What is ageing? How do we slow it down? And what is the difference between chronological age and biological age? Karl is joined on the Real Health podcast this week by Head of the ageing research program at Trinity College, Regius Professor Rose Anne Kenny, to discuss the latest research in ageing and how science can slow the process? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What is Languishing? Why are so many people suffering from burnout? And what are the ways to feel alive in a world that wears us down? Karl is joined on the Real Health podcast this week by Professor Corey Keyes, to discuss his new book ‘Languishing: How to Feel Alive Again in a World That Wears Us Down’. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What are the misconceptions about weight loss? What works? And why severe calorie restriction does not work? On the Real Health podcast this week, Karl chats to the author of ‘Eat Your Way to a Six Pack: The Ultimate 75 Day Transformation Plan,’ Scott Harrison, on eating your way to fitness. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Real Health podcast this week, Karl speaks with author, Dr Beth Mosley MBE, on her new book ‘Happy Families: How to Support Your Child’s Mental Health’. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Do you need a declutter this new year? Has your home become messy? And what are the steps to return to an organised space? To help with all things clutter, Karl was joined on the Real Health podcast this week by author and founder of Organised Chaos, Sarah Reynolds. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On today’s episode of Real Health, Karl walks through some tips on how to get back into the swing of things after the Christmas and New Year celebrations. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On Real Health this week, Karl spoke to global Fitness influencer and founder of the Queens don’t quit community, Maeve Madden. Karl discusses nutrition, past relationships and starting a fitness empire with the Instagram star. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What are the best ways to walk? How fast should you walk for maximum benefit? And is walking healthier when done alone or in groups? On the Real Health podcast this week, Karl is joined by author of ‘52 ways to walk: The surprising science of walking for wellness and joy, one week at a time’ Annabel Streets.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

How should you deal with lower back pain? Is it fixable? And what are the main causes? On the Real Health Podcast this week, Karl is joined by chartered physio and Ph.D. in Biomechanics, Eoin Everard. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week on Real Health, Karl walks through his top tips for surviving the Christmas period in a healthy way. From planning to accountability, Karl looks at what will help you navigate the festive period. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Stress is bad? Some stress is good? What is stress? and does it have an image problem? This week on Real Health, Karl was joined by Lifestyle medicine physician and longevity expert, Dr Alka Patel. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Overcoming depression, managing a business and most important, baking for others. This week on Real Health, Karl was joined by celebrity baker, owner of 2210 Patisserie and best-selling author of ‘Sweet Therapy,’ Una Leonard. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Darina Allen joins Karl on the Real Health podcast this week to share why she wrote a book about bread, the importance of cooking from scratch and why its healthier to cook for yourself. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week on Real Health, Karl is joined by musician, frontman of Bell X1 and music therapist, Paul Noonan, to discuss the healing power of music therapy. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week on Real Health, Karl is joined by award winning chef, TV host and now author Mark Moriarity to discuss his new book ‘Flavour: Every Day Food Made Exceptional'. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Using food as medicine is a central feature of Jess Redden’s work and in her new book ‘’The Food Pharmacy’’ she dives into how food can be utilised in treating common ailments as well as over 100 delicious recipes. On Real Health today, Karl was joined by the author and pharmacist, Jess Redden. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Fractures and falls are a leading cause of older people losing independence, requiring homecare or having to live in a nursing home.  With one in three people aged over 65 and one in two over 75 having had a fall in the past year. On Real Health this week we speak to Geriatrician at Beaumont Hospital, Professor Frances Dockery, on the importance of calcium and protein for older people. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Fractures and falls are a leading cause of older people losing independence, requiring homecare or having to live in a nursing home.  With one in three people aged over 65 and one in two over 75 having had a fall in the past year. On Real Health this week we speak to Geriatrician at Beaumont Hospital, Professor Frances Dockery, on the importance of calcium and protein for older people. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This Sunday, bright and early some 20,000 runners will take to the streets of the capital for the Dublin Marathon. On his own Marathon journey is the Irish Independent’s own Group Head of visuals in media house, Dave Conachy, who is chasing Everest in a sub-three-hour time. Karl was joined on The Real Health Podcast by both Dave and his trainer, Irish Olympian and former winner of the London, Berlin and Amsterdam Marathons, Catherina McKiernan. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The stars in the sky, Dinosaurs and vaccines can all be understood through science. Science can be our friend, it's a very messy world out there. There's all kinds of worries and concerns and uncertainties that can be simplified. On Real Health this week Karl sits down with the Science teacher we all wish we had, Professor Luke O’Neill to chat about his new book ‘’ To Boldly Go Where No Book Has Gone Before’. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this weeks episode of The Real Health Podcast Karl dives into the world of open-water swimming. The extreme situations offered by ice swimming allowed Nuala Moore an escape of kinds and a chance to find her true north. She's a fearless, open water swimmer, an adventurer. She spent decades as a scuba diving professional and helped shape the standards for ice and channel swimming. And she holds not one, but two Guinness World Records for extreme cold water swimming. Karl is joined by Sea adventurer and Cold Specialist, Nuala Moore, who details what goes through her mind when she’s in freezing water in her memoir ‘’Limitless’’. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What are the biggest mistakes we make when we exercise? Is there any merit in the internet-led idea of ‘’Carbo-phobia'’? Can healthy eating harm an athlete with a strict training program? Are energy drinks useful or to be avoided altogether? Processed foods, yay or nay? These are just some of the areas Karl Henry covers on today's episode, alongside dietician and sports nutritionist Evan Lynch. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week Karl is joined by hotelier and presenter Francis Brennan for some simple tips on how to get older with grace and live by the idea that age is truly just a number. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Nutrition can be complicated. Not because it has to be, but because the volume of information available to us can be overwhelming. This week Karl is joined by registered dietician Orla Walsh to cut through the jargon and fad diets and bring you the basics of nutrition and what you really need to know. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Summer is great for so many reasons, but those few months can wreak havoc on our routines. Holidays abroad in particular, see us throw our schedules and usual exercise and meal plans out the window. This week Karl goes through some of his top tips for getting our health and wellness back on track. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Change. Do you love it? Are you afraid of it? It’s a natural and constant part of life, but it can be overwhelming. Clinical psychologist Dr Claire Hayes explains why embracing change can lead to exciting new opportunities.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We have all heard of dementia, many of us will have a loved one who has the disease. It can be a health topic that some of us shy away from, out of fear of what it entails. This week, Karl is joined by neuroscientist Dr Sabina Brennan to tell us exactly what we need to know about dementia and how to keep our brains healthy. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Having a house full of plants has become very trendy in recent years. While they look great, surrounding ourselves with nature has more than just aesthetic benefits. Karl speaks to Professor Ross Cameron about why plants improve our health and wellbeing. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Conversations are a part of our daily life. We probably underestimate how many conversations we have every day. But how important is conversation and what is going on in our brains when we are chatting to someone? This week Karl is joined by neuroscientist Shane O’Mara to discuss. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dairy has become somewhat of a controversial food group. With plenty of myths around about dairy, this week on Real Health we are chatting about what you need to know and what some of the alternatives out there are. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Over the course of the last few years, diabetes is something that has come up time and time again on the podcast. While it can be a scary thing to face when diagnosed, here on Real Health we are all about giving you the information you need. This week, we will discuss both the prevention and management of diabetes with GP, Dr Sumi Dunne. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We are in the middle of a busy season of triathlons, ultra swims and 10Ks. Of course, marathons and half marathons are in full swing across the country with the Dublin marathon fast approaching. What is the best training for these events and what do you need to know about fueling our bodies for both the events and the weeks leading up to it? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Returning to the gym can be a serious commitment to take on but if you make some of the common mistakes, like under fuelling or not sleeping enough, it can be a lot harder. This week Karl discusses some of his top tips for getting back to the gym.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Going to a GP when you are concerned about your health is a normal thing to do. But what about going to the doctor for a checkup when you feel fine? This week on Real Health, Karl is joined by Dr Brian Higgins to discuss the full health checks you can get and why you should consider them.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Families are messy and complicated and can be difficult to navigate when you’re an adult. But understanding our family history could help us to become the best version of ourself. This week Karl is joined by psychotherapist Richard Hogan to take a look at how our families shape who we are. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Taking that fear out of cancer and getting crucial information out there is something I am really passionate about. The more we all know about cancer, the more we are equipped to deal with the disease and the potential treatments to follow. To help me do this. I'm joined by Bernie Carter, assistant director of nursing at the Marie Keating Foundation.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We all want to be happier, but it can be a tricky emotion to pin down. Do we need the new car to achieve it or is it learning to appreciate that joke with a friend or cup of coffee in the morning that will get us there? This week on Real Health, Karl is joined by Professor Ian Robertson to discuss the science behind happiness and how we can have more happiness in our lives. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Being average isn’t really something any of us strive for. In today’s world, average is almost considered to be a negative thing. Realistically though, we can’t all be the best at everything so should we feel shame or guilt for not being so? This week Karl is joined by psychotherapist Colman Noctor to discuss why being average can be a superpower. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With summer in full swing, let's be honest, we’re all thinking about a summer holiday. Be that home or abroad. While some are planning a relaxing sun holiday, many of us are looking for a bit more adventure. We mightn’t want to hit the gym every day we are away but being active on holiday has its own appeal. This week Karl is joined by the Irish Independent’s travel editor Pól Ó Conghaile to chat about some of the best active holiday options out there.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On Real Health, we are all about making life long healthy changes. That said, sometimes we need extra motivation or that push to get started and for many, the summer is that starting point. This week Rory McInerney from FFS gym, joins Karl to bring his top tips for getting the most out of your gym workouts. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week on Real Health, It's an episode from our Life Lessons series. My guest is one of the three Dancing with the Stars judges, Arthur Gourounlain is a new Dad and has had a career that has seen him performing with some of the best in the business, from Beyonce, to Pussycat Dolls to Kylie Minogue. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We all know people who are childish and no, I don’t mean the actual children in our lives. It can be frustrating working with or have a friendship or relationship with someone who doesn’t want to stand on their own two feet. This week, Karl is joined by best selling author Sarah Knight to discuss how to act more like an adult and get treated like one.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Acceptance can be tricky. We mightn’t like a situation or an experience we’ve had so trying to accept it can seem near impossible. But what if we learned to master acceptance and stop the usual cycle of dwelling and ranting? This week on Real Health, Karl is joined by psychotherapist Padraig O'Morain to chat about the power of acceptance and how it can change our lives for the better. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What makes a good conversation? Is it a topic everyone involved is interested in? Or is it about being a good listener and knowing what to say and how to say it? This week on Real Health Karl is joined by Dr Harry Barry to chat about the best ways to beat social anxiety and build better relationships.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Carl Mullan’s life has been non-stop. He is flat out with presenting the 2FM breakfast show, being a dad, creating content for social and just the small matter of competing and winning this year’s Dancing with the Stars. This week Carl joins me to talk about life, career and family.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We all know parenting is complicated and new challenges crop up all the time. There are some issues that are more common than others though, like picky eating or helping a child to be more confident. This week, Clinical Psychologist Dr David Coleman joins Karl to chat about parenting and give some of his advice. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Breathing is getting more and more attention, mainly in the meditation and mindfulness space. While it can be beneficial to focus on the breath during those moments, what about the rest of the time? This week Karl is joined by breathing expert, Patrick McKeown to tell us how one simple change to our breathing can improve our health and wellness. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Parenting is hard and every milestone in a child's life brings its own challenges. Though there is something special about the teenage years that can awaken a sense of dread in many parents. Is there a knack to it? This week, psychotherapist Stella O’Malley joins Karl to discuss her best advice for communicating with your teen. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Modern life is full of distractions, so sitting down and being present in the moment can take a huge amount of effort. This week on Real Health, Karl is joined by Niall Breslin, aka Bressie, to tell us why being mindful can help us become more self-aware and at peace in a world that wants us to be anything but. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We might think that transforming our health warrants an all or nothing approach. Can improving your wellbeing be done with one simple change a week? This week on Real Health Karl goes through some of the easiest and often overlooked changes that can impact our health for the better. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Most will have heard the phrase ‘you can’t out train a bad diet’. How true is it and will it hold you back when starting a new exercise regime? Karl Henry is joined by registered dietitian Sophie Pratt to discuss. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s an inevitable part of life for half of the world’s population but menopause symptoms can vary enormously. This week on Real Health, Dr Deirdre Lundy joins Karl to discuss her new book and how to manage the many physical and mental challenges that come with menopause. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of Real Health, Karl Henry is joined by British psychologist, Kimberley Wilson, to hear about her new book on feeding the mind to help fight our current mental health crisis. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week on Real Health, Karl is joined by his 'Operation Transformation' buddy, Dr Eddie Murphy, to look at how we can feel more confident in ourselves, and build on self-esteem.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week on Real Health, Karl is bringing his top tips for running every distance. From 5k to ultra marathons, Karl discusses the things you need to do for each type of run and how to progress and run for longer. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you were asked what the most important emotion is, what would you say? Happiness? Love? Empathy? This week on Real Health, author Dacher Keltner says there is a case to be made for awe. Host: Karl Henry. Guest: Dacher Keltner. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week on Real Health with Karl Henry, as part of our Life Lessons series, Karl is joined by broadcaster and Rose of Tralee presenter Dáithí Ó Sé, to chat about his varied career, work-life balance and why looking after his health is so important to him. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As part of cervical cancer prevention week, Karl is joined by Dr Sarah Fitzgibbon to bring you everything you need to know, from screenings to symptoms and HPV. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There are loads of positive changes people try to embrace this time of year. Instead of looking at all the things you should be doing for your health, this week Karl is going through the top ten things to avoid in 2023, from crash diets to unachievable goals. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We know the usual new year's resolutions that people make. This year though, instead of tackling things in your personal life, you look at your work life and how you can improve it so that everything else can thrive? This week Karl is joined by career psychologist Sinead Brady to discuss how to achieve a work life balance in 2023. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

January is the month where many people start hitting the gym as part of their new year's resolutions. Life can get busy though, so finding time to get to the gym can be difficult. This is where at-home workouts really come into their own, as they often fit easier into our hectic days. This week Karl is joined by personal trainer John Belton to bring us his top tips for maximising home workouts.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As we come to the end of 2022 and the new year is fast approaching, many people will look to 2023 as an opportunity to wipe the slate clean and leave behind bad habits, in favour of new ones. This week, Karl is joined by Gerry Hussey, to bringing us his advice on how we can try to reach our full potential and achieve the goals we want to achieve.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Sonya Lennon is a woman who wears many hats. Mother of twins, broadcaster, stylist, fashion designer and an entrepreneur. Sonya joins Karl as part of Real Health’s Life Lessons series. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week on the Real Health podcast, Karl discusses easy health swaps you can make to improve your health. Making changes doesn’t have to be dramatic, causing hassle and taking up lots of energy. Instead, these simple changes will get you on the right track. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week on the Real Health podcast, Karl is joined by writer and broadcaster Keith Walsh, discussing what it's like to be diagnosed with ADHD as an adult and how to learn to live with the symptoms. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Now that we’re in the run up to Christmas, this week on Real Health, we’re bringing you our festive gift guide. From the best of Irish athletic wear to the top books and journals, we have something for everyone. Host: Karl Henry. Guest: Derval O’Rourke. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Being mindful about what we eat brings lots of health benefits and knowing where our food comes from is a big part of that. But have you ever considered growing your own food? This week, Karl is joined by the founder of GIY, Michael Kelly, to discuss how we can grow food that tastes better than anything you can find in the shops.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There are loads of factors that contribute to our mood, but have you ever considered what role food has to play? This week Karl is joined by registered dietician Sarah Keogh to discuss what types of food and vitamins can have a positive impact on how we feel. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There is no escaping the cost-of-living crisis. Not only are we living it but news reports also remind us how much more expensive our bills are. While the reasons are out of our control, there are some simply tips we can adopt in our lives that can help keep costs down. This week Karl is joined by Home Economist, Agnes Bouchier Hayes.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

You know the basics of a good diet, but how can you take your food game to the next level? This week Karl Henry is joined by performance nutritionist, Daniel Davey to tell us why prioritising food can help with our fitness goals, performance and injury prevention.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

How much do you really know about strokes? With World Stroke Day taking place this Saturday, we are bringing you everything you need to know about strokes, from prevention to signs and symptoms. Host: Karl Henry. Guest: Dr John McCabe. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week on Real Health Karl is joined by Dr Phil Kieran to discuss all the things that impact our life expectancy. From body fat to cholesterol, we’re covering it all and giving you some tips that can help you live longer and better. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It might be considered the most basic form of exercise, but walking can be the ultimate workout. This week I’m bringing you my top tips on how to take walking to the next level. Host: Karl Henry See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Getting older comes with plenty of health concerns and things we need to be aware of. But how conscious are we about our muscles as we age? Is it a big deal if we lose some muscle mass? This week it’s all about why looking after our muscles as we get older is so important. Host: Karl Henry Guest: Dr Brendan Egan. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week on Real Health, it’s episode two from the National Ploughing Championships 2022. I’m bringing you my four pillars for lifelong wellness. From sleep to measuring progress with health, I’m telling you what you need to know. Host: Karl Henry. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week on Real Health, I’m coming to you live from the National Ploughing Championships 2022. I was delighted to be joined by Mairead McGuiness EU Commissioner for financial services, financial stability and Capital Markets Union. Mairead joined me for one of our Life Lessons episodes. Host: Karl Henry. Guest: Mairead McGuinness. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We all want to live our best lives, get as much out of our time as possible. That, however, can be easier said than done.  Life can sometimes get in the way, from work to finances and everything in between. But what if you were told you had a life limiting illness? What would you do differently?  This week, I’m delighted to be joined by John Wall, who was diagnosed with stage four prostate cancer in 2017.  While he had to come to terms with this, his approach to life is all about seizing the day. As part of palliative care week that is taking place this week, John tells me about his experience with palliative care. It can be a scary thing to talk about, but for John it helped him gain back a quality of life he never thought he’d get back.  “Palliative for me at the time was pain control...One introduction to a palliative consultant changed everything. [They] found a drug that worked for me, that is still working for me and given me a quality of life that I once thought was gone.” We also talk about how to live life to the full and not sweat the small stuff, something John decided to do when he was diagnosed with cancer.  “To put it very simply, the day I was told I was going to die was the day I started to live...you only get one shot at life and that’s applicable to all of us. Whether you’re in good health or not, we get one life.”  We also chat about the role genetics play when it comes to coronary heart disease and links abdominal obesity has to it too.  For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just click here. And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and realhealth@independent.ie. Don’t forget to rate, review and follow on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from. The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

September is heart month, so we decided to take a look at the things you need to do to keep your heart healthy and protect against heart disease, from exercise to lifestyle changes. Host: Karl Henry. Guest: Dr Paddy Barrett, preventative cardiologist. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s September, which means back to school and a return to our routines. It’s the perfect time to embrace those healthier habits you’ve wanted to have, by making them a part of your day now that summer is behind us. This week, I’m bringing you my top tips on how to reset. From exercise to diet, I’m taking you through it all. Summer can cause havoc on our normal routines. There’s more food, more relaxing and this year we were able to go abroad, which for many people was the first time in a couple of years. While we’ve all enjoyed the great weather the last few months have brought, it can leave some people feeling guilty for not being as healthy as they may have wanted. This brings me to my number one tip and I think the best place to start when looking to reset. Drawing a line in the sand, accepting we can’t change what we did is a must if you are going to form new habits. Life is for living and being hard on yourself will get you nowhere. So, accept that you enjoyed your summer, but decide that now is the time to get out of holiday mode and into September mode. I also discuss how to get your eating back on track. There’s no need to go on fad diets or juice cleanses. Instead, make sure you are eating regularly, keeping your blood sugar nice and stable. For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and realhealth@independent.ie.Don’t forget to rate, review and follow on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Breathing is something we do automatically and take little notice of throughout our day. In moments when you’re under pressure, you’ve probably told yourself to ‘just breathe’. We know in theory that breathing can control how we feel, but how much do we really understand about the power of breathwork? This weel I’m joined by breathing expert, peak performance coach and host of BBC Radio 1’s Decompression Session, Stuart Sandeman. Stuart’s new book Breathe In, Breathe Out, gives readers simple yet effective exercises that are guaranteed to charge you up, help you relax and improve your performance. Stuart says people often say they are too busy to improve their breathing, but he believes it is something we should make time for. “If you are doing something 20,000 times a day, would you not want to know if you’re doing it right? If you’re doing any other task that many times, surely, you’d like to know a bit more about that task Especially when it is linked to our energy levels, our stress levels, how we sleep, how we digest our food. All these things that are so important day to day.” Knowing how to breathe properly can also improve our fitness levels. Learning some good techniques isn’t just for Olympic athletes. Stuart says it can also help those trying to get into a new fitness regime but always find themselves breathless. “Our breathing has a direct correlation to our fitness levels. The two reasons you may not be able to go that extra round or extra mile would be either because you have muscle pain, lactic acid has built up, which is to do with breathing. Or, you have a feeling of breathlessness so much so you can’t carry on... Both of those are things we can fine tune and improve quite dramatically.” We also discuss if hormonal contraception can impact women when training and how female body composition differs from men. For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/ And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and realhealth@independent.ie. Don’t forget to rate, review and follow on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from. The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Here on Real Health, we have looked at the topic of female health, why women are different to men and how understanding those difference can help boost wellness. But when it comes specifically to exercise, should women train differently to men, to maximize performance and results? This week I’m delighted to be joined by sports scientist David Nolan to take us through what women should consider when exercising. David is a PhD Researcher at DCU and looks at sex differences in exercise. So, we thought he’d be the perfect person to bust some myths and tell us what we really need to know. David says while women may feel their menstrual cycle impacts their performance or how they feel when exercising, research doesn’t suggest women need to train differently, depending on where stage of their cycle they’re at. “We can’t give blanket recommendations. Anyone who says that you should train this way in the follicular phase and [another] in the luteal, you can’t say that. We don’t have the evidence in science to say that.” Instead, David says it's important for women to monitor how they are feeling, which can help them maximise their workouts. “The best thing you can do is track your menstrual cycle, preferably over a long period of time, three to six months minimum and try to identify patterns...then implement individual coping strategies.” We also discuss if hormonal contraception can impact women when training and how female body composition differs from men. For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/ And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and realhealth@independent.ie. Don’t forget to rate, review and follow on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from. The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

