Be My Guest – Health & Wellbeing

February 17, 2015 by Leave a Comment

Hi there.  One of the things I do when I first start working with clients is to focus in on self-care.  It’s so important to be in good health when you’re working with your clients and if you’re burning yourself out then you’re not going to be giving the best of yourself to others.  Healthy eating is just one aspect of self-care.

For today’s Be My Guest – Health & Wellbeing post I’d like to introduce you to Susan Davies of Thrive Magazine.

BMG Susan Davies

A self-confessed foodie with a background in design and marketing. After becoming ill with stomach condition Sue turned to her diet and healed herself through food. She’s now retrained in Holistic Nutrition and runs a Design & publishing company called Thrive Publishing. Thrive helps to promote natural, ethical and healthy brands and products. Read her story here…

She also publishes her own Health & Nutrition magazine called Thrive. A quarterly magazine that shares the latest news and features about all things healthy and natural…www.thrivepublishing.co.uk

Describe yourself in 3 short, fab and fun sentences

A self-confessed foodie and health guru out to help people find more natural food and products. I love local. I love community and want every wonderful human on this planet to ‘Thrive’.

Sue DaviesWhat made you decide to become an entrepreneur?

I gathered so much knowledge and experience in healthy food and healthy natural products that I just had to start sharing it with everyone. I’m on a mission to get the world healthy. So, I started Thrive Magazine.  I also trained in Holistic Nutrition.

Thrive Magazine - Winter2015Who has been your biggest inspiration in business?

James Duigan from Bodyism. I listened to an interview with him 6 years ago on London Real and was absolutely amazed how humble he was with the knowledge he has about Health & fitness.

What’s the best business advice you’ve ever been given?

Follow your gut on everything.  Align yourself with people who have the knowledge you crave.

What three tips would you give when working on your health?
  • Always listen to what your body is telling you – it really does know more that your mind
  • Look to make small adjustments to start – start using natural ingredients
  • You can have those days where you’re not so good, it’s about getting your own balance
What are the three biggest mistakes that people make when trying to lose weight?
  1. They go on a diet scheme (there’s a few that I can’t stand, but let’s not mention names, you can guess)
  2. One little treat and they think they have failed – it’s about balance
  3. They start eating low-fat options, low calorie drinks etc – these are some of the worst products that you could put inside your body
What if I have no idea where to start with using natural products, what do you suggest?

Small changes are best, so switch to an organic, chemical free shampoo, for instance. I also offer Cleanside reports which help you to eliminate all the nasties in your daily routines, so I identify all of the possible chemicals you may be ingesting through not just your food, but also the hygiene products that you use and then work with you to eliminate these and make healthy, more natural choices.

How much time do I really need to spend on cooking a healthy meal?

Wow, this could be anything from 10 minutes to rustle up a lovely super salad full of nuts, seeds and greens to a few hours to create that perfect dinner. There are so many simple recipes available now. Check out some of our fabulous recipes by our Thrive Magazine writers.

If I wanted to connect and/or work with you where would I find you?

www.thrivepublishing.co.uk and also soon to be www.thrive-magazine.co.uk

Thanks Susan for some great hints and tips. You may have noticed I’ve been featuring a few posts now around health and wellbeing.  As coaches, it’s so important to look after your health.  Self-care is vital when running your own business.  How well do you look after your health?

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Filed Under: Health & Wellbeing, Self Care, Wellbeing Tagged With: , ,

Stressed Out?

August 16, 2013 by Leave a Comment

I write this post as a self-confessed worrier, not as any kind of expert whatsoever.  I say ‘stress’ in the loosest sense… for those days when we say we feel ‘stressed out’, not in a medical/psychological way. I will leave all the ‘technical’ stuff to … well, the experts.  I just want others to learn some of the strategies that I’ve found helpful so far.

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Over on facebook this week I’ve been asking a few questions around ‘stress’, such as;

  • What one thing could you change today to make life a little less stressful?
  • When are you going to let go of your stress?  (add to this, your stressful behaviours, your unhelpful reactions & responses)

Sometimes the answer is really simple; slow down, take some time out for me, listen to others, go to bed earlier

Others it’s more complex; it could be your job or home life or relationship that stresses you out

Changing how you think about whatever that thing is that’s stressing you out can really make a difference.   What if it’s you?  What if your inner voice is driving you crazy, saying you’re not pretty enough, thin enough, good enough, clever enough…? What then?

