Losing weight and staying healthy doesn’t have to be complicated or time consuming. With the right exercises and habits, you can effectively shed those extra pounds and feel more energetic every day. Here are eight daily exercises and practices that can help you reduce weight, all while fitting into your busy schedule.
1. Drink Plenty of Water
Staying hydrated is one of the simplest yet most effective ways to support your weight loss journey. Drinking water before meals can help you feel fuller, reducing the likelihood of overeating. It also helps boost your metabolismand aids in the digestion process.
How to Make It a Habit: Carry a water bottle with you wherever you go, and set reminders on your phone to take a sip regularly.
2. Go for a Jog or Walk
Jogging or walking is a fantastic way to burn calories and improve cardiovascular health. Whether you prefer a brisk walk in the morning or a jog in the evening, this activity can easily be incorporated into your daily routine.
How to Make It a Habit: Start with a 15-minute walk or jog each day, and gradually increase the time as you build endurance. Consider taking a walk in the morning before you start your daily activities and also after meals to help with digestion.
3. Eat Plenty of Fruits and Vegetables
Incorporating more fruits and vegetables into your diet is crucial for weight loss. These foods are low in calories but high in fiber, keeping you full longer and helping you avoid unhealthy snacking.
How to Make It a Habit: Plan your meals around vegetables and include a serving of fruit with every meal. Keep fresh produce readily available for snacks.
Swimming is an excellent full-body workout that burns a significant number of calories while being gentle on the joints. Whether you’re doing laps or simply enjoying a fun swim with the family, this activity can be both effective and enjoyable.
How to Make It a Habit: Aim to swim at least three times a week. If possible, join a local pool or swim group to stay motivated.
5. Practice Yoga
Yoga is not only great for relaxation and stress relief, but it also helps with weight loss. Certain poses can build strength, improve flexibility, and boost metabolism. Yoga also promotes mindfulness, which can help you make healthier food choices.
How to Make It a Habit: Start your day with a 10-15 minute yoga routine. There are plenty of online videos available that cater to different levels and goals.
6. Try Skipping Rope
Skipping rope is a high-intensity cardiovascular exercise that can burn a lot of calories in a short amount of time. It also improves coordination, agility, and endurance.
How to Make It a Habit: Start with 5-10 minutes of skipping daily. As your fitness level improves, gradually increase the duration.
7. Dance Your Way to Fitness
Dancing is a fun and effective way to get your heart rate up and burn calories. Whether it’s a structured dance class or just dancing around your living room, this activity can make weight loss enjoyable.
How to Make It a Habit: Dedicate 20-30 minutes a day to dancing. Choose your favorite music, and don’t be afraid to let loose!
8. Focus on Consistency
The key to weight loss success is consistency. It’s better to do moderate exercise every day than to engage in intense workouts sporadically. Combining these exercises with a healthy diet will yield the best results over time.
How to Make It a Habit: Set small, achievable goals and track your progress. Celebrate your milestones, and remember that every little bit counts.
Conclusion
By practicing these simple exercises and habits into your daily routine, you can steadily work towards your weight loss goals. The best and most interesting part is, these activities are easy to do, require minimal equipment, and can fit into even the busiest of schedules.
So grab your water bottle, lace up your sneakers, and get started on your journey to a healthier you. Let’s me know how this works after having a daily practice with them, How helpful it was to you and also
The Delse Shop recently announced these women as changers of the beauty industry in Ghana and we couldn’t agree more. These women are providing natural beauty products and solutions that are helping to redefine natural beauty as we know it. In this article we share with you 5 Ghanaian women changing the beauty industry in Ghana.You can check out stories of other amazing women in business here
VIOLET A. AMOABENG (SKIN GOURMET)
Violet Amoabeng-Skin Gourmet
The first Ghanaian woman changing the beauty industry in Ghana that we would like to throw the spotlight on is Violet A. Amoabeng is the Founder and CEO of Skin Gourmet Limited, a Ghanaian start-up that produces raw, handcrafted skincare products so pure you could eat them. She is one of the female entrepreneurs changing the beauty industry in Ghana in recent times.
Violet founded Skin Gourmet about 5 years ago after recognizing a demand for unadulterated, high-quality body care products.
Her company’s products are entirely handcrafted with traditional Ghanaian procedures that retain them in their purest form.
Violet has always been a lover of mother earth. This forced her to focus on creating a unique line that is sustainable and forward looking.
She hopes to teach Africans that their culture should be preserved .
In her own “Nature is perfect – its man that is flawed. And our African traditions respect, enhance and preserve nature.”