How much do you know about the relationship between our brains and our gut? While many of us may think we decide when and how much we eat, research now tells us that our brains have far more control over our eating habits than we might realise. So, what does this mean for our understanding obesity and what treatment is the best for those with the disease? Well, this week I’m delighted to be joined by Carel La Roux, an expert in metabolic medicine and Professor of Experimental Pathology, University College Dublin. Carel explains that when it comes to losing weight, it takes more than just willpower to help people to reach their goals. The main reason for this, is the power of the brain and its role in trying to retain bodyfat. “Anybody who has been on a diet will tell you that they’ve never been as obsessed with food as when they were on a diet. That is normal physiology. That’s exactly what the brain needs to do...that is normal.” Carel says that for people to lose weight, in particular those with obesity, the brain needs to be made feel comfortable at a lower weight. That, Carel says is where modern treatments like medicines and diets come in. We also discuss the signals that the gut sends to the brain and how some people find it easier to keep their bodyweight lower than others. For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/ And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and realhealth@independent.ie. Don’t forget to rate, review and follow on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from. The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week on Real Health, we’re bringing you something a little different than usual, with another life lessons episode. I’m delighted to be joined by dairy farmer Louise Crowley, to tell us what life as a young farmer is like in Ireland and being a woman in the job. I have been following Louise on Instagram for a long time now and am excited she was able to take time out of her busy day to join me on the podcast. Ireland as we know has a long history with farming but how much do we know about the people who look after the farms that supply us with the food we eat every day? For Louise, no two days on the farm are the same but something that makes her standout, is her social media presence. Louise says she didn’t make a decision to document her life on her platform, but instead it grew from people’s curiosity about her life and how she does things. “People were asking me questions about my farm, how many cows, what do we do...and after a few messages I thought maybe there was a few more that were interested so I started posting the answers publicly. Then it spiralled from there.” We also chat about what a typical day in Louise’s life is like, her relationship with the animals on her farm and what challenges are facing farmers right now. For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/ And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and realhealth@independent.ie. Don’t forget to rate, review and follow on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from. The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Now that we are half way through the summer and the weather (for the most part) has improved, it’s the perfect time to give running a try. It can be a daunting hobby to pick up, with many people wishing they could run but feel they aren’t fit enough to get involved. So, this week on Real Health, I’m bringing you my top tips for running. I have advice for everyone, from complete beginners to those looking to improve their technique and make it more challenging. One of the first things I advise people to do before they get started is to go and get a gait analysis. That might sound complicated, but it's not. It is simply a check to see how your foot hits the ground when running. When you go to buy shoes, it's no longer about the look and colour. It’s about supporting your feet as you run. When you get your gait checked, it will be easier to select the right footwear for you. For beginners, I often have people telling me they get panicked while running. They’re out of breath and just can’t figure out that aspect of it. My advice, for the first two minutes of the run, slow the pace right down and focus on your breathing. Giving your body that time to adjust, will help you become more accustomed to the technique and you will settle into the pace in no time. I also talk about the importance of changing your route, how to prevent injury and the best way to track your process. For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and realhealth@independent.ie. Don’t forget to rate, review and follow on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week on Real Health, we’re discussing female health, not just the aspects traditionally associated with the topic, like reproductive health, but everything from sleep to mood and movement. I’m delighted to be joined on the podcast again by Dr Hazel Wallace, founder of The Food Medic and author to her latest (and third) book, The Female Factor. In it, Dr Hazel takes a deep dive into women’s health with this comprehensive guide that looks at every aspect of wellness for every stage of a woman’s life. Hazel says that most of the clinical research up until now has predominately been done in men and while there are similarities to the male physiology, women also have significant differences. “There are really important differences that mean that women are not being treated as well as they could be. The fluctuating hormones is one point of difference...and if we aren’t accounting for those differences then we’re missing a huge piece of the puzzle” she explains. When it comes to mood, those hormones can get blamed for a lot, but Hazel says there are other factors aside from hormones that can impact how a woman is feeling. “I think it's very easy to assume it’s because it's your time of the month, or you’re pregnant or going through the menopause, that must be why you’re feeling upset or angry or whatever. Actually, a lot of the research shows the most important thing when it comes to determining your mood and your mental health is your social support.” We also discuss some of the dietary requirements specific to women and how important body fat is to overall health. For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/ And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and realhealth@independent.ie. Don’t forget to rate, review and follow on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from. The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Many of us will have heard or be familiar with self-love. In theory we know what it is, but how hard is it to put it into practice and make it part of daily life? This week I’m delighted to be joined by Fiona Brennan, Clinical Hypnotherapist and author of the book The Self-Love habit, to tell us why we need to love ourselves a bit more and how it can improve so many aspects of our lives. Fiona explains that self-love isn’t the same as being cocky or overconfident, instead it is about self-acceptance. “Especially in Ireland we’re almost taught...that it is a negative thing to love yourself. This idea is that you could eat yourself if you were a bar of chocolate. “When you look at love, whether it's for yourself or for anybody else in this world, your family, any other creature or being, it is actually about compassion and compassion is love in action.” We also chat about negativity bias and how damaging a negative inner voice can be to your overall wellbeing. For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/ And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and realhealth@independent.ie. Don’t forget to rate, review and follow on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from. The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week on Real Health, we’re talking about weight loss surgery. It’s a topic we have touched on before on the podcast, but this week we are taking a deeper dive and bringing you everything you need to know about the procedure. There’s now a general acceptance that the “eat less move more” approach to dealing with complex obesity isn’t suitable. That means treatments like bariatric surgery are getting more attention. But what exactly is involved, and what do people need to know before they decide to undergo the procedure? Joining me to discuss this, is Consultant Bariatric Surgeon at St. Vincent's University Hospital, Helen Heneghan. Helen says people should understand how difficult it can be to lose excess fat. “Your body is designed to prevent you losing weight...So everything is going against you to maintain weight loss. It’s important that people acknowledge that it isn’t their fault.” For those with obesity who have struggled to keep the weight they have lost off, Helen says there are other options people can explore. “Patients who come for surgery have lost weight [before]. They’ve lost stones and stones over and over again...if they haven’t managed to keep weight off that they’ve previously lost, there are medical treatments available.” For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/ And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and realhealth@independent.ie. Don’t forget to rate, review and follow on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from. The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Love can be complicated; it can be hard work, but it can also be amazing and life changing too. We’ve all heard the idea that if we wait just long enough and look hard enough, we’ll find the right person for us. But is love something we need to actively seek out? And do we really understand the meaning of what love is and what it looks like? Well today I’m joined by author and meditation teacher, Conor Creighton to talk to us about love, and how many of us don’t fully understand the power it can have. His new book, The Truth about love, shows us how to change ourselves and the world around us, by simply opening our hearts up. Conor says while loving others is important, a greater focus needs to be placed on the importance of self-love. “We all run around with this feeling of, if I can perfect myself. If I can just perform at a higher level, then I’ll be worthy of love...That’s where I think you can train this idea that hey, I’m actually enough.” We also discuss how to find your own tribe, learning to trust your instincts about people and how best to accept and own a breakup. For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/ And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and realhealth@independent.ie. Don’t forget to rate, review and follow on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from. The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As we all start to settle into our new ways of working, be it fully remote, back in the office or a mix of both, it’s important that we develop positive healthy habits around that. That’s why on this week’s Real Health, I’m taking you through my top tips for transforming your work health. One of the easiest changes you can make, is to introduce more movement and standing to your day. That doesn’t mean you have to start introducing crazy exercise regimes into your schedule. It can be as simple as standing up from your desk and having a walk around regularly. The aim is to break the long periods of sitting, which we know can have a serious and negative impact on our health. Working from home can make it hard to keep that movement up. Introducing some exercise in place of your commute, like a walk for example, is an effective way to make sure you aren’t becoming too sedentary. On the flip side, if you are back in the office, consider getting off the train or bus one stop earlier. Or park the car a little further away from the front door. I also talk about the importance of organisation, from planning your meals, to time management and keeping control of the tasks you have to do. For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/ And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and realhealth@independent.ie. Don’t forget to rate, review and follow on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from. The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I’m sure like me, you find life is bit of a juggle sometimes. From work, relationships or money, it can be difficult to find the time to fit it all in and have some space leftover for yourself. Even trying to change your routines or habits for the better can be a real challenge. It’s no wonder many of us can feel stressed and overwhelmed, meaning our mental health takes a hit and we get into a negative thought pattern. But are there simple techniques out there that we could incorporate into our day, to help ditch the thoughts that can be harmful to our mental health? Well, this week on Real Health, I’m delighted to be joined by psychotherapist and former NHS Clinical Lead for Mental Health, Owen O’Kane. His new book, How to be Your Own Therapist gives just these kinds of solutions to help us form a healthier perspective on things. Owen says thoughts that are mostly negative can be a burden in people’s lives, so changing the feeling around them can be liberating: “Neuroscientists tell us we have about 60,000 to 80,000 thousand thoughts a day, which is a lot of thoughts. They know that about 60pc of those thoughts can be either negative or critical in nature...if you have fallen into those [negative] thought patterns, there’s a way out of that. You can see them for what they are, which is just unhelpful patterns.” We also discuss how to view failure, the importance of self-compassion and how there is still some stigma around therapy today. For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/ And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and realhealth@independent.ie. Don’t forget to rate, review and follow on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from. The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week’s episode of Real Health, we’re discussing obesity in Ireland, the main causes of the disease and what treatments are available for it. Last month, the World Health Organisation released a report that said obesity has reached “epidemic proportions” in Europe. It showed that the disease is causing 200,000 cancer cases and 1.2 million deaths a year. Here in Ireland, over six in 10 adults are overweight or obese and we rank ninth in a table of 53 countries for obesity. To discuss obesity and the impact it has on our health, I’m joined by Donal O’Shea, HSE Clinical lead for Obesity. Donal says for adults who have severe and complex obesity, the treatment is not to eat less and move more. “You develop obesity because you have a genetic predisposition, and you get too much energy from the environment for those genes...what we have now is surgery as a very effective evidence-based treatment and we now have medication that’s coming and is now licensed in Europe.” We also discuss calories appearing on restaurant menus, something Donal says can have a positive impact on people’s health: “The calories on menu boards...it works. It’s proven to impact by about 100 calories per purchase for 30pc of people who are looking at the menu. That’s a massive reach at population level. Only vaccination would have that kind of population reach as a health measure.” For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/ And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and realhealth@independent.ie. Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from. The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Have you ever considered that being sad could actually be a good thing? Or do you avoid that emotion at all costs? Well, my guest this week will help us understand what sadness is good for, and how to transform pain and vulnerability into strength. Susan Cain is the New York Times bestselling author of the book Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking and her Ted Talk The power of introverts has gotten millions of views online. Her new book Bittersweet: How Sorrow and Longing Make Us Whole aims to help readers to embrace sadness and understand that it can be a superpower. Susan says embracing sorrow is not about wanting to be sad but understanding it is a part of being human: “It’s not that sadness is a pleasant state. You didn’t realise it was pleasant, but it really is. That is not the thing. It’s rather that sadness is an inevitable part of human life...it also happens to be a way that connects us to each other.” We also discuss why it is important for leaders to show more than just the strong or angry emotions traditionally associated with positions of power. Susan says embracing a wider range of emotions can help people relate to those in those kinds of roles: “When leaders are willing to express sorrow about something that’s happened...that is seen as a more relational power. What people will say about those kinds of leaders is that they feel like they’re on their side and that they are in it together.” For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/ And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and realhealth@independent.ie. Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from. The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week’s episode of Real Health, we’re busting some of the biggest food myths out there. There’s no doubt that you’ve heard some of the more common ones, like the claim that sugar is toxic, or dairy can cause cancer.Bringing us the latest research and debunking some of the widely shared food myths, is registered dietitian Sarah Keogh. With years of experience working as a dietician, Sarah has heard all the misconceptions out there: “I overhear some hilarious conversations...it’s people saying, ‘oh I’ve heard this or heard that’ and then suddenly, nobody is drinking milk” she says. While sometimes it is people misinterpreting the science, Sarah says this can lead to people becoming fearful of some foods or ingredients: “The other thing I hear a lot is that sugar causes cancer. That one actually has frightened a lot of people. If I’m doing talks, and people are [asking] ‘does it feed cancer?’ and ‘should you not give up sugar if you have cancer?’. The studies again, are not showing that.”We also discuss myths that surround fruit and vegetables and chat about saturated fat and the suggestion that it is actually good for you. For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and realhealth@independent.ie.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week’s episode of Real Health, we are looking at phone usage and when it can start to have a negative impact on our lives. With daily tasks and communication more dependent on smart devices than ever, how can you recognise when normal usage has tipped into dangerous territory? To discuss this, I am joined by psychotherapist and author of the Phone Addiction Workbook, Hilda Burke. Hilda says that although phone addiction has not been officially recognised as an addiction, those who use their devices a lot can show signs of addictive behavior: “There are some of the hallmarks of addiction amongst heavy phone users...it is that thing of, if I cannot get the hit, how disturbed do I feel? If I am without it overnight or during the day, how on edge do I feel?” Hilda explains that a key indicator of addiction is when someone starts putting the substance ahead of things we would highly value in our lives: “You go to the nearest playground, and you will often see a mom or a dad that are looking at their device. The kid can be hanging upside down, breaking their neck but what is on the phone is more important.” We also discuss what phone usage does to your brain, why it can be a highly addictive activity and some ways to help you break the cycle of overuse. For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/ And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and realhealth@independent.ie. Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from. The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s fair to say, I’m a bit obsessed with my fridge. My weekly routine of organising the food shop into glass containers is something I look forward to doing. Aside from making it look good, can fridge organisation help reduce food waste? What goes on each shelf and are there some foods that should never be kept in there? Joining me to answer all these questions, is home economist at TUS Midwest, Agnes Bouchier-Hayes. I always sort my food into separate glass containers to keep in the fridge. While it does look neat and tidy, does it help keep food fresher for longer? Well, according to Agnes those glass containers can help with this: “The glass absorbs the cold, so when you open and close the fridge, you are keeping the food at a more constant temperature.” Agnes points out that there are a lot of foods that should not be taken out of the packaging they come in: “Plastic is not great. However, there are small laser holes in packaging that reduces the oxygen exchange. When you take something out of the packaging, you are opening it up to the environment and to the oxygen. Whereas when it is kept in its plastic packaging...[food] is more stable and you will get longer out of it.” We also discuss why it is so important to keep your fridge clean and I ask the all-important question, should eggs be kept in or out of the fridge? For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/ And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and realhealth@independent.ie. Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from. The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week’s episode of Real Health, I’m bringing you my top tips for weight loss. Weight loss is about more than simply wanting to change how you look. We know weight is one of the big predictors of health-related issues as we get older. By carrying more of it on our bodies, you are putting pressure on your joints and aging the body quicker. So, wanting to lose some excess fat is a great thing to do for your health. Now that we’re coming into the summer, it's the perfect time to try and make some positive changes, both with your movement and your diet. While many people might think the focus should be on upping the amount of exercise, diet is arguably more important. Making changes to what you eat, contributes to about 60pc to 70pc of the results that you will experience. One of the easiest changes you can make to your diet, is ensuring you leave twelve hours between dinner and your breakfast the next morning. By doing this, it gives your body time to digest the food you’ve eaten. If for example, you have your breakfast at 7am, aim to finish eating by 7pm that evening. Not only does this ensure you are leaving a good amount of time before you start eating again, it also helps stop you snacking late into the night too. I also give you tips for tracking your food, how to incorporate movement into your day and how intense your exercises should be, so you achieve the results you want. For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/ And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and realhealth@independent.ie. Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from. The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week’s episode of Real Health, I’m bringing you my top tips for weight loss. Weight loss is about more than simply wanting to change how you look. We know weight is one of the big predictors of health-related issues as we get older. By carrying more of it on our bodies, you are putting pressure on your joints and aging the body quicker.So, wanting to lose some excess fat is a great thing to do for your health. Now that we’re coming into the summer, it's the perfect time to try and make some positive changes, both with your movement and your diet. While many people might think the focus should be on upping the amount of exercise, diet is arguably more important. Making changes to what you eat, contributes to about 60pc to 70pc of the results that you will experience. One of the easiest changes you can make to your diet, is ensuring you leave twelve hours between dinner and your breakfast the next morning. By doing this, it gives your body time to digest the food you’ve eaten. If for example, you have your breakfast at 7am, aim to finish eating by 7pm that evening. Not only does this ensure you are leaving a good amount of time before you start eating again, it also helps stop you snacking late into the night too. I also give you tips for tracking your food, how to incorporate movement into your day and how intense your exercises should be, so you achieve the results you want. For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and realhealth@independent.ie.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week’s show, we are tackling the issue of burnout. It is something that we’ve all become more aware of, especially over the course of the pandemic. While hopefully the stresses of lockdowns, home schooling and working at the kitchen table are behind us, life post Covid is bringing its own strains. Some people may be thriving with the new hybrid work life, but it might not be for everyone. So, with Workplace Wellbeing Day tomorrow, it is the perfect time to take a look at what can be done to beat burnout. I’m joined by burnout expert and psychotherapist, Siobhan Murray. Over three years ago, Siobhan joined me on the podcast to chat about her newly released book, The Burnout Solution. A lot has happened in those three years, and burnout has never been more topical. Siobhan says while burnout is commonly associated with work, she says it can be caused by many different situations: “A term I much prefer using which is; Burnout is emotional, mental, and physical exhaustion brought on by emotionally demanding situations...That emotionally demanding situation could be work, it could be family, it could be extended family...so it's not just work.”We also discuss what some of the common symptoms of burnout are, what you can do if you think a loved one might have burnout and what workplaces should do in order to mind their employees. For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and realhealth@independent.ie.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We’ve all either heard it before or offered it as advice; “It could be worse” or “Everything happens for a reason.” And while people might mean well, sometimes it's the last thing you want to hear when you are having a tough time. Is there an obsession with looking at the bright side of things? Well, our guest on Real Health this week certainly thinks so. I’m joined by psychotherapist Whitney Goodman to discuss how too much positivity can turn negative.Her new book, Toxic Positivity: Keeping It Real in a World Obsessed with Being Happy, looks at exactly that. Whitney explains that timing is important in determining when positivity will turn toxic: “I think timing is one of the biggest factors that brings positivity from being helpful or healthy into the relm of being toxic. When we use it at a time when someone is struggling and looking for a different type of support, that is when we can really see it go wrong.” Even aspiring to be happy all the time is not something Whitney believes we should be aiming for: “This goal that we are striving towards is actually going to make us more miserable because we are missing out on so much good data and information and experiences when we try to avoid everything in life that isn’t happiness or positivity.”We also discuss positive affirmations and what advice we should give when someone needs help or support.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The area of diet supplements can be a confusing one to navigate. You have to think about what vitamins you should be taking, what form they should come in and if they are worth the money. On this week’s episode of Real Health, I’m taking you through everything you need to know about supplements, with dietitian and sports nutritionist Kathryn Stewart. Kathryn says you only have to look to the name to know what supplements are meant to do. “You shouldn’t be using them as a replacement or a substitution. They are always in addition to what you are eating already. You want to think, can I get this from a certain food [and] am I getting enough from food? If that’s a no and something is low previously, then maybe you require supplements” she says. We also talk about some of the supplements that people should be taking all the time. Many of us have heard the advice from professionals about Vitamin D, but Kathryn also thinks omegas are something people need to consider. “If people do eat fish it tends to be the less offensive ones or the less smelly ones...but salmon, trout, mackerel sardines, the oily fish, they’re the ones where you’ll get the omegas from.” As omegas are crucial for brain and heart health, Kathryn recommends having two portions of these types of fish a week and if you can’t, then you should consider taking a supplement. For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week’s episode of Real Health, we are talking about the negative impact a more sedentary life can have on our health. With remote working a major part of our lives now, it means the way we move has totally changed. Less running for the bus, shorter distances to make tea or coffee, even the toilet is not as far away as it might have been in the office. All this means we can fall into the habit of sitting more. But could small changes to our daily lives help us improve our health and wellness? Joining me to discuss this is Suzy Reading, chartered psychologist and qualified yoga teacher and personal trainer, specialising in wellbeing. Her new book Sit to get Fit, gives readers a practical guide to changing the way we sit for our health, energy and longevity.Suzy says while sitting can be unhealthy for our physical health, it can also cause problems for our mental health too: “Really interestingly, research has shown that our posture has an impact on our mood, specifically that round posture that we end up in on the sofa. Especially if you couple that with a screen. Research is showing that in that round spine, downcast gaze position, it lowers your mood and it lowers your subjective energy levels.” We also chat through some simple and quick movements that you can add into your day, that could offset some of the harms done by sitting for extended periods of time. For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week’s episode, I’m bringing you my top tips for getting started with resistance training. I’ll be telling you all you need to know about introducing weight bearing exercises into your routine. From home workouts to choosing the right amount of weight for you, I’m covering it all. While cardio exercise like running, walking or swimming can be great for our health, resistance training is crucial for longevity. As we age, we begin to lose muscle mass and gain fat. So, training our bodies to be able to lift weights is really important to preserve the muscles we have. In turn it allows us to continue doing even the most basic of movements, like carrying the food shop in from the car or lifting our kids. I also have some great tips for making progress, perfect for those who have already introduced resistance training into their fitness schedule. For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Since we were young, many of us have been taught that “breakfast is the most important meal of the day”. But what if what we believe about breakfast or food more generally is wrong? On this week’s episode of Real Health, I’m joined by author and Professor of genetic epidemiology, Tim Spector.Tim is one of the world's leading scientists in food and nutrition. His book Spoon-Fed: Why almost everything we’ve been told about food is wrong, looks to bust the myths and rules surrounding food that have been accepted in society for decades. Tim says even as people got older, the idea that breakfast was the meal that couldn’t be missed continued. We were told skipping breakfast could lead to weight gain and over eating. This Tim says, is completely wrong: “There is no evidence that skipping breakfast is bad for you. There is increasingly good evidence that for many people, not everybody but for many people (sic), skipping breakfast is a way of losing weight and improving metabolism. We also know that it can help your gut microbes as well.”We also chat about obesity as well as fasting, something Tim says he does about twice a week. For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast.   And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and realhealth@independent.ie.  Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.  The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week on Real Health it's all about giving you the knowledge and the tools on how to not only live healthier, but longer too. While many of you will have read or been told what you need to do to live longer, it's as important to understand why making certain changes can have such a positive impact on longevity. From mindset to exercise and fasting, we are taking a look at the best changes you can make to your daily lives, with Professor Rose Anne Kenny. Rose Anne’s new book Age Proof, The New Science of Living a Longer and Healthier Life looks at the latest research behind why we age and how a lot of it is within our control. While diet and exercise are important for staying healthy as you age, Rose Anne says it's also about your attitude to aging: “How you perceive yourself to aging, actually seems to influence your physical aging going forward [as well as] cognitive brain health.” In other words, you are as old as you feel. We also discuss how sitting for long periods of time can be toxic to our cells and what type of movement Rose Anne says is the best to keep you feeling young. For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast.   And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and realhealth@independent.ie.  Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.  The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week on Real Health we’re discussing eating disorders, what they are and how they impact on the health of somebody suffering from them. Eating disorders are complex and affect both the mental and physical health of the person with one. So, when someone gets help, it's often from a team of people with different expertise. Today I’m joined by Aveen Bannon, Dietitian at the Dublin Nutrition Centre who specialises in eating disorders, to tell us more about them and her role in treatment.Aveen says for many people who decide to seek help for an eating disorder, contacting someone like a GP can be difficult: “Sometimes you might go straight to a psychologist, or sometimes you will go to a dietician. The first thing is to make one appointment. It might feel very overwhelming when you feel you have to suddenly do all of this...Once the journey starts it can be a little bit scary, but it will be worth it.”Aveen also talks through the different types of eating disorders there are and from her experience what some of the causes can be. If you have been impacted by the content in this week’s episode of Real Heal or would like to get some more information, go to www.bodywhys.ieFor more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/ And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and realhealth@independent.ie. Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from. The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With International Women’s Day coming up, we have decided to dedicate a whole episode to female health. Joining me this week is nutritionist and founder of The Fit Clinic, Dr Michelle Hone. We will be discussing everything from hormones and fertility to the importance of carbs in a woman’s diet. Michelle says women need to be treating their health and fitness differently to the way men do. She explains that a lot of the health and performance related research to date has been done in men. But with female hormones being very different, Michelle says it is not enough to simply take that information and apply it to women. “If you look at something like the fasting research or the low carbohydrate research, most of [that] has been done in men.“[Women] are not just shrunk down versions of the male physiology. Our female physiology is completely different, and we need to really honour our hormones” she says. We also chat about the impact overexercising can have on a woman’s body. “When we are over exercising or undereating, we are constantly sitting in this fight or flight response state. That is what is detrimental for our hormones. That is what switches off the interaction between the ovaries and the hypothalamic amenorrhea” Michelle says. For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/ And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and realhealth@independent.ie. Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from. The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s the body’s largest organ, but how much do we really know about our skin? Chances are, most of you have had some type skin concern, be it acne or rosace or a mole that didn’t look quite right. On this week’s show I’m joined by Consultant Dermatologist, Professor Nicola Ralph to discuss skin health as well as some of the most common skin concerns people have. Acne for example affects millions of people around the world. Professor Ralph says when chronic, it can have a negative impact on an individual’s life: “If you do somebody’s quality of life index, it’s basically a questionnaire of seeing how much the skin condition impacts on [a person]. It’s [acne] just as significant as having diabetes or asthma or epilepsy.” We also talk about what people can expect when getting a mole checked, what it really means for your skin’s health when you tan and how much SPF we should be wearing. Dr Ralph says we should be wearing SPF every day of the year. If we’re on holidays or even on a sunny day in Ireland, we need to be topping up every two hours: “Most of us underuse sunscreen. We tend to bring that one bottle [of SPF] on holidays and it seems to go on everyone, and we still bring that same bottle home. But really a full shot glass is what an application should be for the full body and that should be reapplied every two hours or so.” For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast. And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and realhealth@independent.ie.  Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.  The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With life returning to some kind of normality and restrictions easing despite Covid-19 still circulating, many of us may be feeling lots of different emotions around the change to our daily lives. Now that we’re transitioning back to the way we used to live, some might feel apprehensive about the change, stress about the virus and maybe even anxiety at the thought socialising again. Joining me today to help navigate through all those emotions about life after lockdown is Louize Carroll, consultant psychologist and co-founder of PRISM Therapy Online. In this episode, Louize breaks down some of the long-term psychological effects of the pandemic. “We’ve had two years to try and integrate and navigate the new feelings of anxiety that came with what we were experiencing” she says. However, Louize reminds us that, “Just as long as it took us to adapt our way into the pandemic, we will have to gently adapt our way out of it too.”Louize also gives some tips on how to deal with overstimulation. She says taking time out of the day to focus on yourself, recognising triggers and limiting social media use are some great places to start. For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/ And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and realhealth@independent.ie. Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from. The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week’s show, we’re taking a look at how to improve our mental strength, by challenging our inner critic, understanding what drives our behaviors and how we can successfully hit our goals by focusing on the journey and not the end result. To discuss this, I’m joined by health and wellness coach, Pat Divilly, who’s written a book all about this. Fit Mind: 8 Weeks to Change Your Inner Soundtrack and Tune Into Your Greatness aims to help readers examine and master their inner voice and find self-confidence. Pat says many people look for confidence in the wrong place. They focus on a future goal or point in time they believe will change their attitude. However, confidence is something that comes from feeling certain. While looking to the future can be a positive thing, the future can be unpredictable. “Most people look for their confidence in the future. They think, when I get somewhere, I’ll be confident. But the future is uncertain. So, what that tells us is we can only find confidence in the past where we have certainty” he says. We also discuss setting goals, how to avoid feeling defeated when we miss them and finding the small wins in our daily lives that will keep us motivated. For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and realhealth@independent.ie.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week’s show, it’s all about mindset. Why it’s important and how having the right mindset can be the key to unlocking your health goals.Joining me to chat about this, is sports nutritionist and strength and conditioning coach, Brian Keane. His new book, The Keane Edge looks to help you find the right mindset and motivation so you can stick to your fitness journey. Brian says for many people, knowing what you need to do to get healthy is not always enough to keep you on track. “You can know that you need to get into a calorie deficit but that doesn’t stop people going off plan” he says. Things like emotional eating or self-sabotage are things people can struggle to overcome.That is where mindset comes in. Instead of looking at these things as failures, Brian says we should change our view on them and turn them into a positive. “With self-sabotage, identifying the failure as feedback is the first thing. So, every failed diet, every failed exercise programme, every failed thing you’ve done within health, fitness and nutrition that hasn’t worked for you is feedback on what not to do in the future” he says. While it can be easy to lump all that failure together, Brian says reflecting on your past experiences is the key to finding what will work for you going forward. For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and realhealth@independent.ie.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Setting resolutions to be healthier and focus on wellness can be a great way to kick off the new year. That, however, does not mean it is an easy change to make. While many will embrace a new way of living at, it is common for some to find themselves struggling to keep the motivation going as the months go on.That’s why on this week’s episode, I thought it was the perfect time to chat through some of the top ten reasons why people struggle with their fitness goals and give you my tips to help you get back on track. From overcoming the dreaded progress plateau to fighting off workout boredom, I have it all covered. Even if you find you have been able to stick to your resolutions, you’ll pick up some great advice on how to ensure you keep hitting your wellness goals throughout the year. For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and realhealth@independent.ie.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

While exercise, hydration and diet are all important aspects of health, it can be difficult to hit our goals if we are worried about money. It is something that can cause stress and anxiety to many people, which can impact on our sleep and motivation.With our wallets exhausted from the December spending, this week on Real Health we are looking at how we can get our finances back on track. I’m joined money coach and author, Mrs Smart Money, Kel Galavan. Tackling our spending habits can be really daunting but Kel says this time of year can be the perfect time to decide to take back control: “You have the head space in the first couple of months of the year to get the good systems in place and good habits in place when it comes to money. I think the start of the year to set yourself for the rest of year and going forward, is probably one of the best times to do it.” From facing the money conversation with a partner to “no spend days”, Kel has loads of great tips on how we can all improve our financial health and achieve financial security in 2022. For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/ And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and realhealth@independent.ie. Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from. The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

