1. WHAT DO YOU HAVE FOR BREAKFAST?

a) Skip breakfast

b) Toast or cereal, or pastry on the way to work

c) Something involving an egg, porridge or overnight oats

2. HOW MANY PORTIONS OF FRUIT AND VEG DO YOU EAT A DAY?

a) Fewer than two

b) Between three and five

c) Six or more

3. WHICH SOFT DRINKS DO YOU CONSUME THE MOST?

a) Fizzy soft drink

b) Squash or fruit juice

c) Water

4. HOW MANY MEASURES* OF ALCOHOL DO YOU DRINK PER WEEK (BE HONEST WITH YOURSELF)?

a) Over 14

b) Up to 14

c) I don’t drink

* A 125ml glass of wine with 12-13% alcohol by volume (most wines) contains approx. 1.5 units of alcohol. 125ml is a small glass. At home you are more likely to be serving up glasses around 175ml to 250ml.

5. CHOOSE THE DEGREE TO WHICH YOU AGREE WITH THIS STATEMENT: I OFTEN CRAVE CHOCOLATE, SWEET FOODS, CEREAL OR PASTA.

a) Strongly agree

b) Agree

c) Disagree

CALCULATE YOUR SCORE: GIVE YOURSELF 1 POINT FOR EVERY A, 2 FOR EACH B AND 3 FOR C.

0-5

Your diet needs a little attention. Bad habits and too much sugar lead to chronic conditions like diabetes and heart disease. Making changes to your diet has a big impact on how you feel and how much energy you have. Focus on trying to get more natural, unprocessed foods into your life Breakfast is often a low point in people’s diets nutritionally. Consider going to work on an egg, warming up some porridge, packing up your overnight oats or chia pudding –even a slice of wholemeal toast with unsweetened nut butter is a big step up from sugary cereals.

5-9

Not bad, but there’s room for improvement. Look to your snacks and see where you eat more of the good stuff (nuts, seeds, low GL fruit like apples, pears, plums and berries, nut butters, oatcakes, hummus, crudités) and less of the not-so-good stuff (afternoon raids of the biscuit tin or ‘picking’ when you get in from work).

10-15

I commend you for the effort you are already putting into taking care of your health. There is always something you can be doing to fine-tune your diet and take your health to the next level. The next step up is functional foods: those foods that fulfil a specific role in the body. Flaxseeds, for example, are helpful for hormone balance.

CHOOSE THE DEGREE TO WHICH YOU AGREE WITH THESE STATEMENTS:

1. I HAVE MOOD SWINGS OR DIFFICULTY CONCENTRATING.

a) Strongly agree

b) Agree

c) Disagree

2. I OFTEN HAVE ENERGY SLUMPS DURING THE DAY OR AFTER MEALS.

a) Strongly agree

b) Agree

c) Disagree

3. I HAVE LESS ENERGY THAN I USED TO.

a) Strongly agree

b) Agree

c) Disagree

4. I AM GAINING WEIGHT/ FINDING IT HARDER TO LOSE WEIGHT.

a) Strongly agree

b) Agree

c) Disagree

5. I NEED COFFEE, TEA, A CIGARETTE OR SOMETHING SWEET TO GET ME GOING.

a) Strongly agree

b) Agree

c) Disagree

CALCULATE YOUR SCORE: GIVE YOURSELF 1 POINT FOR EVERY A, 2 FOR EACH B AND 3 FOR C.

0-5

It’s no wonder you feel like you’re dragging yourself through the day. It sounds as though your blood sugar levels are out of balance. That accounts for the energy rollercoaster you are experiencing. The answer to improving those areas you scored badly for is in changing what you eat, specifically by moving to a low Glycaemic Load (GL) blood sugar balancing diet. Get in touch for more details on my blood sugar balancing programmes.

5-9

You feel so-so. I guess you are operating from ‘ordinary’. Some days you feel great, others less so. But that’s normal, right? You don’t need to just manage. If you’re not already on a pretty decent diet, consider auditing what you’re eating to see where you can start to bring in improvements. Breakfast and snacks are often the weak spot in my clients’ diets.

10-15

You are already springing out of bed at least some of the time, and that is great. Consider how you can fine tune your diet (perhaps by cutting back on stimulants like tea and coffee) to give yourself a boost. Squeezing in an extra exercise session, or taking time out just for you..

