The Only Health & Wellness Guide to Kalamunda You Need!

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Welcome to Kalamunda!

The name ‘Kalamunda’ is derived from two Australian Indigenous language words, with kala translating to “home”, and munda meaning “forest”. These translations give rise to the city motto… “A home in the forest”. Which is a very apt description of this gorgeous, leafy suburb.

There’s nothing quite like life in the Perth Hills. The best thing about living up in the hills is the closeness to nature. A bush walk is the perfect place to clear your head, catch up with friends or go for a run with your pooch on one of the many trails. These trails are a lifeline, a dose of medicine, and I am so grateful to have access to them every day.

Over the last 5 – 10 years, the wellness scene here in the hills has grown so much, and there is really no need for locals to ‘go down the hill’ anymore to get their wellness, and every reason for city dwellers to pop up for a relaxing + rejuvenating visit.

The ultimate day of wellness in Kalamunda looks something like this to me…

♥ THE MORNING

What better way to start your morning than firing up the muscles and endorphins at Sixty7Six, a local functional fitness gym located in the backstreets of Walliston (Kala’s neighbouring suburb!), making it the perfect first stop on your road to wellness for the day.

Their bootcamp-style classes are high in intensity, constantly varied and ALWAYS fun! Give this group class a go, or if one-on-one is more your thing you can hook up a session with a personal trainer. All levels of fitness welcome!

If you’re looking for a more stretchy & bendy start to the day, Deb from Yoga Centred has you covered. She is my favourite yogi of all time! After living overseas for more than 2 years, I really couldn’t wait to return home and go back to her amazing classes! Throughout the warmer months Yoga Centred also offers Yoga in the Park, which is the dreamiest way to start your Sunday morning.

You can find Yoga Centred at ‘The Village’, Yoga Shala on Haynes Street in Kalamunda.

♥ BRUNCH TIME

When the morning hunger strikes, it’s time to call into Jack & Jill! Can I pull the old ‘I knew them before they were famous’ card? Seriously though. Best. Breakfast. EVER.

Jack & Jill really do have something for everyone. Whether you’re wanting to go full blown wellness with cold pressed juice and paleo bread, warming porridges, or maybe an ‘Old Faithful’ Aussie breaky, they will definitely have you and your possibly less wellness inclined friends covered.

J & J is also a great place to celebrate a birthday and connect with the people you love.

♥ LATER ON

When the sun starts to nestle down over the horizon, it’s time to head outdoors. What would a day of wellness in Kalamunda be without a nature walk? Lesmurdie Falls is the place to be at sunset in the Perth hills. Poochies are allowed so bring your four legged friends, and there are lots of little nooks where you can chill out, have a picnic and watch the sun go down with your fave people.

If a sit down meal is more your style, The Cavern has always been one of my favourite places to head for dinner in Kalamunda, but recently I realised they have gone NEXT LEVEL.

They now have an entire Gluten Free AND Vegan menu listed separately from the main menu. So if you’re coeliac, gluten intolerant, vegan, vegetarian, or just happy to go with the flow, the Cavern can cater for your needs. Plus is the food is absolutely incredible!

With well known Perth chef John Mead heading up the kitchen, this tapas restaurant is one not to be missed on your next trip up the hill.

Blog post by Jaime, naturopath and owner of Nutrition Mind Collective.

Be well,

xoxo

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Beauty & Wellness Routine with Sarah Stevenson AKA Sarah’s Day!

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1. First up, briefly tell us a bit about yourself and what you do!

I’m a first-time mum, content creator and health and fitness lover! I have a YouTube channel with over 1.3M subscribers along with multiple projects including my own activewear line, natural body care products, fitness programs and Inner Health and Beauty product with Tropeaka just to name a few! I also have a lot of exciting projects coming up in 2020!

2. What time do you wake up most days and how many hours of sleep do you aim for?

Well with my little Fox I have no choice other than to wake up early, which is fine by me, I love being a mum! 8 hours is the dream, but I don’t get that at the moment! On average I wake up around 6:30am buttt… in saying that, I’m also up at 11pm and 3am breastfeeding haha.