While many of us have decided to kick off the new year determined to improve our health and fitness, it is important that we also look at the other ways to improve our overall wellbeing. That is why on this week’s show, we will be looking at just that. I’m joined by Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at Trinity College Dublin, Jim Lucey. We discuss how to build resilience, manage stress and how to make wellness obtainable. His book A Whole New Plan for Living, gives readers ten steps to show us how, by maintaining balance and wellness every day, we can achieve overall wellbeing. Jim says wellness is about more than just the absence of disease or illness, it is a more holistic and inclusive approach to health: “The best definition I use [in the book] is called the eight dimensions of wellness in which wellness is seen as having physical, occupational, environmental, intellectual, social, emotional, spiritual and financial aspects.”By breaking up wellness into parts, Jim says it is easier to apply positive changes in our lives: “Wellness is such a huge thing on its own. When you break it up, you can then say ‘well I can do a small thing’.”It’s important not to make these new plans too difficult or dramatic though. In order to try and implement some change in your life, Jim says you should make the goal small enough, so you know you can achieve it every day. For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and realhealth@independent.ie.Don’t forget to rate, review and follow on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Happy New Year everyone! On this week’s show, we are kicking off 2022 with a top tips episode. Rather than focusing on new year's resolutions, this time it's all about giving you small but achievable goals that will get you on track to lifelong health. Joining me to bring you his tips for getting your new year off to a great start, is fitness coach and nutritionist Shane Walsh. Shane’s advice is to keep it simple. Instead of trying to overhaul your diet or cutting out food groups entirely, Shane says it's important not to overlook the basics, like having regular meals: “What happens with a lot of people is that they don’t eat regularly throughout the day. Then in the evenings we’re really tired and really hungry and we get emotional or bored and that’s when the eating happens.” This is where the three meals a day and two or three snacks come in. By making sure you aren’t skipping meals, Shane says your blood sugars remain steady, you won’t be as hungry, your attention span will improve and you’ll probably be a nicer person to yourself too. But it’s not all about food! We also chat about ways to curb screen time, the importance of staying in touch with friends and how we need to schedule in the time for movement, in whatever format we like. For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/ And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie. Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from. The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For the last episode of Real Health for 2021, I’m bringing you an inspirational weight loss story. I’m joined by Leah Punch, who’s here to tell us about her incredible journey after getting a gastric by-pass. From being her heaviest at almost 22 stone, Leah has managed to lose a whopping 160 pounds. Leah says she has struggled with her weight since the age of six. After years of dieting, it was in 2017 she decided to put her name down for a gastric bypass in Ireland. However, she was told it could be up to eight years before she would be offered the surgery, which Leah says was too long to wait. “I was thinking to myself first of all, I probably won’t be alive in six to eight years and second of all, I want to change now.” That was when she decided to look abroad for the surgery, finally settling on a clinic in Lithuania. Despite losing 9 stone in the first year alone after the bypass, Leah says it wasn’t easy those few months after the operation: “It was intense going from being able to eat all this food to barely eating anything.” Now two years post op, Leah says it's all about having a balanced diet: “It's like something is after rearranging in my body. I now eat and I feel full. I never felt full before. I could always eat and eat and eat. It's just life changing.” For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week's episode of Real Health, we thought we’d change it up and bring you an episode that is a little different to what we usually do. This week, I’m delighted to be joined by the Investigations Editor of the Sunday World, Nicola Tallant to talk all thing's journalism, how the world of crime has changed and how she copes with the pressures of her job. Nicola says being a journalist was something she knew she wanted to do from a young age, although the drive to be a crime journalist came later: “I don’t think I was totally focused on crime journalism. That came when I started working and I started being posted onto jobs involving crime stories. I realised that I really enjoyed them and found them fascinating.” We also discuss her take on how, as a country we need to look at dealing with crime in a new way: “Policing is just one aspect of dealing with crime, and it's probably not actually the best one...there’s been studies across the States and particularly in Baltimore that would suggest that properly funding community organizations equaling the amount of funding that goes in to policing and education...can have even more benefits than cracking down harder on crime.”For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week’s show, we are keeping on the Christmas theme, but it’s a slightly different approach than usual. While many of us are looking forward to the Christmas season, for some it’s a time of year that can be really challenging. From staying with family, to avoiding challenging conversations around the dinner table it’s not always the picture-perfect time it's made out to be. Here to help us navigate some of the more complicated sides of Christmas is Psychotherapist and owner of Maynooth Counselling, Helen Vaughen.Helen says people can come under serious pressure to make Christmas like that in the TV ads. Instead, she says you need to focus on what you want out of the holidays: “One of the things I generally say to people around Christmas is try not to pressure yourself to do things you don’t want to do or buy things you don’t want to buy...don’t be afraid to change traditions.” The extra time with family over the holidays can be a great way to catch up. However, spending lots of extra time with relatives can test your patience. Helen’s advice for getting through what can be an intense time is to make sure you try and be as mature as possible: “If somebody is trying to parent you or give out to you about something, try and act like an adult and either agree with it or disagree with it...Try not to slip into child mode subconsciously and start giving out.”For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Christmas is fast approaching and many of us are looking forward to some time off work, eating our favourite festive foods and indulging a little more than usual. With that in mind, I thought this week is the best time to bring you some of my top tips to surviving the season. I’m going to teach you all the tips and tools that I can, to get you through the festive period in the healthiest way possible while also enjoying yourselves. Staying healthy over Christmas does not mean you have to be the Grinch! You can absolutely have a drink and go back for a second round of Christmas dinner. Instead, my tips will help you keep that balance between staying on track and having fun. It means that by the New Year, you won’t feel exhausted by all the socialising and the dinners that people normally do. So get your pen and paper out, don your Christmas jumper and join me as I take you through my 10 top tips for surviving the Christmas season. For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With Black Friday and Cyber Monday over and done with, Christmas is well and truly underway. So, this week we’re going festive bringing you a Real Health Christmas gift guide.Struggling to find the perfect gift for your fitness fanatic friend or family member? Well, we have everything you need right here. From recovery boots to fitness wearables, we have presents at all price points. It’s not all about fitness though. This gift guide will give you some great suggestions for the best tech presents and perfect stocking fillers. There’s something here for everyone. Joining me to bring you their top suggestions are Adrian Weckler, Irish Independent’s Technology Editor and Suzie O’Neill, owner of Irish cosmetics company Ayu. For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week on Real Health, I’m doing a follow on from last week’s show, where I gave you top tips to measure your health. For this episode, I’m looking at the best tests and screenings you should be getting that will tell you where your health is at. From skin checks to diabetes screenings, we have it all here. Joining me to take us through his top health checks that could save your life is Professor Carl Vaughan, Consultant Cardiologist at CUH, Mercy Hospital and Bons Secours.Professor Vaughan says health checks are important because we can’t always rely on symptoms to tell us something might be wrong: “I think symptoms are very important and they are a great driver...but a lot of what we screen for are for things that won’t present with symptoms until late.”Professor Vaughan says scheduling a health screening is something people can do, to ensure they stay well: “it's not necessarily just a search for diseases. It is a search for wellness as well as disease. You can identify something that may be incubating in your body for the future and head it off before it becomes an advanced disease or does damage that cannot be subsequently fixed in future years.”One of Carl’s top health screenings is a blood pressure check, something he says is important to have tested: “Blood pressure has no symptoms. You can’t guess what it is. You have to measure it and it can be done in five minutes. It's an example of a simple health check that can be done by anyone themselves or in a doctor’s surgery, pharmacy or clinic.”For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week’s show, I’m bringing you the best ways to measure your health. It’s possibly the most overlooked aspect of health and wellness. In this politically correct age, measuring your health in some respects has become a bit of a taboo topic. Some people recommend that you don’t do it at all. However, it's something I feel very strongly about. Having worked in the fitness industry for over twenty years, working with people on all aspects of health, I genuinely believe the most important thing for life long health is to measure some aspect of it. By measuring something, you can see progress. Even if you don’t improve, being aware of it means you are already that little bit healthier. So, get your pen and your paper out, because this week’s top tips episode is possibly the most important one, we’ve done to date. I’ll be going through things like resting heart rate, measuring your waistline and the best ways to determine body fat and muscle. For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week’s Real Health episode, we’re going back to basics bringing you the best tips and tricks you need to make cooking at home hassle-free.  To chat us through her top tips for making cooking as easy as possible, I’m joined by food influencer Sarah Butler. Her new book, Home Cooking, Simple Food For Busy Lives is about helping people get out of their food rut and develop cooking skills, all while covering the basics.  Sarah says during lockdown, lots of people chose to move away from ready meals and opted for cooking from scratch. “People learnt how to cook through lock down because they had time. They grew their confidence. I think confidence was a big issue with people, they feel like they can’t cook or don’t know how to do it. So, with that little break in lockdown...they really learnt to cook.” While recipes and techniques are crucial to making a great meal, Sarah says getting the right preparation done is as important for making cooking easy. “Your food shop is a massive thing...Don’t just go in and buy a random food shop. Have a plan, make a list of your dinners and then do your shop based on the ingredients you need.” We also talk about how to change up your old reliable dinners, the best ways to use up leftovers and improve lunch time favourites like sandwiches.  For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/  And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.  Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.  The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With lockdowns behind us and life returning to some form of normality, many of us have found we are carrying a little extra fat than we’d like. So, for this week’s Real Health episode I’m bringing you the top things you’ll need to help you lose fat. I’m delighted to be joined by former Munster and Ireland rugby player Peter Stringer. Now a certified personal trainer, Peter takes me through his top tips for fat loss. This includes things like water intake, how sleep is crucial, and why we need to make sure we have enough protein in our diet, so we achieve the change we want.  Peter says being in a calorie deficit is hugely important to shifting excess fat, as is an understanding of how much we’re eating every day: “The number one thing for fat loss, you need to be eating less than you are burning off...pick two days during the week and one day at the weekend, set those days out to take a look and tot up those calories – so you have an idea of what you’re eating.” He also says while cardio exercises will put you into that all important calorie deficit, we need to make sure that weight training forms part of our workout routine for fat loss: “Ultimately you want to preserve that lean muscle mass when you are dieting. One of the ways to help that is to lift weights. In combination with a high protein diet the idea is to lose as much fat as possible while trying to maintain muscle mass. By doing resistance training, that’ll certainly help.”  For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/ And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie. Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from. The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week’s Real Health episode, I’m delighted to be joined by hotelier John Brennan to discuss lessons he’s learned throughout his life and how he overcame obstacles along the way; from struggling in school to finding his passion for hospitality.  In his new book, My name is Jhon, John writes about his battle with dyslexia, life as an entrepreneur and how a cancer diagnosis wasn’t going to stop him making a new business opportunity a success.   John says being told he had dyslexia when he was younger, wasn’t something that upset him. Instead, he was thrilled with it:  It’s a beautiful word, its exotic and its different. And I’m thinking wow I have that, that’s really great. It was nice to be labelled with something other than stupidity.” We also discuss John’s diagnoses with stage four Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma, a treatable but not curable form of cancer. Although being told he had cancer wasn’t the only big news he received that afternoon: “At five o’clock that evening I got a phone call from the auctioneer to say we’ve bought Dromquinna, that the bank had accepted our offer. So that’s how you deal with a diagnosis like that.” While some might think the news couldn’t have come at a more stressful time, John says it was the best thing that could have happened: “It focused my brain for the year I was having treatment. I was doing Dromquinna Manor up which was basically an abandoned site for 12 years...that kept the brain focused. You can become very demoralised with a diagnosis like that.”   For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/  And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.  Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.  The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week’s show I’ll be looking at how you can achieve your best potential for a healthy lifestyle in your 40s.   I’m joined by Dr Marc Bubbs, naturopathic doctor and performance nutrition lead for Canada Basketball. His new book, Peak 40 looks to give you all the tools you need to reignite your energy and passion at any age, but particularly in your 40s.    Marc says between the age of 41 to 48 many of us hit a low period when it comes to happiness: “There’s that idea that our mindset is being impacted…we know if we are lacking sleep, the kids are at home, work is busy, we might be taking care of ageing parents, there’s a lot going on. That can make it a little more challenging. It might be why we are holding onto a little more weight and the aches and pains begin to act up.”   We also discuss how beneficial exercise and resistance training is for maintaining muscle mass as we get older. Marc says including exercise in your day doesn’t have to mean spending an hour in the gym.   Instead, Marc advises we try fit in “exercise snacks” in our schedules, which he says can make all the difference: “We know we don’t have a lot of time in the busyness of midlife, so let's find 10-minute or 20-minute blocks where we can get that movement in.”    For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:  www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/    And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.    Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.    The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week’s show I’ll be talking about sleep, something so many people are interested in - probably because we feel we aren’t getting enough. With many workers having returned to the office, how will this impact our sleep?   
 I’m joined by Professor Andrew Coogan, behavioural neuroscientist who specialises in sleep. He is also the director of the Chronobiology and Sleep Research Laboratory at Maynooth University.  
 Andrew says there are many reasons why we need sleep, including for learning and memory: “Our brains replay the information we have acquired during the day while we sleep. That helps strengthen our memory for the things we want to remember.”   
 We discuss how much sleep we should be getting. While eight hours is often suggested to be the right amount of sleep each night, Andrew says it's not that simple: “The amount of sleep we need changes with what stage of life we’re at...then within that, we are all different as people.  There are probably some people out there that five hours of sleep is enough for them.”See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week’s Real Health episode, I’m bringing you the top ten tips you’ll need to overhaul your diet.   No fads, no gimmicks, just easy things you can do to improve your health. I’ll be looking at why we shouldn’t skip meals, the importance of hydration and why incorporating colour into every meal can be a simple yet effective way to improve what you eat.   To discuss all this, I’m joined by Dietitian with the Dublin Nutrition Centre, Aveen Bannon.    Aveen says we can over complicate health. She says we need to get back to basics and should be inclusive rather than exclusive when it comes to food: “It’s as unhealthy to focus on the health of the food as it is the  “unhealthiness” of a food. You want to have a relationship where you are still enjoying food but are still getting the nutrients you need.”   We also talk about how fibre has become the forgotten nutrient and why it’s so important to shake oat or almond milk in the carton, every time we have it.  For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/  And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.  Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.  The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week’s show I’m talking about sex, the importance of communication and the stigma around seeking help for sexual issues. My guest is sex and relationship educator Grace Alice O’Shea. Grace has a qualification in Occupational Therapy and a master’s in Health Promotion, specialising in sexual health. She says she is passionate about making Ireland a more sex-positive country, where people can talk about all aspects of sexuality, without feeling a sense of shame or stigma. Grace says while sex education in Ireland has come a long way, there is still room for improvement. She believes sex education should start from a young age, addressing age-appropriate topics like consent and making sure to use the correct names for body parts: “Its madness we don’t have more education and more honest conversations with young people. It really does young people an injustice not to given them proper fact-based, sex positive, comprehensive education.”We also discuss how people can address sexual problems they’re having with their partner. Grace says it’s important not to have conversations about sex when the situation is already emotionally charged. Instead, she suggests avoiding these kinds of discussions about sex when in the bedroom. Grace says just because a couple is experiencing problems with sex, doesn’t mean it’s the end of the relationship: “There is this stereotype that couples who are having problems with sex, are doomed. That’s not the case at all. Most couples will have issues at some point. It absolutely isn’t the end of the world. There is help.” For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter andrealhealth@independent.ie.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week’s show, how to get motivated and how to stay motivated. Many people feel they put on weight over the summer with a change in routine and increased alcohol consumption. This is totally normal. We’ve all been through a tough year and a half, and we’ve had the chance to enjoy a slice of normality over the summer so don’t beat yourself up. Get a pen and paper out when you’re listening and take note of the tips that you think will work for you. Give it a little bit of time. One, two or three weeks following these tips will deliver massive results. These tips are not rocket science, but after 22 years as a personal trainer I know they are effective. For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter andrealhealth@independent.ie.Don’t forget to follow and like on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, orwherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week’s show, I’ll be talking about the menstrual cycle.For far too long periods have been a taboo subject. Each month many women are faced with bleeding, severe pain and a litany of menstrual problems.However, with new attitudes, treatments and technological developments things are changing.Joining me to talk about periods, pain and irregular cycles is leading expert Dr. Caoimhe Hartley, GP & Menopause Specialist.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, orwherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week’s show, I’ll be talking about Suicide Awareness in Ireland. Every year suicide accounts for over 800,000 deaths globally. Even though attitudes have changed in recent years, there is still a stigma surrounding suicide. We can all play a role in reaching out to someone we think in is in need – no one should suffer in silence. Last month Pieta House launch their: ‘Know the Signs Campaign’, which aims to help people recognise suicide warning signs and what someone can do to help. Joining me to discuss suicide awareness in Ireland is Leigh Kenny, Qualified Therapist & Pieta House Regional Manager for the Greater Dublin Region. For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/ And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie. Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from. The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week’s show I’ll be talking about the prevalence of smoking in Ireland.Ireland is recognised as a global leader in tobacco control having developed extensive treatment programmes for those struggling with tobacco and nicotine dependence. But can the country reach its goal of becoming tobacco free by 2025? Joining me on this week’s podcast is Dr Damien Lowry, Senior Counselling Psychologist and chartered member of the Psychological Society of Ireland. Damien has lot of really good advice on how to quit smoking. For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter andrealhealth@independent.ie.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, orwherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week’s show I’ll be talking about pelvic floor physiotherapy.One in three women leak urine – it is a massive problem in this country.Some women will have a severe urge to pee, which can happen very often, hourly, or more and it can have them up several times at night. These women though they are not leaking, their lives are ruled by their bladders. It is also an issue for many men. But there is help out there.Joining me on this week’s podcast to discuss the pelvic floor and the treatments that are available is Aoife Ni Eochaidh, Chartered Physiotherapist and Clinical Specialist Women’s & Men’s Health & Continence. Aoife has lots of expert advice on how to prevent pelvic floor issues as well as manage them. For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter andrealhealth@independent.ie.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, orwherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week’s episode of the Real Health podcast, I'll be discussing anxiety, what it is and how we can offer support to someone who has it. I’m joined by Counselling Psychologist and anxiety expert Dr Rachel Allan, to talk about how we can help somebody with anxiety, by becoming better listeners, supporting them when they try to make a change and how to look after our own mental health in the process. Rachel’s new book, How to Help Someone With Anxiety, looks at just that. It's a practical guide to help you be there for a loved one, while giving you confidence to assist them in navigating their journey with anxiety. “Really anxiety is partly a mental response but it's so much in our bodies. Anxiety has one purpose and one purpose only and that is to keep us safe - to protect us, to tune us into a threat that might be in our environment.”Rachel says the pandemic has undoubtedly made people more anxious. “We like a sense of predictability. The pandemic has really played to our vulnerabilities in terms of anxiety. On the one hand, we’ve got the illness itself...in addition to that, we have all the stuff that’s happened around the pandemic; lockdowns, change in employment, massive changes in how we live our lives, distance from loved ones. With all that comes a sense of unpredictability.” We also discuss how to help someone we know who has anxiety. Rachel says oftentimes, we think the best way to tackle anxiety is to remove the cause or to completely avoid certain situations. Instead, Rachel believes this can prolong the problem: “When someone close to us is suffering the most natural response is to want to make it go away. We want to make them feel better...One of the really important steps to supporting someone to live better with anxiety, is to get a little bit of an understanding of what anxiety is but also what keeps it going. And often the one thing that keeps anxiety going is the stuff we try to do to not feel anxious.”Rachel also gives us great tips on how to be better listeners, what the right questions to ask are and how to resist the urge to fix the problem. For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter andrealhealth@independent.ie.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, orwherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week’s Real Health episode is all about pain.Chronic pain is something that impacts many in Ireland, with chronic back pain one of the most common forms that people suffer from.On the show, I’ll be talking about what pain really is, our understanding of it and how some pain can be contagious.I’m joined by doctor and clinical fellow at Oxford University, Monty Lyman, who is an expert in pain. Monty’s new book, The Painful Truth explores the world of pain. It looks at cutting-edge research, how our emotions impact the pain we experience and how hypnotherapy and virtual reality can play a role in pain relief.Monty believes that most of us don’t fully understand pain and its purpose. He says we need to acknowledge the role of pain and by properly understanding it’s function, he says it can help in dealing with chronic, persistent cases: “Understanding that pain is trying to be a guardian angel...that it's trying to protect you, even if it is completely ruining your life...is the first step to understanding how to live with, reduce and even eliminate persistent pain.”Apart from studying pain itself, Monty has also looked at pain relief. Not just the traditional forms of painkillers, but alternatives, like the use of virtual reality and hypnotherapy. The latter is something he says helped him with persistent pain he was suffering from: “I was very skeptical about hypnotherapy. I had never been taught about it during medical school. I had seen some really good evidence [of] hypnotherapy [used] for a number of pain conditions. I have suffered with occasionally really bad irritable bowel syndrome since I was fifteen. I interviewed a hypnotherapist for the book who offered me a session and my IBS was completely cured...it was near miraculous.”Monty has also examined how we can feel others' pain and how we’ve developed this ability in order to protect ourselves from experiencing the same hurt: “Research shows we’re all mirrors. If you see someone hurt whether it's in real life or in an action movie or rugby match - you see these hits and you flinch. That’s because the same areas in the brain that are activated when you experience pain yourself, are being activated.”For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week’s show, I’ll be talking about cocaine addiction in Ireland. The latest figures released by the Health Research Board, shows the number of people seeking treatment for problem cocaine use has increased, with the number of crack cocaine cases increasing by 400 per cent in recent years. The HRB says last year, cocaine was the only substance where they saw an increase in those entering treatment for. To discuss cocaine use in Ireland, I’m joined by Consultant Psychiatrist, Professor Colin O’Gara. Colin is the head of addiction services at St John of God Hospital in Dublin, where they provide specialist services in substance misuse. Colin says all the indicators are pointing to a rise in cocaine use in Ireland, which he says is a result of the drug becoming normalised as well as widely available: “There’s probably been two peaks [in cocaine use]. The first was around the Celtic Tiger and with the economic crash, it almost disappeared. Then as the economy improved from 2013 onwards, we saw on the clinical frontline, reports of cocaine increasing quite substantially and up to recent years it's been quite dramatic. It's really become very normalised from our point of view, and the availability is huge. So when you have normalisation and strong availability you have serious problems.” Colin says cocaine impacts all parts of the body when taken: “Cocaine is a stimulant that affects all systems of the body...the heart, the lungs, the brain, everything. All of the above is affected by cocaine. It's a very potent stimulant that initially leads to a massive release of dopamine...The problem with stimulants as opposed to opioids like heroin, is they tend to create a very edgy experience...it can create a lot of anxiety and paranoia.” We also discuss what somebody should do if they feel they need to seek help for cocaine addiction, as well as all the different types of addiction services that are available. For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/ And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter andrealhealth@independent.ie. Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, orwherever you get your podcasts from. The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week’s show, I’m talking all about healthy aging, the myths around it, and why it’s important to keep exercising as we get older.I’m joined by personal trainer and fitness expert Jacqueline Hooton, who specialises in how to stay active in your 50s and 60s. She’s all about promoting active ageing, while helping to avoid physical decline in midlife.Jacqueline is an expert on knowing the importance of exercise, especially for women after menopause: “Bone health can massively decrease because of the menopause. Weight training and loading the bones can improve their strength, helping to avoid osteoporosis.”Jacqueline says it's not just about keeping fit, but making sure we retain as much movement as possible, so we can do the basics when we’re older, like brushing our hair or putting something in the kitchen press: “We do lose muscle mass with each decade. If we don’t promote the retention of muscle mass with movement through exercise, we’ll lose it.”Even if you haven’t exercised properly in years, Jacqueline says it's never too late to start: “You are never too old and you never have too many underlying medical conditions or injuries, that you can do nothing. There is always a work around. We need to challenge the idea that you can be too old. We know we can get stronger at any age.”We also talk about motivation and goals, and Jacqueline gives loads of great tips on how to start your fitness journey at any age. You can find Jacqueline on instagram at @hergardengymFor more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, orwherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week we’re going to talk about running injuries and how to avoid them. Running has become one of the most popular ways to improve fitness, and to stay in shape. Especially during lockdown when gyms, team sports and swimming pools were off limits. But most runners must deal with injury at some point. Most injuries are caused by repetitive stress, but sudden injuries like a sprained ankle or a torn muscle can happen, too. I’m joined by Peter Francis author of Running From Injury. Why Runners Get Injured And How To Stop It. “Put simply, runners get injured when they change anything too quickly. Changes in running distance or speed, surface, footwear, stress levels, environment and non-running activity can all precede a running injury.” “Humans are born to run. Your achilles tendon (the cord at the back of your heel) is around 10 times longer than that of our ape-like cousins and combined with the arch in our feet, it means our feet and ankles can act like springs. We have big bum muscles on the side of our hips that stop us falling over and we have a big ligament that runs down the back of our neck that keeps our head still as we bop along (watch a ponytail swinging to see this ligament in action while restraining the head).” This episode is jam-packed full of tips from Peter on avoiding injury and maintaining longevity in your running career. For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/ And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie. Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from. The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We all know drinking plenty of water is good for us. But how else can water improve our health and well being?On this week’s show, I’m talking about how we can embrace water, from the sea to the shower - looking at the other ways it can help us. I’m joined by Dr Catherine Kelly, geography academic and Director of the Wild Beach School in Brighton. She’s the author of the new book Blue Spaces: How and Why Water Can Make You Feel Better. Catherine believes water can be beneficial to our mental as well as our physical well being: “We feel relief when we see water. When we are in or near water our troubles and busy thoughts often quieten.” She says more than ever, experts are looking at how water can have a positive impact on our mood: “While the connection between ‘green’ landscapes and mental health is well documented, researchers are increasingly intrigued by our psychological response to oceans, rivers, lakes, canals and waterfalls – and how they can induce a positive mood, reduce negative feelings while helping us to be present.”For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week, I’m joined by one of the world's leading brain surgeons and neuroscientists, Dr Rahul Jandial. We discuss how our brains process stress and how to enhance its performance so we can work better under pressure. Dr Jandial says the brain needs stress to be able to cope with future challenges, but too much can be detrimental: “We need stress in life. If we don’t have enough stress, we become brittle. Too much, and we break. This is true at the cellular level, too. Not enough stress and stem cells in the brain won’t release new brain cells.” We also talk about the importance of controlled breathing in order to focus when working under pressure, something he uses all the time in his work: “Hyperventilation makes fright worse and leaves you jittery, twitchy, off your game. That's why controlling your breathing is step one of crisis management.” For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/ And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie. Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from. The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week it’s all about wellness and I’m giving you my top ten tips for increasing your wellbeing.This episode is jam packed with lots of helpful ideas to improve your health and happiness.Firstly, it’s important to decide what wellness means to you and what exactly you’d like to change.I’ll take you through strategies for achieving your goals, eating well, sleeping well and reducing your stress levels.I don’t know about you, but I often have so many thoughts running through my head that it can seem overwhelming, so I use a ‘brain-dump diary’. I simply take those thoughts, put them down on paper, organise myself and close it off. And that’s a really useful way to manage stress.Structure is very helpful for maintaining wellness especially when working from home where the work-life balance can blur easily. I’m a fan of a ‘virtual commute’ to get me into the work frame of mind. So, for 15 or 20 minutes at the start of my day I walk about my estate. And at the end of the day I leave the house to do the same thing.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week we’re talking about CPR after Danish mid-fielder Christian Eriksen received emergency medical treatment on the pitch when he collapsed recently because of a cardiac arrest during the first half of the Euros clash with Finland in Copenhagen.Thankfully Erikson is recovering and he will have a heart-starter device implanted so he doesn’t suffer further arrests.I’m joined by Galway GP Dr Brian Higgins to talk us through CPR. Brian explains the difference between cardiac arrest and heart attack and how and when defibrillators should be used. He also plenty of tips on the basics of CPR.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya HealthcarSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week I’m talking about confidence, why it's important and how we can stay confident in the face of failure.I’m joined by clinical psychologist and neuroscientist Ian Robertson, who has written the new book ‘How Confidence Works: The new science of self belief, why some people learn it and others don’t’.Ian says having confidence can empower us to reach heights never thought possible: ‘It could make us healthier, live longer, happier and more motivated. But if you don't have confidence, it can have a devastating effect on your future. Confidence lies at the core of what makes things happen.’According to Ian, confidence isn’t necessarily something we are born with, but it is something we can learn. He says it can even change our brain’s physiology: ‘Feeling confident about being able to face up to something you are frightened of actually boosts your immune system, despite the fear you feel.’And Ian has some really great tips on how to turn your nerves on their head and use that energy to build your confidence. We also talk about things like Imposter Syndrome, what it is, how somebody can recognise it in themselves and what we can do to put a stop to it.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week’s show, I’m talking about weight loss, how to build a strong plan and what to do if you hit challenges along the way. I’m joined by Trisha Lewis, of Trisha’s Transformation who has been incredibly honest about her weight loss journey so far. ‘I don’t know how I didn’t cop it already Karl but I had an eating disorder…I have a binge eating disorder and from there I went to therapy and I realised I needed a bit of help with my head and from the first session everything made sense to me.’ Trisha tells me how the pandemic impacted her weight loss plan and how she has gotten back on track and finally found balance in her life. Like many of us, Trisha has found therapy helpful in learning to set boundaries and say ‘no’. ‘If you feel that you don’t have boundaries and you’re that person that says yes the whole time chance the ‘no’ every so often because it’s actually so refreshing and you realise how much time you actually have and when you say ‘yes’ it’s because you actually want to. Trisha has written a new book, Trisha’s 21 Day Reset which gives you the foundations of a resilient weight-loss plan, so that when you fall off the wagon you don’t have to beat yourself up – you simply reset. Trisha, who is best known for documenting her weight loss experience on her instagram, says it hasn’t been easy: “Failures, setbacks and curveballs have all been part of the journey, but I want to spread the message that weight loss doesn’t have to be about constant deprivation and self-punishment.” As a chef, she also gives top tips on how to eat better: “I believe it’s important for people losing weight that they don't lose out on flavour as well.” For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/ And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie. Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from. The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week’s Real Health episode is all about gut health.Irritable bowel syndrome is a bit of a taboo subject but it is estimated to effect one in ten people. It impacts two and half times more women than men and can have a significant impact on a person’s sex life, relationships, work and social activities.But it doesn’t have to be that way! I’m joined by is a consultant gastroenterologist Professor Barbara Ryan and registered dietician Elaine McGowan AKA The Gut Experts to talk about managing and living with IBS.According to the Gut Experts “Many of those with IBS feel dismissed by family, friends and even healthcare professionals and unfortunately there is no cure for IBS but there is hope. With dietary and lifestyle modifications, and sometimes medication it can be managed. Finding the right diet, managing stress and getting good sleep are key. It is a holistic approach.”“Every person has different triggers. Sometimes people are eating too ‘healthy’ and aren’t actually getting enough fiber in their diet.”“A dietician will examine a client’s pattern of eating, the fluids they are consuming (too much coffee), are the eating on the hoof. All these things impact IBS.”“We ask people to keep a food diary and then we produce a dietary strategy for people which involved reducing the amount of certain foods for 4-6 weeks and then reintroducing them slowly.”For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week’s show is all about the menopause. Although it directly affects half the population, the menopause has remained a stubbornly taboo topic. 80% of women who reach menopause suffer symptoms but are often misdiagnosed. Now the shroud of secrecy has finally started to lift.British TV presenter Davina McCall has made a documentary on the topic and shared her own HRT journey. And here in Ireland, Joe Duffy’s Liveline was kept going for over a week with listeners sharing their menopause story. Today I’m joined by Dr Deirdre Lundy a specialist in Women’s Health who explains everything there is to know about the menopause – what it is, when it starts, what the symptoms are and how to treat it. Dr Lundy is one of only four doctors in Ireland who is accredited by the British Menopause Society. She breaks down the myths surrounding hormone replacement therapy. “The original HRT products were gathered from the urine of pregnant horses. These versions of HRT raised concerns about the welfare of the pregnant mares as well as the impact an equine hormone might have on a woman.”She also explains that a flawed 2002 study from the US created concern about a possible link between using HRT and breast cancer. “So, during the last 20 years GPs became deskilled in its use.”This episode is packed full of great tips and practical advice on how to deal with symptoms of the menopause.And for more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week I break down the six foundations of fat loss with personal trainer and podcast host Larry Doyle. Larry has some great simple tips to boost your fat loss and improve your mood, energy and sex life too! According to Larry food isn’t as important as you might think. It’s all about sleep, stress management, digestion, exercise, and mental wellbeing. Only when you have looked at all those things is it time to examine your food intake. Larry is all about sustainable progress and making small changes: ‘The World Health Organisation recommend 150-300 minutes per week of exercise, of ANY exercise that involves getting your hearth-rate up for a sustained period, it doesn’t need to be heavy or hard training.’ We also talk about the importance of proper digestion. As Larry says ‘poop right, feel great. It’s important to have a good environment and remember to chew sufficiently and avoid eating while you are stressed.’ For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week’s show is all about getting out of the food rut you’re stuck in and giving you some inspiration to cook delicious, healthy meals. Ballyknocken TV Chef Catherine Fulvio is here with her top five tips for healthier eating. Catherine has plenty of ideas on how to inject flavour into your meals as well as some simple inspiration on how to get creative. ‘It’s very off-putting seeing Instagram pictures of perfect fridges with nothing in it except glass boxes of breakfasts, lunches and dinners – it’s all too unattainable for most. To be honest, I don’t want to know on a Sunday what is for dinner for next Saturday! And is it even fresh? So, my top tip: break it up to twice per week, that way you can be reactive to what’s in the fridge so there’s no food waste. Do your meal prep on a Sunday and Wednesday.’Catherine is a great believer in instilling healthy-eating habits in children which will stay with them a lifetime. ‘I think as they grow older, kids can take on the role of cooking the dinner once a week for the family. Also, as they grow into their teens, they become more nutritionally aware. If they know food, they will know what’s good for their bodies, for their strength, for skin, hair, nails – everything that’s important to a teenager. Plus, it’s a life skill, when they go away to college.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie. Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from. The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Ireland’s Leading Health and Performance coach Gerry Hussey is my guest on this week’s Real Health podcast. Gerry is a firm friend of the show and he’ll be talking through five ways to maximize your potential as we come out of lockdown. It has been a hugely difficult year for everyone and although we’ve had good news recently people are anxious about the return to ‘normal’. For many of us the thoughts of returning to the workplace and the commute is stressful. Gerry has lots of tips on how to deal with difficult emotions so you can embrace all opportunities as we finally exit lockdown. Gerry’s simple and honest approach will help you strip away learned behaviours to unclutter, clarify and overcome obstacles and ignite the best version of yourself. Listen and be inspired. For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week’s show I’m joined by Laura Jordan of Style Savvy.ie. Laura is an expert style consultant on a mission to show people how to shop with confidence. We’ll be talking about the relationship between image and confidence and how everyone can feel more self-assured in the office. "I am passionate about making people feel good and look good…there is a huge correlation between self image, self esteem and self confidence, in terms of personal and professional achievements, whatever they may be to you."Remote working has had a huge impact on how people dress for work and Laura explains how to set the right tone even when you’re on a video call. If, like me, you hate shopping Laura will guide you through building a ‘smart wardrobe’ and show you how to audit your clothes in three easy steps because ‘most people wear 20% of their clothes 80% of the time.’ There are so many useful tips and tricks in this episode, I really hope you enjoy it. For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/‘The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare’See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In 2007 Dermot Whelan, arrived at a comedy festival in an ambulance after having a panic attack en route. Realising this was not a sustainable way to travel to future gigs, he decided to become a meditation teacher and learn how to de-stress without annoying the emergency services. Back then Dermot felt awful. He was waking up in the middle of the night with a pounding heart and a frantic mind. But in this episode, he tells me how learning how to meditate and become more mindful brought a sense fulfilment he had never experienced before.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week’s show I’ll be talking about the six key principals to finding happiness with Prof Brendan Kelly: Author of The Science of Happiness. Brendan is here to answer the big life questions like: Will having a baby make you happy? Are women happier than men? Will earning lots of money satisfy you? Do politics and religion really matter? Prof Kelly is a consultant psychiatrist at Tallaght University Hospital and professor of psychiatry at TCD. His book is a psychiatrist’s exploration of how to be happy and he believes the six key principals to achieving happiness are: (1) seeking balance (trying to achieve moderation in all things); (2) focusing on love (for ourselves and others); (3) deepening acceptance (accepting what we cannot change and changing what we can); (4) practising gratitude (starting with the realisation that we are lucky to be alive); (5) avoiding comparisons with other people (which are the root of most human unhappiness); (6) believing in something that matters to you, be it politics, religion, philosophy, football or even the emotional lives of minor celebrities. In this episode you can learn how to employ these strategies to increase your happiness levels. Brendan’s approach is full of humour and positivity and he really breaks the science down to make it accessible. It’s a great listen and I hope you really enjoy it. For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to: https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/ ‘The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare’See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week’s show I am talking to Derrick Evans, AKA Mr Motivator, who many of you will remember from his lycra clad TV workouts in the 1990s.As well as his TV work, Mr Motivator has sold millions of workout DVDs, run an eco-tourism resort in Jamacia and has now turned his attention to "the forgotten groups" with the launch of his ‘Mr Motivator Club’ here in Ireland.The Club is suitable for people of all ages, fitness levels and abilities.Mr Motivator tells me he is a firm believer in making exercise enjoyable, ‘I want people to understand if exercise isn’t fun don’t do it...the only muscle that should ache after exercise is your laughter muscle. And if it’s not aching there’s something wrong with the teacher.’At 68-years-old Derrick has impressive keep fit regime of his own; ‘every day I do 68 press-ups – one for each year of my life. I have no intention of getting “old”’Through sheer perseverance Derrick managed to secure a slot as GMTV's fitness guru in 1993. ‘I knew there was a gap in the market and that ITV needed someone like me on TV, so I kept going down to the ITV studios and insisting that they give me a chance. At first the advertisers didn’t want a black man, they wanted a white lady with two kids. But I persevered, and that was that.’‘The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare’See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week’s show is part of our ‘Life Lessons’ series with some of Ireland’s most famous personalities and my guest today, Mairead Ronan, is certainly no stranger to the Irish TV and radio landscape. She has been working hard in the industry for nearly twenty years. Mairead started her career on The Ray D’arcy Show, hosts Fittest Families, won Dancing with The Stars in 2019 and now presents her own daily radio show on Today Fm. On top of all that she co-owns a hair-styling equipment business called FARO. Mairead talks to me about the ups and downs of the last year: ‘I feel like I'm in no position to complain, because both myself and my husband are still working full time. But also, for a huge chunk of the last 12 months, we didn't have childcare. Mairead found it challenging to mind her kids while presenting a daily radio show. ‘I had to still perform like you normally would and present the radio show but we didn't have that pillar of support, which is our child minder Kay. And I just found that extremely difficult.’See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week’s Real Health episode is one of my Top 10 Tips episodes, looking at not only how to get yourself motivated, but to stay motivated and keep yourself fit and healthy in the coming weeks, months and years.How to stay focused when times get tough is an important skill to learn and sometimes starting a health kick can be hard while keeping it going can be difficult as well. But after twenty-two years, I’ve learned lots of tips, tricks and tools that work and will help you on your Real Health journey.From vision boards and doing it together to rewarding yourself and having your why, the ten tips in this episode are practical and easy to implement and I promise, they do work. So, see which ones you can start today – even starting just one will help - and watch how your motivation grows with each step you take.Keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT and don’t forget to rate, review and follow the show on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/ The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Mental health, self-talk and the voices in our head….it seems these are issues that are gaining prominence in our lives the more the lockdown continues and it’s been a popular issue in recent weeks here on Real Health.And for this week’s episode, I wanted to go in-depth on the topic of the conscious mind and the conversations we have with ourselves which can have such negative effects on our lives and the people around us. But, if harnessed correctly, it can also be a very powerful and positive force too.My guest is Ethan Kross, an award-winning psychologist who is one of the world’s leading experts on controlling the conscious mind and has participated in policy discussion at the White House. He is also the author of Chatter, the Voice In Our Head and How to Harness It, and I speak to him about how Covid has been the ‘perfect’ chatter event affecting our mental health and find out how negative chatter impacts our life.But the voice in our head can also be of benefit to us and Ethan takes me through some of the ways that we can harness it, including using distanced self-talk.“You could coach yourself through a problem like you're giving advice to another person and actually use your name to do it,” he explains to me. “When you use your own name to refer to yourself, it changes the way you relate to yourself, as you're coaching yourself through the problem and it's another thing that a person can do on their own.”Keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT and don’t forget to rate, review and follow the show on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Let’s talk about getting older.Of the many changes that Covid and the pandemic has inflicted on society, one thing it has brought into focus is the risks older people face - especially as we’ll all be there someday.And the truth is, for most of us, we don’t want to think about ageing or what it will be like to care for an elderly relative.Well, this week’s Real Health is all about Getting Older (for People Who Don’t want To Talk about it) and it’s also the catchy title of Dr. Lucy Pollock’s new book. She is a consultant specialising in the care of the elderly and over the next thirty minutes or so will be answering questions such as: · Should Dad be driving, and if not, who can stop him?· What are the secrets of the best care homes?· When does fierce independence become bad behaviour?· And who decides what happens when we become ill?Keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT and don’t forget to rate, review and follow the show on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/ The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Never has mental health been as important. Be it mindfulness, meditation, walking…..we’re looking for as much expert information these days on dealing with our mental difficulties of living life in a pandemic.But what about preventative measures? Just as we eat well and exercise to prevent the body getting unhealthy, can you do the same with the brain? My guest on this week’s Real Health is Kimberley Wilson, a psychologist who believes that we need to consider the brain in a more physical way just like the heart or liver.Kimberley is also the author of ‘How to Build a Healthy Brain’ and is the host of the Stronger Mind podcas and, backed up with science and studies, she talks to me about the importance of exercise on our brains and how physical movement can stop our brains shrinking. She also explains why our IQs are dropping over time due to poor diet and how stress affects our brains and inhibits our actual growth.“One of the things I really want people to understand,” she says. “Is that stress isn't something that's just 'in your head' because for people it feels like this ethereal, not real thing, ‘I can just push it away and I'll be fine’. But you need to understand that stress turns on your stress hormone and your stress hormones are incredibly powerful. Your stress hormones can turn off your growth hormone, they can stunt the growth of children. We know the same thing can happen when women get very, very stressed that their periods can stop or their cycles can become very long and stress hormones have an effect on the brain.”Keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT and don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/ The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We could all do with a bit of therapy right now but although stuck at home, we still seem to be time-poor, so how about some five minute therapy to help us all cope with the stresses and strains of life at the moment?My guest on this week’s Real Health is psychotherapist Sarah Crosby, aka the Mind Geek, who is a bit of an Instagram sensation with her daily bite-sized snippets of mindfulness wisdom and her new book, Five Minute Therapy, is also out now.Sarah has some fascinating insights and advice on how to cope with life during the pandemic. She explains why re-parenting ourselves can be such a vital and important process; how we can deal with negative relationships and assess the people we have in our lives; why attachment is our relationship blueprint; and why we need to make sure our self-talk is kind and light.“Walking through Dublin city centre at the height of the lockdown and being able to hear your footsteps, there's something really daunting about that,” she tells me. “What we're left with is ourselves right now. Without the distractions of everyday life we're having to sit with who we are, having to sit with our choices, with our relationships which we can't really distract ourselves from anymore and how we're speaking to ourselves around that is going to really form how our mental health is feeling right now.”Keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT and don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/ The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In recent weeks, the Real Health show has featured some great food experts from Neven Maguire’s cooking tips to the Happy Pear’s plant-based diet.Food, eating and your diet is one of the best ways to keep healthy and stay in control while so much is going on in the world outside and my guest for this week’s episode is a firm believer in food to help with your mental as well as your physical performance.Daniel Davey first came to prominence as the performance nutritionist with Leinster Rugby and Dublin GAA followed by his book, Eat Up Raise Your Game, and on this episode he talks to me about wellness, performance and even mindset around food.Explaining the importance of process and repetition, we’re discussing food but so much more as well.“Have you got a process?” he asks. “Building a very simple process that is something that you can go to and repeat very effectively every evening is where you build success and I don't mind saying that's what I've learned again from high performance.” “As a young practitioner, I was afraid of repetition and I was afraid of talking about repetition because people's automatic response was always 'I want something new, can we do something new or a bit more exciting?' That's not where the progress comes from.”Keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT and don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

