Pridať nové hodnotenie

Bright and early, my old friend, the beauty and <br> <br> wellness entrepreneur Liz Earle, is standing at my door clutching a Kilner jar with what looks like a small sponge floating in murky <br> <br> water.<br> <br> <br> <br> 'I made kombucha for you,' she says with an enthusiasm I don't entirely share.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> (The sponge, it turns out, is the Scoby, or 'symbiotic culture of <br> <br> bacteria and yeast', which is what's used to ferment sweetened <br> <br> tea to make kombucha. I don't realise at the time, but this hideous thing <br> <br> takes weeks to develop and is in fact a very generous gift.)<br> <br> <br> <br> The truth is, I'd drink (almost) anything if it gave me Liz's zip.<br> <br> <br> <br> At 61, a mother of five and a new grandmother, she honestly looks 20 years younger.<br> <br> Fans of her YouTube channel and her 170,000 Instagram followers <br> <br> will know how bright and smooth her skin is, but in person she is fizzing with energy, too.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Liz and I have been friends for 25 years - over which time she has somehow seemed to gain in vitality as <br> <br> I, nine years her junior, have... well, deflated.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Beauty and wellness entrepreneur Liz Earle, right, and Beatrice Aidin met back <br> <br> in the 1990s when they were both beauty journalists<br> <br> <br> <br> So here's my plan. I am going to Live Like Liz for a full eight <br> <br> weeks, morning to night, to see just how much <br> <br> I, too, can turn back the clock.<br> <br> <br> <br> I am going to eat, drink and exercise like Liz, 'ground myself' in a flower bed in my pyjamas like her, and even tape up <br> <br> my mouth à la Liz. From my gut to my hormones, my brain to the very <br> <br> cells of my skin, I will follow the 'bio-hacks' <br> <br> set out in her new book A Better Second Half: Dial Back Your Age To Live A <br> <br> Longer, Healthier, Happier Life, which swiftly became a bestseller on its release this year.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Liz says it can't fail, so long as I commit to it.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> 'Who's to say we can't or shouldn't change the way we <br> <br> age?' she asks.<br> <br> <br> <br> 'I was stronger, fitter and more capable in my 50s than I was in my 40s, so why can't I be even more so in my 60s, 70s and beyond?'<br> <br> <br> <br> Perhaps more significantly, after the 'car crash of emotional wreckage' caused by the breakdown of <br> <br> her second marriage, and the divorce she went through in 2020,<br> <br> she now says: 'I'm happier at 61 than I was at 40.'<br> <br> <br> <br> Career-wise, it shows. When we met back in the 1990s we were both <br> <br> beauty journalists. At launches for new products, I'd merrily down the free Krug while Liz sipped sparkling water.<br> <br> 'Ah Bea, you were the yin to my yang,' she says.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Now, her wellness empire has mushroomed... and <br> <br> I'm suffering major work anxiety, a not-unrelated financial crisis and severe sciatica.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Frankly, I look and feel knackered. My skin is dull and <br> <br> I have dark circles under my eyes. Physical pain interferes with my sleep, and <br> <br> I've been turning rather too readily to the sauvignon blanc <br> <br> to help me nod off.<br> <br> <br> <br> Food is not a priority: I'm either not interested or craving sugar, which means I'm a good 10lb heavier than I should be.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> So, can living like my rather fabulous friend make me <br> <br> feel as young as she looks? More to the point - can I <br> <br> really stick to it, kombucha and all?<br> <br> <br> <br> 'Come on Bea, get off your backside!' Liz demands...<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Liz (left) puts Beatrice through her paces in the gym.<br> <br> Beatrice needs extra help with exercise because of her sciatica<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Week one: I face up to my middle-age spread<br> <br> Liz's top-line diet philosophy is high-protein, low carb, meaning she's a fan of lots of foods I love <br> <br> but didn't think I should eat: butter, unprocessed meat, avocados, good quality cheese, taramasalata and thick Greek yoghurt.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> High protein helps us 'shift to a leaner, more toned shape, and lose that middle-aged <br> <br> spread,' she says.