Like most people this week I have been watching the awful news from Ukraine and it can be hard not to be overwhelmed by it. If you are feeling stressed or overwhelmed, whether by world events or by what is going on in your own life, practising gratitude can help you to hold onto hope and happiness by reminding you of what is good.
Spend 5 or 10 minutes a day writing down the things that you are grateful for. This might be your family, friends, finding something you had lost, seeing a rainbow, being able to take your dog for a walk, having a good night’s sleep, the bus being on time, it can be whatever is good for you today.
There are several benefits. Firstly, it allows you to focus on something positive, not just the bad things in life. Secondly, it can help you to realise what is important to you and therefore what you might want to prioritise, for example if you love spending time with people who make you laugh try to make this a priority. And finally, when things do get overwhelming, it gives you a list of good things to look at to spark some joy back into your life.
Practising gratitude is just one way of caring for yourself which is a vital part of looking after both physical and mental health. Give it a try and see what you are grateful for.
PS. If you are grateful to have a safe home with enough food and a little cash to spare then maybe consider donating to the Disasters Emergency Committee. Thank you. https://www.dec.org.uk/appeal/ukraine-humanitarian-appeal
Shrove Tuesday, or Pancake Day is next week so here are some different ideas for how to eat yours.
Savoury pancakes: Make 2 pancakes per person (20-24cm in diameter). Take a couple of handfuls of chopped, cooked veg per pancake (carrots, leeks, broccoli, peas, cauliflower, green beans all work well. Plan to cook extra veg the day before to give you plenty of leftovers to use). Make a cheese sauce to coat the veggies and place the cheesy veg down the middle of each pancake. Fold or roll the pancakes so they fit in a baking tray . Sprinkle with grated cheese and grill until melted.
Sweet pancakes: Pop 100g porridge oats into a jug with a couple of eggs and 300ml of milk of your choice. Whizz with a stick blender until smooth. Allow to stand for 10 - 30 minutes to allow the oats to absorb the liquid. If it's a bit thick add a drop more milk.
Fry in a hot frying pan until golden on each side and serve with Greek yogurt, berries and chopped nuts.
Makes around 10 mini pancakes. Good for breakfast or pudding!
With February half term upon us and the Spring equinox only a few weeks away it is starting to feel like the year is picking up pace and the days are finally starting to get a little bit longer so it's the perfect time for being active outside. Getting active outside, whatever the weather, is great for both physical and mental health so why not give these ideas a go?
The National Trust’s ‘50 things to do before you’re 11 ¾’ activity list has great ideas for getting out and about and isn’t just for children. So embrace your real or inner child and try some of the activities. This time of year is great for seeing sunrises or sunsets as the timing is good without being too cold. Combining a walk up a hill with a picnic (take a hot drink if it is chilly), putting on wellies to splash through puddles, or watching the sky for either clouds or stars are all things that can easily be done at this time of year.
If you want to find out more about your local area, many towns have a ‘Town Trail’ that will take you on a walk showing places of interest. Or go hunting for blue plaques on buildings that commemorate interesting people.
Whatever you do or see, know that being out and about is nurturing the child in all of us.
Whether you're a full on romantic or you avoid it completely there's no getting away from seeing hearts in the run up to Valentine's day. But maybe the heart we should be focusing on is our own one! Top tips for a healthy heart include keeping active, not smoking, watching cholesterol levels, managing weight and eating a healthy diet including lots of colourful vegetables and eating the right sort of healthy fats.
This yummy chocolate pot recipe is made with avocado (yes, really!) for some healthy fats and flavoured with cocoa which is rich in heart loving polyphenols.
Share it with someone for happy hearts.
Place the flesh of a very ripe large avocado into a food processor with a dessertspoon of honey and 3 tablespoons of high quality cocoa powder. Whizz until you get a thick, mousse-like dessert. If it is a little too thick you can add a little full fat Greek yogurt to soften it. Chill for at least 30 minutes. Serve with strawberries, raspberries or both.
Getting clarity on what you want to achieve can help you to make the choices to get you closer to where you want to be.
A tool for thinking about making choices is to draw up a vision of what your life would look like if you chose a certain path (What if you do?). And to imagine what it would be like if you didn’t take that path but either stayed still or went in a different direction (What if you don’t?).
For example, what happens if you decide to eat more healthily? You might lose weight, have more energy, better skin, better digestion, be more confident to try new hobbies or discover new foods.
Or you can take the path that you’ve been on before: eating the same way, staying in the same place with the same health niggles that have been around for a while and maybe feeling dissatisfied with where you are.
Of course, it's not always easy to know where you might want to be and therefore be able to make those choices. Which is why, as a health coach, I help my clients find the vision which motivates and guides them to make the choices most likely to get them where they want to be.
