• The importance of taking a holistic view towards injuries and pain
• How to let go of pain
• Tips on removing yourself from a negative mindset
• Why working with people you trust is important to your recovery
• And why stress is an important part of your life

Many of us experience interrupted sleep. We spend hours tossing and turning, waiting for our minds to shut off for the night.

That’s why in this week’s episode of our Body Movement Series, sports chiropractor, Luke Khoury shares the best sleep hygiene practices to help us relax and move into a deep sleep every night.

Sam and Luke also discuss:

• Why sleep is important
• How to regulate your Heart Rate Variability (HRV)
• Why knee injuries are so prominent
• How your emotions are affecting your posture
• And the importance of understanding your body

Stay tuned for episode three next Friday. Subscribe to our mailing list on AHB website to receive the podcast straight to your inbox

Want to listen to episode one of our Body Movement Series? Listen here -> https://www.ahigherbranch.com/podcasts/

TIMESTAMPS:

Short for time? See below time stamps for key talking points:

1:13 – Tips to regulating your Heart Rate Variability (HRV)

2:42 – Why sleep is important

4:44 – Sleep hygiene: how to get the most out of your sleep

12:13 – What happens to your body when you don’t allow it to recover

17:00 – Listen to Alessandra’s podcast here: https://www.ahigherbranch.com/podcasts/

18:25 – The joints most common to injuries

24:15 – How emotions can stiffen your body

26:35 – Two contributors to retaining your shock absorption

31:38 – How emotions affect your posture

37:57 – Where to go for a physiological and biomechanical check

39:43 – Why the one-size fits all model doesn’t work

46:39 – The importance of knowing your body

The health and fitness industry is continuing to grow, as gyms and lifestyle education becomes more accessible.

So, we thought it was time to put the experts in the podcast hot seat and create a Body Movement Series to help you navigate through the noise surrounding exercise.

Over the next three weeks, sports chiropractor and accredited exercises physiologist Luke Khoury will sit down with Sam Makhoul to provide education on the dos and don’ts of exercise and what our body really needs and wants.

In the first episode of our three-part series, Luke discusses:

• The true impact of high intensity exercise
• Why walking is good for us
• The reason we lose our balance once we turn 50
• The true meaning of pain
• How chronic pain is all in our heads
• And the different types of breathing to help our heart rate

Stay tuned for episode two next Friday. Subscribe to our mailing list on AHB website to receive the podcast straight to your inbox 

Short for time? See below time stamps for key talking points:

2:52 – Who is Luke Khoury

6:18 – Are the gyms doing more harm than good?

10:38 – Is high intensity exercise really worth it?

13:43 – Why walking is a great form of exercise

23:39 – Why balance programs are important for over 50-year-olds

24:08 – The two major reasons why people fall over

24:49 – Exercises to try at home to strengthen your feet

30:27 – What happens when we don’t train our feet correctly

36:52 – Exercises to do to strengthen your feet

38:31 – Learn how to open and close your toes

40:06 – The negative theory being flat footed

45:44 – Why the fitness industry needs to be regulated

47:14 – The definition of pain

49:08 – Is chronic pain all in your head?

51:03 – How to handle chronic pain

59:04 – Heart Rate Variability (HRV) – what is it and why is it a focus area?

1:00:44 – The different types of breathing

In this week’s podcast, I sit down with professional surfer Rusty Moran to discuss how he accepted his fears, overcame his childhood traumas and grew into a successful businessman after losing everything.

During our raw, insightful chat, Rusty discusses:

• The meaning of the red, blue and grey mindset;
• How his Obsessive Compulsive Disorder overshadowed his thoughts;
• The daily rituals he performs to remain a high achiever;
• Discovery of his strengths and weaknesses through genetic testing;
• Shutting down the unnecessary noise of social media;
• How tapping therapy allowed his to overcome a childhood trauma.

