Urban Remedy's 'Healthy Holiday Guide'

10 tips to keep you healthy over the festive season...

1. Start your day with a glass of warm water and lemon

2. Get some exercise first thing, before the festivities begin

3. Stock your pantry and fridge with yummy, healthy snacks – think brown rice cakes, kale and veggie chips, olives, raw nuts, veggie sticks, healthy dips, avocado...

4. Find healthy versions of your favourite treats. For example, dark chocolate sweetened with stevia instead of sugary milk chocolate...

5. Stay hydrated, particularly when you are drinking alcohol!

6. Avoid sugary alcoholic mixers – skip the soft drinks and opt for soda or mineral water with fresh lemon or lime instead

7. Give your body a rest between big meals. For once, skipping a meal is actually OK. Don't be tempted to pile food on top of food on top of food.

8. Make time for yourself in the busy Christmas schedule. Take 10 minutes to go for a walk, listen to some music, read your book...

9. Practice giving the best gift of all – love. Take the time and energy to be there for your loved ones!

10. Write a list of 3 goals for 2013. Not 30, just 3.

For those of you wanting to book in a January cleanse, we sell out up to 10 days ahead of schedule in peak season so get in fast!

Our January 2013 dates are live on the ordering page here.

Happy holidays!

5 yoga poses to detox mind and body

We all know it. We can feel it. Spring is in the air. Here at Urban Remedy we love the change of season because it means it’s time for a good clean out.

We cleanse through three of the body's main systems. The circulatory system pumps blood throughout the body – taking oxygen to cells whilst carrying the waste away. The digestive system processes the food we eat – absorbing the nutrients we need and eliminating anything we don’t. And then we have the lymphatic system, which collects fluid from our cells and sends it to the lymph nodes to ditch any harmful bacteria.  The eliminatory organs (lower digestive system, liver, kidneys, lungs and skin) then help us to expel all of those nasty little toxins.

That’s a pretty good system when it comes to detoxing! However, over the winter season, our diet is a little heavier, we're a little less active than usual, and our eliminatory organs may be feeling a little sluggish. When Spring arrives, we often need a helping hand to assist the natural detoxification process.

We regularly give you tips on how to cleanse your body through diet. But what about exercise? This week, with the help of our Resident Health Coach, Claire Obeid (who just happens to be an amazing yoga teacher), we thought we’d share a few of our favourite cleansing yoga poses to help you banish those winter cobwebs and kickstart detoxification.

Yoga, like most forms of exercise, stimulates the three systems of cleansing, but it packs a little more punch. The systematic stretching and compressing action, coupled with calm breathing, is particularly good at enhancing waste-removal from the deep tissues and extremities (which some forms of exercises just can’t do).

Here are our 5 cleansing yoga poses:

1. Standing Forward Bend – calms the nervous system whilst gently compressing the abdomen to stimulate digestion and elimination

2. Downward Facing Dog – gently tones the belly, aids circulation of blood and lymph and stimulates digestion

3. Lunging Twist – strengthens the legs whilst deeply twisting through the abdomen to squeeze and release the digestive organs

4. Seated Twist – releases the hips whilst squeezing the abdominal organs

5. Meditation – helps you calm your breath, centre your focus and quieten your mind to reduce stress and enhance detoxification

Happy spring cleaning!

Beating the winter blues!

The cold season means hitting the slopes, donning your ice skates, enjoying hearty meals and hot chocolates, wrapping up in beanies, scarves and cosy mittens, and curling up in front of a log fire (OK, for most of us a log fire may be out of the question but you get the picture!). That said, all of this winter goodness aside, it’s worth remembering the ‘not so fabulous’ side to the colder months – yep, we’re talking about their renowned capacity to bring us down.  We’ve all heard of SAD – Seasonal Affective Disorder – but you don’t need to be diagnosed with it to suffer from the winter blues. Many of us hit a slump come winter without even realizing it.

If you feel like you could be perkier in winter, we’ve got 5 handy tips to help you go from Moping Mildred to Happy Harriet in no time:

1. Get up 15 mins before you normally do and take the time to do something for you, just you.

Make yourself a cup of tea, watch some terrible morning television, read a chapter of your book, catch up on the news, meditate,  do some stretches, or just enjoy having that extra time to get ready – a nice long shower, better applied make-up, a closer shave…  You can achieve a lot in 15 mins (yes, we know). Whatever you choose to do, it’s your time. Enjoy it!

