Q&A with Wellness Founders, your Monday Morning inspiration
This week we sat down with wellness gurus Evren & Sabrina, who together, founded URWELL Official.
URWELL is an online platform designed to guide clients in their everyday challenges such as exercise, nutrition, stress management and other areas of wellbeing. With individualised solutions fitting into every busy lifestyle, there really is something for everyone to discover through URWELL.
What inspired you to found URWELL?
Evren: As a yoga teacher, I know that every body is unique and in each session I modify the poses accordingly considering the students needs and limitations. What we do at URWell is similar. We curate a wellness programme for each customer to meet their lifestyle and needs. I have always believed in the holistic approach to health. I do not think that you can be fit and healthy when you focus on only your diet nor your workout regimes. A Holistic approach takes into account that everyone is unique and tailors the treatment to that individual; developing their physical, mental, spiritual and emotional awareness and wellbeing. We realised that there are several platforms focusing on only Fitness or Wellness but a tailor made and individualised online service was not available and we saw the opportunity to provide such a service in the wellness industry.
Where does your passion for health and wellness come from?
Sabrina: My passion for health and wellness started in my early years as a child and teenager. I had a very active childhood benefiting from long summers on the beach in Turkey. In addition to that, my dad’s passion in bodybuilding got me interested in exercising at a young age. I would go to the gym to work out with him or do fun classes like steps with my mum. As I got older, this love for sports evolved into a more holistic lifestyle approach of eating well and movement. Naturally, as I delved deeper into it, I realised how much more there is to learn. But I love learning and practising for myself first and then sharing my learnings with my family, friends and my clients. Now that I have two small kids I also want them to naturally adopt a healthy lifestyle. I am passionate for others to develop respect and a love for fitness and wellness that can be maintained forever, if I can help and inspire anyone that makes me feel incredibly happy. I find that the passion for fitness and wellness is contagious. Fitness should not be a chore but fun and wellness should be an overarching goal for life.
Can you tell us more about the pillars of wellness that URWELL focuses on?
Sabrina: URWell focuses on 3 pillars for ultimate wellness. These are fitness, nutrition and wellness. By wellness we mean emotional and mental health which we can positively impact through good quality sleep, proper breathing, grounding meditation and thorough reducing stress in our lives. Fitness doesn’t necessarily mean a six-pack but it certainly means a healthy, mobile, strong and supple body that is able to function well. Wellness is a full package yet for each individual it will be a bit different but ultimately we all need all those 3 pillars in our lives as they are complimentary and only work best in conjunction with each other. Movement, good healthy nutrition through natural foods, adequate sleep, proper breathing and stress-release techniques all work together to impact our wellbeing in a positive way. At URWell we conduct an in-depth consultation with our clients to understand their current fitness and wellness status, their nutrition habits and their needs and goals in regards to all the 3 pillars. We aim to improve their overall well-being by assisting them wherever we see gaps in any of those pillars. We are of the strong belief that wellness incorporates all the 3 pillars and one cannot happen without the other one. We also create realistic plans for them with short- and long-term goals that are attainable. We keep track of their progress across all the pillars and re-evaluate as needed.
Why is Nutrition so important when it comes to our wellness?
Sabrina: Nutrition is absolutely crucial for our wellbeing. We are what we eat literally, this holds true biologically. All the nutrition we get from our food are indeed the building blocks of our cells, hence ultimately our body as cells make up the organism which is what we are. At URWell our focus on nutrition is not about strict restrictions, we understand balance and moderation. The few no-no’s for us include processed foods, as we believe that our nutrition should be through natural foods, since there is so much of a diversified and incredibly nutritious supply that nature offers us. We endorse healthy replacements for things like white flour, white sugar and so on, simultaneously we endorse inclusion of a variety of vegetables and fruits. We love a naturally colourful plate and a balanced meal. We educate our clients about good foods, identify if anything / what is lacking in their diets and come up with strategies to improve their diet in a way that it is sustainable for them for a long period or even when they go out or travel etc without feeling guilt. It is all about understanding what constitutes good and healthy nutrition and then being able to sustain and enjoy that as a life style.
For anyone struggling to adopt a healthier lifestyle or routine and knowing where to begin, what would your top 3 tips be?
Evren:
- Self Love - It all begins with loving and caring for yourself. If you do so, you invest time and money in yourself to develop a healthier lifestyle.
- Be patient: Nothing good comes easily. You have to lose things and habits you thought you loved, give up things you thought you needed. You have to get over yourself, your habits and your resistance to change. In the process, there will be times that you would want to quit and be lazy. Even so, be patient… Hang in there and keep moving forward to achieve your goals!The good stuff never comes when things are easy.
- Eat - Move and Sleep Well: These three are the basic but most important habits to start with for adapting a healthy lifestyle. As URWell, we are here to support you in the process to eat, move and sleep well to adapt a happy and healthy.
And lastly, what does a day in the life of a wellness founder look like?
Evren: I am a morning person. Waking up early is crucial for me to organise my day and feel energetic. I start the day with a short meditation and breathing session and stretch my body gently to awaken my body. I eat twice a day so I usually skip breakfast and have a cup of coffee. I have two kids so mornings are busy. I work out for an hour after I drop my kids off to school. Sometimes, I run outdoors or go to a studio to practice yoga or for a HIIT class. Then I work until lunch. My main meal is always lunch so I eat quite well. I finish work in late afternoon and spend the evenings with my kids. After a light dinner, I read or watch TV and I sleep at around 10 30 pm. I meditate at least for 20 minutes everyday before bed. Socialising with friends and family is very important for me to be happy. In the weekends, I go out with friends and one or two glasses of wine accompanies my dinner outs.
Feeling inspired to try something new in your life? Customise your Kurami meal path to suit your preferences and join our 5 day subscription plan. Feel the beauty from within & make a change this Springtime.