Short for time? See below time stamps for key talking points:

06.40 – How Rusty’s love for surfing began

08.24 – Identifying your red, glue and grey mindset

17.30 – The moment Rusty knew things had to change

20.50 – How Rusty identified his strengths and weaknesses through genetic testing

26.07 – The shift from property developer to surf school owner

33.30 – Rusty’s daily rituals

41.49 – How Rusty uses data to improve his personal life

51.30 – How to block out the unnecessary noise on social media

59.53 – What is tapping therapy and how it revealed Rusty’s childhood trauma

01.17.51 – How surfing can help veterans with PTSD and depression

Following our podcast recording, Rusty received some exciting news that his grant application for DVA funding has been approved. This will enable 70 veterans to begin an eight-week surf therapy program with a University study into the therapeutic benefits for those suffering PTSD and depression.If you are a veteran, researcher, PhD candidate, mental health worker or documentary film maker, Rusty would love to hear from you. Please get in touch with him on 0414 245 216 or on Facebook or Instagram at Gerringong Surf School.

• Ways to monitor your emotional health
• How do we practise gratitude during this pandemic
• What are the challenges that couples are facing during social isolation
• Why couples need to have regular ‘meetings’
• Tips for people working from home and how to switch off
• How can we be a good friend during these times
• Why we should not assume that people need support in the same way
• and much, much more.

Dr Jason Kaplan is a specialist cardiologist, who is a member of the Royal Australasian Collage of Physicians, The Cardiac Society Australia and New Zealand. He studied Medicine at UNSW and graduated with Honours in 1999 then completed his Internal Medicine Training at St George and Prince of Wales hospitals and Adult Cardiology training at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital. He is a Visiting Medical Officer at the Macquarie University Teaching Hospital and St Vincent Private Clinic.

Prior to his training in cardiology, he completed additional advanced training in medical oncology and pharmacology and the training in these areas allowed him to adopt a more holistic approach. He also completed additional training in cardiac imaging in Australia. Dr Kaplan is focused on prevention, nutritional, functional and the role of the mind body.

In this podcast you will learn:

• What the world’s longest living people tell us about heart disease. One particular tribe will surprise you

• What one simple blood test on a bio marker called lipoprotein-a tells us about your heart

• Find out how choline from some food sources such as red meat damages the heart in some people

• Is a plant based diet the best for your heart health? Yes, find out why. You cannot ignore the research

• The surprising truth about keto diets

• New research on blood pressure that will surprise you

• Is dairy bad for the heart?

• What about oils, including olive oil?

• Is protein really that important?

• The truth about fish oils – latest research

• Is coffee and tea good for heart health?

• Why almost all supplements don’t help and the small few that do

• How having a sense of purpose is good for you heart

• The 5 lifestyle changes you should be making

Short for time? See below time stamps for key talking points:

6.23 – How diet affects health and disease in human populations

8.54 – What areas have the longest living people?

9.33 – Common diet threats and principles of the longest living people

14.27 – Lifestyle factors to a longer life

16.00 – Mental and emotional wellbeing on inflammatory markers

17.48 – How having a sense of purpose is good for your heart

20.27- What foods cause inflammation?

28.49 – What are the signals that certain foods aren’t good for you

34.19 – How lifestyle impacts your genetic risk?

35.50 – Oil in your diet

45.30 – Is dairy bad for the heart?

48.41 – Sources of plant based protein and their significants

58.00 – How does someone know that they have heart disease?

01.03.00 – How a Ketogenic diet can help with heart disease

01.12.00 – Supplements that help with heart disease

Recorded live at our Upgrade Your Life event 2020 with America’s Top Parenting Therapist, best-selling author and host of hit TV show “Family Therapy”, Dr Jenn Mann.

In this podcast, Dr Jenn Mann will explain the parenting skills needed to raise happy and confident kids.

Dr Jenn will share:

• How to get your children to make the right decisions

• How you respond to your own failure is the biggest gift you can give your child

• 10 tips to help your child’s self-esteem;

• and much, much more.

Short for time? See below time stamps for key talking points:

9:45 – Giving teenagers the opportunity to make good decisions for themselves

11:30 – What message are we sending our kids if we aren’t consistent

17:20 – Why kids have to learn the consequences of their actions

25:25 – How you respond to your own failure is one of the biggest gifts you can give your child

27:50 – 7 Step System to build self-esteem in teenagers

41:55 – 10 tips to help your child’s self-esteem

51:22 – Three steps to praise your child

52.00- The most important things for a good relationship with your child

Sam meets again with Lyn Megan Macpherson, one of the top three hypnotherapists in Australia.

In our first episode with Lyn, she explains how Hypnotherapy shuts off our conscious mind, allowing us to speak with the subconscious and help us find the root causes for our anxiety, depression, eating disorders, OCD, stuterring, phobias and even chronic pain.