You can change how you react.  Just keep remembering that.  I know if I have an overwhelming list of things to do and I start telling myself I will never get through the list, then it’s likely that I will never get through the list.  I’m so busy focusing on what I can’t do that I forget what can be achieved if I just put my mind to it.

Some strategies I’ve found helpful in my quest for a peaceful mind;

  1. Write a list – when you have a list you can feel more in control of what needs to be achieved.  Even if it’s enormous it makes it more achievable
  2. Take time to relax – a tough one when you have a busy, creative mind but very important.  What makes your heart sing? Do more of that!  I love to make cards, crochet, be creative.  Get into that ‘where did the time go zone’.
  3. Get organised – They say a tidy house means a tidy mind.  Get rid of all of those annoying little DIY jobs, cluttered cupboards, paperwork piles that drain your energy every time you see them
  4. Calm your mind – Whether that’s reading a book, exercise, doing meditation, going for a walk in nature.  Do whatever it is that makes you feel calm and focused in the present moment.   Not sure what you might like?  Pick one thing and do it, if you don’t like it move onto something else
  5. Change yourself – instead of trying to change the other person, accept them for who they are and see what needs to change within you.   If you find someone really irritates you find a way to notice their good points, rather than trying to pick up on all their bad ones to support your theory
  6. Gratitude – you know I always go on about this, because it truly is so key to a happy and calm life.  Be grateful for what you have, appreciate the small things, they really are so often the big things in life
  7. Listen to music – there’s nothing quite like a good boogie to lift your spirits and make you forget all of your niggling worries
  8. The basics – Eating well, sleeping well, drinking water all help too.  Look after your body
  9. Say no – what/who do you need to say ‘No’, or even ‘Yes’, to?  What difference could that one little word make to your life?

The best strategy so far?

Have fun!!

Filed Under: Health & Wellbeing, Mindset, Self Care, Stress Tagged With: , ,

Sleep .. Get Your Zzzzz’s

June 14, 2013 by 2 Comments

Sleep – that oh so important thing in life that we often take for granted.

Have you ever got into bed, knowing it was too late really and thought to yourself, ‘Oh why didn’t I get into bed hours earlier, this is bliss’? (No? Maybe that’s just me!)  No matter how much we fight it we need our sleep.

Image: Pinterest, Source: http://favim.com/image/520754

There is so much thought around how much we need.  Some say 8 hours, recent research suggests that shorter hours are more beneficial in terms of improved concentration etc.  Being an intermittent insomniac I’ve read quite a few articles around this topic.  One that I can never quite decide on is the power nap.  Some say it ‘steals’ your sleeping hours from your night sleep, others say it’s a great way to energise you as long as you keep it within 20-30 minutes.  Personally when I’ve had the time I go with the latter.  If I really am crashing then a quick 20 minute power nap works great for me.  (All well and good if you have the time, I hear you say!)

Sleep is so important for us.  Aside from all of the real health benefits it makes us look and feel fab, we are running with much higher energy levels and most important for us girls it’s less bags/crow’s feet/dark circles!  (I know guys, you get me on that too lol)  Sleep also makes us nicer people, we don’t usually go around snapping everyone’s heads off when we’re well rested, so there are lots of benefits to it.  It’s easy to get into a cycle of not switching off and sleep becomes our last priority, but it shouldn’t. It’s an important part of our self-care (check out my self-care quiz here)

Setting up a good sleep routine is key in helping us get more Zzzzz’s.  So what does a good routine mean for you?  Some ideas are:

  • Healthy eating
  • Increased exercise
  • Hot bath
  • No technology an hour before bed
  • Drinking a warm milky drink
  • Lavender oil on your pillow (not too much though, you’ll get a headache!)
  • Regular bedtime routine, same time every night ( how does that work at weekends?!)
  • Change your mindset – don’t tell yourself ‘I must go to sleep’.  Tell yourself ‘I always have a blissful night’s sleep’.  ‘Must’ puts the pressure on!

