We know that people who buy their lunches out are more likely to consume more calories, sugar and salt each day. On top of this, the average lunch bought out could cost you around £35 each week – so by making your own lunch just three times a week you could save yourself over £1000 each year!
So, the Christmas hype is over… we have probably overindulged on both food and drink over the holidays (and quite rightly so) but feeling like we need to get our bodies ‘back to normal’ after all the ‘treats’ we have allowed ourselves. But let’s think about this for a minute; what
will you get out of a ‘detox’ diet or a calorie restricting diet, or even just a 3 day ‘juice cleanse’? I can confidently answer this question with the response ‘absolutely nothing positive’.
As a nutritionist I get requests every year from magazines and journalists asking me for tips and quotes on ways to ‘avoid the festive weight gain’ or for ‘guilt-free Christmas recipes’. And if your inbox and twitter feed looks anything like mine, it’ll currently be full to the brim with ‘survival guides’, ‘action plans’ and ‘strategies’ for avoiding the ‘dreaded Christmas weight gain’ (*unfollow). Anyone would think that we’re preparing for going into battle, rather than entering the festive season.
Guest blogger Najia Bagi went on a 7 day digital diet. Here’s how she got on.
We spoke to one of our Directors Ruth Tongue about what healthy means to her, the craziest diet advice she’s come across and where she finds peace in the big city.
Many of you will have seen the BBC One documentary ‘Clean Eating’s Dirty Secrets’ and as a nutritionist with a qualification (not bought off the internet), I thought I’d share my thoughts on the #cleaneating phenomenon.
The best bit about these nutritious protein balls is that you can substitute any of the ingredients for whatever you find in your cupboard or supermarket (within reason of course).
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DR HEATHER MCKEE
BEHAVIOUR CHANGE SPECIALIST
Dr Heather McKee is the UK’s leading lifestyle behaviour change specialist, lecturer, speaker, consultant and founder of www.drheathermckee.co.uk. Having studied health behaviour change psychology for 10 years her mission is to help people make lasting health changes using research-driven methods to find freedom and joy in their healthy habits. She works as a habit coach (working 1:1 with clients to support them in overcoming their barriers to healthy habits) and as a behaviour change specialist (supporting businesses in designing and delivering in-person and digital wellness programmes for long term adherence and positive health outcomes). Her passion is in translating evidence-based techniques into real-life practices to help people build the skills, knowledge and confidence they need to create lasting and enjoyable healthy habits. Her motivational science-based workshops have been carefully constructed to engage and empower audiences, giving them the tools they need to create lasting healthy habits. This means that by the end of the workshop, participants have a head start on the road to changing their behaviours. Dr McKee’s research has been published internationally in leading academic journals, as well as featuring in Time magazine, Huffington Post, The Times, The Daily Mail and LA times.
SELINA CLARKE
MENTAL HEALTH ADVISOR AND TRAINER
Working to improve literacy and acceptance while promoting positive conversations around mental health has been a key driver throughout my working life. With a career that has spanned the NHS, voluntary sector and higher education establishments, progressing my career within mental health to help others to manage their wellbeing has been rewarding, but it has also shown me the need to ensure that I prioritise self-care and make time for the important things in my own life – especially as the increasing responsibility of more senior roles started to take hold. Selina is a highly experienced mental health advisor, mental health trainer/facilitator and qualified sports rehabilitation therapist and Pilates instructor.
LUCY FAULKS-BARNARD
CO-FOUNDER
Lucy is an ICF accredited coach who studied positive psychology on Dr Martin Seligman’s resilience programme. Lucy is the founder of technotox.com and an author for Everyday Mindfulness and Mindspace. She has also taught the Action for Happiness course Exploring What Matters.
JESSICA MARY DOBSON
FOUNDER OF RUN TALK RUN
Run Talk Run are a global mental health support community, who facilitate weekly 5km gentle jogs as a means of facilitating peer support. The aims of the runs are to host a non-competitive and non-intimidating space to talk about mental health and the struggles we might be facing. With weekly running meetups taking place worldwide, Run Talk Run are committed to supporting runners globally, no matter their pace.
DR SOPHIE BOSTOCK
SLEEP EXPERT
Sophie Bostock, PhD, is a health psychologist turned Sleep Evangelist. Following degrees in medicine and entrepreneurship, she completed a PhD at UCL in the field of Psychobiology, focusing on the interactions between work stress, wellbeing and heart disease. This led to an interest in sleep as one of the unsung heroes of health and performance.Sophie has conducted a number of research trials in corporate settings, exploring the impact of sleep improvement and mindfulness on productivity and wellbeing. She spent two years an NHS Innovation Accelerator Fellowship to help promote digital sleep medicine in the NHS. Sophie also works as UK Innovation Lead at Big Health, the digital medicine company, and as a performance coach at CHX Performance. Sophie has appeared as a sleep expert for the BBC and ITV, and is a TEDx speaker.
RUTH TONGUE
CO-FOUNDER
Ruth is an MSc qualified nutritionist, sports scientist and health editor with over ten years’ experience in corporate wellness.
NAJIA BAGI
FOUNDER OF SLOW FLOW – CREATIVE SESSIONS TO UNLOCK OUR FLOW STATE
Najia Bagi is a qualified yoga teacher and artist who has worked with South London Gallery, Tate, Modern Art Oxford, Arts Council England, The Hepworth Wakefield and many other organisations. Najia has extensive experience creating installations and workshops for people of all ages, using light, film and sound to help connect participants to themselves and each other. Join Najia in this (TIME) session to find your flow state, starting with a range of deep listening exercises and then having lots of fun drawing to music. Connecting to sound and your body in this way, sparks new neural pathways, opening our minds and our ability to concentrate and importantly, relaxing us and connecting us to our bodies. You might even like what you create and want to take it home!
JOHANN BORMAN
FOUNDER OF SAGELY
Johann is the Founder of Sagely, a financial wellness platform helping employees build better money habits, using neurological learning and habit formation techniques. He spent 6 years helping to start and build an investment business for a Bank and then worked for a boutique investment firm to help build a team for them. Transitioning to startups, he then worked as Director of Product of a Pan-European FinTech simplifying investing for the average person. Wanting to make a bigger impact, and passionate about empowering a better money mindset, he now spends his time and energy working to democratise finance and make it more inclusive and accessible for the average person.
JULIET HATCH
MASSAGE THERAPIST
Juliet has been a holistic therapist for over 20-years. She is trained in sports massage, seated acupressure massage, aromatherapy and reiki. Juliet’s experience as a sports masseuse brings another level of knowledge to corporate massage, helping people to understand their individual bodies and how their work environment affects their posture and movement.
ANNIE ABBS
MASSAGE THERAPIST
Annie offers a relaxing chair massage to leave you feeling uplifted, rejuvenated and “ready to go”. Annie is fully qualified, insured and licensed. She has over 12 years experience as a massage therapist and has developed a successful mobile massage therapy business. Annie is an associate of the CThA and recently took part in the National Massage Championships where she came 3rd.
PHOEBE ALLAN
REIKI INSTRUCTOR
Alongside teaching Yoga, Phoebe has been practising reiki since she trained in the Usui method in 2016 whilst on a trip to India. Reiki has consistently kept Phoebe curious about where our imbalances arise from and how we can use it to explore and heal those imbalances in a non-invasive, safe and gentle way. Phoebe’s treatments are an invitation for you to be still and receive the gift of gentle touch, which she offers with intention and love. In its many forms, holistic medicine is also a constant source inspiration for Phoebe, which she weaves into her treatments by using ceremonial incense, flower essences and essential oils to help soothe, ground and deepen your experience throughout.
SELMA STUDER
MEDITATION INSTRUCTOR AND SOUND THERAPIST
Selma is a mindfulness instructor and founder of GONG, a modern meditation concept that helps people access the benefits of meditation and sound therapy through the power of the gong. After spending more than 10 years leading marketing and communications at Fortune 500 companies as well as startups, Selma decided to follow her passion for wellness and help people do something about the stress and anxiety that ravages so many lives. Through GONG, she is bringing the meditative and revitalizing experience of gong baths to groups and individuals all over the world, helping them find more space in their minds, less tension in their bodies, and greater health and balance in their lives overall. GONG facilitates meditation sessions in workplaces, for special events, and in their dedicated Central London studio. You can learn more about GONG at aboutgong.com, book an immersive gong experience here, or get in touch at selma@aboutgong.com.
KATHERINE PENTECOST
PILATES AND SLINGS MYOFASCIAL INSTRUCTOR
Katherine teaches functional Pilates and Slings Myofascial Training with an emphasis on clear, precise cueing in a down to earth style. Her sessions are mat-based and movements are fascia-focussed and body-minded, enhanced with use of self-massage balls to help release unwanted tension and adhesions in the body. Katherine balances a geeky interest in anatomy with a desire to encourage mindful movement in her sessions for an overall sense of wellbeing.
