Award-winning journalist Rachel Grunwell is a respected wellness expert, magazine wellness columnist and recipe creator, qualified coach and yoga teacher. On top of that, the mum-of-three is the blogger behind the Inspired Health website which inspires people to move more and live well. She’s one of NZ’s top wellness influencers and has worked with lots of globally renowned brands. Rachel talks to NZ Booklovers.
Tell us a little about Balance.
Balance boasts 30 global wellness experts who share amazing wisdom that can help you to be healthier and happier. It’s science-backed, not wu wu stuff. You don’t need to buy 30 books - just Balance. I’ve interviewed these experts to bring the best wellness tools into one book to inspire any reader - including men and women. So many wellness books are targeted only at women. Balance is for everyone. The book includes recipes too - from nutrient dense and delicious offerings, to smoothies and even sweet cakes. Everything in life in balance is okay ultimately.
What inspired you to write this book?
I'm putting Balance out into the world to be of service and I’m proud that it can genuinely help people to be healthier and happier. The experts in the book helped to change my life - they’re change-makers, thought-leaders and incredibly special. I hope they help readers to uplift their health and happiness levels too. Just choose a topic that you care about and read that chapter. Use the tools the experts talk about and apply the lessons and tools in your own life… then notice the positive changes in yourself - and then the ripple effect of how you inspire others also... How did you choose the experts?
I’ve interviewed thousands of experts over the years. The people in my book are special and the messages they share are important tools that can genuinely help uplift your health and happiness levels. They’re diverse. So there’s someone in Balance that will speak to you, if you like. There are so many specialty areas covered: psychology, neuroscience, communication skills, nutrition, fitness, wellness, health advice… to inspiring stories that are just wow. Do you have a favourite interview?
All the experts are special. They all helped to change and uplift my world view, awareness or shared skills or tools with me that matter. For example tools on kindness or having more emotional intelligence… I learnt so much from all the people in the book and feel they share their messages in a truly unique and special way that will have an impact. What do you hope readers will take away from the book?
I hope they read a chapter they are truly interested in and learn something that brings about more self-awareness to be a better human in the world… or they learn strategies to uplift their health and happiness… More strategies are needed in the world, I believe.
You also have recipes! Can you tell us a little about how you created these recipes?
There are delicious and easy-to-make smoothies, juices, snacks, and also cakes. I believe in all things in like in “balance" - including eating cake. Just don’t eat cake for breakfast, lunch and dinner… you get the picture! I recipe create for Good magazine and have done so for years (as well as writing their wellness column each issue)… so my recipes are always professional as well as delicious. I’m a qualified coach who helps people with food, fitness and lifestyle choices . So I understand the nutrition of hero foods in my recipes and also educate people with that. Make sure you check out Nadia Lim’s daily smoothie recipe too in the book which can help your skin to glow.
What was your routine or process when writing this book?
The Beatnik team helped me shape my book idea from a rough stone into a diamond. The book is the result of a beautiful team effort and a collective contribution of so many brilliant minds. I’m just really the guide who brought a lot of brilliant minds in the book together and Beatnik made the book and words more beautiful and stylish than I imagined. If a soundtrack was made to accompany this book, name a song or two you would include.
There are different things that make us healthier and happier… so it would be a different soundtrack for everyone. I guess maybe a universal one might be a soundtrack of nature that transports you to a place of calm, stillness and that uplifts your heart. What did you do to celebrate finishing this book?
With a heart-lifting smile!!! I’ll celebrate with a book launch at Time Out Book store in Mt Eden, Auckland, 5pm, on Mother’s Day. Wine will be on offer. This is a day I will celebrate the moment of reaching a dream and putting a book out into the world that can genuinely help people. Anyone is welcome to come along and ask a burning wellness question, get a signed book, or just raise a glass in the moment.
What is the favourite book you have read so far this year and why?
So many!!!! Just Eat It by Laura Thomas, the latest What the Fat Book, or perhaps the Diet Keto Cook book by Scott Gooding… just to name some.
What’s next on the agenda for you?
Speaking at workplaces and a string of events to share wellness wisdom from Balance. Holding three Mindful Moments retreats at Rotorua’s Polynesian Spa to share wellness wisdom too to uplift the health and happiness levels of retreat-goers… Coaching clients throughout NZ on how to lose weight, get fit, adjust their lifestyle and live a life they love…
www.beatnikshop.com