rsdt de4

SCORE A HOT CORE The Abs You Want In The Time You Have 5, 10 OR 15 MINUTES!

Jessica Gomes ON FITNESS, FEMALE EMPOWERMENT & FINDING HER VOICE

Wake Up Refreshed

18

FAST NATURAL WELLNESS FIXES CRUSH CRAVINGS, BREAKOUTS & BLOATING

Eat Clean, Get Lean

20-Minute Dinners Zero-Waste Vegan Meals

YOUR HAPPY-GUT GAME PLAN

The Clever New Sleep Tech You Need, Tonight!

SKIN REHAB

Miracle-Working Masks, From $10 HEALTH TREND

Could Period Tracking Help Smash Your PB?

YOUR WINTER

NO OFFICE? NO WORRIES!

Simple Ways To Slay Your WFH Day HIGH-SPEED HEALTH HACKS. GENIUS INDOOR WORKOUTS. INSTANT MOOD BOOSTERS

SORTED!

contents

Heat up your work from home world

92

July

Fast, easy fixes to max those wellness gains

57 Killer brows, at the ready

DISCUSS

LIFE ETC

and wellbeing news

your brain tingle?

13 The latest health

39 Does it make

BEST BODY

One writer explores the intriguing world of ASMR to get zen

the A list, baby

44 Liar, liar

23 Resist like

A full-body workout using a celeb fave: resistance bands

26 Fermented

foods: are they worth the hype?

An expert weighs in on your kraut habit

28 Could some

intermittent resting help ace your goals?

What really makes a compulsive liar? We ask psych experts

48 Upgrade your

new work world Make WFH work for your wellbeing

52 Score a dose of vitamin N Fresh ways to tap into nature. ‘Bee’ breathing, anyone?

Snacking on rest might be the new secret to success

54 Hit your goals

32 In sweat

Steal top intel from habit-forming pros

we now sync Tailor your exercise to your cycle for a major fitness boost

36 Driving for auto change Meet Molly Taylor, the champ taking motorsport by storm

like an expert

124 BEAUTY BRIEF 57 Brows to wow Genius new brow tools you’ll love

62 Find your mask match

Whatever your skin type, these heroes have you covered

64 The new

gym neutrals

Stellar athleisure in earthy tones and super relaxed fits

FEATURES 72 The diet vs

exercise debate

Discover which is best for energy, immunity and gains in the ultimate battle

78 Stronger, wiser, fitter

Cover star Jessica Gomes talks training, racism and her love of powerful women

Salmon ceviche?

Oh, go on then!

Time to tuck in

86 The dark side of positivity Good vibes only?

WH explores the rise of toxic positivity

92 The food pharmacy

From bloating to a breakout, help may lie in your fridge

98 Sleep tight, every night

The trends, tech and innovations to make your bed(time) rock

104 Score a hot core, in no time!

Feel the ab burn, whether you have five, 10 or 15 mins

FOOD HUB 113 Welcome

to the no-waste vegan kitchen

Delicious plantbased recipes that leave nothing behind

120 The fibre swap shop

Simple (and tasty) foodie switches for a happier gut, now!

124 Goal-

crushing feeds

Enjoy pasta, cookies and more with dishes from chef-turned-PT Richard Kerrigan

REGULARS 7 Editor’s note

6 The WH team 8 Ask us anything 110 Subscribe to WH 112 The winners’ list 130 Our kinda girl...

4

PHOTOGR APHY: STEVEN CHEE. ST YLING: CHARLOT TE STOKES, HAIR & MAKE-UP: CHLOE L ANGFORD. MODEL: K ATE MARTIN/CHIC

48

On the cover 104 78

SCORE A HOT CORE

18

FAST NATURAL WELLNESS FIXES CRUSH CRAVINGS,

The Abs You Want In The Time You Have

BREAKOUTS & BLOATING

5, 10 OR 15 MINUTES!

Eat Clean, Get Lean

Jessica Gomes ON FITNESS, FEMALE

20-Minute Dinners Zero-Waste Vegan Meals

EMPOWERMENT & FINDING HER VOICE

98 62 32 48

YOUR HAPPY-GUT GAME PLAN

Wake Up Refreshed

92 113 120

The Clever New Sleep Tech You Need, Tonight!

SKIN REHAB

Miracle-Working Masks, From $10 HEALTH TREND

Could Period Tracking Help Smash Your PB?

YOUR WINTER

NO OFFICE? NO WORRIES!

Simple Ways To Slay Your WFH Day HIGH-SPEED HEALTH HACKS. GENIUS INDOOR WORKOUTS. INSTANT MOOD BOOSTERS

SORTED!

64

Yo u r u l t i m a t e w i n t e r fitspo edit, found!

Asos weekend collective cap, $24; Nimble snug as a bug sweatshirt (worn around waist), $99; Lorna Jane gym bunny long sleeve top, $89; sports bra, $59.99; and leggings, $89.

JULY 2 021 wom enshea l th.co m.a u 5

getting it done

SCORE A HOT CORE

18

FAST NATURAL WELLNESS FIXES CRUSH CRAVINGS,

The Abs You Want In The Time You Have

BREAKOUTS & BLOATING

5, 10 OR 15 MINUTES!

Eat Clean, Get Lean

Jessica Gomes ON FITNESS, FEMALE

20-Minute Dinners Zero-Waste Vegan Meals

EMPOWERMENT & FINDING HER VOICE

YOUR HAPPY-GUT GAME PLAN

Wake Up Refreshed

What song is your no-fail energy booster?

120

Jacqui Mooney Editor & Content Director

“Lizzo’s Good As Hell and – 2004 throwback alert – Unwritten,

by Natasha Bedingfield.”

Nikolina Ilic Digital Content Editor

HEALTH TREND

Could Period Tracking Help Smash Your PB?

YOUR WINTER

NO OFFICE? NO WORRIES!

Simple Ways To Slay Your WFH Day HIGH-SPEED HEALTH HACKS. GENIUS INDOOR WORKOUTS. INSTANT MOOD BOOSTERS

SORTED!

Photography Steven Chee Styling Emma Read

Lisa Balemi-Hughes Contributing Designer

Iantha Yu Contributing Beauty Editor

Miracle-Working Masks, From $10

Cover star Jessica Gomes

Amanda McCourt Art Director

Lucy E Cousins Contributing Editor

SKIN REHAB

On the cover

Lizza Gebilagin Executive Editor

Alex Davies Features Editor

The Clever New Sleep Tech You Need, Tonight!

Jessica wears

“Kanye West’s Stronger, and the entire Stronger Radio list on Spotify. Nothing gets me moving faster (especially at 5.30am!).”

Jessica Campbell Digital Content Writer Alistair Watchorn Digital Imaging

P.E NATION BODYSUIT, $130.90; KOR AL JACKET, $282, FROM REVOLVE; NIKE DAYBREAK SNEAKERS, $140, FROM THE ICONIC; BAL A WEIGHTED BANGLES, $75; JESSICA’S OWN EARRINGS; MEADOWL ARK NECKL ACE, $255

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Chris Mathews Sales Executive

“Oh gosh, I have too many! But Eye of the Tiger Julie Hughes

by Survivor has Subscription Manager to be my number subscribe@paragonmedia.com.au one pick.”

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Women’s Health is proud to support Aussie women in sport year-round and in every print edition

6

WinS WO M E N I N S P O RT

Published and distributed by Paragon DCN Pty Ltd by permission of Hearst Magazines, Inc, New York, New York, United States of America. All content © 2021 Paragon DCN Pty Ltd, all rights reserved. Reproduction without permission is prohibited. ISSN 18390544. Print Post 100028914.

Printing and retail distribution by Ovato Limited. All prices correct at time of printing. All material sent to Women’s Health (solicited or otherwise) will not be returned. Title and Trademark Women’s Health © Hearst Magazines International.

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PHOTOGR APHY: SEVAK BABAKHANI; JAMES SENEVIR ANTE/ THE COOP

Lee McLachlan Creative Services

r e w o p The y t i l i b a r e n l u v of As the old saying goes, anything worth having in life lies just outside your comfort zone. And on a recent bucket-list trip to the Northern Territory, I yet again found one of Instagram’s most popular mantras to be utterly true. For any endurance lover, the epic Larapinta Trail is a must-do. Spanning 230km of ancient landscape, the trail features rugged tracks and spectacular views. So when one of my dearest friends launched a female-focused adventure platform, Her Trails, and invited me to join a week-long escape to experience it, I couldn’t have said yes faster.

As regular readers of this column would know, I consider myself relatively fit. I train (hard) five days a week and regularly push past my mental and physical limits. I’ve run half-marathons. Done a 31-hour non-stop relay. And various other crazy fitness pursuits. But to cut a long story short, the Larapinta Trail broke me down, in the best possible way.

Day one was hard, sure, but manageable, trekking 26km from Telegraph Station to Simpsons Gap. But less than 30 minutes into day two, hiking straight up the side of a mountain for a good few kilometres in 30 degree heat, I started to doubt myself. The various random thoughts in my head went something like this: “If I train this hard, why am

I finding this so difficult? Everyone else seems to be crushing it, what’s wrong with me? I’m slowing down the group, there’s no way I’m going to be able to finish this.”

Then I looked down a sheer drop on one of the trickier sections, and panic set in. But rather than try to hide the tears and panicked breathing, I stopped. I let my guard down and confessed to the two team mates behind me that I was having a minor freak-out – and they couldn’t have been more supportive. All I could hear were the calls of encouragement from higher up on the ridge, as I took a moment to collect myself and kept on going, one foot in front of the other, for another five hours. When I finally stepped into the 4WD at the end of a long, amazing day – having hiked one of the most beautiful trails in Australia – I felt a feeling of solidarity, strength and achievement that was worth any amount of terror.

As this month’s cover star – model, actor and all-round legend Jessica Gomes – very wisely says in our interview from page 78 (having returned to Australia from the US for the first time in a decade), there’s an immense power in opening up and being vulnerable.

And, if you ask me, that’s something we should all embrace more often.

In the meantime, I hope you enjoy all of the health, fitness and female empowerment inside this issue.

Jacqui Mooney Editor & Content Director

JULY 2021 wome ns heal th.com .a u 7

Do extensions make your eyelashes fall out?

The I-wokeup-like-this power of perma-falsies is pretty irresistible. But, despite opening your eyes to a life without sticky mascara and an extra five minutes in bed, lash extensions have not received exclusively positive PR. Overloading your natural lashes with too many at once can cause them to break and fall out, warns lash artist Debbie Law, so it’s important to find a Answer

8

salon that knows what it’s doing. “Having them correctly applied, which involves the most appropriate weight and length selection for the client’s natural lashes, won’t interfere with the natural lash cycle,” Law explains. How to know you’re in safe hands?

“Going to a professional brand with reputable products, discussing the safest type of lash technique for you and checking the lash artist’s

online reviews will minimise the risks,” says consultant optometrist Francesca Marchetti. But it doesn’t stop when the glue has set. Law points out that, as eyelashes are hair, they need as much TLC as the stuff on your head: “Just as you condition the hair on your head, you need to hydrate your lashes using a serum once you’ve removed makeup or had extensions applied.” Dreamy stuff.

Ask Women’s Health We asked so you don’t have to

Fl ut te rbye

It is bad to walk around the house in bare feet all day?

More of us working from home – and ditching shoes – has driven an increase in peeps with painful foot conditions, such as plantar fasciitis and shin splints, says podiatrist Emma McConnachie. “While being barefoot works well for some, others may find that having no support from footwear is an issue,” she adds. “You may experience heel or knee pain, or swelling across the balls of your feet due to a lack of cushioning.”

Yep, the wrong (or missing) footwear could migrate the ouch upwards to your back and knees. Feeling the burn?

Commit to indoor shoes.

McConnachie recommends something with good support, a shape that matches your toes’ natural placement and a thick, cushioned sole.

For ongoing issues, see a pro to find out where you, erm, stand.

JULY 2021 wom ens heal th.com . au 9

I’VE GONE “SEAGAN”. DO I NEED TO BE SUPPLEMENTING? Sea-what, now? We’re talking about a vegan diet with a small amount of sustainably sourced seafood. “This may appeal to those who want to consume a mainly plant-based diet, without missing out on the benefits of fish – one of the few foods without a nutritionally similar plant-based equivalent,” says dietitian Maeve Hanan. She notes that studies have found omega-3 (the brain-boosting fatty acid in oily fish and shellfish) to be less effective in supplement form compared with whole foods, while seafood such as cod and crab can provide iodine – essential for thyroid health and harder to come by on a vegan diet. Seagans should be sure to include vitamin B12, calcium, iron, zinc and selenium. With suitable sources available for all of these (such as fortified alt-milk for B12, tofu for calcium, leafy greens for iron, seafood for zinc and Brazil nuts for selenium), a well-balanced plate should stem the need for supplementation.

Worried you might have a deficiency?

Talk to your GP before raiding the supplement aisle.

What’s firing up the wellness world

10

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6Sŧ0Iŭ WŦ%XŤ2K

Aka, an Insta gallery of unrelated photos that celebrate small, everyday moments of beauty and joy – think leaves on the ground, your neighbour’s cute pup and a coffee ring on the book you just finished. Consider it an antidote to the shiny and curated highlights reel.

From Emma Corrin gliding around in The Crown to those super-cool vids taking over TikTok, this nostalgic fave offers a fun total-body workout. Keen to lace up? We love the range of PETA-approved vegan skates (especially the pastel fade pair – swoon) available at impalaskate.com.au.

TEŞ3 ŝ-Vů,HŜ= 4Eŭ8] 'EŦ)W Yes, you read that right.

This tasty new foodie celebration sees tacos arranged in the shape of someone’s age, and then surrounded by guac, salsa et al. Ideal if your tooth is more savoury than sweet.

4Sŭ8Eŝ0I ;Sŭ/ou8W Top Sydney fitness studio Flow Athletic has launched its Flow Athletic On Demand platform.

Enjoy classes including HIIT, yoga, strength, spin and even 10-minute express sessions, wherever you are in the world. flowathletic.tv

Ask Women’s Health We asked so you don’t have to

I’m naturally owl but have to get up super early for work. Am I doomed?

PHOTOGR APHY: K ATIE THOMPSON, SHUT TERSTOCK , ADAM VOORHES, GET T Y IMAGES, SEVAK BABAKHANI

I GET REALLY BAD CHAFING WHEN I RUN. WHAT CAN I DO? First things first: jump in the shower, says aesthetic practitioner Dr Rekha Tailor. Keep it lukewarm to soothe your raw skin and gently pat yourself dry – rubbing will only increase the discomfort. Then stick some Sudocrem on your sore bits. As for prevention, there’s a chance your running outfit is too loose, causing chafeinducing friction, says Tailor. “Choose tight, stretchy clothes and go for seamless materials where you can,” she advises. You’ll want a skin lubricant, too – try Body Glide. Apply it to any areas at risk before you head off. “Salt in sweat can aggravate the already damaged areas and cause further irritation,” adds Tailor. “Staying hydrated is vital to help the body flush those salts away from the skin.” Now, go smash that run.

Start by asking yourself if you really are a late chronotype (the genetic trait that determines your natural sleep and wake rhythm), or if you’re simply not hitting the hay early enough, says Dr Katharina Lederle, a sleep and fatigue specialist.

“Chronotypes are on a spectrum,” she explains. “You can’t change yours, but certain lifestyle and behaviour changes can help shift it along slightly.” Either way, Lederle notes that the timing of your exposure to light and darkness is key when attempting an earlier wake-up.

“Make sure there’s plenty of bright light in your room immediately after waking and keep things dim from the early evening,” she advises. “Then start to shift your sleep times by going to bed and getting up 15 minutes earlier.

After a week, shift these again by 15 or 30 minutes.”

Time to go and get that worm, you new early bird. wh

JULY 202 1 wom enshe alth.com. au 11

WHY VODKA WHEN YOU CAN

GREY GOOSE

SINGLE DISTILLED TO RETAIN CHARACTER

NATURAL LIMESTONE FILTERED SPRING WATER

SINGLE ORIGIN SOFT WINTER PICARDIE WHEAT

NEVER COMPROMISE, SIP RESPONSIBLY. GREY GOOSE ITS TRADE DRESS THE GEESE DEVICE ARE TRADEMARKS.VODKA-40% ALC.BY VOL.

EDITED BY: ALEX DAVIES. PHOTOGR APHY: GET T Y IMAGES, SHUT TERSTOCK

Juicy news. Shareable stats. Convo starters

Force of Nature

You know being outside is a science-backed stress easer. Turns out even watching high-quality nature shows can help lift your mood and reduce boredom. So, consider Netflix’s Night on Earth or My Octopus Teacher for that next natural high. You’re welcome!

SOURCE: UNIVERSIT Y OF EXETER

J ULY 2021 wome nshealth.co m. a u 1 3

CALM YOUR MIND WITH NEW SWISSE ULTIBOOST CALM + DE-STRESS

NEW

SWISSE AMBASSADOR

Always read the label. Follow the directions for use. If symptoms persist, talk to your health professional. Passionflower is traditionally used in Western herbal medicine to help relieve symptoms of anxiety and as a calmative to relax the nervous system. Ashwagandha is traditionally used in Ayurvedic medicine as an adaptogen to help the body adapt to stress.

Get that sweat on

3

OF THE BEST Whether you’re burpee-ing or brunching (or both), these fresh athleisure picks are guaranteed to put a smile on your dial.

Like Vegemite, hot yoga splits opinions. But it may be worth getting your sweat on. A study presented at an American Heart Association summit found the practice could help lower blood pressure to healthy levels. People with hypertension, not on medication, took part in three hour-long sessions a week at 40.5°C for three months, while a control group did zilch. After 12 weeks, the yogis had reduced their risk of heart attack and stroke. Scientists credit the combo of heat and yoga. Room-temp flows can lower blood pressure, too, but the efficacy of each is yet to be compared.

CLUB

BOOK

PHOTOGR APHY: RICH MACIVER / GALLERY STOCK , STILL-LIFE: SEVAK BABAKHANI

Slay Hot Yoga for Your Heart

WANT TO LAUGH, CRY AND FEEL INSPIRED?

Running Stories (Hightale, $44.99) shares short accounts about the powerful impact of running on people’s lives – from the abuse survivor to the 93-year-old beginner.

Made from hi-tech fabric, Lululemon’s Enlite bra, $119, is your new BFF.

With a sup waist, Emamaco’s crazy-soft 7/8 Shaper Move eggi are ideal w you’re stepping sweating or chilling.

Run like the wind Ru Run th Puma’s Devi ainers, $

J ULY 2021 wo me ns hea lth.com . au 15

IF YOU’RE YAWNING AT WORK, TAKE A MICROBREAK. EVEN FIVE MINUTES CAN HELP YOU FEEL MORE ENERGISED AND ENGAGED FOR THE REST OF THE DAY. USE THE TIME TO STRETCH, CHAT, CRAFT, MAKE A SNACK… WHATEVER IT IS YOU FEEL LIKE.

Chew on

SOURCE: NORTH CAROLINA STATE UNIVERSIT Y

this

WRITTEN IN THE STARS

SOURCE: PERSONALIT Y AND INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES

QUICK CHECK: Rub the spot where your jaw meets your ears while opening and closing your mouth a few times. Do you feel stiff back there or hear a clicking sound? That might be due to bruxism – the clenching or grinding of teeth, causing pain there and in the temporomandibular joint (TMJ syndrome).

Stress could be one cause, as it’s linked to clenching, says orthodontist Helen Choi.

Women also experience TMJ syndrome more than men, possibly due to hormones or higher anxiety overall. Try these soothing solves...

16 wo m en sh ea lt h.co m .a u J ULY 202 1

01

02

03

Use a hot or cold pack for 10 to 20 minutes, two or three times per day. If your jaw feels tender and inflamed, go the chilly route; if it feels like tightness, then apply heat.

Put your tongue on the roof of your mouth, without touching your teeth, whenever your mouth is just chilling. This will relax your jaw and chewing muscles, Choi explains.

If those DIY fixes don’t help, speak to your dentist or doc.

They can suggest lifestyle moves and other remedies, which can include a mouthguard for use during sleep.

PHOTOGR APHY: ADAM VOORHES, SHUT TERSTOCK

Jaw Dropper

Love checking your horoscope?

According to research, when your sign tells you great things are on the horizon, your resulting lifted mood is likely to boost your creativity. Previous studies have linked a positive mood with creative problem-solving and flexible thinking. Now, that’s astro-awesome, right?

+Contains on average 10g protein per serve and less than 4g sugar per serve, excluding milk.

The Best Kind of Glow

Turns out, while it’s cool to be kind, it’s also hot. New research has found that “givers” – aka people who are generous – are likelier to be rated as more physically attractive by others. Nice!

SOURCE: INDIANA UNIVERSIT Y

18 wo men sh e al t h.co m .a u JU LY 202 1

Glow getter

GET C H E E KY WITH IT We’re all for dreamy make-up shades in eco-friendly packaging, which is why the new Hermès blushes have landed at the top of our wish list. Expect refillable compacts and wearable semi-matte colours that look crazy natural on your skin. Sign us up!

Hermès Rose Hermès Silky Blush Powder in Rose Pommette, $110

Whether you have dark spots due to acne scarring or excessive sun exposure, a specialised athome treatment, like Rodan + Fields Reverse Targeted Dark Spot Corrector, $89, can help to lighten marks and make your skin tone look more even.

Other VIP (that’s very important protection) moves: being mindful of your sun exposure as well as slathering on SPF and protective gear, like hats and cover-up clothing.

WORDS: IANTHA YU. PHOTOGR APHY: REBECCA L AFAYE/GALLERY STOCK . SEVAK BABAKHANI

SPOT ON

Achieve Your Best Skin From Within.