If you want to know how I could help you find the path that’s right for you, just get in touch.
As it is Chinese New Year next week I expect some people might be thinking about eating Chinese food over the weekend so I thought a recipe for a healthy alternative to a takeaway might be in order. This quick and easy recipe is for sea bass with spring onion, chilli and ginger.
Use one sea bass fillet per person. Slash the skin three or four times then pan fry the fish skin side down in a hot, heavy based pan with a little olive oil. After around 5 minutes the skin should be crispy. Turn the fish for just a minute or so until cooked through. Remove the fish from the pan and keep warm.
Add ginger, chilli, garlic and spring onions (all thinly sliced or cut into fine matchsticks) into the same pan for a couple of minutes until starting to crisp a little. Pile onto the fish with a dash of soy sauce.
Serve with stir fried greens and maybe some egg fried (brown basmati) rice.
This is a great way to have some delicious fish, plenty of veggies and it's just as quick as going for a takeaway as well as much healthier. Enjoy, and have a great Year of the Tiger.
I always think this can be a tricky time: We are three weeks into the year so Christmas seems a lifetime away but no sign of spring yet.
It's easy to get a bit fed up sometimes, especially if you have tried a resolution but it has slipped away from you and you did something that you now wish you hadn’t (or didn’t do something you wished you had!). But I don’t want you to feel like you have ‘failed’. Instead be kind to yourself and acknowledge that you are only human and you are allowed to make mistakes. Also, sometimes, life happens and things get in the way!
One of the most damaging things we can do to ourselves is beat ourselves up when things don't go to plan. OK, so it might have been better not to eat the doughnut but stressing about it is possibly even worse. Try saying to yourself ‘OK, that thing happened but I’m putting it behind me and I’m planning how to make it easier to stick to what I want to do in the future’. Then you will be in a better spot than if you gave up completely and ate the rest of the doughnuts.
Remember, progress is never just a straight line. There will be blips on the way but planning how to pick yourself up and keep going is the key to making long term, sustainable changes that will reward you with better health and more energy.
You can do it. I know you can. And if you need someone to support you along the way, I’m here where you need me.
You might well have heard of Veganuary, which is where people pledge to be vegan for January. Whilst it is possible to be healthy on a vegan diet there are certain things to bear in mind to keep it healthy.
One of the main issues with going vegan is that it's easy to replace meat with meat replacements but these replacements are often very processed. The key is to carefully check the labels and avoid lots of processed soya or Quorn. Instead, basing meals on beans, lentils, nuts and seeds will give you the protein you need.
There are also micro-nutrients that need to be carefully considered when choosing a vegan diet. To help keep up intake of these important parts of your diet make sure you include beans, green leafy veg and enriched plant milks for calcium.
For iron, you need green leafy veg again as well as beans, make sure you have vitamin C alongside your iron containing foods and avoid tea and coffee to help absorption.
Vitamin B12 can be a tricky nutrient for vegans to get as yeast extract is one of the few vegan sources of it. Supplementation may be advisable for long-term vegans.
Also supplementation might be required for the optimal intake of omega-3 essential fatty acids. Some is available from plant sources, especially hemp, flax and chia seeds and walnuts but these are the shorter chain versions of omega-3 not the long-chain types (EPA and DHA) that are required for healthy hearts, eyes and brains. Vegan supplementation of omega-3 is available from algae sources.
In summary, whether you are a fully fledged vegan, doing Veganuary for the first time or simply trying to reduce the amount of meat you eat, it’s important to avoid heavily processed meat replacements and focus instead on the real food that will provide you with the nutrients your body needs.
If you feel you need support in optimising your food intake click on the button at the top of the page to book a free health review with me.
So have you made a New Year's Resolution? For some people they can be useful but I’m generally not a fan of grand gestures that fizzle out after a couple of weeks because they are too hard to maintain.
If, instead you would like to join a supportive group for a Healthy Habits Challenge, then join me in my ‘Healthy Habits Challenge with Rachel Page Nutrition’ Facebook group for a fun week from Saturday 8th January where you will receive a quiz and questionnaire to assess where you are now, daily prompts, ideas and suggestions as well as accountability and support to help you identify and make small but sustainable changes. Why not get a friend to join with you so you can share the journey together?
https://www.facebook.com/groups/445262577168608
Wishing all my clients (Past, Present and Yet-To-Come)* a merry and safe Christmas period. I hope you find time to relax and recharge and enjoy all the season has to offer.
* A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens is undoubtedly the book I have read the most - I read it every year! If you have never read it, do give it a go. Or maybe try 'The Muppet Christmas Carol' film; its dialogue is surprisingly true to the original book.
