Summer Wellbeing Workshop Offer

Transform the energy and engagement of your team with our most popular workshop...and a special summer offer.

• Our Introduction to Health, Wellbeing and Personal Performance workshop helps individuals and organisations take their wellbeing results to the next level

• We're currently offering 10 workshops at the preferential rate of £395.00*

• Workshops last 90-minutes and can accommodate up to 20 participants

• Workshops at this preferential rate must be booked and delivered by August 6th 2015

To book a workshop for your team, call us on 020 8995 1302 or email info@the-tonic.com

What to expect from the workshop

'Thank you again for your very informative Health, Wellness and Personal Performance presentation last week for our 60+ members of staff. 

It's extremely important in our high-paced, energetic working environment to maintain a healthy work/life balance and understand how the type of work we do (with the traveling, late nights and international expectations) can effect our overall wellbeing. 

Everyone on the team has made 3 commitments that they are working towards over the next few weeks, with the goal of integrating these new practices into their long-term routines.

Clearly, the points raised in your presentation really have stuck with everyone and we look forward to your follow up in a few weeks time. We'd like to have you back to share this presentation with the other areas of the business as well.'
Huib van Bockel
Founder, The Social Brand

*Regular workshop cost is £695.00. Price excludes VAT and travel.

Photo by Flickr: Thangaraj Kumaravel

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The Best You've Felt for 20 Years

It's Friday and the sun is out in London.

Better than that we've just had an email that's got everyone smiling here.  A simple message from a guy who works at one of our clients.  

For this client we arranged a wellbeing day in January and we've kept in touch with everyone with a few well-timed motivational emails ever since.  This guy has clearly made the most of the opportunity to make a few changes with his wellbeing.

'Just to say I am still on target.

The emails were a great help as it kept me focused on my goal.

I actually feel the best I have for more than 20 years.

Thank you very much.'

Anyone else fancy feeling 20-years younger?

Here's to a healthy weekend!

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Eat Your Way to Healthy Blood Pressure

The third part of our 'Essential Guide to Healthy Blood Pressure' looks at how your food routine can play a crucial role in lowering or stabilising blood pressure.

You can read part 1 of the series here

Part 2 is here

Let's start with simple guidelines that anyone can follow and that will really help regulate blood pressure. 

Eat regularly

A calm internal environment will keep your system running smoothly and reduce the likelihood of physical stress which can in turn aggravate mental stress, both of which will increase blood pressure.  Plan to eat a meal or snack every 3-4 hours.

Get your 5-a-day

You’ve heard it many times and here’s just another reason to make it happen.  Fruit and vegetables supply us with vitamins, minerals and nutrients that will improve the strength, immunity and efficiency of the body.  Eating plenty of fresh stuff also leaves less of an appetite for the meals and snacks that rob us of energy, increase stress and aggravate blood pressure.

And forget aiming for 5-a-day as that often means you end up with 2 or 3.  Plan for at least 8 and you’ll make sure you end up with 5 without doubt.  

If this all sounds like a challenge here are some suggestions for how to eat regularly and healthily.

Breakfast

Porridge with bananas, blueberries, chia seeds & strawberries or omelette with tomato and peppers

Morning snack

Orange and walnuts or carrots, cucumber and hummus

Lunch

Wholemeal wrap with turkey, spinach and peppers or fish with rocket, tomatoes, avocado and pineapple

Afternoon snack

Apple and oatcakes or banana and rice cakes

Evening meal

Chicken with noodles, onion,mushrooms, peppers and garlic, or fish with brown rice and steamed broccoli and green beans

How to make it work...

Obviously, each person’s food routine needs to be appropriate for their schedule, tastes, objectives, and ideas have to be practical, but following these guidelines will help keep blood pressure optimum as well as improving the chances of a productive week with high energy and great sleep.  Even the busiest of individuals should be able to try some of these suggestions over the coming days.

Here are a few additional foods that you should aim to include in your routine through the week:

Kale, sweet potato, edamame, beetroot, spinach, sunflower seeds, kidney beans, mango, tuna, wholemeal pasta

We're running this series of blogs to help equip individuals with the knowledge they need to take responsibility for their health and make informed lifestyle choices.  If you find the information useful please share it with your colleagues.