Her admonition to all Africans is to make the effort to preserve our tradition by adapting our bodies and lifestyles to suit nature instead of the other way around.
FULERA SEIDU (NZUA)
Fulera Seidu-Nzua by Nature/Winamzua
Fulera Seidu is the originator of the Nzua by Nature brand another authentic brand in the beauty industry in Ghana; formulators of natural based skin and hair care products.
She is also an indigenous jeweler who offers white labeling services for businesses. Fulera originates from a traditional household in Ghana’s Upper East Region.
Following a tough childhood, she learnt to tune into herself and leverage on her talents and abilities to survive and succeed. As such, her decision to pursue art and crafts was a watershed moment in her life where she found that she had a natural drive to express herself through distinctive items made from natural materials.
She has since gone on to produce jewelry, skin and hair care products using natural materials and African inspired designs.
She goes throughout West Africa in search of the greatest and most appropriate materials to bring real African patterns and culture to life.
Her love of nature has served as an inspiration for her work, which is evident in her designs.
Fulera creates 100% green accessories by using wood, leather, cow horn, bone, as well as repurposed glass beads.
She is dedicated to her work and takes the time to give each piece a professional finish.
Fulera hopes to set up a workshop where she can train youths, particularly those from underprivileged backgrounds in the community.
TUTUWAA AHWOI (NOKWARE)
Tutuwaa Ahwoi-Nokware
Tutuwaa is a marketing professional and founder of Nokware Skincare another top of the class beauty brand changing the beauty industry in Ghana.
The company was founded on a family heritage of making products with traditional African herbs and oils.
It all began when Tutuwa Ahwoi met Thato Tau from Botswana while studying in Paris.Tutuwa showed Thato how to make black soap using pure shea butter. When the two returned to their respective home countries, Thato requested that Tutuwa continue to bring her the things that were not accessible in Southern Africa. Soon Thato’s friends began asking for them as well.
Over time, what began as a group of friends merely exchanging beauty secrets grew into a company selling natural skincare products in Ghana, Botswana, Europe, and North America.
In September 2017, Nokware officially launched a product line of African Black Soap created with shea butters, and materials gathered from local women’s cooperatives in West Africa.
She makes Nokware products, utilizing traditional know-how skincare techniques she learnt from her great-grandmother, who also helped her understand the concepts of simplicity and self-love.
As such, Tutuwa set out to build a firm based on the concepts of simplicity, sustainability, and self-love.
The company operates on a community commerce model that emphasizes fair pricing, giving back to the communities it serves, and empowering individuals who have not had equal opportunity to earn a living.
They also recently launched the Inclusive Beauty Movement in order to promote selflove.
There is also a campaign underway to combat colorism and underrepresentation of different skin tones in the media and the beauty industries.
Tutuwa wants to transform the way people think about beauty by advocating for underrepresented skin tones as a distinct shade of beauty that should be cherished.
SHARON AGYAPONG (EYA NATURALS)
Sharon Agyapong-Eya Naturals/Kaydua Luxury
Sharon Agyapong is another powerful Ghanaian woman changing the beauty industry in Ghana . She is the founder of Eya Naturals Limited, a natural-products focused cosmetics company and Kaydua Luxury, a range of skincare products.
Despite a stellar career in economics, finance and telecommunications, Sharon moved into entrepreneurship to start the Eya brand.
The brand’s products are inspired by the finest local natural African ingredients that have been used effectively in Africa for centuries, to protect hair and skin.
The products are also aimed at serving as a safer, natural alternative to existing products. As such, they do not contain Sulfates, Parabens, Mineral Oil or Petrolatum.
By this, Sharon hopes to register the Eya brand’s commitment to providing consumers with the safest hair and skin care products.
Sharon started her business from her home but has successfully scaled up to serve clients in the United States, Nigeria, Togo, Rwanda, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Zimbabwe, and Japan.
Among her most reputable clientele are Samira Bawumia, Naa Ashorkor Mensah Doku and famous Ghanaian hip-life musician Captain Planet.
Sharon attended University Primary and JSS in Legon before going on to Akosombo International School to study Economics, Geography, and Mathematics.
She was accepted to Mount Holyoke College to pursue a Bachelor of Economics degree after graduating from high school. Thereafter, she worked in the finance field in the United States before leaving to Ghana.
Her most recent position was as Diageo Ghana as Head of Strategy, a position she vacated to work full time on her Eya and Kaydua brands.
Eya Naturals Limited has since gone on to operate a number of salons and spas across the country.
