Monday 21st June at 04.31 it will be the summer solstice. I’m so excited to celebrate this special day. The summer solstice, also known as estival solstice or midsummer, occurs when one of the Earth’s poles has its maximum tilt toward the Sun. It happens twice yearly, once in each hemisphere (Northern and Southern). The summer solstice is when the Sun reaches its highest position in the sky and is the day with the longest period of daylight. Since prehistory, the summer solstice has been seen as a significant time of year in many cultures, and has been marked by festivals and rituals.

I have always wanted to go to Stonehenge for the solstice. The sarsen stones placed at the centre of the site in about 2500 BC, were carefully aligned to line up with the movements of the sun. If you stand in the middle of the stone circle on midsummer’s day, the sun rises just to the left of the Heel Stone, an outlying stone to the north-east of the monument. Archaeological excavations have found a large stone hole to the left of the Heel Stone and it may have held a partner stone, the two stones framing the sunrise.

Next year I am determined to go to Stonehenge and be there for the sunrise on the summer solstice, however, due to all the covid restrictions still in place this year, I’ve decided to watch the live stream event instead and have a solstice garden party on Sunday to celebrate. 

I’ve been saving images on Pinterest for ideas for food, drinks and decorations and will share photos on Sunday. 

Today I picked lots of elderflowers to make elderflower cordial for the weekend. 

I’m also going to try and make a grain-free elderflower cake. If I’m successful I’ll share the recipe! 

Foods that Give Your Energy vs Foods that Take Energy Away 

Today I wanted to write about something I always discuss with my health coaching clients: choosing high energy foods – or foods that give you energy rather than take your energy away. 

Why is this important? Well, the more energy you have, the better you will feel and the more motivated you’ll be to take care of yourself.

When we feel tired or lack energy, we start making poor choices. On the other hand, when we feel energised, uplifted and positive, we will be able to make more conscious choices for ourselves in every area of life. 

Where we want to get to – is a place where we make supportive choices for ourselves rather than destructive ones. 

Where that becomes what you do. You simply choose foods that nourish you, that give you the most energy and you don’t even think about the ones that don’t.

If I were to ask, ‘Which foods rob you of energy? Or which foods (even though you may enjoy eating) make you feel sluggish and lethargic…what do you think those foods would be?’”

“Which of these foods do you tend to default to or eat regularly for a quick pick-me-up or quick satisfaction?”

“And how do you feel when you eat (whatever it is that you eat)? What’s the emotion associated with that food?”

When we’re really stressed out, food can serve as a comfort. It actually raises the serotonin levels in the brain, which are those feel-good chemicals that bring about contentedness, it allows us to relax. 

So, in some ways, eating low energy, comfort foods can be a solution to calm your nervous system.

Now for some people, these kinds of foods make them feel temporarily better while they are eating it, but then they crash. What’s it like for you? Do these foods provide the kind of relief or energy boost you want to have or do they make you feel worse?

Okay, let’s switch gears. Which foods give you energy?

And how do you feel when you eat [your high-energy foods] consistently?

I wonder, in your relationship with food, where do you get confused? When is it that you default to the low-energy foods?

I am going somewhere with all of this! Most diet programs focus on what NOT to eat. This can feel like deprivation, and while that may work for a short period of time, eventually, we give in because there’s no pleasure in deprivation. It doesn’t feel fun. 

So, the strategy I get my clients to use – is instead of focusing on what you don’t get to eat – we focus on what you DO get to eat. 

“I get to eat high-energy foods that make me feel ____________________.” How awesome is that! I love feeling that way!”

This  shift in mindset is how we start nurturing a healthy relationship to body and food. We train ourselves to feel pulled naturally towards supportive habits versus self-destructive ones. 

Where you feed yourself high-energy foods because to do anything else wouldn’t make sense. Now, this will take practice, so today try starting with a new paradigm: focusing on what you get to eat versus what you don’t. You get to feed yourself healthy, delicious, nourishing, high-energy foods.

#JoyfulJune 

Today’s suggestion from Action for Happiness is: Look for something to be thankful for where you least expect it. 

Taking in the Good (write down three good things that have happened or that you have noticed)

• Listening to the birds singing this morning. 
• Picking elderflowers in the sunshine. 
• Foraging for wild foods and turning them into a delicious lunch.

 

What good things will you remember about today, the only Tuesday 15th June 2021 we will ever have?

Until tomorrow,

Chloe x

About Me

Hello, I’m Chloe. I’m a nutrition and health coach and I’m on a mission to inspire & support women so they can go from feeling fatigued to feeling fabulous! 

I help women who are FED up of being overweight, addicted to sugar and feeling tired ALL THE TIME to lose weight and optimise their health by fixing hormonal, digestive, autoimmune and energy issues.

My step-by-step programme, Revitalise, will help you lose weight, get back your energy, restore vitality and create lifelong health using the power of beautiful & delicious REAL FOOD. 

I’m here to make it easy for you to eat healthy, delicious food without counting calories or feeling deprived. You’ll reset your relationship with food, shift your mindset and build new habits for a complete health transformation!

Disclaimer: All information provided is for informational purposes only, and is not to be construed as medical advice or instruction. Please consult your GP or a qualified health professional on any matters regarding your health and wellbeing. I am a nutritional educator and do not dispense medical advice nor prescribe treatment. While nutritional support can be an important complement to your medical care, a nutritional therapy program is not a substitute for the diagnosis, treatment, or care of a disease, illness, or injury by a medical provider. Nutritional evaluations and lifestyle assessments are not intended for the diagnoses of disease. 

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