January 2021 was a tough month, there’s no doubt about that. Continuing on from the previous year it’s been a tough journey for most people to deal with. But, we can still find happiness midst all the turmoil, stress and uncertainty.There are little things you can be doing every day to make sure you’re reaching your happiness quota and I’m delighted to say that my guest on this week’s Real Health, Dr. Clodagh Campbell, is a wellness psychologist who is going to help us all get happier with her seven simple steps to achieving more happiness in your life.With advice on the importance of maintaining your social connections during isolation to factoring in your moments of happy time throughout the week, Dr. Clodagh Campbell believes this is when we need to be looking after ourselves the most.Plus she explains why journaling is so beneficial and how you can start it today.“It's not necessarily forcing yourself to do it every day,” she tells me. “But if you can focus on practising gratitude through journaling or focusing on positive emotions and writing about how you're feeling or processing your emotions, all of this has been proven to boost our happiness, to lower levels of anxiety, depression, stress. It's a simple way that we can look after ourselves from the comfort of our home in private and we can fit it in to any part of our day.”Keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT and don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Neven Maguire is someone whose approach to cooking and food I’ve admired for a long time. From his hugely popular restaurant to his TV shows and books, his focus is all about healthy and wholesome recipes for the entire family.He joins me on this week’s episode of Real Health to talk about life during lockdown, having to close the restaurant and why in his free time he’s rediscovered his love of dance music and DJing!Neven also has some great cooking SOS tips and advice to make sure that you’re eating easy, healthy and tasty family meals while at home – including the recipe for his one-pot chicken and chicken rice favourite.“Keep it very, very simple is what I say to people,” he tells me. “Get the basics right. It's giving people the confidence, that's the key. Equipment, and then food and then how you shop, it's the whole journey.”To win one of five copies of Neven’s latest cookbook, ‘Midweek Meals’, just listen to the interview and tell me what Neven’s favourite dance track is by replying in my Instagram feed.Keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT and don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week’s guests certainly need no introduction, as famous for their morning swims as they are for their healthy produce - and they’re back in January focusing on a Happy Health Plan using a plant-based diet. The Happy Pears, David and Stephen Flynn, join me to explain all the benefits and bust some of the myths about it.They also have some great tips and advice for eating and introducing more healthy foods into your daily routine.“First thing is if you do want to change your habits, get the stuff you don't want to eat out of your house,” they tell me. “That's number one because in moments of weakness, stress, you will resort to those things. “Number two is beans and we’re not talking about baked beans. We’re talking about tinned beans like kidney beans, butter beans, chick-peas. These are inexpensive and they're one of the highest sources of fibre in our diet.”Away from food, the Happy Pears also talk about why for them, 2021 is all about slowing down and how they have only two goals.“One was to slow down more and the second was to meditate more. And that was it. Nothing else. Because if you get those two right, there's enough habits in terms of trying to achieve and whatnot that they'll probably still prevail.”Their book, The Happy Health Plan, is available now.Keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT and don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If your finances are all over the place and out of control, it’s very difficult to focus on other aspects of your health. You can get tied up in your financial issues letting your health and diet suffer as a result.With that in mind, my annual Financial Real Health episode is back this week and I’m joined by Eoin McGee, the financial advisor, TV presenter and best-selling author of ‘How to be Good with Money’.Eoin explains why, in a time of pandemic and stress, it’s so important to control the controllables and focus on what you can manage. “Years ago, I was listening to Brian O'Driscoll speaking at an after-dinner speech,” Eoin tells me. “And he talked about 'I don't care what happened in the past five minutes of the game - I'm only worried about the next five minutes’. That has stuck with me for quite some time and more than ever let's just worry about the stuff we can control and that then filters down to everything”.Eoin also gives me his most important tips for financial health and how to get your finances under control, plus where you should be looking to invest your savings and how you can make savings in your household budget too.Despite the uncertainty around the pandemic, he urges us to look optimistically to the future and why you should also use this time as an opportunity for the years ahead.Keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT and don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s January and with many of you making resolutions for change over the coming weeks and months, one of the most common is around weight loss and looking and feeling better.My guest on this week’s Real Health is Dr. Rangan Chatterjee who is a hugely successful broadcaster, author and influential GP in the UK and Ireland with his Feel Better, Live More podcast a regular chart topper, and he has a new book out called Feel Great, Lose Weight, long term simple habits for lasting and sustainable weight loss.Dr. Chatterjee gives his three daily tips for healthy living, explains why January resolutions invariably fizzle out, discusses the importance of reflection on what we’re doing right and where we can improve, plus he tells me why he thinks food has just become something to fill a hole in people’s hearts.“Particularly for the times in which we're living at the moment,” he says. “Where we struggle to see our friends, to see our family, hug our friends, I would say make sure you spend at least five minutes a day connecting with another human being.”“Often we're craving food in the evening when we're really craving connection - we've got a hole in our heart and we're trying to fill that hole with sugar and I'm saying, if you make sure you connect with another human each and every single day as much as you can, you will find that actually you compensate less with other lifestyle choices that you're trying to avoid but you don't realise are simply your effort to fill that hole.”Keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT and don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Happy New Year to you all! It’s 2021 and fingers crossed we can all put the tough year that was 2020 behind us with more hope for the year to come.And if you’re thinking of making changes to your life – be it personal, professional, physical or mental, then this week’s Real Health episode will set you on the right path. James Clear is a world-renowned expert on habits and decision making as the author of one of the fastest-growing email newsletters in history and his articles at jamesclear.com receive 10 million hits each year with his work frequently appearing in publications including the New York Times, Forbes and Business Insider. He is also the author of the hugely successful Atomic Habits which is about transforming your life with tiny changes in your daily behaviour.In this interview, James has some great advice on how to make your 2021 resolutions more productive and focused, he explains why you must start with behaviours that are small and easy to do and he says, if you’re to take anything away from his advice, make sure it is the two minute rule.“Take whatever habit you're trying to build and scale it down to something that takes two minutes or less to do,” he says. “I had this reader, his name's Mitch and he lost a lot of weight, over 100 pounds and when he started going to the gym, for the first six weeks he had a little rule for himself where he wasn't allowed to stay for longer than five minutes. And it sounds ridiculous right?”“But if you take a step back, what you realise is that he was mastering the art of showing up. He was becoming the type of person that went to the gym four days a week even if it was only for five minutes and I think this is a much deeper truth about habits that people often dismiss or overlook which is that a habit must be established before it can be improved.” Keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT and don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s Christmas Eve! This week’s episode is another in my Life Lessons series and it is with one of my favourite radio presenters and someone I’ve been wanting to interview for a long time.John Creedon has been a mainstay on RTE Radio 1 for the last thirty years with his mix of music and chat and he has also presented TV shows and written books during his long career.He is a favourite of Irish people up and down the country and with his new book called ‘That Place We Call Home’ out now, John joined me on the show to chat about needing a sense of belonging, how he made it from factory worker to RTE presenter, plus why spirituality is so important to him and just what he’ll be doing on Christmas Day.As for the advice he would give to his younger self, he says he is where he always wanted to be and one should never give up.“It won’t stop you worrying,” he tells me. “But I can tell you there will be a few blows along the way. Just be yourself.”Stay healthy and safe and have a wonderful Christmas and do keep in touch with me for more postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

So, Christmas has been and gone and I hope you’ve had plenty – but not too much – turkey, ham and stuffing and been able to put your feet up and enjoy some downtime.We’re nearly done with 2020 and can put it all behind us but before we do, I’m joined by someone who has a very particular challenge for 2021.,From the Den to TodayFM and back to RTE on the radio and TV on Saturday nights and with a re-launched Den as well, Ray D’Arcy is someone I grew up with and still love watching the Den since its return.I talk to Ray about his life growing up in Kildare – including a stint in the FCA (!), find out how he got his big break in presenting and we discuss re-finding sport and fitness in his 40s when he discovered a love of running.As it’s New Year’s Eve, we also discuss plans and resolutions for 2021 and one of the challenges that Ray has set himself and which he’s looking for 1,000 people to join him in is Ray’s Marathon Challenge in aid of LauraLynn’s Children’s Hospice.Clock up 26.2 miles – be it running or walking – every week for 52 weeks, can you do it? A marathon a week for the entire year during 2021, that is the challenge and to register and find out more go to RaysMarathonChallenge.ieI want to wish you all a happy and healthy 2021 and do keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With a week to go before Christmas, I thought, we could either do a show on fitness tips, getting healthy or how to work on your mental health but then I decided why not just have some craic and enjoy ourselves in the festive run-up?Who better to interview than two Tipp lads who have taken over the Irish podcast charts by storm and with TV shows, books, merchandise and whatever else you’re having, they’ve become something of an Irish institution - Johnny McMahon and Johnny O’Brien, aka the hugely successful 2 Johnnies join me on this week’s Real Health to tell me about their plans for Christmas, why they miss their live shows so much and discuss the pressures and criticism from social media.And body image for men, they tell me, is becoming more of an issue.“A lot of people don't talk about body image, you know it's a thing that is kind of associated with girls and Instagram and that kind of stuff and there is a pressure to look good and that pressure is equally as much for men as well.”As for Christmas? For once they’ll actually be turning off their phones and putting the feet up.“Christmas Day is going to be nice, it's going to be spent with the family. We'll probably re-watch our show ten times the next day and we'll chill out and turn off the phone and just relax, it's going to be nice to spend it with people who put up with us at our worst and at our best.”Stay healthy and safe and do keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Between Covid, lockdowns, Christmas and what 2021 has in store for us all, it can be hard to keep your spirits up and focus on the positive that is still out there.In the same way that you have to build good exercise habits and good food habits, you also need to build a positive mindset habit as well.Just how can you do this and how will it expand and benefit your life even more? Well, this week’s guest on Real Health, Fiona Brennan, is a clinical hypnotherapist, a best-selling author, TedX speaker and the mental health expert on Today FM and she joins me with lots of great tips and advice on developing your positive habit.Fiona talks about the importance of self-love and acceptance, she explains the Positive Pause technique and how it can help deal with everyday stress, and she even tells me why feeling negative emotions are an important part of our coping mechanism.“It's essential for us to be able to go through the very uncomfortable feeling of whether it's anxiety, stress, sadness, grief,” she says. “We're able to see that when we get closer to an emotion, it starts to happen itself naturally as it dissolves and eases through our own loving attention.”Stay healthy and safe and do keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

