THE SOP POST Jan 2022
Wow! It's January 2022. A very happy new year to you! Let's look ahead to what's in store for us in 2022.
At the SOP, we have Womo beginning on 17th January. There are still some places left and further down this newsletter you will find a link to book on. Just as if we were in the practice, we'll be taking precautions regarding social distancing, wearing masks and hand hygiene to keep participants safe. And in the event of cancellation we are offering full refunds. So please don't hesitate to book on if it's of interest. What better way to kickstart the new year than picking up some new tips on posture, stretching, nutrition and how to look after your body.
Looking further ahead and in keeping with with looking after "you" at our core, we'll continue to have monthly newsletters packed full of health tips but they'll take on a new format aiming to answer your questions each month. See the blog for full details but here's a quick synopsis.
Recently I read a book called "They ask, you answer" and decided to use this as the basis for the 2022 newsletters. We will spend the next 12 months doing our best to answer whatever questions you'd like to throw at us! You can literally ask us anything, from specific health related questions, to which is the best or worst exercise, or ask us about our fee structure, local competition or even who we would recommend beside ourselves!
Another notable new angle to the SOP is the provision of massages at The Treatment Shed over the road at The Grosvenor Hotel. Some of our practitioners will be available to pop over and provide gloriously relaxing massages. You can either contact The Grosvenor direct or phone reception to make a booking. Meanwhile, back here in the practice we'll continue to have Pilates sessions with Anneli, sports massage with Sarah or osteopathy with Emma, Tracey, Nicky and Roberto.
The "What we love" section remains to share what our practitioners have been enjoying getting up to in their free time - which of course has been plentiful over the Christmas and New Year break. The January recipe - a deliciously light and fresh one - is a stir fry with a sense of adventure from warmer climes - Rainbow Rice and Prawns.
I hope you enjoy reading this taste of things to come at SOP in 2022 and wish you a very Happy New Year.
With very best wishes
Emma
2022, It’s all about you
What is it you would like to know?
The more you understand about yourself and your body and the more knowledge you have, the more empowered you will feel about making decisions about your health and the care you need.
This follows on from my Christmas message about ‘trust’ and what your gut instinct is telling you. But how can you trust your body if you don’t understand its messages or know what help it needs?
2022 is all about you, and that means delivering the best service we can by providing open and honest answers to your questions.
Each monthly newsletter and throughout our blogs and social media feeds we will take one of your frequently asked questions and ask our healthcare practitioners to provide their answers.
We are so looking forward to helping you trust your body again and understand your needs better this year, and go from strength to strength as the trusted service we strive to be.
So get stuck in, just hit reply to this email and fire away!
Wake up to January with no back pain
When your low back feels stiff and painful, stretching out the upper back and thorax can help relieve low back pain. Do this thoracic mobility flow to help prevent back pain and also to recover from back injury.
It feels like a great way to wake up and smooth away the nights creaks and kinks and set you up for the day ahead.
The link between gut health and COVID-19
Bacteria in our guts can elicit an effective immune response against viruses that not only infect the gut, such as norovirus and rotavirus, but also those infecting the lungs, such as the flu virus.
The beneficial gut microbes do this by ordering specialized immune cells to produce potent antiviral proteins that ultimately eliminate viral infections. And the body of a person lacking these beneficial gut bacteria won’t have as strong an immune response to invading viruses. As a result, infections might go unchecked, taking a toll on health.
💙 The Team loves...
📚 Read
Emma recommends an inspiring book about how to create positive change in your life: 'Redemption: from Iron Bars to Ironman' by John McAvoy and Mark Turley.
"John McAvoy’s Redemption: From Iron Bars to Ironman is a non-fiction favourite. McAvoy used to be an armed robber and was at one point one of the UK’s most-wanted men. But in jail he got really into fitness and it turned his life around – now he’s a world-recording breaking endurance athlete. It’s a really inspiring story about how it’s never too late to change your life.
🎧 Listen
If you prefer to listen and just dip into his incredible story, you can get a great feel for his extraordinary journey on the Feel Better, Live More podcast, interviewed by my favourite podcaster, Dr Rangan Chatterjee. https://drchatterjee.com/how-to-rewrite-your-life-story-with-john-mcavoy/
😋 Recipe of the Month
Packed with tropical rainforest ingredients like pineapple and cashews, and with lots of vibrant veg, this quick and yummy rice-based bowl of nourishment has a fresh jungle vibe.
If prawns are not a hit with your family, you can substitute with chicken or tofu. Yummy hot or cold, and if you want to cook in advance, the prawns can be added separately later. Any bright veggies work here, so it’s a great opportunity to sneak in a few new ones and clear out the veggie drawer!
Serves 4
Prep time 10 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Ingredients
200 g brown rice
1 tbsp coconut oil (neutral/odourless)
1 onion (diced)
3 cloves garlic (minced)
2 spring onions (chopped)
1 carrot (large, diced)
1 red pepper (diced)
1 chilli (optional, chopped)
150 g mange tout (halved diagonally)
360 g prawns (cooked)
1 tbsp soya sauce
1 tbsp curry powder
180 g pineapple (diced)
100 g cashew nuts
Instructions
Rinse the rice thoroughly and then cook according to the packet instructions. Once cooked, set aside for later.
Heat the coconut oil in a large wok and sauté the onion until it is translucent.
Add the minced garlic, spring onion, carrot, pepper, chilli if using and mange tout. Stir-fry for 4-5 minutes.
Reduce the heat and stir in the prawns followed by the rice and heat for a minute or two. If you are using raw prawns, make sure they are already cooked by this stage, as you don't want to overcook the stir-fry veg.
Add the soy sauce and curry powder. Stir well until the everything is nicely coated.
Fold in the pineapple.
Finally season with salt and pepper and stir in the cashew nuts before serving.
Recipe Notes
For Vegan/vegetarian, use tofu instead of prawns.
For gluten-free, use Tamari Soya sauce.
For nut-free, sprinkle pumpkin seeds instead.
Recipe and photography kindly contributed by Lucinda Miller at NatureDoc.