Maximize Your Metabolic Health this Fourth of July Weekend

The long-awaited Fourth of July weekend is finally here! But whether it’s due to travel, gatherings, or upended schedules, if you’re worried about sticking to healthy routines and recharging for the week ahead, don’t worry: we’ve got you covered!

Calibrate’s Expert Council members weighed in on how to maximize the four pillars of metabolic health when you’re in vacation mode. Read more about their tips on making the most of some extra time off, putting your health first, and staying on track. 

Food

At Calibrate, our food philosophy helps us find ways to eat more mindfully. We can take this approach with us as we start to navigate the world of eating out at restaurants, barbecues, and parties.

Watch the "pick-ables": Instead of grazing your way to dinner, grab a plate and portion out your dips and cheeses. If these pick-ables are too much of a trigger and you’re in charge of the menu you can try something like these caprese skewers, a shrimp cocktail, smoked salmon cucumber bites, or this simple and refreshing cucumber salad. - Stephanie Middleberg, Calibrate Food Expert 

Light the grill: A lot of us have been conditioned to associate summer holiday meals with dishes that derail health and fitness goals. Salads drowning in mayo, anyone? Prove to yourself, your family, and your friends that healthy food can taste incredible. Grab some fresh recipes and make some mouth-watering meals that redefine summer eats. - Adam Rosante, Calibrate Exercise Expert

Hydrate: We all know it, yet we still all forget it. On a three-day weekend, many of us salivate at the idea of a latte at brunch, a cocktail at sunset, or a couple glasses of wine with dinner. The real MVP beverage of your weekend should be good quality spring or filtered water. Replete your thirsty body to help with your energy, physiology, and mood. - Ellen Vora, MD, Calibrate Sleep and Emotional Health Expert 

Even if you aren’t the host this weekend, you’re still in control of how to best nourish yourself to continue making small, positive changes to your health.

Sleep

Consistent, quality sleep is crucial to our overall brain and metabolic health. Here are some tips on how to build and maintain a proper sleep routine.

Prioritize High Quality Sleep: Sleep is the foundation of your health and wellness. It's when your body regulates hormones, restores brain function, improves physical performance, and so much more.8-9 hours is what we aim for at Calibrate. Use this time to establish a sleep ritual that you can follow when the workweek comes. - Adam 

See Sunshine First Thing in the Morning: So many of us exist in a state of chronic exhaustion, so when we get a day off, we sleep in and take it slow in the morning. To help us feel recharged and set us up for a better week, the best thing to do is to stick to a relatively early and consistent wake-up time, and repay our sleep debt on the other end by crawling into bed earlier. By seeing bright sunlight as close to sunrise as possible, this starts the clock on our circadian rhythm and helps us thrive during the day and get tired at the appropriate time at night. - Ellen

Exercise

We know it’s important to stay active to improve our overall metabolic health, but it can be difficult to find the time to exercise with a demanding weekend schedule. Here’s how we can prioritize movement over the long weekend.

Play: With overflowing inboxes and endless rabbit holes on the internet, many of us are rusty at the lost art of playing. Find a way to be goofy and let loose. Put on 80s music and dance, rough house with a puppy or a toddler, or have a Disney music singalong. Put on the music that lights you up, drop your inhibitions, and connect to that playful inner child. - Ellen 

Go Outside: Exercise doesn't need to happen within four walls. Get outside and get moving. It could be anything from a run to a bodyweight workout to some fun and games with your friends and/or family on the beach. Bring more joy to your workouts and you'll enjoy working out, for life. - Adam 

Emotional Health

A long weekend is a great time to check in with ourselves and see how we’re feeling. Finding some quiet time can help us evaluate and plan to ensure that our needs are met before catering to everyone else around us.

Unplug: This can mean reading a paper book, taking a bath, hanging with friends, or spending time in nature without being tethered to your phone. Resist the temptation to while away the hours scrolling TikTok or Instagram. - Ellen 

Use Your Emotional Database: Think about what you know about your future self. Is your future self saying, “Heck yeah! Four margaritas were totally worth this hangover! Do it!” or will your future self say, “I feel so good when I am well rested and hydrated. Thank you, me!” You are the expert on you—do some predictive modeling. - Christine Celio, PhD, Calibrate Emotional Health Expert 

Be Intentional: Sometimes we make peace with our future selves and make the decision to do something we usually wouldn’t. Be honest and intentional with yourself about the choice. Write it down in your journal or say out loud, “I’m choosing to take a day off from my workout because I want to go to this event” or “I’m excited about this special cake and am choosing to eat it.” This creates the opportunity to observe the decision and feel confident in it, which will reduce regret later. - Christine 

By unplugging from the world, evaluating our emotions, and being intentional in our chosen actions, we prioritize ourselves and our emotional health, creating room for anything that the future (or a long holiday weekend) may bring. 

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