Happy Sunday, friendly faces! ?
How the heck are you?! How was your Christmas!?!? Was it filled to the brim with family, friends, and good food? I spent the holidays with my family, and it was pretty much everything I could have asked for. Lots of love, lots of laugh, and lots of good food… I actually fell into such a big food coma on Christmas night that I ended up passing out on the couch at around 9pm and not waking up until 3am the next morning. I blame Mom and her delicious cooking.
But I honestly think that my favourite thing about Christmas this year was the fact that it was the first time in… err… forever? that I actually felt rested and relaxed; like I could fully disconnect without having to worry about playing catch up when I came back because the whole world was basically taking a breather. I’d love to say that I’m good at the whole work/life balance thing, but the truth of the matter is that even when I’m not physically working, I’m usually still thinking about it… so it was super nice to just forget about everything and only focus on what was going on around me. I even had a chance to sit down and do a little bit of reflecting on 2015 and brainstorming for 2016, which is stuff I’m super excited to share with you guys… tomorrow ?
Because today? It’s all about the Link Love! I didn’t do a tonne of blog reading over the past week or so, but I still managed to find some pretty good stuff for you guys that I hope you’ll enjoy!
For my head…
. fitness .
10-minute Treadmill Workout for Runners and Walkers via Hello Healthy.
Short workouts like this are great for those days where we’re having trouble finding the motivation to get moving. 10 minutes isn’t daunting at all, and once we start, we’ll often want to go longer.
10 Yoga Poses For A Strong Core via Mind Body Green.
Because having a strong core helps us so much, not only in our workouts, but in our daily life as well.
6 Core Exercises You Haven’t Tried Yet (They’re Not Crunches) via Mind Body Green.
… see above ^^
. health .
If You Wear Yoga Pants All The Time, BEWARE via Your Tango.
… ignorance was bliss ? But this is definitely something that’s important to know.
It’s Time To Accept That ‘Clean Eating’ is Good For Your Body and Bad For Your Mind via Independent.
Of course we need to nourish our bodies, but we should never associate GUILT with FOOD.
11 Natural Ways to Soothe an Upset Stomach via Hello Glow.
Because sometimes we need a little help in the digestion department. And nature really did give us the best medicine.
3 Benefits of Cutting Back on Artificial Sweeteners via Hello Healthy.
You might think you’re just cutting back on calories and sugar, but you’re actually not doing yourself any favours.
. life .
One Thing You Should Know About The People In Your Life via Marc and Angel Hack Life.
“... the people you surround yourself with either lift you higher or bring you down – they energize you or drain you – they support you or criticize you – they make you smile or make you cry.” Really great advice on how to go about finding and nurturing your relationship with your tribe of people.
The Secret to Making Resolutions That Stick via Hello Healthy.
Helpful tips to avoid burning out by February and help you reach the finish line with your resolutions.
A Quick 24-Hour Reset To Ring In A Happy, Healthy New Year via Mind Body Green.
Because it’s never a bad idea to take a complete rest day from life and recharge our batteries.
20 Ways to Prepare for the New Year via The Blissful Mind.
Some great ways to reflect, reset, and recharge so that we can make 2016 the best year yet.
. blogging .
How To Set Up A Subscriber Freebie To Grow Your Email List via Fantastique Designs.
A great post detailing how to add a freebie for those who opt in to your mailing list, and why it’s a good idea to do so.
How To Create Brand Guidelines via Cat Rose Designs.
Looking to take blogging more seriously in the new year? This is a great walkthrough of steps to take when developing your brand.
10 Clever Ways to Use Social Media to Grow Your Email List via The Nectar Collective.
How To Become A Full Time Blogger and Earn Money From Your Blog via Fashion Made Magazine.
Thinking about becoming a full time blogger? This post offers some great advice to take into account before you take the plunge.
For my belly…
Gingerbread Baked Quinoa and Oatmeal via Hummusapien.
Christmas may be over, but gingerbread season is NOT. This -needs- to be on your breakfast rotation!
Addicting Honey Almond Holiday Snack Mix via Making Thyme for Health.
Uhm… addicting is right! LOVE almonds with honey, and the sweet and salty mix is just to.die.for.
Almond Butter Chocolate Crunch Bars via Eat Good 4 Life.
LOVE these chocolate versions of crispy rice bars! They’re gluten-free, vegan, and look ridiculously delicious.
Healthy Brownie Batter Dip For One via The Big Man’s World.
