H for Health Blog

What’s new!

Habits & Building a Sustainable Lifestyle

Mindset & Mental Health

Macro, micronutrients & recipes

Fat Loss

Movement

Perimenopause, Hormones & Metabolic Signals

All Articles

Mindset Hayley Saretta Mindset Hayley Saretta

The Internal Negotiation Is More Exhausting Than the Doing

The workout takes 30 minutes. Somehow, we can spend six hours doing it in our head.

The same goes for dinner, going for a walk or making any of the small decisions involved in looking after ourselves. Sometimes the healthy thing isn’t what’s exhausting us — it’s the internal negotiation required to get there.

Here’s what’s happening in our brains when every decision starts feeling hard, and how a few defaults, plans and decisions made ahead of time can make healthy habits feel a whole lot easier.

Read More
Habits, Mindset, Pilates & Movement Hayley Saretta Habits, Mindset, Pilates & Movement Hayley Saretta

Life Happened. Now What?

You had a routine. You were exercising, eating well and finally finding your groove. Then… life happened.

Getting back into healthy habits isn't about punishing yourself, making up for lost time or jumping straight back in where you left off. It's about meeting yourself where you are now, starting smaller than your ego might like, and rebuilding your rhythm one manageable step at a time.

You haven't failed. You've been living. Now let's find a sensible way back in.

Read More
Mindset, Habits Hayley Saretta Mindset, Habits Hayley Saretta

The Thing You Want Now vs. The Thing You Want More

The chocolate tastes good now. The couch is comfortable now. The benefits of better health? They often arrive weeks, months or even years later.

That’s why delayed gratification matters.

This article explores how to get better at choosing what we want more over what we want right now—without turning health into restriction, punishment or endless willpower. It’s a practical skill that can support fat loss, energy, strength, sleep and long-term health, one intentional decision at a time.

Read More
Mindset, Habits Hayley Saretta Mindset, Habits Hayley Saretta

Stop Staring at the Finish Line

Big goals are exciting.

Lose 10kg. Get stronger. Run 5km. Improve your health. Feel like yourself again.

But then comes the tricky bit: what do we actually do today?

Using behaviour-change research and ideas from James Clear’s Atomic Habits, this article shows you how to work backwards from a big goal, turn it into ridiculously achievable actions and build a system you can actually stick to.

Read More

The Hardest Part Is Before It Looks Like It's Working

One of the hardest parts of improving your health isn't eating better or exercising more.

It's continuing to show up when it feels like nothing is changing.

We live in a world that rewards us instantly, so it's no surprise we expect our bodies to do the same. But real health doesn't work on overnight timelines. The first few weeks are often spent building habits, changing routines and laying foundations that aren't visible yet.

In this article, I'll explain why the first six weeks aren't about proving the plan works—they're about proving to yourself that you'll keep showing up long enough for it to.

Read More
Mindset, Habits Hayley Saretta Mindset, Habits Hayley Saretta

Choose Your Hard — But Choose the One That Gives Something Back

We talk a lot about longevity. Strong bones at 70. A healthy heart. More muscle. Living longer.

But what about just surviving this week?

There’s tired from moving your body, building strength and actually using your muscles. Then there’s the tired that comes from feeling sluggish, under-fuelled, mentally drained and somehow exhausted despite barely moving.

Looking after ourselves takes effort—but that effort can give something back.

This article is about choosing the kind of hard that helps us feel stronger, clearer and more capable now, while quietly looking after future-us at the same time.

Read More
Mindset Hayley Saretta Mindset Hayley Saretta

So... are we actually not ready?

"I'll start on Monday."

"When work settles down."

"When I feel more motivated."

We've all said it.

But what if we've been waiting for something that was never meant to come first?

Real change doesn't happen because we suddenly wake up feeling ready. It happens when the reason becomes important enough and we begin to believe we're capable of taking the next step.

In this article, I'll show you how to build both—so you can stop waiting for the perfect time and start creating lasting change, one small promise at a time.

Read More
Mindset, mental health, Habits Hayley Saretta Mindset, mental health, Habits Hayley Saretta

The Lie of the Straight Line

We often think a healthy life should be a steady climb upwards.

Eat well. Exercise consistently. Keep improving.

But real life has other plans.

Kids get sick. Careers become demanding. Hormones change. We experience grief, illness and seasons where simply getting through the day feels like enough.

This article explores why healthy habits aren't just for helping us make progress—they're there to help us cope. Because the goal isn't to be perfect through every season. It's to support ourselves through every one.

Read More
Mindset, Habits Hayley Saretta Mindset, Habits Hayley Saretta

Nothing Changes in the Dark

Most of us don't avoid tracking our food because it's too hard.

We avoid it because it asks us to look honestly at our habits—and that's uncomfortable.

I've felt it too.

In this article, we explore why awareness feels so confronting, how guilt keeps us stuck, and why replacing judgement with curiosity is one of the most powerful things we can do for our health.

Read More

If You Already Know What to Do... Why Aren't You Doing It?

There are millions of healthy recipes online, endless workout programs and enough nutrition advice to last a lifetime.

So why do so many of us still struggle to make healthy habits stick?

The answer probably isn't a lack of knowledge.

It's life.

In this article, I explore why motivation fades, why challenges often don't create lasting change, and how building habits that fit your real life—not your ideal life—is the key to finally making your health feel sustainable.

Read More
Mindset, health Hayley Saretta Mindset, health Hayley Saretta

Healthy Isn't About Being Attractive

We've been taught to judge health by what we see in the mirror.

But real health has very little to do with having the "perfect" body.

In this article, I explore why muscle, bone density, cardiovascular fitness, brain health and happiness are far better measures of wellbeing—and why building a capable body is one of the greatest investments you can make in your future.

Read More
Mindset Hayley Saretta Mindset Hayley Saretta

Creatures of Habit

Most of your daily choices happen on autopilot. Learn how habits shape your behaviour, why they can work against you, and how to retrain your brain so healthy choices become the easy, automatic ones.

Read More
Mindset Hayley Saretta Mindset Hayley Saretta

The Story You Keep Telling Yourself Is Shaping Your Habits

If you constantly tell yourself you’re too tired, too busy or that the timing “just doesn’t work”, you’re not alone. The stories we repeat in our heads shape the habits we build — often without us even realising it. In this article, I unpack the common excuses that keep people stuck and how to shift your internal dialogue so it starts supporting your health goals instead of sabotaging them.

Read More