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Make March Matter: 1-month to change your life

Take Charge of Your Health & Wellbeing with daily motivational tips to boost energy, build resilience and feel great forever

The year is off to a flying start and our mission is to help as many people as possible maintain their energy and focus so they can feel great throughout 2015 and beyond by making lifestyle changes that last forever.

To achieve this goal, we're launching a month long programme of daily inspirational lifestyle tips called ‘Make March Matter’. 

We know from experience that positive daily action leads to powerful new habits and dramatic improvements in how people look and feel.  Our tips will ensure that a month of progress springboards into long-lasting results.  The daily tips will cover how to:

·                Maintain health and wellbeing as a priority

·                Plan and execute healthy lifestyle choices that get results

·                Boost daily energy and resilience

·                Increase personal effectiveness

·                Eat well, sleep well and get active

·                Balance life and enjoy everything you do

The March initiative follows on from last year’s ‘Be the Boss of February’ campaign of regular motivational messages, which proved hugely successful according to those who took part:

'I’ve found your emails truly inspiring and helpful. It’s been one of the best things about my mornings in February – starting off with the daily tips.

'The Tonic absolutely made a difference to my February!  This is normally the most difficult time of year for me….for some reason, it’s always the last week of February but this year was different.  With the daily ‘Be The Boss of February’ updates, I felt motivated, hopeful and as we have moved into March, I have started to regain control of life, paying particularly attention to healthy eating and a biggie for me, re-introducing exercise!! Thank you!!'

Make March the beginning of a fantastic wellness routine that will have you feeling great for years to come.  

You can sign up to the daily motivation tips for free by sending an email to info@the-tonic.com and write ‘Make March Matter’ in the subject line.  Encourage as many people from your office as you want to join in - it's a great way to keep everyone motivated and get some great results.

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Sleep Your Way to Healthy Blood Pressure

Welcome to the second instalment of our Essential Guide to Lower Blood Pressure.  You can read part 1 here.

For week 2 of National Heart Month we're focusing on sleep, primarily because the lack of it, interrupted sleep or poor quality sleep, can all contribute towards increased blood pressure in the medium to long-term.

Here are some tips to help you improve your sleep and keep blood pressure healthy.

1) Create a realistic routine
You probably know if you're a morning person or a night owl - we all have our own body clock or internal clock that determines when we're functioning at our best, and when we're at a low ebb.  In reality there are relatively few people who have an internal clock that fits in precisely with society's timetable (work, family, social), so the first thing to do is accept that in order to achieve everything you want in life, you may have to get up a little earlier than would be ideal for you, or you may need to stay awake a little longer than you'd choose if left to your own devices, but, whatever you do, make a conscious effort to create a routine for yourself that allows you to sleep well whilst also providing you with the time to do what you need to do when you're awake. 

Creating a sleep routine - a pre-determined bed time and wake time - will help your mind and body prepare for restful sleep, fall asleep promptly, and experience quality sleep, all of which will equip you to face each day calmly and without the need for extra stress hormones that your body produces to keep you going when you feel tired but which will, over time, have a negative impact on your blood pressure.

2) Stick to your routine
Persistent, irregular sleeping habits can exacerbate the effects of raised blood pressure so follow your chosen sleep routine 7-nights as week.  It may feel great to 'catch up' on missed sleep at the weekends but if this leaves you wide awake on Sunday night there's a risk you won't feel great for the beginning of the working week.  Shifting routine dramatically like this every week will take a toll on your body.  

If you do choose to shift your routine at weekends, or you feel you've 'earned' some extra hours in bed after a tough week, experiment over a number of weekends to discover the optimum change in routine for you.  It's likely that with practice you'll settle on a weekend sleep pattern that helps you feel recovered from the previous week without impacting on the following week.  

3) Think twice about your daily choices
Ideally we'd all like to feel alert and engaged while we're awake, and relaxed and refreshed after a good night's sleep.  The key to both is to think about everything you do during the day in relation to how it could affect your sleep at night. 

For example, caffeine can perk you up but it can also impact your sleep routine hours later.  Sweet snacks can feel like the right thing in the day but can wildly disrupt blood sugar levels which might affect the quality of your sleep at night. 

