Recipe for a stress free lifestyle

My philosophy around managing stress is simply to ensure that you put yourself first - if you don't look after yourself you can't keep all the balls in the air that you need to. It's not selfish or self-centred and you shouldn't feel bad about pampering yourself or feel you have to earn it - it should be a lifestyle choice - it's good common sense and makes you personally effective.

A lot of the people I work with share the same philosophy. Stephen Davies of Fit to You, is a personal trainer also based in Formby. His recipe for personal wellness is simple:

• Combine all the following ingredients for a delicious life -a daily balanced diet, an active lifestyle, mix thoroughly with enjoyable exercise, a batch of fun and laughter and sprinkle in a love of work. Pour in some good sleep, quality time with friends and family and self. Easy!

Thankfully, Stephen is on hand to guide you through. He will draw up a personal plan and be right there alongside encouraging you - giving much more motivation than a gym subscription would give you - and is therefore more effective for your money.

Contact Stephen to get going - email: stephen@fittoyou.co.uk or telephone: 07825 348961, website: www.fittoyou.co.uk

For more help with managing stress check out my website: www.reallygoodlife.org

Swine flu - no laughing matter

It's amazing how quickly even the most serious news can be transformed into jokes and circulated seemingly instanteously via email and texting.

The latest topic chosen by wags is the possibly imminent, scary Swine Flu pandemic. This week I have been sent a variety of jokes related to the crisis - from the very un-pc "It will only affect men" to the plain puerile and childish "miracle cure for swine flu - apply this special oinkment"!

It's surprising but true that a common response to nervousness or stress is to react (sometimes inappropriately) with humour. What do we gain by this?

Sometimes ridiculing or downplaying a situation seems the easiest way to reduce our fear and minimises our anxiety about a situation. Additionally, our body seeks to dispel the physical aspects of nervous tension (muscles tightening, shallow breathing etc.) when bad news is broken or during inappropriate events (e.g. funerals or - as a young Liverpool player learnt this month to his cost - a minute's silence) and uses laughter to release this tension. I have encountered lots of laughter during stress coaching sessions and training, often cleverly observed and amusing to me, but really delivered by a participant as a way of avoiding or hiding true concerns or minimising any guilt they feel.

It's a natural human response which may unfortunately get us into trouble; forwarding texts and e-mails isn't and may lead to the full force of disciplinary action if your boss thinks it's inappropriate or the revulsion of people you considered friends but misjudged their sensitivities - leading to even more stress!

Sunshine, Thorntons chocolate & kicking back

Today Thorntons - high street purveyors of divine chocolate - announced impressive profits they had not expected due to the current economic jitters. They have put this success down to an extended Easter selling period. Does this mean that our current anxieties and stressors are making us all turn to chocolate?

Nothing intrinsically wrong with that!! I fully and regularly subscribe to the bliss of the serotonin rush brought on by the expertly processed combination of a quality cocoa bean and refined sugar. But, like any crutch we use, its a slippery slope.

Remember friends, that one of the hottest summers for 20 years has been forecast this year - and judging by beautiful April it just might materialise - which means that we will be wanting to display as many non-wobbly bits as possible via shorts, vest tops and (if very brave) swimwear.

And however we respond to a stressful day - whether its that extra glass of Rose, a soothing fag or a Mars - the magic (and miserable) word to remember is 'moderation'. Because all these popular responses to stress we tend to use are habit forming and can lead to cravings - and sadly when taken in excess can lead to over-reliance and then in time to the detriment to your overall health.

Long may the sun shine! Long may Thorntons reign! I don't want to bring anyone down. But I would like to suggest a quick self-care check to ensure that the way you're responding to stress is in overall good ways.

In my book that means being a little bit naughty, but mostly nice to your body.

For more some top tips on taking care of stress in positive ways visit my website: http://www.reallygoodlife.org/