Integrative Health & Sleep Coach, Founder of Purposely Healthy
Rumbiey is an integrative health and sleep coach certified by the Institute for Integrative Nutrition. She is based in Shanghai, China.
Having battled various health issues Rumbiey always felt health was the responsibility of doctors and other medical practitioners. However a visit with a Traditional Chinese Medicine doctor in China, changed her perspective altogether.
Rumbiey realised that in order to get healthy and stay that way she needed to live a healthy life...on purpose. This shift in her mindset and physical health inspired Rumbiey to start Purposely Healthy. Her aim is to help others to lead happier, healthier lives.
Where did the idea for Purposely Healthy come from?
Oh, that’s a long story! But the short version of it is that a few years ago I was given a diagnosis of endometriosis, which was devastating. I was not satisfied with the options the doctors gave me, so I started to do my own research. Everything I found had a relationship with food and sleep. I was surprised that my doctors did not mention this to me so I decided to try the different approaches using food therapy and making sure I improved my sleep. In less than 3 months of switching up my food and creating a good sleep routine I had almost no pain and was feeling more energetic than I had in a year. So after my successes and training as a health coach and understanding that I had to be intentional about my health, I realized I was not the only one who was suffering from an illness, insomnia, low energy and fatigue, that’s when Purposely Healthy emerged.
What kind of transformation can people expect to make when working with you?
Because my approach is holistic, the transformations are usually holistic too, from food to stress management. With sleep coaching which is what I now specialize in, you can expect to increase your energy levels, improve your productivity and have a better quality of sleep. You begin to feel a bit more alive than you did before.
What are your top health hacks for a more productive day?
Good quality SLEEP. Society has slowly shaped us to believe that it’s cool to be a night owl or that not sleeping and working instead is equivalent to productivity but all it does is lessen your focus and makes you prone to making more mistakes. People that unfortunately suffer from disordered sleep will tell you the effects it has on their day to day life. It also affects other things such as digestion and metabolism which also affect your level of productivity, so get a good night’s rest.
Pay attention to your body’s natural clock, which is determined by the time zone that you are in. If you are having trouble sleeping or being awake when you are meant to, then it naturally means your productivity is compromised.
Eat well and at a consistent time. Approximately 90% of our hormones-including serotonin, melatonin and cortisol (wake up, sleep and energy hormones) plus the enzymic functions and other crucial processes originate in the gut. So it’s important to eat healthy foods. Eating consistently will help you stabilize your blood sugars giving you energy releases throughout the day as well as train your stomach to prepare for the food i.e. digestive liquids and the release of the certain hormones which are directly influential to your sleep quality such as serotonin.
How is being healthy linked to sleeping well?
It’s usually a cycle, if you are healthy you are likely sleeping well and if you are sleeping well you have a higher chance of being healthy. When you are healthy, sleep is easier because there aren’t processes being hindered because of pain, inflammation or disease.
Sleep is something that tends to fall lower on the priority list for a lot of entrepreneurs. Why should people care more about getting a good night’s sleep when we’re fed so much information about hustling to become successful?
That is something I try and speak more about. As an entrepreneur myself I fully understand the pressures of performing and hustling hard but from experience, watching my husband who throws himself into his business and others, I realized that productivity can only be achieved if you are well-rested and alert. It boils down to effectiveness and efficiency. You can’t do these two things if you are tired and your decision-making is compromised because of sleep deprivation. Sleep affects how you interact with your team and partners, your levels of concentration, your ability to make quick sound decisions and your ability to be fully present
Could you share your tips for getting a great night’s sleep?
Drink your caffeine in the morning. Caffeine lasts about 8 hours in your body so anything after 12pm midday will compromise your sleep (even if you can actually fall asleep your body’s functions aren’t because they are wired up by the caffeine and not resting. Caffeine also increases the production of cortisol and adrenaline giving your body a flight or fight response when you are meant to be sleeping).
Make your bedroom a sleep sanctuary. This means no TV, phones and games. Leave it only for snoozing and making love.
Have a hot bath just before bed. This will help lower your body temperature, which will help you to sleep.
And do regular exercise, preferably not in the evening because when we workout our bodies have higher adrenaline which allows you to be active, this will cause you to have a restless sleep because of the adrenaline coursing through your body. Stretching and a slow yoga routine are more ideal for a night time workout as they give a calming effect.
As an entrepreneur, what lessons have you learned about starting your own business?
I’ve learned to trust myself and my vision even when it is not easy to articulate at first. I've also learned the importance of collaborations and partnerships, business is built by these.
What’s your favourite quote?
My favourite quote is a biblical quote I am paraphrasing; do well and you will be accepted. Basically to me, that means do your very best and whatever you want to achieve will happen and be appreciated.
If you would like to get in contact with Rumbiey you can reach her at:
Website:
Email: