Well Being Tips: 

Move for Health – Physical Activity Guidelines

Being sedentary is as bad as smoking for your health. 

There is no perfect posture – the key is to move regularly.

Try these 3 practices if you have been sitting too much or on the computer:

Click for Harmony Sequence

Click for Shoulder Sequence

Click for Yoga if sit too much

Move as much as you can every day.

As a minimum, aim for 30 minutes of moderate activity like brisk walking, most days of the week.

More vigorous exercise is even better for your heart. (see Cardio below)

Try to include some STRENGTH TRAINING at least twice per week – Click for PDF “How to Strength Train with Ease”.

Why do we also need MOBILITY Exercise for Optimal Health?

Mobility & stretching exercise has a positive effect on the brain, the neural & immune responses in our bodies. It can aid quality of movement, increase & maintain range of motion (this is normally lost as we age), aid relaxtion in muscles & connective tissue, reduce discomfort, improving pain tolerance, reducing local & possibly whole body inflammation, and in animal models even reducing tumour size.

Mobility exercise especially associated with yoga affects the areas of the brain called the Insula, which is involved in how we process our internal landscape to the external environment, helping to cope with pain tolerance better.

Regular yoga is associated with better health outcomes. Do you need to make yoga a part of your life?

Click to try this every day Yoga Routine

Aid Recovery with Non Sleep Deep Rest:

Following periods of hard training, exercise, periods where you feel tense or stressed, you may find the following aids your ability to bounce back.

Slow Deep Breathing – Click for PDF “How practice Slow Deep Breathing”

Body Scan Relaxation – Click for PDF “How to do Body Scan Relaxation”

Yoga Nidra – A process for deep rest, like sleep. Click Youtube Video.

Meditation – Click for PDF “How to do Meditation”

Click to try this wonderful Spinal Breath Meditation

Cardio – Get your Heart Going

Evaluate your RISK – Always check with your health professional what is the best & safest exercise for you. Generally there is greater health risk associated with being sedentary than active. However more intensive exercise can increase your risk of injury. Running especially down hills will give you more muscle soreness than cycling, due to eccentric loading.

Zone 2 Moderate – This used to be called Long Slow Distance Training. You walk, run, cycle, swim, dance or more, continuously, at a moderate pace for 30 mins or more.

High Intensity Interval – This is where you exercise at a hard level for 45 to 120 secs. With periods of light exercise between. As a minimum, research suggests, 2 bouts of 2 minutes can get you health benefits. This type of training is often used in circuit training, callistenics, step, dance, boxercise & kick boxing classes.

Sprint Intensive Interval – This is where you exercise at your highest intensity for just short bouts of 20 to 30 seconds with rest periods of very easy movement for 30 to 120 seconds. Bouts can be repeated 3 to 7 times. Remember to warm up & cool down for a couple of minutes at least.

70-80% EASY  & 20 to 30% HARD – research (and following elite athletes) suggest to train most of the time EASY with a small percentage of the work out HARD.

Reduce Muscle Tension

HIdden muscle tension can be a source of discomfort, can reduce your movement efficiency and wastes a lot of energy.

We can hold unconscious tension from bad habits, poor technique of movement eg holding a golf club too tight, and for emotional reasons such as fear, anxiety & chronic pain.

You can learn to reduce & manage tension through a simple process:

Stop what you are doing…

Take a slow deep breath in, then a long relaxing exhale out…

Check in to your body: Are you holding any tension anywhere?

Common areas include:

The forehead, the jaw, neck & upper shoulders, the forearms & hands eg using a mouse or key board, the stomach, the lower back, hips, and around the knees.

Try to relax the excess tension. Sometimes it helps to first tension the muscles a little more, then relax & let go. Breathe OUT to aid relaxation…

Click to try this breathing exercise – the long exhale

Optimise your Circadian Rhythms for Well Being

Our body hormonal health & sleep is linked to our innate inner rhythm called the CIRCADIAN cycle. This cycle depends on some external inputs, essentially light on special sensors in our eyes to help set the rhythm & keep us in balance. SUNLIGHT is the key source to help set the clock. We need morning bright light & calming evening light to help with this process. The Infra-red of sunlight also activates our cells to produce Melatonin – one of the body’s most powerful anti-oxidants to aid health.

It also helps to adjust your lifestyle, movement & diet according to the season.

For example in summer we tend towards calmer stretching yoga, and in winter we want more rhythmic moving yoga.

Mindset for Well Being

Mind set is your belief system about the HOW you believe things to be true. Did you know we see the world through a distorted vision of our beliefs & experiences?

Our Mindset can influence our health, through the choices we make and the way we interpret things going on in our lives.

Our mindset is NOT easily changed, but TWO tools can help:

Mindfulness – the process of bringing ourselves present to what is going on in front of us, as well as in our minds.

Stories – our brain is wired to listen & learn from stories. Seek out positive stories…

Say YES to LIFE!

Deep Sleep

We need to get quality Sleep of both Deep Sleep (more earlier) & REM sleep (more later in sleep) for optimal health. This aids learning & brain plasticity, healing & recovery, and mental health eg reduces anxiety.

Click for PDF “How to improve your sleep”

Click to try this yoga to aid sleep

Extra Ways to help with the Assistance of Health Professionals:

Seek guidance from your health professional about:

Nutrition

Food, Juices, Supplements eg Vit D, Correct form of Magnesium, Vit C for collagen, Zinc, B12, B3 and more…

Weight Loss

Try the New Scientific Interval Weight Loss or Speak to your Doctor

Psychosocial & Emotional Support

Medication Management – work with your Doctor.

What is the best pain managment protocol for you?

Are you taking too many medications?

Have you been taking medications for years with out being re-evaluated?

Are you taking the right dosage – the least amount to to get the optimal effect?

Good Health Resources:

Huberman Lab – a weekly Podcasts offering health & lifestyle tips based on quality science & neuroscience with Neuroscientist – Dr Andrew Huberman