He’s the world’s fastest-growing online, personal trainer, is a global fitness sensation known for his no-nonsense approach to health and fitness training and I’m delighted to say that James Smith is this week’s guest on Real Health.His book in 2019, Not a Diet Book, was a huge best-seller and James is back with another hit called Not a Life Coach in which he challenges everything you thought you knew about the path to fulfilment and happiness.James is honest, unapologetic and outspoken and shares with me some of the key areas he believes you need to focus on to succeed in life. From the importance of small steps for exponential growth to building your foundation, working on your motivation and creating the right environment to succeed, there’s a huge amount of advice you can glean from this interview.“When we want to build muscle it's about creating the stimulus and then creating an environment to host your body,” James explains to me. “Good sleep, good nutrition, good meal frequency, good rest and in that right environment, similar to a plant, muscles grow, plants grow. “But when it comes to lifestyle, it's something that a lot of people overlook, they don't respect how important everything around them is. They think 'oh job, this is how much I get paid', they think 'oh relationship, this is how many times I'm having sex', that's fine and they can neglect the bigger picture of all of the encompassing parts that play a role.”Stay healthy and safe and do keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week’s guest is maybe not one you would normally associate with Real Health, but I’m delighted to be joined by Lyra, the Cork singer-songwriter who is making serious waves in Ireland, the UK, and America.Lyra’s song Falling was featured in Grey’s Anatomy and nominated for Single of the Year at the RTE Choice Music Awards, while her hit single Mother featured on Spotify’s Viral Daily 50.Her new song is called New Day and for anyone that saw her perform it on the Late, Late Show a few weeks ago you can’t help but agree with the title of ‘Beyoncé with a Cork accent’ that has been given to her.Like so many artists, the Covid lockdown put a stumbling block in her career path and she speaks to me about those problems.“I really struggled for the first two weeks of it,” she tells me. “And I just ate and drank myself into a mind of craziness and I gave myself that time to be like that because I feel like I had to go through that process. I said then 'right, cope yourself on now, get back on saddle, there's nothing you can do, everyone's on the same side’ and I was just like feck this, I need to get myself out of my sweats, I need to put on some more see-through flouncy kind of clothes, go back into myself, start howling at my computer and just write songs as much as I can.”Plus Lyra also talks about the pressures of performing, body confidence, and why she is a firm believer in natural health remedies, even going so far as fermenting her own natural antibiotics.Stay healthy and safe and do keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For this week’s show I wanted to focus on your gut. Not your gut instinct or going with your gut, but gut health. It’s a topic I’ve covered before on Real Health but for this episode I wanted to focus the 10 myths around gut health.There are a lot of misconceptions and misinformation around the issue, so to find out more and to get some advice on how to best deal with your gut health, I spoke to Lorraine Maher a Specialist Gastroenterology Dietitian with the Blackrock Clinic.Lorraine gives some great practical advice backed up with scientific study and amongst the ten myths, we discuss bloating, what causes it and how to help it, gluten-free and why it’s not necessarily healthier, plus she explains the gut-brain axis and why it’s so important, especially when it comes to Irritable Bowel Syndrome or IBS.“Think of it like a super-highway of traffic going up and down and there's a traffic jam or roadworks and the messages aren't going up and down as they normally would,” she tells me. “So it's nobody's fault that they have IBS or they didn't cause IBS or what they're eating didn't cause IBS, so there's no guilt needed. It's just a functional issue in that the function of your gut isn't working. “But I think that for people who have IBS, know that there's a whole raft of evidence-based interventions you can use to manage it and you don't have to put all your eggs in the diet basket. There's lots of things that you can do so you don't feel that you're on your own and you don't have to put up with it.”Stay healthy and safe and do keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For this week’s episode of Real Health I’m delighted to welcome Dr. Jason Fung back to the show. Dr. Fung is a Toronto-based nephrologist and a world leading expert in intermittent fasting and low-carb diets and when he spoke to me a few weeks ago his insights into the truth about calories in-calories out were a huge hit with our listeners and so he agreed to come back on to really delve into the details and benefits of intermittent fasting.Dr Fung explains what intermittent fasting is, why our constant snacking and eating is only a development of recent decades, and he highlights how normal it was for people to go 12-14 hours between dinner and breakfast the next day.Dr. Fung is a strong advocate in intermittent fasting for obesity and weight loss especially and he also espouses its overall health benefits when done correctly and safely. “The point is that it's a natural cycle, there's nothing wrong with it,” he tells me. “It's something that people should be doing every day, but it has been sort of lost in the mists of time. It's not something I just made up, it's been around for thousands and thousands of years and it's what allowed us to survive as a species when there were some food shortages which happens periodically, usually during a winter.”“So, what we're talking about is: if you don't eat, your body is going to use stored energy. So, if you are overweight, or if you have Type 2 diabetes, where your sugar is very high, your blood sugar is very high, then simply let your body use it. If you have too much body fat, that is the disease of obesity, then, what is simpler than letting your body use that body fat because that is precisely the reason you carry it.”Stay healthy and safe and do keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For this week’s Real Health I’m joined by gym owner and fitness instructor Leeanne Moore to get some winter fitness tips to help in the coming weeks and months.The cold, dark evenings can make it hard to get motivated to go for a run or work out, but by keeping active in some small way every day, it will do wonders for your physical and mental well-being.Leeanne also talks about diet and nutrition and the food choices she believes we should make.“I personally don't count calories and I don't track macros and things like that but I do just try to make the best possible choices I can make every single day,” she says. “And you know why that's good? Because it doesn't take anything off the table. I'll have a pizza at the weekend and I'll have chocolate nearly every single day. But I also have fruit and vegetable juices every day, we have portions of veg with our dinner, we have salads for lunch, we have homemade soups. We all know the foods that are good for us.” Plus she explains her career change that saw her make the leap into personal training,“It made sense to what my kind of morals for my life, my goals for my life and the happiness of my life,” she tells me. “I was so ready to change my day-to-day and to do something that I knew would give me fulfilment.”Stay healthy and safe and do keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With the clocks going back, winter and the dark nights are closing in, and as we prepare for six weeks of Level 5 lockdown, I thought this would be a good time to find out how we can help boost our immunity and increase Vitamin D levels or the ‘sunshine vitamin’ as we spend more time indoors.This week’s guest is Helena Scully a registered nutritionist and first author of a five year study from Trinity College and the MISA Unit at St. James’s Hospital that has looked into vitamin D deficiencies in Irish people.Helena has some really interesting insights into those parts of the population that are showing deficiencies in vitamin D and reasons why and she also explains how we can all ensure we boost our levels of this important vitamin to help in our battle against Covid.“We currently do know that vitamin D is associated with immune health,” she tells me. “It's involved in upregulation of the immune system and it also has anti-inflammatory effects and then taken together, this has been looked at in respect of respiratory conditions or respiratory infections and asthma, and vitamin D has been associated with improved outcomes in these kind of conditions. So it does make sense that vitamin D will be associated with conditions such as Covid. There is a basis in physiology as how it would make sense that vitamin D is having an effect on Covid infection.”To read more about the study that was partially funded by Avonmore, the paper is available in the journal ‘Nutrients’ here: https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/12/9/2663/htmlStay healthy and safe and do keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week’s show is part of a series I like to call ‘Life Lessons’ with some of Ireland’s most respected and most famous personalities and my guest, Francis Brennan, is certainly no stranger to Irish television screens having shot to fame on the RTE series At Your Service and of course Francis Brennan’s Grand Tour.Francis is also co-owner of the Park Hotel in Kenmare and author of best-selling books on home management and travel and his latest is his Homekeeper’s Diary for 2021.Francis has an infectious, perennially good-natured outlook on life and in the midst of Covid and cancellations to his hotel (he just got €100,000 worth of cancellations before we spoke) I wanted to find out how he kept his positivity going and what the secret to his success in life is.Francis also spoke to me about the importance of faith and religion throughout his life and why you must always believe that things are going to work out in the end.“I don't know anything about drive, I just do what I do and today is the very same,” he tells me. “I don't ever think like - I'm not good at planning out, I never sit down and say 'I'll own this and I'll own that' other than I knew I wanted to be in the hotel business and everything else just falls into place.” “There's a man above of course with whom I believe in very much, the God above, and he looks after me. I mean I just land on me feet every time and I think 'oh my God, he's great' and I'm lucky to have a faith as well as everything else so I'm just one of those lucky people.” Stay healthy and safe and do keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week’s Real Health is focusing on healthy eating and healthy living with one of Ireland’s leading fitness experts, Derval O’Rourke. Derval is a three-time Irish Olympian and former World Indoor Champion and after retiring from athletics she has become a best-selling author and also developed her own digital platform on health, nutrition and self-care at Derval.ie.Empowering people to live well, in body and mind, is what she aims to do and she explains to me how she has done it for herself, why Sunday night planning is so important to her and how she has dealt with criticism along the way.“Whatever my opinion is on myself, what I'm doing, that's the number one opinion I need to tune into,” she tells me. “And sometimes my own voice in my head, like everybody, isn't as positive as it should be and I have to check myself and say 'right Derval you need to back yourself a bit here'. So, the nice stuff is lovely but also you have to care more about what you think yourself than what everybody else thinks.”Stay healthy and safe and do keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week’s Real Health guest needs no introduction to TV viewers having graced Irish and international TV for more than two decades from Ireland AM to the Big Breakfast, the Swan and Dancing with the Stars.But, as a former model and TV presenter, that brought with it its own difficulties and pressures to look ‘perfect’ on screen.Now aged 47, Amanda Byram has opened up about her darkest moments and how she turned her life around in her debut book, ‘The Switch – the secret to overcoming the pressures of perfection and finding health and happiness’ and she explained to me just how she dealt with her toughest days.Amanda talks openly and honestly about her early body image issues, the pressures she faced in her career and ultimately how she overcame it all.“I've had so many knockbacks in life as we all do,” she tells me. “And sometimes it's really difficult to go 'no, I believe I'm brilliant' because that's not the belief, it's not that I believe I'm brilliant, it's that I believe that I have the ability to hold it together long enough to do a good job because if someone believes in me enough to give me the job, ok I got to take that deep breath and really believe in myself, although sometimes it is really difficult.”Stay healthy and safe and do keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s fair to say that weight loss tips and weight loss interviews are some of the most popular episodes we have done on Real Health over the course of our three years. People are constantly struggling with their weight, lifestyle and exercise.Continuing my international masterclass series, the guest for this week’s show is Dr. Jason Fung who is a world-leading expert on intermittent fasting and low carb diet. He has also written three best-selling health books and he co-founded the Intensive Dietary Management program.I speak to Dr. Fung about the Obesity Code and he explains why the messaging around weight loss has been wrong for so many years.He also details the truth about calories in-calories out and why our body’s hormones play such a central role in people putting on weight.“Our body responds to salad completely different than it responds to cookies,” he tells me. “Insulin goes up and other hormones go down, but the hormonal response is totally different and our body listens to hormones - that is the language our body listens to. So, whether you can gain body fat or not, it depends on the hormones in your body telling us.”As always, it’s an emphasis on eating natural, real foods that will create long term, lasting impact on your health with Dr. Fung a vocal proponent of intermittent fasting which you’ll find out more about in a future interview.Stay healthy and safe and do keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Since the Covid lockdown have you been one of the many, many people who have taken up bread making and are spending more and more time in the kitchen?Healthy cooking and healthy eating are a key mantra of mine here on Real Health and for this week’s show, since you’re getting to do more home cooking, why not find out how to do some healthy cooking that doesn’t have to be time-consuming or boring?Nicola Halloran runs the hugely popular food blog, The Wonky Spatula, and has just released her first book with tips, hints and tricks on how to be healthy and happy through well-balanced, delicious food.Nicola tells me some of the most common mistakes people make in the kitchen, the importance of planning your meals in advance and why she’s a fan of the ‘no-meal-prep prep’ to make sure you’re not slaving away for too long at dinners.Plus, I find out what some of her most popular recipes are and what her favourites snacks and go-to meals are.Stay healthy and safe and keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

My guest for this week’s Real Health wants to help you with what’s holding you back in life.Owen O’Kane is a psychotherapist, former NHS Clinical Lead and best-selling author who takes me through the ten tips that he says will not just make you happier, but ten times happier in yourself.From letting go of the past, having no regrets and stopping over-thinking, Owen explains that, ‘it’s about being comfortable in your own skin, being comfortable with your life. The more you can be present and in the now, the happier human being you are going to be and that’s clinically evidenced.’His book, ‘Ten Times Happier, a guide on how to let go of what’s holding you back’ is out now and you can also follow Owen on Instagram @owenokaneten.Stay healthy and safe and keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As we deal with a lot of uncertainty with regards to the future, it’s important to learn more about our minds and how to keep them fit and healthy and so for this week’s Real Health I’m focusing on the importance of mind over matter and why having the right mindset really can make all the difference in living a healthy life.Cognitive Behavioural Therapist, Niamh Connolly, of TheMindGym.ie, joins me with some invaluable insights and advice on dealing with uncertainty, developing your mind properly and CBT strategies to help you deal with life’s stresses and strains.Niamh explains how and why anxiety arises within us, how we can get stuck in bad habits trying to deal with it, how to break free of them and how it can manifest itself physically in our bodies.Niamh also discusses the placebo effect and why our mindset is more important than ever during times of stress.There’s a huge amount of really useful insights and advice from Niamh’s interview and I’m sure you’ll find it really helpful with the challenges in the weeks and months ahead.Stay healthy and safe and keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What if being lucky was a skill you could master? Can you create smart luck and even make ‘accidents’ more meaningful? Wouldn’t this be something that you’d try and develop to enrich your life?This week’s Real Health episode finds out about how you can develop this skill with Christian Busch, Director of the Global Economy programme at NYU and author of ‘The Serendipity Mindset: The Art & Science of Creating Good Luck’.Christian explains exactly what serendipity is and why some people seem to have more luck in their lives, from the personal to the professional. It is all about seeing opportunities in every situation he tells me, being open to change and welcoming the unexpected when it happens. ‘Treat the unexpected as an ally,’ he says, believing there are opportunities even during a global pandemic for us all to improve our lives.Christian also gives some advice for developing your ‘lucky’ skill-set and how you can put it into practice every day.Stay healthy and safe and keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s hard to believe, but September is only days away one of the strangest of summers is coming to an end.It’s also back to school time and it’s probably one of the most fraught and nerve-wracking returns to school that we have seen with Covid cases on the rise and no end in sight to the pandemic.So, with an increase in cases, the fall-out from Golfgate and people adhering to government measures, as well as parents’ worries about school, I wanted to address many of the concerns Real Health listeners currently have about Covid and I’ve turned to one of Ireland’s most outspoken GPs, Dr Matt O’Tuathail, to join me on this week’s show.Dr. Matt discusses what it’s been like as a GP during the pandemic, he takes me through the recently updated HSE guidelines in relation to kids and schools and explains why he says kids need to return to the classroom, and he looks ahead to the coming months and what we might expect.Stay healthy and safe and keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s been an incredibly tough couple of months and with the summer coming to an end and schools returning, people are looking to get their lives back on track – or at least trying to.On this week’s Real Health episode, with some great tips and advice, I’m joined by broadcaster and performance coach, Anna Geary.Anna talks to me about the difference between self-love and also being prepared to challenge yourself to tackle those parts of your body and personality that you want to improve; she explains the importance of the language and energy you use; and why mindset and confidence underpins everything.Anna discusses her own struggles during the lockdown, the need to prioritise and be less self-critical, and also why you need to pace yourself.“I've probably started and failed about three times during lockdown to get on a health kick,” she tells me. “It’s about taking one thing and being very realistic.”Stay healthy and safe and keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For this week’s show we’re going on a bit of a scientific adventure into a lost art and science. We do it 25,000 times a day without being aware of it or even asking if we’re doing it the right way or can do it better.What am I talking about? Breathing of course, and how many of you would think that we’ve in fact lost the ability to breathe quickly?My guest, James Nestor, is a writer and journalist whose book ‘Breath’ has just been released, and he tells me that if you want to be truly healthy, then you need to start learning how to breathe properly.James is a fascinating guest full of amazing information and stories and he even has a few tips to help guide you on your way to better breathing.Stay healthy and safe and keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you had a second chance at life, what would you do differently?For this week’s Real Health, I speak to Brian Pennie, who says he shouldn’t be alive today.With a drug addiction so bad that he was deemed too much of a risk for detox, he was determined to confront his demons and he went cold turkey at home which is when his life truly began.After 15 years of chronic heroin addiction, he was finally clean and he discovered that he had a second chance at life.In his book, Bonus Time, Brian tells the story of how he turned a seemingly hopeless existence into a rich and rewarding life, showing that change is always possible, no matter how stuck we feel.Despite its trauma and turmoil, Brian’s story is incredibly empowering and inspiring and Brian also shares his five tips on living life on your terms so you too can make the most of it.Stay healthy and safe and keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For this week’s Real Health, I’m joined by someone who seemed to have it all. She was a model and TV and radio presenter but then decided to leave it all behind to backpack around the world for two years. In that time, only by leaving it all behind did she find true freedom and happiness which she has now chronicled in her best-selling debut book, Jump. Daniella Moyles spoke to me about finding your true, authentic self, why we hide behind so many masks in our daily lives and why keeping busy is not the answer to modern life.Stay healthy and safe and keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week’s episode of Real Health is a short one but in just ten minutes I give you ten simple life swaps that will transform your health.From your health to your sleep, energy and life overall, I’m giving you ten suggestions of ten things you can easily swap from your life.Do one, a few, or even all ten but I promise you will find they make a huge difference in your life.Stay healthy and safe and keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Competitive freediving champion, Claire Walsh, joins me on this week’s Real Health to talk about breathing techniques and how it can improve your wellness and even enhance performance.Claire can hold her breath under water for 5m59 seconds diving to a depth of 60m – the equivalent of the height of Dublin’s Liberty Hall – and she tells me why she decided to give up the day job to concentrate full time on freediving and she explains some of the breathing exercises you can use at any time during the day to help with stress and anxiety.It’s about slowing things down and re-connecting with yourself and your body through your breathing, Claire tells me, and it really can be as simple as that.Stay healthy and safe and keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.Don’t forget to rate, review and subscribe to the show on Apple, Spotify, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts from.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/ The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The topic for this week’s Real Health is one that I’m sure affects so many of you out there. You might be eating well and exercising regularly but…..do you still get afflicted with the late night nibbles, the bedtime munchies or evening snack time pangs?You’d be surprised just how many people out there reach for their favourite crackers, crisps, biscuits, whatever it is! But today’s episode is going to look at ways of beating that habit as well as finding out how to eat well with our guest, dietitian, Maeve Hanan, who also has a new book out called Your No-Nonsense Guide to Eating Well available at: https://dieteticallyspeaking.com/your-no-nonsense-guide-to-eating-well/Maeve explains to me the most common cause for late-night snacking, the importance of eating well earlier in the day, and the dangers of emotional eating as well as the signs to look out for to avoid it.Stay healthy and safe and keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With the summer upon us and lockdown restrictions easing, maybe now you can start to look to the future with more hope and optimism?For this week’s Real Health episode, my guest, Miriam Hussey, is an integrated health expert, yoga practitioner and wellness coach and joins me to help guide you through how to make the most of your life in the weeks, months and years ahead.Miriam has great advice on living a life of ease and less stress going forwards post-lockdown but is also upfront about the work that is needed to find inner peace and asking honest questions of yourself going forwards.As we all look to the future now, I’m sure you will get great help from listening to Miriam’s advice and words. Stay healthy and safe and keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For this week’s show I’m discussing the issue of stubborn belly fat and how to lose it. It’s a question that always come up with clients, listeners and followers on social media wanting to know the sure-fire way to get rid of this fat.While you may be eating healthily and exercising regularly, do you find the tummy bulge just won’t go away?Brian Keane is qualified personal trainer, sports nutritionist, strength and conditioning coach and host of the popular Brian Keane podcast and joins me on this week’s show with some great tips and advice for banishing the belly fat.Stay healthy and safe and keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With groups of up to fifteen now able to train outdoors, I thought it would be a good time to speak to a physiotherapist about some of the more common injuries that might be expected - and more importantly, how to avoid them.Lauren Guilfoyle is a sports physio who also works with Tipperary GAA and she joins me on this week’s episode to tell me more about the dangers of over-loading in training and the need to give your body time to adapt to new training.Plus she also answers some of the most sports injury questions I get each week including how to deal with the dreaded shin splints!Stay healthy and safe and keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With the Covid restrictions beginning to ease, I wanted to find out what the future of gyms in Ireland will look like and how they will be operating in phase 4 of the opening up of the country.Conn McCluskey is CEO of Ireland Active, the national association for the leisure, health and fitness sector and he joined me on this week’s Real Health to give some more information on what gym users can expect when Ireland’s gyms start opening up again during the summer.Stay healthy and safe and keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For this week’s episode, I’m responding to the volume of questions I’ve received recently from listeners wanting to know how to shift those Covid kilos that we’ve all been putting on due to the lockdown.We’ve been eating and drinking more and for most people, not moving as much as we usually would. So, how to get yourself back on track and lose that extra weight?I’ve got some really simple and easy tips for you explaining how to do it properly that will make a real difference.From having the 80:20 rule to setting yourself targets as well as proper nutrition, rest and recovery, you’ll find a big difference if you can introduce some or all of my advice into your life on a daily basis.Stay healthy and safe and keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week’s guest, performance coach, Gerry Hussey, is someone I just had to bring back.His previous appearance with me, when we discussed mindset and attitude to life, was so popular that we knew he had to come back for more insights – and especially now more than ever before.On this episode of Real Health, Gerry wants people to realise that, while we may be in difficult situations, it is our response to the situation that will determine the outcome.To make the most of our lives we need to turn our inner critic into our inner coach and focus on what’s important to us.After all, he says, we only have about 900 months to live, so what life of maximum potential can you live in that time? Stay healthy and safe and keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/I’ve also got copies of my ‘Healthy Living Handbook’ to give away and to be in with a chance of winning, just rate, review and subscribe to the show.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With garden centres re-opening this week, there’s no better time to get out into your garden, if you have one, to enjoy the outdoors and get in some green-fingered mindfulness.I’ve interviewed guests about positivity, meditation and mindset since the lockdown began and my guest this week is Diarmuid Gavin, the broadcaster, author, designer and gardener extraordinaire.It’s a fascinating interview with Diarmuid who reflects that this is the first time he has been at home so much in twenty-five years, he tells me about the moment that changed his life when he got noticed by the BBC at the Chelsea Flower Show, and he has some great tips if you are looking to get out into your garden and enjoy the outdoors more.Stay healthy and safe and keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/I’ve also got copies of my ‘Healthy Living Handbook’ to give away and to be in with a chance of winning, just rate, review and subscribe to the show.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Although lockdown restrictions are starting to ease, the uncertainty over the coming weeks and months is still going to be a stressful time for us all, so I wanted to bring some more light, humour and positivity into your week – as well as some practical exercises to help deal with the ongoing situation.And who better than comedian, broadcaster, TodayFM presenter and meditation teacher, Dermot Whelan?Last year I spoke to Dermot about how he embraced meditation to help deal with the stresses of life and on this week’s episode I ask him how he is coping and how life has changed for him during Covid.He tells me why meditation and mindfulness are more important than ever and he has a brilliant 16 second meditation that will get you in the right frame of mind very quickly.Stay healthy and safe and keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/I’ve also got copies of my ‘Healthy Living Handbook’ to give away and to be in with a chance of winning, just rate, review and subscribe to the show.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As you know, the Real Health show is all about practical advice and information that makes healthy living real and long-term and I’m delighted to say my guest this week is the best example of this.Jennifer Carroll is a Mum who, via her Instagram account, @jens_journey_ie, has taken us on her very honest journey of weight loss which has seen her lose over twelve stone to go from 25 stone to just twelve.She’s now a huge advocate of healthy eating and living and joined me this week to talk about her struggles with weight growing up, the ‘why’ moment that made her change her life, as well as giving some great tips for listeners to start your own health living journey.Stay healthy and safe and keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/I’ve also got copies of my ‘Healthy Living Handbook’ to give away and to be in with a chance of winning, just rate, review and subscribe to the show.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

May 1st is National Workplace Wellbeing Day and who would have thought we would be celebrating it at home in 2020?Never has wellbeing been so important and while most of us aren’t at our actual places of work, for many of us, remote working from home has become the new norm. So, this week’s Real Health episode is all about the ways you can stay fit and healthy while working remotely.From correct posture and movement to efficiency, hydration and structure, my ten tips are practical and easy to implement and will make a difference if you can start putting one, two or all ten of them into your day.Stay healthy and safe and keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/I’ve also got copies of my ‘Healthy Living Handbook’ to give away and to be in with a chance of winning, just rate, review and subscribe to the show.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For this week’s Real Health I thought we could all do with some positivity and feel good inspiration from someone who I’ve admired for his exploits on and off the sports pitch.Donncha O’Callaghan is one of Ireland and Munster rugby’s most decorated players and since retiring has brought his cheeky chappy, fun-loving sports expertise to the telly and radio.With four young kids he’s also a big advocate of health and exercise for families and he tells me how he and his family have been during the Covid lockdown and why active play for parents and kids is so important.He also talks to me about finding new purpose after rugby and how the current situation has meant more balance and figuring out what really matters.Stay healthy and safe and keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/I’ve also got copies of my ‘Healthy Living Handbook’ to give away and to be in with a chance of winning, just rate, review and subscribe to the show.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

At most times, financial concerns are the biggest stressor in our lives, and while health and safety is all our priority at the moment, money worries are also still there.Looking after your financial health is key to alleviating stress and helping with your overall health and well-being, so this week I speak to finance guru, Eoin McGee, about what we need to do to manage our finances effectively whilst also planning for the future.Eoin discusses dealing with short and long term debt , our day-to-day spending, the difference between ‘happy’ and ‘crappy’ debt, and the importance of getting your money to work for you.For more information and advice from Eoin, his new book, ‘How to Be Good with Money’ is out now.Stay healthy and safe and keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/And do rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Nutrition and the food we eat is going to be so important over the coming weeks and months.Eating the right foods can help, not just with our overall health, but can also boost our immune system and deal with our gut reaction to stress and anxiety.For this week’s Real Health I’m joined by dietitian and gut expert, Paula Mee to find out what we should be eating and why.Paula has brilliant tips and advice on the symptoms to look out for if our gut health is acting up as well as the foods to keep ourselves fit and healthy. And if your caffeine intake is higher than usual, Paula has information on that as well!Ultimately, we should try and see the positive in all this, she says, and look to make meal times a special time, connecting and understanding the importance of food.Stay healthy and safe and keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/And do rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With the schools closed for the foreseeable future it can be a tough struggle for parents trying to keep their kids busy and look after their emotional well-being whilst also, for many, trying to work from home.To help you deal with these issues (and more), my guest on this week's Real Health is Ireland's leading child psychologist, David Coleman, who addresses the most common questions for parents during this Covid-19 time.From screen time and digital baby-sitting to balance and structure, as well as dealing with warning signs and difficult feelings in kids and teenagers, this week's episode will definitely help you and your children at this difficult period.Stay healthy and safe and keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/And do rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you can control your breathing you can control your stress and anxiety and so this week's Real Health episode is focusing on exactly that.Niall O'Murchu is an instructor in the Wim Hof breathing method and he joins me to explain the breathing techniques you can start using to help with stress relief and introduce more calm into your day.He discusses the Wim Hof Method that he teaches and how and why it allows people to withstand extreme cold by controlling your nervous system with breathing techniques.Niall explains why the exhale is so important and how that enables you to calm your body and mind down. Plus he has a simple breathing exercise to help as well as some tips for getting used to the cold, starting with your daily shower!Stay healthy and safe and keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And do rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For the second part of this week's Real Health Coronavirus special I'm joined by Minister for Health, Simon Harris.The Minister talks to me about how he is coping from both a personal and professional perspective, his pride at how people are doing their best to help out and why we still - all of us - need to do more in the crucial next few weeks.Stay healthy and safe and keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And do rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures and while we're trying to adapt to the current situation and find ways to deal with it, let's not forget the stresses and strains being put on our mental health, individually and collectively.I’ll be recording my shows remotely for the foreseeable future and in the first of a two-part Real Health special this week, I speak to clinical psychologist, Dr. Eddie Murphy, about how we can look after our mental health in these times.Eddie tells me how we can manage our stress levels and anxiety, why structure and routine are so important and why we can only focus on the things that we can control.We'll have the second part of our Coronavirus Special with Minister for Health, Simon Harris, tomorrow, so do listen out for that really important interview.In the meantime, take Eddie's advice on board, stay healthy and safe and keep in touch with me for daily postings on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/And do rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week’s Real Health is possibly one of the most important episodes I’ve done to date. With the country engulfed by coronavirus fears midst a barrage of constantly changing news updates every day, I wanted to get some tips and advice from an expert about what to do, what not do, how best to protect yourself and your loved ones and to find out how best to boost your immune system.To help you navigate through all the information, I was joined by pharmacist Laura Dowling who has some practical and sound advice if you are worried about the coronavirus.As always do keep up to date with the changing situation via the news and for the most timely health advice visit HSE.ie for the latest information.Stay healthy and safe and I’ll be back next week with another great Real Health episode.Don’t forget to keep in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ieFor more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And do rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

My latest Top 10 tips episode is how to health-proof your life and get you through the day in a healthy way.The idea is to give you simple, practical tips to improve your life. Over the next seven days I want you to try out at least one of the tips and see what happens and what improvements you feel in your daily life. After all, what have you got to lose and you never know it might work for you! Step by step these ten tips – from sleep and nutrition to snacks and tech - will help and I’d love to hear what works best for you so do get in touch. I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ieFor more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With this year’s Operation Transformation reaching its finale I wanted to catch up with the five leaders to find out more about their incredible journey.From their highs and lows, hopes and fears, Andrea and Barry Rea, Lorraine O’Neill, Shane Farrell and Tanya Carroll join me on this week’s Real Health episode.“OT has saved my life and I will never forget that,” Shane tells me and their eight-week adventure has been about more than just the weighing scales. The transformation has affected every part of their lives from food and exercise to attitude and mindset. With discipline and small steps, anyone can do it they tell me.Congratulations to them all for their commitment and letting us all share their own Operation Transformation!For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Most of us at some stage or another feel overwhelmed, over-worked and under pressure, but wouldn’t it be nice if you could take some steps to put everything back into balance through practical and easy steps?Michelle Moroney, life coach, owner of the Cliffs of Moher Retreat and author of the Life Audit, is my guest on this week’s Real Health podcast to help you do just that.We discuss change and how to implement it,“I can understand that people feel that they're in a bit of a rut of no energy, that it can feel like an enormous task to turn it all around,” Michelle tells me.  “I know that from personal experience just to bury my head, resistance and procrastination, it's too big, let it go.  But actually, tackling it and looking, can show us, ok, maybe it's not so bad.”Plus how you can take stock of the different aspects of your life, press pause and introduce more relaxation practices that will benefit you in the long term.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Through his very popular and accessible infographics on Instagram, the UK's Graeme Tomlinson, aka The Fitness Chef, has built up over half a million followers looking for accessible no nonsense advice around food and weight loss.He’s also got a new book out called ‘The Fitness Chef: Eat What You Like & Lose Weight For Life’ and he joins me on the Real Health podcast this week to discuss easy and simple changes you can make to ensure you're eating and living healthily.We discuss calories, carbs, protein, when to eat and what not to eat and find out why his post on avocado toast v nutella toast caused such a storm of controversy. Which one has less calories do you think?For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

