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The start of a new year can be exciting and refreshing for many different reasons! For some of us, this could be the time to reflect on our previous year or spend some time planning new and thrilling adventures. With spring and summer right around the corner, this is the perfect opportunity to begin thinking about that dream vacation you’ve been waiting for! It can take some time to prep for family’s dream vacation.
We’ve all been there, a week or two before going on vacation and panic starts to set in over the things we wished we had taken the time to prepare for. Maybe you wished you had budgeted a little wiser or taken a few more opportunities to hit the gym.
By setting goals at the beginning of the year, you give yourself time to not only keep yourself accountable but establish goals that are realistic and rewarding. New Year’s resolutions are a great way to determine the goals you would like to reach, but unfortunately, 80% of resolutions often fail by February.
This is usually due to setting resolutions that are unrealistic or not supported by one’s current lifestyle and routine. If you’ve got that dream vacation on your mind for 2020, here are 3 habits to help you reach your goals and feeling your absolute best before taking off!
Prep for Your Family’s Dream Vacation:
1. Start Budgeting Now
Budgeting is a popular new year’s resolution. We all want to invest, save, and spend our money smarter. Begin by looking at your daily expenses and thinking about areas that you could possibly save. This could be as simple as skipping coffee in the morning a couple of times a week or choosing to make dinner instead of eating out. Although these steps might seem small, they can have a significant impact on the amount of money you save.
Additionally, it may help to research local attractions and restaurants you might be interested in while on vacation. If you’re planning on a cruise or an all inclusive resort, start researching different vacation expenses you might need to pay out of pocket. By doing your research and planning out the costs for travel, food, and possible emergencies, you can avoid any last-minute expenses or unforeseen costs on your trip.
2. Eat Right and Hit the Gym
We all want to look our best every day, but especially on vacation. You might be picturing yourself lounging on the beach in that cute bathing suit, or attending a cocktail hour in a new stunning dress. When you look good, you feel good and feeling good starts with your health and nutrition.
The start of a new year is an excellent time to start changing your habits when it comes to eating and working out. By eating a well-balanced diet, you are providing your body with the essential nutrients it needs to maintain optimal health. Instead of grabbing fast food or options that are quick and easy, try prepping your meals with food that will promote weight loss and align with your current fitness routine.
Support your nutrition goals by using a researched weight loss program that helps hold you accountable and keep you on track. A program will teach you how to incorporate foods like sweet potatoes, bell peppers, and broccoli into your diet that will provide your body with vitamin A. Vitamin A is needed for healthy and radiant skin, which is definitely something you’ll want to have on vacation!
In addition to balancing your diet, finding a fitness routine that works for you is equally important. For some, this involves hitting the gym or taking a short walk after your workday. Others might feel intimidated or overwhelmed when visiting the gym. That’s okay! Fitness is all about what is helpful for you. When I first started my fitness journey, I was morbidly obese. Follow these tips on how to workout when you’re overweight.
Branch out of your usual routine and try a spin class or attend that yoga class you’ve been hearing all about. You might love a new approach and be able to maintain this routine with your current lifestyle. If you miss a day, don’t let yourself become discouraged! Instead of stopping all together, pick right back up and get back into it. Habits are built through consistency and pretty soon nutrition and fitness will feel second nature. You’ll love how you feel and how you look in those vacation pictures!
3. Stay Organized
Life can get pretty crazy at times and we often start to miss important details or forget crucial deadlines. By taking the time to become organized and set yourself up for success, you can improve more than just one area of your life. Organization has been found to boost your sleeping habits, promote your energy levels, and lower your risk of having a heart attack. With benefits like that, who wouldn’t want to take the extra few minutes to get your to-do list together?
There are a lot of details that go into planning the perfect getaway and missing one of these steps can throw off your plans. From the start of planning, try to keep yourself organized the best you can. Write down travel dates, plan for when you need to make deposits, and stay in constant contact with others you might be vacationing with. This will not only help you enjoy your vacation, but the process of planning as well. Try using an organizer to write down your itinerary or downloading an application to your phone to make group travel even easier.
A new year is always a chance to improve yourself by developing better habits and embarking on new adventures. Make 2020 your healthiest and most exciting year yet by planning a trip that motivates you to start putting focus and energy into your wellbeing so you can feel your absolute best no matter where life takes you!
I love that you talked about researching the place you want to stay ahead of time so that you can budget accordingly. My family hasn’t been on holiday for a long time so we need to figure out the best place to go. I want to find a place that has some activities in town, and a lot of nature we can explore nearby.
If you’re looking at the Midwest USA at all, I highly recommend checking out Minnesota’s North Shore. I’ll be writing an article on it soon.