Be Well

This Father's Day, skip the gadget. A study spanning 28 countries and 179,000 people found that men over 50 have a 60% higher risk of dying than women the same age, and a lot of it comes down to things nobody ever checks.

Grip strength predicts lifespan more accurately than most of us realise. The right blood panel (not just "total testosterone") tells you what's actually going on. And loneliness quietly does more damage to a man's heart than almost anything on a standard checklist.

Want the full breakdown? Comment MENS HEALTH below, and we'll send it over. 👇

Have you ever fantasised about getting sick? Not seriously, just enough to justify a week in bed with zero responsibilities.

If that sounds familiar, you're not alone, and you're not broken. You're depleted.

Join us on 10th September for a conversation with Dr Amantha Imber, organisational psychologist, founder of Inventium and bestselling author of The Energy Game, in conversation with Be Well co-founder Jan Owen AM. They'll be unpacking energy, burnout and how to actually rebuild your vitality, backed by science and more than 50 research-backed challenges you can start using straight away. No wellness retreat or life overhaul required.

Stick around after for 30 minutes of live Q&A, and grab your copy of The Energy Game on the night.

Everyone is welcome; book via the link in our bio.

📅 10th September, 7:00 pm - 9:30 pm
📍 Be Well

Don't forget to book your spot and bring someone.

There's a moment about ten seconds into the cold plunge where your brain screams absolutely not. Your breath catches. Every instinct says get out.

And then, if you breathe through it, something extraordinary happens.

A 2024 UCL study of 1,114 women going through perimenopause or menopause found that 47% reported significant improvement in anxiety, 35% fewer mood swings, and 30% fewer hot flushes. Nearly two thirds were using cold water specifically to manage their symptoms, and it was working.

You only need eleven minutes a week. Two or three sessions of three to five minutes, always finishing on cold.

And if the cold feels daunting, start with the hot pool only. Then try fifteen seconds. There is no badge for suffering here.

Go warm. Go cold. Breathe through it.

Based near Hawthorn? Comment PLUNGE and we'll send you the link to come and try it for yourself.

If jetlag hits you harder than your travel partner, you're not imagining it. Leading circadian biology research shows biological s*x and hormonal stage play a massive role in how we recover from time zone shifts.

In your younger years, estrogen actually protects your internal clock, helping it resync to a new time zone faster. But in perimenopause and menopause, estrogen and progesterone drop, that protection disappears, and your body's master clock becomes far more fragile. Flying east (like Europe to Australia) is the harder direction, since it shortens your day and fights your natural rhythm.

Here's what can help, backed by research:

- Hit 11,000 steps, ideally in morning light, to anchor your clock.
- Take a low-dose melatonin (0.5–3mg) close to your destination bedtime; it's a clock-shifter, not a sleeping pill.
- Keep your bedroom at 16–18°C if you're navigating hot flushes.
- Caffeine in the morning only, never late in the day.
- Keep your wake time consistent within 60–90 minutes, even on weekends.

This is Jan's favourite jetlag protocol at Be Well:
1. Hydroxy Airpod (Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy): floods your body with pressurised oxygen, reducing inflammation and cellular hypoxia from the flight.
2. Compression Boots: flushes pooled blood and metabolic waste from your legs, sending oxygenated blood back to your core and brain.
3. Infrared Sauna: sweats out travel toxins and spikes your core body temperature.
4. Hot/Cold Contrast Baths: the rapid heat to cold swing triggers a sharp core temperature drop, the exact signal your brain reads as "time for bed."

Safe travels Be Well community and let us know if you try the protocol when returning from your European adventures.

Comment JETLAG for the full article in your inbox.

We’ve developed a program at Be Well to keep your bones strong. 🦴

Here’s why: after 30, bone density naturally starts to decline. But the right kind of strength training can slow it, stop it, and in many cases reverse it.

The program is called the Bone Vitality Program. It’s physiotherapist led, personalised, and built to help you feel strong in your body for decades to come.

If you’d like to know more, comment “BONE VITALITY” below and we’ll send you the link. 👇

📍 Be Well Hawthorn

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