<br> <br> <br> <br> Timing matters. Liz eats two meals a day - brunch around <br> <br> 11am and dinner at 7pm. The order matters too: clear your plate of chicken before rice, because eating protein before carbs keeps blood sugar levels stable.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> In recent years she has increased her coffee intake (before 2pm) because studies show four to five cups is 'strongly associated with living longer' thanks to the <br> <br> bioactives in coffee beans such as chlorogenic <br> <br> acid.<br> <br> <br> <br> She eats wheatgerm, soya beans and nuts to up <br> <br> her intake of spermidine - a dietary molecule that interacts with our DNA and mimics <br> <br> an anti-ageing process called autophagy, which de-ages us <br> <br> at a cellular level.<br> <br> <br> <br> Alcohol is basically a no-no. Liz has the 'occasional glass' of wine or tequila,<br> <br> but never more than two and never alone.<br> <br> <br> <br> I chuck out the ready meals and plonk, roll up my sleeves <br> <br> and start cooking from scratch. I grill venison, roast a chicken and <br> <br> make soups with the leftovers.<br> <br> <br> <br> Eating at specific times works for me - I'm never very hungry first thing - and enjoying the protein part of each meal first means I'm fuller <br> <br> and find it easy to cut back on my carb portions.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Gut health is a big focus, which means more fermented foods.<br> <br> Much to my surprise, I love the kombucha and soon start to <br> <br> brew my own using Liz's Scoby. But homemade kimchi - fermented veg <br> <br> - is a harder sell. When a lunch guest asks me why I'm <br> <br> forcing myself to eat something I dislike so much, I reply solemnly:<br> <br> 'Liz told me to.'<br> <br> <br> <br> Week two: I discover I can do only 3 press-ups<br> <br> I really need help with exercise because sciatica means my <br> <br> normal routine has gone to pot.<br> <br> <br> <br> Thankfully, Liz reckons just ten minutes a day of exercises such as squats, lunges <br> <br> and press-ups is more valuable in the long term than a high-intensity gym session once a week <br> <br> or a long park run.<br> <br> <br> <br> She introduces me to her personal trainer, Michael Garry, who delivers the <br> <br> (bombshell, but welcome) news that running any distance over <br> <br> 5k can 'start to have negative effects' on our <br> <br> immune system and bone strength. If you're a runner, make it harder by speeding up your time, not increasing <br> <br> your distance.<br> <br> <br> <br> At Michael's insistence, I consult a physio about my sciatica, and <br> <br> then he devises a daily regime for me. I try press-ups and make it <br> <br> to three. Mortifying. Perseverance is clearly key.<br> <br> As are weights, especially in your 50s. 'The more muscle you have, the more your bones are protected from osteoporosis, especially during midlife,' says Michael.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> For cardio, says Beatrice, I keep swimming twice a week.<br> <br> But instead of plodding up and down the pool, I start to <br> <br> compete with myself, speeding up the laps<br> <br> <br> <br> For my slack and flabby upper arms, he advises shoulder <br> <br> presses and hammer curls, with 3kg weights in both hands. I try tricep dips off a chair, and quickly find I can increase my reps <br> <br> - until by week four I'm doing two sets of 15.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> I work out three times a week at home. At first the routine takes 40 minutes <br> <br> but the more I do, the faster I do it, until the whole thing - stretching,<br> <br> press-ups, weights - takes just 20 minutes.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> For cardio, I keep swimming twice a week. But instead of <br> <br> plodding up and down the pool, I start to compete <br> <br> with myself, speeding up the laps.<br> <br> <br> <br> Week three: I slow the hormonal roller coaster<br> <br> I'm menopausal and already on HRT, but I know I could improve how I feel, which is sluggish and foggy.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Liz introduces me to something called the 'estrobolome' <br> <br> - the specific collection of bacteria in the gut that influences how our body uses oestrogen. Put simply, <br> <br> some microbes improve the efficiency with which oestrogen reaches tissues around the <br> <br> body, meaning we use our dwindling supplies more effectively.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> The best way to support your estrobolome is by eating fibre <br> <br> from veg, seeds and nuts, plus some of the low-sugar <br> <br> fruits such as apples, berries and plums. Back <br> <br> to the supermarket I go.