The same goes for too much stress throughout the day.  It may feel as though a bit of stress is good to get you busy and get things done, and it can be as long as you have ways to balance your stress levels before you unwind and get a restful sleep.  Always be mindful of the level of pressure that helps you perform at your best, and the tipping point beyond which you risk negatively affecting your night-time recovery and your healthy blood pressure reading. 

4) Design your personal pre-sleep routine
Identify the sequence of events that you know will result in you falling asleep quickly and having a quality sleep.  You may need to experiment with a few different approaches but soon you'll have a strategy that tells you when you have your last meal or snack of the day, when you turn off the TV, when you put your phone / laptop / tablet away, and what you do to tell your mind and body that you're fully relaxed.  This could be listening to calming music, meditating or reading.

If you are prone to waking in the night, decide in advance what you'll think and do if this happens.  If you worry that when you wake it'll take ages to get back to sleep, chances are, that's exactly what will happen.  If you plan an approach where you read, practice deep breathing or even write down anything that's on your mind or think about reasons why you might have awoken and what you can do to address these situations tomorrow, you can relax in the knowledge that as you work through this process you'll be preparing yourself to return to sleep very soon.

Above all, remember that you may not be able to follow your perfect sleep routine every night but you can take control to ensure that on balance, and in the medium term, you get sufficient sleep, and in the short term you do what you can to optimise the quality of every hour of sleep you do get.  

Follow these guidelines and you'll sleep well all night, perform well all day and maintain a calm internal environment including healthy blood pressure at all times.

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Lowering Blood Pressure: The Essential Guide, part 1

February is National Heart Month, which got us thinking.

Ensuring healthy blood pressure is a simple way for individuals and organisations to stay healthy and productive, so here are 3 key points everyone should think about along with instant actions you can get started with immediately.

1. Know your numbers
Many people suspect they have high blood pressure but not everyone knows their current measurements. Others have no idea what their blood pressure figures are which is not good - heart disease is often referred to as the silent killer as it can go undetected until something serious happens.

Instant action:
If it's more than three months since you had your blood pressure checked either make an appointment today to have it checked within the next two weeks, or order your own blood pressure monitor online so that you can check it regularly in the comfort of your own home.

2. Design a balanced fitness programme
In the quest to reduce blood pressure or maintain healthy numbers exercise is crucial, but make sure your programme has balance and sustainability. 

Exercising periodically will help, but not as much as planning a routine of challenging exercise every 2-3 days.  It's the regularity and consistency of your activity that has the biggest impact on your blood pressure.

Similarly, thrashing yourself now and again with some kind of cardio activity such as running, football, rugby or squash might make you feel better but won't stabilise your blood pressure as effectively as a rounded and on-going routine of cardio exercise, strength training, mobility, stability and flexibility work.

Instant action:

Take a 20-minute walk within the next hour and while you walk, plan your next 10-days of exercise which should include 4 workouts containing a mixture of the above elements.  Ideally the first workout should take place today or tomorrow.

3. Clear your head
A lot of stress - a major contributor to high blood pressure - is rooted in our perception of 'busyness' and feeling overwhelmed.  Often the difference between feeling in control and feeling bounced around the day like a pinball isn't very dramatic - simply taking a moment here and there to review your progress and decide on priorities will make all the difference.

Instant action:

Find a quiet spot and sit down, close your eyes and take 20 deep breaths.  You might be tempted to move but hold onto the moment until you've completed the 20 breaths.  When you've finished, plan a time to do the same tomorrow and every day moving forwards.  Aim to increase the length of time you spend practicing deep breathing every few days.  Not only will you feel calmer but you will be able to organise your day better with a renewed ability to focus on priorities.

Practice all of the above and look out for part 2 of our essential guide to lower blood pressure coming soon...

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One easy way to boost your wellbeing ROI in 2015

There's only one way to ensure maximum value for money with your future wellbeing initiatives and that's to deliver a programme of events that staff get excited about and that they make use of regularly.  
 
An effective way to highlight what will deliver the biggest impact moving forwards is to arrange a wellbeing day packed with taster sessions, vital information and key resources.  These events are always fun and memorable.  
 