LUCY TOMLINSON
PILATES INSTRUCTOR
I first discovered Pilates at University where I quickly fell in love with the non-competitive exercise that offers a challenge of precision, stamina and flowing movements whilst connecting mind and body. I believe that everyone should practise Pilates as part of a healthy lifestyle, whether that is to maintain an already active one or encourage low impact movement with the benefits of strength, mobility, stability, body awareness, recovery and injury prevention. In all my classes I am especially passionate about good alignment and functional movements with the intention that clients will leave walking taller, feeling stronger and more energised.
WASAY FOLADI
YOGA INSTRUCTOR
Dr Wasay Foladi’s philosophy is to be open to different influences and aims to be accessible to all. Sanskrit and chanting do not form part of his yoga teaching. Instead, he aims to challenge modern thinking about yoga. He wants to make yoga accessible to everyone, not just the chosen few. He has created his own style of yoga where anyone can participate, whether they are a beginner, intermediate or advanced yogis. He has created a Yoga called WASU – Will And Strength Unite, which is for everyone, where everything works simultaneously: mind, body, soul, breath, core, will power, strength. Just as yoga is meant to be: being One.
DARRYL BANNON
FINANCE EXPERT
Darryl is a qualified accountant who has worked for over 15 years in financial services up to senior management level before completing her MBA 5 years ago. Since then she has moved her career into consulting. While a consultant with KPMG she helped to set up their startup mentoring programme which helps entrepreneurs to manage and plan their growth. She has also led several financial improvement projects for large organisations which included rolling out supporting training programmes. Since taking the leap to create her own consultancy in 2016 Darryl has worked with a range of companies instilling strong financial controls and structure. In addition, she has been a start-up loan mentor helping entrepreneurs manage their budgets and funding. She has spoken at no 10 to lobby for SME business, is an Institute of Directors Ambassador for funding, has spoken on financial topics at a number of events and written on financial topics for FSN. At the heart of Darryl’s ethos is focused on ‘not what you earn but what you save’. Whether an individual or a business the principles are the same for being financially savvy. Not everyone’s journey will be the same but with the right tools, little changes can make a real difference to your financial wellbeing.
EMELIE MOLIN
NUTRITIONIST
Emelie is a registered associate nutritionist (AfN), highly experienced personal trainer and behavioural intervention specialist. With a BSc in Psychology, a MSc in Nutrition and Behaviour and 8 years working experience in the health industry, Emelie combines her skillsets to make leading a healthy lifestyle feel accessible and realistic for everyone.
ROSE ALLETT
SUICIDE PREVENTION EXPERT
Rose Allett is the founder and owner of Start the Conversation, offering straight-talking, evidence-based and practical training on suicide prevention skills. As well as being a skilled facilitator, Rose is a qualified counsellor, specialising in working with young people aged 13-25 and with women affected by or living with domestic abuse. She has also managed Safe Space, a late-night project helping anyone who has become lost, distressed, intoxicated or suicidal on their night out, and co-managed the Brighton & Hove Wellbeing Service for children and young people aged 4-25, managing a team of 25 counsellors, cognitive behaviour therapists, play and drama therapists and more.
DAVID BROWN
COACH AND FACILITATOR
David is a Certified Professional Co-active Coach and 4th dan black belt in karate, aikido and Japanese sword. He uses awareness of the body and the mind-body connection to empower people to greater confidence, presence and authenticity. David is also a Samaritans volunteer and trainer, facilitating deeper listening and relational skills. Together, these enable people to show up in their personal and professional relationships with more vitality and personal power.
DR GEMMA MCCORMICK
GP AND ONCOLOGIST
Dr Gemma McCormick is a doctor specialising in oncology (the treatment of cancer), currently working at the Royal Marsden Hospital, London. She completed her undergraduate medical degree at the University of Cambridge before continuing her clinical studies at Kings College London. She uses radiotherapy, chemotherapy and novel drug therapies in the treatment of a wide range of cancer types. Dr McCormick aims to improve patient outcomes and therapies through her involvement in cutting edge cancer research. Her experience of managing patients with cancer has led her to be particularly interested in health education, advising how to reduce risk of developing cancer and improve early diagnosis rates. Outside of medicine Gemma enjoys cycling and running. She is a keen traveller, particularly to go wildlife watching or to spectate the Irish rugby team.
DAVID LEFEBVRE
PSYCHOTHERAPIST AND MEDITATION TEACHER
David is a Yoga and meditation teacher with more than twenty years teaching experience, first in his native Vancouver and now in London. His passion and purpose is in facilitating personal transformation and resilience, through his classes and workshops as well as his work as an accredited psychotherapist. His approach is science based, irreverent and skeptic friendly.
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