Wellness and Wellbeing

Wellness is your toolkit of lifestyle actions to maintain or improve your health. Wellness isn’t about the giant leap but it’s about all the tiny steps that come together and make a big difference. A focus of wellness is food and lifestyle habits and routines. 

 

Wellness that really makes a difference is sustainable. It’s not about perfection, an “all or nothing” mindset or a restrictive set of rules and regulations. It’s about reclaiming the vitality in the life that you’re living. 

 

Your wellness choices are your chance to be proactive and take care of your health and wellbeing. Whether you want to find more energy, sharper focus or simply to breathe a little easier, your curiosity can empower you to find the food and lifestyle choices for actions that fit into your life to support your physical and emotional health. 

 

Wellness food choices are not just what you eat, but when and how you eat. Taking time to eat balanced meals in regular meal routines. Ditch eating on the go or eating at your desk. Choose nutrient rich meals. No snacking between meals. Make the most of the overnight fast by finishing your meal two hours before bed. 

 

Movement is vital for wellness. Break up hours of sitting by standing up and sitting down on the hour. Get out for a power walk around the block. Go for a run. Go swimming. 

 

Relaxation lets your body rest and recover. You have a wide range of options, from a chosen hobby, spending time with a pet, listening to music, walking in a green space, meditation or mindfulness. 

 

Choosing helpful over harmful strategies builds your resilience to cope with stress. Pausing at the red light to focus on your breathing. A yoga class. Cold water splashed on your face. 

 

Regular sleep habits help to establish restorative sleep routines. Get out in daylight during the day. Dim the lights and wind down in the evenings. Switch off the screens. Put your phone to the side. 

 

You don’t need to do everything in one go! Wellness actions start with choosing and putting into place a single step to create a new habit. 

It’s difficult not to think about wellbeing without thinking about health. The terms are paired as though they are inseparable. In a whole person framework, health and wellbeing are certainly interlinked. Health influences wellbeing and wellbeing influences health. 

 

The widely accepted 1946 definition of health by the World Health Organisation is now under scrutiny. Is it realistic that most people can experience most of the time: “a state of complete physical, mental and social wellbeing and not merely the absence of disease”? While the focus on health as keeping well (rather than treating disease) and the view that health goes beyond the physical were both welcomed, important questions are now being asked. Does this definition take into account people with disabilities? Does this definition allow for people living with chronic conditions? 

 

New definitions of health recognise the need for adaptability, such as the proposal that health is “the dynamic balance of physical, mental, social, and existential wellbeing in adapting to conditions of life and the environment” (Krahn, G. et al 2021). 

 

Both health and wellbeing are multidimensional. Health belongs to the medical model and is measured objectively. Wellbeing is outside the medical model and is more subjective (though it may still be measured). Wellbeing reflects how you feel about your life as a whole. Wellbeing is connected to your sense of purpose and meaning. Cambridge Wellbeing views wellbeing as: “positive and sustainable characteristics that enable individuals and communities to thrive and flourish”. 

 

The foundations of wellbeing are physical health, mental and emotional health, social connections, purpose and meaning, and even financial stability. Financial stability not only reduces worries about managing finance but also increases the power to purchase food, products and services to enhance health and wellbeing. 

 

While areas of your personal life contribute to your wellbeing, your workplace is a huge factor in your wellbeing. The workplace shift from work life balance to life work balance is about putting people first. Employees are demanding it, because they want to thrive (not just survive). Companies, too, are now seeing the benefits of employee wellbeing for business. Wellbeing drives higher engagement and performance, loyalty and sustainability. 

 

Physical health, more than being free from illness, is the functional vitality of your body, when your biological systems support your daily life, such as a low resting heart rate, stable blood sugar levels, muscular strength, restorative sleep, resistance to infection and efficient recovery from injury. Conditions in work routines influence your physical health. Wellbeing strategies influence your health positively and help you to be proactive. A manageable workload. Flexible working patterns. A lunch break. Digital boundaries. Ergonomic seating. Movement breaks. Single tasking. Space for breaks. Nutrition initiatives. 

 

Mental and emotional health is not only feelings of happiness and security but your ability to navigate the twists and turns in life, to cope with stress and to take care of yourself. Wellbeing in the workplace helps you to feel fulfilled, balanced and supported. Breaks for recovery. Open conversations about wellbeing. Accessing support when things feel difficult. 

 

Social connections are foundational to wellbeing. An effective workplace policy in practice ensures you feel safe, respected and included. A culture of fairness. No stigma attached to challenges. Confidentiality in discussions. 

 

The foundations of wellbeing are about the bigger picture of your life, about what is fundamentally important for your physical and mental health, for your sense of satisfaction and happiness. 

Checking in with your wellness is checking in with the daily routines and habits that support your health and wellbeing. Wellness is what you do, the choices that you can make. 

 

Checking in with your wellbeing is checking in with the bigger picture. Wellbeing is more than the daily choices. Wellbeing is the highly individual, and multidimensional journey of your life.