5 Essential Tips to Get Summer Ready
With a little help from 22 Days Nutrition, you can feel (and look) your best during the greatest summer ever.
The summer of 2021 is slated to be the greatest summer ever. In many states, restrictions have lifted and people feel safe enough to enjoy activities they haven’t done over in 16 months. We’re seeing friends in person—not just their top half on a computer screen—and we’re giving them hugs before sitting down (at an actual restaurant) for a cocktail, beer, or dinner. This is the summer to get healthy, because it’s impossible to revel in summer bliss if you’re not confident in how you look or feel. From evening out those tan lines to rocking whatever summer wear you’re into, here are five simple tips to get summer ready.
1. Let’s talk about those tan lines
Those who complain about being pasty coming into the summer months are fortunate—it’s those who are sporting eyebrow-raising tan lines from sock tans to hatchbacked sports bra tans that make heads turn. We fully support owning your funky tan lines (they’re a great ice breaker), but if you do want to even out, do it naturally and do not forget the sunscreen. Tanning salons expose your skin to too many unknown factors—from unprotected UV rays in tanning beds or chemicals found in spray tans. Not only are the health effects questionable, one bad experience could turn you into an Oompa Loompa straight from Willy Wonka’s chocolate factory. Natural sunlight can be harsh on your skin, but if you plan a few weeks out, apply plenty of sunscreen (every two hours), and lay out in the seclusion of your backyard in short, intermittent bursts, those tan lines should fade away. The process isn’t instant, but it’s a far more natural way to go about abolishing your running shorts tan.
2. Hydrate (but really, it’s important)
Water is essential for so many bodily functions, but it can also make you look and feel exponentially better. Water can help with digestion (translation: less bloat), the appearance of your skin (goodbye, crackly summer skin), and manage hunger cues (you’ll be happy with one scoop of dairy-free ice cream instead of two). When it comes to hydration, water really is the best option. Unless you’re training intensely, electrolyte beverages, flavored carbonated beverages, iced coffee drinks, and sports drinks add often unneeded calories to your day. Of course, there are other reasons to enjoy those things, and you certainly should, but treat them as exactly that—a treat, not optimum hydration.
3. Get a boost
Whether you’re working toward a six-pack or just want to lose a few post-pandemic pounds, weight management can be hard. It often isn’t a linear trajectory, and life can get in the way of our best intentioned efforts at consistency. That’s why we formulated a tailored Weight Management pack as part of our new vitamin line. Each daily pouch contains cinnamon extract, green coffee extract, ashwagandha, and a probiotic to help your body work more efficiently—from aiding your digestion to giving you a bit of a natural energy boost to run an extra mile or simply get out the door. Nothing will replace proper diet and exercise when it comes to weight, but regardless of who we are or what we do, we could all use a boost.
4. Eat plant-based foods
If you’ve been curious about the plant-based diet but have yet to really give it a try, now is the time. Whole and minimally processed plant foods are less inflammatory than animal-based foods and many contain a ton of antioxidants that help fight acute inflammation. That means you’re less sore after workouts and also less puffy. Summer produce also contains a healthy dose of hydration—from watermelon to berries to summer squashes like zucchini. Add some oomph to your summer strawberry, banana, and kale smoothie with a scoop of our nourishing plant-based protein powder. You’ll feel fuller for longer and sneak in 20 grams of quality protein into your morning.
5. Move it
Don’t exercise because you have to—exercise because you can. Actually, don’t even call it exercise or a workout—let’s just call it a fun activity. Pump yourself up to go to the gym by thinking about the familiar faces you’ll see there. You may even see their entire face—imagine that! Rediscover the energy that fuels you when you’re cycling in a room with 15 other people jamming to the same song that’s propelling your legs through those high gears. Get outside and just play—be that on a paddle board, surfboard, boogie board, or kickboard. This summer is all about fun, and when it comes to having fun and exercise, you can definitely multi-task.
Ready or not, summer is here, and you have the power to look and feel any way you want to. Just a few lifestyle tweaks can help you make the most out of what’s planned to be a fabulous summer.
To stock up on clean, plant-based protein or any of our multivitamin packs visit our Shop page.