A daily dose of Collagen Beauty Elixir helps boost natural collagen production, to keep ܹ«Ã ăØÂʃ Õ¼èÂÕ ˯ úÊè㨡è¼ʈ a¨«Ü èãúʢ ÊÊÜã«Ã¢ ¡ÊØÂè¼ Ê «Ã Ü ã¨ Ü « Ãã«ă ÕØÊó à à ăãÜ Ê¡ ʼ¼ ¢ Ãʢ «Ê S Õã« Ü ãÊ ÜèÕÕÊØã the skin’s natural production of collagen and elastin, with 100% naturally sourced ingredients such as Superberries, Organic Activated Turmeric, Vitamin ʢØ« ¨ èÜãØ ¼« à B ã«ó 9 ¹ è S¼èÂʃ ãØÊÊã à SØ ˯ SØÊ «Êã« Ü ¡ÊØ Ã ãèØ ¼¼ú Õ¼èÂÕ Ã Ø « Ãã complexion.

Discover your inner beauty boost at skinphysics.com.au

Available at:

e n' tuna c i R

a

post n i y d a re utes min

Feed your muscles in minutes with Tilda ready to heat rice.

With a range of delicious gluten-free, vegan friendly flavours, they’re the perfect post-workout fuel up.

Available now at Woolworths.

elevate your plate @tildariceau

PHOTOGR APHY: MICHELE GASTL /GALLERY STOCK , SHUT TERSTOCK

Shroom For More

How’s this for an easy win? New research in the journal Food Science & Nutrition has found that adding a serve of mushrooms (84g) to your daily diet can increase your intake of common “shortfall” nutrients, such as vitamin D and fibre, with a negligible impact on kilojoules, salt or fat content. Throw some into your stir-fry tonight.

CAPER-BILITIES

Have fun(ghi)

A compound found in capers has been shown to activate the proteins required for normal brain and heart activity. That’s something that could one day be used for the treatment of epilepsy and abnormal heart rhythms. So, sprinkle some over salmon to get a hit of the yum goodness.

SOURCE: COMMUNICATIONS BIOLOGY

8.30 AM

LET’S HEAR IT FOR THE EARLY BREAKFAST BIRD: STUDY PARTICIPANTS WHO STARTED EATING BEFORE THIS TIME HAD LOWER BLOOD SUGAR LEVELS AND LESS INSULIN RESISTANCE – BOTH FACTORS THAT CAN REDUCE THE RISK OF TYPE 2 DIABETES. SOURCE: THE ENDOCRINE SOCIET Y

JULY 2 02 1 wom en sh ealt h.co m.a u 2 1

BORN TO LIVE ISUZU D-MAX

Apple CarPlay is a trademark of Apple Inc. Android Auto is a trademark of Google LLC. Not all devices will be compatible & functionality will vary depending on the device.

SUBSTANCE MEETS STYLE INSIDE THE ISUZU D-MAX. The Isuzu D-MAX has been updated with advanced technology across the entire range. With a large touchscreen, DAB+ digital radio, Android Auto™, wireless Apple CarPlay® and voice recognition as standard. A digital display allows access to a variety of information with simple controls on the steering wheel. More capable than ever, muscular and modern, this is a new generation of tough. The Isuzu D-MAX is Born to Live!

Health and fitness to feel amazing all-over

Power pull

23

wo rko ut

Resist Like The A List This five-move, full-body workout delivers some serious sculpting.

Bonus? You can do it anywhere!

By Alexis Jones

It’s fitness trivia time. What do Jennifer Lopez, Tracee Ellis Ross and Jennifer Aniston have in common? Answer: all three of them use resistance bands to sculpt and strengthen their famous bods.

In fact, Aniston’s trainer Leyon Azubuike swears by ’em. “Resistance bands with handles are amazing for upper-body work,” he says. Using these rubber tubes to get stronger can be more effective at activating ancillary (a.k.a. helper) muscles that assist your primary movers than picking up dumbbells, reveals a small study in the Journal of Human Kinetics.

That’s likely because the added instability fires up these secondary muscles, which are often hard to target and train.

Giving this support system some extra attention is oh-so necessary, but often overlooked, according to Azubuike. “Too many people are building a superstrong house on a weak foundation,” he says. This can happen when you don’t strengthen your joints and the muscles around them, says trainer Chelsey Wilkens. The solve: focus on moves that will challenge (and toughen) these little muscle wonders. So, put the following workout on rotation and you’ll build a routine on solid ground...

24

I’M WITH THE BAND

“After being a cardio girl for most of my life – running, elliptical, etc – I started strength training using resistance bands because they were easy to tote around. For three months, I worked out doing targeted moves that took 15 to 20 minutes total, and I finally saw real results: I ran faster, could do multiple pushups and unearthed a six-pack… no gym needed!”

— writer Jennifer Nied

Don’t let left arm or torso rotate during movement

A

SNAP TO IT

Turn these five moves into a total-body circuit by performing 12 reps of one, then continuing on to the next without stopping. Once you’re finished, rest for 45 seconds. That’s one set. Do four, alternating sides for single-arm or -leg moves with each set. Let’s go, go, go!

B

REVERSE LUNGE WITH SINGLE-ARM FLY Fold band in half, holding both handles in right hand and middle of band in left. Extend arms forward at shoulder height. Then step right foot back and lower down until both legs form 90-degree angles, keeping back heel high (A). Maintain a slight bend in elbow as you pull right arm out to the side (B). That’s 1 rep.

The band stays against the back of arms the entire time

Keep knee of supporting leg softly bent throughout

A

SINGLE-LEG DEADLIFT TO PRESS B

A

SQUAT PRESS Stand with feet wider than hips, band under arches, hands holding handles in line with shoulders, elbows bent. Lower into a squat (A). Stand up and press arms straight overhead while pulling rib cage down and squeezing glutes (B). That’s 1 rep.

PHOTOGR APHY: MAT T HAW THORNE, EXERCISES: ALLIE HOLLOWAY

ALTERNATING LATERAL LUNGE Standing with feet hip-width apart, band secured under feet, hold handles in line with rib cage (A).

Take a big step to the right with right foot, bending that knee deep and pressing hips back while keeping left leg extended (B).

Push off bent leg to bring feet back together, then step to the opposite side.

That’s 1 rep.

Keep the band outside of legs

A

B

With band hooked under right foot and handles at waist, push hips back from standing stance and lift right leg straight back while tilting torso, until both are parallel to floor (A).

Extend arms down in line with shoulders (B). That’s 1 rep.

B

HOLLOW-HOLD DEAD BUG Lie faceup with legs in the air, knees bent 90 degrees, band underneath shoulder blades, and hands gripping handles. Extend arms so wrists are above shoulders and palms face knees (A). Slowly extend left leg straight (B), then pull it back in; do the same with the right. That’s 1 rep.

Feel the burn. wh

A

Draw navel toward spine

B

JULY 2 021 wome n shealt h.co m. a u 2 5

Are Fermented Foods REalLy worTh The Hype?

Fermentation is one healthy food trend that’s going nowhere. But do the touted nutritional benefits stand up to scrutiny? B y d i e t i t i a n L a u r a T i l t If you thought the wellness world would swiftly get over ’kraut and kombucha, you’re very much mistaken. In fact, global sales of fermented foods are expected to reach a whopping $57.8 billion by 2023, according to Persistence Market Research.

Ready to geek out?

Fermentation is an age-old practice that involves the controlled action of live microbes (bacteria and yeasts) to preserve food and enhance its flavour, texture and nutritional make-up. And fermented foods are hiding in plain sight – yoghurt, cheese, chocolate and

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coffee are all technically fermented. During fermentation, microbes (naturally present or added) consume sugars in foods they’re living on, like dairy or vegetables, producing gases and acids. Microbial end products give fermented foods their fizz and tangy flavour – think of the tartness of yoghurt or the

nu tr it io n

Lifting the foodie

PHOTOGR APHY: JAMIE CHUNG / TRUNK ARCHIVE; SHUT TERSTOCK

lid

bitterness of kombucha – and create a preservative effect by lowering the pH, preventing the growth of harmful microbes.

While preservation was the initial draw, now it’s the potential health benefits. First, with disease risk. There’s no robust evidence showing cause and effect, but studies have found links between consuming fermented food and the risk of developing certain conditions; yoghurt has been associated with a lower risk of metabolic syndrome, while kimchi has been linked with a lower incidence of asthma. It does sound promising, but other factors could be at play.

It’s true, though, that fermentation improves the digestibility of some foods. For example, kefir is made with bacteria that actually break down lactose, making it more digestible for people who have an intolerance.

As for the alleged benefits for the gut microbiome? Kept in balance, it forms a key part of your immune system, helps you digest food and influences mood and behaviour through the various neurotransmitters it produces. But antibiotics, low-fibre diets and stress disrupt this community, leading to the interest

in probiotics – live microbes that can have health benefits when consumed in the right quantity. Because fermented foods are made with live microbes, it’s assumed that these reach the gut after being consumed – and, yes, some studies support this. But, should they reach their destination, the physiological effects aren’t yet fully understood. While some fermented foods retain living microbes, such as raw ’kraut found in the fridge, others undergo processing that renders them inactive. Soy and pasteurised sauerkraut (that’s the cheaper stuff in jars) are made stable by heat processing, your sourdough is baked – and there aren’t yet enough credible studies looking at the health effects of fermented foods to make any legitimate claims.

Though proven gut benefits are pending, fermented foods are still worth a shot. Sauerkraut is rich in fibre as well as vitamin C, while naturally carbonated fermented drinks contain less sugar than fizzy ones. Don’t like kimchi? Try a carrot ’kraut. Dairy fan? Try out milk kefir on your cereal. While we wait to learn about the effects of ferments, know this: they still have a lot to offer. wh

FErmEntEd FRieNds

Kefir Cultured dairy products have been shown to contain more live microbes than other fermented foods.

Tempeh Made from fermented soy beans, tempeh is rich in protein and fibre, plus it’s a source of calcium and iron. Win!

Vegetable Kraut Consider fermented veg a good gateway – it’s easy to make and you can usually find a dish to please all.

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Could Intermittent Resting Help Ace Your Health Goals?

A fascinating new theory suggests that snacking on rest, by giving your brain and body a break every 90 minutes, could be the key to maximising success in and out of the gym!

By Kate Wills

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we llb ei ng

Nahid de Belgeonne is sitting on a park bench. Her eyes are closed and her hands are folded in her lap. Despite being dressed top to toe in activewear, to anyone walking by, it looks like the 53-year-old is doing, well, nothing. And that’s the point, really. This 10-minute post-run meditation is the most important part of her daily workout.

Nahid is practising intermittent resting – and it’s the closest thing to a sciencesanctioned snooze we’ve ever heard.

You’re probably already familiar with the term intermittent fasting – cycling between eating what you like and restricting your food intake via techniques like the 5:2 and 16:8.

Now, health and fitness experts are talking about intermittent resting – the idea that the body also needs to cycle through small bursts of inactivity (activity fasting, if you will) in order to perform at its best.

So, can scheduling rest with the enthusiasm you usually reserve for scheduling workouts really support your health and fitness goals?

Nahid used to work in the fashion industry. Pursuing a meticulously diarised and relentlessly active regime of kickboxing and sprinting, the idea of taking time away from a workout to meditate was laughable; she would even skip the savasana pose at the end of a yoga class. Then, in 2003, in her midthirties, everything changed. “I was constantly ill or stressed – always busy, but usually achieving very little,” she recalls, describing the state we now understand to be burnout. She spent the following year dismantling, then rebuilding her

life; she quit her job and retrained as a yoga teacher, going on to set up a fitness studio, Good Vibes, in London. Its USP was focusing on more restorative practices, like guided meditations and slow-flow yoga. And as Nahid discovered more about the power of rest, she began to consciously create pockets of it – a kind of deliberate downtime.

That she felt happier, healthier and more productive as a result of her new regime will come as news to no one. But she also credits it with making her fitter and stronger, and actually improving her quality of movement. She now trains other people in the art of snacking on rest via her yoga-meets-meditation technique, The Human Method.

Rhythm and Snooze Pressed on the science, Nahid explains that her theory is based on the body’s ultradian rhythms.

The sister system of circadian rhythms – which control your 24hour sleep-wake cycle – ultradian rhythms refer to the cycles that the systems in your body move through during the waking day. The concept is nothing new; it was proposed in the 1950s by sleep researcher Professor Nathaniel Kleitman, whose contribution to the field of shut-eye is such that he’s often referred to as “the father of sleep”. That the wellness industry is finally sitting up and taking notice doesn’t surprise Dr Kat Lederle, chronobiologist and sleep coach at the sleep education platform Somnia. “We’ve seen significant scientific interest and progress in nutrition, fitness and sleep – circadian health is the next big topic,” she tells WH. But while much of the focus in recent years has been on how your behaviour impacts your ability to fall – and stay – asleep, it impacts your waking function, too. “The body clock is made up of two clusters of 50,000 cells in the hypothalamus and we refer to that as the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN),” Lederle explains.

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“The SCN is like a conductor, setting the timings for everything else that happens in the body via various different pathways, so while ultradian rhythms vary from system to system, your body clock ensures they’re working in harmony together.” She adds, “If your internal rhythms become misaligned, that can lead to all sorts of problems.”

It’s thanks to a raft of circadian rhythm research that we now understand that the repercussions of this “misalignment” extend far beyond a night spent tossing and turning. A disrupted body clock has been shown to interfere with everything from your appetite to your coordination and mood.

Extreme disruption, such as that experienced by shift workers, has even been linked with depression.

But if the behaviour that contributes to a broken body clock sits on a sliding scale, with the shift workers whose livelihoods depend on keeping variable hours at one end, on the other you’ll find the kind of habits you know are less than ideal, but which you keep up anyway; working through your lunch break, doing a HIIT session when your body is begging for yoga and reading the internet instead of your book come bedtime. It’s in these everyday behaviours, Lederle explains, that you really have an opportunity to optimise your circadian health.

“By becoming more aware of your body clock and adopting behaviours that support its optimal functioning, as opposed to railing against it, you can not only reduce your risk of various diseases, but improve your day-to-day functioning, too,” she says. Essentially, it’s practising sleep hygiene, but for the waking day, too. And among the tools in Lederle’s “wake hygiene” toolkit is a habit that sounds a lot like intermittent resting. Regular rest, it transpires, is the backbone of good body-clock behaviour. “I call them mini breaks, but they amount to the same thing – taking a break of up to 20 minutes every 90 minutes or so,” says Lederle. “For me, it’s sitting back for a moment and bringing an

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Science approved chillout sesh

10 Even a rest break of this down stress and boost calm. Nice!

SOURCE: UNIVERSIT Y OF KONSTANZ

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REST ASSURED

Ready to make intermittent resting work for you? Lederle reveals how to tune into your body’s natural rhythms awareness to my breath. But I think the key is doing something that you enjoy. It’s not paying your bills or contacting your accountant – it’s something you’ve chosen to do.”

PHOTOGR APHY: FERNANDO GOMEZ / TRUNK ARCHIVE

Pause for Effect In recent years, there’s been a wealth of literature published on the mind-body benefits of taking regular rest breaks. It’s been shown to improve your productivity and creativity and reduce your risk of work-related illness. Considered alongside the mind-body benefits of meditation – it’s been proven to boost grey matter and improve heart rate, breathing and digestion, the list goes on – it makes a compelling case for following a more diligent approach to taking it easy. But what seems to elevate intermittent resting from your average work break is its intuitive nature; the idea that tapping into the times when your body is best primed for activity and rest could be a useful tool for those in the business of incremental gains.

“Mini breaks are just one example of how aligning your schedule with your body clock can support your health goals,” adds Lederle, who gives the example of planning when you exercise. Studies have confirmed that scheduling your workouts around your body clock can be an effective tool in both enhancing performance and reducing injury risk. For example, it’s thought that your body is best primed for the likes of highintensity workouts and strength training during the late afternoon and early evening, when your body temperature is approaching its peak.

BOOK A CHRONOTYPE HOLIDAY Permission to book your next break. Lederle suggests taking a five-day trip locally with the goal of tuning into your natural waking and sleeping hours.

Go to sleep when you feel tired and rise when you’re ready. By day five, you should know what your natural sleep timings are, and ideally you’ll start sleeping in that window every night.

Better pack some chamomile tea. Ahhh...

KEEP AN ENERGY DIARY You’ll already know when your energy ebbs and flows during the day by way of the times you usually reach for a coffee or a snack. But start consciously tuning into your feelings and noting them down. Look out for more obvious signs, such as yawning, as well as how engaged you feel in a task. Do it for a week and see what patterns you notice. This will then guide you to your own intermittent resting breaks.

TAKE THE MEQ For a more scientific approach, try taking the morningnesseveningness questionnaire (it’s Googleable). There are 19 questions designed to show where you sit on the sliding scale of morning person (lark) and evening person (night owl).

MAKE IT STICK Your body clock loves routine.

“Anything you do that’s part of a routine will help your body clock know what to expect, be that the time you do a workout or when you eat your lunch,” says Lederle.

Once you’ve identified your energy peaks and troughs, schedule your own breaks accordingly – and then stick with them!

Meditation research conducted on athletes also suggests Nahid’s version of intermittent resting (a workout immediately followed by a meditation session) could be a formula worth replicating. In 2017, researchers from the University of Miami found a group of willing guinea pigs in the form of the university’s football team. During pre-season training, players were tasked with doing a 12-minute meditation session immediately after they finished strength training, as well as practising the techniques in their own time. After four weeks, the researchers found that mindfulness meditation helped to alleviate the emotional and cognitive strain that can accompany a heavy training schedule. While your own workout week might take place off the footy field, it’s evidence meditation can be effective as another tool in your running belt during times when you’re ramping up on training.

While we still have much to learn about the body clock, interest in circadian health is only set to grow, and it’s a trend that’s come at a good time. Now that flexible working is less future corporate promise, more current reality for many, could intermittent resting present an opportunity to schedule your life – with all its work meetings and workouts – in a way that genuinely works for you? If the idea of taking a 20-minute break every 90 minutes makes your heart race (not the goal), even breaking for five or 10 minutes can help. “I’m a huge believer in doing your own experiments and seeing for yourself what works for you,” says Lederle.

“If you’re truly free to plan your life in the way that suits you, the repercussions on your health and wellbeing could be huge.” wh

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In Sweat We Sync Tailoring your exercise routine to your cycle is officially a thing. Here’s how to use it to your advantage

B y L a u r e n D e l Tu r c o

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Game on

he a lth

The Brisbane Lions women’s team has been tracking their menstrual cycles to help optimise training and recovery since the inception of the AFLW three years ago. In case you were wondering, they also won the AFLW premiership this year.

Do What Feels Good

PHASE 1

When they first kicked off team-wide tracking, it was still a fairly revolutionary concept, but the Australian Institute of Sport has now created an online training program to educate athletes, coaches and medical practitioners about all the ways the menstrual cycle and other female-specific health issues can impact athletes.

When you think about it, the idea makes so much sense that it’s pretty shocking it’s not commonplace. “The way you move and breathe, how your heart beats and your body’s reaction to exercise varies throughout your menstrual cycle,” says Dr Georgie Bruinvels, a research scientist and co creator of the FitrWoman period-tracking app.

Turns out, tailoring your routine to your cycle – a technique known as phase-based training – empowers sweat lovers to take advantage of their physiology. The aim?

To perform at your full potential, according to Dr Stacy T. Sims, who’s been researching female athletes for 20 years. And this approach isn’t just for fitness pros. Any woman can maximise her workouts by learning to go with the flow. No matter your goals, the right training during specific times of the month will optimise your outcomes, says Sims.

Step one? Get to know your cycle. A tracking app can help you understand each part of it, and how it impacts the body. From there, use this guide to tweak your workout routine. You’ll be amazed by how good you feel once things are totally in sync.

DAYS 1-5

Right about now, low levels of both oestrogen and progesterone (plus more inflammation) may have you feeling pretty unmotivated to get moving, explains Bruinvels. But it’s actually prime time to build your strength and muscle, Sims notes, thanks to some relatively high testosterone.

If you’re craving simple, restorative movement, focus on low-intensity workouts like yoga, pilates and stretching during this time, says Bruinvels. But, if you feel energised, hit the weights and lift heavy, says Sims. In fact, go for loads you can manage for only 6 reps, tops. (Try five sets of five reps at 80 per cent of your one-rep max – ie, the most weight you can lift for 1 rep.) Get your strong on.

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TRACK IT, THEN HACK IT To create the best routine for your body, you’ve got to know your cycle. These free apps can help you log (and decode) each phase.

This percentage of women use a phone app to track their cycle

PHASE 2

SOURCE: UNIVERSIT Y OF WASHINGTON

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DAYS 6-14

Clue

Flo

Complete with a cycle analysis tool and the ability to predict oncoming symptoms (like cramps), Clue offers an easy-to-digest but sciencebased view into your period.

One of the most popular period trackers in the game, this app helps you understand and predict your menstrual cycle, PMS symptoms and even your potential fertility.

FitrWoman

WILD.AI

This unique app pairs detailed cycle logging with expertbacked training, recovery and nutrition advice for ultimate peak performance all month long.

This app uses artificial intelligence to generate a personalised plan (including exercise and eats) based on your sweat goals and cycle info.

Between the end of your period and about three days before ovulation, oestrogen levels spike, which means you’ll have more energy to work out and recover faster.

Woop! “Oestrogen is associated with feeling happy, engaged and strong,” explains Bruinvels. Sweet.

Get After It If you feel next-level amazing, make the most of it by continuing to lean in to strength training, plus some sprints and more intense workouts. Now’s the time to bust out that skipping rope or join a bootcamp class and really push. Love your work.

PHASE 4

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DAYS 24-28 Both your oestrogen and progesterone levels fall. As a result, PMS symptoms – like irritability and anxiety – start to creep up, while fluctuating blood-sugar levels and inflammation can sap your motivation. Sigh.