<br> <br> <br> <br> To boost the happy hormone serotonin, my saintly mentor insists I finish my morning shower with a minimum 60-second blast of icy cold water, resulting - she claims - in a <br> <br> 'post-shock high' and 'genuine glow'.<br> <br> <br> <br> Hmmm. I find it hard to relinquish the comfort of <br> <br> a hot shower and feel not happy but mutinous as I step out of the bathroom shivering.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Week four: I stand in the flower bed<br> <br> Living Like Liz means getting outside first thing in the morning <br> <br> and standing barefoot on the grass. 'Grounding' apparently enables electrons from the surface of the Earth <br> <br> to transmit deep into the body, 'where they have an anti-inflammatory effect'.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Liz tells me she does this in the tranquil grounds of her glorious pile in the West <br> <br> Country. I do it in a flower bed in my shared patio, still in my <br> <br> pyjamas, and feel, well, very self-conscious. Later I <br> <br> graduate to the park, and - look away now - tread in dog mess, <br> <br> which does not improve my emotional wellbeing.<br> <br> <br> <br> She also encourages us to keep a Five Minute Gratitude Journal twice a day.<br> <br> 'Gratitude is... a superpower that improves longevity and supports the immune system,' she says.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> I can't help but think my better-off mate has rather a lot more to smile about <br> <br> than me but, following instructions, I write down three things I am grateful for <br> <br> every morning, and every night a short list of 'good things' that happened that day, plus <br> <br> another (longer) list of 'things that are concerning me'.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> My scepticism around gratitude slowly lifts as I find it does make me realise what's important and <br> <br> what's not. It helps me see that things are a lot brighter than I thought.<br> <br> Packing in a rush for a weekend away, I can't find my journal and am surprised by <br> <br> how bereft I feel without it.<br> <br> <br> <br> Week five: I start to sleep well<br> <br> I'm a night owl - I stay up too late watching <br> <br> TV and end up hitting my snooze button past 8.30am...<br> <br> and occasionally edging towards 10am.<br> <br> <br> <br> Liz reckons anyone can improve their sleep if they follow <br> <br> her routine, which means setting an evening alarm for 9pm - to remind yourself to start 'winding down for <br> <br> bed'.<br> <br> <br> <br> Emails, social media and TV are switched off, replaced by a <br> <br> printed book or a podcast. She takes 120g of magnesium glycinate in a milky <br> <br> drink half an hour before bed (and stops eating two hours before).<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Living Like Liz means getting outside first thing in the morning <br> <br> <br> <br> Liz wears a bamboo fibre nightie or pyjamas to keep warm because she <br> <br> sleeps with an open window, which she covers with blackout blinds and curtains, and sprinkles her pillow <br> <br> with a few drops of neat lavender essential oil.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> I'm an e-book reader, so already failing at this routine.<br> <br> Still, I leave my phone charging in the kitchen and <br> <br> buy a regular alarm clock. The lavender oil makes me sneeze, so <br> <br> I spray my pillows with C. Atherley Geranium Spray <br> <br> instead. <br> <br> <br> <br> Oh, and I tape my lips up - Liz shows me how when she delivers the kombucha.<br> <br> Forcing yourself to breathe through your nose is said to promote more restful sleep.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> All of this is time-consuming and takes practise, but I find the ritual soothing.<br> <br> Five weeks in, I'm getting to sleep earlier than I have for <br> <br> years - at 10.30pm after 20 minutes drop-off time -and waking <br> <br> at 7.30am. How virtuous!<br> <br> <br> <br> Week six: I crash off the wagon<br> <br> I'm doing my best, but then I go for lunch with a friend <br> <br> who chirpily suggests a glass of wine, which turns into <br> <br> a bottle. And then a second. Later, with a daytime <br> <br> hangover, I head to M&S and find reduced dauphinoise potatoes, which become dinner. <br> <br> <br> <br> Liz has got me on a blood sugar tracker called Lingo (£289 for two months - you jab a biosensor the size and shape <br> <br> of a plastic bottle top into your upper arm, and <br> <br> then link it to an app on your phone), which shows a massive post-potato spike and then a huge slump, which makes me tired and irritable.