Happy 2018 everyone! I hope you are all starting the new year off well. I’m interested in hearing what resolutions everyone has decided on. I decided to make this a year of health for myself and for the planet. After the last night of 2017, partying and such, I am only putting healthy things into my body. That means water 24/7…or at least close to it. I have a new glass water bottle from the brand BKR that is 500mL, so the goal is to try to drink 2 or 3 of those a day (the daily recommendation of water is 1900mL). I like this bottle specifically because it has a mouth the size of a normal bottle, not a giant gaping hole that causes me to spill water everywhere when I try to get a drink in the car. I then bought a Britta filter pitcher for about $30 that helps me filter my water, and reduce the amount of plastic water bottles I have to use.
Make sure you also buy a bottle brush to clean it!
It also just seems healthier to me to drink from a glass bottle rather than a plastic bottle seeping chemicals into my water. On top of that, I also have eaten a salad every day so far since January 1st. It’s only the 8th, but still thats 8 salads I’ve eaten. To be honest, that is probably more salad then I ate in total last year. I tend to avoid salad because 4 years ago when I was making the awful transition from normal, delicious, bread-filled foods to all Gluten Free foods, my go-to restaurant menu option was salad. I was too afraid to take the risk with anything else, but it got old fast. So I boycotted salads when I could, because other options started to arise with the new found popularity of Gluten Free diets. This all then resulted in me knowingly not getting all the greens I should in my diet. BUT that will all change this year. I don’t know how long I’ll keep up the “salad everyday” kick, but I know that I should try to at least eat more spinach and dark greens and veggies when I can. The gym was another part of my resolution, but honestly I have no interest in leaving my nice warm house to go to the gym. Maybe when it stops snowing EVERY DAY I’ll start making my way there. For now, I’ll pass. Winter sucks.
Also, I want to try and cause as little waste as possible in 2018.This has included a lot of changes to my every day lifestyle. Not one of them has been that hard though, which is good and means I’d really encourage others to do these things too. First and foremost, I went to Home Depot and bought a recycle bin.
It’s a smaller one that I can keep in the kitchen near the trashcan. It’s helpful that its right in my face because then I’m more inclined to remember to recycle stuff. Then every Sunday night I convince my boyfriend to run it outside for pick up in the morning (not because it’s hard, but because, again, its too cold outside). Another super easy change I made was only using reusable cloth bags when going shopping. Plastic bags aren’t good for the environment, and they can’t even be recycled! All I have to do is keep a bag or 2 in my car and I’m set. If I ever forget to take my bags inside the store, I can also just request to carry my items. Some grocery stores even give you a discount for not using one of their plastic bags, or bringing your own.
Along with this, I have tried to exchange every paper napkin option to cloth. This change is strange and very different then how I’ve operated for the extent of my life, but it really feels good knowing I’m not wasting a ton of paper for no reason. All my cotton pads I would normally wipe my face and eyes with have been replaced by juniper seed mercantile pads, which are even softer than the cotton pads and can be reused forever.
Also, this may be TMI, but in regards to sanitary napkins, the cloth ones keep you from absorbing tons of chemicals into your skin from the bleached paper/cotton ones…and they come in cute colors. Anyway, I digress. Another change I made in bathroom routine was deodorant. Regular deodorants have aluminum in them and it isn’t good for your body to absorb. I started dabbling in all natural deodorants and found one I like. Also, right now is a good time to try different ones to see which one you like best while it’s cold out and you aren’t sweating as much as you would in the summer. And it comes in a glass jar so it’s environmentally friendly!
The main goal of this year is to do right by my body and the planet. The internet has been a pretty good resource in helping me discover new things I can do to accomplish that goal. One website I’ve been relying heavily on is PackageFreeShop.com for all my waste less needs. Everything they ship out has no packaging, and the boxes and packing materials are recycled items. So far I feel like I am off to a good start, but we’ll see how the year ends. Again, I would recommend trying to make some changes yourself. Whether those changes be the same as mine or your own resolutions, I’d love to hear what differences you’re making this year!