ISRAELLA KAFUI MANSU (MGL NATURALS)
Israella Kafui Mansu- MGL Naturals
Israella Kafui Mansu is also another Ghanaian woman changing the beauty industry in Ghana and is the founder of MGL Naturals. The brand has grown tremendously since its birth in 2009, and is now recognized as one of the best natural skin and hair care products made in Ghana.
Israella started the company after she couldn’t find any employment. She had at the time just completed her national service, after earning a degree in Consumer Science and Psychology from the University of Ghana.
The situation inspired her to create something for herself. It was then that she started using her kitchen as a laboratory, where she created and prepared the first few beauty goods, using her life savings of GHS300. She continued to conduct researches and develop designs to transform the brand to meet both domestic and international markets in Africa, Asia, the United States, and Europe.
Israella is an advocate for made in Ghana products. This is evident in how she proudly displays the Ghanaian flag on her product packaging.
She is dedicated to addressing developmental issues, establishing long-term employment, and mentoring emerging entrepreneurs.
To this end, she employs and educates under served rural women and youths, teaching them technical skills such as manufacturing soap, body cream/butter, and hair pomade, as well as packaging, marketing, and other fundamental business skills.
Israella Kafui Mansu saw the high rate of unemployment among Ghanaian youngsters and the dearth of vocational skills training as a chance to establish her own business.
She found solutions to the developmental difficulties she noticed in her community at the age of 24, while she was unemployed.
This is why she creates, manufactures, and sells high-quality handcrafted and natural hair and body care products both locally and internationally.
Being a mompreneur comes with many responsibilities, from taking care of your kids to ensuring your business is running smoothly. Juggling these can be pretty challenging, and you must prioritize your self-care, so you’re always at your best. Here are some self-care tips worth considering for your mental and physical well-being.
Don’t be afraid to take breaks
Sometimes, you only need to take some time off to reset and come back stronger, even if it’s just for a few minutes. You may feel like things may not go the way you’ll want them to if you step back for a while, but taking breaks is vital for you. Doing this will help you delegate more and allow you to ask for help when you need it. Although you may feel some mom guilt initially, you shouldn’t encourage it but rather remind yourself that you need a break too. It could be a short power nap, a break to have a healthy snack, or even taking your kids over to their grandparents for a day or two, so you can have some alone time.
Know when to say no
As a mompreneur, you’ll often need to be assertive and also set boundaries. You may not always be able to take on everything at once, and knowing when to say no will help reduce the likelihood of you feeling pressured. It’s best to have clear boundaries so you can also have time for yourself. For instance, you can decide not to take orders on weekends, so you can relax and spend quality time with your family. Doing this will also help you avoid overpromising to clients, so you don’t end up having so much to do that you can’t meet your customers’ demands.
Find what works for you
Knowing what helps calm you down when you’re stressed is vital in prioritizing your self-care and will help you relax when you feel overwhelmed. Maybe listening to your favourite music will help soothe you, or a hot shower after a hard day’s work. Whatever it may be, it would help if you knew what calms you down, so you spend more time doing that. Additionally, you should know the things that trigger you negatively so that you can avoid them as much as possible.
Make time for your favourite hobby
If you love to bake, try new recipes, swim, etc., it would help if you consciously set time aside to engage in those activities to help you unwind. This step is a great way to stay connected with yourself and sharpen some of your skills. If you love to write, keeping a journal is also a great way to build your hobby and note down some of your best-loved memories so you can easily refer to them. It will also help you pause after a busy day to gather your thoughts and plan for the next day.
Be intentional about your sleep routine
Getting a good night’s rest is essential for your well-being. As a mompreneur, it may be challenging to find enough time to sleep. However, there are a few ways you can be more intentional about your bedtime routine. For instance, you can reduce your screen time at night so you can get into bed earlier. You can also find ways to make your room cosy enough for you to unwind. Some soft background music can also do the trick. If you love taking caffeine to give you the energy you need to keep going, it’s best to cut down on that as well, especially at night, so it will be easier for you to fall asleep. As a plus, try and have some days to turn off the alarm and sleep in if you can. You can make this easier by asking your spouse, siblings, etc., to fill in for you on those days so that you can sleep longer.
As the famous saying goes, you can’t pour from an empty cup. Therefore, as you focus on taking care of your family and business, remember that taking some time off for yourself is equally important. Practicing the tips listed above will yield lasting results for your well-being and give you the right state of mind to achieve your goals. Don’t forget to celebrate your little wins as well.
The month of love is here again and we are no doubt wondering what to get our loved ones. Whether it’s for that special someone or you just want to pamper yourself (because you certainly deserve it too), here are a few gift ideas that will help make your search easier.