In this episode, Lyn will talk you through some of her specific case studies, the importance of living in the moment, couples therapy and why it’s not always the best answer, overcoming phobias like spiders and social situations.

Lyn will take us through:

· Case studies of stuttering, trauma, stress and anxiety healed by Hypnotherapy

· Why couples therapy doesn’t always work

· Subconscious blocks that impact a great relationship

· How to overcome negative self-talk and the voice of self-doubt

· Why we should look at rejection as redirection

· How trauma is created

· How the need to control comes from a fear of not being in control

· The things that you can do to live in the moment and avoid distraction

· How to learn from the past and plan for the future

For Lyn’s books and CD about intuition and interconnectedness, go to www.harmonyhypnotherapy.com.au

Short for time? See below time stamps for key talking points:

3:55 – The subconscious blocks that are impacting a relationship

7:25 – Clear it, Resolve it and Dissolve it and replacing the void

8:20 – Case studies of Hypnotherapy

10:24 – What is negative self-talk

19:30 – Fear of not being in control

20:00 – How we can live in the moment

22:42 – Examples of living in the moment

24:38 – What we need to do to feel happy and fulfilled

25:10 – How to learn from the past and plan for the future

29:24 – What is the negative thinking, sinking, sand

31:19 – Phobia and spiders

43:00 – How to keep your mind clear

44:55 – The levels of Trance

Dr Stan Rodski has worked as a neuroscientist for over 30 years particularly in the area of peak performance and brain science research. He has a bachelor’s degree in psychology and a doctorate in science.

His research has included stress evaluation and improvement programs in the corporate sector and elite level high pressure performance with sports people and teams.

His neurological research has been famously embraced by Oprah Winfrey and his latest book is titled, “The Neuroscience of Mindfulness”

In this episode, Dr Rodski will take us through:

• How does neuroscience help with our busy lives and technology distractions

• How does neuroscience help with our busy lives and technology distractions

• How the brain is an energy system

• The conscious vs subconscious

• What damage are we doing by looking at our phones as soon as we wake up

• How the thought of danger or fear, such as the Coronavirus, is damaging our brains

• Why we’re living longer but our brains are dying faster

• How important is it to train the brain

• How micro-breaks work

• How do adult colouring books help the brain

• How artificial intelligence can save humanity

Lyn McPherson has a Double Masters in Psychology, a Diploma in Clinical Hypnotherapy, Psychotherapy and is one of the top three hypnotherapist in Australia.

 Our mind is always cluttered with thoughts, even when we ‘switch-off’ we still find ourself worrying about unpaid bills, work, and trivial things like what to wear next weekend. Hypnotherapy shuts off our conscious mind, allowing us to speak with the subconscious and help us find the root causes for our anxiety, depression, eating disorders, OCD, Stuterring, phobias and even chronic pain.

 Lyn will take us through:

 • The effect of social media on self-esteem

• Overcoming the feeling of being inadequate

• Following your intuition

• How your subconscious wants to heal you emotionally

• Finding your happiness/drive

• Tools to stay happy

• Overcoming generations of dysfunction

 Short for time? See below time stamps for key talking points:

 3:14 – Why are we seeing a spike in anxiety, depression, phobias?

5:04 – Is there an increased pressure on the younger generation to ‘make it’?

7:37 – How do you recognise if you are in a state of unease?

10:30 – What is hypnotherapist? Why is the success rate so high?

15:50 – What is our subconscious telling us when we are feeling anxious?

23:20 – Understanding your body and mind and applying conscious living

31:26 – Learning the language of your subconscious

37:30 – The two key elements of ‘babble’

41:30 – How prescription medication is a band-aid, not a cure

45:30 – Are there traumas which are harder to overcome?

51:45 – Fable philosophy

Modern science and bio-hacking are now helping us live longer than ever before. Ageing is not what it used to be! BUT our mindset to ageing is just as critical as the food we eat and the exercise programs we sign up for.

Recorded live on the main stage at Upgrade Your Life 2020, Carl Honore takes a deep dive into how we make the most of our longer lives and keep reinventing ourselves. It shatters the myths about ageing, in an era where the threat of becoming irrelevant is greater than ever…. at ANY age!

