To continue our celebration of mental health week we've teamed up with Zoe Warren, founder of the ultimate body, mind and soul well-being hub PeachwithZoe to pick her brain on all things including finding time for selfcare, juggling motherhood & running a business.
We absolutely love your 'juicy' movement sessions to kickstart the day, and to wind down from it for that matter! How did you evolve your very special style of teaching and how do you describe it to those new to Peachy with Zoe?
I think people have got far too rule based and prescriptive with their movement, so much so that it becomes a chore to do it. Movement can be fun and playful and expressive. It can be a way of not only supporting ourselves physically but also energetically and emotionally too.
I am passionate about people learning to tap into their own intuition with regards to their bodies. Some days we need gentleness and some days there is energy to push and challenge ourselves.
The type of movement I lead people in is a mix of yoga, dance, somatic movement and more. We need to challenge our brains and our bodies at the same time to reap the rewards and keep our bodies and our minds supple and active.
Finding moments for peace, reflection and looking after our bodies is so tricky with the pace of life, are there any tricks you can give us aside from the obvious of setting the alarm clock that bit earlier?
I really struggle with waking up earlier than i need to with young children and busy days so for me it is about squeezing it in during the day.. A 5 min dance, a 10 min run, zooming up and down the stairs a few times clutching the laundry, getting to the school pick up 5 mins early to sit in the car with my eyes closed for a mindful moment. No amount of time should be seen as too short, 1 min is better than no minutes and it all adds up!
My Peachy subscription service is something I devised to help just this. For all of us juggling work and children or other commitments there is so little spare time but if we can find just a few minutes each day to move and wriggle and release in a whole range of different movements. There are over 160 different sessions from 5-60 mins to squeeze into even the busiest of days!
How important is nature, sunlight and birdsong to you in your every day and what are you favourite ways to take this in?
What a lovely question.. for me nature is my God. It is everything. It is the constant reminder to be present and grateful. It’s a reminder to tune in, to use my senses to see, hear and smell the beauty of the world. Its vastness reminds me of my relative insignificance which can quieten the whirring and worrying in my mind.
There are two ways we can interact with nature. We can either drift past, busy in our own mind with day to day worries or zoned into our phones. Or, we can look up, slow down just a touch and breathe in the utter luck and beauty of being on this planet for a short moment.
We are animals, we need to get outdoors, to get wet, muddy, to move, run and breathe in fresh air for our physical and our mental health and I feel this hugely if I don’t manage to get outside enough!
You have built a successful business in the world of wellness and behind your serenity there must be hard work! How do you face the challenges of weekly filming with expanding your interests in the space?
Some weeks work well and I get things done and some work terribly and the children are sick or there are too many other commitments! I think a huge thing is to let go of guilt. We spend an awful lot of time telling ourselves what we haven’t done or what we haven’t achieved and rarely step back and notice what we have achieved.
Also trying to enjoy the hustle as opposed to waiting for the end result is a big one I need to remind myself of, there are endless false peaks for any small businesses and so we might as well enjoy the ride!
What is the most common issue your clients face and how do you like to help them with it.
Often clients come wanting to get a little more flexible but with a regular practice they open up not only their bodies but also their minds, I really notice people developing more confidence in themselves and their bodies the the longer they come and these effects can trickle into day to day life. More intuition, more presence, more of an ability to regulate their nervous system. The benefits just keep on giving but are often not where you assume they will be on a purely physical level.
You demystify the need for extensive kit in your sessions, with 'no mat needed' classes and 10 minute resets mixed into the longer more intensive classes. Would you say little is better than nothing in caring for our bodies and minds?
You can move and stretch in a pair of jeans and run in a pair of tracksuit bottoms left over from school. Wellness shouldn’t cost much! Movement or mindfulness can be woven into day to day life rather than trying to find a spare hour in your day which for me is a struggle. Run up the stairs, always walk up escalators, walk the long way to work, stretch and wriggle on a patch of grass for 5 mins and do squats while the kettle boils. Little and often in whatever you are wearing at the time and you are much more likely to keep it up..
How do you support yourself within a busy life as a mother and an entrepreneur?
I try not to feel guilty for doing things for myself as and when there is time. Letting go of perfection and leaning on other people is key, it takes a village! Getting enough sleep and being outside as much as I possibly can are also key to me being able to enjoy my days and all the challenges that come up!
What brings you joy?
Birdsong, laughter, coffee, chocolate, movement, views, swimming in the sea, dancing, yoga, family, trees, music, horses, dogs, the feel of the sun on my skin, loose jeans, tequila, lazy breakfasts, weekend papers, riding, friends, log fires, rain, hills, flowers…
Where do you go to escape it all?
The Pembrokeshire coast! It’s a haven of no work and no school for our whole family where we walk and explore whatever the weather. I absolutely adore it, wild and unspoiled.
Quick Fire Questions:
Typical breakfast? Either just coffee or eggs on toast and a smoothie or a chocolate croissant. Blissfully inconsistent!
Go to exercise or movement? Walking, running, riding, swimming, dancing and my absolute favourite mindful free flow movement!
Guilty pleasure? No guilt, all pleasure.. chocolate, coffee, crisps, yum!
Motto to live life by? ‘How you spend your day is how you spend your life’ Anne Dillard.
