Being kind is good for you. It's good for your emotional well being. It makes you feel good and it lifts your energy. 

It's also necessary for optimum well being. 

In her book 'Thrive' Arianna Huffington explains that giving and contributing selflesssly to others gets us away from the everyday minutiae of life and that to 'keep our inner world strong it's essential that we reach out to our outer world through compasssion and giving." As she so eloquently puts it " because however successful we are, when we go out in the world to get things, when we strive to achieve a goal, we are operating from a perceived deficit, focused on what we don't have and are trying to obtain- until the goal is achieved. And then we go after the next goal. But when we give however little or much we have we are tapping into our sense of abundance and overflow".

And that encapsulates an important key to optimum wellness- feeling abundant.

Tony Robbins, the world's most renowned motivational speaker, also spea...

Prior to becoming a mum I'd been warned about the lack of sleep, the increased expense and the lack of time that becoming a mum would bring. 

What I didn't know was that as Mum you absorb the emotions of your kids. When they are happy, your happiness levels go up exponentially. When they are sad, frustrated or emotional you also feel that 1000 times over.

It feels like you are always putting out fires, helping your kids with an issue, trying to help them deal with disappointments, mean kids or academic pressures. There is a lot expected of kids these days and it raises the bar on what is expected from the whole family. Your home is a safe place so kids are likely to bottle up their feelings and let them explode later on when they are with you at home. 

That is a lot to deal with as a parent. Relentless. 

To be the glue that holds everything together is a big responsibility.

I know how hard it is and I see how the relentlessness of parenting affects myself, my friends and my client...

It was Melbourne Cup today which is a day of celebration and watching the horse races in Australia! A day for the ladies and gents to glam up, have a champagne, watch the best horse race in the world with their friends or colleagues and, maybe even have a bet to make things interesting!

So, food and wine are part of the celebration! And why not?! Celebration, tradition and fun are what memories are made of!

What this blog post is about is how you can support your body through a hangover, to help it detox and return to peak function so that you can feel good as soon as possible.

In other words: how you can support your liver as it is clearing the nasties from your body.

Look after your liver and it will look after you. The liver is a detoxifier as well as being the body's powerhouse. If your liver is functioning properly you are more likely to feel energetic, have mental clarity, have clear skin and eyes, avoid premature ageing and you will not store excess fat. 

You know this...

My husband, Andy, is a big fan of cacao. He puts cacao into everything- smoothies, ice cream, muffins, hot chocolate, biscuits... Everything contains cacao even to the extent that clients know if a recipe I'm giving to them comes from Andy (if it contains cacao there is a big probability that it its Andy's).

I'm certainly not complaining! Especially when he makes these brownies for us- they are to die for!! 

I shared some at my August Calm and Energise Workshop and most of the feedback forms contained comments on how good the brownies were!!

They are a great snack to prepare ahead and take out as you need it from the fridge. They are nut free, dairy free, gluten free, wheat free and don't require any baking. 

I've made you wait long enough for the recipe... here it is!

Andy's Brownies Recipe

12 Medjool dates- pitted (approx 200g)

1/3 cup cacao 

1/3 cup dessicated coconut

1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste

4 tablespoons of coconut oil

extra dessicated coconut for dusting at the end

1. Line a f...

Leading up to Fathers' Day I've been thinking about how much I miss my Dad and how blessed I am to have him as my Dad. 

Above all, Dad was the epitome of unconditional love and selflessness.

He always made me feel special, he always made me feel like I was enough. He was happy to sit and 'be' with me. 

From him I've learnt that what my children need and want from me is to feel loved. It reminds me to slow down, to stop doing chores and to just be with them. The mess can wait, the email can wait and I don't really need to take every phone call. I think of my Dad and how content he was to just play with us and to enjoy our company.  

As much as we want our kids to have everything and to have loads of cool experiences what means most to them is to be loved. To be loved unconditionally, just like my Dad loved my sister and I.

This is what I wrote as a tribute for him at his funeral:

My dead Dad

Every time I think about my Dad, I'm going to have a smile on my face because that's how he w...