Here are two great reasons to organise a wellbeing event:
 
1) Staff will immediately benefit from some great initiatives such as:

• Fitness assessments
• Healthy eating consultations
• Sleep clinic
• Wellbeing workshops
• Back care clinic
• Massage
• Podiatry consultations
• Exercise advice
• Injury clinic
• Personal resilience consultations

2) At the same time, each event provides the ideal opportunity for us, and you, to gather information on wellbeing trends, concerns, issues and desires throughout the organisation.  This information is crucial to planning your wellbeing programme, schedule, budget and all important future Return On Investment.

Email us or call us today on 020 8995 1302 to book a wellbeing event for your organisation.

If you need any further persuasion, here's some feedback from previous events:

‘One Word - BRILLIANT. 
Everything ran smoothly, I had a lot of great feedback from staff and would like to do this again next year.’

'We had an amazing day thank you, please pass on our thanks to the whole team.'
 
‘Thanks to you and your team for the great wellbeing day yesterday! Feedback has been great, and take up was high too.' 

Email us or call us today on 020 8995 1302 to book a wellbeing event for your organisation.

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One Easy Way to Inspire Staff towards Great Wellbeing Results

We ran a series of workshops for one of our clients yesterday and we received great feedback, including this email from one participant, which arrived this morning.  

The feedback...

'Thank you for the group workshop yesterday - I found it inspiring and a good reminder of the importance of healthy habits. I have already begun making some changes this morning, so lets see if I notice a difference!  Looking forward to receiving a copy of your slides - the general feeling was that we were keen to hear more! :)'

So, if you'd like a cost-effective and time-efficient way to inspire staff towards great wellbeing results, these 30-minute small group workshops are a great solution.

The workshop description...

Wellbeing & Motivation 

Simple strategies for great results with healthy living, every day

* These interactive workshops will help you design your ideal wellbeing routine.  We'll be discussing the secret to daily wellbeing motivation and outlining the most effective strategies for quality sleep, eating for energy, managing stress, effective exercise and achieving your desired balance in life.

 * Each session will begin by examining the specific wellbeing objectives of participants so that we can tailor the content of each workshop to suit those who attend.  You will leave armed with a bespoke plan to ensure quick and lasting wellbeing results and a feeling of excitement ready to put your plan into action.

* There will also be sessions offering 1-2-1 appointments during the afternoon, these appointments will provide the ideal forum for you to fine-tune plans to suit your specific schedule, commitments, challenges and circumstances

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Monday Morning Wellbeing Inspiration

We just received this note from someone who took part in one of our sessions back in February and I wanted to share it as another illustration of the great results that can be achieved in a very short space of time with some focused wellbeing actions.

'Since the programme, I am pleased and proud to report that I have lost 22lb in weight.  I ran my first half marathon in June and have registered for another in 8 weeks time.

I bought a bike and have fallen in love with cycling and now even enjoy the time I spend in the gym which was previously my idea of hell!

I have transformed my diet in that I am now vegan and I have never felt so alive and healthy.

I stay hydrated and sleep at least 8 hours every night, more if I can.

 

Long may this new lifestyle continue...

Thank you and regards.'

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More Simple Lifestyle Changes That Really Work

Following some positive comments on our blog last Friday, Lifestyle changes: keep it simple, enjoy success, we thought it would be worth sharing some more simple changes that have led to workshop participants feeling better and performing more effectively.

There's also a couple of comments to begin with on why it's worth making wellbeing workshops and lifestyle coaching resources available to staff - they really do make a difference.

'Such positive feedback with people really taking your advice on board which is great to hear.'

'Things are going well thanks! I found the sessions with you very helpful and I’m still ploughing on.'

'Fitness is going extremely well, since our meeting I forced myself to do 2 x 30min sessions that week, the following week I did 5 x 30min sessions, and I'm keeping to a good routine with the cardio.   Time to see family has improved – I've planned a couple of dates in to see people .  Energy levels feel loads better which is improving my work and I genuinely believe it's because of a better work-life balance.  Thanks for all your help.'

'Going quite well so far… now cycling to work and diet has improved.'

