Lupus and Healthy Habits: Food, Exercise, Rest and No guilt!

Do you have a go-to recipe for waffles? 🧇 We've used this one from my good friend over at @table_4_five for several years, and it never disappoints. The waffles are just so good! 

The older I get, the more reassuring it is to use what works in the kitchen. I love experimenting with recipes, especially cookies, and the pandemic brought plenty of opportunity for that! But as my family and I settle into our summer routine, I find myself wanting to spend my time making something I know we'll like. If it works, why try and tweak it? As my daughter says about my chocolate chip cookie recipe - "Why would you make anything else?" 🍪♥️🍪

This philosophy spans beyond the kitchen - into my workouts, my nutrition, and most definitely the healthy habits and accomodations I've adopted to live well with lupus. The routines I've come to rely upon consistently bring me positive results, so I just keep doing them. Some have gotten easier to adopt over time, while some are still just as challenging as always (I'm talking to you, naptime!) But when a once unmanageable disease that wreaked havoc on my body and caused irreversible organ damage becomes less disruptive and more manageable with every healthy decision I make, it's hard to deny that the regimen works. Here are a few of my go-to's for healthy habits: 

*Routine, daily exercise is key.

*Eight hours sleep at a minimum.

*A carefully crafted diet that incorporates foods that work for me - especially avocados, fish, veggies, and nut butters. 

*Daily afternoon nap of at least an hour.

*Carefully weighing demands on my time and energy. (Search or click "Lifestyle" on my blog for more on this!)

*Opting for the healthy choice, rather than one out of obligation or guilt.

----This last one is especially true with my kids' games and activities. I've had to miss some important events because they would have been too taxing in the afternoon when I needed to be napping. I've written about this many times - but the LAST thing I should be doing when I am overtired and hitting a lupus exhaustion wall is driving my daughter home from a game I forced myself to attend. More often than not, there's always another game 🙃, and the carpool I set up instead brings giggles, lasting friendships, and stops for celebratory ice cream. Truly a win-win! 

What are your go-to healthy habits?