Thrive

By PETE LORD

Have you ever thought of what the occasional Uber Eats is really costing you? Or you know you could be paying less for your phone bill but cannot be bothered to negotiate?

Have you noticed that the busier you feel the less likely you are to get home and cook your meal? Well, we have found that there is a direct connection between being busy and overpaying for things – and this is costing us a lot of money.

My Nan had a busy life. Raising five kids in the 1940s and 50s was tough. Super tough, but my Nan knew where nearly every cent was spent. She had to. There were no credit cards or After Pay. Nan’s budget was finite. When the envelope was empty there was no other way to pay. And to be fair, there were also no businesses making her life easy like Uber Eats or an amazing, visually enticing coffee shop in every corner.

We don’t have these problems. We, in fact, have completely opposite problems. Our payments are automated, our finances are so complicated and we can find convenience everywhere we look. But this all convenience comes at a high cost.

We work hard, we have social lives, we have families to look after, on top of that we want to eat healthily and work out to be fit and hoping to have five minutes to find a hobby to relax. Where are we going to find time to get our finances in order?

But just think about this for a second. I was speaking with a friend last week who also happens to be a financial planner and she told me she hadn’t reviewed her finances for a while and when she did, she noticed that she was still paying car insurance for a car she sold 12 months before.

This happens more often than we think, and it happens to all of us. When I audited my own accounts I realised I was paying for an old magazine membership I wasn’t even getting delivered to my house anymore. I thought to myself ‘there’s my money, gone to the bin’.

“If you want to stop paying the laziness tax, preparation is always the best place to start.”

This is what we call the Laziness Tax – to be avoided like the plague.

Here are other small ways we might be paying for this laziness tax: paying the extra fee for withdrawing money from a different bank’s ATM or buying lunch every day because we just don’t have time to do a meal-prep for the week. We often do them without even thinking.

Here’s my opinion on this: it’s not the same buying sushi or going to the sandwich place every day and paying $10-15 per meal as spending $50-60 out on the weekend with friends. See? One of them is paying the “can’t be bothered to cook for the week” tax and the other is paying for a night out with your friends.

So, if what you want is to stop paying the laziness tax, preparation is always the best place to start.

Whether it’s taking a few hours on the weekend to prepare your meals for the week, or allocating 15 mins every week to review your spending (we need to regularly review our accounts to see what payments are we just not using) or simply walk an additional five minutes to save $10 on a purchase.

Another approach is to simply outsource. Bear with me for a second here while I give you a good analogy. I understand the need and actually like living in a clean house but I despise cleaning my bathroom. So, what do I do? I hire cleaners, they come once a month and I pay $75 and I get a clean house once per month. This helps me motivate myself to keep it nice and tidy for the next time they come and clean.

If you value having your financial house in order but you don’t have the time or the confidence to manage your money, outsource it (for the price of gym membership). For instance, a BFF membership only costs $80 and with the help of your very own BFF (your money coach), you will have your financial house in order at no time. Best of all your monthly meetings will keep you connect and accountable so you never have to stress about money again and you will reach your goals faster.

So pay your laziness tax ($80) to us and we will save you $457 per month plus a trip to the doctor to treat the symptoms of your stress!

GENERAL ADVICE DISCLAIMER
The information provided by Best Financial Friend Pty Ltd is factual information only and is not intended to be financial product advice, legal advice or tax advice, and should not be relied upon as such. The information is general in nature and may omit detail that could be significant to your particular circumstances. The information is general in nature and does not take into account your personal situation. You should con-sider whether the information is appropriate to your needs, and where appropriate, seek professional advice from a financial adviser.