Today we are joined by certified Wim Hof Instructor, Johannes Egberts.who will share with us the Wim Hof method, how it reconnects our bodies with its natural ability to resist disease and improve longevity; all backed by science.

You will learn:

• How to use the breath to step into your para-sympathetic nervous system

• How to use cold exposure to become invincible to pathogens

• How to manage your stress and become more resilient

• The importance of starting your day the ‘right’ way

• The importance of the vagus nerve

• How isolation causes inflammation

Short for time? See below time stamps for key talking points:

02:55 – What is the biggest impact on our healthy?

04:19 – Why is the Wim Hof method so effective boosting our immune system?

10:52 – Who is Wim Hof and why did he create this method?

15:00 – How Wim Hof learned to boost his immune system at will

21:28 – How ice baths helps manage your stress

24:38 – The links between the Wim Hof method and longevity

28:24 – The importance of starting your day the ‘right’ way

33:03 – What is your vagus nerve and why is it important?

35:37 – How chronic cortisol effects your whole body

38:35 – How can you incorporate these techniques into your daily life

43:55 – Accessing a para-sympathetic state of the nervous system using Wim Hof method

47:30 – How isolation causes inflammation

This week we chat with the world-renowned endurance athlete, best-selling author and retired navy SEAL, David Goggins, backstage at our Upgrade Your Life event 2020.

You do not want to miss this episode! We discuss a defining moment from David’s childhood, the recent bushfire tragedy which took place in Australia and how you can help. You will learn how David found his true identity and stopped living to please others. David provides insight on how to strengthen your mind and how to overcome adversity, using past a failure or hurt to build a stronger mind.

Short for time? See below timestamps for key talking points:

00:18 – Who is David Goggins?

09:50 – David shares a defining moment of his childhood

12:52 – What David has to say to those who have been impacted by the recent bushfires

17:45 – If you met your creator, would your creator be proud of who you’ve become?

22:20 – How David re-created himself to become the person envisioned himself to be

25:22 – Using your suffering to find your success

27:12 – Why do people find so much strength through David’s story?

29:15 – “Does it get easier?”

31:43 – Never forget where you came from

34:09 – Finding your inner strength; How David conquered the hardest of obstacles

36:45 – How to find the ultimate state of fearlessness

Authenticity is what draws us to people. It is one of the most underrated, yet vital traits an individual can hold. The foundation of authenticity is connection. As a professional, a partner, a friend, you cannot build a relationship without a connection, without trust.

This week podcast was recorded live from Upgrade your Life 2020 with Best Selling Author and Psychotherapist Dr Jenn Mann. Dr Jenn Mann will take us through the importance of connection, how a lack of connection could be the reason your relationship is falling apart.

A study has found that 97% of men and 94% of women who cheat, cheat because of a lack of connection. Find out how to rekindle that connection, the importance of making love in a relationship, ‘investing’ in your relationships and much more.

Short for time? See below timestamps for key talking points:

01:20 – What makes us connect with people and how do we build that connection?

03:19 – Sam shares a funny story from Update Grade Your Life about cursing

04:46 – What is the one or two main things that lead couples to a break-up

08:27 – How important is making love in a relationship?

10:40 – Take the awkwardness out of making love

13:10 – How to deal with rejection from your partner when it comes to intimacy

We are back and we kick off 2020 on a high! Recording live at our Upgrade Your Life event 2020 with one of our favourite guest speakers, Dr Guy Winch.

In this podcast, Dr Guy Winch will explain the science behind behavioural changes: how changing our sense of identity could lead us to smashing our goals.

Dr Guy Winch will unlock more secrets on maintaining a healthy relationship and answer the hard question “at what point do you give up on a relationship?”. We will talk about the importance of identifying the type of partner you want to be in a relationship, why we need to stop looking at our needs and start looking at the needs of our relationship, and much, much more.

Upgrade Your life 2020 was a must attend event! Two weeks later and our attendees are still feeling the buzz. To find out what you missed and information about Upgrade Your Life 2021 “Forever Young” visit our Instagram page @a_higher_branch

Short for time? see below time stamps for key talking points:

03:27 – Dr Guy Winch shares a self-defining moment which a member of the crowd at UYL shared

07:35 – Once you find the information on health and fitness, how do you implement this?

