Start with a lie-in. Not too long or you can end up feeling sluggish; just enough to give your body a rest. Give yourself permission to forget your worries and relax. Begin the day well. When you wake up, start your day with a glass of hot water and a slice of lemon to cleanse your skin and liver.

Don’t spring out of bed. Start with some gentle stretching exercises. Starting with your feet, make circles with your toes, keeping your heels on the mattress. Then slowly work up your body. Circle your hands, do five shoulder shrugs to relieve stress, followed by neck stretches. Point your fingertips to the ceiling and stretch your arms.
 

Try a homemade fruit smoothie. Blend soft berries with plain low fat yoghurt with a little runny honey for sweetness. Drink fresh juice and try a cup of green tea if you can.
 

Gulf hair bakes in the sun and always needs extra conditioning. Gently warm some olive oil or coconut oil in the microwave for 10 seconds. Massage into the scalp for 2 minutes to feed the follicles and into the ends of the hair.
 

There are plenty of natural moisturisers around. Exfoliate your skin with a mild face scrub and rinse with cold water. Make your own facemask. You probably spend loads of money on skin care, so why not splash out on the real thing and use all natural ingredients? Live bio-yoghurt is a great base and add some mashed papaya. Fruit acids have been used for centuries to beautify the skin and are commonplace ingredients in expensive skin creams. Apply to the skin and leave on for at least 5 minutes before rinsing off with cold water.
 

We exercise to keep the rest of our bodies toned and youthful, and to prevent gravity from taking over, but as we age we use our facial muscles less and less and our faces can descend too. But with daily exercise and massage you will see a real change: Far more effective than any ‘lifting’ creams. Exercise can help prevent soft jaw lines developing and can also tighten up existing problems. If you are not sure what to do, you can send for my facial exercises by emailing to [email protected].
 

Run a warm bath and add a few drops of your favorite essential oil. Lavender is a good one. Frankincense is great for young looking skin and it will rejuvenate the whole body whilst you relax. Don’t be tempted to read, just put your head back on a towel, put two slices of cucumber on your eyelids and relax for about ten minutes.  
 

Follow your bath with a cool shower and use exfoliating cream to scrub your body. Exfoliation dislodges dead skin cells and speeds up cell renewal. This helps stop skin becoming crêpey as you grow older. Now is the time to shower off hair oil.  Shampoo and condition your hair. Leave the conditioner on for 5 minutes, towel off and feed your body with body lotion.
 

Give your face a gentle massage with your favorite moisturiser. Don’t forget your lips too. A massage keeps skin looking nice and plump. Throughout the day drink plenty of water to cleanse your system and keep you hydrated.
 

If you find worries or negative thoughts creep into your mind, banish them by concentrating on what you are doing and by taking really deep, refreshing breaths.
 

Hands are real age indicators and are often forgotten when applying sunscreen. Give your hands a gentle massage in warm olive oil. It also softens the cuticles to enable you to take care of your nails.
 

You haven’t been doing anything too strenuous so lunch can be light. Indulge in your favorite brightly coloured salad with a whole meal roll. My favorite is salad Niçoise, with plenty of green leaves. After lunch, how a bout a siesta or just lie down for half an hour and listen to music or read a book.
 

Partly fill a bowl with warm water and add a few drops of lavender oil. Gently massage your feet and toes, shape nails and push back cuticles.

For the remainder of your Time-In just relax. Watch a romantic video or spend an hour or so reading a book.  Enjoy!
 


I wonder why you are in such a hurry to lose weight.  Anyone can, lose weight quickly by going on a calorie reduced diet if they have the will power — but the problem is that weight lost this way comes back quickly too, and I guess that is your problem. So now you should try to lose weight in a sensible way, by eating a balanced diet... It is not good for your body to lose a lot of weight suddenly. Obviously you are getting plenty of exercise with all the housework, but if you feel your weight loss needs a boost, try taking Actrim.