NutraChamps Blog

Tag: social media

  • Using Social Media as Inspiration for Healthy Living, Not Comparison

    Using Social Media as Inspiration for Healthy Living, Not Comparison

    Log onto social media, whether it’s Instagram or TikTok, and you’ll be bombarded with an overload of health advice, wellness trends, and fitness routines. There are so many influencers that look like they have the perfect “fit and healthy” lifestyle by showcasing what they eat in a day, perfectly curated photos, and videos that can basically make you feel like what you’re doing is not enough. What we see on social media is more often more of a highlight reel rather than the reality of what goes on behind the scenes. It’s easy for any fitness influencer to take a gym mirror selfie and look like they have the perfect body, but it’s harder for them to show the breakdowns and hard days it took to get there. It’s easy for nutritionists to talk about “the best diet” but it’s harder to showcase how many failed attempts it took to achieve the “right way” of eating for them. If you don’t take what you see online with a grain of salt and some perspective it’s easy to get caught up in feeling like that you’re doing is simply not enough. 

    The truth is, when it comes to living a healthy lifestyle, there is no right way. Another truth is that every body is different and every person’s needs are different. What may be working for someone else may not be what works for you. Someone else’s morning routine might include waking up bright and early at 5am to start the day but you might be a night owl who doesn’t thrive in the morning. The trap of social media is when we get caught in comparison, thinking that our own way of doing life isn’t good enough and only will measure up to be “successful” if we follow someone else’s. 

    In this blog post, we are going to explain why it’s so crucial to develop healthy habits that work best for YOU, rather than copying something from someone you see online. At NutraChamps we believe that everyone is capable of being their own version of a champion, and we believe that it looks unique to each person and no one else. 

    Use Discernment When it Comes to “Health Trends”

    Have you ever noticed that every couple of months it seems as though there is a new “health trend?” Some examples of more recent healh trends include swapping sugar for artificial sweeteners, snacking on rice cakes, juice cleanses, and cutting out all fats. While people might make some of these trends sound tempting, they might not actually be healthy or what you need to feel your best. When it comes to diet and health fads, it’s important to use a good level of discernment. What is discernment? It’s the ability to flex your own innate judgement. Nobody knows you better than yourself, that’s why it’s important to always ask yourself the question, “does this work for me and my body or lifestyle?” before diving into a health fad. Trends are trends for a reason, oftentimes they come and go and are not sustainable ways of living. When it comes to health, simplicity and balance has always seemed to work for generations before us. Eating clean, unprocessed, whole foods is a way of life where you really can’t go wrong, no matter who you are.

    Set Social Media Boundaries 

    Do you find yourself spending hours on end in your evenings scrolling through Instagram only to compare yourself with the lives other people are leading? Do you find yourself feeling more depleted rather than inspired when you are online? Is your social media scrolling robbing you of your precious energy? If this is the case then it might be a good idea to reevaluate your relationship with social media and even set some boundaries. Take inventory of the people you are following, do they make you feel good about yourself or bad about yourself? Is the content that you are consuming inspiring you to take personal action that feels aligned or does the advice you’re receiving seem unrealistic and unattainable? A few ways you can action some social media boundaries in your life are the following:

    • Unfollow the accounts you no longer resonate with
    • Set a scrolling time limit
    • Don’t open your phone to social media right when you wake up
    • Don’t look at social media as the last thing before you go to bed

    Check for Credibility 

    There are many people online who are giving health advice that may actually be harmful to your health. Since anyone is pretty much able to say and post about anything regarding health online it’s very possible that information can be false or even dangerous. One of the most important things you can do when it comes to using social media for health advice is to make sure that you are receiving information from a credible source. Oftentimes licensed naturopaths, functional medicine practitioners, and doctors will only share information that has been studied and proven. While many people may share personal experiences and health advice that has worked for them, it may not actually work for you. Health is complex and individuals are complex. Always make sure to do your due diligence before implementing a new diet, workout, supplement, or healthcare regime into your life. Ask around, read books, and consult your healthcare provider. 

    Don’t follow the crowd, pave your own way

    As we mentioned earlier in this article, you are the one who truly knows your body the best. After all, you’ve lived in it your entire life. Most of the time we intuitively know what we need to feel like the best version of ourselves. We innately know what makes us feel good and alive and what makes us feel lethargic and depleted. When it comes to creating a routine, diet, or exercise regiment for your life, don’t follow the crowd, pave your own way and find what works for you. Getting inspiration is not a bad thing but just remember to take everything with a grain of salt and know that your body is your best teacher, so listen to it!

  • Have You Tried a Social Media Detox?

    Have You Tried a Social Media Detox?

    Social media is such a big part of the world we live in today. To put it in context, there are currently 3.9 billion active soical media users globally, and that number just keeps growing.

    Insane right?! With the emergence of social media, came a lot of amazing things such as business opportunities, more jobs, plenty of amazing ways to connect, tons of marketing opportunities, and lots more. What also came along with the rise of social media was a decline in mental health – especially in teens. Surveys show that a whopping 90% of teens aged 13-17 in America have used social media. Almost 25% of those teens viewed social media as having a negative effect on them. This means what people are seeing online is more important than ever.