Wind Down Since your body isn’t in peak performance condition right now, use exercise to reduce stress. Opt for pilates, yoga or slow runs. When you’re strength training, focus on form. Nailing it now will prepare you to load more weight when a new cycle starts, says Sims. Got it. wh

Boost

PHASE 3

PHOTOGR APHY: JAMIE CHUNG . ST YLING: MEGUMI EMOTO

your fitness – period

DAYS 15-23

Things do get a little wonky in this part of your cycle.

Around ovulation, oestrogen briefly drops while your progesterone increases.

Good to know: higher levels of progesterone can actually contribute to muscle breakdown, which makes proper recovery even more important, says Bruinvels.

Stick to Steady State Help your body bounce back by switching to moderateintensity exercise, Sims says.

Swap sprints for easy runs and stick to weights you can lift for eight to 10 reps. If you feel super sore, give yourself a cheeky extra day between workouts, Bruinvels adds.

2 lean muscle SOURCE: UMEÅ UNIVERSIT Y

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“The boys didn’t want to get beaten by a girl when I first started”

Pedal to the metal

Driving Change

As part of the female minority in motorsport, Molly Taylor is used to challenges – no matter how extreme

By Emma Levett

The car hurtled down the dirt road.

Molly Taylor knew there was a hairpin bend at the bottom of the hill and, with her hands gripping the steering wheel, she was ready to swerve around it, already picturing the gravel shooting out beneath her wheels as she sped away. But as she started to press the brakes, the corner came at her more quickly than predicted and she knew she’d made a mistake.

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Her pace notes were wrong. Jerking the wheel to the right anyway, she hoped she’d make it. There was so much at stake: sponsors, the car, the race. Expletives sprang from Molly’s mouth as she and her co-driver clipped the bank. As if in slow motion, the car started to roll.

One second they were upright; the next they were upside-down. Metal smashed and creaked, but the car kept rolling until, incredibly after a

full 360, it was upright again and pointing in the right direction. Molly tentatively touched the accelerator and it sprang back to life. “Let’s never speak of this again,” she laughed to her co-driver, as they then went on to finish the race.

Racing up the Ranks It was 2009 and Molly had recently moved to the UK to compete in the British Rally Championship. It

wo me n i n sp o r t

mentally sharp. Getting actual driving time is hard. I’ll try to get in the car every month if possible.”

WinS WO M E N I N S P O RT

Molly (centre) with her team after winning the Extreme E race in Saudi Arabia

15 PHOTOGR APHY: SUPPLIED

MOLLY HAS RACED IN THIS MANY COUNTRIES

was the start of a hugely successful career, which has seen her tick off a number of world firsts including becoming the youngest person and the first female to take out the Australian Rally Championship in 2016. “Being the first female wasn’t added motivation, I just wanted to win,” Molly, 33, says. “To most people in the sport, who you are and where you’ve come from doesn’t matter. We’re all just drivers.”

That said, as part of a sport where men and women compete alongside each other but the former still hugely outnumber the latter, Molly admits there were teething

problems. “The boys didn’t want to get beaten by a girl when I started out,” she says. “And there was more pressure to perform as people were watching to see how ‘the girl’ goes. But I was lucky. My mum [Coral Taylor] was a professional rally car driver so I didn’t see it as an abnormal thing to do. For me, there were far bigger challenges than being female.” Like what? “It’s a tough, cut-throat sport,” Molly explains. “Driving isn’t the only part of it. You need sponsorship, finance, a car. You also have to get the car to the race and then you need to perform. If you’re not fast enough, you’re gone. A colleague used to call rally ‘the university of life’ because you really have to learn how to do everything yourself.”

There’s also the issue of not being able to practise easily or frequently.

In the race Molly most recently won – part of the 2021 Extreme E rally series designed to raise awareness of climate change – she only had two days to try out the car before she was thrown out into the Saudi Arabian desert to compete. “I run, mountain bike and do weights,” Molly says of her training. “You need to be fit enough to focus when your body is under stress. The car can get to 50 or 60 degrees with no air con and you have to remain

Staying on Track But, despite the hurdles, Molly’s passion has never wavered. “Mum and Dad never pushed me. They knew I needed to have the internal drive,” she recalls. “I was 15 before I had my first go [in a rally car] and from then I was hooked. Sometimes all the work to get to the race is exhausting but then I get behind the wheel and remember why I do it.”

As part of Molly’s rise to fame she’s found herself becoming a role model for young girls who also love cars. “At first, knowing how much I have to learn, I was like, ‘Don’t copy me. I’m not sure what I’m doing’,” she says. “But as I’ve got older, I’ve started to appreciate what my mum [being in the sport] did for me. It’s a special thing to be able to pass on.”

Wondering where else you might’ve seen this champ before?

Molly competed on gruelling TV series SAS Australia in 2020, where she took part in a military-training programme designed to push contestants to their limit mentally and physically. She made it to the final round. “It was horrible, one of the hardest things I’ve done,” she says, laughing. “But it was also one of the best.” She jokes that she screwed up the tasks where she needed to be sharp under pressure, but her motorsport experience did stand her in good stead for that familiar feeling of terror in the face of knowing you have a job to do.

“When I’m nervous, I’ve always focused on the process of the next step,” Molly explains. “Looking wider than that can be too overwhelming, so I’ll mentally take one step, then the next, and then I’m doing [the task] and it’s too late to back out!”

With two races already under her belt, she’s doing exactly that for the Extreme E series. Senegal followed Saudi Arabia, with Greenland, Brazil and Argentina to come. Molly is unsure what the longer-term future holds but, driven by her passion, it’s likely she’ll still be making a serious mark behind the steering wheel. wh

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C O M F O R TA B L E IN COLOURS

ST. 1 SHOCK TH R U Extraordinary softness

Built with Dramatic rebound

Shock absorption

Useful stuff to upgrade your every day

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DOes thIs makE Your

Brain Tingle?

Downloaded every meditation app out there and still struggle to find the calm you crave? Yep, us too! Here, one writer tries the cognitive equivalent of going off-grid, with intriguing results

By V i c to r i a Wo o d h a ll

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mindfulness What may be the internet’s most boring video is playing on my laptop. A blonde woman in immaculate make-up and blackrimmed glasses is tapping her fingers on a table. Hang on, now she’s scratching them over a towel before folding it. In a moment, she’ll start passing tiny balls of beeswax from one hand to the other so they sound like dry rice being tipped into a saucepan.

Throughout it all, she gives a whispered commentary of what she’s doing, though, for the uninitiated, the question of why she’s doing it at all remains a total mystery.

Thankfully, I already know. This is an ASMR (autonomous sensory meridian response) video.

It’s part of a bona fide YouTube subculture, in which millions tune in to watch the seemingly pointless as a sort of meditation. There’s a host of ‘ASMRtists’ – whispering presenters who crinkle paper, pop bubble wrap or flick through books into sensitive binaural microphones so that, when you listen through headphones, it’s as though they’re right next to you. It’s all slow movements and crisp sounds with no other point than to help you de-stress and disengage.

ASMR isn’t new. Since it first emerged from the depths of the internet in 2010, it’s become the third most popular search term on YouTube and even made the leap from digital trend to IRL one, via an exhibition at Sweden’s national centre for architecture and design last year. But its present popularity is symptomatic of a shift.

It’s just one of many techniques with the goal of quietening your amygdala; we’re talking about being “mindless”, as opposed to mindful.

“It’s certainly similar to mindfulness in that it helps you disconnect from your rational, cognitive thought so you don’t constantly build more and more thoughts and get lost down the mental rabbit hole,” says Dr Danny Penman, mindfulness expert, neuroscientist and author of The Art Of Breathing (Harper Collins, $25.90).

The blatant and defining inanity of these new “mindless” techniques (more on which later) isn’t so different from more traditional meditative therapies, though there’s more to ASMR than relaxation. The response itself is a phenomenon that’s piqued the interest of the scientific community.

Its name refers to the tingling sensation that many people feel when watching these videos.

Until 2010, when the phrase ASMR was coined, people referred to it as a “head orgasm” or “braingasm”. In an attempt to chase the tingle, I’ve watched everything from someone crinkling paper to making (and then eating) zoodles, and demonstrating a new oil burner (lots of finger-tapping opps), yet

it eludes me. One theory as to why is that it affects a personality type known as the highly sensitive person (HSP), thought to make up about 20 per cent of the population.

Psychotherapist Michelle Woodall, who specialises in the HSP (and is one herself), explains they’re “probably more likely to experience ASMR because of their finely tuned sensitive systems – subtle arousal has a much more powerful effect.”

Soothing Sounds Google ASMR and the pages are full of testimonies on how it helps with conditions such as insomnia, migraine, fibromyalgia, depression and anxiety.

But science has only recently started testing the claims. Researchers at the University of Swansea published a study that looked at 475 people who self-reported to be sensitive to ASMR. They found that 80 per cent of participants believed ASMR improved their mood and that, of respondents who suffered chronic pain, 42 per cent reported that it improved their symptoms. All these participants had experienced the tingling sensation, but even if you’re not the tingly type, ASMR can still offer you something.

Craig Richard, a biology professor at Shenandoah University, Virginia, believes that ASMR techniques activate the same biological pathways

as interpersonal bonding between loved ones, whether that’s parent and child, two friends or romantic partners.

“Some of the basic biology of bonding is well established, and this involves specific behaviours like gentle touches and soft voices, which stimulate the release of endorphins, dopamine, oxytocin and serotonin,” he says.

There’s also a pretty functional explanation for ASMR’s lullaby effect: inane noise might be better for you than total silence. “It’s actually unnatural for you to be in a completely quiet space,” explains Penman. “In any natural environment, when it goes silent, that’s when there’s danger, and so your evolutionary fight-or-flight response can kick in. A lot of meditation actually involves focusing on the sounds around you – but it’s about learning how not to engage with

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And despite being le-free, it’s easy to et the hushed words and unds float over me. I drift off to sleep. next mindless I try involves ds in my ears: onkey… Pacific tling.” asleep ng of random phrases on pp n developed by Canadian cognitive scientist Dr Luc Beaudoin. Picturing the words (but not relating them to each other) will, the app claims, “shuffle my thoughts to sleep”. Imagining an array of random things (serial diverse imagining, dubbed “cognitive shuffle” for the Spotify generation) affects the brain in two ways.

First, says Beaudoin, it “interferes with the kind of thinking that keeps you awake. So while you’re thinking about these images, you won’t be thinking about your mortgage or [other] concerns.” Second, it triggers “incoherent mentation”, the thinking your brain naturally does before you drop off, signalling that it’s safe to do so. “Researchers have found that, as people fall asleep, they experience visual imagery. They have ‘micro dreams’ and the cognitive shuffle imitates this state,” says Beaudoin. Penman points out it only works if the words don’t trigger any unpleasant associations.

Luckily, I’ve had no bad experiences with prunes or monkeys. It may be nonsensical, but it’s effective. With my usual spinning thoughts kept at bay, I fall asleep easily.

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Now, to my final dose of mindlessness, which is a morning affair and, this time, the words are my own. I’m scribbling them down on paper.

After 15 minutes, I’ve written mostly fragments of to-do lists, snatches of conversation and an earworm song – anything that comes to mind, whether or not there’s any sense or reason to it.

This is “brain dumping”; the mental equivalent of a good bowel movement.

Do it first thing in the morning to let go of old crap and feel mightily relieved. Devised by life coach Michelle Roques O’Neil (and inspired by Julia Cameron’s seminal self-help book The Artist’s Way), brain dumping is a way of offloading the things clogging up your overloaded mind.

“Three pages preferably,” suggests Roques O’Neil.

“And without taking your pen off the paper. Don’t

read it back because it probably won’t make an awful lot of sense.

The process is what’s important. It’s a way of safely releasing things that could fester.”

Writing your feelings down is such a common notion, it’s almost clichéd.

Yet there’s science to support it. One study found that people who wrote expressively about traumatic, stressful or emotional events for 15 to 20 minutes – on just three to five occasions – had significantly better physical and psychological outcomes compared with those who wrote about neutral topics. Another study even found that it helped wounds heal faster. Even if you’re not dealing with deeply traumatic events, neuroscientist and performance coach Magdalena BakMaier points out how chronicling the everyday

and inane can have a direct effect on the brain’s neural pathways.

“When your emotional centres, such as the amygdala, are activated – say, if a friend say something to of you and yo go – it on areas such as those that control decision making,” she explains. “By writing it down, you’re effectively tagging it and giving your cognitive brain information to file it under, thereby releasing the brake.” It’s a technique that’s really come into its own for me since I started using it. Once my overnight mind-soup is committed to paper, I’m not as reactive, things don’t push my buttons as much and there’s more mental space to step back.

What each of these techniques has in common is that you can’t really fail. There’s no end game. “That’s also true with mindfulness,” notes Penman. “But your own self-judgement when, say, your mind starts spinning with thoughts, gets in the way.” In one sense, the outcome of being mindless is very similar to being mindful – to realise you’re not your thoughts; to stop yourself being consumed by them.

Really, it’s just a different way to get there. With all that in mind, I’m heading back over to YouTube to watch an 11-minute video of plastic balls bouncing down an escalator. How come? Just because. wh

PHOTOGR APHY: MAT THEW ROHARIK /GALLERY STOCK , SHUT TERSTOCK

mindfulness

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Liar Liar

By C atriona Har vey-Jenner

If being economical with the truth is what makes us human, what causes a person to do it compulsively?

As Grace* sat in the armchair, her heart began to pound. The bishop gazed across the table and into what felt like her soul.

She was 12 years old. “Do you have faith in and a testimony of God the eternal father, his son Jesus Christ, and the Holy Ghost?” he began. “Yes,” replied Grace. “Have you ever had impure thoughts?” “No.” She chewed her lip a little. “Do you smoke or drink alcohol, coffee or tea?” he quizzed.

“No,” Grace said. She’d found a rhythm now. It was in this “worthiness interview”, a common practice for young people in the Mormon faith, that Grace learned to lie. And she’s been doing it ever since.

In a world in which we rarely post without a filter, it’s almost impossible to discern a genuine image from a deep-fake, and “fake news” is a response to criticism that comes with a presidential stamp of approval, the lines between fiction and reality are blurrier than ever. Stories of compulsive liars go viral quicker than footage of interspecies animal

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friendships; and from the woman who faked cancer to the phony heiress (more on her later), each web of lies appears more intricate than the last.

And they’re just the ones who get caught. Trying to ascertain just how many of us have set our proverbial pants on fire is difficult for obvious reasons, and even if you’re not lying to the person you’re talking

to, there’s a chance you could be lying to yourself.

Research suggests that people are better at lying online than they are face-to-face, thanks to a concept called the motivational enhancement effect and, given that life is increasingly being lived on Instagram, Zoom and WhatsApp – we send around 65 billion messages on the latter every day – it’s safe to assume that we’re collectively telling more than a few fibs. But while everyone lies, there’s a difference between telling your colleague her new haircut looks great (love it, Susan!) and fabricating your entire existence.

So what exactly is it that makes a compulsive liar?

s e l f- e s t e e m

THE LONG CON

Tr u t h hurts?

“I can craft my persona into anything I want, and that’s exciting,’ admits Grace, now 18. She grew up in Midwest America, in an extremely strict Mormon community – a religion in which “you’re either totally good or totally bad”, she explains.

The worthiness interviews she went through were used to determine the camp to which she belonged. She slipped up in her first one; admitting to having stolen some sweets, and she was punished. So when the second interview came around, she lied. But the idea that she was fundamentally a bad person had already been internalised, and it soon dawned on her that she could harness the art of lying to help boost her social status. A selfdescribed introvert, Grace struggled socially, and sought solace in online forums. But it wasn’t enough to blend into the conversations; she wanted attention – and she knew just how to get it. “I wrote a blog post detailing how I’d been in a car accident and was paralysed from the waist down,” she confesses.

The post served its purpose; she was flooded with messages. “It basically made me really popular. It felt good, because I’d never been popular in real life.”

From there, the lies spiralled. Her sister had died of cancer; she came from a family of

10 children; she had an IQ of 140. She spent hours doing research to ensure her stories seemed watertight, while interspersing them with elements of the truth – “to make them seem authentic”. But as time passed, and she became closer to two people from her online forum, they suggested a meet-up.

Grace is now in a bind – with no other friends, she desperately wants to go. But she can’t.

These people believe she’s paralysed from the waist down. She now has to continue swerving conversations about meeting up (a tactic that will only work for so long) or face her lies unravelling and risk losing the only friends she’s got. She still hasn’t decided which approach she’ll take.

That Grace told her first lie to gain popularity is textbook, according to Tali Sharot, a professor of cognitive neuroscience.

“We know that people lie for one of two reasons: to get a reward or to avoid harm,” she explains.

“So that reward might be monetary, such as lying on your taxes, or something social, like boosting your profile.” It explains why you might

JULY 2 021 wom e nsh eal th .com .a u 45

Fib detector frenzy

nod enthusiastically when your boss enquires after the task you were supposed to do last week, and why it’s easier to go along with it when asked “was that good for you?”, but not how a white lie weaves itself into a web. Sharot’s team set out to answer this very question in a 2016 study.

Using an fMRI scanner, they looked at the brains of participants as they gave them multiple opportunities to tell fibs.

“When you lie, you see a lot of activity in the amygdala [the almondshaped region of the brain that’s important for processing emotion],” Sharot says. “The reason is that most people feel bad about lying, and this negative signal is what keeps you from doing it.

But when you’re exposed to the same emotional stimuli repeatedly, you have less of an emotional reaction every time. We saw this with lying: the first time a participant lied, we’d see a large response in the amygdala, the next time it was smaller. And the bigger the decrease, the more likely they were to lie the next time around.”

Sharot’s findings provide a biological basis for the slippery slope theory: the idea that one minute you’re fibbing about stealing sweets, and the next you’ve fabricated your entire existence.

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Rachel DeLoache Williams was first drawn to Anna Delvey when the supposed heiress made a concerted effort to befriend her in New York in 2015. Rachel became immersed in Anna’s life – and all the private jets, five-star suites and crisp Provence rosé that came with it. Only, Anna Delvey wasn’t an enterprising socialite set to inherit millions; she was a fraudster called Anna Sorokin, who conned banks, hotels and friends out of hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Rachel was just one of her casualties. It was Anna’s “scatty” nature – along with the clear signs of wealth – that meant Rachel stepped in without hesitation to temporarily foot the $79,000 bill for a luxury Moroccan holiday when Anna had problems with her own cards. But Anna didn’t have the funds to reimburse her – and she never intended to. Anna is now in prison, serving up to 12 years for grand larceny. She’s being punished for the financial aspect of her crimes, but the real wreckage of her lies cannot be undone with a stint in jail.

“Before, I would have told you that I was a pretty good judge of character. So the fact that Anna singled me out, got so close to me and then betrayed me was deeply painful,” says Rachel, who’s since written a book about the experience called My Friend Anna (Hachette,

Exaggeration Station

FAKE EXPECTATIONS

Embellishment efforts rival a Real Housewife’s wardrobe?

Exaggeration is an easy trap to fall into, but if you find yourself going OTT on the regs, ask why. “What are you worried will or won’t happen if you don’t exaggerate something?” says Lysn psychologist Rucha Lele. “Will you feel less important?

More vulnerable? Will your problem not be taken seriously? Start creating awareness about how often you exaggerate, in what circumstances and how it makes you feel. Take steps to address these root causes, like talking to a psychologist or reflective practices.”

$39.99). For Rachel, it’s the lack of empathy that Anna’s actions exhibited that’s stayed with her; the smirk on the face of her former friend during their final showdown is etched on her brain like a tattoo. “I asked her all of these questions and… the way she had an answer for everything… it was just sport for her.” What Rachel, and others who are on the receiving end of an intricate web of lies

want to know, is: how can you simply not care?

Sharot has a theory. As well as explaining why lies can escalate, she believes that her team’s findings could explain why one person is more likely to become a compulsive liar than the next. “We think it’s possible that this mechanism explains individual differences in lying,” she adds. “People who have a bigger amygdala response are less likely to lie, while those who have fast adaptation – who quickly lose that negative feeling – are more likely to lie. You don’t see an amygdala response

s e l f- e s t e e m

FAUX SELF-ESTEEM

MAKE IT RIGHT Caught in a lie? Rucha Lele, a psychologist at digital mental health platform Lysn (welysn.com), shares how to move forward

01

*NAME HAS BEEN CHANGED, PHOTOGRPAPHY: IRINA EFREMOVA /STOCKSY, GET T Y IMAGES

COME CLEAN:

in psychopaths, for example.” Neuroscience research on the brains of compulsive liars is limited, although one study from the University of Southern California was the first to offer evidence of structural differences in the brains of those who lie compulsively.

Researchers found that those with a history of repeated lying had more white matter and less grey matter in their prefrontal cortex than the non-lying control group.

Theory? This gives them more tools with which to devise complicated lies, plus fewer moral restraints to stop them.

“The first step is to admit you lied, closely followed by an apology. This shows that you feel remorse over the dishonesty, while the apology is an acknowledgement that your actions or statements have negatively affected the other person.”

02

EXPLAIN YOURSELF: “Next, provide some context of what led you to lie. Did you stammer out a reason without thinking because you were panicked and worried they would judge you? Or was there an intention to steer them Into something of your choosing? The purpose of providing this context isn’t to excuse your behaviour; it’s more to explain your thought process and how that influenced what you did.”

03 MAKE AMENDS: “Do you need to stay back an extra hour after work because your co-worker put in overtime when you chucked a sickie?

Can you pay for the next dinner out because someone else lost money when you pulled out last minute from the last one? This shows you’re aware of the impact of the lie, but also proactive in trying to make a change to the after-effects.”

