At certain times of year, many people feel the same pressure:

To reset.
To be stricter.
To “get back on track.”

Whether it’s after a holiday, a busy work season, or simply feeling a little off in yourself, the instinct is often the same — start over.

Usually with something bigger.
Something stricter.
Something more dramatic.

But in reality, lasting health rarely comes from dramatic change.

It comes from small, repeatable actions.

And that’s where most people get stuck.

Not because they don’t care.
Not because they lack motivation.
But because most health advice is built around intensity instead of sustainability.

Why big plans often fail

In clinic, I often meet people who feel frustrated with themselves because they “know what to do” but struggle to stick with it.

The problem usually isn’t knowledge.

It’s the expectation that health should happen through:

• perfect meal plans
• strict routines
• cutting things out
• doing everything at once

This creates an all-or-nothing cycle.

You start strong.

Life gets busy.

The plan becomes impossible.

And suddenly it feels like failure.

But behaviour change research tells us something important:

The easier a habit is to repeat, the more likely it is to last.

That’s why small habits matter so much.

What microhabits actually look like

Microhabits are small, realistic actions that support your health without overwhelming your life.

They are simple enough to repeat consistently—and consistency is what creates results.

For example:

• Adding a protein source to breakfast
• Drinking water first thing, when you wake up
• Eating regular meals
• Taking a short walk after lunch
• Creating a better evening routine for sleep

These habits may not feel dramatic.

But they work because they fit real life.

And health is built in real life—not ideal conditions.

Why this matters for energy, digestion, mood and sleep

Small habits influence much more than weight or food choices.

They affect:

Blood sugar regulation

Protein, regular meals, and balanced nutrition support steadier energy and concentration.

Gut health

Consistent nourishment, fibre, hydration, and routine all support digestion and overall wellbeing.

Stress and nervous system regulation

Movement, sleep cues, and regular eating patterns help reduce the physiological stress load on the body.

Why I created 30 Days, 30 Ways

I created 30 Days, 30 Ways because I kept having the same conversation with clients:

“You do not need to change everything.”

You just need a realistic place to begin.

I wanted to create something that removed the overwhelm and gave people structure without pressure.

The result was a simple online programme:
one habit per day, for 30 days. Each habit is evidence-based, practical, and designed to support:

• energy
• digestion
• mood
• sleep
• overall wellbeing

No dieting.
No extremes.
No guilt.

Just sustainable habits that actually last.

A better way forward

If your health feels like something you keep restarting, this is your reminder:

You do not need another reset.

You do not need another strict plan.

You need habits you can actually live with.

That is what creates lasting change.

And often, it starts with something very small.

If you’d like support with that, you can learn more about 30 Days, 30 Ways here:

👉 https://healthbyorla.com/30-days-30-ways/

Because feeling better shouldn’t depend on perfection.

It should feel possible.

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Being pregnant at the minute, I have to say that it’s such a wonderful period with lots of things to celebrate and learn. However, for me, planning my diet and being aware of what my body needs has definitely been a contributing factor to a feel-good pregnancy thus far. Considering your dietary needs throughout pregnancy is vital to ensure you’re well-nourished and able to support you and the growth of your baby.

Below I have outlined the main dietary considerations for you to think about whilst pregnant.

Dietary Considerations

1. Consume a well-balanced, nutrient-dense diet – what does this mean? Consume lots of vegetables and fruits, whole grains (gluten free if required), raw nuts and seeds, healthy fats and proteins like meat, oily fish, avocado’s and organic poultry for example.
2. Avoid all processed sugars and refined carbohydrates like cakes, sweets, biscuits, crisps, trans fats and artificial food additives.
3. Protein intake should increase from around 0.8g/kg of body weight (pre-pregnancy) to around 1.1g/kg of body weight and should come from a variety of sources both animal and plant.
4. Omega 3 essential fats, which are crucial for brain development, are found in a variety of foods like milled flaxseeds, chia seeds, oily fish (salmon, mackerel, anchovies, sardines, herring), organic eggs, etc. Supplementation is also a great option for omega 3’s so as to avoid exposure to mercury from larger fish species like tuna, swordfish and king mackerel.
5. Pre and probiotic-rich foods to ensure a healthy gut microflora for you and baby during birth and lactation.
   • Prebiotics are the fiber-rich foods that probiotics feed and grow on and food sources include: asparagus, bananas, dandelion greens, garlic, honey, leeks, legumes, onions and peas, among others.
   • Probiotics are the ‘good bugs’ or beneficial bacteria that provide health benefits when consumed. Food sources of probiotics include: buttermilk, cottage cheese, fermented vegetables, kefir, kimchi, kombucha, tempeh, live yoghurt, among others.
6. Avoid alcohol throughout pregnancy as it is linked with neuro-development disorders and fetal alcohol syndrome, among others.
7. High levels of caffeine throughout pregnancy have been linked to low birth weight and may also increase the chance of miscarriage. Aim to limit caffeine consumption to approx.. 200mg / day.
   • 1 mug tea = 75mg of caffeine
   • 1 mug instant coffee = 100mg of caffeine
   • 1 mug filter coffee = 140mg
   • 1 can coke = 40mg
   • 1 energy drink = 60mg
   • 1 x 50g bar of plain chocolate = 50mg
   • 1 green tea = 25-45mg of caffeine
8. Keep hydrated by drinking approx. 2 liters of pure water / day. You can also consume caffeine free herbal teas to increase hydration. Water has many benefits but during pregnancy in particular, it aids in digestion and helps form the amniotic fluid around the fetus as well as nutrient transport and waste elimination.