3. What’s your morning routine to set you up for a great day?

Before I consume anything, I always start my morning by having a large glass of water with a heaped tsp of my inner health beauty powder, Body Bloom. It’s full of probiotics that aids in digestion and is full of powerful superfoods that are rich in antioxidants. This may be TMI but… it’s the key ingredient to my morning poop (you wanted honesty right!?).

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4. Describe a typical day of eating for you.

My day-to-day meals change depending on how I’m feeling but I usually consume paleo-based meals. I ensure I’m consuming a good range of protein, carbs and fat in every main meal, and snacking in between. I make sure that I eat nutrient dense, wholefoods and try to incorporate three different colours in each meal.

For breakfast I enjoy eating 2 slices of paleo toast, 2 poached eggs, 1/4 of an avocado, grilled cherry tomatoes, wilted baby spinach seasoned with pink Himalayan salt and pepper.

Throughout the day I like to snack on a cold green apple, a handful of activated nut mix and ¼ cup of my Deluxe Mix.

I usually make a homemade nourish bowl for lunch that is packed with lots of healthy veggies and protein. I include baby spinach, rocket, baked sweet potatoes, alfalfa sprouts, poached chicken or chickpeas, cucumber, beetroot and my homemade vegan ranch dressing.

To satisfy any sugar cravings I have during the day, I love to opt for a creamy protein smoothie. 1.5 tablespoons of Tropeaka Lean Protein (Salted Caramel), 1 banana, 1Tbsp almond butter, chia seeds, dash of coconut milk, water and ice blended.

My favourite meal to eat for dinner at the moment is definitely my delicious paleo Bolognese. All you need to make this is buckwheat spirals, zoodles, homemade tomato pasta sauce, grass-fed beef mince, nutritional yeast and mushrooms.

5. Tell us about your daily beauty routine! What are your non-negotiables for looking and feeling your best?

Well I’ve just launched a Beauty Box, which contains a natural deodorant (bye bye harsh chemicals), an exfoliator and body butter, so that for one is a big must for me. I’m also a big fan of Serums with B Vitamins. But more importantly than anything, I focus on what I eat. I truly believe that a focus on real foods, healthy fats and powerful superfoods results in glowing, radiant skin.

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6. Do you take any supplements, vitamins or special wellness elixirs? If so, we’d love to know!

Yes, every morning I take my Body Bloom, seriously this has been a game-changer for me, and something I’m super proud of! I’ve been taking Tropeaka products for years to help me feel at my best, so to do a product with them that has provided thousands of others with better skin and digestion (including myself) has been something I’m truly grateful for! I’ve also noticed my nails have NEVER been so strong! This has actually been one of the most popular feedback comments eve received about Body Bloom.

7. Do you have an evening wind-down ritual?

I love to just sit in bed and talk and laugh with my husband Kurt before going to sleep, and although my life revolves around creating content, it’s amazing the positive effects that come with turning off my screens (phone and laptop) to unwind.

8. What are your top three-wellness non-negotiables?

Drink more water, secondly, eat powerful wholefoods (I like eating mostly paleo based) and love supplementing with superfoods, and finally listen to your body when it comes to both food and training, it’s ok to rest and have a chill day!

11. Favourite farmers market or healthy place to shop?

I used to love going to the local farmers market before Fox was born, but there’s a local café called Blackwood Pantry that I almost live at! I just created a Sezzy inspired bowl there with the owners, that’s how much I love the place haha! However, I do love bulk health food stores and powering my own goodies into those paper bags!

12. What’s your fitness routine & favourite way to get sweaty and where’s your go-to?

I am actually extremely diverse in the way I train, so no day is ever the same! I always like to listen to how my body is feeling and decide how to exercise from that assessment. My main form of exercise is bodyweight, functional training but I do also love Pilates, boxing sand dune sprints and walking my dog! Usually I’ll do one of the workouts from my eBooks because it’s already written and planned out for me!

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13. If you could only wear one brand of active wear for the rest of your life it would be…

My activewear collection with White Fox Boutique!