<br> <br> Who knew that such deliciousness had such a high glycaemic load?<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> I call Liz to 'fess up. 'I have the odd day when I lie in, eat too much <br> <br> cake and drink too much tequila,' she says. 'But that's <br> <br> fine because you then know what to do to <br> <br> put it right. It's not about being perfect.' Phew!<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Week seven: I tackle my financial mess<br> <br> Re-reading my journal really helps here. By documenting what I was so worried about day by day, my perspective <br> <br> on it changes.<br> <br> <br> <br> Here, in black and white, is a record of how I <br> <br> felt at the start of this project and how I've evolved.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> I've come unstuck - in a good way. I'm not going to pretend it's <br> <br> been easy because change is uncomfortable, but I realise there's <br> <br> simply nothing to be gained from the worry spiral.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> If freelance life is tough, and my income erratic,<br> <br> I'm going to do something about it. Buoyed with the confidence that <br> <br> comes with action, I apply for part-time admin jobs.<br> <br> As personal trainer Michael observes as we work out on Zoom, I wouldn't have <br> <br> done this before. He's right. Finally I've started <br> <br> to take control.<br> <br> <br> <br> Week eight: And the winner is...<br> <br> So how have eight weeks of Living Like Liz changed me?<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Physically, I'm in much better shape. I've lost 7 lb <br> <br> and taken an extraordinary 5 in off my waist and <br> <br> 11 in off my body as a whole.<br> <br> <br> <br> Those three pathetic press-ups have become a whopping 40 <br> <br> per workout, and the measly 3kg weights are now 6kg, meaning I have proper bicep definition. The sleeveless tops will be coming out again this party season.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Read More<br> <br> <br> <br> Our essential guide to beating back pain: What's causing your aches<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> My skin is clearer, eyes brighter and face more defined because I've reduced <br> <br> the carb-inducing bloat. I'm sleeping better and feeling infinitely <br> <br> less anxious.<br> <br> <br> <br> Most remarkably - and this is really life-changing - my sciatica is almost gone <br> <br> and I can come off strong painkillers. I know <br> <br> sciatica can disappear of its own accord, but the timing is surely no coincidence.<br> <br> All those exercises have strengthened the muscles around my <br> <br> spine and buttocks and I'm convinced it's done the <br> <br> trick.<br> <br> <br> <br> I meet Liz for lunch, nervous about whether she'll <br> <br> see a difference. 'Oh wow,' she says, taking a good look at her pupil.<br> <br> 'Those arms! You definitely look younger.'<br> <br> <br> <br> We chat for a while and she adds: 'You also seem more <br> <br> content and optimistic. You have an inner glow and a halo of positivity.'<br> <br> <br> <br> Well, yes, she would say that, wouldn't she?<br> <br> (Probably. Though Liz is known for her candour, so it's not a given.) 'I <br> <br> wasn't sure you were going to prioritise yourself enough <br> <br> and commit,' she admits 'You weren't an easy nut to crack so <br> <br> I'm thrilled.'<br> <br> <br> <br> I'm delighted with my gold star. And I'm grateful to her, <br> <br> which is one of the key lessons I've learned. Gratitude makes everything feel better.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> That - along with the kombucha, ice-cold showers (which I have learned to love) and <br> <br> the odd tequila - are the habits I'll hold on to.<br> <br> But not (shudder!) the kimchi or flower beds.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> As Liz says, everyone deserves to have a better second half <br> <br> - and if I can do it, anyone can.<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> A Better Second Half: Dial Back Your Age To Live A Longer, <br> <br> Healthier, Happier Life, by Liz Earle (Hodder & Stoughton, £22).<br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> <br> Instagram<br> <br> <br> <br> Review my web page :: ร้านดอกไม้พร้อมส่งทันที - http://Www.ogloszenia-norwegia.pl/dam-prace/10-reasons-your-shouldn-t-be-what-it-needs-to-be.html
Hodnotenie: 
3
4 + 2 =