04 GIVE IT TIME: “Know that it’ll take time to build the trust back. This depends on the size and effect of the lie.

Be transparent with your words and your behaviours.

Trustworthiness builds up through your actions.”

“A compulsive liar isn’t a scientific construct, but a term people use. We don’t have a definition for it,” says psychiatrist Dr Neel Burton. Instead, it seems compulsive lying is a symptom of various personality disorders – borderline, antisocial, histrionic and narcissistic being those most commonly diagnosed among “liars”. The only medically diagnosable condition for compulsive lying is Munchausen Syndrome, in which a person pretends to be ill or deliberately produces symptoms of illness in themselves. The clinical cause? Low self-esteem.

“It’s seen as a need to attract attention in someone who lacks it,” explains Burton. “Patients are seen as people who need help. In most cases, when people tell a big lie, it’s not because they want to deceive or because they’re ‘evil’. It’s because they’re in desperate need.” Grace admits her fictions were driven by the need for attention, while Anna Sorokin seemingly craved status.

The thread that binds them is low self-esteem.

It cuts to the heart of our human motivation for lying: a need to seek reward and avoid harm.

And you don’t need to be a compulsive liar to understand this. While your own lies might be smaller, tuning into why you’re telling them could in fact be the secret to living more authentically: both online and off. wh

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Hot desking

Upgrade Your New Work World Still WFH (that’s working from home) hunched like a pretzel on your couch?

Let us help you make a few healthier amendments B y Ta r a A l i

48

career

Last year’s scramble to set up remote working in our banana bread-stained trackies has now stretched to more than a year. In that time, many companies have evolved to permanent WFA (work from anywhere) or a combination of on-site and remote working while we enjoy the “new normal” of flexible hours and less commuting.

More than eight in ten of us are against a return to “normal” working life, according to Skillsoft research – yet, hustling within your own four walls can create its own set of stresses. Think: a lack of support from colleagues, next-level screen time hours, endless snacking due to the fridge just being right there. And women are less likely to experience improved health outcomes when WFH, according to a 2020 study review published in the journal BMC Public Health. (Insert unsurprised sigh.) It’s clear our current work model needs refining.

“The COVID period has created a trend that extends beyond flexible workplaces and toward genuine self-care,” says Rosie Cairnes, vice president of Skillsoft, a leading global provider of digital learning. “For companies to reach the other side of this pandemic in a good place, employee wellbeing and wellness must be a permanent focus,” she adds. Want in?

Time to make-over your nine to five, 2021 style.

UPGRADE YOUR:

Workspace You don’t need us to tell you that sitting on a cheap dining room chair for eight hours a day ain’t great. A new survey

by Endeavour College of Natural Health found that two thirds of us are suffering from neck, back and shoulder soreness related to our tech use. If you can afford it, consider a decent computer chair and a portable (and adjustable) stand-up desk so you can change positions. You don’t have to invest in officegrade equipment, though, says Jody Allen, author of Earn at Home Mum ($24.99, Penguin) who has been WFH for years. “Setting up your laptop on a kitchen bench works well as a low-cost stand-up desk – just adjust the height with some books to make it more ergonomic so you’re not hunching over for hours,” she tips.

And while ergonomics has your back, a truly productive workspace is also one that feels pleasant to be in. So, put up your vision board, place a cosy rug under your feet and choose a low-maintenance plant (try aloe vera or a cactus) for your desk – just the sight of greenery in the workplace can soothe stress, found Japanese researchers.

Talk about plant power.

UPGRADE YOUR:

Boundaries A raincheck from the 40-hour chained-to-thedesk work model hasn’t affected our ability to power through our to-do list. In fact, a survey by US company Prodoscore reported a 47 per cent increase in worker productivity during the pandemic. It also found that, if you want to match those stats, knowing when to log off and setting firm boundaries are key. “Put aside time for family/ friends and business every single day – success in both comes down to consistency,” says Allen.

Decide which “rules” work best for you, whether it’s following the lead of US investment bank Citigroup and introducing Zoomfree Fridays to combat video-call fatigue, or being intentional about working for a set number of hours each day. Shut down that computer screen and ritualise the end of your working day by going for a walk or doing a happy dance to Lizzo tunes (just us?).

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UPGRADE YOUR:

Health Habits A productive WFH day needs more than a schlep from bed to your laptop. Without a regular commute, our lives have become much more sedentary, putting us at increased risk of obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and nosediving mental health. Your move? Add one or two achievable daily health habits to your week and build up from there – drinking more water, doing a breathing exercise, downloading an app such as Stretchly which reminds you to take screen and stretch breaks. Swerve constant fridge trips and mindless grazing by prepping your lunch and snacks in the morning, suggests Allen.

And, if you need extra incentive to squeeze in a workout, try this: a study published in the International Journal of Workplace Health Management found that, on days they exercised, participants’ scores increased by 21 per cent for work concentration, 22 per cent for finishing tasks on time and 41 per cent for motivation. So, get your sweat on – your wellbeing (and boss) will definitely thank you.

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UPGRADE YOUR:

Connection Your spider plant can’t bounce creative strategies back at you or buddy up on a lunchtime run. If too much at-home time makes you feel isolated, try creating a new “commute” each morning – this could be a walk to get your latte and chat with your barista, or calling your mum before you log on.

“If you’re missing social interaction, make a point of catching up with a friend, client or potential client at least once a week,” says Allen. “There are also co-working spaces you can pay to use, many on a casual basis.” Check out your local library, too – it may have a study room or desks where you can work and even take calls.

UPGRADE YOUR:

Productivity Remote working means you often need monk-like focus while distractions (is that you, Stylerunner delivery?) compete for your attention. “Some people have what I call ‘goldfish syndrome’,” says Allen. “Suddenly the washing urgently

needs to be done, or the dishwasher beeps and must be emptied immediately. If you suffer from this, you need to acknowledge it and put steps into place to help you focus.”

Her concentration kit includes project management apps like

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Y N Toolkit 1. Devil’s Ivy plant

This indoor gem sits pretty on your desk, and is known for its air-detoxifying properties. Fresh.

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Wireless Ergonomic keyboard, $229.95, Logitech.com.au A k y i a a

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Philips Hue Go

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5. Frank Green mint $59.95, frankgreen. com.au A quick-pour plunger that keeps your wake-up juice warm all morning.

PHOTOGR APHY: FRENCH ANDERSON LTD, GET T Y IMAGES, SUPPLIED

6. Dyson Pure Slack and Basecamp, which keep your work on track, plus a good pair of noise cancelling headphones. “You can listen to podcasts, silence, rainforest, music or anything that will help you stay in the zone,” Allen adds. That’s your WFH game, nailed. wh

7

Cool Me personal purifier fan, $399, dyson.com.au Captures and traps common household pollutants, then keeps you cool with that purified air.

7. Calm app,

$6.67 per month Meditation and more for that micro break.

JULY 2021 wo menshea lth.com. au 5 1

Score a Dose of Vitamin N Can’t escape the desk for that lunchtime walk?

No biggie. Turns out there are plenty of other ways to tap into the grounding power of nature

“Nature is everything you are,” explains eco-psychotherapist Ruth Allen. “It is in and around you on every level, from your personal microbiome to the edges of the universe. Nature is coming and going and yet it is irreducible.

It just is. You are part of it, whether you consider yourself ‘interested in nature’ or not.” In Allen’s

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book, Grounded: How connection with nature can improve our mental and physical wellbeing, she explores how we can become grounded (think: calm, balanced, able to survive the trials of life) through an ongoing relationship with nature, ourselves and each other.

Steal this toolkit of her trusted methods for doing just that. Ready?

minute Grounding Practice You can do this on grass, sand, mud or in shallow water.

Let your mood dictate the choice.

Stand barefoot with your feet hip width apart. Close your eyes; breathe deeper and slower.

Turn attention to any sensations that you feel in your body.

Spread your toes; notice the sensations in your feet. Breathe into these sensations.

Envision sending energy downwards as you breathe, then “pull” the in-breath up from your feet to the top of your head.

Bring attention back to your feet.

This time, concentrate on the weight of your body and the contact with the earth.

Stay like this as long as you wish, breathing slowly.

Breathing Anxiety and stress can shorten our breath and cause chest tightness.

However, this simple, breathlengthening exercise can induce instant relaxation and help you feel more grounded.

Sit comfortably with a straight back as well as a relaxed face or gentle smile.

Place your index fingers on the cartilage between your ears and your cheeks. That's it.

Take a deep breath inward to a depth that feels comfortable, and as you exhale, press the cartilage and make a humming “M” sound like a bee.

Repeat as desired; at the end sit quietly and just notice any changes in mood. Too easy!

ADDITIONAL WORDS: LUCY E COUSINS. PHOTOGR APHY: K ATIE THOMPSON / GALLERY STOCK

Most of us spend our days connected to laptops, phones and multiple other screens with barely a second thought. And while we might sit in the park after a long day at the desk, or smash out an early-morning run, it’s easy to forget how beneficial time in nature really is. A 2019 study published in Scientific Reports found that soaking it in for just 120 minutes a week can help improve our “good health and wellbeing”.

But that’s not all. Other studies have found that spending time in nature can reduce stress levels and activate our “rest and digest” parasympathetic nervous system.

It can even reduce symptoms of depression and anxiety, increase the production of dopamine, endorphins and oxytocin, boost our immune system and help lower blood pressure. Appealing, right? Thought so.

01 A Five-

02 Try ‘Bee’

stress less

3 Spot Your Inner Weather Patterns Consider how you think – or the features of your prevailing mental weather system.

By noticing which thoughts we focus on, we can work out how we spend mental energy.

Try keeping a “weather diary” of your moods a few times a day over the course of one week.

Instead of labelling each as “happy” or “sad”, use more descriptive weather metaphors. Note the nuances in your mood in the same way as you might explain the weather outside, and then think about your short, medium and long-term “feeling forecasts”. What will pass, what stays around? When we can spot our own weather patterns and be aware of what comes and goes, we can look after ourselves and predict when we'll need more support.

04

05 Stand like a Mountain This yoga pose is just a simple stance, but it forms a position of strength and can help you instantly feel more confident and calmer. Sign us up!

Start by standing with your feet together and big toes touching.

Check your weight is evenly distributed, pressing the backs of your knees forward without bending but engaging your quads and hamstrings equally.

Hug your upper thighs together, then press them away from each other to activate your inner and outer thighs.

Align your neck so it feels long and even on all sides. Then, turn your palms to face forward.

Take a deep breath and lift your rib cage away from your pelvis.

Exhale and hug in the sides of your waist to help create lower back stability. Stay quietly in this position for a few minutes, then relax and repeat this nourishing pose. Ahhh... wh

Embrace Mindful Photography

Soak it in

This is a form of contemplation where the aim is to take time to notice what you are drawn to and to be present in that moment, rather than focusing on getting the right shot for your Instagram feed. This slower and more purposeful approach will allow you to consciously shut out your own worries and to-do list. It also provides a structure for spending more time outdoors, noticing what’s around you, grounding you in the present. Try to take pictures that capture your thoughts, feelings and emotions in that moment. This can be a great way to discover more about yourself without having to find the words to explain it.

This is an edited extract from Grounded: How connection with nature can improve our mental and physical wellbeing by Ruth Allen (Allen & Unwin, $29.99). Check it out now!

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Ta r g e t practice

Hi

r u G o o Y t

Like a Pro

Take your wildest dreams from wish-list to reality with surprisingly simple tips on the art of habit-forming

By Leslie Goldman

54

Aiming high leads to big changes

PHOTOGR APHY: LEVI BROWN/ TRUNK ARCHIVE

If you screw up, your goal is kaput

MYTH BUSTER: Failure has undergone a rebrand. And if the anecdotal evidence of everyone from Alain de Botton to Jane Garvey via Elizabeth Day’s How To Fail podcast hasn’t convinced you that failure is the blueprint for success, may we refer you to John C Norcross, whose research on goals has shown that more than 70 per cent of successful New Year’s “resolvers” felt that a slipup made them try harder, be that by rekindling their commitment, increasing their awareness of the problem’s severity or by inspiring a refinement in their action plan. The key to turning a habit-fail into a teaching moment, says Norcross, is avoiding selfblame. Focus instead on the success you enjoyed before you slipped up, then go again.

Myth#

Myth#

Myth#

Myth#

li f e sk i lls

You can form any new habit if you keep hammering away at it

MYTH BUSTER: Emphatically not a runner? We hate to break it to you, but no amount of pavementpounding is going to make it feel less like punishment.

Whether you’re aiming to ace 10km or keen to get bendy, simply putting in the hours isn’t enough.

You need to actually enjoy the sweat sesh in question.

“If something feels nice and triggers a sensation of success, it can rewire the brain in a way that propels you to perform the habit more often,” says BJ Fogg, director of the Behaviour Design Lab at Stanford University and author of Tiny Habits: The Small Changes That Change Everything (Penguin, $19.99).

“This happens via the production of the neurotransmitter dopamine, which affects motivation and mood.” If it’s awkward or painful? “It won’t become a true habit,” confirms Fogg. If more exercise is your goal, pick a form you enjoy – say, a dance class instead of the treddy.

MYTH BUSTER: Planning a triathlon as part of your get-fitter goal? Well done, you. But you might consider shooting for something smaller. The “small changes” approach has been found to be associated with an increase in physical activity, improvement in nutrition and maintenance of weight, among other things.

So convinced is Fogg of its efficacy, he named his book after it. His algorithm for starting small can be broken down into three elements: motivation, ability and prompt. First, take a habit you want to adopt and scale it back.

Want to read more? Make it a paragraph a night. Meditate?

Start with three deep breaths.

Next, pick a time in the day to do it. Finally, give yourself a prompt, such as breaking for lunch or closing your laptop at 6pm. Start small, finish big.

It takes 21 days to form a habit

MYTH BUSTER: This number first popped up in 1960 via Dr Maxwell Maltz, who observed a minimum period of around 21 days for a mental image to “dissolve” and a new one to “gel”. But more recent and robust research suggests the period could be three times as long. When a University College London team studied the time it took for new eating, drinking and exercise habits to become automatic, the period ranged from 18 to 254 days, with a median of 66.

Where you fall in that scale depends on the habit, but repetition is key, says Dr Tara Swart, neuroscientistturned-executive advisor. “Any habit is about building up a pathway in your brain so that it becomes your default,” she says. “It takes a lot of work to get to that point. Sustainable behaviour change isn’t time-bound, it’s more to do with the intensity of the effort that it will take to create the neural pathway for that activity.” Just rinse and repeat until the habit sticks. wh

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Brows That

W

BEAUTY TRUTH: well-kept arches will totally transform your face.

And you can take matters into your own hands right now.

Consider this your DIY guide to winning the grooming game

By Kristina Rodulfo

58

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br ow r e ha b

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YOUR BROW WARDROBE, EXPLAINED Everyone remembers the moment they went too far with their brows. For me, it was when I let my aunt pluck mine for the first time at the age of 12. She transformed my naturally caterpillar-thick arches into two thin lines that were trendy at the time but took me years to recover from.

I’ve since tried every browgrooming technique: waxing, threading, tinting, microblading, laminating, you name it. Yet I’ve found my actual best bet is DIY tweezing. It’s part laziness, part budget-consciousness, part trust issues. No matter which camp you fall into, know that great brows are totally possible to achieve at home. Let’s get started…

Once you groom (see ‘Beginner’s Pluck’ opposite), it’s time to polish. FYI: doing your brows is the key to looking more “done” – even if you’re wearing no other makeup.

Check out your product cheat sheet...

BEST FOR FULLNESS BROW POWDER Add natural-looking thickness by using an angled brush to apply powder.

Instant density! Pro tip: tap off excess product before applying to your arches. Gorge.

Benefit Cosmetics Foolproof Brow Powder, $45

FIRST THINGS FIRST – BROWS CAN GROW BACK, PROMISE! Say you’ve already done the deed and pulled out one (or two or three, eek) too many hairs. Don’t despair. Fullness will return, but requires patience. “Eyebrow hair grows slowly – 0.14 to 0.16mm per day – so it can take four to six months for brows to regrow,” says dermatologist Jennifer Chwalek.

For green-beauty lovers, castor oil has long been a home remedy for hair loss, and although no scientific studies have confirmed this as fact, Chwalek says it could be legit. Why? The oil contains ricinoleic acid, a fatty acid that has been linked to hair growth. But, without doubt, the universal advice for growing brows is simple: Put. Down. The. Tweezers.

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ARCH JARGON

SOAP BROWS W H A T I T I S : “Soap brows is an old-school Hollywood technique used to achieve bushy, brushed up brows,” says Tony Baumann, head of artistry at MECCA. “You brush clear soap through your brows to achieve a slick, defined look.”

WHO IT’S GOOD FOR: Soap brows suit all brow hair types and colours. It’s cheap, easy and not permanent.

What’s not to love? Get busy!

T R Y I T : Using Mecca Max Brow Guru Super Soap, $16, “rub a damp spoolie brush back and forth in the pot, coating it in an even layer of soap, then comb the spoolie up and out through your brow hairs,” says Baumann.

When you’re ready to boost your brow game, all you need is one tool and these tips for at-home action

BEGINNER’S PLUCK

USE A SLANTED TWEEZER BEST FOR NEWBIES BROW PENCIL A pencil is amateur-friendly and great for definition. Fake missing brow hairs with fine strokes, fill in gaps and tighten the lines of your brow, then blend with a spoolie.

Sisley PhytoSourcils Design, $82

Stainless steel will give you the most control. The Brow Code Slant Precision Tweezer, $38, is made with nonmagnetic stainless steel and a titanium plasma gold finish.

GROOM ONLY ONCE A WEEK “Less is definitely more,” says aesthetician Joey Healy. “Tweeze once a week and set a time limit so you don’t overwork them.” Duly noted.

APRÈSSHOWER The hot water and steam “soften the hairs and open up the follicles, so they’ll come out more easily and with less pain,” explains Jimena Garcia, a Chanel Beauty brow artist. A facial steamer works equally well.

SKIP THE MAGNIFYING MIRROR It actually gives a skewed perspective that leads to going overboard. Use a regular mirror near a window with some sun for your best results.

LOCATE YOUR ARCH

ARCH JARGON

BROW LAMINATION

ADDITIONAL WORDS: IANTHA YU. PHOTOGR APHY: R ACHELL SMITH. STILL-LIFE PHOTOGR APHY: SEVAK BABAKHANI

WHAT IT IS:

BEST FOR LONG WEAR BROW POMADE Pomades are creamy and have the strongest colour payoff. Most formulas can withstand oily skin, humidity, heat and even water. They create a strong look and should be applied with an angled brush.

Covergirl Easy Breezy Brow Sculpt, $16.95

BEST FOR LOW MAINTENANCE BROW GEL If you’re not interested in spending more than a few seconds on your brows, gel is the way to go. Tame hairs that go in different directions and, with a tinted version, magically add volume.

Revlon ColorStay Brow Fiber Filler, $22.95

“This brow treatment relaxes the hairs to sit flush to the skin,” explains Amy Jean, founder of Amy Jean Brows. “Perming solutions are applied to the brows that change the molecular structure of the hair, causing the brow hairs to be better behaved and sit in the position they’re brushed into.” This one lasts for six to eight weeks.

WHO IT’S GOOD FOR: People with coarse or unruly eyebrow hairs.

TRY IT:

Lamination costs $130, including an eyebrow tint, at Amy Jean Brow Agency salons nationwide.

It lives two-thirds of the way out from the start of your brow. While every face shape is different, a good rule of thumb is to aim to have brows that go from thick to thin and are centred along the brow bone. Think: two lines that gradually incline and then taper to a nice, crisp point.

START WITH STRAYS Tweeze the hairs in between your brows first.

Find the starting point by using a tweezer and holding it up vertically against your nose. After the middle strays, do light hair removal under the arch. If you aren’t sure about a hair – as in, whether you should yank it or not – best to leave it.

END WITH ABOVE-BROW STRAGGLERS Most shaping happens under the arch but clean the top too. Pluck the forehead and temples.

If the hair is on the brow bone, don’t touch! wh

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FIND YO U R (MASK) M AT C H Meet the clever new mask miracle-workers designed to deliver fitter, healthier skin, in next to no time!

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skin fitness

FOR PUFFY PEEPERS… The words “face mask” may conjure pandemicrelated images, but they’re not the only coverings to have boomed lately. Beyond the valid #selfcare win, beauty face masks offer a targeted approach – no matter your skin type – and really step up when the temp drops. “During winter, masks can deliver soothing and nourishing ingredients to dry and sensitised skin,” says Emma Hobson, director of education at Dermalogica.

Whatever your skin sitch, you’ll find your mask hero right here.

The latest undereye masks boast invigorators such as peptides, vitamin B3 and caffeine to wake up your skin. Fresh!

FOR INFLAMED SKIN… This can be triggered by a weak protective barrier, which can be improved by probiotics and prebiotics in your skincare. “These work to restore healthy levels of microbes on our skin,” explains Madona El Nachar, facialist and founder of Kaelon Atelier Beauté. “A balanced microbiome works to protect skin from pathogens and restore its optimal function.”

Try: Wrinkles Schminkles InfuseFAST Eye Smoothing & Depuffing Masks, $50 for 5

Try: Minenssey Nutritious Skin Treatment Mask, $50 for 5

FOR DULL SKIN…

FOR

PHOTOGR APHY: NATASCHA LINDEMANN/ TRUNCK ARCHIVE. STILL-LIFE PHOTOGR APHY: SEVAK BABAKHANI

CONGESTED SKIN… Oh hey, pesky breakouts with a queue of new ones waiting under the surface. Look for a mask with bamboo, which can lightly exfoliate without stripping moisture. Side note: a mask is OK on acne-prone skin; but avoid open wounds like a just-squeezed pimple.

