Hello beautiful Unstoppables Family,

Here is the latest dose of what I’m doing, what I’ve learnt and things to explore. I hope you enjoy and please feel free to share with family and friends.

Have a wonderful week ahead! Much love, stay strong and #beunstoppable

Sandy xxx

PS – And if you haven’t done so already, don’t forgot to check out my favourite tried and tested health and wellness products – you can find them under my Must Haves

1 THING I’M DOING

BREATHING
I know what you’re thinking. Of course, you’re breathing Sandy. You’re here writing this blog and without this most fundamental thing in life, you would need more than cold showers and push ups to help you. But, it’s not like that. There’s breathing, and there’s BREATHING. Let me explain.

I’ve been doing some form of breathwork on a daily basis for quite some time now. My go to has been Wim Hof’s 30 – 40 deep breaths, hold for as long as you can, take a recovery breath, hold for 15 seconds and repeat for two more rounds. I love this as part of my night time routine. It’s a beautiful wind down to the day and helps me drift into a peaceful slumber.

But what about the other 23 hours and 15 minutes in the day? I’m so glad you asked.

The way we breathe can supercharge our energy, crush stress and anxiety, improve our immune system and cognitive function, all by improving the way we extract and utilise our oxygen at a cellular level.

Better Breathing in 4 Easy Steps

1. Breathe lightly – in this case, deeper and more oxygen, is not better. Think of a peaceful baby sleeping lightly – just in a larger size.

2. Breathe slowly – aim for 4 – 12 breaths per minute for optimal breathing.

3. Breathe through your nose not your mouth – noses are for breathing, mouths are for eating. Nasal breathing not only improves our immune system by filtering our air, but it produces lots of nitric oxide which plays a critical role in airway and blood vessel dilation. This dilation means more blood and oxygen being delivered effectively to our muscles, brain and organs which means those tissues can produce energy more effectively. Plus, there is a strong connection between mouth breathing and increased risk of upper respiratory infections which relates to both the air filtering and nitric oxide parts.

4. Breathe into your belly, not your chest – when we breathe into our belly we are mimicking relaxed breathing (chest breathing is associated with stressed breathing). The way we breathe ties directly into our nervous system and our brain, giving it either stress signals or relaxation signals. Of course, if you’re running to catch a plane or better still, playing chasey with the kids, running to save the washing from the rain or getting some cardio work in, that’s different, but for the rest of the time, light, slow, nasal and belly breathing is ideal.

2 THINGS I’VE LEARNT

ALL OILS AREN’T EQUAL
Having a Mediterranean background, I’m sure I am 80% water, 10% caffeine and 10% olive oil which in hindsight, may not be a bad thing – especially the olive oil part.

When it comes to oils and fats, there is definitely the good, bad and super ugly. And without getting into all the technical aspects of polyunsaturated fats, omega-6, linoleic acid and the importance of cardiolipin in mitochondrial health and function, let’s just say that seed oils are the most damaging to our mitochondria so here are the 3 C’s, the 3 S’s, (plus a couple extra thrown in for good measure) of oils to avoid.

SUPER BAD: Canola, Corn and Cottonseed Oil, Sunflower, Soy and Safflower Oil + Grapeseed and Rice Bran Oil

ENJOY: Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Coconut Oil, Butter, Ghee and Tallow are best. Almond, Avocado and Macadamia Oils are also good.

Polyunsaturated fats and seed oils are inflammatory and damage the lining of our blood vessels. This affects our overall circulation and blood flow to our brain, which increases the risk of heart disease and diabetes – two of the highest causes of death, and both quite preventable by lifestyle choices. So, if you want to enjoy la dolce vita for a long time to come, stick to the good oils and you’ll enjoy a more beautif-oil life.

HUMMING
Our vagus nerve is the longest nerve in our body. Extending from our brainstem, it goes all the way to our abdomen and through to various organs including our heart, oesophagus, and our lungs.

This vagus nerve essentially controls our entire parasympathetic nervous system and stimulating it has shown to:

  • Regulate our blood sugar better
  • Lower blood pressure
  • Reduce stress and anxiety
  • Improve digestion
  • Reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease
  • Amongst other things

Two ways you can stimulate your vagus nerve is by singing and humming so there is something definitely to be said for all those people chanting “om’s” and singing like no-one is listening.

Humming on the exhale has also been shown to increase nitric oxide production by 15 times so you can get even more bang for your every humming breath. Plus, for an even bigger super hack combine your humming and singing with a cold shower and you really will be #unstoppable

3 THINGS TO EXPLORE

LIFE AND BALANCE
Paying attention to all the dimensions of our life has merit. Are our days balanced? Our diet? The time we spend at work, with friends, our children, at play, resting, dreaming, doing, reading, watching TV?

If you reflected over how you spent your time in April, what did you spend too much time on? And what would you have liked to do more of? What were your best days? And which were the hardest?

May is just around the corner, so here’s your chance to create more balance in your life and do more of what makes you happy.

MAY GOALS
Write down 6 things you’d like to do in May. Next to each one, write down when you’ll do them. Which day, which week, what time?

Just like at work, if we schedule something in our calendar and diary, it’s much more likely to happen and get done.

THE PERFECT BREATH
“The perfect human breathes as though they are not breathing at all”.
– Lao Tzu