14. What’s the one beauty or wellness treatment you can’t live without? And your favourite place to have it done?

It’s hard to nail down this one, I’m not really bougie when it comes to treatments, however, I’ve personally seen huge improvements and results with bi-monthly microdermabrasion. It’s basically a facial exfoliation treatments I get done at my local beautician that removes dead skin cells and leaves my skin looking super glossy and radiant!

15. What beauty treatment / wellbeing activity would you love to try but haven’t got around to yet?

Hmmm great question! I’ve tried everything from infrared saunas to all sorts of different forms of training to cryotherapy, so it’s hard to think of something off the top of my head!

16. What’s your dream wellness vacay?

I have a mini bucket list tucked away in my phone notes that include places like the Maldives, Tahiti and Spain. To be honest though I like anywhere tropical, by the beach and with amazing, healthy cafes!

17. And lastly… do you have any top-secret tips you use to keep looking / feeling great?

As mentioned, I try and keep things pretty simple in this regard, by listening to your body each day and adapting how you eat and train according to how your body feels, you can do so much just off these basic principles. Apart from that, I’m a big believer in eating nutrient dense superfoods, and it’s a big reason why I did a collab with Tropeaka, as I’ve been using their products for a few years now to help me power through the day! And lastly, there’s nothing better than a functional body weight workout to really get the day on track. It’s almost impossible to not feel amazing after you break a sweat. Again it’s basic principles, but when applied every day you really feel the benefits over the long term!

Thank you Sarah for taking part in our wellness routine interview, what an inspiring read! If you have any questions for Sezzy please leave them below!

Be well,

xoxo

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Beauty & Wellbeing Crushes: All the Facial Oils, Mary’s Gone Crackers & Chlorella Supplements.

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Welcome back to one of my favourite segments to write – Beauty & Wellbeing Crushes! While I absolutely love doing a deeper review of a fitness class, spa experience or wellness retreat, there’s something super satisfying and fun about sharing the little bits and pieces that are making my dady to day life just that little bit more wellness-y.

Let’s get started!

♥ All the Facial Oils

Do you ever find that sometimes you fall off the wagon with a health or beauty tip that you promised yourself never to skip? Same here. For quite some time I just “totally forgot” that my skin thrives when I’m applying 100% natural oils to it on-the-reg. Pressing some jojoba oil into my skin in the morning before my facial sunscreen gives an all day glow that I wouldn’t otherwise be lucky enough to have, and after cleansing the days makeup & dirt off at night, 4 drops of rosehip oil massaged into my face followed up with a face cream also does WONDERS. I can’t believe I let myself lapse on this for so long, but I’m very happy to back on my oily regime!

Currently I’m using 100% organic jojoba oil from The Jojoba Company in the morning & Trilogy Rosehip Oil Antioxidant+ in the evenings. I also highly recommend Two Drops by Herbs + Heart which is a blend of incredibly lush oils for evening use, I’ll be moving onto this one when the rosehip is done!

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♥ Chlorella Supplements

I’ve just jumped back on board with these bright green little beauties. Chlorella, a freshwater algae, is said to be one of nature’s perfect superfoods – it’s high in protein, iron, antioxidants, magnesium and many more vitamins and minerals. It’s also meant to be fantastic for drawing out heavy metals & chemicals from your tissues and helping the body dispose of it. Thanks, chlorella!

Personally I just like the idea of taking a green supplement each day in the hopes that it’s doing something positive – I’ll report back on my findings soon! My favourite brand is Sun Chlorella which you can purchase from iHerb (use this discount code – MZB674 – for 10% off your first order, woo!)

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♥ Cheezels vs. Mary’s Gone Crackers

Having low blood pressure (or the blood pressure of a 5 year old child, as a doctor once told me – I’m 35) comes with a few challenges. One of which is an almost constant craving for salty foods. I most definitely have a ‘salt tooth’ rather than a sweet tooth. Because of this I am almost always reaching for something crunchy + salty, and often that takes the form of something less than wellness… cue, Cheezels, Pizza Shapes, or the probably-not-even-that-healthy Honey Dijon Soy Crisps. At a couple of bucks a piece it can be an easy choice to make on a 10 minute rest break at work, but the resulting energy slump and feeling crappy hasn’t been doing me any favours lately.