Try: Dermalogica Hydro Masque Exfoliant, $95

FOR SENSITIVE SKIN…

FOR EXTRA DRY SKIN…

“The calendula plant is considered to have calming and soothing properties from naturally occurring flavonoids and carotenoids that combat inflammation while strengthening the skin,” says El Nachar.

Step right forward hyaluronic acid. This famed hydrator can hold 1000 times its weight in water and works to plump up the surface of your skin.

Winner, winner.

Try: Kiehl’s Calendula Petal-Infused Calming Face Mask, $78

Try: Synergie Skin TriDration B Express Medi-mask, $99

FOR OILY SKIN… Try mopping up excess oils with clay. “Clay masks usually contain kaolin, a clay mineral with decongesting properties, which can help to draw out impurities, absorb excess oils and remove toxins from the surface of the skin,” explains El Nachar.

Alpha-hydroxy acids (AHAs) include lactic, glycolic and mandelic acid to brighten skin.

“AHAs buff the skin’s surface to break up the outermost cell layers, which helps smooth, exfoliate and make way for new cells,” says El Nachar. FYI, while AHAs are ace for normal-to-oily skin, they may be too abrasive on sensitive types. Glow on.

Try: Bybi Acid Gold AHA Face Mask, $37 wh

Try: Alya Skin Australian Pink Clay Mask, $49.95

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L’urv crop top, $79, sports bra, $79, and leggings, $109; Model’s own earrings (worn throughout)

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THE

W E N Photography by Steven Chee St yling by Charlot te Stokes

style

NE U

T LS RA Activewear goes back to basics in earthy tones and relaxed fits

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Lululemon jumper, $159, and visor, $35; Bond-Eye swimsuit, $170; Veja Nova sneakers, $155 (worn throughout)

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style

P.E Nation Double Team sports bra, $109, and Triple Double leggings, $139

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Spiritual Gangster crop top, $110; Running Bare sweatpants, $119.99

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style

L’urv jacket, $219; Gypsy 108 bra, $79; Lorna Jane shorts, $60; Stylist’s own socks

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HAIR & MAKE-UP: CHLOE L ANGFORD. MODEL: K ATE MARTIN/CHIC

Nimble jacket, $149 (worn around shoulders), tank top, $59, bike shorts, $79, and longsleeve top, $89

style

Asos V-neck sweater, $36, knitted bra, $28, and bike shorts, $26; Stylist’s own socks wh

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health

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Diet Vs

You already know that eating well and working out are about those headlines that frequently extol the virtues of one over the other? We consult the science, then ask the experts to adjudicate the ultimate showdown

By Scarlet t Wrench and Mini Smith

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THE GOAL

Weight Loss It’s a debate that’s as old as time itself. The facts? Weight loss happens when your body requires more energy and kilojoules than you’re putting in, and so is forced to break down the molecules in your fat cells for fuel. “Start by writing down what you’re eating during a regular day, only using a [kilojoule] counting app if that works for you,” suggests sports dietitian Kathryn Stewart. “If that amount is keeping your weight stable, then reducing it by about 10 to 15 per cent will help create a [kilojoule] deficit – that might be one fewer snack per day or just slightly smaller portions.”

She notes the best approach for weight loss is one you can stick to, and avoiding quick-fix fads and diets that require you to ditch whole food groups is wise for both body and mind.

Of course, exercise can help you reach this deficit, as well as delivering ample benefits beyond fat burn. Stewart’s tip?

Incorporate strength training to build lean muscle, which, in turn, will boost basal metabolic rate, supporting your weightloss endeavours. Also dial up your non-exercise activity thermogenesis (NEAT) – essentially any movement that isn’t part of a structured training plan, such as walking to the shops, doing chores or running around after a toddler.

As for keeping it all going?

Research suggests that people who form good fitness habits along with switching up their diets are much more likely to stick to their plans. Think less about burning fat and focus more on bulking up willpower.

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KILOJOULES COUNT, BUT THEY DON’T COUNT FOR EVERYTHING THE SCALES ARE STEADY: IT’S A TIE.

THE GOAL

Mental Wellbeing

THE SCIENCE

THE WINNER

THE SCIENCE The relationship between food and feelings has come on aeons since Bridget Jones and her Ben & Jerry’s. When a University of Cardiff team attempted to quantify the impact of snacking on fresh fruit versus nibbling on chocolate and chips, they found that within 10 days, those snacking on junk exhibited more symptoms of low mood and anxiety than the fruit eaters.

“High-sugar, high-fat foods stimulate a flash of hormones in the brain’s pleasure centres, which is followed by a crash,” says GP Dr Mark Perera. You might not feel miserable immediately after polishing off a family-size bag of Maltesers, but if you’re low a few hours later, the sugar crash could be a factor. Perera also points to common deficiencies that can be contributors to poor mental health, including vitamins B12, C and D, as well as omega-3.

With your workouts, the benefits are both a short-term

high and a long-term lift – and endorphins are the tip of the nice-berg. “Exercise releases numerous brain cell mediators, including serotonin, dopamine and noradrenaline, which light up the pleasure and reward centres of the brain,” explains Perera. Only, this time, without the comedown. It doesn’t take a lot: in one analysis, published in the American Journal Of Psychiatry, those who trained for just two and a half hours each week had a 31 per cent lower risk of depression than those who didn’t. In clinical studies, regular exercise is shown to be as effective as medication in reducing symptoms of moderate (though not always severe) depression.

For many people struggling with their mental wellbeing, getting outside and moving for half an hour a day will be an easier task than a total dietary overhaul. Good to keep in mind.

THE WINNER

EXERCISE TRIUMPHS HERE – IF ONLY JUST!

health

Longevity THE SCIENCE

It’s no secret that anti-ageing is huge business. Silicon Valley entrepreneurs – from PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel to Google’s Sergey Brin and Larry Page – have been investing in a cure for the maladies of old age. There’s no miracle pill (just yet), but it turns out that tweaking your lifestyle habits can be totally transformative.

When we talk about lifespan, what we’re really talking about is ‘healthspan’: extending the amount of time for which you are fit, mobile and illness-free.

Research by leading exercise physiologist Dr Ulrik Wisløff suggests a key predictor of this is your VO2 max – how adept your body is at using oxygen.

This can be improved by exercising close to your max a couple of times a week, either with HIIT-style workouts or by pushing yourself during a 5K.

However, Professor Stephen Harridge, an expert in ageing at King’s College London, notes there’s no evidence that one specific type of exercise will lead to increased healthspan. While cardio is good for your heart, he points out that muscle wastage is equally as detrimental as loss of aerobic fitness. “Plus, for many older people, strength exercise is essential so that other types of exercise are possible,” he adds. Hit both goals with high-paced circuits incorporating full-body moves, such as deadlifts and squats.

As you age, you also require more protein in your diet to stimulate muscle synthesis.

Aim for 30g at least three times a day; splitting your intake is more beneficial than trying to load it all into one meal. As for the much-touted strategy of fasting? “There’s some evidence that it improves metabolic health,” notes Harridge. But it’s no panacea and, in the long term, he favours a consistent, balanced intake and increased physical activity over fasting. In short, don’t skip meals; don’t skip workouts. A recipe for success!

THE WINNER

IN THE LONG RUN, EXERCISE WILL HELP RACK UP QUALITY YEARS

Immunity

THE GOAL

THE GOAL

THE SCIENCE

We don’t need to tell you that immunity can be compromised by a range of factors, from age to obesity. But it can also be strengthened in ways that extend beyond a glass of juice.

The impact of exercise on your immune health is dosedependent. There’s a theory that tough exercise (CrossFit, marathon training) temporarily suppresses the immune system, leading to a window of heightened infection risk in the hours afterwards. However, research suggests this only applies to pro athletes with six-hours-a-day schedules.

A University of Bath review published last March concluded that a bout of moderate-effort exercise can help the immune system sweep up pathogens.

If your training schedule is more professional than recreational, further studies show that increasing your intake of carbs and polyphenol-rich berries and vegetables can offset damage. Then, no matter what your workout frequency, Satya Dandekar, a professor of microbiology, recommends a Mediterranean-style diet, rich in healthy fats, such as oily fish, seeds and nuts.

The reason? Well, what you digest has a massive impact on immunity. “The quality of your diet influences the make-up of the bacteria in your gut,” Dandekar explains. “And the gastrointestinal tract is where you harbour almost 80 per cent of your immune system.” Eating a broad range of plant foods – not just the usual steamed greens – will boost your microbiome diversity, while prebiotic foods, such as garlic, onions, leeks, asparagus, oats A HEALTHY and bananas, promote DIET IS YOUR the growth of healthy BEST DEFENCE bacteria. Delicious.

THE WINNER

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Muscle Gain THE SCIENCE

You can’t increase muscle mass without any building blocks, which means you need to consume more kilojoules than you may be used to. “Women starting out resistance training may be able to build muscle without a significant [kilojoule] surplus, but it’s important

THE WINNER

NO GAINS WITHOUT EXERCISE, WE’RE AFRAID

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to be at least in [kilojoule] balance and not undereating,” says Stewart. “Then, if you’re regularly strength training, adding in [around 800 to 2000 kilojoules] a day is roughly what you’ll need to build muscle.” She notes that the rate of, say, glute growth, will vary from person to person, but for optimum recovery and performance, your focus should be on where those kilojoules are coming from. Adequate protein (1.2g to 1.7g per kilo of body weight) divided evenly throughout the day will help your muscles repair and grow; carbs will fuel your workouts; nutritious fats will maintain good testosterone levels (essential for building muscle – even for women).

What’s not possible is to increase your muscle mass with a half-baked gym routine.

Hypertrophy (muscle growth) occurs through repeated stress of a muscle, which means pushing yourself to your limits until those limits increase.

But that doesn’t always mean lifting heavy. “Load doesn’t significantly affect hypertrophy so long as you’re working close to the point of failure,” says PT and nutrition consultant Wilson Pinho. “However, I’d suggest keeping your rep ranges between 8 and 12, using weights that are at least 60 per cent of your one-rep max.” Slow and heavy(ish) wins the race.

PHOTOGR APHY: SAM K APL AN/ TRUNK ARCHIVE, ADAM VOORHES, CHRISTOPHER TESTANI, NICOL A MAJOCCHI/GALLERY STOCK

THE GOAL

health

THE GOAL

Energy THE SCIENCE

THE GOAL

Heart Health

THE SCIENCE Granted, prioritising your cardiovascular health is a less ’grammable goal than nailing a headstand, but given there are more than half a million women with cardiovascular disease in Australia, it’s a worthy one.

While many heart conditions are inherited, a lot of the big risk factors – including high blood pressure, raised LDL cholesterol levels and a waist-to-height ratio above 0.5 – are very much under your control. In a study from Saint Louis University in the US, researchers designed a programme to help overweight participants lose 7 per cent of their body weight in three months. One group cut kilojoules, one group boosted their daily activity and a third did a little of both. All three groups saw their heart disease risk drop by 10 per cent, along with a reduction in their blood pressure and cholesterol.

However, the combination group found it easiest to stick with their goals. “If two people have the same blood pressure, cholesterol, family history, age, etc, but one person exercises

THE WINNER

YOUR HEART LONGS FOR BOTH – IT’S A TIE!

THE WINNER

DIET, IT IS – PLATE-BASED EDGES IT HERE

and the other doesn’t, the non-exerciser is two or three times more likely to develop heart disease,” says study author Dr Edward Weiss.

The dietary protocols are fairly predictable: more fibre-rich whole foods; less processed meat and refined carbs. Keep in mind, too, that diets high in sugar can increase the synthesis of arteryblocking LDL cholesterol.

As for exercise, predictably, cardio is king (the clue’s in the name). Pacey dumbbell circuits and bodyweight drills work, too. Try this: pick four simple moves and then perform a 60-second set of each in turn, without rest, working near your max effort. When you’re done, rest for three minutes, then repeat three times for four rounds in total. In a study of older adults, those who trained like this three days a week developed stronger, more efficient hearts. Love that.

Dragging yourself around the park might be as appealing as scrubbing the bathroom when you’re feeling drained, but that’s no reason to succumb to the snooze button. Exercise triggers the release of invigorating neurotransmitters, such as dopamine and noradrenaline, while boosting blood flow to the brain. One study even found that 10 minutes of walking up and down stairs boosted energy levels more effectively than 50mg of caffeine. Yes, really.

Be wary of overdoing it, though. A major cause of fatigue is stress, says Pinho.

When prolonged, this can cause your body to produce excess cortisol. “In this state, upping exercise will make your body more stressed.” Use a fitness tracker to measure your heart rate, body temperature and heart-rate variability in the morning. If the former is trending up while the latter two are trending down, you might need to ease your training. An active daily routine is always beneficial; a punishing workout schedule definitely isn’t.

Diet is a more reliable energiser. For optimal mental and physical stamina, Pinho recommends a macro split of 30 per cent protein, 30 per cent fat and 40 per cent carbs.

Include high-fibre foods such as wholegrains, beans, lentils or potatoes in every meal to dripfeed your body with energy throughout the day. Next, ensure you’re getting enough magnesium (wholegrains, leafy greens), iodine (seafood, iodised salt), vitamin D (fatty fish, eggs) and vitamin B12 (red meat, shellfish). Go, go, go! wh

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STrOnGer

WiSeR

FITTER Jessica Gomes has never felt more empowered to put herself out there.

Here, the Aussie model explains why Photography by Steven Chee Styling by Emma Read

By Lucy E Cousins

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c ove r s to r y

P.E Nation bodysuit, $130.90; Wynn Hamlyn trench coat, $945; Teva sandals, $139.95; Reliquia ring, $169 (worn throughout)

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Jessica Gomes is Even after a full five hours of jumping and

Duskii rash top, $95; Hakea bikini briefs, $120; Jessica’s own earrings (worn throughout); Meadowlark necklace, $255 (worn throughout); Bala weighted ring, $129

fitness props shoot, she’s still buzzing: chatting to the crew, offering to take more shots.

It’s clear she’s totally at home in front of a camera but, after a decade as one of Australia’s most successful models, you’d expect no less.

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Not only has the model, actor and all-round legend worked with brands like Garnier, Victoria’s Secret and DKNY, she was a David Jones Ambassador and famously appeared in Sports Illustrated’s Swimsuit Issue eight times. Oh, and she’s also acted alongside Hollywood heavyweights Bruce Willis and Owen Wilson. Most recently, she was a surprise wild card on Channel Seven’s Dancing with the Stars, where she channelled that trademark energy into every routine. And while most of us are still reeling from the events of last year, the 35-year-old Aussie, who has a Portuguese and Chinese/ Singaporean heritage, is just happy to be back home after a decade living in the States. Here, she chats to WH about what being strong means to her, how she maintains that next-level energy and why she’s compelled to speak up about her own experiences with racism.

What prompted you to move back home?

“It was a big decision. I’ve been based in LA for about 10 years, but I’m so glad I made that decision because being in Australia at the moment is incredible. Covid has changed all our lives and the world forever in a way.”

c ove r s to r y

Having a with YOURSELF BOUNDARIES can handle.”

Aje Athletica top, $125; Zacob Sportiv briefs, $85; First Base x Urban Status bag, $109.95; Beats by Dre Solo Pro headphones, $429.95; Rado True Thinline Les Couleurs Le Corbusier watch, $3,200

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“I think there’s STRENGTH in being VULNERABLE.” Zacob Sportiv swim top, $110 and bottoms, $85; Citizen BN015915X watch, $599

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You’re considering a move to Byron Bay. What do you love about that part of Australia?

“I’ve got a lot of amazing friends that live up there and it’s a beautiful paradise. I love the creativity that’s there.

I love the beach. I love the waterfalls. I love being outside in nature. I think Byron’s a really healing place.”

Do you think it’s holding up to the current influx of big-name Hollywood stars?

“It actually reminds me a lot of Malibu; it’s that sort of paradise where people can retreat to. So I understand why a lot of the people in the industry want to move there from a privacy and lifestyle point of view. It’s definitely having a moment, but that’s good for Australia.”

Australians seem to be quite welcome in Hollywood, why do you think that is?

“Australians, in general, are just really easygoing and pretty hard-working and positive. And Americans love that. We take ourselves seriously, but not too seriously; somehow we’ve been able to find that balance. And I think Australia still is quite an exotic place. I mean, it’s a big island far away from everything yet we still connect culturally. That really works in Hollywood.”

Lululemon cropped jumper, $108; Zacob Sportiv bikini briefs, $75; Fendi travel mug and holder, $850

Have you always felt welcome over there?

“Actually, I felt more welcome in America at the beginning of my career than Australia, to be honest.

When I first moved to America, I was 19, and I was very welcomed into the community; I felt very accepted culturally for who I was and my ethnic background. I just found it more diverse back then.”

How does that compare to Australia?

“Well, [at the start of my career] it was different to now. Australia has come a long way with diversity and these days I feel embraced by Australia. I’m proud to be Australian. This is where I was born, where I was raised.

It’s great we’re living in a more open environment now and we have more empathy for different cultures.”

Were you surprised by the powerful reaction to your recent Instagram post about racism?

“I mean, I’ve been talking about racism for a really long time. I was actually quite scared to do that post though because I’ve never shown myself so vulnerable in that way before. But I felt like I needed to for my mum, for my ancestors. To see what was going on with the elderly in the Asian community here and overseas really broke my heart, because I’ve seen my mother going through her own racism experiences when I was little in Perth, and I saw the way it affected her. So for me, I felt it was my time to be able to stand up for my mum and my family.

To call out the things that I’ve seen and to really voice my thoughts. And it was really incredible to feel the love and to see how people have understanding and empathy. I’m glad I posted that; it was a way of healing, of talking about things and expressing my feelings.”

Being in your thirties, do you feel more empowered to put yourself out there?

“Yes, I think there’s strength in being vulnerable. I’ve grown a lot and I’m proud to be Asian. I’m proud of my heritage. I’m proud of where I come from, but there was a lot of shame around that growing up. When you experience racism, yes, it’s something you can heal from, but it’s also something that you’ll never forget.”

In that light, how do you approach self-care?

“I’m really working on my mind, my mental health.

It used to be a lot about my body, especially with modelling. I remember doing anything I could to look great physically, but now I’m definitely more focused on my mind, body and soul, and being gentle on myself.”

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important. Having a healthy relationship with yourself is knowing what boundaries are good for you and what you can handle. I’m really into what makes me happy now.”

Has this changed how you feel about your body?

“It’s made me feel more powerful, more sexy… My energy levels are up, I don’t feel drained. I try to keep grounded, that’s how I get back to myself. Hence coming home, spending time with friends, being in Perth with my family, being around nature – it brings me back to myself.”

Is it true that for your stint on Dancing with the Stars you trained for up to six hours a day?

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“I did! It was full on. My body was wrecked, I had bruises, my feet were injured… But it was an amazing experience, and it was great to be a part of that crew of talent.”

With that amount of hardcore training, did you have to change your diet to stay fuelled?

“I ate a lot of protein and vegetables! I got super in shape, I lost some weight, and it was really good for my soul.”

“Definitely. It’s quite shocking when you wake up in the morning and there’s paparazzi photos of you that you don’t even know about, where you haven’t even seen the photographer and then a story is written about you. Fame is really hard to deal with sometimes. So I generally like to keep to myself, I’m actually quite shy when it comes to talking about my personal life anyway.”

So, what’s your go-to workout these days?

“I’ve been really loving Fluid Form Pilates because Kirsten [King] is just amazing. She’s all about mind, body, soul and spirituality. She also focuses on mantras and the things that we say to ourselves every day.”

What are your wellbeing non-negotiables?

“I think as you get older you just become wiser and know what works for you. I go to bed pretty early, I don’t party too much, I hardly drink alcohol – a glass of wine here and there maybe, but nothing in excess.

I think knowing your own boundaries and limits is really

84 wom en s hea l th .co m . au JU LY 202 1

You’re a World Vision ambassador and have travelled internationally to shed light on their work. Why is that so important to you?

“My sister and I used to do the World Vision 40Hour Famine when we were young. Helping others is something I’ve been taught by my parents; my mum’s a nurse and we’ve always been a charitable family. The work that World Vision do is incredible. It’s a non-profit organisation; all the money goes back to the community.”

WH was founded on female empowerment.

What does being a strong woman mean to you?

“It’s being vulnerable, being feminine, being soft and gentle; all those things have strength in them. Loving yourself is a huge strength. Life can be hard, and to be able to still feel love is a strength. There are moments when I’m feeling down or things are going crazy in the world and I feel helpless, but even just existing is a strength. Society can really affect you, especially when everyone’s telling you to be a certain way. But I’ve started to ask myself, what do I want? Who do I want to be? The more I work on myself, that’s when I feel strong.” wh

HAIR: MICHAEL BRENNAN/ARTIST GROUP. MAKE UP: PETER BEARD/ARTIST GROUP

And is that one of the main reasons you’ve always been so private with your personal life?

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JESS IN

SECONDS WHEN DO YOU RELAX?

“I let loose when I’m with my family and I can be myself, completely unguarded.”

WHAT MUSIC DO YOU LOVE?

“I’m a lover of hip hop and RnB and rap. But I love heavy metal, too.

On the shoot, I danced to a lot of Rihanna and Beyoncé, I love listening to powerful women talking about their strengths and owning their sexuality as well.”

FAVOURITE BOOK?

“That’s a tough one, because I have so many.

At the moment I’m reading a book about Brett Whiteley because I’m obsessed with him.”

FAVOURITE MOVIE?

“I’m such a movie buff.

I mean, I love The Goonies. I’ve watched it, like, literally 50 times.

And I grew up watching a lot of Chinese films because of my mum.”

WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO?

“Spending more time with my family, having more adventures and discovering more of Australia.”