Want to learn more? There’s a great article here with lots of hints and tips. I’m definitely no expert on sleep, but I do know that in terms of overall health and what we can then be/do/have as a result of getting enough of it, it’s vital.  So what do you need to do in terms of sleep in the words of Berocca, to be you, ‘but you on a good day’?’

Personally I try lots of different things for when I’m out of my routine but my top 3 go to’s are;

  1. A natural Hot Chocolate called ‘Sleepy Slurp’.  It tastes delicious and has me entering that beautiful, cozy dreamland within a few minutes
  2. My notepad. I have a very busy mind so recording things before I sleep works a treat.  If I wake in the night with something on my mind it’s also there so I can jot it down and drift back off again into the land of Nod
  3. Bedtime Calculator – this ‘app‘ really helps me work with my sleep routines – try it out

I’d love to learn what works for you.  Leave me a note in the comments section below.

Missed the PR tips shared by my Be My Guest post with Louise Thornton?  Click here.

Want some help?  Get in touch …

 

 

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Filed Under: Health & Wellbeing, Sleep Tagged With: ,

Health & Wellbeing

March 22, 2013 by Leave a Comment

Health & Wellbeing – What does that mean to you?  It can mean so many things to so many people.  Last night I was shutting down my computer and I realised I hadn’t done my blog post.  My normal thing to do would be to fire it up again and get on with the job before I go to bed.  This time though I stopped for a moment and asked myself how this is helping me in terms of health and wellbeing.  Rest and relaxation is vital for our health.  I guess if I hadn’t been writing this topic I wouldn’t have given it a second thought and I’d have been up until 2am writing this out, but I made the decision to go to bed and said to myself it can wait until the morning.  Nothing bad will happen if I don’t write out my blog post!

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Physical, Mental & Emotional well being... It’s all important.  Well–Being – we all want to be ‘Well Beings’, don’t we?  So why do we put off looking after ourselves?  I guess it depends on the priority we place on it.   When we’re younger we never think health will be an issue.  As we get older we start to consider our bodies more and make better choices.  It’s not just about physical health though, being well can help us to manage stress and the pressures of daily life.  We’re nicer people to be around if we’ve learnt to manage our emotions.

If you signed up to my newsletter you would have received a copy of my ‘Wheel of Life’ last month.  It’s a tool coaches use where you group your life into various categories (generally 8) and then rate them from 0-10 according to how happy you are.  You can then identify an area to work on in your life.  If we were using it for this topic there are so many areas we could pick;

Sleep, Nutrition, Exercise, Rest & Relaxation, Worry & Anxiety, Emotions; anger, sadness.  That’s just the start of it.

What’s incredible is once you start to look after your health and wellbeing you start to realise how many other areas of your life it impacts.  Feeling tired impacts your emotions which can then impact your relationships.  Eating unhealthily can make you unwell creating worry and anxiety.  By making some simple changes you can start to feel more energised and ready to take on life and all it has to offer.

The first step to making change in this area is to identify how you take your body for granted.  Are you a sleep deprived caffeine junkie?  Do you shout at everyone that dares to cut you up on the road?  What do these things tell you about your health?

What needs to happen for you to put your health and wellbeing first?  We often put it at the bottom of the list, but actually it needs to be at the top.

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Your homework for this week is to have a really good belly laugh, whether it’s watching a movie that always sets you off, a quick video on YouTube or going to see a comedy.  Do one thing this week that really makes you laugh and then start to take yourself more seriously when it comes to looking after your health and wellbeing.

Liked this article?  Try out my Self-Care Quiz.  If you like this blog post then please feel free to share using the buttons below.  If you want to improve your health and wellbeing and don’t know where to start then get some Coaching with me.

ps – If you haven’t seen my first ‘Be My Guest’blog post with my lovely Social Media expert guest, Rebekah Harriman make sure to check it out for some fun social media tips.  There’s a giveaway there for you.  There’s also a free funky goal planner on my ‘freebies’page.  Next week we have another great guest interview, watch this space!

Filed Under: Coaching, Health & Wellbeing, Life Coaching, Self Care Tagged With: , , , ,
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