Do you know what a portion of fish looks like? How about a portion of fruit?

It can be tricky to get your head around portion sizes, especially when you have nothing to relate them to. As it turns out, your hands can be a handy tool to learn how much you should be eating.

Knowing portion sizes is important – it can help you eat the right amount of food so you get all the nutrients you need to keep your body strong and healthy.

__Use this guide to get to know your portions.__

- carbohydrates – 1 portion is roughly equal to 1 palmful

- meat or beans – 1 portion is just smaller than 1 palmful

- chicken or fish – 1 portion is 1 palmful

- fruit – 1 portion is 1 palmful

- vegetables – 1 portion is 2 palmfuls 


A hand holding a portion size of raspberries

Feeling on edge? Maybe you’ve got a big work presentation coming up, or your mind won’t stop racing when you get into bed. 

Deep breathing is one of the best ways to help lower the stress you’re feeling. By breathing deeply, you’re sending a message to your brain to relax, which calms your body. This lowers your heart rate and blood pressure and slows down your breathing, helping you to feel calmer.

So, why not give box breathing a go? This breathing technique is a simple way to clear your mind quickly, and you can do it anywhere – on the train or just before a meeting or bedtime.

__Here’s how to master it:__

1. Close your eyes and visualise a box.

2. Breathe in through your nose for 4 seconds and imagine moving or drawing up the left side of the box.

3. Hold your breath for 4 seconds and move along the top of the box.

4. Let out all the air in your lungs for 4 seconds, moving down the right side of the box.

5. Hold your breath for 4 seconds and move along the bottom of the box.

6. Repeat steps 2 to 5 for 5 minutes. 

Woman sitting with a cup of tea looking out of the window

Deep breathing can help you feel less stressed by lowering your heart rate and your blood pressure.

The ‘fight or flight’ response triggers your sympathetic nervous system, jolting your body into action when it thinks there’s a threat. This causes an adrenaline rush, which increases your heart rate and your blood pressure – the key signs of stress. 

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A 5-minute breathing exercise to help you de-stress

Maybe gardening is a hobby you’ve never tried. But, growing and taking care of plants isn’t only good for your physical health, it can improve your mental wellbeing too.

When you garden, you enjoy many physical benefits, including exercise, when you dig, plant, water and rake. You’re exposed to sunlight, which boosts your vitamin D levels, building your bones and immune system.

Then there are the mental and emotional benefits – studies suggest that gardening can lead to less anxiety and depression and more life satisfaction. 

And if you garden with family members or friends, or try community gardening, this social contact can make you feel less isolated and more connected, which can lower your stress levels.

If you can’t join a community garden or don’t have a garden of your own, try looking after houseplants or growing flowers, herbs or vegetables on your windowsill.

A small study even suggests that gardening may help you grow a more positive body image.

Did you know, you can use the Healthily [app](https://www.livehealthily.com/app) to track your mood? Go to ‘My account’ then 'My trackers' and choose ‘Mood’.

A hand holding a plant

Gardening is a great activity for keeping you fit but it can also boost your mental health.

Having therapeutic gardens in hospitals to improve health was supported by Florence Nightingale, the founder of modern nursing. Since then, many studies have shown that looking at nature, or even just at images of nature, can improve your mental health and mood.

How gardening boosts your mental health

Whether you’re working from home or the office, if you’re feeling disconnected from your team, it’s important to take steps to keep yourself from feeling isolated and lonely.

Some research suggests that loneliness can impact your mental health, increasing your risk of stress, sleep problems, low self-esteem, anxiety and depression.

Fortunately, you can do things to feel more connected and build good social relationships, which can help protect your mental health.

__Try reaching out to co-workers.__

If you’re feeling disconnected from your colleagues, chances are someone else in your team is too. To get to know your colleagues better and build new connections, try:

- asking a team mate to go for a coffee break or short walk outside the office 
- setting up a video call with a colleague from another team to get to know each other
- having lunch as a team in person or over video call where you don’t discuss work 

Did you know, you can use the Healthily [app](/app) to track your mood? Go to ‘My account’ then 'My trackers' and choose ‘Mood’ to get started.