Nagnata sweater, $450

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GOOD VIBES ONLY THE DARK SIDE OF POSITIVITY

Positive thinking comes with a raft of health benefits, from physical improvement to emotional wellbeing.

But with motivational rhetoric on the rise, has optimism been inadvertently weaponised?

By Kate Symons

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mental health

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Right, so it’s been a rough day. Rougher than most.

And although you’ve been trying to spend less time on your phone, you reach for it and start scrolling, scrolling, scrolling on social media. It’s a welcome escape at first, but your feed soon starts to take on a categorical theme: “Good vibes only”, touts one influencer, alongside a photo of her sitting beachside, all sun-kissed skin and carefree smile; “Life is what you make it”, insists the pro business coach, whose career was kickstarted by a hefty lump sum from the Bank of Mum and Dad; “Dream, Believe, Achieve”, encourages the big corporate, with no discernible connection to the motivational space. You log off and put your phone down, feeling even worse than you did to begin with.

It’s hard to argue against the benefits of positive thinking. Research has shown the strategy can help to reduce stress, anxiety and depression, improve coping skills, increase physical wellbeing – including reducing the risk of cardiovascular issues – and even lengthen your lifespan. But when positivity turns toxic, the results are considerably different. “Toxic positivity is beyond having a positive approach to life,” explains Dr Jennie Hudson, Professor of Clinical Psychology and Director of Research at the Black Dog Institute. “It extends beyond the edges of reality. It is insincere optimism, an extreme positive bias that ignores reality.” It also ignores the negative ramifications, both on those spreading toxic positivity and those on the receiving end.

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When the cookie crumbles

Ainslee Hooper is someone on the receiving end. The 43-year-old says “toxic” is the perfect word to describe the kind of misinformed, misdirected optimism she comes across daily, both in the online space and in person. There’s one experience in particular she’ll never forget. Overcome by floods of tears, Ainslee was in her doctor’s office, suffocating under a deep depression.

So, she was surprised when her doctor called her a “tough cookie”. Tough or not, Ainslee was asking for help. Instead, she was told she’d “get over it”. When it comes to #inspo, the quote she despises most?

“The only disability in life is a bad attitude.”

As a lifelong wheelchair user, Ainslee – understandably – puts it bluntly: “That really frustrates the hell out of me, as you can imagine, because that’s not the case at all.”

Although the catchy name might be a recent addition to our lexicon, toxic positivity isn’t a new phenomenon. Phrases such as, “Look on the bright side”, or “Everything happens for a reason” have been go-to responses to bad news for decades, at least. And while optimism is a powerful tool, forced positivity isn’t helpful. Researchers from the University of Bath proved as much last year when they found that “overestimating outcomes was associated with lower wellbeing than setting realistic outcomes”. Zoe Simmons agrees.

The 25-year-old, who was diagnosed with bipolar disorder in her teens, says although she has only recently come across the expression “toxic positivity”, it is something she has experienced most of her life.

“Growing up with a mental illness, people would often tell me to, ‘Just think positive’,” she recalls. “I always found that to be really hurtful, because I literally couldn’t. It made me feel like I was lesser… like I was broken, or

mental health

something to be fixed. As an adult, I realise while it’s often meant with good intentions, it negates a whole bunch of experiences that deserve to be felt and worked through.”

Through the lens of toxic positivity, emotions like stress, anxiety and loneliness are seen as inherently bad. It might be an easy conclusion but it isn’t necessarily the right one. In fact, a 2017 study looking at Generalised Anxiety Disorder, published in Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience, showed that emotional acceptance techniques – through which you receive and observe emotions rather than trying to control or suppress them – increased activity between the brain’s amygdala and prefrontal cortex. In other words, the brain worked better. Then, in 2018, researchers from the universities of Toronto and California found that people who avoid acknowledging challenging emotions can actually end up feeling a lot worse. Hudson expands on this: “It is normal to experience painful events, or emotions like anger, sadness and guilt. If we live in a toxically positive environment that doesn’t allow us to experience emotions like anger or sadness, then we are robbed of important life experiences and life lessons. These emotions have a role in our lives, in child development, in our relationships. When we feel angry it is usually because someone has wronged us. When we feel sad it is because we have lost something important. These emotions help to guide us and our choices.”

The trouble with tech

The pandemic may have put a spotlight on toxic positivity. (“We’re all in the same boat”, for example, might have been hard to swallow for those hit hardest.) But, before that, the movement was gifted a broader audience with the advent of social media.

Digital lifestyle expert and author of Life Mode On (Hardie Grant, $24.99) Dr Joanne Orlando, explains: “Everyone with a social media feed who’s got some kind of business presence is sliding these [inspirational] quotes into their feed… so you end up being inundated with these messages of positivity

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mental health

90 wo me n sh e a lt h.co m. a u JU LY 2021

What’s in a name?

It’s worth noting that Castle doesn’t believe in toxic positivity. At least, she doesn’t believe in the phrase. Labelling it “a misnomer”, she accepts that the practice exists, but prefers to call it “unreality” or “fantasy”. “Fantasy can be very toxic,” she says. “It’s unrealistic thinking. It’s thinking that’s not grounded in any sort of evidence or research or lived experience.” Castle specialises in acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), a technique that works on accepting that life has its challenges and committing to a meaningful course of action. She is quick to point out that positive thinking is an integral technique in psychology. It should not, however, replace the expression of genuine emotions. “You should definitely consider context and reframing,” she says. “[Think to yourself] ‘OK, so this has happened’… and look at the big picture [and consider] where do you fall into the big picture? That’s called reframing and it is a very common psychological practice. But the whole ‘stop whining’ [message]? No, no, no, no. You can whine as much as you want. It’s your experience, your suffering, your pain and that needs to be acknowledged regardless of the context.”

The idea of withholding a pep talk might be jarring to natural optimists, of which there are many. Estimates suggests about 80 per cent of the population “display an optimism bias”. If that sounds like you, Hudson says simply taking notice of how you respond to negative news can help “friends and family to feel listened to and truly understood”.

For those on the other side of toxic positivity interactions, Zoe’s advice hits the nail on the head: “We just have to do our best, and that’s more than enough.” wh If you need support for mental health, contact an organisation such as Beyond Blue (beyondblue.org.au or 1300 22 4636).

When it comes to showing support, language matters.

Life and relationship coach Megan Luscombe offers alt approaches to “motivational” phrases. Keep these in mind when it comes to self-talk, too.

INSTEAD OF Look on the bright side

TRY...

Sometimes there isn’t a bright side. I’ll stay with you in the dark for as long as it takes and when you want to turn the light on, I’ll help.

INSTEAD OF Everything happens for a reason

TRY...

I’m sure you feel like you need a reason for this to have happened to make sense of it. What’s the story you’re telling so far?

I want to support you.

INSTEAD OF You’ll get over it

TRY...

Instead of thinking you have to get over it, let’s instead start to process it.

INSTEAD OF It could be worse

TRY...

Your feelings are valid.

Don’t minimise your experience.

INSTEAD OF Never give up

TRY...

It’s OK to sidestep, press pause or even change our minds. It doesn’t mean you’re giving up; it means you’re re-prioritising.

INSTEAD OF It is what it is

TRY...

What it is, is something that’s hurt/upset/ disappointed you.

You’re allowed to feel your feelings instead of dismissing them.

PHOTOGR APHY: FR ANCESCO ZERILLI; BARRY MAK ARIOU; GET T Y IMAGES; GREGORY REID

and being the best person you can be,” she explains. “It can make us feel quite inadequate if we’re not jumping out of bed thinking, ‘Yeah, I can’t wait for today.’”

Since tech and gadgets are ubiquitous and, in many ways, essential to modern life, Orlando doesn’t support digital detoxes.

Instead, she suggests carefully curating what your devices offer you. “[Technology is] a work in progress,” she says. “So, all the people that you follow now and the content that you use – the games, the apps – are a continual, dynamic thing. You should be really looking at your feed and seeing the content that makes you feel good and just deleting those accounts from people who make you feel bad. We don’t need to have loyalty to content that doesn’t work for us.” Counsellor Emma Castle also recommends actively searching for balance from the content we choose to consume.

“The internet is full of amazing resources like free meditation apps, support groups and brilliantly written articles on sites like Psychology Today,” she says. “So, if you’re feeling like toxic positivity is getting the better of you, then make choices to deliberately seek out some more balance.”

AVOID DISHING OUT TOXIC POSITIVITY

AUSTRALIA

N

ASK

GROW, TRANSFORM & REINVENT YOURSELF

with lessons from the

Ask Men’s Health Podcast IN THIS BRAND NEW PODCAST, THE MEN’S HEALTH TEAM CHATS TO

INDUSTRY EXPERTS AND EXTRAORDINARY THOUGHT LEADERS ABOUT THE ISSUES THAT MATTER MOST TO MEN. FROM FITNESS AND NUTRITION TO MENTAL HEALTH, WE LEAVE NO QUESTION UNANSWERED.

Download Ask MH on your favourite streaming app or visit menshealth.com.au

From breakouts and bloating to a bad night’s sleep, help may lie in your fridge

By H elen Zook and C atriona Innes

nutrition

BLEM THE PR O

AS SOON AS YOU FEEL IT…

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A BREAKOUT

First things first: can a handy solution to your everyday health niggle be found in what you eat? “A healthy balanced diet plays a significant role in ensuring your body functions at its best,” says Dr Chintal Patel, a GP and avid home cook (@drchintalskitchen).

“Nutrients found in different foods and drinks give you energy, support your immune system, improve your mood and can prevent – as well as help to treat – certain health issues.”

Choose wisely, and the food on your plate can become a powerful tool for kicking irritating ailments to the kerb.

Here’s how to turn your kitchen into a makeshift medicine cabinet, for peak wellness results.

THE PROBLEM

Churning stomachs, tired eyes, dull headaches – there are some ailments that are bad, but not quite bad enough to warrant (a) a day off binge-watching Real Housewives or (b) sympathy from your loved ones. There’s an idea that you’re supposed to just grin and bear it, but it’s far smarter to take action and try dealing with the problem holistically.

AS SOON AS YOU SPOT IT…

FRESH GINGER TEA

For cramps, grab your hot water bottle and sip ginger tea. In a study published in BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies, 150 women took 1g of ginger powder per day for the first three days of their period – and the ginger reduced pain as effectively as ibuprofen. Just peel a thumbsized piece of root ginger, slice and steep in hot water and lemon for five minutes. Ahhh...

VITAMIN C

WHEN IT’S HITTING HARD…

Studies have shown that vitamin C is a potent antiinflammatory and can help promote wound healing; aka nixing the pesky spot that’s appeared in the middle of your chin. And oranges actually aren’t the greatest source of the stuff: instead, hit up some guava juice. One cup of guava has 377mg of vitamin C to help you smash through your RDI of this superstar vit. That’s almost four times as much as a glass of orange juice. Seriously.

In one Iranian study, women who took 500mg of calcium daily managed to improve their PMS symptoms by a whopping 50 per cent. The stuff was particularly effective at combatting mood swings and headaches. Heading to the dairy aisle? Good mooove.

YOU SHOULD HAVE MORE…

SALMON

Find your skin is constantly flaring up? It could be a sign that you’re falling short on omega-3 and omega-6, both of which can help to reduce the inflammation that can trigger cells to close pores.

Happily, salmon is an excellent source of both. Supplementing with fish oil has been shown to improve the appearance of skin in those with moderate to severe acne. There’s nothing fishy about that, so eat up.

YOGHURT

THROUGHOUT…

SALMON AND EGGS The perfect excuse for a midweek brunch. A study in the Archives Of Internal Medicine found vitamin D to be a muscle relaxant, easing cramps.

Just 50g of salmon provides around 200 per cent of your recommended daily intake, while one egg counts for 20 per cent. Egg-cellent news.

YOU SHOULD HAVE MORE…

FLAXSEED

Research in which half of the female participants were given a placebo and the other half were given 1g or 2g of fatty acids (of which flaxseed is a source) found that those who had 2g reported less cramping over a period of six months.

Buy it ground and sprinkle 1 tbs over your cereal or add it to smoothies. Thank flax for that.

TH E

PR

OB

LEM

nutrition

WHEN EVERYONE AROUND YOU HAS ONE…

GARLIC It’s not just an old wives’ tale.

There’s actually legit science to back up the cold-busting benefits of garlic. In research published by the Cochrane Library, adults who received a placebo came down with nearly three times as many colds as those who had a daily garlic supplement. Side order of garlic bread? Count us in.

IF IT’S HIT HARD…

GOLDEN KIWI Grandma’s chicken soup has a rival. A study by the British Journal Of Nutrition placed half of its participants on a daily diet that included four golden kiwi fruits, while the other half ate two bananas a day. The result? The kiwi eaters’ sore throats eased a full three days sooner than the banana group, but the researchers were unable to pin

these results to a particular compound in the fruit. You can pick up a pack of golden kiwis (they’re yellow on the inside, rather than green) from most supermarkets. Ideal solo as an energy-boosting snack, sliced over your morning bowl of muesli and more. It’s the ultimate fruit multi-tasker!

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BLEM THE PR O There’s mileage in the idea of a hot milky drink before bed, providing you give it an Ayurvedic makeover. Moon milks – that is, the traditional combination of milk (dairy or alt), natural sweeteners, spices and adaptogenic herbs – could help you nod off by soothing and calming the digestive system. Bonus points for adding ashwagandha: the herb is proven to lower levels of the stress hormone cortisol and aid sleep. Sweet dreams indeed.

THE PROBLEM

MOON MILK

A HANGOVER

BEFORE YOU GO TO BED… BEFORE YOU START DRINKING…

PEAR JUICE According to research, pear juice is the perfect partner to your cheese-toastie-and-twoglasses-of-water pre-drinking meal of champions. The team found the severity of a morning hangover was reduced by between 16 per cent and 21 per cent in those who drank Korean pear juice before a night out. Not too shabby.

BEFORE YOU GO TO BED…

EGGS

Research published in the journal Food found that carotenoids, such as lutein, found abundantly in egg yolks, can improve the quality of your sleep. But any old egg isn’t un oeuf (see what we did there?). Frying and scrambling can halve carotenoid content, so opt for soft-boiled, which was proven to deliver the good night’s sleep you’ve been craving. Cracking stuff!

YOU SHOULD SNACK ON…

BANANAS

They spiked in sales in response to a certain lockdown baking trend, but there’s a good reason to keep buying bananas. Their snooze-inducing cocktail of magnesium and potassium helps to relax stressed out muscles, while they also play host to tryptophan – the amino acid that your body uses to build neurotransmitters serotonin and melatonin, which help you nod off.

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PICKLE JUICE This won’t be for everyone, granted, but the Polish swear by downing a cup of this briny goodness before bed. Why? Because just one 250ml glass of wine causes your body to expel up to 1 litre of water (rosé head: explained).

Along with all that H2O, you also lose electrolytes like magnesium, which pickle juice is rich in. Can’t bear the thought? Pop a carton of coconut water beside your bed. It’s similarly well-endowed with a wealth of electrolytes for maximum rehydration.

THE MORNING AFTER…

WATERMELON You need to rehydrate any way you can. This H2O-rich snack is 92 per cent water, so it’s the perfect solution for dry mouth.

THE EVENING AFTER…

BAKED POTATOES

Potassium is another electrolyte lost as a result of getting boozy. Replenish your stores with a small baked potato. Keep the skin on and you’ll get 721mg of potassium, which is roughly 20 per cent of your RDA. By comparison, a medium banana has 467mg.

PHOTOGR APHY: ADAM VOORHES, BEN GOLDSTEIN/STUDIO D, SHUT TERSTOCK , MARSHALL GORDON

YOU SHOULD HAVE MORE…

A

nutrition

AS SOON AS YOU FEEL IT…

PAPAYA AND PARSLEY

Parsley is great for preventing water retention, while papaya contains papain, an enzyme that breaks down gut-clogging foods. One cup, raw and cubed, should get your bowels back on track. Note to self: this combo definitely doesn’t taste great mixed together.

AFTER YOU’VE EATEN…

PEPPERMINT TEA

Skip the espresso and have a peppermint tea instead. It’s the dietitians’ go-to because it releases muscle spasms, helping to relax your body and allow air, liquids or immobile foods to move on through.

YOU SHOULD HAVE MORE…

CAYENNE PEPPER

Yes, really! The capsaicin (the component that makes peppers spicy) found in cayenne pepper increases the flow of digestive enzymes through your intestines, which, in turn, reduces gas and bloating. Undoing the button of your jeans = history. wh

THE PROBLEM

OATING

Sweet dreams

Sleep tight, That’s the dream, right? These game-changing trends, tech and insights are set to make that a slumber reality B y A l e x D a v i e s

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every night

sleep science

Scroll Instagram and you’ll likely spot a meme about sleep. There’s the one about early nights: once a childhood punishment, now an adult goal (#truestory). Or the one about alarms being redundant because your problems will wake you up right on time. Only 45 per cent of us are satisfied with our sleep according to a recent Philips survey, so better kip likely appears on many a wellbeing wish list – but experts reckon there’s still a way to go before shuteye gets the priority spot it deserves.

The culprits cutting into our snooze time include stress, health conditions, shift work, long commutes and – surprise, surprise – the always-on culture that sees us checking emails before that first pee. “We live in a 24/7 society and much of it is happening at the expense of sleep,” says Dr Sutapa Mukherjee, associate professor at the Adelaide Institute for Sleep Health and president of the Australasian Sleep Association. “I see a lot of people who are very sleep restricted [but] they’re getting up really early to go to the gym – so the message about exercise and diet is getting through, but not so much about the importance of sleep for our bodies to function.” As Professor Danny Eckert, a leading sleep researcher and director of the Institute, adds, “Inadequate sleep adversely affects every organ and cell. Sleep is the most modifiable, preventative health measure any of us can imagine.” No wonder quality kip – alongside movement and nutrition – is considered a key pillar of wellbeing.

The dreamy news? Experts are hustling hard to improve our Zs, which means the sleep space has never been more exciting. Behold the trends and innovations here to make your bed(time) really rock...

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2 1

Breatheeasy meds

Grown-up lullabies

Bedtime stories have come a long way since Snugglepot and Cuddlepie. Now, you can have KEITH URBAN serenade you (on the Calm app – HARRY STYLES will read to you, too), listen to a slumber hypnosis (with the Clementine app) or meditation (Smiling Mind and Headspace, plus the new HEADSPACE GUIDE TO SLEEP ON NETFLIX).

You can even drift off to a personalised lullaby via the ENDEL PLATFORM, which uses AI to generate a soothing “soundscape” based on things like your heart rate and the weather. The demand for audio aids isn’t slowing down: sleepassociated content on APPLE MUSIC is up more than 160 per cent globally since the beginning of the pandemic, with top playlists including Sleep Sounds, Bedtime Beats, Rain Sounds, Piano Chill and Pure Spa. Talk about ezzzzy listening.

10 0

Stop-start breathing during sleep; gasping, snorting or choking sounds; frequent wake-ups; loud snoring; daytime tiredness. These are potential symptoms of obstructive sleep apnoea, which affects around a million Aussies and happens when your airway becomes too narrow while you snooze. Not only does the condition leave you exhausted, it can lead to cardiovascular problems, road accidents and more. The go-to therapy is continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP to its mates), which involves wearing a breathing mask at night – but a whole new approach is on the horizon. “CPAP is very effective, but half or more of the people who try it are unable to use it or tolerate it,” says Eckert. “We don’t have a drug treatment for this very common disorder yet, but within the next five to 10 years, there should be medicines to treat sleep apnoea in certain people.” It’s all about jump-starting the airway muscles that relax and narrow during sleep, he explains.

“These medications are trying to target the correct neurotransmitters so that, instead of relaxing too much, the muscles get activated – like they do [when you’re] awake – to keep the airway open and enable people to breathe comfortably during sleep.”

Watch this space! And check in with a GP if you’re worried about nocturnal symptoms.

3 Digi tools

Imagine having a sleep pro at the tap of a button. That’s becoming a reality, says Eckert, who’s excited by the accessibility of new science-backed sleep tools. “At the moment, you’ve got to go through all these hoops to see a sleep specialist that isn't accessible to everyone,” he explains. “So, being able to put [the help and knowledge] into user-friendly online tools is a huge game changer for the field. For example, there are now very effective ones for treating insomnia with cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), the evidence-based, goldstandard approach.”

Check out platforms like Sleepio and Sleep Station, which use CBT techniques. There’s also the Soundly app, which uses games to exercise your airway muscles – a University of Minnesota study saw users reduce their snoring rate by 22 per cent. Result!

sleep science

4

Smart lighting & sound

Pillow talk

$742 billion

It’s no shocker that your sleep and the aspiring DJ next door aren’t great bedfellows, but even sounds that don’t wake you could be taking a toll.

Eckert’s team is exploring the impact of environmental noises (such as traffic sounds) on sleeping study participants.

“We’ve developed very sensitive markers of what’s going on to their physiology,” he explains. “So, not just, ‘Are they waking up or not’ but also skin responses and what’s happening to their heart.

We’re coming up with new metrics so we can get a better handle on that, because we think some of these more subtle disturbances can add up and be bad for your health long term.” It’s not just sound that's piquing scientists’ interest: light is a huge focus, too, since “it’s so important for sleep and helping to regulate our circadian rhythms,” says Mukherjee. Imagine workplaces of the future where smart lighting is based on employees’ body clocks to promote energy, wellbeing and productivity. Or, hospitals where sound is used to support patients’ sleep, thus improving their outcomes. “[These insights] have enormous potential for the health of society,” confirms Eckert.

The predicted value of the sleep industry by 2024

SOURCE: STATISTA

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5 Hi-tech bedding

Remember when the most exciting part about bedding was your The Saddle Club doona cover? Now, next-gen mattresses, blankets and more are upgrading your rest.