     

    Since social media is still fairly new in comparison to other technology and it is continuously growing, stats on mental health effects have really just started to pop up in the last few years. While social media is an amazing tool that offers us the ability to connect, find community, or just have fun. It can also be a source of comparison, negativity, “fake news,” misinformation, narcissm.. and the list goes on.

    Getting caught up in all of the noise online can get exhausting, and even as a social media specialist I sometimes find that I have a love-hate relationship with the world of all things social. 

    That is why I want to introduce the concept of social media detoxing to you! If you have never heard of it before, let me explain. Put simply, a social media detox is a reduction or elimination of social media use for a set period of time. This can include staying off social media apps or deleting them as a whole. Without consciously realizing it, many of us are addicted to social media and our phones. A lot of us can benefit from unplugging and focusing on other things, especially if we notice that we are more stressed or anxious after spending time on these platforms.

    Who would have thought a “social media detox” would ever be a thing? Certainly not me! But I will admit that I have tried it out before and in my experience, it was absolutely beneficial. I also have plenty of friends who took some time to stay off social media and delete their apps, they reported feeling happier overall. 

    If you think about it this way, social media is the first time in history where we have had access to see what billions of people are doing around the world. This is a bittersweet thing, because for the first time we have been exposed to so many new things and learned so much about the way people are living. At the same time, it can feel like information overload and leave you feeling filled with “FOMO” (fear of missing out) on life and what other people are up to. I think a downfall of social media, epscially apps like Instagram and Facebook is that oftentimes they are a highlight reel of someone’s life. We get to see other people traveling the world, getting job promotions, buying houses, getting married, etc. It seems like some people’s lives are just so perfect right? Well, the truth is we don’t get to see the other side of life which is the failiures, heartbreaks, loss, trauma, and all the other things that we as human beings all deal with. 

    If a social media detox sounds like something you need in your life, here are some of my tips to get started:

    1. Set a realistic timeline:

    If it’s your very first time doing a social media detox, my number one tip would be setting a realistic timeline. I think it’s easy to jump into trying this out and setting the bar really high by saying, “I won’t use any social media for 30 days” and then getting down on yourself when you only last three full days. If you’re used to going on social media every day for a long period of time, it will be a challenge to go cold-turkey without any platforms. If you’re reading this, you’re definitely considering taking some time away from IG and Facebook, but try doing this slowly. Take a couple of days off at first to see how you feel, and if that works out well you can take some more time. Don’t compare yourself to how long other people need to take a hiatus from their social media, everyone is different and maybe a 3-day break is enough for you to get your mind right!

    2. Ask a friend or loved one to join:

    Is your boyfriend, sister, or best friend also addicted to checking their Twitter and watching YouTube videos first thing in the morning? If so, it might be a cool idea to suggest doing the social media detox together. Talk to them about the benefits of taking some time off and hold each other accountable. It’s been shown that accountability helps people stick to the goals that they set out for themselves. 

    3. Think of exciting things you can do during the day/evening that will distract you from thinking about being online:

    A recent stat from statista.com says that in 2019 and 2020, the average daily social media usage amounted to 145 minutes per day. That’s over 2 hours of time on social media! It doesn’t seem like a lot when you look at it from a daily amount of usage, but multiply that amound by 7 days a week, and that’s a total of 14 hours. In that time you could be picking up a hobby, reading a book, cooking, calling a friend, or tons of other possibilities. A social media detox allows for time to prioritize thinking of fun things you can do during the time you’d usually be scrolling through social media. It might not even be about doing anything at all, maybe a social media detox will help you go to bed a bit earlier instead of scrolling into the late hours of the night.

    4. Write down all your passwords or store them safely before deleting your apps:

    This tip is super important! Before logging out or deleting your social media apps, make sure you write down or keep your passwords somewhere safe. I can’t even tell you how devastated I was when I accidentally deleted an app that I didn’t know my password for. Sometimes we are just so used to being automatically signed in that we forget the password we used to set up the account in the first place. If you’re an iPhone user, I highly suggest storing your passwords on your phone under passwords and accounts in settings. You can also use a website like lastpass.com to store all of your passwords!

    5. Write down a sentence or two about how you feel each day you’re off social media:

    One of the main purposes of a social media detox is to check in with yourself. I recommend taking notice of how you feel during this break from the digital world. Maybe you feel less anxious, or maybe you feel the same as before. Write it down! This will help you better understand the benefits or lack of you’re getting from taking this time off your accounts. In general journalling and checking in with yourself is so beneficial, I am sure you will find value in writing down how you feel during this detox. 

    I hope these tips find you well and make your social media detox a smooth one. Taking some time offline can be an amazing thing, and dare I say, an act of self-love. Choosing to rest, unplug, and focus on other things will absolutely feel rewarding. I also want to encourage you to do your best and try and compare yourself less to others. Comparison is a thief of joy, and in the end you’re only hurting yourself. Be grateful for the life you have and know that not everything it what it seems, especially on Instagram. Here’s to being more engaged in real life!