Pete Lord is a co-founder of Best Financial Friend, an affordable digital financial coachingstart-up, with a mission to build financial security by connecting users with personalised support from a qualified “personal money-trainer”, to help them take control of their finances and enjoy a less stressful, debt-free life.

bestfinancialfriend.co

WATCH FOR INSPIRATION AND RELAXATION

Countless poets and writers have tried to put words to the experience of a panic attack— a sensation so overwhelming, many people mistake it for a heart attack, stroke, or other life-threatening crisis. Studies suggest that almost a third of us will experience at least one panic attack in our lives. So what exactly is a panic attack, and can we prevent them?
Cindy J. Aaronson investigates.

Too much screen time, too many video calls and too few boundaries make working from home hard for all of us. Podcast host and writer Morra Aarons-Mele shares honest advice on what you can learn from the introverts in your life about protecting your energy and your limits.

Stress, home and/or job loss, money worries, boredom, loneliness, “cabin fever” as a result of lockdown and social distancing restrictions, uncertainty about the future … any of these factors, not to mention several combined, have provided a perfect storm during the COVID crisis for escalating consumption of alcohol.

And Australians are drinking alcohol, a depressant drug, more frequently during the pandemic than before, a report from The Australian National University (ANU) has shown. Once a social lubricant, it seems for some alcohol is now being used as a means of dealing with the fact we can’t be social much at all; at least as much as they’ve been used to.

The study focuses on self-reported drinking frequency and level of alcohol consumption, comparing it with consumption before COVID. It found drinking was “slightly higher for males” and “substantially higher for females”, according to co-author Professor Nicholas Biddle, from the ANU Centre for Social Research and Methods.

“For males, a strong predictor for increased drinking was because of a loss of job or decline in working hours. Boredom was their second-biggest motivating factor. For females, a strong predictor for increased drinking was having a child-caring role,”
he said. “For both sexes, but particularly males, psychological distress was a key driver.”

The main reason overall given for an increase in drinking, for both males and females, was spending more time at home.

Try to make as many decisions around alcohol as you can in advance – what and how much you’ll have. Avoid the temptation to order out of habit or social norms, and love what it is you drink. If you don’t love it, don’t drink it.

What is perhaps more troubling though, is that the increase in the frequency of alcohol consumption was much higher among those males and females who when asked prior to the spread of COVID-19 said that they drank relatively frequently,” Professor Biddle said.

With the approaching festive season, and more “excuses” to imbibe, people worried about how much they are consuming might consider the practice of “mindful drinking” if they don’t want to give up altogether.

Mindful drinking is the practice of being aware of why and how much alcohol you drink – for instance, pausing before each new drink to ask yourself whether it supports you – and may help people avoid binge drinking. It’s about changing the conversation with yourself.

Another principle is to try to make as many decisions around alcohol as you can in advance – what and how much you’ll drink. Also to make your own choices when drinking in a social situation. In a group, it’s often easy to say, “I’ll have what they’re having.” Avoid the temptation to order alcohol out of habit or social norms, and love what it is you decide to you drink. If you don’t love it, don’t drink it.

The concept was popularised by CLUB SÖDA, an alcohol-free social club that brings together people interested in intentionally cutting back on their alcohol consumption.

It often leads to healthier relationships with alcohol and less consumption. However, mindful drinking is not for people with alcohol use issues, where abstinence and seeking support is recommended.

“Alcohol, like any other drug, can be harmful. In fact, alcohol is the most widely used psychoactive drug in Australia and one of the most harmful: alcohol causes more chronic diseases and is linked to more deaths than many illicit drugs,” according to the Australian Drug and Alcohol Foundation (ADF), which for more than 60 years has worked to inspire positive change and deliver evidence-based approaches to minimise alcohol and drug harm.

According to the ADF, 4186+ Australians every year die from alcohol-related injuries, illness and accidents, and 144,000 are hospitalised.

The cost to the community from alcohol-related harm is estimated to exceed $15.3 billion.

