By now, you’ve likely put away the bulky winter sweaters and perhaps pulled out your summer wardrobe.
Among the shorts and short-sleeved tops might be your bathing suit, and it’s understandable to feel anxious at the thought of putting it on.
Dr. Geri Williams, the supervising doctor for Ideal You Weight Loss, shares how you can feel more confident by swimsuit season if you begin taking some daily steps now.
There’s a lot to consider beyond just losing a couple of pounds, like how to reduce bloating, and how to prep your skin for the sun.
Here’s what Williams recommends:
- Step 1: Williams said to reduce bloat and water retention. Many enjoy heavier foods over the winter, and now is the time to lighten things up. Williams said to cut out high sodium and high-sugar foods and sodas.
- Step 2: Eat more unprocessed foods. Opt for more whole foods like fruits and vegetables. Healthy fats and oils are other things to start adding to the menu.
- Step 3: Add cultured foods like sauerkraut and kimchi to your diet. These will also help to reduce bloating, Williams said.
- Step 4: Get more sleep. Sleep does wonders for all aspects of your health.
- Step 5: Drink less alcohol, or ideally, none. Alcohol dehydrates you, which isn’t good for your skin.
- Step 6: Drink more water. This will also help with dehydration, as well. You can consider green tea as well, if you want something flavored.
- Step 7: Eat more healthy omega-3 fats such as fatty fish, grass-fed beef, and flaxseed oil. They have a lot of reported benefits, including helping with dehydration, regulating oil production, and helping to reduce blemishes and possibly even signs of aging.
- Step 8: Avoid soy, corn, canola and seed oils. Williams said these are pro-inflammatory.
- Step 9: Slowly build up your sun exposure. To avoid sunburns, she recommends getting 10 to 15 minutes of sunlight every day initially, then slowly increasing that over time to 30 to 60 minutes. However, you should avoid direct, hot sunshine (like we typically get between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m.)
For more great ideas, watch the full video above.
To get more healthy strategies like these, call 844-201-1153 or click or visit the Ideal You website.