1. HOW OFTEN DO YOU EXERCISE?

a) Only when on the school run or dashing about at work

b) At least twice a week

c) At least three times a week

2. WHAT’S YOUR ATTITUDE TO EXERCISE?

a) I hate it

b) It’s a necessary evil

c) I love it

3. WHEN YOU EXERCISE, HOW LONG ARE YOUR WORKOUTS?

a) I don’t work out

b) It depends on how much time I have

c) At least 30 minutes

4. HOW DOES YOUR JOB AFFECT YOUR FITNESS?

a) I work in an office and barely leave my desk

b) I have an office job, but I get up regularly and move about

c) I have an outside job, which keeps me generally fit

5. DO YOU GO OUT OF YOUR WAY TO FIT EXERCISE INTO YOUR DAY – WALKING A BUS STOP FURTHER OR CLIMBING THE STAIRS FASTER, FOR EXAMPLE?

a) Never

b) If I remember to

c) Usually/ always

CALCULATE YOUR SCORE: GIVE YOURSELF 1 POINT FOR EVERY A, 2 FOR EACH B AND 3 FOR C.

0-5

I get it, you have a lot on and exercise is the first thing to go when things get busy. Or maybe you haven’t found your ‘thing’. Try this little exercise: if you’re someone who says ‘I don’t like exercise’ write down 6 things about exercise specifically that you don’t like. Reflect on the impact of not being as fit as you would like. Finally, consider what you used to like doing for exercise and why you liked it.

5-9

You’re doing OK, but not amazing. Oftentimes, when clients are kind of doing the work but not completely, they stand in their own way of success by not having a measurable and specific goal. What is your exercise goal and what do you commit to in order to reach it? What will you do and by when?

10-15

Really great going. Exercising regularly (the government recommends 30 minutes of exercise five times a week) keeps you feeling healthier generally, can balance your energy levels, strengthen muscles and bones and help you lose or maintain weight. What’s to consider here is what you will say to yourself on the days you don’t want to exercise. Write it down. It’s important to reach for it on dark mornings.

1. HOW MUCH TIME DO YOU TAKE EACH DAY TO FOCUS ENTIRELY ON YOU?

a) None

b) Occasionally, I might sit down to read a book, sit quietly and listen to music or relax in the bath

c) 30 mins or more each day

2. WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR LIFE AS ‘BUSY’?

a) My life often feels busy and/or chaotic

b) Yes but no more than anyone else

c) No

3. HOW STRESSED DO YOU FEEL?

a) I’m stressed to the hilt every day

b) I’m stressed in certain situations

c) I’m pretty laid-back

4. CHOOSE THE DEGREE TO WHICH YOU AGREE WITH THIS STATEMENT: I HAVE HIGH SELF-ESTEEM/ BELIEF IN MYSELF.

a) Disagree

b) Agree

c) Strongly agree

5. CHOOSE THE DEGREE TO WHICH YOU AGREE WITH THIS STATEMENT: I ALWAYS SLEEP WELL.

a) Disagree

b) Agree

c) Strongly agree

CALCULATE YOUR SCORE: GIVE YOURSELF 1 POINT FOR EVERY A, 2 FOR EACH B AND 3 FOR C.

0-5

There is a lot more to being ‘healthy’ than just eating the right things and moving your body (though these are very important). You have got to look after your mental wellbeing – some people describe it as ‘nourishing the soul’. If you are the kind of person who is always busy, struggles to sleep well, is pretty stressed and takes very little time out for their own happiness, you really need to look at that. A good start (aside from a coaching programme!) is to create a little white space every day. That’s space you don’t fill with anything. Taking time out to follow a 10 minute guided meditation with Headspace, Calm or similar is a good place to begin and can have a dramatic impact in a short space of time.

5-9

It seems like sometimes you can be trusted to take care of yourself, and at other times you are right at the bottom of your list of priorities. One of the key pillars of health and a feeling of wellbeing is sleep. If you didn’t score that you nearly always sleep well, it’s worth having a mini sleep audit to see where you could tidy up your bedtime routine. Ideas for improving your sleep quality include going to bed at a similar time every night, avoiding stimulants like coffee and tea late in the day, having a phone curfew at least an hour before going to bed, avoiding watching TV in the bedroom, and reading a little to wind down.

10-15

Well done! To supercharge your feeling of wellbeing, take stock of exactly what you are doing for yourself. Think of all the things you are currently doing: the family, the job, and such like. If you don’t take care of you, who will do all that work? Self care is critically important because at the heart of it is an understanding that only you can make you happy. Start making a list of things you can do purely for your own enjoyment. Make sure that you spend at least 30 minutes each day (can be 2x 15 minutes) doing what’s on your list.