While there is no “safe” level of drinking, the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) recommends that:

• Children and young people under the age of 18 years avoid alcohol altogether; also women who are pregnant, planning a pregnancy or breastfeeding

• Adults drink no more than 10 standard drinks per week and no more than four standard drinks on any day to reduce the lifetime risk of alcohol-related disease, injury and dysfunction. These include risk of bowel, breast, throat and mouth cancer, liver and cardiovascular disease, stroke, mental health disorders, falls/accidental injuries, motor vehicle accidents, alcohol poisoning and sexual dysfunction, such as difficulty achieving or maintaining and erection.

ADF’s TIPS FOR MINIMISING HARM FROM ALCOHOL

• Drink water or other non-alcohol beverages between alcoholic drinks

• Avoid drinking in rounds with friends, as you may end up drinking more than planned

• Order smaller serves of beer, cider and spirits rather than pints or double serves

• Don’t allow others to top up your glass if you’re sharing a bottle of wine, as you may lose track of how much you consume

• Avoid high-alcohol content beverages, such as stronger beers or wines, and spirits

• Eat some food before and while drinking, to slow your drinking pace and slow the absorption of alcohol

• Occupy yourself while drinking to reduce the amount you’re consuming: play pool, sing karaoke, dance, talk to friends

• Avoid combining alcohol with other drugs, including pharmaceutical and illicit drugs

• Consuming alcohol with other depressant drugs such as benzodiazepines, GHB, ketamine or opioids can increase the risk of overdose and cause loss of consciousness, nausea and vomiting. Combining it with stimulants such as cocaine, amphetamines or MDMA can also be dangerous, as both alcohol and stimulants can cause dehydration. Further, some stimulants may mask the effects of alcohol, leading people to drink more.

www.adf.org.au
www.nhmrc.gov.au

With the impacts of so many people working from home and in isolation, technologies such as telehealth are helping to provide better access to healthcare for everyone, as well as revolutionising the way we capture and use data to support clinicians being able to help their patients, and track their progress.

Physiotherapy is one area of health care that is now able to assist most people via Virtual Reality technology to get better, or to undertake a rehabilitation program, at home.

XRHealth is a company that has recently made revolutionary breakthroughs that have made having to do physiotherapy as much fun as it can be, which in turn leads to faster results, because most of us are more likely to keep up our exercise schedule if we enjoy doing it.

“Virtual Reality (VR) treatment delivers a smarter and more enjoyable recovery, exercising your stiff and sore joints, or restarting that injury rehab program is now easy and can be quite entertaining,” says says XRHealth’s Director of Operations in Australia, Esme Naidoo.

“We are really excited to launch our first Australian clinic, which offers fun and engaging physiotherapy via telehealth and VR technology.

“This is how the system works: after an online consultation, all patients receive a tailored treatment plan and access to their own healthcare portal which displays data to better inform them of their condition and symptoms. We combine the application of digital health with personal consultation to offer our XRHealth patients the best chance of recovery.”

Esme says that by using XRHealth’s Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA)-registered medical device technology, patients can be treated for a wide range of physical conditions in their comfort of their own surroundings, including whiplash, shoulder, neck and spinal arthritis, bursitis, rotator cuff tendinopathy, frozen shoulder, hip and knee injuries, and postural problems.

XR Health’s technology can also offer treatment for a range of other conditions such as ADHD, Autism Spectrum Disorder, stroke rehabilitation, and cerebral Palsy.

While the launch in Australia is focused on physiotherapy, the company is in the process of expanding their offering to include mental health, occupational therapy, cognitive therapy and more.

www.xrhealth.com.au

Curled up on the couch or hunched over the kitchen or dining table working away for hours on a laptop – sound familiar? Our homes generally aren’t designed to be ergonomically correct working conditions – and using household furniture as ad hoc “work stations” can wreak havoc on the body.

A phrase coined in the early days of smart phones and laptops, “tech neck” refers to the condition of cervical kyphosis – an over-pronounced slouch due to spending hours hunching over devices, associated with neck and back pain and poor posture.

But with many of us now working from home in the age of COVID, or at least more often, bodywork professionals are reporting a significant increase in the number of cases they’re seeing.

