The A Plan: the easy way to holiday health

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After months of a grinding daily schedule, August is here, and with it, for many of us, the opportunity to ditch the routine and indulge in some summer fun. Whether it's taking a break from the demands of work or a hectic home life, the thought of time off is as delicious as it is necessary. Life Coach Alexandra Massey explains why

Summer holidays, by their nature, bring about lots of small lifestyle changes, but they're usually bad ones. It's no wonder, given the frantic pace of modern life, that we allow ourselves a bit of celebratory indulgence.

Nor is it any surprise, though, that after two weeks of succumbing to temptation - ditching exercise in favour of lolling about on a lilo and overdoing the local vino - we return to reality saddled with a holiday hangover: heavier, dehydrated, less fit, even skin-damaged. In other words, we give ourselves yet another hill to climb when the holiday high has faded.

But change shouldn't mean letting it all go to pieces, health-wise. How much more positive and exciting would it be to return to work after this summer break not only recharged but also with a new resolve and the means to keep that holiday feeling going for months? The Daily Telegraph's "A-Plan" for August is designed to combat the holiday pitfalls, and instead make this month a time for activity and achievement.

Before you dismiss the uneasy combination of "holiday" and "healthy", just think for a moment. Wouldn't you like to have more energy; find a new hobby; eat more healthily; lift that low mood; reduce long-term stress; and generally feel fitter? It is possible. And, contrary to all our unhealthy notions about what constitutes a good holiday, August is the perfect time to get on top of all these things.

Forget the panicky pre-Christmas diet to squeeze into that dress and the excruciating January purge that leaves you feeling miserable; it is much easier to adopt a new routine when you're on holiday. Studies show that we are much better equipped to learn when our minds are unstressed and we're brimming with those happy brain chemicals - whether sunning ourselves in the Med or just kicking back at home.

So a relaxed atmosphere or setting, coupled with more "me" time than usual, makes for the perfect opportunity to add a few "do's" to the decadent "don'ts", and perhaps even banish some of the bad habits that hinder us at home.

The A-Plan is designed to inspire you to take control this month, and make some small changes for the better while you have more time and flexibility to do so.

Over the next three weeks, it will show you how to make the most of your holiday, using it to invest in the health of your mind, body and emotional wellbeing.

No one is suggesting a monastic regime, or a terrifying detox, but rather kick-starting a few gentle adjustments.

If there's something you need to address, such as high cholesterol or blood pressure, a taste for fatty food, or sleep problems, it is less of a chore to tackle it when the sun and mood are high.

The key is to transform some of your old habits into new ones. Habits are learned behaviour, and experts say it takes about 21 days to implement or change one; by day 22, it's part of your normal routine.

Imagine all the new healthy habits you can put in place for the autumn by simply deciding you are going to embrace them right now.

Research also suggests that we learn most effectively in "bite-sized" chunks: short, manageable bursts of new information are quickly assimilated and easily remembered. For that reason, the A-Plan falls into three sections, each corresponding to just one time of day - morning, afternoon or evening - and full of energising tasks that will blend into your holiday routine.

The A-Plan will harness your morning zoom when your mental clarity is at its peak, boost your afternoon endorphins when your body is biologically ready for exercise, and nourish and calm you as you wind down at the end of the day.

If you incorporate just a few good habits into each part of your day, you won't want to stop when you get home.

So get up off that lounger and seize the spirit of summer. Alexandra Massey is the author of 'Life's A Beach: Keep That Holiday Feeling All Year Round' (Virgin), which is available from Telegraph Books for 6.99 + 99p p p. Call 0870 428 4112 or visit books.telegraph.co.uk

Additional information:

From www.telegraph.co.uk:
Information about diet tips for children with high cholesterol from the American Academy of Family.
The causes of high cholesterol may be genetic or hereditary factors in the manufacture of cholesterol by the liver or in fat metabolism, a diet high in.
Although a diet high in saturated fat is the main cause of high blood cholesterol levels, eating foods high in cholesterol can also raise blood cholesterol.
Familial combined hyperlipidemia is a disorder of high cholesterol and high. the diet, they will compete with cholesterol in the digestive.
Lifestyle changes such as exercising and eating a healthy diet are the first line of defense against high cholesterol. But, if you've made these important.
High blood cholesterol is one of the major risk factors for heart disease. Diet. Saturated fat and cholesterol in the food you eat make your blood.
If you want to adopt a diet to lower cholesterol ensure you know which foods need to be included.
In case your diet does not contain high cholesterol foods, but you still have high cholesterol levels, then to learn how to lower your cholesterol.

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