Person working from home sat at a desk typing on a laptop

Feeling disconnected from your team? Try these tips to get to know your colleagues and make new connections.

As well as improving your quality of life and general wellbeing, talking to others and building connections can boost your mental health and may even help you live longer.


Simple steps to feel more connected at work

Struggling to get to sleep? There could be too much light in your bedroom at night.

We typically find it easier to fall asleep in a dark room because our internal body clock is directly linked to the hours of sunlight.

Your brain naturally associates darkness with sleep, so shutting out the light closer to bedtime creates a more serene sleeping space, which can help you switch off. 

To darken a bright bedroom, try using blackout blinds or thick curtains and cover up sources of light.

If the light is still creeping in, make sure your blinds or curtains are tightly closed and slip on a comfortable eye mask.

Did you know, you can use the Healthily [app](/app) to track your sleep? Go to ‘My account’ then 'My trackers' and choose ‘Sleep length’ and ‘Sleep quality’.

Stylish bedroom with bed, bedside table, lamps and house plants

Are you struggling to drift off? Too much light could be to blame. 

Before the sun rises on dark mornings, exposing yourself to artificial light tells your brain it’s time to start the day.

How darkness helps you drift off

If you start feeling angry when you’re hungry, you'll know how it feels to be ‘hangry’. Here’s how to stop hanger in its tracks.

Food, or a lack of it, can have a big impact on how we feel. When you get very hungry, your blood sugar can take a dive, which can make you feel grumpy.

Listening to your body’s hunger signals is a good way to make sure you’re eating regularly enough.  

To avoid getting hangry, fill up on:

- protein-rich foods like eggs, fish and nuts, which keep you fuller for longer
- wholegrain foods like lentils and oats, which release energy gradually over time – helping blood sugar levels stay balanced
- fruits and vegetables, which are packed full of nutrients and can leave you feeling energised

Box of eggs with different faces drawn on them 

When your blood sugar takes a dive, it can make you feel grumpy. Fill up on these foods.

Breakfast can boost energy and concentration and keep you out of the hanger zone for longer.

What to eat to avoid feeling ‘hangry’

Do you find it difficult to make time for exercise? Breaking it down into manageable chunks could make it easier to reach your activity target.

Walking, dancing or cycling all count as moderate-intensity exercise – basically, any activity that raises your body temperature and gets your heart rate and breathing rate up. 

If moderate-intensity exercise is what you prefer, you should aim for 150 minutes a week. If you spread 150 minutes over 7 days, that’s only about 21 minutes each day. 

You could break it down further to just over 10 minutes, twice a day. Squeeze in a quick burst over lunch or straight after work – without disrupting your day too much.

Did you know, you can use the Healthily [app](https://www.livehealthily.com/app) to track your activity? Go to ‘My account’ then 'My trackers' and choose 'Activity levels'.

Water bottle, phone and trainers

Try this easy step to help you hit your activity target.

If you can’t sing, but can still talk, that’s a good sign you’re doing moderate-intensity activity.

How to fit exercise into a busy day

Eating fermented foods is a way to up your intake of a mix of different nutrients and boost your ‘good’ gut bacteria.

Your friendly gut bacteria extract nutrients from food and protect your gut from less friendly types of bacteria. 

Probiotics are live bacteria or yeast often found in fermented foods, which can help maintain balance and create harmony in your natural gut bacteria.

Fermented foods, such as sauerkraut, miso or kefir, can also be a great source of vitamins, minerals and fibre.

Here are some quick and tasty ways to add fermented foods to your diet:

- add a spoonful of sauerkraut to your lunchtime sandwich

- switch your usual bread for sourdough

- stir live yoghurt into your breakfast smoothie

- sip on some miso soup for a warming pre-dinner starter

A loaf of sourdough bread

Adding fermented foods to your diet can boost the 'good' bacteria living in your gut.

Normally, we have 100 to 150 different types of bacteria in our gut at one time, but as many as 1,000 different types exist.

Keep your gut happy with fermented foods

It turns out, your hands can be a handy tool to learn how much you should be eating.