#104 MONTHLY MEDICINE... Gwyneth Paltrow broke the internet, it's bad news for cold therapy and when a top coach schedules her biggest tasks

Allow me to put a spring in your step with my low-down of the health and wellness scene this April...

I won’t dither too long recapping April in Well, Actually… but, just in case you missed it, my latest edition of Buy This, Not That… revealed the expert verdict on ‘collagen coffee’, all-in-one supplement powders and air purifiers for hay fever. That also happened to be newsletter post number 100 (woohoo to my little milestone!). Additionally, I exposed the scientific study to wellness trend pipeline to beware and the Tuesday Scoop… series has seen me share my favourite surprisingly useful gym buys, beauty products currently saving my skin, running essentials to help you keep pace and the best healthy meal delivery services. Now, let’s meet the brilliant brain behind the cult The Prioritises Method journal, before getting into the ups and downs of the health and wellness scene these past few weeks…

ONE THING WELL: Lily Silverton, behavioural + mindset coach, as well as founder of The Priorities Method

One thing well…move? ‘It’s got to be yoga,’ says Lily, who worked as a fashion and culture journalist before deciding, in her early 30s, to switch up her priorities—culminating in her training as a coach, initially in stress management and then life, health, positive psychology and neuroscience. ‘I’ve practised it for almost 30 years, and although I have taken breaks—for instance, I couldn’t do it while I was pregnant with my two children due to a hypermobility issue—it truly never gets old. Most mornings I do 30 to 45 minutes of a yoga/ Pilates fusion and adjust it according to how my body and mind are feeling. I’ve also started going to classes again, and am really enjoying Emma Henry’s ones at Love Supreme Projects in London.’

One thing well…fuel? ‘As someone who had an eating disorder for so long, I need to be very careful about any rules around food,’ shares Lily. ‘For example, things like making sure you always eat breakfast or never eating before a certain time, as I find them insidiously appealing. But my one thing would be prioritising vegetables—I try to make sure I have lots of them at every meal, and to a lesser extent fruit. I always feel healthier and more grounded if I do this.’

One thing well…mind? ‘I’ve meditated regularly for 12 years and have had a near daily practice since 2016,’ reveals Lily, of one of the tools that helped her through a mental health struggle of 15 years, including a period of depression. ‘I think of it like brushing my teeth; I don’t always necessarily want to do it, but I see the benefits for my overall health and I’ll never stop. At the moment, now that the kids are a little older and I’ve just about made up my “sleep debt”, I wake at 6am and meditate before everyone else is up. I love the early morning silence and stillness.’

One thing well…snooze? ‘I get into bed early,’ says Lily. ‘Sleep is a huge priority for me and I like to wake up early, meaning I have to go to bed early too. I like to be in bed by 9.15pm and asleep by 10pm, but I also love a late night now and then and I try not to stress myself out about it if I go to bed later. In the past six months I’ve also started taking Heights magnesium and this seems to have a great impact on my ability to sleep through the night, which has been a very welcome surprise.’

One thing well…hustle? ‘I use The Priorities Method,’ shares Lily, of the journal she created after not being able to find one that helped enable the changes or habits she actually needed to achieve her goals. ‘Within that framework, I constantly remind myself that day to day balance is a myth and that an overall seasonal understanding of balance is a more useful way of approaching a busy life—this stops me from giving myself a hard time when I need to skip bedtime to run a workshop or when I have to say no to a talk in order to spend more time with my kids. I always tackle my biggest project first thing in the morning, rather than waste my time and energy on things like replying to emails, and I set clear boundaries.’

You can keep up with Lily via her Substack newsletter Prioritise This and on Instagram. Don’t forget to also get your hands on The Priorities Method

A quick note to free subscribers: below the upcoming paywall (which costs, if you’ve already used up your complimentary Well, Actually… post, just £3.50 per month, or £35 annually to get behind, FYI) are:

• My selection of five uplifting bits of good health/ wellness news

• Also, five juicy bits of not-so-good health/ wellness news

• A £190 saving on the ‘contrast therapy’ essential you need for spring

• What I’ve been reading, listening, watching and doing to feel better