Brownie batter that’s healthy enough to eat for breakfast? Heck.to.the.YES.
Your links…
3 things you did yesterday; 3 things you’re doing today. Go!
Yesterday: did a little bit of Boxing Day shopping, caught up with a friend, and went to see Star Wars.
Today: going to church, and basically vegging out all day with the fam.
More places to find me!
E-mail — [email protected]
Twitter — runwithspoons
Facebook — runningwithspoons
Pinterest — runwithspoons
Instagram — runwithspoons
Bloglovin — runningwithspoons
Snapchat — runningspoons
Happy Holidays Love. I’m glad you hear you rested and relaxed. I’d encourage you to keep on doing it and not think about work at all. You already know that though. 🙂
I do. There’s an angel on my shoulder that keeps reminding me 😉
Saturday I went to church and delivered some gift bags. In the evening, I went to visit my friend who’s sick.
Sunday, I had a big fight with another friend and spent the afternoon trying to recover and repair our relationship then watched football all evening long.
So sorry to hear about your tough weekend 🙁 Sending get well wishes to your friend that’s sick, and hope everything worked out okay with your other friend <3
Glad you were able to enjoy some time away with friends and family! That is the best! Thanks for sharing the links! Cant wait to check out those recipes!
I’m so glad you were able to fully relax…I felt the same way. It’s hard to do in our society but so so necessary for our wellbeing. <3
Eeee thank you so much for the share! Oh and I can totally relate to the relief of finally getting some time to kick back and disconnect over Christmas – it felt super weird at first but by the time I’d watched a Muppets Christmas Carol and had my second glass of sherry… well, it was easy then 😉
Muppets! That’s seriously one of my favourite Christmas movies of all time. I didn’t watch the whole thing this year, but definitely caught some snippets of it 😀
I’m so glad you linked up to that article on clean eating! In my experience, the less fixated (i.e. obsessed) I was on eating a “clean diet” the healthier I felt mentally…and I also lost weight in the process!
Right?!!? I experienced -exactly- the same thing. I don’t think enough people realize how big of an impact stress can have on our health and weight.
let’s continue to rest!!! yes? i am diggin it too. MWAH!
I’m so glad you were able to relax and disconnect! Those moments are rare as a blogger so I hope you enjoyed every second. 😉
Thank you so including my snack mix! I ate way too much of it, hehe!
My plans for today include working for a little bit and then hopefully printing out my planner for 2016. I know you are a big fan of Erin Condren (and it looks awesome!) but I can’t find one that has everything I need so I decided to make my own. It has been such a time drain so I’m hoping it will be worth it!
THat’s so awesome, Sarah! I’d seriously love to make my own planner, but I wouldn’t even know where to start on it. You should totally post some pics of yours when it’s done — I’d love to see it!!
These are great to read and thanks for sharing. I’ve got so many different windows open right now.
I thought the artificial sweetener post was really interesting. I am curious to see what happens over time and with more studies done on it.
I did all my vegging out yesterday with my parents! Well worth it and probably my favorite part of the holidays- just being together.
Yesterday: played scrabble with my family, ate chipotle for dinner, and finished season four of The Office
Today: heading to church, work on blogging, and watching football
Scrabble and Chipotle?! Seriously sounds like a perfect evening. I wish I had thought to bring board games!
I tried to step away from social media on Christmas. I did better than I thought I would but still not ideal.
Yesterday: I got home from my parents’ and got right to work on laundry before going to a yoga class and then finishing a draft of an article I have due. Very exciting, I know.
Today: I’m working a shift at the hospital and then likely will go to another yoga or meditation class (holiday stress) before catching a movie maybe.
I worked yesterday (currently finishing up my night shift) and today I am hoping to pick up my treadmill! My brother is giving me since he just had knee surgery.
Aww. That’s nice of him. Lots of get well vibes to your bro!
Rest and relaxation without online FOMO – that’s what I liked about the past days, too. I admittedly didn’t unplug completely but spent less time browsing and that felt good. I’m happy you had a great Christmas, Amanda! Maybe that work/life balance issue will get easier in 2016? Never give up hope :).
I agree it was nice to feel like everyone was on a break! I felt really relaxed too – not a coincidence at all. Glad you had a great Christmas!
Yay for disconnecting! This was the first year I was able to do that myself. It’s been a few days in a row and feels great. Definitely a hard thing to do! Now off to eat gingerbread pancakes. I agree, gingerbread is to be enjoyed all winter!