Bedding company Emma has launched the Emma Motion mattress (tipped for Oz release in 2022), which is fitted with AI sensors that follow and adjust to your sleep position.

Meanwhile, the new Emma Diamond Hybrid Degree (available for pre-order) uses graphite particles to regulate your body temperature for sleep. Clever, eh? Weighted blankets have also gained momentum, according to sleep expert Olivia Arezzolo. “A paper in Occupational Therapy in Mental Health found 63 per cent of participants felt less anxious and 78 per cent felt more relaxed with a weighted blanket,” she says. On a quirkier note, overseas you can find pyjamas, pillowcases and other sleepwear infused with cannabidiol (CBD). Fans claim this cannabis compound (it’s not the one that induces a high) can help with anxiety and shuteye problems, although scientific research is still ongoing. All in all, bedroom swag has never worked harder.

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67 Super trackers

Dr Bertalan Meskó has one of the coolest job titles around. As The Medical Futurist and director of The Medical Futurist Institute, he's a leading voice on healthcare technology.

A big development that’s encouraging us to ponder our sleep more?

Trackers. “Smartwatches with built-in smart sleep alarms, under-themattress trackers and other wearables have initiated a behaviour change [among the population] that I haven’t seen before,” he says. Meskó dubs smart sleep alarms “the Holy Grail of health tracking.” These apps monitor your nocturnal movement in relation to your sleep cycle, then rouse you at the optimal time during a set-by-you window.

The idea is you’ll wake feeling refreshed rather than groggy. Keen?

Try freebies Sleep Cycle and Sleep as Android.

Lucid dreaming

Y’know that feeling when you know you’re dreaming as it happens? That’s called lucid dreaming, and it’s a big area of scientific intrigue. Sleep boffins are exploring how to induce this type of self-aware dream, the extent to which we can influence and alter the content, as well as its therapy potential for issues such as chronic nightmares. There’s a way to go in the research stakes, but a 2017 University of Adelaide study suggests you can boost your chances of lucid dreaming by waking up after five hours, then repeating, “The next time I’m dreaming, I will remember that I’m dreaming” as you drift off again. Worth a go.

90%

Nearly this many of us agree that sleep is crucial for both physical and mental wellbeing SOURCE: PHILIPS

sleep science

8

It’s getting personal Reboot that body clock

9

PHOTOGR APHY: SERGE Y FILIMONOV; MILLES STUDIO; ENIOL A BAK ARE/UNSPL ASH; JUAN MOYANO

Need Zs, will travel

Nap pods! Pillow menus! Sleep retreats! Yep, these are all on the agenda, as snooze opps continue beyond your bedroom. MYND Studios in Sydney’s Barangaroo has nap spaces with different light settings to maximise your rest time, while The Goodnight Co. is hosting a Sleep + Beauty Retreat in Byron Bay this August (see thegoodnightco.com.au for details) complete with expert workshops and self-care sessions. For future overseas travel, consider a destination with your kip in mind. More and more hotels offer rest-specific features, from pillow menus and smart lighting to on-demand meditations and pro consultations. Take the worldwide Six Senses group, which serves up a personalised sleep protocol based on tracking, exercise, nutrition and relaxation. Utter bliss.

Sleep-inducing yoga

Everybody’s sleep is different, so support needs to be tailored and personal, says Mukherjee.

“During the pandemic, some people have found their sleep improved, and others found it got worse, and I think that really speaks to the fact that it’s not one size fits all,” she explains. With that individual approach in mind, scientists are working to identify novel biomarkers that indicate how different people respond to sleep deprivation, so they can “detect who is most at risk of alertness failure and [a road] crash or injury,” says Eckert.

He also nods to the potential of emerging automated tools, in which experts can input a patient’s specific sleep data or symptoms and then receive a targeted action plan in response. Now, that’s the stuff dreams are made of.

If your pre-bed routine consists of mainlining Mare of Easttown, consider joining the sleep yoga club instead: Pinterest searches for the practice have increased by 90 per cent year on year. “There has been a spark of interest in practices that support quality sleep,” agrees Sarah Routhier, a senior yoga teacher at Sydney’s BodyMindLife, who has noticed an uptick in the popularity of restorative classes such as yin and yoga nidra. “Yoga nidra is most commonly translated to ‘yogic sleep’,” she says.

“It guides the body, mind and nervous systems into states of great rest, using a variety of body, breath and awareness techniques. I often use it in place of a nap to feel revitalised or to settle into a more restful night’s sleep.” See you on the mat. wh J ULY 2021 womens hea lt h.com . au 103

ES T U N I IN 5 M

S E T U N 10 MI

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THERE’S MORE TO CORE TRAINING THAN PERPETUAL PLANKING AND COUNTLESS CRUNCHES – AND THERE’S MORE THAN ABS AT STAKE. TAG THESE FINISHERS ON TO YOUR NEXT WORKOUT TO RAMP UP THE BURN

By Kirsti Buick

10 4

fitness

Test your core control Want to know how you fare?

Trainer Melissa Weldon suggests this simple test...

X Lie down on the floor with your legs bent.

Then, tilt your hips slightly so your lower back is closer to the floor and there’s minimal arch. That’s it.

X Now, can you drop one knee out to the side – keeping it bent 45° – without your back arching?

Try doing this on alternating sides.

X Can you slide one heel out, keeping it touching the ground, and back again without your back arching?

Again, try this on both sides.

Not there yet?

X

Meet your new sweat re-set

Weldon suggests adding the moves over the next few pages on to three or four workouts a week, with a rest day in between. Try it for four weeks, then give this test another go.

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Lounge and living room. Tights and leggings. Core and abs? Not quite.

Because while searching for tights online will invariably deliver you to an activewear store, popping abs doesn’t necessarily mean you have a strong core.

“Your core refers to all the muscles in your torso that help to stabilise your body, meaning they keep you upright, protect you from injury and help you control your movement,” says Melissa Weldon, head of studio at London HIIT boutique Sweat IT, and the mastermind behind their notorious Pillar Killer core workout.

“That includes the abs in your midsection (rectus abdominis), your internal and external obliques on your sides, your transverse abdominis in your deep core, plus your lower back (erector spinae) and even the glutes.” It means that while abs get all the airtime, they’re only part of a bigger picture, and a

midsection that resembles a cheese grater does not a strong body make.

“A strong core means a functional body,” adds Weldon. That is: a body that can carry a weekly shop home from the supermarket as well as carrying you over the finish line of a race. Given that any movement that involves lifting, twisting and standing relies on your core, strengthening yours can allow you to perform moves with better form. Wait, there’s more: a strong core can also make you a more efficient runner, via improving your balance and posture, while also reducing your risk of injury.

Sold? Weldon has designed these high-intensity core finishers to tag on to the end of your workout – whether that’s an IG Live HIIT class, a slow and steady strength session or a 5km run. Time to feel the burn...

CORE FINISHER

01

5 MINS

Perform this circuit twice through to ramp up the burn of your usual workout.

Try not to rest in between, if possible.

A

A

01 FOREARM PLANK TARGETS: Core, back, shoulders DO: 30 secs (A) From a push-up position, bend your elbows to lower yourself on to your forearms.

Your elbows should be under your shoulders and your body should form a straight line from shoulders to heels. Push through your heels, draw your navel towards your spine and engage your glutes. And hold.

10 6

B

C

KEEP YOUR HIPS IN A STRAIGHT LINE TO HELP KEEP YOUR CORE ENGAGED

02 MILITARY PLANK TARGETS: Core, chest, back, shoulders DO: 30 secs (A) Start in forearm plank position.

(B) Lift left arm to place your hand firmly on the mat directly below your left shoulder and push up on to your hand. Do the same on the right side, keeping your core engaged to stay stable.

(C) Lift the hand you started with and lower your forearm to the mat, then repeat on the other side so you’re back in a forearm plank. Repeat, trying to press up on a different arm each time.

A

B

03 CRUNCH TARGETS: Abs DO: 30 secs (A) Lie on your back with knees bent, feet flat on the mat, and your hands behind your ears.

(B) Lift your head, shoulders and upper back off the floor, keeping your belly button pulled in.

Reverse to the starting position. Well done.

fitness

Flex that fitspo muscle

Brace yourself

04 RUSSIAN TWIST A

B

GOT BACK TROUBLES? KEEP YOUR HEELS ON THE FLOOR

TARGETS: Obliques DO: 30 secs (A) Sit on the mat with your knees bent. Lean back slightly to create a V shape with your upper body and thighs.

Press your palms together, keeping them just above your thighs.

Or, to make it tougher, try holding a dumbbell in both hands. Oof. (B) Use your abs to twist from side to side, as if to tap your hands or your dumbbell to the mat. Keep your legs as still as possible.

Move slowly and remember to breathe.

05 BURPEE A

B

EXTEND AS YOU J U M P. N O CHEATING!

TARGETS: Full body DO: 30 secs (A) Start standing with your feet shoulder-width apart, then bend at your hips and knees to place your hands in front of your feet. Jump both feet backwards so that your body is in a straight line from your head to your heels.

(B) Jump your feet back in towards your hands so your knees end up outside your elbows, and jump upwards with your arms outstretched above your head.

Land with soft knees.

This is textbook PT jargon. As well as being asked to “brace your abs”, you might hear “engage your core”. Huh? Weldon uses an analogy involving wind (bear with…).

“Imagine you’re standing in the street and there’s an intense gust of wind, like gale-force strength,” she says. “You’d brace your body in order to prevent yourself being blown over.

This is the same feeling as bracing your core.”

JU LY 2021 wom ens heal th.com. a u 107

CORE FINISHER

02 10 MINS

This is a pyramid workout – do 2 reps of each move, then 4 reps, then 6, 8, 10, and back down again.

See what you can do in 10 mins! It’s a scorcher.

A

B

01 WALKOUT TARGETS: Chest, shoulders, abs, core, hamstrings, glutes (A) Standing with your feet hip-distance apart, hinge at the hips and bend your knees slightly to plant your hands on the floor, shoulder-width apart, in front of your feet.

(B) Walk your hands forward until you’re in push-up position. Now reverse the movement and return to standing, ready to go again.

A

A

A

B B

B

02 PLANK REACH TARGETS: Core, back and your shoulder girdle (A) Start in push-up position, draw your navel to your spine and engage your glutes.

(B) Lift one arm off the mat and extend it straight out in front of you to touch the edge of your mat. Bring it back so you’re back in push-up position, then repeat with the other arm. Don’t let your body rock – if it does, engage your core (see ‘Brace Yourself’, on the previous page for an explainer).

10 8

03 DEADBUG TARGETS: Abs, upper back and your obliques (A) Lie with your knees and hips bent at 90 degrees, with both arms straight up over your shoulders.

(B) Draw your belly button into your spine and squeeze your bum, then slowly extend and lower your right leg, bringing your left arm overhead. Return to the start; that’s 1 rep. Now, repeat on the other side. You can hold a dumbbell in each hand to make this move tougher.

C

04 BICYCLE CRUNCH TARGETS: Abs, obliques (A) Lie on your back with your hands behind your ears. Lift your legs into tabletop position and your head and shoulders off the mat – and remember to brace that core.

(B) Keeping your right

leg extended, bend your left knee and draw it in towards your chest. At the same time, rotate your torso to the left to bring your right elbow towards raised knee.

(C) Untwist your torso and extend your left knee to switch straight over to opposite side.

CORE FINISHER

fitness

03

A A

15 MINS

P o s t- s l ay smiles anyone?

This is an AMRAP – as many rounds as possible. Set a timer for 15 mins and complete as many rounds of the circuit as you can. “This is a long finisher, so if you suffer from lower back pain or feel you need to take a break, take 1 min to release the lower back at the end of each round,” says Weldon. Moving through child’s pose, upward dog and downward dog a few times can stretch out the back if needed.

B

B

01 SQUAT

02 BURPEE

TARGETS: Quads, core hamstrings, glutes, back DO: 10 reps (A) Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and slightly turn out your toes. Arms at sides.

(B) Brace your core and push your hips back, bending your knees until your thighs are parallel with the floor. As you lower down, raise your arms straight overhead.

Then, exhale and push through heels to return to the starting position.

TARGETS: Full body DO: 10 reps (A) Start standing with your feet shoulder-width apart, then bend at your hips and knees to place hands in front of your feet. Jump feet back so your body is in a straight line from head to heels.

(B) Jump feet back towards hands so knees end up outside elbows and jump up with your arms outstretched above head. Land with soft knees. That’s 1 rep.

A A

B

LIFT THOSE A KNEES AS HIGH AS POSSIBLE

B

A C

PHOTOGR APHY: JULIA AND CODY JOHNSON. EXERCISES: DENIZ K AVAL ALI

B

05 PLANK JACKS TARGETS: Core, quads, glutes, shoulders (A) Start in push-up position with your hands underneath your shoulders and feet together on the mat behind you, resting on the balls of your feet.

(B) Jump both of your feet outwards so they’re slightly wider than your hips, keeping your hips level. Now, jump both of your feet inwards to return to the starting position.

That’s 1 rep. Keep going.

03 MILITARY PLANK TARGETS: Core, chest, back and shoulders DO: 10 reps (A) Start in a forearm plank, back straight.

(B) Lift your left arm to place your hand firmly on the mat directly below left shoulder and push up on to your hand. Do the same on the right side, keeping core engaged.

(C) Lift the hand you started with and lower your forearm to the mat, then repeat on the other side so you’re back in a forearm plank. Repeat, trying to push up on a different arm each time.

04 RUSSIAN TWIST TARGETS: Obliques DO: 30 secs (A) Sit down on the mat with your knees bent.

Lean back slightly to create a V shape with your upper body and thighs. Press your palms together, keeping them just above your thighs.

To make this move tougher, try holding a dumbbell in both hands.

(B) Use your abs to twist from side to side, as if to tap your hands or your dumbbell to the mat.

Keep your legs as still as possible. Move slowly and remember: breathe.

05 HIGH KNEES TARGETS: Full body DO: 30 secs (A) Run on the spot with your hands in front of your waist, palms facing down. Try to tap your knees to your palms as you alternate your legs as quickly as possible.

Smashed it! Now get ready to reap all those strong core rewards. wh

J ULY 202 1 wo menshe alth.com. au 1 0 9

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Food Hub

Hello dream dessert! (p119)

Welcome to the

no-waste VEGAN

kitchen

l tb d d d th th favour with six next-level, flavour-packed dishes 11 3

As far as trends go, it doesn’t get much bigger than the zero waste movement. Around the world, planet-loving foodies are looking for recipes that don’t just taste great, but that make the most of every ingredient. Combine that with the meteoric rise of plantbased eating, and you’re looking at a double win. Which is exactly what’s behind these six genius creations from vegan blogger, Celine Steen. In her new book, the cookbook author serves up deliciously clever dishes that leave no unusable waste behind. Feeling inspired (and hungry)? Sangas, salads and sweets, incoming...

114

Food Hub UNCANNY CHICKPEAS

MAKES 6 CUPS

I readily admit that I love the convenience of canned beans. But cooking your own can be even better. And it doesn’t take that long, promise! Not to mention, it’s cheaper. Enjoy this delicious version.

X 454g dried chickpeas, soaked in filtered water overnight X 1.7L filtered water, plus more as needed X 3 tbs olive oil X Sea salt, to taste X 4 slices dried lemon, 4 slices preserved lemon or ½ organic lemon X 1 fermented black garlic clove, or 3 garlic cloves, smashed X 2 thyme sprigs X 2 rosemary sprigs 1. Before you start soaking, pick through the chickpeas. In a large bowl, combine the chickpeas and enough filtered water to cover.

Let soak overnight. It can get really hot where I live, so I prefer refrigerating the soaking beans. If it’s tolerable where you live, soaking them at room temperature is totally fine.

2. When ready, drain the beans and give them a quick rinse. Place the beans in a large pot and add the water, oil, a good 2 tsp of salt, the lemon, garlic and herbs. Bring to a boil over high heat, lower the heat and simmer, uncovered, until the chickpeas are tender but firm, which takes about 90 minutes. If the liquid evaporates too much, simply add more water as needed. You’re nearly there...

3. Drain the cooked chickpeas, but do not discard the broth. Strain it and refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 1 week to use in soups or to cook grains. Refrigerate the cooked beans in an airtight container for up to 1 week. You can also refrigerate the chickpeas in the cooking broth if you like.

PLANET SAVING TIP

Add aromatics to the mix: chunks of celery root, carrot, onions... whatever’s in need of being used quickly.

One other thing: you may have heard it isn’t a good idea to add salt since it can prevent beans from properly cooking, but that’s a myth. The real reasons beans don’t soften can be because of the acidity of the other ingredients, the age of the beans or the water they’re cooked in.

Carrot top - pea soup with pesto

MAKE IN LESS THAN 30 MINS

GLUTEN FREE

SOY FREE

4 SERVINGS

PESTO MAKES: ¾ CUP

Kinda fancy-looking while super-quick to make, this herby soup is the perfect complement to a sourdough loaf.

X 1 (400ml) can fullfat coconut milk X 1 cup (240ml) vegetable broth X 1 tbs roasted onion purée, plus more for serving X 1 tsp sea salt, or to taste X 1 to 2 garlic cloves, grated X ¼ tsp ground ginger X 454g frozen petite green peas, thawed and drained X Basil-Carrot Top Pesto, for serving X Fresh basil leaves, for garnish 1. In a large pot over medium-high heat, bring the coconut milk and broth to a boil.

Lower the heat to maintain a simmer and cook, uncovered, for a couple of minutes.

2. Add the onion purée, salt, garlic,

ginger and peas.

Simmer just to warm the peas, about 3 minutes. They must remain bright green with firm consistency.

3. At this point, either partially blend the soup, or leave it as is.

If you want to blend it, remove a few ladles of peas beforehand to keep some texture.

Add pesto to taste.

4. Garnish each portion with a little more pesto, onion purée, and a few small basil leaves. Perfect.

Basil-carrot top pesto X 1 cup (35g) loose fresh basil leaves X 1 cup (25g) loose carrot top fronds, stemmed X 2 large garlic cloves X ½ tsp sea salt, or to taste

X 3 tbs (26g) roasted pine nuts (use less for a slightly more liquid pesto) X 1 tsp maca powder (optional) X Juice of ½ large lemon X ¼ cup (60 ml) roasted walnut oil or extra-virgin olive oil, plus more as needed 1. In a small blender or food processor, combine the basil, carrot tops, garlic, salt, pine nuts, maca powder (if using) and lemon juice. Process until just combined and for the herbs to be chopped. With the blender running, slowly drizzle in the oil.

2. For a thinner pesto, add more oil. Transfer to an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 1 week. Too easy!

JULY 202 1 wo m ensh ealth .com .au 115

Food Hub Savoury sweet cluckfree strips sandwiches I love this recipe because I can never say no to a good sandwich (who can, right?). Or to peanut butter. And oh, to chilli jam. Don’t know if you’ve tried soy curls (a vegetarian protein made with soybeans) yet, but if you liked chicken before going vegan, they’re the perfect substitute.

6 SERVINGS

FOR STRIPS X 225g dry soy curls X 1¾ cups (420ml) vegetable broth or other broth or dashi of choice X ¼ cup (60ml) soy sauce X 2 tbs nutritional yeast (powder) X 2 tbs vegan sriracha X 1 tbs toasted sesame oil or any oil you prefer X 1 tbs blackstrap molasses X 1 tsp chipotle chilli powder

116

X 1 tsp ground cumin X 1 tsp onion powder FOR SANDWICHES X 6 vegan soft bread rolls, lightly toasted X Vegan chilli jam, for serving X Natural nut butter of choice (lightly salted, dry-roasted cashew, peanut or almond butter), for serving 1. Start by preheating your oven to 200°C. 2. To make the strips: in a large baking pan, combine the soy curls and broth. Let stand for 5 minutes, stirring frequently to make

sure the curls are soaking in the liquid.

Note that the curls won’t be fully rehydrated before adding the remaining ingredients. Don’t worry about that.

3. Next up, add the remaining strip ingredients and then stir well to combine it all thoroughly.

4. Bake for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the liquid has been absorbed and the curls are pleasantly browned. Let cool slightly before using in your sandwiches. Or you can refrigerate in an airtight container

until ready to use, or for up to 4 days.

5. To make these tasty sandwiches: spread a generous layer of jam on one side of the toasted bread. Spread a generous layer of nut butter on the other.

Pile on a handful of soy strips, close (the sandwich) and open (your mouth). Repeat to make the remaining sandwiches and serve immediately. Yum. 6. To reheat leftover strips, place them in a small skillet and reheat on medium heat until warmed through, about 6 minutes or so, stirring occasionally.

Lunches: sorted.

My favourite bowl of vegies I have a bowl of this every single day, with variations as to which raw and cooked vegetables come into play.

I aim for rainbow colours, great textures and, of course, amazing flavour. Feel free to use fried cubed tofu or tempeh in place of chickpeas, or any of your favourite plant-based proteins. The options are endless.

1 SERVING

FOR BARBECUE CHICKPEAS X 2 tsp toasted sesame oil X 2¼ cups (371.25g) cooked chickpeas X ½ tsp sea salt, or to taste X ½ cup (120g) barbecue sauce FOR YOUR BOWL X 1 cup (weight varies) roasted vegetable of the day (carrot, Brussels sprouts, squash, zucchini or eggplant) X 1 cup (70g) shredded red or green cabbage, or tender salad of choice (such as radicchio or frisée) X ½ cup (55g) shredded carrot X ¾ cup (55g) chopped raw broccoli or cauliflower X Couple spoonfuls of a nut butterbased dressing, or to taste X Couple spoonfuls fennel kimchi X Couple spoonfuls pickled red onions X Fresh chopped herbs, such as parsley or coriander, for serving X Toasted nuts and seeds, for serving (optional)

PLANET SAVING TIP

I often use the food processor to turn raw broccoli, cauliflower or carrots into “confetti”. The texture and mouthfeel resemble that of eating quinoa or couscous. Try it for a change of pace in your vegie bowl. Just add well-drained, chopped vegetables to the processor and pulse just until the texture resembles couscous. Try not to overprocess and be sure to use well-dried vegies to avoid unwanted moisture and mushiness. This move is a handy trick to have with broccoli stems that are a bit tougher to eat in larger pieces.

