Five tools for improved Health & Wellbeing

I wrote this article for Vanessa Champion and the Journal of Biophilic Design and thought too good not to share..

The Built Environment is a fun, fulfilling, extremely creative and innovative place to work. But, it is also a highly pressurised and stressful industry to work in.

The problem is, we have become extremely good at tolerating stress, but it’s just not sustainable.

Our bodies are designed to deal with stress in small doses. When the stress is constant, even if it’s deemed “low level”, it starts to take its toll on our health, wellbeing and resilience.

We hear the words “low level” and we don’t take it seriously, when in actual fact, we should.

A stress response is a stress response and has the same implications on our bodies. What plays a crucial role in deciding our fate, is whether the stress is acute or constant aka chronic.

Acute stress can actually be our ally. Chronic stress…not so much. It wears us down (mentally, physically and emotionally) and de-regulates our bodies.

With this in mind, here are Five things Built Environment Professionals can do to take care of their health and wellbeing. I’d like to highlight that some of the tools I suggest involve consciously using and embracing stress for improved wellbeing and resilience……

Before we start, I’m going to introduce you to Hormetic stress.

Hormetic stressors, acute intermittent stressors of moderate intensity, can produce stress resilience, the ability for quick recovery and possibly rejuvenation of cells and tissues

(The geroscience agenda: Toxic stress, hormetic stress, and the rate of aging – Elissa S. Epel

Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, UCSF Weill Institute for Neurosciences, & Center for Health and Community, University of California, 3333 California)

 

Hormetic stress is our friend. Simply put, it has the potential to help us build resilience, repair and rejuvenate cells, and become stronger.

• Hypoxia – restriction of oxygen (The Wim Hof Method Breathing technique) 
• Hypothermia – cold exposure
• Fasting – restriction of calories.
• Heat exposure – Sauna’s

These are just a few examples of hormetic stressors. By practicing the Wim Hof Method, you are engaging the hormetic stress of Hypoxia and Hypothermia…….

You’ll notice that hormetic stressors are something that our ancient ancestors engaged with and in doing so our bodies adapted and evolved to become the wonderful machines they are today…

Hormetic stress leads to becoming resilient in every single cell of your body…..

#1 – The power of your breath

Quite simply, our breath regenerates our body. It brings oxygen to our cells. It keeps us alive. The way we breathe can make the difference between night and day. It can make you sick……. Or…… it can heal you.

You’ll notice (or maybe you haven’t noticed yet) that when you get stressed your breathing becomes short, erratic and high up in your chest.

Through long, slow, deep breathing, engaging the diaphragm and belly and breathing in through the nose and an extended exhale out through the mouth we take back control and calm our nervous system which then calms our minds. In for 4 seconds, out for 7. Essentially we shift from our sympathetic nervous system (stress response) to our parasympathetic nervous system (rest and repair).

You can also breath in ways to stimulate and invigorate your body..

The Wim Hof Method breathing technique stimulates your body in a very unique way and will give you more control over your nervous system and that means you will have more control over stress and energy…..

Some key benefits to the WHM breathing:

• Change your biochemistry – balanced blood work = more energy + better mental clarity
• Benefit from the effects of hormetic stress
• Reduce inflammation
• Re-align your nervous system
• Calm your racing mind

I recommend the books and websites for the Wim Hof Method and “Breath – The New `Science of a Lost Art” by James Nestor for a range of different breathing techniques explained and guided videos.

#2 – Embrace the Cold

The Cold! In recent years cold exposure has been part of numerous scientific studies and so as a society we have a deeper awareness as to the benefits.

Let’s not forget that athletes have been taking ice baths as part of a recovery process and training plan for many years. What has changed is that we are now associating cold exposure with mental health benefits, and for good reason too!

Cold exposure triggers the release of the stress hormones that prepare our body for the cold, and part of the preparation is releasing of “happy hormones” such as endorphins, dopamine and serotonin….making us feel good and getting a bit of a buzz….

So, why should you take a cold shower in the morning?

When you learn to handle the cold every morning, you are teaching your body how to deal with stress and grow stronger in the process.

Get comfortable with the cold and get comfortable with uncertainty.

Acclimatise your nervous system to the reality of not knowing everything….and see what effect that has on your mental wellbeing and stress levels. Something as simple as taking a cold shower every morning, can help you build stress resilience…. ……Mentally……Physically…..Emotionally.

We have amazingly sophisticated bodies that are constantly trying to keep us safe and bring us back to homeostasis. Homeostasis is our natural state of being where our bodies operate most efficiently allowing is to reach our full potential.

Learn to embrace the cold, and you can learn to smile in times of adversity.

It all starts with turning that shower to cold. Gradual exposure allows our bodies to adapt.

Have your normal shower….and then finish with 15 seconds cold. After a few days move to 30 seconds cold at the end.

Listen to your body and keep going.

You’ll find that you are able to go past a minute and beyond…..whilst enjoying it!

#3 – Fasting & Intermittent fasting

If you are looking for a tool to improve mental strength and clarity, boost energy and reset and rebalance your body and make it more resilient, look no further! And, it doesn’t require any extra time….

Now, don’t panic, you don’t have to dive in with a 3 or 5 day fast. Much like cold exposure, start gradually.

There are plenty of benefits to intermittent fasting. Just by pushing your breakfast out by an hour or two to start, you will experience benefits. It’s about building and achievable a sustainable practice.

From 12 hours onwards your body starts to produce ketones and we switch over to fat burning fuel systems as opposed to glucose. The benefit here is that we start to burn fat…but also, ketones are great for improving cognitive function and mental clarity and alertness – getting rid of that foggy thinking. You will also benefit from the psychological mental strength building that comes with fasting. You are taking control! Ultimately, hunger is just a feeling.

Key reasons and benefits of fasting:

• Fasting is a hormetic stressor – helping your cells to repair and rejuvenate and come back stronger
• 24 hours – Gut micro-biome reset
• 36 hours – belly fat burning
• 48 hours – Dopamine reset
• 72 hours – stem cell generation – stem cells can go anywhere in your body and heal…

I highly recommend taking a look at Dr Mindy Pelz and her website for plenty of free guidance.

#4 – Stretch your comfort zone

Do one thing everyday for 30 days that puts you out of your comfort zone.

It doesn’t matter how small it is, it matters that you do it.

Keep it simple.

#5 – Connect with nature

We are part of nature. Reconnecting with it is essential for our health and wellbeing. As humans we evolved over hundreds and thousands of years adapting and growing stronger. Quite simply, our connection to nature is essential for our survival.

There are so many benefits to connecting with nature to list them all and so here are a few simple but powerful things to bear in mind;

Ourselves, the world and the universe are made up of the same key chemicals. Hydrogen, Oxygen, Nitrogen and Carbon.

We breathe in oxygen and exhale carbon dioxide. Trees take in carbon dioxide and omit oxygen.

Sunlight gives us vitamin D

Have you ever noticed that when you are facing a problem and feeling stressed, just getting outside can make you feel better. It doesn’t make the problem go away, but it does help you look at it in a different way and deal with it more effectively.

In a world where we spend so much of our time inside when our bodies were designed to be outside, we need to both get outside more and bring nature indoors where we can, to stimulate and invigorate our minds and bodies.

My intention is that this article gives you an understanding of habits and how to form them sustainably without overwhelming you with too much detail.

I am here to help you and your teams become happier, healthier and stronger.

 

I hope this has been useful, let me know whether it is, I am open to feedback…it will make me more resilient!

All the love and all the power

Damon

xx