Some chocolate is certainly good for the soul! With its colorful packaging and variety of flavors, Midunu Chocolates (by Selassie Atadika) are the perfect way to spoil yourself or remind someone of how much sweetness they have brought into your life. Midunu chocolates are a mixture of quality and affordability with a range of gift sets from the 6-piece box and 12-piece box to the 24-piece box. As Selassie herself puts it “The flavors of Midunu chocolates are a chef-scripted love story to our continent in every bite.”
You can never go wrong with a yummy breakfast basket. Whether cupcakes, some fruits, pastries, sandwiches etc., an A2K breakfast basket is a lovely way to say “I love you”, not just to others but a tasty treat for yourself as well! Packaged in dainty yet attractive baskets, this gift is convenient and fills the tummy too!
Maybe you want Valentine’s Day to be a year of reflection for you this year and what better way to reflect than to write your thoughts down and put some plans in place? The Unstuck Mentor (by personal women’s coach, Banke Sotomi) offers great planning tools such as Affirmation Journals and the Modern Woman Planner. Valentine’s Day is the perfect time to reflect on how far you have come and where you hope to be someday.
Did someone just say a back and neck massage plus lunch?! This Valentine’s Day, Celfee Spa (located in East Legon) together with Sweet Temptations by Anike are offering a special treat for two, to have a relaxing massage and a delicious meal afterwards. 2020 has already been quite eventful, you certainly need to take a break and regroup, and the Celfee Massage can do the magic.
Show your skin some love this season with natural skin and haircare products made with the African woman in mind. The Delse Shop offers a range of the best made in Ghana beauty products from brands such as MGL Naturals, R&R Luxury, Peini and Serwakoto Naturals. What better way to show your skin some natural love?
Rene’s Giftspot specializes in personalized chocolates and cute hampers. Want a gift that consists of different but useful items such as stationery, wine, teddy bears, sweets, daily materials and toiletries? Then a Rene’s Giftspot hamper is a creative but affordable way to express your love this Valentine’s Day.
As you show others love this season, don’t forget to take some time off to appreciate yourself too. You’re doing great so far.
Achieving goals sometimes seem more doable when we have people to look up to or who have already set an example. We are always inspired to see women excel not only personally but also entrepreneurially. Today, we shift the spotlight on nine Ghanaian mom-preneurs we admire and how they weave their magic:
Gwen Gyimah Addo (Hair Senta)
As the Chief Executive Officer of the luxury hair brand The Hair Senta (started in 2008), Gwen Addo has risen through the ranks over the years as the owner of one of the biggest hair companies in Ghana. She started selling hair right from the trunk of her car, staying determined till she opened her first shop. Gwen is a former participant of the popular beauty pageant Miss Malaika (2003) and believes that gave her the platform and exposure she needed to build her brand and career.
She has carried her skills gained from her corporate background in the banking sector and educational background in entrepreneurship and innovation from the China Europe International Business School (CEIBS), into the day-to-day management of her business. One key take-away point from her entrepreneurial journey is passion; in her own words “you should not be interested in just copying, but have that passion to pursue your ideas because it’s that drive you will need when everything doesn’t go according to plan” (Gwen Gyimah Addo, 2017). She is married with two kids and places premium on keeping her family involved in order to strike that work-life balance.
Claudia Lumor (Glitz)
With a strong belief in telling the African story, Claudia Lumor channeled her passion for fashion into her brainchild, Glitz Magazine which has eventually expanded into other brand extensions such as Glitz Style Awards and Glitz African Fashion Week.
Taking the bold decision to leave the financial sector in the UK and settle back in Ghana “was not easy at all” in her own words (Claudia Lumor, 2018) but with her focus on hard work, belief in oneself, creativity and credibility she has eventually placed the Ghanaian fashion industry on the world map.
A mother of three who has been married for over ten years, Claudia is also very passionate about maternal health and champions this cause through her Glitz Africa Foundation.
To her, one key factor in combining work with marriage is having a supportive family.
Valerie Obaze (R&R Luxury Ltd)
Described by Forbes as an “African skincare trailblazer’, Valerie Obaze founded R&R Luxury, a cosmetic brand that uses shea butter as its main ingredient for its products, in 2010. Her business idea was inspired by finding a product she could use for her newborn daughter’s skin. After much research, she birthed her idea through her first product, Shea Oil.
The brand has gradually expanded beyond Africa to the United Kingdom and the United States.
She has always nurtured her entrepreneurial traits, starting from her own PR agency she founded with her friend, to her current company R&R Luxury. She believes one advantage of being an entrepreneur is having the space to also factor in her children and have enough time for them by working from home.
