No doubt this festive season has taken its toll on both your pocket and waistline.
Not only have we all spent far too much on presents, food and festivities – at a time when we are all having to watch the pennies – but all that indulgence can have a big impact on our health too.
And while many of us know we need to focus on that New Year’s resolution to lead a more healthy life, that’s not possible without an expensive gym membership and spending a fortune on healthy food is it?
Actually that couldn’t be further from the truth – as Dr Gabriel Scally, Director of Public Health for NHS South of England, explains: “Christmas is a time where many of us over-indulge and over-spend and in this time of austerity it is easy to think that we don’t have the money to kick-start that resolution to live more healthily. But the truth is that you can live a healthy life without breaking the bank – in fact there are a lot of things you can do for free!”
Dr Scally continued: “Rather than spend lots of money on a gym membership why not look at alternative ways to break into a sweat – such as walking or cycling all or part of your journey to work rather than getting in the car, or exploring ways you can get outside and use your muscles in your lunch break with a brisk walk or jog. Alternatively you could volunteer to take a neighbour’s dog for a walk or take the children to the park.
“And it’s not only exercise that you can do more cheaply. Healthy, tasty food doesn’t have to cost a fortune either. Why not make your own lunch each day rather than buy it from a shop, shop around for your food rather than just go to your supermarket – often your local grocers will have much fresher local produce at cheaper prices - and try out different foods such as pulses, lentils, soups and pastas. These are not only filling but can be cheap and healthy.
“You just need to be a little creative to come up with hundreds of ideas to improve your health and save your pocket.”
Here are Gabriel’s top tips for helping your health and your pocket in 2012:
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Aim to find one new way each week to get some exercise for free. Whether it be getting off the bus a few stops early and walking the rest of the way to work, going for a run or walk around your local park or even doing the house cleaning at a quicker pace or a bit of gardening. Anything that gets your heart pumping more quickly is good for you.
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Increase your face-to-face contact. Get up away from your desk and go and see your work colleague rather than call or email them – especially if they are just the other side of the room. You will probably find a face-to-face conversation is more productive too!
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Make the most of trial offers. Gyms, sports clubs and activity centres offer a range of taster sessions in the New Year so take the opportunity to try out a range of activities for free and learn what sort of exercise you like doing. You can then adapt these exercises to something you can do for free, or find ways to continue them that are cheaper than paying for a full gym membership.
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Join together with friends or work colleagues to get healthy - not only will this help keep you motivated but two heads are better than one in coming up with cheap or free ways to get some exercise. You could also share the use of a bike or take it in turns to pay for a tennis court.
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Prepare yourself lunch for work rather than buying it. Not only will you be able to make healthier salads, sandwiches and snacks than you can buy from a café or shop but it will work out a lot cheaper too!
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Look for seasonal foods when you are shopping. Not only will in season fruit and vegetables be more likely to be locally produced and fresher, they tend to be cheaper to buy than out of season produce. Alternatively look in the freezer sections for fresh frozen packs of vegetables which can be cheaper to buy and can be stored for longer.
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Don’t waste leftovers! If you’ve made too much for one meal keep what’s left in a freezable container, either for another meal or for your lunch. It’s actually cheaper to make larger portions of meals and save the leftovers for additional meals.
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It doesn’t have to be a gourmet meal. A jacket potato, pasta dish with a tomato sauce or an omelette are quick, cheap and easy to prepare and can be tasty, filling and healthy.