2. Get outside in spite of the cold. 

Go for a brisk walk, get out for a coffee or warming chai, take a proper lunch break… Just a few minutes of exercise and fresh air will help get your circulation going, clear your mind and change your perspective.

3. Stick to your social engagements!

Invest in some warm clothes and a sturdy umbrella and get yourself to that dinner date, art exhibition or exercise class. Rain or shine. Winter doesn’t have to mean putting your social life on hold in favour of couch-bound hibernating.

4. Avoid the tendency to fill up on stodgy, fatty and sweet foods.

If you like stodgy, go for hearty stews, soups and curries instead. If you crave fat, get your fix with raw nuts, nut and seed butters, and healthy oils (olive and coconut). If you have a sweet tooth, make yourself a healthy hot chocolate with almond or organic milk, raw cacao, a pinch of cinnamon and a drop or two of stevia.

5. Last but definitely not least, book a holiday!

Winter is the perfect time to get away. Even if it’s just for a weekend, a change of scenery is often exactly what the doctor ordered. If you can’t afford to go far, keep it local and book a hotel somewhere an hour from home. Even a simple day trip or night away can break things up a little.

In the words of Albert Camus:

“In the midst of winter, I found there was within me, 

an invincible summer.” 

Hopefully these tips will help you to find your summer and keep smiling!

Let’s keep it simple. Let’s get back to basics.

We were talking about what we like at the Urban Remedy HQ today. We like: green juice, warming soups, yummy smoothies (no surprises here)… and... well, we’re all a little bit methodical and organised (read geeky) so we also really like lists. When it came to discussing what we don’t like, we were pretty unanimous: we don’t like over-complicating things. And that definitely applies to the world of health.

It’s easy to get caught up in the hype of the latest fad or to feel overwhelmed by the multitude of nutritional choices and suggestions out there. Breathe. It’s okay. You probably know a lot more than you realise. When it comes to living well and being healthy, we like to believe that you know best. You just have to tune into your body and get back to the basics.

To help you do so, we’ve compiled a list of super simple guidelines to living well. We’re guessing you know it all already but that’s kind of the point. Sometimes it’s good to remember that it’s not rocket science, that we already have all the information we need to be healthy and happy.

And because we’re total list junkies, here’s... well, a list of...

10 simple health rules:

1.      Always eat breakkie – king. of. meals.

2.      Drink more water – nope, not 2 litres all at once… sip it, slowly

3.      Know your food – make your own or find out what’s in the stuff you buy!

4.      Read the label – look out for trans-fats, sugar and nasty additives

5.      Keep moving – if you can’t do a workout, get your walk or stretch on

6.      Get enough sleep –  6 hours min… find a routine that works for you

7.      Identify your cravings – better yet, find a healthy way to enjoy them

8.      Reduce your stress levels – ask yourself: will worrying change anything?

9.      Listen to your body – are you hungry, thirsty, in need of some TLC?

10.    Take the time to eat – food is there to enjoy!

You’re the boss. Tune into your awesomeness.

Four easy ways to make this your best year yet!

They say how you start the New Year is a good reflection of how the rest of it is going to be. A little bit like how your breakfast (the meal of kings) determines your eating patterns and metabolism for the rest of the day. So we thought we’d help you get off on the right foot for 2012.

You’re not alone if December saw you feeling sillier than usual – dinners replaced with canapés and champagne, weeks blurring into weekends, celebrations never ending – or if the Christmas festivities quickly turned into New Year’s Eve ones, with no respite in between. That’s OK, we’re not about to tell you off. They call it ‘living’ for a reason right? It’s all about balance, finding your way back to your centre and knowing how to take care of your body when it’s worn out and needing some TLC.

Here are our 4 tips for making this January the best yet:

1. Start SMALL. Don’t put yourself off your resolutions by jumping in the deep end (we’re not saying this doesn’t work but 5am jogs are not for everyone). Go for a brisk 10min walk in the evening after dinner or do some stretches and toning exercises at home in the morning before breakkie. Every. Little. Bit. Counts.

2. Love yourself up. Wake up in the morning and tell yourself how wonderful you are. If you wake up doing the opposite, what’s the point in striving for better? PMA (no, not PMS) = Positive Mental Attitude. It’s corny but it works. Eating well, exercising and generally being healthy is largely governed by how driven you are to make the changes. If you’re kind to yourself, you’re more likely to feel motivated – a little like being your own best friend.