1. To make the barbecue chickpeas: in a large skillet over medium-high heat, combine the oil, chickpeas, salt and barbecue sauce. Cook until the sauce evaporates, about 6 minutes. Stir the mix occasionally and adjust the heat as needed, then set aside for later.

2. To assemble: have a large, shallow bowl handy. Place the warm roasted vegetable of your choice in one section, add barbecue chickpeas to taste, and place the cabbage, carrot and broccoli in the remaining sections of that layer.

Drizzle with dressing to taste.

3. Top with kimchi and pickled red onions, along with the herbs, nuts and seeds (if using). Serve immediately, warm, at room temperature or chilled.

(I actually love this chilled the most.)

J ULY 2 02 1 wo mens heal t h.co m. au 11 7

Food Hub ROASTED POTATO BEER SALAD My husband has a soft spot for potatoes in all forms. Baked, fried, in salads, you name it.

He can also never resist anything beer flavoured. I combined his two favourite things.

FOR ROASTING X 681g baby Dutch potatoes, scrubbed clean and unpeeled, halved or quartered to a roughly similar size X 454g celeriac, scrubbed clean and peeled X 1½ cups (460ml) vegetable broth X 1 (360ml) bottle vegan beer (stale is fine) FOR SALAD X ½ cup (115g) vegan mayonnaise, or half mayo, half vegan Greek yoghurt X ⅓ cup (55g) minced red onion X ¼ cup (60ml) Zippy Herb Dressing X 1 garlic clove, grated X Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, added to taste X Minced fresh celeriac leaves or fresh parsley, for garnish

1. To roast the potatoes and celeriac, start by preheating the oven to 200°C. 2. Place the potatoes in a single layer in a 23 x 33cm baking dish. Place the celeriac in a single layer in a same-size dish. Then, pour half the broth and half the beer into each dish.

Roast the vegetables for about 40 minutes.

Remember to reserve ½-¾ cup (120-180ml) of the cooking liquid to use for dressing.

3. To make the salad: while the vegetables roast, in a large bowl, whisk to combine the mayonnaise, red onion, herb dressing, garlic, and salt and pepper to taste. Simple.

4. Add the roasted vegetables, mashing slightly as you combine them with the dressing. Add the reserved cooking liquid, as needed, to obtain a moist salad. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Serve chilled or at room temperature, topped with celeriac leaves.

4 SERVINGS

DRESSING MAKES: ½ CUP

Zippy herb dressing X 1 packed cup (about 60g) fresh celeriac leaves, mint leaves, parsley leaves or coriander leaves X 3 tbs fresh lemon juice X 3 tbs roasted pistachio oil, walnut oil or extravirgin olive oil X 1 tbs tahini or plant-based Greek yogurt X 1 garlic clove, peeled X Sea salt, to taste 1. In a small blender or food processor, combine all of the ingredients and then process until smooth and blended. That’s it!

Now, refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 1 week. Delish.

Don’t toss the flavour-packed beer and broth liquid used to roast the vegetables. Most of it will be used to thin the dressing, but what’s left also comes in handy to complement the liquid part of soups, or to cook grains. It can also be used as a deglazing agent when sautéing vegetables that become a little too attached to the pan.

Refrigerate it in an airtight container for up to 1 week.

118

PHOTOGR APHY: CELINE STEEN

PLANET SAVING TIP

ANY FRUIT

FRANGIPANE GALETTE SOY FREE

4 SERVINGS

Here’s a recipe I wrote with my mum in mind and heart. I wanted to make this dessert as flexible to fruit availability as possible, so use anything you have at hand, when it’s in season. Munch away!

FOR FRANGIPANE FILLING X ½ cup (60g) almond meal X 3 tbs organic culinary-grade chamomile flowers, crumbled between your fingers into a powder X 2 tsp organic cornstarch (optional) X ½ tsp pure almond extract (optional) X ¼ cup plus 2 tbs granulated pure cane sugar, divided

X Cold kombucha, flavoured sparkling water or plain water, as needed X 6 apricots or plums, or 4 peaches or nectarines, pitted and sliced, or 681g fresh strawberries, hulled and halved FOR CRUST X 1¼ cups (150g) all-purpose flour X 1 tbs granulated pure cane sugar X ½ tsp sea salt X 2 tsp apple cider vinegar X ¼ cup (60ml) roasted walnut oil or other oil X ¼ cup (60ml) cold kombucha, flavoured sparkling water or plain water, as needed 1. Start by preheating the oven to 190°C. Have a rimmed baking sheet handy, along with a silicone baking mat or a decent piece

of parchment paper.

2. To make the frangipane filling: in a medium-size bowl, combine the almond meal, chamomile, cornstarch (if using; for thicker results, less likely to ooze out of the crust), almond extract (if using; for more genuine frangipane flavour) and ¼ cup (50g) of sugar.

Stir to mix well.

3. Add kombucha, 1 tbs at a time, to obtain a somewhat dry paste. I usually need 2 tbs of liquid in all. Set aside.

4. Now, in another medium-size bowl, gently stir together the apricots or other fruit and remaining 2 tbs of sugar to release the juices. Set aside.

5. To make the crust: in a medium-size bowl, whisk to combine the flour, sugar and salt.

6. Add the vinegar and

oil. Stir to distribute the oil throughout the flour, creating little pebbles in the process.

Do not overwork the dough. Slowly add the kombucha and stir just until a dough forms: it shouldn’t be too wet, nor too dry. Transfer to the silicone baking mat or parchment, form the dough into a disk, and roll it into a roughly 25cm circle.

Prick the dough all over with a fork.

7. Place the frangipane mixture evenly in the centre, leaving 3.5cm from the edge.

8. Drain the extra liquid from the fruit (reserve for smoothies, if desired) and arrange the fruit evenly on top of the frangipane. Use the baking mat or parchment paper to fold the edges of the galette partially over the fruit. Transfer the galette to the baking sheet, using the mat or

paper to help lift it.

9. Bake for 55 minutes, or until golden brown.

Bear in mind the juices might escape, which is a common issue with galettes. Don’t sweat it! Rustic is the name of the game. Let this cool for 30 minutes before slicing and serving with a big scoop of vanilla ice cream, if desired. wh

Want more goodness?

Then run don’t walk and grab No-Waste Save-the-Planet Vegan Cookbook by Celine Steen (Harvard Common Press, $39.99) from June 15.

JULY 202 1 womenshea lth.co m .au 11 9

Strawberries for

BLACKBERRIES Your fibre gain: 4g per 125g Tasty, loaded with antioxidants and excellent in smoothies.

The FIBre

SWAP SHOP

25 – yep, that’s the number of grams you should be clocking up per day when it comes to dietary fibre. These easy foodie switches will boost your intake in a varied, delicious way

12 0

Food Hub Sure, it’s not the sexiest nutrient.

But fibre’s rep (all gas, no glam) isn’t fair. Not only is it dynamite when it comes to keeping your digestive system running, just 30g daily can be as effective for your waistline as more restrictive or complicated diets, according to a study in Annals of Internal Medicine, thanks to it keeping you satisfied on fewer kilojoules by filling you up and curbing hunger pangs. Grimacing at the idea of downing prunes? No need: these simple upgrades can deliver the goods on more palatable plates...

Oranges for

Wholewheat bread for

RYE BREAD

KUMQUATS

Your fibre gain: 1g per slice Make sure the ingredient list starts with coarse or whole rye flour.

Your fibre gain: 2.5g for 5 kumquats You can even eat the rinds of these bitesized citrus fruits.

Sugar for

DATES

Your fibre gain: 3g for 2 dates Soak in boiling water, then blend to a paste and use as a natural sweetener. Yum.

Spaghetti for

SOBA NOODLES Your fibre gain: 3g per 56g The Japanese buckwheat flour noodles are gluten-free if you have an intolerance, plus, they’re incredibly versatile.

Brown rice for Butter for

SPELT

Your fibre gain: 8g per 200g Use 200g of pureed sweet potato in place of 113g of butter in your baking.

Your fibre gain: 4g per 250g (cooked weight) Soaking the grain overnight slashes cooking time by about 30 per cent.

It’s all in the prep, people.

SWEET POTATO

Cabbage for

BRUSSELS SPROUTS Your fibre gain: 2g per 200g Use a mandolin to shred raw sprouts: brilliant in coleslaw.

J ULY 2 02 1 wom en shea lt h.co m .au 12 1

Balsamic vinegar for

RASPBERRIES

croutons for

Your fibre gain: 2g per 30g Keep an open mind and blitz with olive oil, mustard and garlic for the ultimate vinaigrette.

Chickpeas Your fibre gain: 5g per 80g Toss with your favourite herb and olive oil, and bake until crisp (about 40 mins at 200°C). Tasty stuff!

Breadcrumbs for

COCONUT FLOUR

BAKED POTATO

Your fibre gain: 7g per 2 tbs Coat prawns or chicken in it for crunch with Caribbean vibes.

Your fibre gain: 3g per potato Nearly half of a spud’s fibre lives in its skin, so eat the whole thing.

Carrots for

Minced beef for

PARSNIPS

Your fibre gain: 5g per 40g When cooked, their hearty texture makes them ideal in meatballs and bolognese.

Your fibre gain: 3g per 100g Use the paler root vegie anywhere you’d eat its orange cousin for a bit more of the roughage.

LENTILS

12 2

Mashed potato for

Mayo for

AVOCADO Your fibre gain: 7g for ½ avocado Mash with paprika and lime zest for a spread rich in healthy fats.

Food Hub

STILL STRUGGLING TO HIT YOUR 25G?

Add these ingredients into your weekly meal roster to get you over the line

PLAIN POPCORN to trail mix

toast

CACAO NIBS to coffee

Your fibre gain: 2g per 16g

Your fibre gain: 3g per 75g

Air-popped kernels add volume to nuts, dried fruit and seed mixes.

Mash with chopped mint, olive oil, lemon zest, chilli flakes and salt.

Consider it next-gen avo on toast.

Grind these nibs and go avant-garde with your java for a mocha-like brew.

MUSHROOMS to

ALMONDS to

DRIED APPLES to

Your fibre gain: 1g per 2 tbs

Your fibre gain: 4g per 60g

Chopped or slivered, nuts add instant crunch to any lunch.

Drying concentrates flavour, lending a sweet kick. Tangy.

TOASTED BUCKWHEAT to

BUTTERNUT SQUASH to

Your fibre gain: 2g per 2 tbs

Your fibre gain: 3g per 65g

Add a satisfying crunch to greens – like a 2021 version of pine nuts.

Puree and slather it on a pre-made crust with your toppings of choice. wh

scrambled eggs Your fibre gain: 2g for 5 shiitakes

Savour a shot of umami flavour for next to no kilojoules. Win. WORDS: MAT THEW K ADE Y. PHOTOGR APHY: SHUT TERSTOCK . ICONS: NOUN PROJEC T

PEAS to

PEAR to

a cheese toastie Your fibre gain: 3g for ½ pear Make a grown-up version of a classic dish with blue cheese, freshly sliced pear and rocket.

tuna or egg salads and sandwiches

salad

Your fibre gain: 3g per 1 tbs

roasted vegetables

pizza

JULY 2021 wo me nsh ea lth.com . au 1 2 3

GOOD TO KNOW This caramelised roasted cauliflower gets a health upgrade with antioxidantrich turmeric (p126). Drool.

Goal-crushing Get your tastebuds on board your health goals with these genius eats, direct from chef-turned-PT Richard Kerrigan 1 24

Food Hub

The ultimate wrap (p129)

TIP “Unfilled wraps freeze really well.

Simply defrost the wrap in the microwave for 30–45 seconds before using it, then wrap it tightly with cling wrap to stop it from drying out.” That’s a win for your plate and the environment.

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Forget about bland, low-cal meals. If the one thing in the way of crushing your health goals is sticking to the chicken breast and steamed greens you’ve had on repeat (sorry, taste buds), let Richard Kerrigan help. The chef turned PT, who’s competed in Ironmans and marathons, is on a mission to prove it’s totally possible to enjoy a healthy lifestyle... without feeling like you’re missing out. “It’s great when you’re able to nourish your body without feeling like you’re on a diet,” he adds.

So fuel up with with these standout feeds.

TURMERIC ROASTED CAULIFLOWER with Minted Yogurt

SERVES 2 410 CALS (1715 KJ) PER SERVE “Turmeric not only adds a vibrant colour but also a wonderfully nutty flavour to cauliflower. Plus, roasting the cauliflower creates caramelised edges, bringing bags of toasted yumminess.”

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X 1 medium-sized cauliflower, cut into florets X 2 tsp ground turmeric X 1 tbs extra virgin olive oil X Salt and pepper X 1 handful roasted almonds, roughly chopped X Handful sultanas, roughly chopped X ½ bunch fresh parsley X 3-4 tbs yoghurt X 1 bunch fresh mint, very finely chopped X 1 tbs honey X 1 bag rocket X 1 lemon, juiced 1. First up, preheat the oven to 200°C. 2. Place cauliflower in a large bowl with the turmeric, olive oil, salt and pepper. Rub the seasoning into the cauliflower with your hands, ensuring it’s evenly covered.

3. Transfer the cauliflower to an oven tray and roast for 16-18 minutes. Allow the corners of the cauliflower to start to burn as this adds a lovely toasted flavour. Five minutes before removing the cauliflower, throw in the almonds and sultanas, give the tray a good shake, then return to the oven. Once the cauliflower is cooked, add some fresh parsley and mix well.

4. To make the minted yoghurt, spoon the yoghurt into a bowl and stir in the mint, lemon zest, honey and a good pinch of salt and pepper. (The finer the mint, the greener the yoghurt will be.)

5. Spread the yoghurt on a plate, then top with the cauliflower, almonds and sultanas. Serve with a side of rocket salad and a squeeze of fresh lemon juice.

Food Hub

GOOD TO KNOW “Dietary fat, or fat that’s found naturally in our foods, such as avocado and salmon, plays several roles. Along with providing an energy source to the body, it also transports certain vitamins effectively throughout the body.”

SALMON CEVICHE

with Grapefruit &Lime

SERVES 2 418 CALS (1749 KJ) PER SERVE

“Fresh, zingy and packed full of good fats, salmon ceviche is delicious, and I’m seriously obsessed with it! The citrus gently cooks the fish making it unbelievably tender and moreish.”

X 2 skinless salmon fillets (super fresh) X 1 grapefruit, segmented X 1 lime, zested and juiced X 1 tsp honey X Salt and pepper X 2 tbs pine nuts, toasted X ½ avocado, sliced X 1 small bag mixed salad leaves X 1 tsp paprika 1. Slice the salmon very thinly and lay on a plate or shallow dish. Next, roughly chop the grapefruit into small pieces.

2. In a small bowl, combine the zest and juice of the lime, the grapefruit segments and honey, and season with salt and pepper. Squeeze the grapefruit into the bowl to extract as much juice as possible. Stir well then place a few spoons of the mix over the salmon and set aside for around 2–3 minutes. Leave a little dressing to one side for the mixed leaves.

3. While the dressing is doing its thing on the salmon, toast the pine nuts in a dry pan over a medium heat for 2–3 minutes until golden brown. Then in a bowl, add the sliced avocado to the mixed leaves and top with a little of the extra dressing.

4. Place the salmon onto a large serving plate, then sprinkle with a little paprika, and serve with the salad. Sprinkle the toasted pine nuts over the salmon along with any leftover dressing. Finally add a generous twist of salt and pepper and a drizzle of olive oil. Lunch is served.

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TIP

Sicilian

CHILLI TUNA LINGUINE

SERVES 2 828 CALS (3464 KJ) PER SERVE

“When you’re on the run, you need something quick and easy, and it doesn’t get much quicker or easier than throwing everything into one pan.

My Sicilian linguine is exactly that – easy! You honestly won’t believe this is made with canned tuna either.”

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X 200g linguine X Salt X 3 tbs extra virgin olive oil X 2 garlic cloves, finely sliced X ½ tsp chilli flakes, plus extra to serve X ½ bunch parsley, finely chopped including stalks X 1 tsp capers, roughly chopped X 1 lemon, zested and juiced X 185g good quality tinned tuna in oil X 25g Parmesan cheese X 8–10 mixed olives (optional but extremely delicious) 1. Cook the pasta in a pan of boiling water with a good pinch of salt for 9-10 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, heat 2 tbs of olive oil in a non-stick pan on medium heat. Fry the garlic, chilli flakes and parsley stalks for

Use the best quality tuna you can when making this pasta dish and look out for responsibly sourced fish.

Need this recipe a little lighter? Simply use less olive oil. As a guide, 1 tbs of olive oil equals 165 cals (690 kJ).

about 60 seconds. Add the capers and lemon zest, then turn the heat down.

3. Once the linguine is cooked, drain but keep a little of the pasta water.

Then, add linguine to the frying pan along with the pasta water to help loosen up the pasta, then give the pan a good toss. Add the parsley and flaked tuna, then top with grated parmesan cheese, 1 tbs of olive oil and extra chilli flakes.

Food Hub SPICY PRAWN WRAPS

with Whipping & Mango Salsa SERVES 1 624 CALS (2611 KJ) PER SERVE “Succulent juicy prawns topped with creamy avocado and packed into a soft tortilla is my kind of fast food.”

X ½ avocado, diced X 1 tsp tahini X 1 garlic clove, crushed X ¼ tsp chilli flakes X 1 lemon, zested and juiced X Salt and pepper X 1 medium wholemeal wrap X 2 large handfuls rocket leaves X ½ medium-sized red capsicum, finely sliced X 130g cooked prawns X ½ mango, diced 1. Put the avocado, tahini, garlic, chilli flakes, lemon zest and a pinch of salt and pepper into a small mixing bowl. Use a stick blender and pulse until smooth.

2. Spread the avocado generously in the middle of each wrap. Add a small handful of rocket, capsicum and cooked prawns.

Top with diced mango and a squeeze of lemon juice. Fold the end of the wrap up to meet the filling in the middle, then bring one side of the wrap over the top and roll, tightly, securing all of the filling.

Chewy RASPBERRY COOKIES MAKES 12 COOKIES 132 CALS (552 KJ) PER SERVE

PHOTOGR APHY: ROB PALMER

“If you can stop at just one of these yummy cookies you’ve got more willpower than me. Soft, chewy, sweet and totally delicious, you’ll be addicted in no time. Sorry!”

X 3 ripe bananas, mashed X 1 ½ cups porridge oats X ½ tsp baking powder X 1 tbs honey X 3 tbs peanut butter (low sugar, low salt) X 1 medium egg, beaten X 1 ½ cups frozen raspberries 1. Preheat the oven to 180°C. 2. Mash the bananas in a mixing bowl with a fork until it resembles a thick puree.

3. Add the oats, baking powder, honey and peanut butter and mix well. Beat the egg separately in a small bowl, then add

to the oats, and finally fold in raspberries.

3. Line a large baking tray with some greaseproof paper. Using a tablespoon, spoon a little mixture onto the tray and spread out to a cookie shape. Leave a little space around each cookie. Bake in the oven for 18–20 minutes. Once cooked leave to cool on a wire rack. Try not to demolish them all in one sitting! wh

Grab a copy of Crush Calories in 20 Minutes (New Holland Publishers, $40) for more tasty meal ideas.

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fitfluential

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Moana Hope

By Alex Davies

Former AFLW star Moana Hope, 33, has always been a serious powerhouse and welcomed daughter Svea with her wife Isabella Carlstrom last year. But when a recent cancer scare rocked her world, it cemented the importance of tuning in to her body, plus her no-regrets life motto.

Embrace Sweaty Self-Care “I train almost every day. I love the physical aspect, but it’s also so important mentally.

It’s a good release. On Monday, I run 5 to 6km; Tuesday is gym work; Wednesday is 30km on the bike; Thursday is gym and conditioning; then Friday is another 5 to 6km run. I recover on Saturday and go for a 5km walk on Sunday.

I also love the sauna, so I work those sessions in as well. When it comes to my mental health, I’ve got someone I talk to a few times a month, which has been so helpful. And I do love a day of Netflix and chill with some chocolate.”

Put Your Health First, Always “When I had my cancer scare, it was a few days of waiting for results and having ‘what if’ thoughts. ‘If something happens to me, who will take care of my family? Will Bella be OK? Is [my sister] Vinny going to understand?

Will Svea remember me? Who will care for my mum?’ I’m thankful it came back as non-cancerous. Now I’m all over my health checks. I never want to go through it again.”

“Don’t be afraid to call out people who are being misogynistic. Support women in all areas of life. Go to a women’s footy game; watch a movie with a female lead; always encourage women to reach their goals. March for women’s rights – I will. We want to raise Svea knowing that she’s a strong woman and can do anything. I want a world where I don’t have to fear for her if she goes out alone.

I want her to get the job of her dreams and be paid the same as her male counterpart.

I want my daughter to be treated equally.”

Live Life By Your Own Rules “I watched my dad on his deathbed, he was crying with so many regrets about what he didn’t do, and how he wished he’d spent more time with us. I was 12, and from that moment, I decided I didn’t want to have regrets and live my life the way everyone else wanted me to. So I live how I choose, I love who I want, and I smile knowing that I’m truly happy.” wh

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PHOTOGR APHY: MAT T HARVE Y PHOTO

Champion Other Women

The easy way to healthy

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