08:10 – Dr Guy Winch shares with us the science of identity change

11:55 – Avoiding process-based goals and making goals that will last long-term

14:00 – Dr Guy Winch discusses the importance of identifying what type of partner we want to be in a relationship

16:20 – Finding what your relationship needs, not what you need

23:00 – At what point do you give up on a relationship?

28:00 – What are the top complaints we make about our partners

30:10 – Why does the small percentage of bad in our relationships drown out the good?

33:15 – Dr Guy Winch shares some exciting news for 2020

The power of love is extraordinary, however, often overlooked. Having a strong relationship with your loved ones is so important for your well-being, it will promote a happier and healthier lifestyle – both mentally and physically.

For our final episode of the year and in the spirit of Christmas, we wanted to share this powerful conversation we had with Psychologist, Dr Guy Winch. Guy will show us small changes we can make within our relationships to mould them, make them last, be happy and stay happy. These changes aren’t large changes, they are small changes which we can make in our relationship which yields incredible outcomes.

He will also discuss:

• What couples fight about most

• The effects our mobile phone has on our relationships

• How couples should deal with conflict

• The power of healthy communication

• Why arguments go south with your significant other

Short for time? See below timestamps for key talking points:

03:10 – Sam talks about the power of love and intimate relationships

07:00 – How psychologists can predict with over 90% accuracy when a relationship will fail

11:25 – The effect our mobile phones have on our relationships

14:10 – How couples argue and the implications it has on relationships

17:05 – What to do when you feel you aren’t being heard in an argument

22:15 – How to complain ‘effectively’

25:40 – Putting an end to repetitive arguments

27:40 – What is the ‘complaint sandwich’ and how will it save relationships

40:00 – An exercise you can do NOW, which will help your relationship

41:20 – What makes couples happy

44:20 – Changing perspective and considering the needs of our relationships

Our mind is the most powerful tool in our body so why are we constantly neglecting to look after it?

From a young age, we are taught the importance of looking after our body. It is embedded in us that we must brush our teeth twice a day, if we break a bone; we go to the hospital, if we are sick; we stay in bed. But what happens if our mind is suffering from an “emotional wound”? We have we been taught so little when it comes to emotional healing that many of us would not even consider that our mind requires healing, yet expect our mind to perform at 100% at all times.

Today we are joined with a special guest, Best-Selling Author and Psychologist, Dr Guy Winch. Dr Winch will take us through how to overcome the emotional difficulties many of us struggle with regularly, these include:

> The effects of ruminating

> How to overcome failure

> Dealing with rejection

> Avoiding negative self-talk

> Loneliness

> And much more.

Short for time? See below timestamps of key talking points:

04:00 – Dr Guy Winch discusses closing the ‘gaps’ between our physical and emotional health

09:15 – Dealing with emotional distress

12:20 – The effects of ruminating

18:05 – Building a clear guard rail in life to battle rumination

20:20 – Turning negative self-reflection into problem solving

22:35 – Overcoming failure

29:00 – Identifying the same mistakes we continuously make in life

30:26 – Dealing with rejection

34:10 – The better alternative to positive affirmations

36:35 – How to stop feeling lonely

41:41 – Stress in the workplace

We all have dreams, whether our dream is to be a millionaire or travel around the world, or falling in love with the right partner. Yet we cannot attain these dreams without taking steps in the right direction to achieve them. Forming daily rituals and habits will not only be a step in the right direction for our health and wellbeing but also placing us on the right path to achieve our dreams.

In this two-part series, Sam talks us through the five bad habits that many of us are guilty of which we need to break NOW and how these bad habits are affecting our health and wellbeing day-to-day. Sam will discuss the importance of daily rituals and forming good habits. You will also learn:

– Willpower

– How to turn goals into habits

– The importance of facing the tough stuff in life

– The use of habits to create actions which are better for us

01:30 – Sam shares a personal success due to the use of systems

03:00 – The steps to achieving our dreams

06:05 – Facing the ‘tough stuff’ in life

07:30 – Using habits to automate actions which are good for us

11:37 – Separating ourselves from bad habits

13:38 – Stop making excuses and start now

16:55 – 5 Bad habits which we need to break now

20:10 – Stop ‘snacking’ on technology and social media

25:20 – The issues of shallow breathing

29:40 – Stress caused on your body from ‘doing things with haste’

32: 45 – Are you addicted to speed?

37:40- The issue of staying up late and watching tv for no reason