Boost Your Feel Good Hormones

Feeling happy all the time sounds nice, but trying to find a sense of peace and serenity 24/7 isn’t as easy as it sounds. The good news is that we can do quite a few things to take us from lackluster to loving life! Next time you find yourself felling a bit under-enthused for no particular reason, try these 3 tips to boost your feel good hormones!  

Grab some carbs: That’s right, there actually is some reasoning behind why you feel so good after eating your mom’s homemade muffins. Serotonin, a hormone that helps to regulate your mood, spikes in the presence of carbohydrates. Research has found that carbohydrate rich foods can increase our serotonin levels and even improve mood.

Carbohydrates help our brains uptake tryptophan, helping us to make more feel good hormones. In order for our body to produce enough serotonin we require the amino acid tryptophan. Therefore, tryptophan helps to regulate our feeling good by making sure our brain can make enough serotonin. Try and chose nutrient dense and low glycemic carbs such as oats, berries, buckwheat, gluten free pastas and bananas.

Get a tan: Not only does have a tan make us look great, it can actually make us feel god! Ever heard of the winter blues? Well vitamin D deficiency is known for its connection with Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), a type of depression that can affect people who are exposed to long and dark winters. Low vitamin D levels have been linked to feelings of sadness. We can fix this problem with short, regular exposure to sunlight (or UVB tanning beds). Exposure to sunlight helps our bodies make Vitamin D and keep our spirits up. Get outside for 15-20 minutes each day, without sunscreen, to increase your vitamin D levels.

Get your passport ready: Jobs, relationships, bills, work commute…the everyday grind gets to us and breaks us down after a while. We can’t seem to find a way to unwind and our stress levels keep rising and our mood keeps getting worse, so what can we do? Book a trip. You don’t have to go to a 5 star tropical island, a simple weekend get away, a mini road trip for the day can all do wonders for your mood and mental sanity. Taking a mini holiday will help keep you refreshed, happy and feeling more balanced.