With Veganuary just gone, being vegan is certainly in vogue but what are the pros and cons of a vegan diet? To find out the truth, the pros and cons of being vegan and whether it is for you, I’m joined on this week's Real Health by professional dietitian, Maeve Hanan.Maeve gives some great tips on making sure your diet is balanced and what kind of foods to focus on - and it's not just about fruit and veg. Plus she addresses the role of a vegan diet for athletes as well as the growing interest from teenagers and 20-somethings.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For this week’s Real Health podcast I want to discuss nutrition, exercise and lifestyle in the context of long working days and shift work. It can be hard to trying to tick all the boxes between work, family and keeping yourself fit and healthy, but my guest for this episode, Debbie O’Reilly, is an emergency paramedic and former competitive athlete, who knows exactly how hard it can be and has the solution and advice to be your best when you’re slogging through shift work, be it at the frontline or even having to work crazy, long hours to meet your work deadlines.With tips on sleep routine, nutrition and hydration there’s plenty to make sure you stay on top of your game even if a twelve hour work day is looming.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.This is also your last chance to win one of five signed copies of my Healthy Living Handbook which I’m giving away to those of you who give the show a review so why not let me know your thoughts on the podcast!The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Gerry Hussey is my guest on this week’s Real Health podcast and to call him a sports psychologist doesn’t do him or the topics we discuss, justice.While Gerry does explain the work he does with elite athletes in helping them to succeed, the reality is, what Gerry teaches is applicable to all our lives. It is about making the most from your life, living life fully and asking yourself the hard questions that need to be answered.‘WIN - What’s Important Now?’ are the guiding principles that Gerry discusses with me on the show.“Every one of us is only one question away from a major breakthrough,” he says. “Deep in our heart we know what we want. Do you want to spend the rest of your life hiding? Would you not like a chance of really living this one short life? We need to be inspired by a vision of the future. Start making decisions on the person you want to be.”Listen and be inspired.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.For the month of January I’ve also got five signed copies of my Healthy Living Handbook to give away to those of you who give the show a review so why not let me know your thoughts on the podcast!The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Many of you will know that I’m a big of walking as a great exercise for both physical and mental well-being and this week’s guest has certainly taken walking even further with her #100daysofwalking, encouraging anyone that can, to do thirty minutes of walking every day for the first 100 days of the year.Dr. Ciara Kelly, Newstalk’s Lunchtime presenter and walking aficionado, joined me on this week’s Real Health podcast to explain how and why she started her #100daysofwalking, the benefits she has gained from it and why so many other people have joined her in hitting the pavements and trails.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.I’ve also got five signed copies of my Healthy Living Handbook to give away to those of you who give the show a review so why not let me know your thoughts on the podcast!The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There are so many myths and misconceptions around health and fitness at this time of year that I decided, for this week’s episode of the Real Health podcast, to call out the BS around many of the gimmicks and quick fixes being pedalled. They don’t work, they’re not good for your health in the long term and I hope that, through my podcast, people will start understand the truth behind what’s actually needed to achieve real, long-lasting health and fitness.From the truth about sit-ups and six packs to diet and nutrition, fat v muscle, listen up, grab your pen and take note as I give you my top ten fitness myths busted!For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.I’ve also got five signed copies of my Healthy Living Handbook to give away to those of you who give the show a review so why not let me know your thoughts on the podcast!The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I hope you all had a fantastic Christmas and New Year and you’re all set and ready for your resolutions to get healthier in 2020?On this week’s episode I bring you 10 Real Resolutions for 2020 to get healthier this year. Normally people set goals and ambitions that are too big and after just a few weeks they fade away and give up on what they had wanted to achieve.Instead, let’s avoid that by getting you healthier in the long term and try not to do too much too soon.So, write down these 10 Real Resolutions, or pick and choose the ones that suit you. But write them down and keep them visible so they keep you focused throughout the entire year.Ready to get started? Super! These are tips that are simple, practical and easy to use, so grab a pen and let’s get started!For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.I’ve also got five copies of my Healthy Living Handbook to give away to those of you who give the show a review so why not let me know your thoughts on the podcast!The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Christmas is over and I hope you all had a wonderful time with friends and family and didn’t go over-board on the turkey, ham and wine?!The days between Christmas and New Year are a great time to take stock, look back and reflect on the year and life in general, and so for this week’s Real Health podcast, I sit down with one of Ireland’s most famous and controversial journalists who is now the host of his own hugely popular podcast, The Stand, Eamon Dunphy.I wanted to speak to Eamon about his life and career, from the highs and lows, to finding out about the mental stress of being in the spotlight. How do you deal with a life of notoriety and fame?And now aged 74, he talks to me frankly about the future, what it may hold and why he’s not afraid of what’s to come.I hope you enjoy the interview as you spend some time relaxing after Christmas Day and I will be back in the New Year with some great tips and advice for starting 2020 in the best possible way.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

She may have had to move on from RTE after reaching retirement age, but for presenter Mary Kennedy, her career is anything but over – starting with Dancing with the Stars to look forward to.Before Mary started her rehearsals, she joined me on this week’s Real Health podcast for this week’s ‘Life Lessons’ episode looking back on her career and life, what she learned and would do differently. Plus she has some great advice about the dangers of being cash-rich and time-poor, why family trumps career every time, and the important role that counselling and therapy has played in her life helping greatly with her own mental health.As this is my last show before Christmas, I want to thank you all for listening and subscribing to the Real Health podcast. Your support has helped make it the number 1 Health & Fitness podcast in Ireland and I’ve even bigger and better things planned for the show in 2020, so watch this space!A very Merry Christmas to you and your families and I’ll be back with a very special St. Stephen’s Day episode. Whatever you do on Christmas Day, enjoy yourself, spend time with family and friends and find the balance in your day.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Christmas is just around the corner and the party season is in full swing, but have you been over-indulging and enjoying yourself a bit too much? Have you been hit with the dreaded hangover yet or perhaps not looking forward to it happening?On this week's Real Health I've got the answers for you with Ireland's favourite GP, Dr. Sumi Dunne.Sumi explains what a hangover is, what happens to your body (and head), what to do and what not to do and how you can help to get over from its symptoms the next day.Sumi also tells me about certain drinks that have a tendency to cause more hangovers than others and what the best over-the-counter solution to buy is. Plus, if there's one piece of information to take away, it's to remember that each unit of alcohol takes one hour to process from the last drink that you've had, so please do drink safely and responsibly and everyone will have a great Christmas in the process.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Celebrating ten years presenting Operation Transformation, Kathryn Thomas joins me on this week's Real Health podcast to look ahead to the new series in January.She also tells me what it was like stepping into Gerry Ryan's shoes, why acting was her first love and how she got her break into TV.We discuss the importance of balance and positivity in her life and why finding the thing that you love to do is so important.Plus, Kathryn gives some tips for getting yourself on the right road to health and fitness.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Between Black Friday and the Toy Show, present buying for Christmas is first and foremost on a lot of people’s minds, and on this week’s Real Health, I thought, why not ask two of Ireland’s leading personal trainers what their wish list for Christmas would be?John Belton of No. 17 Personal Training and Paul Moran from BodyRock Performance joined me with their recommendations for training-related gifts for friends and family. There’s a few gadgets and gizmos on their list to aid in your running or gym work but I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised by some of their wish list favourites that go beyond just health and fitness.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The next few weeks are going to be busy. Between office parties and family and friend get-togethers, there will be plenty of socialising, eating and drinking over the Christmas period.But, how to make sure all the work you’ve done on your health and fitness throughout the year doesn’t go to waste over the next few weeks? This week’s Real Health episode will help solve that problem.I give you my ten tips that will make sure you can enjoy yourself but still keep you on track with your training and nutrition. From planning ahead to what to eat and drink on nights out, these are the tips that work for me, are simple and really effective and will mean you can still eat, drink and have a healthy Christmas!Make sure to have balance in your life, don’t be too hard on yourself and fit your nights out into your overall plans and routine over the coming weeks.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week I’m finding out all about pilates and yoga, the difference between them, the importance of movement, and the massive benefits that can be had from their practice.To give me insights, tips and advice, I speak to two of Ireland’s leading experts and practitioners, Annie Kirwan and Lee Tracey, who are co-founders of Reformation, a Dublin-based studio.Annie and Lee also reveal how and why yoga and pilates became so important to them, how they ditched careers in science and finance to pursue their dreams and why we need to all start re-connecting with ourselves to find quiet time in this world of busy-ness.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Unless you've been living under a rock in 2019, my guest on this week's Real Health podcast is known to pretty much everyone in Ireland after winning ITV's Love Island. He was a hugely popular winner and not only is he a proud Limerick man, he is also a very talented international athlete in rugby and athletics.Greg O'Shea joins me on this week's episode to tell me about his Love Island experience, how he convinced his Mum to let him do it, what life has been like since the TV show, and we also talk about his sporting life, health and fitness, and how a serious injury nearly ended his rugby career.“My long term plan before Love Island came along was to play rugby for as long as I can and then move into being a solicitor. But Love Island has now opened up so many doors for me. Never in a million years did I think I would be presenting a breakfast show. I’m a lucky man.”For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In his work with Leinster Rugby and Dublin GAA, elite performance nutritionist, Daniel Davey, has seen how consistently eating good food can help you perform at your highest level.But it’s not just in elite sport that this is true either. Anyone can feel and perform better with the right food choices. A healthy diet with appropriate energy and nutrients will make you feel energetic, positive, healthy, fit, strong and confident. Tremendous results can be accomplished through the right diet and on this week’s Real Health podcast I speak to Daniel about his new book, Eat Up Raise Your Game: 100 Easy, Nutritious Recipes to Help You Perform Better.He tells me how we can improve on the food that we eat, and has tips and advice for what we should be eating and drinking, before, during and after the gym.Listen to the episode, read Daniel’s book and you’ll find out what you should be eating and at the right times to help improve your body and mind.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s the 40th anniversary of the Dublin Marathon and is the biggest one yet. So, if you’re one of the 22,500 runners taking part – or if you’re just into any kind of running – on this week’s Real Health, I wanted to bring you some race tips and advice from one of Ireland’s greatest ever runners, Catherina McKiernan.Catherina has been an Olympian, European cross-country champion, four-time, World cross-country silver medallist, and is still the national marathon record holder with her victory in Amsterdam in 1998 in a time of 2 hours 22mins and 23 seconds. Who better to give you the tools needed to perform your best?Incredibly, Catherina didn’t start running competitively until her final year of secondary school when she won the national cross country schools title and then realised she had a talent to go further.Catherina has lots of great tips from rest, tapering your training, to the importance of relaxing your muscles during the race and visualisation and I’m sure you’ll find plenty in the interview to help improve your running.“Know what you’re capable of doing,” she tells me. “Stick with the pacers and don’t go off too fast. When you do feel tired, have a plan in place so the mind doesn’t overpower you. Feed it positive thoughts all the time. There will be parts when you’re going to feel tired and accept it when it happens.”Let me know how you get on if you are running in the Dublin Marathon - I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s cold, damp and dark, the fire is looking more inviting each evening and it is becoming more and more difficult to train. Yes winter is arriving, so how to make sure you stay on track during these next few months?For this week’s Real Health podcast I’ve got my top ten tips for winter training success. The key is to set yourself up for success. Write them down and put them into action so you don’t put on weight or don’t lose your training routine. Try any one of these tips – even better do all ten! – and you will find they will make a difference to your health and fitness.If you’ve got your own tips that work for you, why not share them with me and the Real Health community – I’m @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It massively impacts you in terms of running, training and everyday life and yet it’s not an area of health and fitness that people pay much attention to. What am I talking about? Your mobility, and on this week’s Real Health podcast, I speak to Brian O’Loughlin of Movement101 and find out why movement and mobility are the real secrets to Real Health.“It’s not about stretching or foam rolling,” explains Brian. “It’s about being able to physically move the way you want to move. Foam rolling and stretching can help but they’re too passive.”After a bad shoulder injury got worse over time without a solution, Brian decided to take matters into his own hands and focused on mobility and better movement. It’s a rapidly growing area of fitness and he trains many inter-county stars, including players from the Dublin football team.“The body craves movement, give it more and more,” he tells me. “Once you’re aware of it, the onus and responsibility is on you. Move as much as you can every single day. The biggest indicator is: can you do what you want to do well?”As always, if you have any questions for me or suggestions for show guests or topics, I'm @KarlHenryPTon Instagram and Twitter or realhealth@independent.ie.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I've covered nutrition before on the Real Health podcast from performance to healthy eating and this week I'm discussing fuelling your life with nutrition advice and tips from Danny Lennon of Sigma Nutrition.Danny is the founder of Sigma Nutrition and has a master’s degree (MSc.) in Nutritional Sciences from University College Cork, during which time he completed his research thesis directly under the world-renowned vitamin D researcher Professor Kevin Cashman.On this episode, Danny has ten key take-aways that you can use today in your everyday life with nutrition-specific tips around protein intake, snacking, food preparation and environment.Plus, he also covers non-nutrition, lifestyle habits that will ensure you are living a well-balanced and healthy life.As always, if you have any questions for me or suggestions for show guests or topics, I'm @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter or realhealth@independent.ie.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Aoibhín Garrihy, entrepreneur, former Fair City Actress and former Dancing with the Stars finalist, joined me on this week’s Real Health podcast to talk about family, career and health.Aoibhín gave up acting and headed west to Clare, where, she says, she has found happiness.“Every time I headed to the west I felt a weight lift off me, felt happier and at ease. The outdoors is my happy place. When you free yourself from shackles it can be very free-ing and liberating.”Aoibhín also talks about family life, being Mum to Hanorah and expecting her second child in December with husband John Burke, and why everyone has an opinion on motherhood, especially on social media.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/Aoibhin Garrihy was speaking as part of Avonmore Fresh Milk’s Farmfulness campaign: www.avonmore.ie/our-story/our-farmersIf you want to contact me with your own Real Health questions, I'm @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter or realhealth@independent.ie.Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

“I didn’t really know who I was and most of us aren’t really comfortable with who we are.”Alison Canavan, the personal wellness coach and former model, has been through her own struggles and now wants to bring self-empowerment and awareness to more people.Joining me on this week’s Real Health podcast, Alison opens up about her journey, dealing with insecurities and how mindfulness has helped her deal with life’s struggles.She also takes me through the 5 As – Awareness, Acceptance, Accessibility, Attitude and Alignment – that can act as the structure and foundation for re-connecting yourself.“If we give back to ourselves with time we give back to our own lives,” she says.Alison will also be appearing along with other leading health and wellness experts at the Vitality Expo, ‘a celebration of healthy living’ in the RDS on Sept 28-29th and to get discounted tickets for just €8 including the booking fee, go to VitalityExpo.ie and enter the discount code ‘Karl’.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/If you want to contact me with your own Real Health questions, I'm @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter or realhealth@independent.ie.Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In a special bonus episode live from the 2019 Ploughing Championships in Carlow, the Real Health podcast finds out about the health of the nation from Kate O’Flaherty, Director of Healthy Ireland, and Conor Owens, Child Psychologist with the HSE.We’re living longer, and slowly but surely, as a country, we're eating healthier and getting fitter, but there is still a lot more to do with obesity a major issue and set to become even more so in the future.Karl talks to Kate and Conor about what we can all be doing to help ourselves, our families and our kids in the drive for healthier living, including the thorny issue of screen-time.How much is too much? Zero for 0-2 year olds and an hour for up to five year olds, says Conor. And for adults? 'Once it’s not interfering with your sleep, social interaction and physical activity. It's about quality v quantity,' he explains.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/If you want to contact me with your own Real Health questions, I'm @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter or realhealth@independent.ie.Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s September, the summer is over, schools are back, the nights are drawing in and life is going back to its familiar routine. What better time then to get your fitness – physical and mental – back on track? After all, September is the new January…This week’s Real Health podcast is dedicated to re-establishing your fitness routine and to help you through it with some great tips and advice, I’m joined by Janet Cleary, a clinical nurse and mindfulness coach, Peter Thornton a wellness advisor with Spectrum Health, and Holly Carpenter, blogger and business woman.For Janet, the key message is about making small changes to build strong habits. If you can spend an hour on your Instagram after all, can’t you spend five minutes on your mindfulness? Peter says that while there’s a few common barriers such as lack of time, family life and job, the message is, no matter what the barrier, there’s always a solution. While for Holly it’s about giving yourself a break, stop and make an effort to be kinder to yourself. ‘You have to just back yourself,’ she says. ‘If I turn on myself who have I got to back myself up?’For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/If you want to contact me with your own Real Health questions, I'm @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter or realhealth@independent.ie.Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week’s episode is about mental health but it’s also a raw story of dark depths, attempted suicide and the ability to overcome and deal with the thoughts inside your head.Graham McCormack is a former MMA fighter who in recent years has been very open about his battles with anxiety, depression and mental health.It’s perhaps the last thing you would expect to hear from a combatant in the ultra-alpha male sphere of combat sport, but I’m delighted to say that Graham joined me on the show to talk about his journey, his advice and his willingness to be open about his problems in the hope of helping others.We need more people like Graham McCormack willing to talk frankly and honestly about their battles so that we can raise the growing issue of mental health in Ireland.If you have been affected by any of the issues in this interview, please contact the Samaritans helpline 116 123, Aware helpline 1800 80 48 48 or Pieta House on 1800 247 247.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/If you want to contact me with your own Real Health questions, I'm @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter or realhealth@independent.ie.Don't forget to rate, review and subscribe on Apple and Google Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts from.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Sleep is an area we don’t pay enough attention to yet it’s when our body recovers the most and it is vital for our mental and physical health. It is one of the most neglected areas of health but one of the most important.For this week's episode I give you my top 10 tips for sleep optimisation that you can put into practise starting today. From your sleep environment to eating, and movement to visualisation, these are simple and easy to implement habits that work and not only will your sleeping improve but so will every other part of your life too. Let me know how you get on and any other tips you have and want to share with the Real Health listeners - I'm @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter and realhealth@independent.ie.For more episodes and information from the Real Health podcast you can visit the show page at:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.** As the Real Health podcast nears its 1.5 millionth listener, I've got 5 copies of my latest book, 'Karl Henry's Healthy Living Handbook', to give away. Just subscribe, rate and review the show and you could be in with a chance of winning. **See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Nutrition and food has become a crucial component in the GAA in terms of performance and preparation and this week I wanted to find out more and to get some tips and advice from someone who is not only a nutritionist but an inter-county GAA footballer.Mayo's Evan Regan joined me on this week's Real Health podcast to discuss all things GAA, food and nutrition.He explains how more and more nutritionists are becoming involved, not only at county, but at club and underage level too. Significantly, it is the players who are buying into how important nutrition really is.Evan also has some great tips for everyday use from what do to on your food shop, cooking your own food, writing a food diary, hydration and to supplement or not to supplement.Underpinning it all is a simple but vital philosophy,"Training or not," Evan says. "It’s all about better decision-making. What can you do consistently every day that is going to lead to bigger results and reaching your goal?"For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/If you want to contact me with your own Real Health questions, I'm @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter or realhealth@independent.ie.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.** As the Real Health podcast nears its 1.5 millionth listener, I've got 5 copies of my latest book, 'Karl Henry's Healthy Living Handbook', to give away. Just subscribe, rate and review the show and you could be in with a chance of winning. **See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Steroids. It's a topic I've been wanting to cover since the Real Health first started. Just how much is it on the increase, especially for gym users and the younger generation of men who are under pressure to look a 'certain way'? Over half a million doses of steroids are being confiscated by the Gardaí every year and it is on the rise.To find out more, this week I’m joined by David Nolan of Synapse Performance. David is the current head of performance for the Rugby Academy Ireland and is also the head coach and educator at Synapse Performance.David tells me anecdotal stories of steroid use, how much easier they are to buy online nowadays, why elite athletes are looking for ways to crack the system, and the long-term consequences and effects of steroid use on your body and mind.I also want to speak to a steroid user on the Real Health podcast in the coming weeks to find out their story and why they take them, so if you'd be interested in speaking to me just get in touch. I'm @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter or realhealth@independent.ie.For more episodes, tips and advice from the show just go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

“It’s the biggest health problem this country has.”These are the stark words from Professor Donal O’Shea, the HSE’s Clinical Lead on Obesity, who joins me on this week’s Real Health podcast to talk about the obesity epidemic that is affecting Ireland. Did you know that a report by the European Commission on Obesity found that obesity levels in Ireland are far higher than the EU average? Not only that, but by 2030 Ireland could be the fattest nation in Europe, with 89% of men and 85% women being overweight?It’s a problem of epidemic proportions unless we all do something about it, increasing awareness, helping ourselves, our friends and our kids, and Donal O’Shea is one outspoken voice on this issue who wants to see a lot more being done.“The penny is finally dropping within government,” he tells me. “But only after the financial dawning of what this is costing.”Donal tells me why he thinks progress has been slow so far in tackling Ireland’s obesity problem, why growing health inequality is so worrying and targeting the holy grail of health literacy leading to prevention rather than treatment.For more episodes from the Real Health podcast don’t forget to visit the show page:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And you can get in touch with me on realhealth@independent.ie and @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I regularly get asked what's in my weekly food shop and what do I buy in the supermarket from people wanting advice and tips to ensure they're set up for a week of healthy eating. This week's episode deals with just that - it's my top tips for your ten food shop essentials. It's the ten foods that are in my shopping trolley every week. The food shop is crucial to your health, stocking up with the right foods to set you up for the week. Also important is making sure you have healthy food and snacks for your commute and at work. Prepare and plan for success. Listen to episode for my ten food shop essentials and let me know if you have any others to add - I'm on realhealth@independent.ie and @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter.For more episodes from the Real Health podcast don’t forget to visit the show page:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

He’s the World Rugby Player of the Year, a multiple European Cup, Pro14 and Six Nations winner and Johnny Sexton joins me on this week’s Real Health podcast from the Laya City Spectacular that was recently held in Dublin’s Merrion Square.Johnny talks to me about his down-time and off-season, as well as the return to pre-season training in preparation for what will be the biggest of years with the Rugby World Cup looming.He’s open and honest about the difficulties of training at this time of the year and if pros like Johnny find it tough, maybe don’t be so hard on yourself when your own fitness and training don’t live up to expectations?“I hate the fitness but I love it when I get it done,” he tells me. “You get nervous, you get butterflies, you think, ‘why do I do this?’”Johnny also talks about his competitiveness and will to win, the importance of a work ethic and persistence, and why mindfulness is encouraged in the Irish rugby camp and is so important especially in his position.Following on from our Brian O’Driscoll interview a few weeks ago I’m sure you’ll pick up some great insights and advice this week from one of Ireland’s top athletes.For more episodes from the Real Health podcast don’t forget to visit the show page:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And I’m @KarlHenryPT on Twitter and Instagram and realhealth@independent.ie if you want to get in touch.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.** To celebrate our 1 millionth listener and a year of The Real Health podcast, we would love to get your feedback on the podcast and listen to your suggestions.As a big thank you for your support, we will have some great prizes to give away including a Fitbit and signed copies of my Healthy Living Handbooks.Winners will be selected at random from people who complete the survey.Looking forward to many more podcasts and hearing your suggestions!You can go to www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/ or www.surveymonkey.com/r/RealHealthSurvey **See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It all began with a veg shop in Greystones, and what started as a simple dream has, over the last fifteen years, become an overnight success story with books, cafes, TV shows, online courses, and of course, their food products.The Happy Pears are one of Ireland's great health and food business successes and on this week's show, Stephen and David Flynn, join me to tell me how it happened.Their energy and positivity is infectious - 'If you embrace life, a grey manky day suddenly becomes more and you start seeing the sun coming out' - but they also go deep to talk about purpose, dealing with fame and getting a work-life balance.Plus, listen in for their top five tips for healthy living, and only one is to do with food!For more episodes from the Real Health podcast don’t forget to visit the show page:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And I’m @KarlHenryPT on Twitter and Instagram and realhealth@independent.ie if you want to get in touch.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.** To celebrate our 1 millionth listen and a year of The Real Health podcast, we would love to get your feedback on the podcast and listen to your suggestions.As a big thank you for your support, we will have some great prizes to give away including a Fitbit and signed copies of my Healthy Living Handbooks.Winners will be selected at random from people who complete the survey.Looking forward to many more podcasts and hearing your suggestions!You can go to www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/ or www.surveymonkey.com/r/RealHealthSurvey **See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Gut health is everything to do with your bowel and its healthy functioning is a vital part of your daily life.Frances Flannery, aka Your Gut Friend, is a gut health specialist and continuing our health masterclass series, she joins me on this week’s Real Health podcast.Bloating, constipation, these are issues people don’t like to talk about, but Frances has some great professional insights and advice to make sure your gut health is functioning as it should.You’ll find out the importance of natural foods, probiotics, food intolerance testing and the link between mental health problems and your gut.Plus, Frances has some great tips on improvements you can make to your diet and lifestyle that will get everything moving in the right way!For more episodes from the Real Health podcast don’t forget to visit the show page:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And I’m @KarlHenryPT on Twitter and Instagram and realhealth@independent.ie if you want to get in touch.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.** To celebrate our 1 millionth listen and a year of The Real Health podcast, we would love to get your feedback on the podcast and listen to your suggestions.As a big thank you for your support, we will have some great prizes to give away including a Fitbit and signed copies of my Healthy Living Handbooks.Winners will be selected at random from people who complete the survey. Looking forward to many more podcasts and hearing your suggestions!You can go to www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/ or www.surveymonkey.com/r/RealHealthSurvey **See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s another exclusive Real Health interview this week when I had the opportunity to speak to one of Ireland’s favourite sports people, Brian O’Driscoll.From a sunny Herbert Park, Brian spoke honestly about the lows of life after rugby, how he needed to train hard again to find happiness and balance in his life, and why he needed to partner up to help motivate himself when it came to training and gym work.He’s frank about the lows and negative thoughts that can intrude in your life and the importance of dealing with them through switching off and focusing on the positive.Plus, he tells me why enjoying yourself, having a good time and treating yourself is so important too.“Most people want a balance in their lives,” he says. “I like to be able to treat myself but just make sure to make more good decisions than bad ones.”It’s a fascinating thirty minutes with Brian O’Driscoll that is revealing, open and intimate and I’m sure you’ll enjoy.For more episodes from the Real Health podcast don’t forget to visit the show page:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/And I’m @KarlHenryPT on Twitter and Instagram and realhealth@independent.ie if you want to get in touch.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.Brian O’Driscoll is Gym+Coffee’s Head of Community and was speaking at their #MakeLifeRicher Day.** To celebrate our 1 millionth listen and a year of The Real Health podcast, we would love to get your feedback on the podcast and listen to your suggestions. As a big thank you for your support, we will have some great prizes to give away including a Fitbit and signed copies of my Healthy Living Handbooks.Winners will be selected at random from people who complete the survey. Looking forward to many more podcasts and hearing your suggestions!You can go to https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/ or https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/RealHealthSurvey **See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

