Nicky Dear Health Coach

If you follow my weekly blog you will know I have been AWOL for a few weeks. This is due to one of those curved balls life likes to throw at you now and again, and I will write about that in my next blog.

But last week I was reminded by my 87-year-old dad how important consistency is in achieving your goals in life, especially health goals.

Dad has always been very fit and active and despite many underlying health issues that have come to him in old age, he has remained active and determined to stay as healthy as possible by having a strict daily routine, eating healthily and having 3 nutritious meals a day by the clock as well as a regular bedtime.

Recently the pharmacist at his local surgery made a change to his medication (his statin) to a more “cost-effective” version. This triggered a whole rollercoaster of changes in his body, which resulted in him ending up in A&E and a 30-hour wait to be seen with no sleep which in turn made him very ill for several months. One of the symptoms that manifested was excruciating back and hip pain which left him unable to get out of his chair or walk further than a few feet and we had daily care for him for a few months.

He went to physio as part of his recovery and I accompanied him. He was given a set of 5 exercises and the physio explained that dad had curvature of the spine (which he showed me) in his lower back, this was causing dad’s posture to drop on one side so that he was walking with a lopsided gait.

Fast forward 3 months and dad has been diligently doing the exercises every day as instructed, has bought a resistance band, some light weights and a small exercise ball to strengthen his glute muscles. He has also been taking advice from me on his diet as he has come completely off statins but has slightly elevated cholesterol (but at his age… this is the least of his worries) however he wanted to try and reduce his cholesterol by changes to his nutrition and he knew from chatting to me that this is possible. He no longer needs his carers and is back to gardening, playing golf and generally in much better health.

I couldn’t believe it when dad said he felt confident to drive the 2 hours down to Wiltshire from his home in Worcestershire to spend Easter with us. And when he arrived, the change in his posture was nothing short of a miracle. He is now walking upright again and walking without a stick!!

You may be wondering what this has to do with menopause? – Well of course it isn’t related, but for me it shows that anyone can change their health, no matter how old they are, but the trick is consistency and commitment.

Another great example of how consistency pays dividends is that I am currently training to become a melt instructor for hand and foot treatments to be able to help my clients improve their balance, stability, flexibility, joint, and nerve health.

Despite the fact I have been doing melt for 3 years, because I am doing hand and foot treatments myself every day at the moment, its only 10-15 mins per day, but I have noticed a huge difference in my balance, my movement, my flexibility and especially in my hands and feet, which have osteoarthritis.

I have had a lot less pain, and my joints are moving more freely. This is another great example of consistent daily exercise being much more effective than the odd burst of enthusiasm!

When I am coaching this is something that I teach my clients, its not about aiming for perfection, its about making small changes to your nutrition & lifestyle which become part of your daily routine.

A great example of this is drinking more water. I find this is one of the hardest changes for my clients to make, just because they forget in their busy lives, but once they manage to make it into a habit it’s a game changer.

I’d love to hear what small changes you have made in your daily routine that have made a huge difference to your health. If you do one thing today (especially if the weather is heating up) drink more water!

If you would like to understand more about melt and how it can help you improve your health, or would like to work with me on my 12-week tailored programme please get in touch and we can have a no obligation initial discussion.

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