Valerie is very passionate about motherhood, and founded the Mumpreneurs network in 2015.
Sacha Okoh (So Aesthetics)
Sacha launched her beauty career right after school in 2005 with the Ghanaian weather and woman’s skin in mind.
Her makeup brand, SO Aesthetics has over the years developed into a well-known and trusted brand specifically for the rich African skin.
She has grown to be a well of knowledge in the Ghanaian fashion and beauty sector, with her background from the London School of Fashion and London School of Beauty and Makeup.
She also runs Viva Boutique, a luxury clothing and accessories store for women. Sacha is a mother of three and believes in balancing work and family with a healthy lifestyle.
Evita Joseph Asare (Evita Joseph Brand)
Evita Joseph Asare, a mechanical engineer by profession, entered the makeup world through an experience in France, where she was advised in a makeup store that she needed a concealer.
Her interest in makeup eventually grew and she decided to apply her background in research and design to the beauty industry.
With a desire to challenge herself and learn more about the beauty industry, she signed up for beauty school whilst on maternity leave and launched her makeup brand, Evita Joseph Makeup, not too long after.
With feats such as ‘Best Beauty Retail Store in Ghana’ in both 2014 and 2016, Evita believes good things take time and often start small.
Ethel Adjorlolo Marfo (Junior Shapers Africa)
Popularly known as “Ethel theMompreneur”, Ethel Marfo has carved her niche as a ‘male child development activist’ who is passionate about nurturing young boys into responsive men who will not only impact society positively but also be positioned to support the contemporary African woman.
This vision was birthed with the future of her three daughters in mind as she and her husband are raising them to be independent and driven women, as well as a desire to contribute to bringing up responsible, holistic men in the society. She successfully carries out this vision through her non-profit organization, Junior Shapers Africa.
Her background in Public Relations and Marketing has played a key role in her branding and communications, and also runs Salon Cuties, a salon for children. She is also the founder of All Moms in Leadership (aML), a group aimed at supporting women who are faced with balancing both business and motherhood.
As a mother of three, she believes strongly in raising children, both male and female, holistically so they can compliment each other in achieving great feats in society.
Lucy Quist (Quist Blue Diamond)
Known as the ‘first Ghanaian woman to head a multinational telecommunications company’, Lucy Quist has a ton of experience in the corporate and technology world, ranging from being an Electrical and Electronic Engineer at Ford Motor Company to a former CEO of Airtel Ghana.
With a strong desire to see women lead in male-dominated areas such as Science, Technology and Engineering, she founded Quist Blue Diamond, a technology and data-driven company.
She has also founded other businesses and initiatives such as Fresh Bakery, a network aimed at positioning African people to ‘contribute to the global economic pie’ (Lucy Quist, 2017), and the Executive Women Network.
She is a strong advocate for ‘The Bold New Normal’, an idea she pioneered to impact the African mindset through taking bold actions.
She believes in delegation, organization and separation of time to effectively balance her career with being a mother of three.
Beryl Agyekum-Ayaaba (Echo House)
Beryl Agyekum-Ayaaba is the Chief Executive Officer of Echo House, a creative marketing and event agency. Also with a background in engineering and marketing, Beryl initially envisioned Echo House as a magazine whilst in University, but the brand has evolved over the years into a multi-faceted agency with the youth at its core.
Named as one of the 100 Most Outstanding Women Entrepreneurs by fellow community of women, WomenRising, Beryl combines her passion for the youth and creativity to sustain a formidable brand.
She recently joined the motherhood gang in 2019.
Dentaa Amoateng MBE (GUBA Enterprise)
With a desire to improve relations between Africa and the UK, Dentaa Amoateng has made formidable strides in the diaspora with her brainchild GUBA Enterprise, earning her a number of awards and honors including the ‘Member of the Order of the British Empire’ (MBE, from the Queen of England in 2016 and ‘Young Female Achiever of the Year’ at the 2019 edition of the Exclusive Men of the Year (EMY) Awards!
Yes, you read right…she won an award at an event that celebrates the best in men’s achievements across all walks of life!
With a background in nursing borne out of her passion for children, Dentaa has extended that passion into society-driven initiatives that have helped place Ghana, and Africa, on the world map.
She believes in setting a clear distinction between work and family in order to have time for her four kids.
What are your goals as we kick start the New Year? 2020 is already underway but don’t freak out just yet. With determination, planning, action (and some rest of course), you will have a fulfilling year!
Which other mom-preneurs inspire you? We will be glad to hear from you!