You've decided that you want to lose weight and the way to do that is to eat better and do some exercise. You know exactly what foods you should eat less of (chocolates, cakes and biscuits) and what foods to eat (whole foods, more vegetables and more water).  You might have even visited the doctor, dietician or a health coach to help you reach your goal. You've been doing well for a few days and then all of a sudden the cakes start to sneak back in and you start giving in to your cravings. It seems like there is a disconnect between what you know you should be doing and what you choose to do.

Sounds familiar? Most people who want to lose weight generally know what foods to eat and what foods to limit. The problem most people have is putting what they know into action.

I see lots of women who want to lose weight in my practice. I find that the women who are most successful at adopting healthier habits are those who are very connected to their "why". What I mean by this is that w...

My husband Andy is very supportive of the changes that we've made to our health and lifestyle.  He's experienced massive benefits from changing to a whole foods diet and he helps out by cooking nutrient dense foods as often as he can. 

He has kindly agreed to share his chocolate muffin recipe with us today! It is gluten free, grain free, nut free and dairy free. It is suitable for lunch boxes as it is nut free.

The kids love them! I do too! 

Ingredients:

1/2 cup cacao

1/2 cup coconut flour

1 teaspoon baking powder (gluten free if you need muffins to be gluten free)

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

6 eggs

1/2 cup coconut oil

1 cup honey  (we only use 1/2 cup)

Method:

1. Turn oven on to 180 degress C

2. Line muffin tray with 12 muffin wrappers

3. In a bowl mix the cacao, coconut flour, baking powder and sea salt (or if you have a thermomix, mix on speed 5 for 10 secs or until dry ingredients are mixed well)

4. Add the eggs, coconut oil and honey

5. Mix with a whisk until it is runny (if  you have a ther...

I was inspired to transfer this recipe that has been on my Instagram account today when a reader sent me this message "Made it! Loved it! Girls loved it more! xx" Thanks Mrs C!

Cauliflower rice is a great side dish which will increase the vegetable content of your meals. It is an easy substitute if you are avoiding gluten or grains.

500 g of cauliflower (cut into florettes)

Oil or butter for frying

Chop cauliflower up in a food processor until it is rice-sized or in the thermomix, 10 secs speed 5)

Fry it for a couple of minutes on the stove or steam in the Varoma for 10-12 mins.

Serve it as a side dish or you can turn it into cauliflower fried rice!

To enhance our digestion and therefore increase energy levels, it is essential repair the lining of the gut. Antibiotics, stress, processed foods, chemicals, pollutants and an impaired micro biome are some of things which lead to a leaky gut. Leaky gut causes inflammation in the body, decreased nutrient absorption and fatigue. 

Broths help to repair the lining of the gut as they contain minerals  and nutrients which help to seal the lining of your gut such as glycine and gelatine. Broths are very easy to digest so they are great for when your digestive system is sensitive. They help to support the immune system and you can also add ginger, garlic and vegetables to them to add to the nutrients in them. 

Broths are a great way to add flavour to your meals. Use them to make soups and sauces or drink it in a cup as a ‘brothee’ (add some lemon or apple cider vinegar and you can also add thyme, sea salt, or grate some ginger or turmeric into it). Yum! You can also use them to cook ric...

This post originally appeared in the Family Doctors Plus website 

To live a calmer and happier life it is essential to control our stress levels.

Many mums these days feel stressed; they are rushing from one thing to the next, juggling many roles, multitasking. This stress manifests itself in many different ways such as waking up tired day after day, carrying excess weight, pain , depression, anxiety, mood swings, sugar cravings and illness. Research also tells us that stress is responsible for 80 per cent of disease and illness. 

 Here are 3 ways to manage stress better:

1. Find a balance 

Stress occurs when we haven't taken the time to slow down to rest and restore. In nature, everything exists in balance; dark and light, night and day, summer and winter, hot and cold, earth and sea, expansion and contraction.

So how can you find your own balance if you are rushing all the time, looking after everybody else and on the go?

-Take some time to slow down during the day, to take some deep...