In The Doctor's Chair

In today’s episode, I take a deeper look at some of Confucius’ wisdom, teachings and quotes. I discuss the common themes found in his book, The Analects of Confucius, and how he lived his life by the Golden Rule of treating others the way you would like to be treated. I explain why Confucius’ followers were referred to as “The Rule School” and how they lived their life by committing themselves to learn and living in peace. I also share some of my favorite Confucius quotes and why they deeply resonate with me.

This week, I sit in the physiotherapist’s chair with David and Ciaran to share how I discovered my calling for lifestyle medicine. We discuss how happiness impacts your overall health and well-being and highlight strategies you can use to boost happiness in your day-to-day life. We explain the Leadership Triangle, the importance of getting crystal clear on your values, and how it helps you build resilience and improve your well-being.

We highlight why getting enough sleep is critical and how not getting enough can often lead to negative health issues. We explain the burnout epidemic, the difference between burnout and depression, and the three key features of burnout. We also discuss what stoicism is, the benefits of focusing on what you can change instead of what you can’t, and what the term ‘high-performance’ means to me.

Jane Abernethy is the Chief Sustainability Officer at Humanscale, an industry-leading designer, and manufacturer of sustainable, high-performance ergonomic workplace products. Since 1983, Humanscale’s award-winning ergonomic products have helped improve the health, efficiency, and quality of work life for millions of professionals.

Simon joins me today to discuss how relationships impact behavioral change. He explores the fundamental principles of health coaching and describes why it’s important to approach people’s values, motivation, and beliefs with openness and curiosity.

He outlines the main barriers to behavior change and explains why fear and shame are not good external motivators of change. Simon also highlights the power of sleep and underscores how building relationships is central to a resilient mind and effective coaching.

This week, I share my conversation with Maria about depression. We discuss why it’s important for people to talk about their thoughts, feelings, and problems and why men are less likely to discuss their concerns with others. We explain why stress is neither good nor bad and the impact of allowing chronic stress to build over long periods of time.

We discuss the difference between the ‘Circle of Control,’ and the ‘Circle of Concern’ and why staying within your Circle of Control is more beneficial to your health. We explain how depression is diagnosed, its symptoms and treatment options, and why there’s not a ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach to treating depression. We also explore other ways to treat depression beyond taking medication and utilizing talk therapy.

In the world of Irish television, Clare McKenna is a TV and radio presenter with years of experience in broadcasting and journalism. She has presented a wide range of live Irish TV and radio shows, including co-presenting Spin 1038’s talk show for 7 years, which was nominated for the prestigious PPI Award three times and won gold for Best Speech Best Programme in 2010. She has presented RTE’s The Liffey Laugh and worked as a reporter on then TV3’s Midweek as well as their flagship breakfast programme, Ireland AM and The Elaine Show. More recently, Clare works at Newstalk presenting their health and wellness show, Alive and Kicking, and covering Lunchtime Live.

This week, I share my conversation on Clare’s show, Alive, and Kicking. We discuss what Lifestyle Medicine is and how it can help support, or even reverse chronic health conditions. We discuss why it’s important to use lifestyle medicine techniques as an additional ‘tool in your toolkit for achieving optimal health. We discuss how improving your health starts with small, incremental baby steps and share a few tips on how you can take those first steps toward improving your health. We discuss the challenges of managing stress and anxiety and why stress should be considered neither good nor bad, but as a mechanism to help us survive and thrive. We also discuss how you can recharge from stressful situations – even before the stress begins – and explain the G.L.A.D technique for overcoming stress and anxiety.

“Lifestyle medicine is not only a very effective way to support people who have chronic health conditions, it can become an effective treatment in its own right.”

– Dr. Mark Rowe

This week on In the Doctor’s Chair:

• Understanding what Lifestyle Medicine is
• How Lifestyle Medicine can help support – or even reverse – certain chronic health conditions
• Taking baby steps toward improving your health
• Tips for taking the first step to improving your health
• Where positive health changes truly begin
• The challenges of managing stress and anxiety
• Finding ways to recharge from stress
• The G.L.A.D. technique to recharge from stress

Resources Mentioned:

• Book: The Vitality Mark: Your prescription for feeling energised, invigorated, enthusiastic and optimistic each day by Dr. Mark Rowe
• Alive and Kicking Podcast Episode: The Vitality Mark with Mark Rowe & Helen Mort on Mountains & Motherhood

Connect with Clare McKenna:

• Newstalk
• Podcast: Newstalk’s Alive and Kicking with Clare McKenna
• Newstalk on LinkedIn
• Newstalk on Instagram
• Newstalk on Facebook
• Newstalk on Twitter
• Newstalk on YouTube
• Clare McKenna on LinkedIn

In the Doctor’s Chair

Thanks for listening to In the Doctor’s Chair, the show where you’ll hear conversations that share life lessons, health habits, and leadership practices that focus on positive psychology, lifestyle medicine, and ways for you to live with more vitality.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe to the show and leave a comment wherever you listen to your podcasts.

For more resources to help you to live with more vitality, please visit my website.

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The post #82 Achieving Optimal Health Through Lifestyle Medicine with Clare McKenna appeared first on Mark Rowe.

This week, I discuss the M.I.N.D. Diet, what it is, and how it helps support brain health and brain function. I discuss how your nutrition can impact brain health and help protect your brain as you age. I discuss how the M.I.N.D.

Diet was developed, and how it focuses on eating nutrient-dense foods that are not only good for your body but also support your brain health. I highlight the 10 nutrient-dense foods that support brain health and how often you should eat these foods each week.

I also discuss the 5 foods you should minimize or avoid consuming to help improve your cognitive function and better support your brain health.