'I was lazy while on vacation 10 days in June. Other than that I do follow up on my commitments and continued with Yoga as well as swimming. I also stayed away from chocolate, which works better than expected!'

'My sleep routine has changed and works surprisingly well.'

'I'm running 4 times a week and I have  significantly reduced the coffee consumption. I replace with green tea and regular hydration with water.'

'A few extra runs, and more water.'

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3 Essential Rules to Maximise Executive Wellness

Last weekend I delivered a presentation to an audience of Alumni at London Business School.

We covered the headlines of how to fit in exercise, eat for energy, sleep well and balance your life, and everyone left with an individual plan to help them take their health, wellbeing and energy to the next level.

A few things cropped up during the session that I thought would be worth sharing.  The group was diverse - a range of ages, nationalities and all working for a variety of businesses - but the common thread between them all is that they are successful, busy and focused on high performance.

There were three things we concluded are imperative to successful wellbeing within a busy professional schedule:

1. Wellbeing has to be a priority
If it isn't, other things get in the way and there's a danger that a few days of allowing wellbeing to be a lower priority can turn into weeks, months or even years of performing well but always suspecting you could perform better or progress faster in every area of work and life.  We all have nagging thoughts that we could look after ourselves better - the secret is to act on these thoughts quickly and consistently.

2. Wellbeing has to be personal
It might require a little effort but the right wellbeing plan for you needs to be directed towards your specific objectives with exercise, healthy eating and life balance, and it needs to fit into your routine.  Regardless of what job you do, hours you work, travel schedule you follow or how many children you have, it is vital to design your ideal wellbeing schedule that fits in with all of these parameters.  Don't fight the life you've created and use it as a reason not to take care of yourself - revise your plan until it works for you.

3. Wellbeing has to be regular
Related to the other two points, you must take regular action towards optimising your wellbeing and you must also review your progress regularly.  A few minutes each day and every week to plan your lifestyle choices in relation to what you're trying to achieve with these choices will help you stay on track with consistent, positive action.  Putting your wellbeing objectives into context with the rest of your life is a guaranteed way to keep you motivated.  For example, eating well, taking regular exercise and prioritising quality sleep will all help you perform more effectively, experience better energy, balance your work and family life better and ultimately allow you to enjoy everything you do fully. With that thought in mind there are more good reasons to stay on track with your wellbeing than there are to let it slide.

So follow the thoughts of some of the current business leaders around the world and make sure you prioritise these three areas at all times.

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5 Quick and Easy Snack Ideas for Boosting Energy

Since we sent out our new fact sheet on Time-Saving Healthy Eating Tips for Busy Professionals we've had quite a few requests asking for suggestions for meals and snacks.

So we thought we'd begin with these five easy snack ideas.

1. Two/three pieces of fresh fruit with a couple of spoonfuls of low fat, low sugar yoghurt and a sprinkling of seeds.  The protein in the seeds and the yoghurt will slow the energy release of the fruit keeping your energy levels up for longer.

2. Chopped peppers with hummus

All you need is one bag of mixed peppers and one pot of hummus.  The variety of colours of the peppers will give you a blend of vitamins and anti-oxidants.  The hummus will provide some protein to ensure the energy form this snack lasts for longer.

3. Rice cakes with nut butter

Choose cashew nut butter or almond butter rather than peanut butter to ensure you’ve got a lower sugar protein based snack that will keep you full and focused.  Add a piece of fruit or two for extra vitamins, minerals and nutrients.

4. Dr Karg’s classic 3 seed crackers www.drkarg.co.uk and a banana, apple or orange.  Tasty, nutritious, and you won’t believe how filling these crackers are.  Stock up online or get moving to the nearest supermarket or health food shop.

5. Stock your fridge at home with spinach leaves, avocadoes and sweet red peppers.  Stock your office desk with walnuts, a bag of mixed nuts and seeds and a small bottle of Olive Oil.  As you leave for work, put some spinach leaves, an avocado, and a pepper into a Tupperware.  When you’re hungry, chop the pepper and the avocado, throw them in with the spinach leaves, sprinkle on the nuts and seeds and some Olive Oil.  Serve with a side order of walnuts.

Happy snacking!

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