After 30, your brain starts to shrink. It's a scary fact and as it's our most important organ it makes sense that we should look after it and keep it fit.After all, you brush and care for your teeth every day, surely you should be doing the same for your brain? That's what this week's guest, Sabina Brennan, says on this week's Real Health podcast.Continuing our health masterclass series, Sabina takes me through what we should all be doing to keep our brains young and help slow the shrinking down. If you want to find out what the miracle-gro for the brain is, then listen to what Sabina has to say.For more episodes from the Real Health podcast don’t forget to visit the show page:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/And I’m @KarlHenryPT on Twitter and Instagram and realhealth@independent.ie if you want to get in touch.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.** To celebrate our 1 millionth listen and a year of The Real Health podcast, we would love to get your feedback on the podcast and listen to your suggestions. As a big thank you for your support, we will have some great prizes to give away including a Fitbit and signed copies of my Healthy Living Handbooks.Winners will be selected at random from people who complete the survey. Looking forward to many more podcasts and hearing your suggestions!You can go to https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/ or https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/RealHealthSurvey **See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Let's talk about sex. In the first of a masterclass health series on the Real Health podcast, I'm talking about sexual health and sexual communication with sex educator and owner of Sex Siopa, Shawna Scott.Shawna gives her tips for improving sexual communication as well as explaining our evolving sexual needs and why we shouldn't be afraid to try new things out with our partner."The things we’re into in our 20s will not be the same things in our 40s and 50s and it’s the same with our sexual evolution," she explains.For more episodes from the Real Health podcast don’t forget to visit the show page:www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/And I’m @KarlHenryPT on Twitter and Instagram and realhealth@independent.ie if you want to get in touch.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.** To celebrate our 1 millionth listen and a year of The Real Health podcast, we would love to get your feedback on the podcast and listen to your suggestions. As a big thank you for your support, we will have some great prizes to give away including a Fitbit and signed copies of my Healthy Living Handbooks.Winners will be selected at random from people who complete the survey. Looking forward to many more podcasts and hearing your suggestions!You can go to https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/ or https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/RealHealthSurvey **See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Personal trainer, Dominic Munnelly, is back to answer more of your fitness and gym questions on this week’s episode of the Real Health podcast with me Karl Henry.Dominic is one of Ireland’s leading personal trainers and when he was on the show two months ago he had so much information to give I had to invite him back on again and to answer more of your health and fitness questions.Dominic covers the importance of mobility, strength and conditioning in that order but also says that mental health trumps physical health every time, so make sure you’re also living a balanced life in terms of food, sleep and stress.Plus, what are some of the most common mistakes being made by the average gym goer?Dominic answers your questions about fat loss and the truth behind calorie reduction whilst exercising and again emphasises lifestyle first and foremost.“We’re looking for the smartest way to train in the most sustainable manner that is true today and will still be true in five years’ time,” he explains.Dominic also opens up about going out on his own (‘burning your ship’) and building up his training business in the early years, to revealing what his favourite treat meals and snacks are.It’s a fascinating thirty minutes that you will get a huge amount of information and learning from.For more episodes from the Real Health podcast don’t forget to visit the show page:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/And I’m @KarlHenryPT on Twitter and Instagram and realhealth@independent.ie if you want to get in touch.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Marty Morrissey is one of Ireland’s best-loved TV personalities but there’s so much more to the GAA commentator that you probably never knew.Marty joined me live at Bloom 2019 where we discussed going outside your comfort zone, taking on life’s challenges and why it’s so difficult for him to find a happy life-balance.Candidly, he admitted that he still needed to lose three stone and why, having lost friends close to him through illness, he wants to keep on embracing life and trying new things.It’s Marty Morrissey, open and honest on the challenges of life that we all encounter and want to overcome.For more episode and information you can visit the show page:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/And I’m @KarlHenryPT on Twitter and Instagram and realhealth@independent.ie if you want to get in touch.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you want to establish healthy habits into your life then make them simple and easy to implement.People like simple things and these ten tips to help transform your life aren’t difficult – and that’s the secret.On this week’s episode, from focusing on your happiness to taking steps to improving your sleep, as well covering food, finances and training, these ten ways will help make a difference, guaranteed.Just try and slot the ones that are easiest to do for you into your life and they will become habits much quicker.Let me know how you get on – I’m @KarlHenryPT on Twitter and Instagram and realhealth@independent.ieFor more episode and information you can visit the show page:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/The Real Health podcast with Karl Henry is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Did you know about the eating plan that says you can stay in great shape physically and mentally while still enjoying delicious food?According to dietitian and author of Mediterranean Mood Food, Paula Mee, we can have it both ways and she joined me on this week’s episode of the Real Health podcast to discuss the recipes, science and habits behind the Mediterranean style diet.It may be well established that you can reduce the risk of heart disease, stroke, cancer and diabetes with Mediterranean foods, now new evidence suggests that this pattern of eating also reduces the risk of depression, substantially.Inspired by this new research, dietitian Paula Mee discusses the healthy eating plan based on the Mediterranean diet that is rich in healthy fats, wholegrain, unrefined carbs, and proteins. If you want to stay fit and healthy both physically and mentally while enjoying good food then Paula’s advice will I’m sure go a long way.Let me know any Mediterranean-style recipes/tips you may have – I’m @KarlHenryPT on Twitter and Instagram and you can also email the show realhealth@independent.ie.For episodes from the Real Health podcast, visit our showpage:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/The Real Health podcast with Karl Henry in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

"If you can walk comfortably for thirty minutes, then running is worth giving it a shot. Most people stop because they’re trying to do much. Lower your expectations from the start and start small. Little wins make you more likely to get out the door."Mary Jennings, author of Get Running and founder of running classes website, ForgettheGym.ie, joins me on this week's episode to explain how and why we can all get into running.She's got great tips and advice for starting this great exercise, to maintaining your running consistency as well improving your runs if you're beyond the beginner stage.I also find out about her own career and why she ditched the 9-5 job to develop her running business instead."You’ll have ups and downs, and sometimes you have to accept that there’s stages in life when it’s not a priority," she tells me. "Most people are on running come backs and by breaking it up into small sections that's how I was able to do it. "For more information and episodes from the Real Health podcast you can visit the show page:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/You can also contact me on social media - I'm @KarlHenryPT on Twitter and Instagram - and the show email is realhealth@independent.ie.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As Leinster Rugby look to add a record-breaking fifth European Cup to their trophy cabinet, it’s an exciting time to be involved with the club and from a health and fitness perspective, I wanted to find out some of the tips and insights into what makes them one of true greats on the European scene.Joining me on the show from Leinster Rugby HQ were Performance Nutritionist, Daniel Davey, and Cillian Reardon, Senior Athletic Performance Coach, who reveal what training and nutrition is like for professional rugby players.But the key take-away is the fact that, while the players' intensity and volume is different, the principles around food intake and training are still the same for the average person who exercises and keeps fit.“There is nothing out of the ordinary,” says Daniel Davey. “Yes the timing and volume is different but the foods that we should eat are all the same. Nutrition, lifestyle, exercise are all about good behaviour and establishing good habits.”Likewise, says Cillian Reardon, to be fit and in good shape, you need to be strong in all your planes of movement. “The principles of training are pretty much the same but just applied in a different context.”For more information and episodes from the Real Health podcast you can visit the show page:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/You can also contact me on social media - I'm @KarlHenryPT on Twitter and Instagram - and the show email is realhealth@independent.ie.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The next time you reach for a snack or something to eat, ask yourself, are you really hungry? Mindful eating - the practical approach to bringing calm and awareness to meal times - is the topic for this week's episode as I'm joined by Aisling Larkin, co-founder of Foodoppi.Disordered eating can lead to things quickly spiralling out of control, but you can bring mindfulness back to where you are and start afresh for the next meal or snack. Draw a line in the sand and move on.When you’re more in tune with your body it’s about choosing quality over quantity and Aisling Larkin gives us some of the secrets and techniques to ensure that you're not eating mindlessly. Plus she has some great tips for improving your kids' relationship with food to help make meal times more enjoyable for everyone!For more information and episodes from the Real Health podcast you can visit the show page:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/You can also contact me on social media - I'm @KarlHenryPT on Twitter and Instagram and the show email is realhealth@independent.ie.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Waking up in a pool of blood at the bottom of a flight of stairs in a karaoke bar was the final straw for TodayFM’s Dermot Whelan. He needed to find a way to deal with life’s stresses and that’s when he discovered meditation as he explains to me on this week’s Real Health episode.Since then, he has spent a year in California to train as a mediation teacher and he now gives workshops around the country to people and companies looking to integrate more peace of mind into their days.Dermot even admits that he gets greater enjoyment from these sessions than going on stage.“I get more joy from teaching people meditation than doing stand-up comedy,” he tells me. “I played the 3 Arena and having 10,000 people laughing at your jokes is living the dream for most comedians. But a week later I got an even bigger high from teaching eighty people a mediation workshop.”Dermot also takes us through a really useful 16-second meditation that you can practise anywhere, so if you’re looking for some peace in your day listen to how Dermot Whelan has done it.For more information and episodes from the Real Health podcast you can visit the show page:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/You can also contact me on social media - I'm @KarlHenryPT on Twitter and Instagram and the show email is realhealth@independent.ie.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Aged six, Bernard Dunne sat on Barry McGuigan's knee and told McGuigan that someday he too would be like him. Twenty-three years later Bernard Dunne became a world boxing champion and proved his skill, determination and focus to achieve.Ten years on from that magical moment, he joins me on the Real Health podcast to talk about the power of self-belief and never letting the negative thoughts in your head control you.He also discusses his role as High Performance Director for Irish boxing with the goal of being the number one High Performance team in the world as we approach the 2020 Olympic Games."It’s all about preparation, being ready and enjoying what you do," he tells me. "It’s about making the right choices. Sometimes we sabotage ourselves because of a fear of what we can achieve, whether it’s going for an Olympic medal or running a 5km race."“If you’re trying to reset anything in your life, these negative thoughts are only fleeting. And you know what, sometimes you do get knocked down. But one setback doesn’t mean you give up. Don’t let the voice that wants to take the easy road control you.”For more information and episodes from the Real Health podcast you can visit the show page:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/You can also contact me on social media - I'm @KarlHenryPT on Twitter and Instagram and the show email is realhealth@independent.ie.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If you're looking to lose some weight for the summer holidays or just want to feel better about your body, then this week's episode is for you as I give you the 10 REAL ways to lose weight.Bringing you the benefit of all my years of experience in personal training, these tips really do work. I cover everything from muscle v fat, cardio training, calories, food planning, and how to avoid the training plateau.Follow my ten tips and you will start to see a real difference to your weight and you'll be all set for the summer holidays!Do let me know how you get on - I'm @KarlHenryPT on Twitter and Instagram and the show email is realhealth@independent.ie.For more information and episodes from the Real Health podcast you can visit the show page:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

An Taoiseach, Leo Varadkar, is this week’s guest on the Real Health podcast as I give him and two of his staff a six-week fitness challenge and I ask you, the listeners, to also test yourself against the Taoiseach over the next six weeks.“It was following on from the Operation Transformation Metabolic Age Test that I did and had me coming out at 53,” Leo Varadkar explained to me. “I’m actually 40 and I try to keep reasonably fit and wanted to find out where I’m doing well, what the problem might be and how I can deal with it.”In my gym I tested the Taoiseach with how many sit-ups and press-ups he can do in a minute, as well as how fast he can run 1km on the treadmill, plus the length of time he can stay in the plank position. Listen to the show to find out just how he did and why not see how you measure up? In six weeks’ time I will be testing the Taoiseach on the same stats and see if any improvements have been made.It’s also a really fascinating interview with the leader of the country on how he manages his health and fitness with his extremely busy and stressful job, what his favourite type of exercise is, his struggles with weight issues, and how companies in Ireland can be doing more to help their own employees build health and fitness into their working lives.For more episodes and information from the Real Health podcast you can also go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/And you can get in touch with me on Twitter and Instagram @KarlHenryPT or email realhealth@independent.ie.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

She’s a best-selling author of two books, Owning It and The Confidence Kit, has a chart-topping podcast and is looking to crack the US with her brand of no-nonsense advice on living with anxiety and Caroline Foran is my guest on this week’s Real Health episode.Describing the rise of anxiety in people’s lives as an ‘epidemic’, the success of Caroline Foran’s books and podcast has shown how much it is an issue in modern life.Caroline describes her journey from childhood tummy pains to not being able to leave the house as an adult and how she finally came around to accepting herself and how to deal with stress and anxiety in her life.Knowing your body and mind, being comfortable in your skin and educating yourself with information and knowledge can help you, she explains. “Once you understand it you are far better equipped to deal with it,” she tells me in an honest and in-depth interview that I’m sure you will find both inspiring and helpful. For more episodes and information from the Real Health podcast you can also go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/Plus, don’t forget to subscribe and rate the show – we’re on Spotify, Soundcloud, Apple and Google Podcasts.And you can get in touch with me on Twitter and Instagram @KarlHenryPT or email realhealth@independent.ie.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week’s episode is all about your skin. Your skin? Yes, your skin, one of our vital health organs. If you exercise at all you know what it’s like to sweat and if you’re a healthy eater, you will also know how important good food is for your skin too. We’re not just talking vanity here either. Healthy skin is also a barometer of good health and treating your body well.So who better to give us the secrets and insights than the hugely popular Skin Nerd, Jennifer Rock and on the show, Jennifer gives me the three simple steps that take no more than sixty seconds for you to do each morning and evening.Plus she has advice for those of you who are exercising and even has some anti-ageing tips – it turns out that if you’re over the age of 25 then you need to start looking after your skin even more!If you have skin health tips I’d love to hear them – I’m on Twitter and Instagram @KarlHenryPT and realhealth@independent.ie.Plus, don’t forget to subscribe and rate the show – we’re on Spotify, Soundcloud, Apple and Google Podcasts.For more episodes and information from the Real Health podcast you can also go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

You made it! It's my 7th and final Daily Health Boost to help kickstart your daily routine and today's tip is focusing on what you can achieve going forwards so listen in and I hope you find it effective.For more Real Health episodes and information you can visit the show page at: https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/Don’t forget to rate and subscribe the show and get in touch - I’m on Twitter and Instagram @KarlHenryPT or realhealth@independent.ie.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya HealthcareSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We're nearly there for our week-long daily health boosts to help kickstart your days and I hope these short tips are making a small difference?Today's Daily Health boost is a good way to make a positive impact on your life. Listen in to find out more!For more Real Health episodes and information you can visit the show page at: https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/Don’t forget to rate and subscribe the show and get in touch - I’m on Twitter and Instagram @KarlHenryPT or realhealth@independent.ie.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya HealthcareSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Day 5 of your 7 day Daily Health Boost tips and I hope they're making a difference? Today's tip is focused on emotional fitness so give it a go and let me know how you're getting on!For more Real Health episodes and information you can visit the show page at: https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/Don’t forget to rate and subscribe the show and get in touch - I’m on Twitter and Instagram @KarlHenryPT or realhealth@independent.ie.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya HealthcareSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dominic Munnelly is one of Ireland’s leading personal trainers with twenty years’ experience and a philosophy rooted in the athletic over the aesthetic focused on mobility and movement over abs and muscle.I wanted to find out more from Dominic to get some of his training tips for more effective results and we covered everything from exercises to diet and nutrition, supplements and agility.“It’s about consistency over intensity. Fresh is the new fit,” he tells me.Dominic is also very outspoken on what he sees as some of the issues around the fitness industry.“The fitness industry has never been stronger, more gyms, more trainers yet obesity rates are going up and up. I think the fitness industry is failing people. How is it failing I ask myself?” But he is a mine of information and expertise and in fact, Dominic has so much to tell us that I’ve invited him back on the show in a few weeks’ time to answer more of your health and fitness questions so if you want Dominic to answer anything from the personal trainer side of things then get in touch – I’m @KarlHenryPT on Twitter and Instagram of realhealth@independent.ie.Don’t forget to rate and subscribe the show and get in touch and for more Real Health episodes and information you can visit the show page at: https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/ The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

How are you getting on with the Daily Health Boosts? Are you sticking with them? Today's tip is a simple but very effective tip for burning calories. So simple but it works!For more Real Health episodes and information you can visit the show page at: https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/Don’t forget to rate and subscribe the show and get in touch - I’m on Twitter and Instagram @KarlHenryPT or realhealth@independent.ie.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya HealthcareSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It's Day 3 of our week-long Daily Health Boosts and you should be looking to integrate these simple tips into your everyday life for long-term benefits. Let me know how you're getting on - I’m on Twitter and Instagram @KarlHenryPT or realhealth@independent.ie.For more Real Health episodes and information you can visit the show page at: https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/Don’t forget to rate and subscribe the show and get in touch!The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya HealthcareSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I hope you enjoyed the first Daily Health Boost and are ready for a week of small tips for big changes in your health and fitness? Listen in for my second Daily Health Boost which I want you to try for the next 24 hours.Don’t forget to rate and subscribe the show and get in touch - I’m on Twitter and Instagram @KarlHenryPT or realhealth@independent.ie.For more Real Health episodes and information you can visit the show page at: https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya HealthcareSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Welcome to my 7 day Daily Health Boost challenge! For the next 7 days I'm going to be giving you short (1 minute) tips that will help your health and fitness. They are easy to implement and if you can make them part of your everyday, then short - and long term - you will really feel the benefits.Let's start today with our first Daily Health Boost which is about food and snacking. Listen in to find out more and let me know on Twitter and Instagram @KarlHenryPT or realhealth@independent.ie.For more Real Health episodes and information you can visit the show page at: https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya HealthcareSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