In my quest to change things up I’ve started purchasing the herb flavoured Mary’s Gone Crackers snacky biscuits and pairing them with Caramelised Onion Hommus and OH LAWD is it goooood! This salty, crunchy, snack with a hint of sweetness really hits the spot, and leaves me feeling fantastic afterwards as well. The only downside is the cost. A packet of MGC will set you back around $8, and the hommus anywhere from $3-4. So it’s the $2 snacks versus the $12 snacks, but the wellness & energy benefits of the latter are well worth it in my opinion. I’d love to hear your favourite healthy, salty snacks in the comments so leave one below!

Be well,

Annette

xoxo

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Beauty & Wellbeing Crushes: Green Tea With a Twist & Twice Weekly Personal Training.

Hello! Can you believe Winter is here already?! These consistent cold mornings are making it difficult to get out of bed, but I’m enjoying lighting some incense, queuing up a guided meditation (I’m currently using Insight Timer – which is life changing), making a hot cuppa lemon water and then stretching it out for 15-20 minutes with a mini yoga practice. I have to say that that this little routine is really setting me up for some great days, and I hope to continue doing it throughout Winter, although I will probably be popping the heater on too!!

This week we have a few crushes to share with you – something you can sip & something challenging- lets get to it!

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♥ Yarra Valley Green Tea

As an avid tea drinker, there’s nothing like the pleasure of trying a new variety of tea and adding it into the rotation. Having a cuppa tea allows my mind to be calm – pressing pause for a sweet, hot moment.

My two new favourite special teas that I will be sharing with you are green, but with a slight difference.

First up there’s Uncle Vic Sencha is the first certified organic green sencha tea grown in Australia! The flavour is robust – leave the tea bag in and enjoy re-filling your mug for the rest of the day. It is a perfect wake-up call alongside your daily yoga/meditation/mantra/self-love morning routine.

Secondly, Aunt Myrtle is a beautiful treat in the afternoon. As you sip the tea, the scent of lemon myrtle perfumes the air and balances out the bitterness of the green tea leaves. Lemon myrtle is well renowned bushfood and certainly makes this tea memorable. Give in to this perfect opportunity to snuggle in bed and fill your body with antioxidants at the same time.

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♥ Twice Weekly PT Sessions

Once upon a time, approximately 3-4 years ago, I was the fittest & healthiest I’d ever been. It’s funny how it works for me, often times I don’t actually realise that I’m aceing health and wellness until I somehow veer off course over time and then look back and go – WOAH, what happened?! So back then I was doing 2 x sessions weekly with my personal trainer, Moira from The Healthy Kind, and had never felt or looked better. Moira is the kind of trainer that is so lovely, friendly and cute that you can’t even get angry at her when she says you need to do another round of medicine ball overhead presses followed by maximum exertion sprints to the end of the oval. There’s also a lot of dogs where we train, so that helps too.

Unfortunately back around that time I was also going through a really tough time with the business that I owned, and working in my other job where the expectation was to take part in an additional 2-3 fitness classes a week, so I had a mini-burnout/breakdown and quit PT altogether as I just didn’t have the mental or physical capacity to handle it.

Fast forward to a few months ago where a change in career (hello desk job!), penchant for chocolate-dipped soft pretzels, and generally sedentary lifestyle meant that over the past 12 months I’d put on around 8 kilos and barely any of my clothes fit anymore – I knew something had to be done. My old PT group had still been running for all the years I was away, so I anxiously rejoined (complete with plenty of negative thoughts… “Everyone is going to be crazy fitter than I am!”, “I wont even be able to run 100 metres!”) and to my pleasant surprise found that I was actually a lot better than I expected. Baby steps, but I was doing it.

After a month or two, and seeing some small fitness improvements, but not enough to fit back into my jeans, a few of us decided that in order to take things to the next level we’d setup another weekly PT session with Moira. This has been one of the best things I’ve done! Every single session I’m seeing small improvements in both my fitness level and feeling better and better about myself 🙂

If you’re looking for some inspiration and really want to make changes in your life – I highly recommend adding at least one personal training session a week to your routine. You can thank me later!