“Being in an aligned posture – ribs stacked right over your pelvis and your head stacked right over your ribs – and breathing diaphragmatically are key.”

The condition is caused by repeatedly craning the head down and forward to look at a screen, applying excess pressure – up to 20kg – on bones and muscle meant to handle only an average 5kg (the head’s weight at neutral). It can feel like a strain at the neck, stiffness in the shoulders, might result in headaches, and can do worse damage to the spine over time.

“In general, it affects the upper limb – that is, from the neck to the waist,” says Gabrielle Street, physiotherapist and Clinical Partnerships Manager at XR Health.

Gabrielle says even if we’re not set up in ideal ergonomic conditions, the main thing is to be looking at devices from eye level.

Whether sitting, or upright at a standing desk while working, being in an aligned posture – ribs stacked right over your pelvis and your head stacked right over your ribs – and breathing diaphragmatically are key. Improper posture causes the head, shoulders, and middle back to pull forward, which triggers the muscles in that area to try to pull them back into alignment.

Shallow breathing is another potential trigger for neck discomfort. People, especially when they’re stressed, who tend to be chest breathers, or shallow breathers, rely on their accessory breathing muscles, like the upper trapezius muscles and pectoral muscles, rather than the diaphragm (which allows deep belly breaths).

Jaw issues can also be a cause (see story over the page) and may need dental treatment to resolve.

Stretching plays an important role in preventing or alleviating muscle soreness and stiffness, says Gabrielle.

Gabrielle recommends daily neck stretches: Lower your chin toward your chest and hold for 15-30 seconds. Relax, and slowly lift your head back up. Tilt your chin up toward the ceiling and bring the base of your skull toward your back. Hold for 10 seconds, then return to the start position. Then stretch the neck to the right and then left, holding in each position for 15-30 seconds. The stretches can de done either seated or standing.

You will feel some tension in the neck muscles but you shouldn’t have pain. If you do, stop right away. You may need to see a doctor, physiotherapist or other qualified bodywork practitioner to understand what might be causing that neck discomfort.

As far as the beauty space goes, “tech neck” has come to mean a tendency to fine lines forming just under the chin and neck from poor posture. Wrinkles set in faster with repeated motions and movements, so if you are regularly staring down at your phone or laptop, you’re increasing the likeliness of them forming.

Cosmetic doctors around the world are reporting an increase in patients seeking treatment – not for their posture or neck pain, but for issues like generally sagging, tired skin, jowling around the jawline, and creases and stress lines around the neck, leading thousands to an upsurge in treatments such as with laser and ultrasound devices or surgical help.

Personal trainer, reality star and model Brooke Jowett freely admits that, during her first season of Australian Survivor in 2016, “I was quite young and a little lost. I wasn’t sure which career path I wanted to head down or what I was truly passionate about.

“After nearly two months of pushing my mind and body in brutal challenges, I realised that my passion was in fitness and motivation. As soon as I got home from the island, I enrolled in a course to become a personal trainer and that’s where it all started.”

After failing to beat David Genat in the Immunity Challenge on Day 47, she was finally voted out in a unanimous 3-1 vote, finishing fourth overall.

Like many of us who’ve found our lives turned upside down and inside out by COVID-imposed limitations, there have been huge challenges to mental wellbeing by being physically restricted. Regular exercise not only has myriad benefits for the body but the mind. Yet the prospect can feel daunting.

Brooke, 23, most recently Brooke took up the role of Master HIIT (high interval intensive training) Trainer for the hugely popular Keep It Cleaner workout program and app. And with appearances on Australian Survivor, Australian Survivor:
All Stars, The Project, Family Feud, Studio Ten and Have You Been Paying Attention, she has proved to be a popular guest and engaging personality.

She offers this advice to anyone overwhelmed by the idea of getting into a routine: “Without sounding too cliched, the hardest part about fitness is getting started.