RTE’s Claire Byrne joins me on this week’s episode as we discuss the nerve-wracking decision to take the metabolic age test live on national TV, why she forces herself to keep trying new things, and how she struggles to fit running and fitness in with her busy family and work life.“The only exercise I’m doing now is lifting children,” she tells me. “And my self-criticism is completely justified – I’m frustrated at my own laziness. I think I need someone shouting at me!”Claire also reveals that she follows the Michael Mosley 5:2 plan where you eat normally for five days and then restrict yourself to 500-600 calories for each of the other two days.“The real benefit is the next day when you feel clean and it really helps with controlling your weight,” she admits. “Being overweight annoys me and I don’t like it. It’s a really do-able plan and even my husband does it as well.”Claire also opens up about the pressures of being in the spotlight and working on live TV and radio and why she is her own worst critic but will always look to face up to her fears.I hope you enjoy the interview and for more Real Health episodes and information you can visit the show page at: https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/Don’t forget to rate and subscribe the show and get in touch - I’m on Twitter and Instagram @KarlHenryPT or realhealth@independent.ie.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya HealthcareSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It's the one exercise that is so simple, so good for your stress and health and what's more, it’s free, what’s not to love about running?! Running is what got me back to health when I was in college and since then, I’ve done 5ks, 10ks, marathons, ironmans and ultra marathons.Here then are my top 10 ways that you can be a better runner. These short, simple tips will help you maintain your running routine and get more out of your runs each time you put on those trainers.I cover gait analysis, gear, hill running, races, rest, recovery, tech and strength and conditioning giving you the benefit of my twenty years of personal training experience.So, what are you waiting for? Start running today and help yourself feel better mentally and physically.For more Real Health episodes and information you can visit the show page at: https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/Don’t forget to rate and subscribe the show and get in touch - I’m on Twitter and Instagram @KarlHenryPT or realhealth@independent.ie.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Pat Divilly has been one of Ireland's most well-known trainers and personal coaches but it was fascinating to speak to him this week about his failures in his 20s, how he had to start over and why, despite being successful, he decided to give it all up to focus on what actually made him happy.It's a really insightful and honest interview where Pat admits freely to his flaws and masks he's worn in life, but, he says, finding meaning and purpose for yourself, not what society and people think, is what's most important."Motivation is temporary," he tells me. "You can will yourself to do something in the short term, but inspiration is long term. Ask yourself, why do I do what I do?""If you’re disillusioned, the dream starts the day you show up with a new sense of purpose. Success is about moving in the direction towards you want to go. Twelve months from now, where would you like to be? If you were to have the most amazing year of transformation, what would have happened?"For more Real Health episodes and information you can visit the show page at: https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/Don’t forget to rate and subscribe the show and get in touch - I’m on Twitter and Instagram @KarlHenryPT or realhealth@independent.ie.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dancing with the Stars is one of the country’s most popular TV shows and not only does it showcase the skill of dancers and dancing, the fitness involved is something to greatly admire.On this week’s Real Health episode I caught up with two of the celebrity contestants and their professional dance partners - The Young Offenders star, Demi Isaac Oviawe and her dance partner Kai Widdrington, as well as comedian, Fred Cooke, and his dance partner, Giulia Dotta – to find out what their training regime is like as well getting some of the behind-the-scenes gossip.Having signed up for a crash course in dancing myself a few years ago and only lasting twenty minutes (!) I know how hard it is physically and it was fascinating to hear how Demi and Fred were coping with the demands of the show.“It’s the most nerve-wracking thing I’ve done in my life,” Fred told me. “There’s no room for mistakes and I’m a stand-up comedian! I have it easy when I’m telling new jokes.”For Demi, who is also studying for her Leaving Cert, it wasn’t something she jumped into lightly.“I spent weeks of thinking whether to do it or not,” says Demi. “I’m trying to do my Leaving Cert and I was having to move away from home but then I said ‘screw it, I’ll do it’.”Tune in to RTE 1 on Sunday at 6.30pm if you want to see how the contestants get on.For more Real Health episodes and information you can visit the show page at: https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/Don’t forget to rate and subscribe the show and get in touch - I’m on Twitter and Instagram @KarlHenryPT or realhealth@independent.ie.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s already February and many of you may still be finding yourself stretched after Christmas, so this week on the Real Health podcast, we’re going off in a bit of a different direction - we decided to tackle financial health for this week’s episode. I truly believe that it’s crucial to tackle and destress your finances and that can make every other part of your life better.After all, what good is physical and mental health if you’re worrying about paying the bills and having savings? We’ve got just the man to take us through some of the top tips for tackling your finances in 2019: Charlie Weston, Personal Finance Editor of the Irish Independent, joins me on this week’s show with his eight tips to financial health in 2019.Charlie’s tips include:• Drawing up a monthly budget• Dealing with the credit card• Switching energy and phone provider• Reviewing monthly payments• Taking advantage of tax reliefs owing• Making energy-saving measures“There’s nothing worse than worrying late at night about your finances and debt, but you’re not alone,” he tells me. “A lot of people are still struggling, especially at this time of year, and little changes can make a difference.”For more Real Health episodes and information you can visit the show page at: https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/Don’t forget to rate and subscribe and I love to hear from you - I’m on Twitter and Instagram @KarlHenryPT or realhealth@independent.ie.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I’ve covered burnout, anxiety, even sleep, as issues to be able to deal with and overcome, but what about probably the biggest one of all – stress?It's thought that between 70 and 90% of GP visits are related to stress and one doctor wants to change that and come up with better ways for us to combat it. Dr Rangan Chatterjee is well known in the UK for being the resident doctor on BBC One’s Breakfast and has his own chart-topping podcast, Feel Better, Live More, and he joined me to discuss his new book, The Stress Solution, 4 steps to reset your body, mind, relationships and purpose.It's a fascinating interview with some great tips and advice from Dr. Chatterjee including:- How to design your morning routine effectively- How to keep a touch diary- How to mute your digital world - How to eat the alphabetFor more Real Health episodes and information you can visit the show page at: https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/Or why not get in touch with me on Twitter or Instagram @KarlHenryPT.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Best-selling author, screenwriter and playwright, Stefanie Preissner, has been called the voice of her generation, writing about issues of stress, anxiety and confidence for Irish 20-something females and she joins me on this week's Real Health podcast.Stefanie tells me why 0430am starts are best for her but why we should stop fetishising hard work and stress. She also talks about the success of Can't Cope, Won't Cope and why her work resonates so strongly."I grew up thinking I had an illness called terminal uniqueness," she says. "But the more specific I am about my experiences in my writing the more they actually resonate with people because I’m just a pumpkin spice-latte loving bitch like everyone else!"Plus Stefanie explains why social media was forcing her into a world of perfection that wasn't real and forced perspective is sometimes needed.For more from the podcast just visit:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/I'm also on Twitter and Instagram @KarlHenryPT and can be contacted at realhealth@independent.ie.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s January, you’re back to work, and while I’m sure you’ve made great plans and goals for 2019, what do you do if it all gets a bit too much for you? Between work, family, kids, fitness, it can be hard to fit it all in. While on the outside you might appear to have everything under control, on the inside you could be drowning. That’s what this week's guest, psychotherapist and resilience coach, Siobhan Murray, was going through, even though her career, home and family life all seemed to be a success.Siobhan has now written a book called the Burnout Solution, 12 weeks to a calmer you and she takes us through the 12 steps needed to help people to prevent and overcome going through burnout in their lives.Don’t forget to subscribe and rate the show and let us know how we’re doing on realhealth@independent.ie or KarlHenryPT on Twitter and Instagram.For more from the show go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week, in an exclusive for the Real Health podcast, I’m joined by my fellow Operation Transformation experts to find out what we can expect in the new series and to get their tips for healthy living.Dr. Sumi Dunne is the new resident GP on the show and she’s joined as ever by dietitian, Aoife Hearne, and Psychologist Dr. Eddie Murphy.For Sumi, she wants to bring practical tips to people and highlight what’s topical in medical and health issues also, with obesity the number one concern.“Throwing money at a problem doesn’t just give you results,” she tells me. “It’s about making sustained changes that will carry through.”Or as Dr. Eddie Murphy says, ‘It’s not what you’re eating, it’s what’s eating you.’Aoife Hearne is starting out her food and cooking advice with jars and packets - for the first few weeks anyway - but she says, it’s about empowering people with skills in the kitchen and to ultimately decide between food v processed food.“You can lose weight and still enjoy food,” she says.For more from my podcast just go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/ and let me know how you get on by emailing me at realhealth@independent.ie or via Twitter and Instagram @KarlHenryPT. The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s 2019, the start of the New Year and I’m sure you’ve got new goals and resolutions in mind. But how many of you see those great ideas and plans fade away by the end of January? This week’s podcast is all about giving you the ten SOS tips to make sure they last. I’m giving you all my experience, tips, tricks and tools to ensure that this time, your resolutions are going to last. I see the same mistakes over and over again and I can help you make sure your goals keep going in the long term. These ten tips are the ones that will make a difference to your body, mind and long term health and I discuss in detail:1. Goal Setting2. Dump the negative people in your life3. Avoid the unrealistic4. Plan5. Don’t cut out any food groups6. Love yourself7. Start slow and build up8. Cook as much food from scratch9. Read more10. Reward yourselfLet me know what your 2019 resolutions are – I’m @KarlHenryPT on Twitter and Instagram and realhealth@independent.ie.For more from the show go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s been a few days since the presents were opened and the turkey and ham all eaten and I hope you’ve all had a wonderful Christmas. With New Year fast approaching, I’m sure your thoughts have started to turn to plans and goals for 2019? Weight loss and getting fit are of course amongst the most common and popular New Year’s resolutions and so this week’s episode of the Real Health podcast is all about giving you some health-kick inspiration to start January with a bang.Peter Thornton, a Laya Healthcoach, plus coach and speaker, Pat Divilly, joined me to give their advice on how to set goals and stick to them covering the following five areas:1. Planning and preparation2. Habit formation3. Dieting myths4. Mindfulness/awareness5. Embracing failure and setbacksLet me know what your goals are for 2019? I'm on Twitter and Instagram @KarlHenryPT or email realhealth@independent.ie. For more from the show go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/I hope you have a fantastic New Year, and that 2019 brings all the health and happiness for you and your family. Thanks for listening and for your support.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Only a few days to go before Santa will be making his way to your home and I hope you’ve all been good and been trying to keep up with some of your Christmas training plan as well.I wanted this episode to be about making your Christmas Day better, to avoid the family rows and helping you deal with the in-laws. It’s a very stressful experience and so I was joined by psychologist and coach Neil O'Brien with some tips and advice to make the most out of your Christmas and enjoy it in a more relaxing and mindful way."Keep Christmas Day simple, don’t look to impress anybody, celebrate being with family and friends and the fact you’ve made it through it another year," is some great advice from Neil.I'd also recommend going for a walk or run in the morning to help you prepare for the hectic pace of the rest of the day and do let me know how you handle it all. I'm on Twitter and Instagram @KarlHenryPT or email realhealth@independent.ie.For more from the show go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/Happy Christmas to all the Real Health listeners!The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Simon Harris, Minister for Health, joined me for a special pre-Christmas interview to discuss the health problems of the nation as well as talking about his own need for balance and healthy living to cope with the demands of being a government minister.I was fascinated to find out how, at such a young age, he got involved in politics and then was appointed to one of the most challenging ministerial roles in the Department of Health in 2016.As he and his wife expect their first baby in early January 2019, Simon Harris will be trying to juggle a young family, work and keeping fit and healthy, and it’s a balancing act that he knows is a tough one for families all over Ireland.The growing obesity problem is of course one of his biggest concerns, with 60% of adults and one in four children in Ireland either overweight or obese and he wants communities in every county to ask what they can do.“People can accuse me of ‘nanny-ism’ if they want, but what are we going to do as a society to actually to put in place policies to stop us becoming one of the fattest nations in the world?” he says. “It should be a cause of concern to every single one of us...Winning the prize for the world’s fattest nation is not where we need to be.”“Why should we be afraid of giving citizens as much information as possible in relation to their own health and well-being to make their own decisions?” he asks and I couldn’t agree more. Healthy living starts with every one of us making choices and small changes which make a big difference to our lives.For more from the show go to https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/And get in touch via realhealth@independent.ie or @KarlHenryPT on Twitter and Instagram.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Christmas countdown has begun. We’re into December and I’m sure you’re all getting busy with presents, parties and decorations? Don’t forget, last week I gave you my Christmas Survival Kit to keep on top of your fitness so make sure you listen back to that if things are getting a bit too hectic for you.This week we’re staying with the Christmas theme and I find out about all the cool fitness-related presents that you can be buying friends and family or giving the not-so-subtle hint to your other half.Joining me to help sift through the best presents out there, I was joined by Alex Meehan, a freelance tech journalist, and Elspbeth Gordon of Stellar and VIP, who cover everything from clothing to wearable tech, wireless earbuds and even DNA testing.Do send me on your present ideas on realhealth@independent.ie or @KarlHenryPT on Twitter and Instagram and for more from the show go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We all know December is about Christmas parties, nights out and too much food and drink, but how can you stay in shape whilst also going out partying? Welcome to your Real Health Christmas Survival Kit! For this week’s episode I’m giving you the tips to have the best of both worlds. I tell you how to have your nights out, how to lessen their impact on your body and how to still be fit and healthy.From the right food and drink, to keeping your exercise going during the hardest month of the year, these are tips that work really well and are proven for me and the clients I work with. My tips cover never going out on an empty stomach to drinking water with your alcohol and skipping dessert; plus not trying to do too much, buddying up, taking part in events and exercising as early in the day as possible, all of which ensures you can still keep yourself in shape.Life is about balance. Going out over Christmas is great and should be done, but you should be mindful to not overdo it ruining yourself for the days afterwards.And don’t forget: use December as a time for reflection to look back on all that you’ve achieved and what you want to achieve in 2019.Let me know how you get on by email on realhealth@independent.ie or @KarlHenryPT on Twitter and Instagram.For more from the show, go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Do you lead by example when it comes to healthy eating with your kids? Or do you find it a constant power struggle trying to get your kids to eat their fruit and veg? Dietitian, Aoife Hearne, also known for being on Operation Transformation, joins me on this week's show to solve your problems when it comes to family eating.She tackles the thorny issue of treats, overweight children, technology-free meal-times, fussy eaters, and how to introduce new foods to kids' plates."The what, when and where of eating is up to you, the parent," she explains. "The child's role is to eat or not. Kids won’t let themselves go hungry, it’s about playing the long game and holding firm with them."As for treats? Aoife says we need to think in terms of non-food rewards so that food isn’t used as a soothing means for kids. Food can be a reward sometimes but not all the time. Have a flexible treats policy, be it a treat night, but be consistent about it.“The key thing is that no food are off-limits,” she tells me. “Research shows that when kids have unlimited access to sweets/treats they will eat less of them." And did you know it can take up to 20 times for kids to accept and up to 30 times to like new food? If you have any tips/advice for family meal times do let me know and I'll share it with our listeners. I'm on email realhealth@independent.ie or @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter.For more from the podcast you can visit the show page:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya HealthcareSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It's Science Week and so the Real Health podcast wanted to get the answers to life, death, health and happiness and everything in between! Who better to ask than Professor Luke O'Neill, the author of Humanology, which answers the twenty questions about life and our existence.It’s a fascinating interview with a true scientific expert in his field and we cover topics such as why do we laugh?; sleep and the daily rhythms of life (it’s all about clean-up time for the brain, a bit like putting on your dishwasher or washing machine at night says Luke), as well as our desperate relationship with food and why our Stone Age bodies are built to run, eat, run.While you won’t hear any health, fitness or nutrition tips on this episode I do think you'll enjoy it and learn something new.For more from the podcast just go to: https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/And get in touch by email, realhealth@independent.ie or @KarlHenryPT on Instagram and Twitter.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Retiring at your peak aged 27 is not easy, but for this week’s guest, Anna Geary, a coach on Ireland’s Fittest Family and Cork’s former All Ireland winning captain, life is about choices and not being afraid of failure. “I realised I wasn’t fulfilled in my job and career,” she says. “It’s a hard thing to admit when you’re not fulfilled and I started to think more about what was important to me.”Within two weeks she had retired from camogie, left her corporate job, moved to Dublin and hasn’t looked back, re-training as a lifestyle and career coach.On this week’s show she talks about the importance of always moving forwards and has great tips for healthy and successful living, including:1. It’s not always about the what but the how is just as important2. Be kinder to yourself and watch your self-talk3. Stop comparing yourself to others4. Don’t fear failure5. Are you an energy train or energy drain? As always, I want to hear from you if you’ve got any questions and you can email me at realhealth@independent.ie or via Twitter and Instagram @KarlHenryPT.For more from the show go to: https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It's Volume 3 of your most popular fitness questions answered on this week's show. You've asked and I'm answering!The five questions I answer this week cover:- health supplements- muscle v fat- cardio v weight training- age and exercise- GPS watches and runningYou'll have to listen to the show to get my thoughts and advice and if you have any questions you want addressed for future episodes then get in touch: realhealth@independent.ie or @KarlHenryPT on Twitter and Instagram.For more from the Real Health podcast visit the show page at:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s a topic that seems to be everywhere and it's the fitness industry’s biggest push – fat loss and the magical way to do it. There’s a lot of myths out there and there are practical tips that do work, but the reality is there are no quick fixes. Dietitian Orla Walsh joins me on this week’s show to debunk the common myths around fat loss and gives us her top five tips for actually losing weight.“The most important thing is that you don’t have free rein in the evening,” explains Orla. “It’s evening eating that is making people overweight - it’s when they’re munching on food they don’t need. Have a rule that you don’t eat after dinner in the evening.”As for her top five tips for losing body fat, Orla says don’t focus on the scales, look out for your blindspots, have equal meal sizes and find alternative rewards to food. ‘Stop rewarding yourself with food, you’re not a dog!’ she tells Real Health listeners and make you sure listen out for her one minute exercise for rewards, comforts and energisers. Let me know how you get on by emailing me at realhealth@independent.ie or via Twitter and Instagram @KarlHenryPT.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Are you running in the 2018 Dublin City Marathon? I'm very jealous because it's one of the best marathons in the world and is an absolutely brilliant day. I've run it four times with a PB of 3h39m and although I'm not running it this year, I will be out on the course giving encouragement to you and the 20,000 other runners. And as a special bonus episode for my Real Health listeners, I've put together some simple tips to keep you calm and relaxed and help guide you through the race.I’ve got tips on gear, prep and food to warming up, pacing yourself and using the crowd to push you through and I hope this episode will help you to enjoy the day that bit more.The very best of luck with the marathon and do let me know how you get on. I'm on realhealth@independent.ie or @KarlHenryPT on Twitter and Instagram.For more Real Health episodes just go to:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Anxiety and stress is affecting more and more Irish adults these days and we’re finding it harder to cope with what life throws at us. Did you know that 80% of adults in Ireland have been affected by anxiety, with almost half (44%) reporting that their mental wellbeing is of real concern to them?While fitness and exercise helps greatly, we also need to look after our emotional being as well. Sarah O'Neill chartered psychologist and MD of Spectrum Mental Health joins me on this week’s show to discuss dealing with the growing anxiety in our work and personal lives.“Stress can be helpful in the short term to help us respond to challenges,” Sarah explains. “But long term it can become chronic and debilitating.”Sarah recommends checking in with your BACE on a regular basis which is:Body – how is your physical health?Achievement – celebrate your achievementsConnection – reach out to people, we are all social animalsEnjoyment – don’t forget to enjoy life as well!Plus, she has some great tips and practical exercises if you find your mind and body going through the triggers of stress and anxiety, including how to avoid avoidance, talking it out, and developing a greater awareness and understanding.Let me know how you get on by emailing me at realhealth@independent.ie or via Twitter and Instagram @KarlHenryPT.For more from the show visit:https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The dark, cold, rainy nights are coming in and it's easy to sit on the couch and find excuses to not go training. But beat those winter blues by using my ten tips for your Winter Survival Guide.I break it down between gear, exercise and food covering outdoor gear to use, layering, group training, events, new training, stews and soups and the importance of a flask.My 10 tips will help make sure you don't fall off the wagon this winter so you don't have any excuses for not getting out - even if it's cold, wet and windy!Let me know how you get on by emailing me at realhealth@independent.ie or via Twitter and Instagram @KarlHenryPT.For more from the show just visit https://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It's a truly inspiring interview on my podcast this week as I speak to Mark Pollock about the inner strength needed to cope with life's toughest challenges.‘He who has a why to live can bear with almost any how’ is Nietzsche's quote and Mark’s mantra for living."If you know why you’re doing what you’re doing and it makes sense to you, then you can put up with all the tough stuff. It sits over everything to do with my life really," Mark explains. He expects problems while exploring the possibilities and it’s how he made it to the South Pole and has coped with blindness and being in a wheelchair.20 years ago, in the space of two weeks, he went from being a person about to start a new job and life in the city in London to becoming completely blind and stuck back at home in his bedroom. "Suddenly I was a blind person and had to try and find a place and identity in the world again," he says.All of which led to running ultra marathons in some of the world's most inhospitable climates and now, after the accident leading him to being in a wheelchair, he's looking to tackle paralysis through the Mark Pollock Trust.It's an incredible story that can only but inspire and why not also take part in Mark's Run in the Dark in November? For more information go to www.runinthedark.org and also check out Mark's incredible Ted Talk with his fiancée Simone George:https://www.ted.com/talks/mark_pollock_and_simone_george_a_love_letter_to_realism_in_a_time_of_griefContact me with any questions/comments on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT and realhealth@independent.ie and for more shows go to: http://www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Do you know the seven relationships that will define your life for better or worse? Allison Keating has been a psychologist for 18 years and she joins me to talk about her first book, 'The Secret Lives of Adults', in which she explains why, but most importantly how, we need to improve the key relationships in our lives. 'Life is busy and people are finding the constant juggle too much,' she says. 'The last ten years has been an epidemic of anxiety and stress that is now turning into burn-out. It’s a symptom of modern society but its how we respond to it that determines our life.'Find out how you can better cope with adulthood and get some practical tips and exercises that you can use to help with your daily living.If you have any questions or comments about the show you can email realhealth@independent.ie, contact me on Instagram and Twitter @KarlHenryPT or visitwww.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dublin's All Ireland winner, James McCarthy, joined me on the Irish Independent Talks Stage at the 2018 Ploughing for this week's Real Health bonus episode.I spoke to the Dublin star about the pressure and challenge of the 5-in-a-row and got some insights into what the health and fitness regime is like for the All Ireland champions.For more from the Real Health podcast just visit the show page at www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/And for any questions or comments, you can contact me on Twitter and Instagram @KarlHenryPT.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Trisha Lewis' story is one to inspire and this week I speak to the Cork woman about her weight loss, her health journey and ultimately taking responsibility for her life and her actions.'I was so sick of trying everything and failing. I was 26 stone and knew if I failed this time there was nowhere else to go for me,' she says. 'I don't look to the future, if I get through today without failing that's a success. If you have weight, be honest with yourself and take ownership of it.'Trisha has now lost six stone since February and hers is a story of honesty, inspiration and bravery. And the best part of it all? 'Happiness and being confident walking down the street once again,' she says. You can follow her incredible story on Instagram @trishas.transformation and for more from the Real Health podcast go to www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.**See the Real Health podcast live at the Dublin Podcast Festival and kickstart your real health lifestyle with physical, mental and energy experts, Annie Kirwan, Neil O'Brien and Deirdre McSwiney. For tickets and information go to DublinPodcastFestival.ie.**See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Is the vegan lifestyle for you? It’s not just about food but about how you are living your life and how it’s impacting animals in the process. For journalist and blogger, Holly White, she became vegan four years ago and hasn't looked back since. Holly joins me on this week's podcast to discuss the vegan lifestyle and to give some practical tips and recipe advice for those interested in becoming vegan.For Holly it means a diet with no eggs, no meat, no dairy, but she says, the vegan diet doesn't have to be one of extremes or difficult to embrace.Even if you're not committed to becoming a vegan, Holly definitely has some great recipes and healthy eating advice that we can all take on-board, including using ingredients such as lentils or tofu in ways that we hadn't considered before.'Lentils contain more protein than beef,' she points out and says everyone should try a vegan shepherd's pie made with lentils.For more from Holly, check out HollyWhite.ie and her new book, 'Vegan-ish', is out now.For more from the Real Health podcast check out the show page at www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.**See the Real Health podcast live at the Dublin Podcast Festival and kickstart your real health lifestyle with physical, mental and energy experts, Annie Kirwan, Neil O'Brien and Deirdre McSwiney. For tickets and information go to DublinPodcastFestival.ie.**See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Back by popular demand, this week I'm answering more of your most popular fitness questions. These are the most common questions that I get asked by people at the gym, parties or wherever I'm out and about.The same questions pop up time and again and on the Real Health podcast I'll answer these throughout the series. For this week, I'm covering the following:1. Diet/Fat-free foods2. Post-pregnancy exercise3. Intermittent fasting4. How to start exercising5. Fitness advice on social mediaKeep the questions coming in and I'll answer more in a few weeks. I'm on realhealth@independent.ie and @KarlHenryPT on Twitter and Instagram.For more from the show go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-re…health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

You start off with good intentions but invariably you find yourself falling short of your health and fitness goals. Here's the thing though: it happens to all of us and the key is to have the tips and tricks to keep yourself motivated and on track when you do fall short.This week's podcast is about the top ten ways you can stay motivated and succeed with your health and fitness goals.Listen to the full show to get all ten but I'll be discussing the importance of balance, rewards, goal-setting, your friendship circle, reviewing and refreshing, and visualisation.Start trying these tips today, let me know how you get on and if you have any other motivation hacks that work for you. I'm on realhealth@independent.ie and @KarlHenryPT on Twitter and Instagram.For more from the show go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Micheál Ó'Muircheartaigh's life has been a life less ordinary. The legendary GAA commentator retired after 62 years in 2010 but has kept up a busy life and now, aged 88, he tells me about some of the most important life lessons he has learnt along the way.Micheal has always lived a healthy life, but perhaps, most importantly, has never allowed it to be too stressful. Outlook and attitude – as well as passion – are the keys to a long and healthy life he says.I’m sure you’ll enjoy listening to Micheál as he imparts some of that wisdom learned from nearly ninety years of living.Do please get in touch with me and the show - I'm on realhealth@independent.ie or @KarlHenryPT on Twitter and Instagram.For more, go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Healthy eating and cooking healthily is not difficult and this week I'm joined by two of Ireland's leading healthy food bloggers, Roz Purcell and Indy Power with some quick and easy meals to make.Roz and Indy take us through the day from breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks with the tools, tricks and simple options to make sure you are eating and living well.I get their three tips for healthy eating and find out what their comfort food is, as well as their favourite go-to meal.Find out why prepping and getting organised is key, why porridge is a real treat, how salads and soups are a great lunch option, and why you don’t need to be conventional with your dinners or snacks.I also set you a Real Health healthy eating challenge and want to hear how you're getting on. If you have any quick and easy healthy meals or snacks you want to share, I'm on realhealth@independent.ie or @KarlHenryPT on Twitter and Instagram.For more from the show, go to www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Every week we get emails, messages, tweets and posts asking for health and fitness advice, so this week, I decided to answer the top five most common questions.So, what are the most common questions I get asked? The five I address on this week’s show are:1. What’s the quickest way to lose weight? 2. Is it really about 80% diet?3. What is the best way to measure my progress?4. I’m too busy, how can I fit it all in?5. Will lifting weights make me bigger?Keep sending your questions in to me via realhealth@independent.ie or @KarlHenryPT on Twitter and Instagram and we'll answer more of your questions later in the series. For more, just visit the show page at www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I want you to build your mental strength and mental resilience by working on your own mind gym and this week, clinical psychologist, Dr. Eddie Murphy, has the ten simple and easy exercises that you can do in your own time.If you work on these ten exercises - from dealing with relationships and emotions to mindfulness, getting outside your comfort zone and learning to say no - your mindset will change for the better.You can also contact me with any health and fitness questions on realhealth@independent.ie or on Twitter @KarlHenryPTThe Real Health podcast with Karl Henry is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

30 day personal health and fitness challenges are becoming more and more popular as it’s a great way to push yourself every day to get into a healthy habit and on this week’s Real Health podcast, I speak to SpinFM presenter, impersonator extraordinaire and social media influencer, Doireann Garrihy, who is in the middle of her own 20 day challenge.“I’m a sporadic exerciser,” she says. “I go through bouts of being really into it and then fall off the wagon and do nothing for six weeks. But with a holiday coming up, I needed to force myself to do it. Even thirty days seemed too big so I decided to go for twenty days of exercise instead!”Listen to the full interview to get Doireann’s three tips for having a healthy and positive engagement with social media as well as finding out her wind down routine and what she really thinks about some of the so-called ‘fitspos’.You can also contact me with any health and fitness questions on realhealth@independent.ie or on Twitter @KarlHenryPTThe Real Health podcast with Karl Henry is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Karl has ten life swaps that he wants you to try over the next seven days that will make a massive difference to your mental, physical and emotional health.From sleep to tech, food to fluids and mindfulness to movement, these life swaps won't cost a penny and can be introduced immediately into your life.By swapping ten bad habits for these ten healthy ones you can start making a difference in your life today.For more go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Irish dancing wasn’t something that he wanted do, but after being made do it by his mother whilst growing up in New York, Padraic Moyles’ talent and determination to succeed were key to his future life and career.He went on to perform over 5,500 times for Riverdance and I wanted to find out the physical and mental training needed to succeed at such a high level for so long, performing eight shows a week for over three hundred days of the year.And if you think you’re fit, you’ll never guess what Padraic’s resting heart rate was – see if yours is as low as his as Padraic tells the story of the worried physician in LA.Padraic’s mindset, and it’s one to be adopting for your own training as well as work and personal life, is about a conscious effort to always improve and be better. Embrace competition and face it head-on as well as getting help and advice to achieve your goals.For more, go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/In association with Laya HealthcareSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week it’s a world exclusive as U2’s Adam Clayton sits down with me to discuss all things health and fitness in the world’s biggest band. It’s a fascinating interview with insights you rarely hear from within U2 and it was a real pleasure to be able to interview Adam to find out about his health and fitness regime as U2 finish up the North American leg of their eXPERIENCE + iNNOCENCE Tour.Speaking about the physical challenges performing to thousands of fans every night, Adam told me what he faces.“It's a bit of a surprise how something that you never even used to think about, you now have to manage… Now I feel it… Holding an instrument for those 2 ½ hours, I know that my shoulder and back and neck all need work…" "They get a bit seized up and that's just an occupational hazard to be managed. There is a point where you shouldn't really be able to do this at this level, but with modern medicine and physio techniques, you can really keep on doing it." It might be a far cry from the rock n roll image, but health – both mental and physical - and fitness is a vital part of Adam’s lifestyle these days, especially when he is on the road with the band.Once the current tour ends in Dublin in November, there will be time though for reflection for Adam and the band on 2019 and beyond. “This is the end of a four-year cycle of work and we really have no plans going into next year. We have got to the point where this is a full stop at the end of this project. We're looking at next year as being a year of regrouping.”For more, go to: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/You can also contact me with any health and fitness questions on realhealth@independent.ie or on Twitter @KarlHenryPTThe Real Health podcast with Karl Henry is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week’s show, Karl is going to be putting you to sleep – well, hopefully not in the next thirty minutes or so, but if you’re having trouble getting a good night’s rest, Karl speaks to sleep disorder expert, Deirdre McSwiney for the solutions and science behind sleep problems. “20% of the population suffers from insomnia at some point in their lives,” explains Deirdre. “Tired but wired is a major factor with modern society.”Also joining Karl on the show is Paul de Loughry, a long-time sleep sufferer who says his biggest problem is waking up between 2-3am and staring at the ceiling for hours not being able to get back to sleep. “You need to set aside a period in the evening after dinner and use a few minutes to write down your thoughts about the day and dump it,” explains Deirdre. “Get them down on paper and forget about it. You have to make your bedroom an oasis of peace.”So, don’t forget, the three key tips for effective sleeping:- Look at the environment in your bedroom making sure it is cool and dark with all screens out of room- Lifestyle: no caffeine after 5pm and make sure you exercise- Brain dump after dinner time, reflecting on your day and preparing for the next day ahead and leave it there on the paper in the kitchenContact Karl with any health and fitness questions on realhealth@independent.ie or on Twitter @KarlHenryPT.The Real Health podcast with Karl Henry is in association with Laya HealthcareSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week’s show, Karl sets out his Ten Commandments for Real Health. From fitness and fun, to planning and preparation, these are ten proven tips that will improve your life.“They work and will make a huge difference to your health and fitness,” says Karl. “It’s all about keeping it simple, giving them a go and see how you get on.”For more: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/In association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Rob and Yvonne Cullen were a married couple who each hit 19 and 14 stone respectively, even though they regarded themselves as healthy eaters. But when running to play with the kids was even becoming difficult, they decided enough was enough.Rob and Yvonne tell Karl how they lost over twelve stone between them and brought health and fitness back into their - and their kids' - lives. It wasn't through gimmicks or extreme measures but a conscious approach to healthy food and being active.Now Rob is 12 stone and Yvonne is 9 stone and they tell Karl that if they can do it anyone can. Theirs is a story of real health to inspire anyone listening.To contact Karl and the show with any questions you can email realhealth@independent.ie or on Twitter @KarlHenryPT.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.For more: independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Health is booming and so are the business opportunities around it. If you have an idea for a health business, then Derval O'Rourke, former Olympian and with a new platform, Derval.ie, launching in July, Irish Biltong's Noreen Doyle and Niall Horgan of Gym+Coffee have great advice and insights into making it.Starting a business is like training for your first 5k. The first step is always the hardest, but if you believe, work hard and use the different contacts and social media channels to your advantage, then there is no stopping you.Contact Karl on Twitter @karlhenrypt or email realhealth@independent.ieFor more: independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/In association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Karl discusses your mental wellness, how to improve it and treat it like your physical health, with expert coach, Neil O'Brien, as well Room to Improve's Dermot Bannon.Neil outlines the three main areas you need to focus on and measure:1. Mood management2. Habit management3. Resilience and recoveryWhile Dermot explains how he deals with stress and anxiety in his life, architecture and media work. He also talks about the importance of following your passion and how much he lives and loves architecture. ‘I go to be reading architecture books,’ he says. ‘The best building I will ever do is my last one.’For more: independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/In association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The nation's favourite doctor, Ciara Kelly, joins Karl Henry on this week's show to talk about her own recent health scare and how that forced her to re-evaluate her health and life situation.She also talks about her move away from medicine into the media and why she's not afraid to take risks.Plus, for her health check SOS on the health of the nation, she explains why weight is still the over-riding concern for the country and why prescribing exercise along with advice on food and nutrition has to be the future for medics and the medical profession.For more: independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast/In association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It's time to stop fearing food says dietitian, Orla Walsh, on this week's show. She debunks common food myths that people have and provides some invaluable experience for confused parents and fussy eaters.Learn more about portion distortion, telly-belly time and other great food and nutrition tips from one of Ireland's leading food experts.Contact Karl with any health and fitness questions on realhealth@independent.ie or on Twitter @KarlHenryPT.In association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week’s show, Karl wants to inspire the men of Ireland to lose weight, get fit and healthy and make a positive change to their lives.To inspire them to take action, he’s joined by Killian Byrne, David Cryan and Isaac Butler who discuss how and why they decided to overcome weight and health issues in their lives.Their stories are real stories of inspiration from Irish men in their 20s, 30s and 40s that prove you too can make a change today.“The way I’m feeling after losing the weight, I never want to go back to where I was,” says David. “Take time for yourself. Give yourself the 30 minutes to exercise. If you don’t look after yourself no-one else will.”“I live by ‘progress not perfection,” explains Isaac. “You have to be self-aware and find something that works for you.”“One bad day is not the end of the world,” says Killian. “Having balance is important.” The stories and advice from Killian, David and Isaac prove that, no matter what your age, you too can change your life.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week’s Real Health podcast, Karl Henry chats to the hugely popular Food Medic, Dr. Hazel Wallace. Louth-born Wallace started her blog on healthy eating and exercise whilst studying medicine and in the years since, from her UK base, her unique blend of expertise and knowledge has proven to be a big hit.Her focus is on preventative medicine with the importance of lifestyle the key and she wants doctors to be looking more at patients’ nutrition, exercise, sleep and stress management.“It’s more difficult for GPs to prescribe exercise rather than a pill,” she says. On the podcast, Dr. Wallace has some great tips for those wanting to improve their lifestyle and she also advises not to avoid small treats and use them as a means of rewarding yourself for reaching your milestones.To contact Karl with any health and fitness questions you can email realhealth@independent.ie or reach him on Twitter @karlhenrypt.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On this week’s show, I’m focusing on tech – on the gadgets, apps, gear and devices that can help you improve your health and fitness lifestyle.And to guide me through the maze of kit that’s out there, I’ve two experts – Newstalk’s Tech Editor, Jess Kelly and tech journalist Alex Meehan joining me on the show.If you want to get fit and active and find out what's the best tech to help you, we'll give you the best advice.If you want to ask me any health and fitness questions, email the show on realhealth@independent.ie or get me on Twitter @karlhenrypt.The Real Health podcast is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The first episode of the Real Health podcast with Karl Henry is celebrating Workplace Wellbeing Day recorded live from Easons on O’Connell St.Karl was joined by TV presenter and Emmy award-winner, Baz Ashmawy, psychologist and broadcaster, David Coleman and Laya’s Health & Wellbeing Manager, Patricia Hyland to find out how you can be healthier and happier at work, not just today but every single day. After all, we spend most of our waking lives at work so why not make it somewhere that we can be feeling better about ourselves as well? Karl gets some great tips and advice from his panel of experts that you can use starting today.The Real Health podcast with Karl Henry is in association with Laya Healthcare.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Real Health podcast with Karl Henry in association with Laya Healthcare launches on Friday 13th April. We are broadcasting live from Easons O'Connell St from 1-1.30pm and on Independent.ie where Karl will be celebrating Workplace Wellness Day with TV presenter and Emmy award-winner, Baz Ashmawy, psychologist and broadcaster, David Coleman, and Laya Healthcare's Patricia Hyland finding out some great tips and advice to keep yourself fit and healthy at work. The Real Health podcast will cut through the BS about healthy living and tell you what you need to be doing to live healthier each and every day.Each week Karl will be joined by experts and celebrities as we find out the science behind the advice and get some inspirational and honest stories from celebs about their healthy living tips.Plus if you want to ask Karl and his guests any health and well-being questions just contact the show on realhealth@independent.ie.The Real Health podcast with Karl Henry launching Fri 13th.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.