Following our conversation on nervous system regulation and pranayama breathing, we're taking the next step and exploring the role of recovery.

Clodagh shares her personal journey from being someone who thrived on busyness, long hours and constant productivity to discovering the power of intentional rest through restorative yoga and her training in India. Along the way, we discuss why so many people struggle to switch off, the growing global demand for digital detox retreats, and what the science tells us about recovery, stress and performance.

This Week's Natural High

✨ Restorative Yoga

This week's invitation is simple:

Try a restorative yoga class.

It can be online, in-person, yours, mine or someone else's.

Approach it with curiosity and notice:

• How you feel afterwards
• How you sleep that night
• How you show up the following day

Resources Mentioned

- Relax and Renew: Restful Yoga for Stressful Times - Judith Hanson Lasater

- B.K.S. Iyengar's teachings on supported yoga practice

- Research on yoga, stress reduction and nervous system regulation

- Episode 5: Regulation for the Win – Understanding the Nervous System & Pranayama

🎥 Free 30-Minute Restorative Yoga Class with Clodagh on Youtube:
https://youtu.be/b-9qSTH7WX8?si=vyujDca4ZnU7XFwz

Key Takeaway

Connect With Us

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, leave a review and share it with someone who might need permission to slow down.

And if you have ideas for future Natural Highs you'd like us to explore in Season 2, we'd love to hear from you. ✨

This is an exclusive discount for our Natural High Lifer Listeners. Doctrine Skincare have offered this across season 1 - 15% discount across all full priced and full sized products.

Episode 6: Strength is the Natural High for longevity and our focus this week.

What if one of the most powerful things you could do for your future health wasn't another supplement, diet or wellness trend... but simply getting stronger?

In this episode, Clodagh and Aisling explore why strength training may be one of the most underrated tools for improving our health, wellbeing and longevity.

Aisling shares her passion for what many experts now call the "organ of longevity" – skeletal muscle – and explains how building strength can support everything from metabolic health and energy levels to mobility, independence and healthy ageing.

Along the way, the pair discuss:

💪 Why muscle is about far more than appearance
💪 The surprising link between strength and longevity
💪 How skeletal muscle impacts metabolism, hormones and overall health
💪 The role of protein in supporting strength and recovery
💪 Why resistance bands, Pilates and bodyweight exercises can be just as valuable as the gym
💪 The importance of maintaining mobility, balance and independence as we age
💪 How small, consistent actions today can dramatically influence your future health

As always, the conversation is packed with practical insights, personal stories and simple actions you can start implementing immediately.

This Week's Natural High Invitation:

Take a look at your current relationship with strength training.

• If you're doing none, try introducing two or three short strength sessions this week.
• If you're already strength training, challenge yourself a little more than usual.
• If you've been on autopilot, ask yourself: Am I truly challenging my muscles?

Remember: the goal isn't perfection. It's progress.

Your future self will thank you.

Resources Mentioned

📚 Forever Strong – Dr. Gabrielle Lyon
📚 Unbreakable – Dr. Vonda Wright
🎧 Huberman Lab: Alcohol & Your Health
💪 Protein Calculator -> https://www.instagram.com/fitpositive.ie (go to link in bio and explore all her free tools including the macro calculator)

Quote of the Episode

Because strength isn't just about adding years to your life. It's about adding life to your years. ✨

🎙️ The Natural High Podcast with Clodagh & Aisling

This is an exclusive discount for our Natural High Lifer Listeners. Doctrine Skincare have offered this across season 1 - 15% discount across all full priced and full sized products.

In this episode, Clodagh and Aisling explore the fascinating world of nervous system regulation and why so many of us are living in a low-grade state of stress without even realising it.

The conversation begins with wisdom tooth recovery, holiday reflections, improved phone habits and why alcohol-free holidays can feel surprisingly restorative.

From there, they move into their Hot Sober Topic of the week: unpacking "the fear" - that familiar mix of anxiety, overthinking and physical unease that often follows a night of drinking.

The hosts then explore how the nervous system works, the difference between sympathetic and parasympathetic states, common stress responses like fight, flight, freeze and fawn, and why modern life can leave us feeling like we're constantly being chased by invisible tigers.

They also dive into the vagus nerve, vagal tone, Paul Ekman's concept of the Emotional Refractory Period and why one of the most powerful regulation tools available to us is something we already do every day: breathe.

This week's Natural High is Pranayama - the yogic practice of conscious breath regulation - with a simple diaphragmatic breathing challenge for listeners to try at home.

Because sometimes the goal isn't to escape your life.

It's to build a nervous system that feels safe enough to live it.

This Week's Invite:

Practice 5–10 minutes of diaphragmatic breathing each day.

Try:

• Inhale through the nose for 4 counts
• Exhale through the nose for 6 counts

Notice:

• How you respond to stress
• Your energy levels
• Sleep quality
• Emotional regulation
• Your ability to pause before reacting

For this episide, Clodagh has created a free guided diaphragmatic breathing practice to help you slow down, regulate your nervous system, reduce stress and create a greater sense of calm throughout your day. Whether you're new to breathwork or looking to strengthen your practice, this is a great place to start:

Video Link: https://youtu.be/igjR3nnTkDQ

Take 5–10 minutes for yourself, follow along, and notice how you feel afterwards. Small pauses can create powerful shifts.

Key Takeaway:

A regulated nervous system doesn't mean you're calm all the time.

It means you can return.

And sometimes, one conscious breath is where that return begins.

This is an exclusive discount for our Natural High Lifer Listeners. Doctrine Skincare have offered this across season 1 - 15% discount across all full priced and full sized products.