“I always suggest to my clients to build their workouts into their routine so it is scheduled for first thing in the morning. By doing this, there are less interruptions or opportunities for `life’ to get in the way.

“This doesn’t always work for everyone so I suggest finding a time that suits you and writing it down in your diary or putting reminders in your phone for each session. If there are days when you are really not feeling it, head out for a long walk instead. Any movement is better than no movement at all.

‘Exercise shouldn’t be a punishment. There should always be an element of joy in your workouts. Whether it’s the type of exercise you’re doing (eg. HIIT, boxing or walking), or the type of music you have playing, I recommend trying everything and finding out what brings you the most joy. I promise that once you find your groove, you won’t look back!”

Recently, Brooke was asked to be Keep It Cleaner app’s HIIT (high interval intensive training) Master Trainer.

“It was one of the most exciting days in my career to date,” she says. The chief marketing officer (CMO), Michelle Battersby sent me an email off the back of an episode of All Stars Survivor.

“She saw my job title listed on TV as `fitness professional’ and wanted to know if it was of interest to me. Obviously, I jumped to the opportunity. The response of the KIC community to my workouts have been so positive.

“I am constantly getting tagged in photos and messages post workout and it makes me so happy to see the beaming pride in everyone’s faces once they finish one of my classes.”

WHAT IS HIIT

Runners have used interval training for more than 100 years, alternating between sprints and jogging to improve their endurance. But HIIT didn’t really go mainstream until about a decade ago, when exercise physiologists started to come out with study after study demonstrating that intervals could deliver the biggest health improvement for your exercise time.

Recently, fitness professionals voted HIIT one of the top fitness trends for 2020 in a survey by the American College of Sports Medicine.

HIIT workouts generally combine short bursts of intense exercise with periods of rest or lower-intensity exercise. At fitness studios and online, these workouts often mix aerobic and resistance training.

For example, you’d jog for 10 minutes to warm up, then do four four-minute intervals of faster running, with three three-minute intervals of moderate jogging or brisk walking in between, and a five-minute cool down at the end. And you can substitute jogging with other aerobic exercises, such as cycling or swimming. The whole routine should take 40 minutes.

Researchers still haven’t figured out exactly why HIIT works to improve aerobic fitness more than continuous types of exercise. But one key hypothesis has to do with the heart’s ability to pump blood.

DRESSED FOR ACTION

Brooke has created her own activewear range, JRSY.

“It was created with the aim to keep people feeling great while also reducing pollution and preserving our oceans for future generations,” she says. “Each JRSY piece has been created using sustainable fabrics.

“Our tights, bras and shorts are made with recycled polyester (RPET). This fabric is created by breaking down plastic bottles that may have ended up in landfill or marine environment and turning these bottles into a super soft yarn. Our jumpers are made with a 100 percent organic cotton and recycled polyester mix – they are so incredibly snuggly!

“The earthy colours I have chosen for my range are thoseI know won’t go out of fashion as the seasons change. I made this conscious decision in order to reduce mindless consumerism and to take away the need to constantly update your wardrobe.

“JRSY is for every body. The designs are flattering for any age, shape or size. It makes me so happy to see such diversity in the people who have been buying and sharing my range.

“I have wanted to create my own activewear label for years, however, part of me felt guilty for contributing to the mass production and great amount of waste that stems from our fashion industry.

“It wasn’t until last year, that I decided there was a way to combat this dilemma and that was to create a sustainable activewear range and to provide people with a more mindful option when selecting their activewear.”

Instagram: @brookejowett

JRSY Instagram: @jrsylabel

www.jrsy.com.au

“Slip, slop, slap” has been part of our vernacular for almost 40 years. It’s almost second nature when under the harsh Australian sun to slip on a shirt, slop on some sunscreen and slap on a hat to reduce the risk of skin cancer and signs of premature skin ageing due to sun damage.

