaged food. It’s not like I’m chucking down Mars Bars every day but I’ll have a raw fruit bar every few days and they’re basically glorified sugar!

  5. Deborah 9 years ago

    Oh, I need to do this. I am seriously in a big friggin’ hole on the food and exercise front. I’ll have to think about some small changes I can make cos when I think of going all-out (ie. on some shake type diet), I want to binge-eat like crazy before I start. Except, I know from past experience… I never start. I need to not focus on the fact I have to lose 50kg and think that ANY loss would be a good thing. *sigh*

    I’m definitely going to start meditating each day though. At the moment I stumble out of bed, pour my vanilla diet coke and sit down at the computer. THAT needs to change!

    • Author
      Carly Jacobs 9 years ago

      It’s all about small, manageable and permanent changes because big changes are far too disruptive. You’ve got this! You can do it!

  6. You are such a clever (healthy) cookie! Love these ideas. x

    • Author
      Carly Jacobs 9 years ago

      Oh a clever healthy cookie! I like that idea! With wine???

  7. I’m all in for 1 and 2 but I just don’t have the time for 3. Unless having one slow cooker meal a week counts, I pop it on in the morning and by dinner time it’s all done and ready.

    • Author
      Carly Jacobs 9 years ago

      Oh see I do number 3 to save myself time! Doing one big meal saves me having to cook every night! I also work from home so I often end up ‘cooking’ lunch too like making an omelette so this is a massive time saver for me.

  8. Great idea!! I try to make double portions when I make dinners so I can have leftovers or freeze some for later. I need to start making extra meals on purpose on weekends so I have some extras in the freezer. I’ve been so unmotivated to cook lately!!

    • Author
      Carly Jacobs 9 years ago

      I totally did mine on the weekend for a shoot. We’re set for the next week!

  9. Beth 9 years ago

    Yes! Good goals! I’ve been trying to meditate daily too!

    • Author
      Carly Jacobs 9 years ago

      I’ve been loving my daily meditation! It’s such a brilliant day starter!

  10. nonnuclearmaven 9 years ago

    I’m with you on package free snacks, I’ve been too lazy to even get an apple out of the fridge and have been snacking on all the crap my partner buys, pretzels, shapes, pudding

    • Author
      Carly Jacobs 9 years ago

      I’ve bee so good for the past few days – if I just put a blanket ban on something it makes it much easier to resist!

  11. Belinda Jacobson 9 years ago

    I’m in for package free snacks! I’ve been trying to eat unprocessed foods for the last couple of weeks so it ties right in nicely! As does cook ahead meals so I don’t feel like I spend all night in the kitchen after a long day at work!!

    • Author
      Carly Jacobs 9 years ago

      I did mine on the weekend and package free are so easy – I can just grab an apple from the supermarket as easily as I can grab a protein bar!

  12. Sammie @ The Annoyed Thyroid 9 years ago

    Great ideas! I’m with you on the make ahead meals. I’ve set some time aside to batch cook some stews and casseroles (hello, slow cooker!) that we can stash in the freezer. I love bulk cooking, it’s the meal that keeps on giving!

    • Author
      Carly Jacobs 9 years ago

      I’m away for the next week so I won’t need to do this but the second I’m back I’m getting my veggie bake on.

  13. rebeccassunday 9 years ago

    Ohhhh boy do I have an image to share with you. I am doing number 1 and 3, and may as well do number 2 to totally Smaggle my May

    • Author
      Carly Jacobs 9 years ago

      Oh I’d love for you to Smaggle your May! 🙂

  14. Mum Of Five Girls 9 years ago

    I am totally with you on #3….with netball season and soccer season and all 5 girls playing this year it’s a tad crazy in the evenings…so here’s to a freezer full of home cooked goodness!! I will give #1 and #2 a go too… but am choosing #3 as my priority!!

    • Author
      Carly Jacobs 9 years ago

      Make ahead are essential in winter. It saves everyone eating toast every day!

  15. carolyngracebeaumont 9 years ago

    It’s officially spring here so I’m going to take on the #smagglesaladaday challenge from a while ago because in winter I wasn’t exactly feeling lots of salad 🙂 The farmers markets open this weekend and I’m excited to get back to salad instead of soup etc.

    I’m also giving myself a pass on the first 3 days because I was back-country hiking and salads are a little difficult to bring hiking with you. I think we counted multi-coloured smarties and Munchie snack mix as our veggies for the weekend. (But high-energy hiking is a totally different eating profile than a normal week of meals)

    • Author
      Carly Jacobs 9 years ago

      Oh that’s a great one! That’s a hard one to do in winter in Australia – I’ll just be sticking to my make ahead meals! Brrrr!

Pingbacks

  1. […] along with Smaggle’s package free snacks. I’m terrible for grabbing “healthy” bars at the supermarket […]

Leave a Reply