In light of this, if you are struggling with morning sickness or general nausea throughout the day it’s helpful to consider the following;

• Eating small meals regularly throughout the day can help to stabilise blood sugars, maintain energy levels and thus keep nausea at bay.
• Consuming adequate protein levels but also at night before bed can reduce morning sickness.
• Consuming ginger has been shown to be effective in treating nausea and vomiting in pregnancy but according to Firouzbakht et al. 2014, further studies are needed to determine the proper dosage.

As Catherine Jones and Rose Hudson (authors of Eating for Pregnancy: The Essential Nutrition Guide and Cookbook for Today’s Mothers-to-Be) state, it’s about being able to “strike a balance between healthy weight gain and nutritional intake. Trying to keep in mind that you are not eating for two, you are eating carefully for one.”

If you’re pregnant, have you struggled with morning sickness or have you been craving anything weird or wonderful? Get in touch. Email Orla at orla@healthbyorla.ie

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Stress

We’ve all experienced stress at some point or other in our lives but for some this is a constant, daily battle. But how does it affect our health? Dr. Sapolski states that in the short term, stress hormones are “brilliantly adapted” to help you survive an unexpected threat. “You mobilize energy in your thigh muscles, you increase your blood pressure and you turn off everything that’s not essential to surviving, such as digestion, growth and reproduction. All of that is spectacularly adapted if you’re dealing with an acute physical stressor—a real one” like a sabre-toothed tiger.

However, non-life-threatening stressors, such as constantly worrying about money, a global pandemic or pleasing your boss, also trigger the same stress response, which over time, can have devastating consequences to your health: So, “If you turn on the stress response constantly for purely psychological reasons, as opposed to a physical stressor, you increase your risk of things like adult onset diabetes, high blood pressure, reduced immune function, reduced reproductive health, among others. In this stressed state, you’re also continually shutting down the digestive system, putting yourself at greater risk for a whole bunch of gastrointestinal disorders as well.

So knowing that worrying about our health, money, relationships etc. turns on exactly the same physical responses as trying to run from a tiger… what can we do to minimise the effects of this response on our system?

Below I have outlined some dietary interventions and lifestyle strategies that will give you some insights into how to support our bodies through stressful situations.

Diet

Diet is key to overall health and wellbeing but more specifically, the right nutrients are paramount in helping our bodies cope with stress and improve wellbeing. There are several but my top 5 nutrients for stress support are;

1. B-Vitamins – Found in wholegrains, meat, eggs and legumes have been shown to result in greater improvements in perceived stress and psychiatric symptoms, according to Long SJ, Benton 2013.
2. Magnesium – Found abundantly in dark green leafy vegetables, nuts and seeds, vegetables and legumes and daily supplementation with 248mg of elemental magnesium for 6-weeks led to a significant decrease in depression and anxiety symptoms, with clinical improvement seen within 2 weeks (PLoS One 2017)
3. Vitamin C – found in broccoli, Brussel sprouts, cabbage, peppers, squashes and citrus fruits among others, helps ensure sufficient levels for protection against oxidative stress in critical brain regions as well as maintain normal neurotransmitter (chemical messengers) activity. Also, supplementation with Vitamin C has been shown to reduce cortisol reactivity to acute physiological stress and lower basal cortisol levels within 2 weeks. (IHCAN Magazine, February 2018)
4. Omega 3’s – In terms of where to get these, I always think of the mnemonic S.M.A.S.H which stands for salmon, mackerel, anchovies, sardines and herring. There are also plant sources like chia seeds, walnuts, flaxseeds, hemp seeds, algae etc. According to Diabetes Metab. 2003, “after 3 weeks of a diet supplemented with n-3 fatty acids (1.1g EPA, 0.7g DHA), the stimulation by mental stress of plasma epinephrine, cortisol and energy expenditure were all significantly blunted.”
5. Ashwaganda – which is classified as an ‘adaptogen’, a unique class of healing plants that help the body to adapt, adjust and re-calibrate itself depending on our emotional and physical surroundings. A clinical study in overweight people with high levels of stress found that Ashwaganda root extract (300mg/twice daily) for 8-weeks reduced feelings of stress, stress-related eating, levels of cortisol and body weight. (J Evid Based Comp Altern Med. 2017)

Now that we know what foods and nutrients to include more of when trying to combat stress, let’s take a look at some lifestyle interventions we can employ to help ‘in the moment’ or when stress takes hold in our day.

Lifestyle

1. Diaphragmatic breathing – which is just a fancy term for breathing from the diaphragm instead of shallow breathing from the chest.
   • So, place one hand on your upper chest and the other just below your rib cage (this will allow you to feel your diaphragm move as you breath) Breathe in slowly through your nose so that your stomach moves out against your hand. The hand on your chest should remain as still as possible. Continue this slow breathing until you feel more relaxed.
2. Practise the 5-4-3-2-1 mindfulness activity
   • Acknowledge FIVE things you can see around you. It could be a pen, your desk, anything in your surroundings
   • Acknowledge FOUR things you can touch around you.
   • Acknowledge THREE things you can hear
   • Acknowledge TWO things you can smell and
   • Acknowledge ONE thing you can taste
3. Commit to making changes to your lifestyle to minimise the causes/triggers of your stress
   • Are you taking on too much in your day? Can you say ‘no’? Can you delegate some tasks?
   • Can you prioritise tasks in terms of importance/urgency so that you’re not trying to do everything at once?
   • Can you look at your diet? Your sugar/alcohol/caffeine intake or your smoking habits?
   • Can you improve your sleep hygiene?
   • Can you increase your exercise?
   • Can you make time in your day for things that bring you joy?

As with everything in life, there is no magic bullet/pill unfortunately, but if you commit to some small dietary changes or even just practising some breathing or mindfulness techniques on a regular basis, you’ll find you’re in a calmer state and better prepared for what’s coming.

Get in touch if you’re struggling with stress or anxiety and need support with your diet.

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