With over a decade’s experience from luxury villa marketing, travel and lifestyle PR and online publishing Julia launched Lux Nomade – a conscious travel and wellness magazine in 2017. She is also a certified yoga teacher, writer and hobby photographer.
With over a decade’s experience from luxury villa marketing, travel and lifestyle PR and online publishing Julia launched Lux Nomade – a conscious travel and wellness magazine in 2017. She is also a certified yoga teacher, writer and hobby photographer.
When she’s not busy cooking a mean gluten free pasta, reading classics or day-dreaming about horses, Julia writes about topics close to her heart such as wellness, nutrition, and sustainable travel.
Find inspiration as we talk to Julia Gralberg in our #StrongHealthyWomen interview.
Hi Julia! Thank you for being part of the Health and Fitness Travel, Strong, Healthy Women Interview Series, where we are shining a light on the importance of self-care, not as an indulgence but a necessity to reduce stress and general health issues.
Is there such a thing as a typical day for you and what does that look like?
I don’t really have a typical day which can be a good and a bad thing, depending on what kind of person you are, but for me it’s usually a good thing! However, there are a few things I always try to fit in during a day. For example, first thing in the morning I always start the day with a cup of warm lemon water together with my supplements and fresh turmeric. I try to meditate for 20 minutes and do yoga. This is a good time to connect and ‘check in’ with both my body and mind. For me, that morning routine is precious since it allows me to tailor my day according to what I feel/need (if work and life permits). During the day I still spend too much time in front of the laptop but I try to take a screen break and prepare lunch myself and in the afternoons I usually break up the day with a swim before finishing off my workday (which is not entirely true since I still have the bad habit of checking my emails until right before bedtime). If I’m travelling I do struggle to keep my routine which is something I’m working on.
Can you share a time when you felt your well-being was challenged in the past and what did you overcome it?
Like many others, I spent over a decade in the corporate world working long hours, resulting in spending a lot of my time in an office sitting at my desk. It was at times difficult to fit in daily excise, meditation and to eat healthy. When I was younger I also felt more pressure to ‘perform’ at work and positive stress could quickly turn into negative stress and, although I had wonderful years with colleagues, clients and travels my overall well-being was sometimes challenged and compromised. Well-being to me means being completely content and happy with all aspect of your life. I identified early on in my life that I had an urge to work for myself, I craved the freedom it provides. It wasn’t until 2017 I finally had the courage to take the leap of faith and quit my job and launch my own business – www.luxnomade.com a conscious travel and wellness magazine. Before starting my new life I went to India for three months and did my yoga teacher training which was a great time to reflect over my ‘old life’ and prepare for my ‘new life’.
What does being healthy mean to you and how do you keep this at the forefront when life gets unavoidably busy?
Healthy to me means taking the time to listen and respond to both your body and mind and set healthy boundaries. In terms of the body I look at health as keeping your body active and feed your body nutrition-rich food. Basically provide your body with the right fuel to get though the day and reward yourself with a good sleep. In terms of a healthy mind I’m a true believer in the positive impact of meditation and to give your brain/mind space and time. We are exposed to such an incredible amount of stimulus every minute of the day and in order to gather our thoughts and to relax our mind I find it helpful to take some ‘quiet time’ every day. Personally, I also find journaling a wonderful way to keep the mind healthy and creative.
Have you ever taken a holiday specifically for your well-being? Can you share what the experience was like?
Wellness holidays are my favourite holidays and I’ve been lucky to have been to a few. Komune Resort & Beach Club Bali in Bali for example is a wonderful place to recharge batteries for anyone who is into yoga or surfing or simply just want to eat healthy, stay right by the ocean and use the gym. There’s also an array of massages and body treatments for sore muscles and a delicious juice bar.
I also had a fantastic wellbeing holiday at Vilalara Longevity Thalassa. This was my first visit to a medical health clinic and I was blown-away by the level of prevention is available today. In addition to a medical health examination I had an oligoscan to determine which heavy metals I had in my body and I also blood tests to determine any vitamin and mineral deficiency. I left with a tonne of new information and knowledge and it was a truly motivational holiday which equipped me with so many tools in order to look after my own health.
Every woman’s idea of self-care is different, tell us about yours?
Self-care to me is to take time and listen to my body and mind and give it what it needs, whenever it needs it. I have over the years become better to have the courage to ‘put myself first’ when I feel like I crave ‘me-time’ to recharge my batteries as well as to eat the food I know my body benefits from.This is, what I have come to realise is simply to set healthy boundaries. My philosophy is that everything starts with yourself. In order to be a functioning, performing, kind and happy human being we need to first start with our own health and wellbeing through self-care which is, of course, unique to every individual.
Want to tell your story? Reach out to us via info@healthandfitnesstravel.com.au and be featured as our next strong, healthy woman.