3. Embrace the change of season. When the weather changes, so does your body’s requirements. Don’t get stuck in an autumn/spring (can we even call it spring?) lunch rut all the way through summer. If your body is craving salads bursting with colours and nutrients, go for it. Tune in to what your body wants (within reason of course). A little trick of the trade – if you’re pining after junk, drink a big glass of water first and then think about what you really feel like eating again.

4. Out with the old, in with the new. The New Year is a time for renewal. Clean out your wardrobe, your pantry, your fridge, your filing cabinet, your phone, your mind… and last but definitely not least… your body. There’s no doubt about it, December isn’t the saintliest of months. Our bodies are full to the brim with all-you-can-eat buffet, champagne, appetisers, chocolate, Christmas pudding, roast chicken, roast potatoes, roast… well, everything. The mind-body connection is undeniable when it comes to cleansing and clearing out your insides gives you a new lease on life – a fresh perspective.

We’re attacking a 5-day cleanse this month at the UR HQ… wish us luck!

What are you really hungry for?

Staying healthy and happy isn’t as simple as counting carbs and calories. The reason we love cleansing so much at Urban Remedy is that it allows you to take some time out from the rat race, to re-centre and examine the areas of your life that are falling short. Are you working too hard? Have you had a few too many beers or champagnes lately? Are you not spending enough time with friends? Have you fallen off the exercise wagon?

According to the lovely folk at the Institute for Integrative Nutrition in New York, what we eat is secondary food. The other stuff – career, relationships, spirituality, exercise – is primary food. We believe this is where cleansing plays such a crucial role: by taking the dilemma of secondary food out of the equation, it gives you time to think about the primary food in your life and address the areas you may be lacking in.

Take a look IIN’s nifty little (primary and secondary) food pyramid here.
     
Now, trace a point in each segment of the ‘circle of life’ below to note how happy you feel about each area in your life. Next, join the dots. The dips in your circle are areas that need some tender loving care. Get onto it.

Here's to a well rounded life!

Goodbye wobbly bits, hello PowerPlate!

This week, we put PowerPlate to the test. Buckle up, we’re in for a ride!

The experiment:
5 x 40-minute PowerPlate sessions over two weeks

So what is PowerPlate?

It’s the latest celebrity craze of vibration training that blasts your jiggly bits and gets you fit and toned in 2-3 short sessions per week. It was in fact used (long before celebrities) by Russian cosmonauts to fight the effects of zero gravity, improving muscle strength and bone density.


Classes are in groups of 2-4. I went with my (extremely brave) partner.

You stand on a vibrating platform in regular gym gear (no space suit, alas) and do a series of exercises including squats, lunges, push ups, the plank (could we be any more 2011?) and tricep dips. The vibrations stimulate the muscle-pump effect and increase blood flow (is it me or does that sound a bit rude?), which in turn improves the body’s ability to transport oxygen, assimilate nutrients and disperse toxins.

Studies have shown that adding a PowerPlate to your workout increases its effectiveness by 57%. Yes please.

The guinea pig: 
Me, exercise-phobe extraordinaire

I’m super healthy and I walk a lot but let’s get one thing straight – I’m no gym bunny. I used to dance ten hours a week when I was younger (and run and play tennis), and… like all good things in large doses… I got sick of it. The mere thought of exercising makes me want to whip out a box set of Gossip Girl and climb under the doona.

The verdict:

I have to say, after the initial excitement of free exercise, I started to wonder if my not-so-gymtastic body would be up for the challenge. I struggled in the first two sessions but found myself improving so quickly and so noticeably that I stayed motivated and didn’t feel disheartened by my lack of fitness.  My partner and I both felt like we had improved leaps and bounds by session 3, and were tricep-dipping and push-upping like pros in the last session ;)... you should see my plank now!!

I loved the fact that you could feel every muscle working, and that you could target particular muscles with such precision. The instructors at the studio in Bondi Junction were amazing. They definitely knew their stuff and checked in on us regularly, asking if there were areas we wanted to target (aka jiggly bits) and making sure we were activating each muscle correctly (read: working hard enough).

After the workout, you also get to look forward to a mini cellulite-banishing massage. A way to kiss goodbye to wobbly bits and cellulite in 40 minutes? Definitely a man (or woman)'s best friend.

Given my hate-hate relationship with exercise, I didn’t expect to fall in love with PowerPlate but (it’s official) I most certainly have. And so have my new found abs. Now all I have to do is convince them to stay there.

Less Gossip Girl, more PowerPlate? Who am I kidding, a girl can multi-task.

         xoxo