But sunscreen has a formidable ally in this quest – nicotinamide, a form of vitamin B3, whether applied topically or taken as a daily tablet.

In 2017, a ground-breaking trial conducted across Sydney’s Royal Prince Alfred and Westmead Hospitals, led by Professor Diona Damian, made international headlines when the results were published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

It was one of the biggest discoveries in skin cancer research – that vitamin B3 can help reduce non-melanoma skin cancers. The trial on 386 participants showed that nicotinamide is highly effective in providing immune protection. It does this by replenishing cellular energy, which also enables faster and more efficient DNA repair following sun exposure. Meaning it also helps repair surface skin damage and keep skin looking younger and healthier for longer.

A class of water-soluble vitamins, there are eight types of B vitamins—B1, B2, B3, B5, B6, B7, B9, and B12. These are vital for maintaining our energy levels, brain functions, and cell metabolism and are easily derived from food sources such as dairy, meat, fish, vegetables, seeds and nuts, and more. Used in skincare, vitamin B is an antioxidant that helps to treat signs of ageing and alleviate sensitive skin. The most common ones found in topical products are niacinamide, vitamin B5 (pantothenic acid), and vitamin B12 (cobalamin).

“Vitamin B3 reduces inflammation, signs of ageing like fine wrinkles and blemishes, and improves the function of the skin’s barrier. Vitamin B5 is a humectant that keeps skin moisturised,” says specialist skincare expert Marionne de Candia, who counts among her loyal clientele the likes of Elle Macpherson, Delta Goodrem and Baz Luhrmann.

“Vitamin B12 helps to increase cellular regeneration and encourage wound healing. When taken orally, it helps in red blood cell production, regulates pigmentation in skin and maintains healthy hair and nails.”

“Daily application of nicotinamide cream, particularly post sun exposure, stands as one of the most scientifically sensible things you can do for your skin’s overall health.”

In a 30+-year career that has spanned the spectrum – from spa therapist to specialist facialist, to 5-star spa manager to spa consultancy with one of Australia’s leading spa consultancy firms – in 2017, Marionne’s special topic of interest has always been treating the ageing skin, particularly the effects of premature ageing due to sun exposure and environmental agents.

She has been profiled in influential publications here and around the world, including Australian Financial Review, Harpers Bazaar and Vogue Australia magazines. In 2012, she was voted by leading retail website Net-A-Porter as one of the Top 5 Facialists in the World.

In 2017 she decided to shift her career focus to medically-oriented skincare. Marionne studied with leading educators and skincare product chemists to develop a skincare cosmeceutical product range, Medi Skin Saver, which was launched in June, 2019. The face and body products are available through leading cosmetic and plastic surgeons globally.

From a serum (featuring vitamins B3 and B5, of course!), a facial oil, several moisturisers and a scar flattening treatment, the products are designed to protect the skin from the premature ageing process, UV damage and pollution. Medi Skin Saver’s top seller, however, is Body Treatment, whose key ingredient is nicotanimide.

“Daily application of nicotinamide cream, particularly post sun exposure, stands as one of the most scientifically sensible things you can do for your skin’s overall health,” says Marionne, who has teamed with leading Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeon Dr Luke Stradwick to open a paramedical facial room at his Gold Coast, Queensland, surgery.

It offers non-surgical day treatments by Marionne, including the revolutionary Healite LED (Light Emitting Diode) device, which can be used both pre and post-surgery to assist healing, reduce bruising, pain, swelling and speed skin rejuvenation. The facials are paramedical and utilise lymphatic drainage, acupressure and reiki.

“Medi SkinSaver is skincare for everyone,” she continues. “It was formulated with the latest medical research in mind, acting to protect and restore skin cells, minimising the degeneration of cellular health into disease.”

One of its biggest fans is renowned beach babe, The Body, Elle: “I love this brand,” she has said.” It’s completely clean beauty; simple, super-efficient and not very expensive.”

www.marionnedecandia.com

www.mediskinsaver.com