Guest Feature: Milla Lascelles

My clients are constantly telling me that maintaining a healthy lifestyle along with eating healthy food is so expensive and not enough is done on affordability. I'm here to squash this belief. 

I think sometimes we need to step back from the fancy designer gym gear, superfoods, protein powders, pricey metal bottles, acai bowls at £8 a pop, superfood smoothies with a sprinkle of coconut bacon and bee pollen with a shot of Aloe. Remember cosmopolitan cities tend to glamorise the health industry and can make it seem potentially Faddy at times. You can still care for yourself and be healthy and give your body all that it needs to heal and thrive without the designer price tags. Let me show you how.

Meet organic halfway

It’s true that non-organic foods cost less, however there are other costs: hidden costs. Health costs. We are not only dealing with nutrient deficient food in this day and age but many of the food we buy are full of pollutants and farming chemicals that we don’t know about. I’m not say switch everything you buy from non-organic to organic but I am saying you can meet organic halfway and refer to the Dirty Dozen and Clean 15 list which can be stuck on your fridge or on your phone. It’s a list of fruits and vegetables that are most and least contaminated so you can pick and choose what foods you can buy organically.

Dirty Dozen: strawberries, spinach, nectarines, apples, peaches, pears, blueberries, grapes, celery, tomatoes, sweet bell peppers and potatoes.

Clean 15: sweetcorn, avocados, pineapple, cabbage, onions, frozen peas, papayas, asparagus, mangos, cantaloupe melons, kiwi, grapefruit, cauliflower, sweet potatoes and aubergine.

Keep it local and in season

When you eat with the seasons you are getting more nutrient dense, cheaper, fresher food because it is consumed closer to harvest so it is higher in nutritional value. Key nutrients become depleted when our food is sat in transit for sometimes up to 10 days (yikes) before hitting the U.K shelves.

Remember to refer back to the Clean 15/Dirty Dozen list as your Clean 15 can be sourced at your local non-organic market for a total steal. Be curious and ask where the produce has been grown if you’re not sure. Bottom line is you’ll save so much than going to your local supermarket for you apples that have come over from France.

Chew your food

This is such a simple habit but so overlooked in everyday life. There’s a huge difference from someone who is devouring a donut in four bites to someone who is mindfully sat down saving each and every bite of the same donut. I really encourage my clients to focus on not only what they eat but how they are eating? What is their environment like? The more we chew the easier we make it for our digestive system therefore a happier gut.

Movement

You don’t always have to pay to exercise at the latest spinning and boot camp classes. Learning to incorporate movement into your life makes such a huge difference. Dr Chatterjee says on average 70% of adults spend their day in a seat with no activity which is one of the biggest causes of premature deaths so lets design our lives around movement. I’m talking about a brisk morning walk getting your heart rate pumping, quick step’s on your stairs, squats while your waiting for something to cook. We’ve all been hibernating for nearly half a year now so take it slow but try and set yourself a daily goal when it comes to exercise and be sure to celebrate what you accomplish on the day.

Dry body brushing

Using a dry body brush in your morning routine is a lovely self-love practice to implement. Before you step into the shower brush your skin in small circular motions up the body towards the heart to decrease fluid retention, improve your circulation, improve moisture, energy levels, get rid of body toxins and most importantly cleanse the lymphatic system and boost digestion.

Belly breathing

This is a free practice that can be done first thing on waking up. Lie down on your back and place both arms either side with palms facing upwards. As you breathe in through your nose push up your belly and release quickly through your mouth. Really focus on how you are feeling. Where do you have tension or discomfort? Is the pain emotional or physical? I had a fantastic 1 on 1 session with Rebecca Dennis at the Breathing Tree. There are some really helpful audios to get you started but it’s a life changing tool to stick with to bring you from fight or flight into rest and digest.

www.breathingtree.co.uk/transformational-breath/breathing-exercises/

Milla is an expert health and lifestyle coach based in London, guiding and supporting families and individuals to reach their health goals and make lasting, sustainable changes to their health and happiness. She works with her clients on a carefully tailored Tired to Transformed 6 or 12 week programme or offers a Luxury Transformational Day designed for the busy woman flat out juggling household, family and work. She’ll even go through your larder or take you to your local supermarket and teach you how to be a food detective - sleuthing secret sugars, understanding labels and resisting the supermarket deduction. Milla is passionate about teaching her clients the importance of Primary Nutrition being your relationships (and with yourself), career, physical exercise and spirituality before Secondary Nutrition being the food on your plate.

www.millalascelles.com/ | follow Milla on Instagram & Facebook 

Written by: Milla Lascelles, Guest Writer for BY SARAH

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