Be well,

xoxo

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Top 5 Gut Health Tips for Vegans & Vegetarians from Lee Holmes.

♥ @leesupercharged

Whether you’re a vegetarian, vegan or anything in between, looking after your gut doesn’t need to be difficult. While bone broths may not be on the menu, there are plenty of ways to show your gut and the planet some veggie love. Check out my top 5 recommendations below…!
 
1.Probiotics

Probiotics are currently experiencing their time in the limelight, but they’ve actually been utilised for centuries for their health-boosting properties. Probiotics are our ‘friendly’ gut bacteria. They’re living organisms that provide a boatload (or should I say, gut-load) of health benefits. They’ve been used to manage and treat a variety of conditions such as irritable bowel syndrome/disease, metabolic syndrome, diarrhoea and more.

Probiotics can also reduce the likelihood of developing type II diabetes, cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, obesity and lactose intolerance by altering gut flora, regulating insulin levels and lowering cholesterol! Some sensitive tummies can experience gas and bloating when incorporating probiotic-rich food, so always start off slow and build up your tolerance.

If you want to try out some probiotic-rich foods but don’t know where to begin, you may want to give sauerkraut a go. This fermented cabbage is filled with goodness that can improve digestive health, boost circulation and protect your heart. Full-fat yoghurt for my vegetarians or coconut yoghurt for my vegans can also be amazing for gut-health as it’s full of lactic-acid producing bacteria which helps produce more of our good gut bacteria.

If you’ve never given tempeh a whirl, I couldn’t recommend it enough. For all of you tempeh newbies, tempeh’s basically tofu’s cooler older sibling. Tempeh is made up of fermented soybeans that are thriving in good bacteria. It can be stir-fried in a pan, cooked on the BBQ, or broken up into small pieces and used as a Bolognese replacement. 

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2. Prebiotics

Another key thing to remember in any good veggie diet is variety! Not only does filling our plate with vibrantly-coloured vegetables nourish our body, it also gives us a great source of prebiotics. Prebiotics help nourish the probiotics within the digestive system. Without prebiotics, probiotics would have a poor chance of survival. Some prebiotic-rich foods to include in your diet include:

♥ Dandelion greens
♥ Avocados
♥ Bananas
♥ Leeks
♥ Sweet potatoes
♥ Onions

I encourage you to incorporate both prebiotic and probiotic-rich foods into your diet so you can maintain a healthy gut for life.

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3. Fibre
 
When it comes to getting things moving internally, fibre should be one of your first ports of call. Unfortunately, many of us don’t consume enough dietary fibre which seriously compromises our gut health. Eating both soluble and insoluble fibre has many health benefits, not just for our gut health! Adding more fibre-rich vegetables, legumes, nuts and seeds will help keep our good gut bacteria thriving and our digestion moving.

4. Plant-Based Wholefoods

While some vegetarians and vegans go full-steam ahead on the refined carbohydrates train to fill them up, these foods tend to inflame the gut. Refined carbohydrates such as breads and pastas, processed products laden with sugar and even some faux meats on the market can inflame the gut and make our guts blow up like a balloon. It’s so important to emphasise real plant-based foods rather than ones you buy in the aisles. Aim to base your diet on fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds and some grains rather than processed foods to reduce gut inflammation.

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5. Sleep

Lack of sleep has become such a common issue that it’s one we’ve kind of let slip away from us. However, sleep has a huge impact on the state of our digestive system. When we’re asleep, the digestive organs are replenished and restored for the next day. They’re put to detoxing mood and help get rid of wastes from the day. If you don’t get enough sleep, your gut health can become compromised and you may experience a series of symptoms such as bloating, constipation, diarrhoea, fatigue and more. Sleep, or a lack of it, controls our hunger hormones too, which may make us absolutely ravenous and craving sweet foods the next day! Try getting at least 7 hours of sleep at night and go to bed between 9-10pm to reach optimum sleep and rest.

Hopefully you’ve found these tips helpful! If you have any questions for Lee, please pop them below, and make sure you check out her new book Supercharge Your Gut!

Be well,

xoxo

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