Real Health with Karl Henry

The dark, cold, rainy nights are coming in and it's easy to sit on the couch and find excuses to not go training. But beat those winter blues by using my ten tips for your Winter Survival Guide. I break it down between gear, exercise and food covering outdoor gear to use, layering, group training, events, new training, stews and soups and the importance of a flask. My 10 tips will help make sure y...

It's a truly inspiring interview on my podcast this week as I speak to Mark Pollock about the inner strength needed to cope with life's toughest challenges. ‘He who has a why to live can bear with almost any how’ is Nietzsche's quote and Mark’s mantra for living. "If you know why you’re doing what you’re doing and it makes sense to you, then you can put up with all the tough stuff. It sits over ev...

Do you know the seven relationships that will define your life for better or worse? Allison Keating has been a psychologist for 18 years and she joins me to talk about her first book, 'The Secret Lives of Adults', in which she explains why, but most importantly how, we need to improve the key relationships in our lives. 'Life is busy and people are finding the constant juggle too much,' she says....

Dublin's All Ireland winner, James McCarthy, joined me on the Irish Independent Talks Stage at the 2018 Ploughing for this week's Real Health bonus episode. I spoke to the Dublin star about the pressure and challenge of the 5-in-a-row and got some insights into what the health and fitness regime is like for the All Ireland champions. For more from the Real Health podcast just visit the show page a...

Trisha Lewis' story is one to inspire and this week I speak to the Cork woman about her weight loss, her health journey and ultimately taking responsibility for her life and her actions. 'I was so sick of trying everything and failing. I was 26 stone and knew if I failed this time there was nowhere else to go for me,' she says. 'I don't look to the future, if I get through today without failing th...

Is the vegan lifestyle for you? It’s not just about food but about how you are living your life and how it’s impacting animals in the process. For journalist and blogger, Holly White, she became vegan four years ago and hasn't looked back since. Holly joins me on this week's podcast to discuss the vegan lifestyle and to give some practical tips and recipe advice for those interested in becoming ve...

Back by popular demand, this week I'm answering more of your most popular fitness questions. These are the most common questions that I get asked by people at the gym, parties or wherever I'm out and about. The same questions pop up time and again and on the Real Health podcast I'll answer these throughout the series. For this week, I'm covering the following: 1. Diet/Fat-free foods 2. Post-pregna...

You start off with good intentions but invariably you find yourself falling short of your health and fitness goals. Here's the thing though: it happens to all of us and the key is to have the tips and tricks to keep yourself motivated and on track when you do fall short. This week's podcast is about the top ten ways you can stay motivated and succeed with your health and fitness goals. Listen to t...

Micheál Ó'Muircheartaigh's life has been a life less ordinary. The legendary GAA commentator retired after 62 years in 2010 but has kept up a busy life and now, aged 88, he tells me about some of the most important life lessons he has learnt along the way. Micheal has always lived a healthy life, but perhaps, most importantly, has never allowed it to be too stressful. Outlook and attitude – as wel...

Healthy eating and cooking healthily is not difficult and this week I'm joined by two of Ireland's leading healthy food bloggers, Roz Purcell and Indy Power with some quick and easy meals to make. Roz and Indy take us through the day from breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks with the tools, tricks and simple options to make sure you are eating and living well. I get their three tips for healthy eat...

Every week we get emails, messages, tweets and posts asking for health and fitness advice, so this week, I decided to answer the top five most common questions. So, what are the most common questions I get asked? The five I address on this week’s show are: 1. What’s the quickest way to lose weight? 2. Is it really about 80% diet? 3. What is the best way to measure my progress? 4. I’m too busy, how...

I want you to build your mental strength and mental resilience by working on your own mind gym and this week, clinical psychologist, Dr. Eddie Murphy, has the ten simple and easy exercises that you can do in your own time. If you work on these ten exercises - from dealing with relationships and emotions to mindfulness, getting outside your comfort zone and learning to say no - your mindset will ch...

30 day personal health and fitness challenges are becoming more and more popular as it’s a great way to push yourself every day to get into a healthy habit and on this week’s Real Health podcast, I speak to SpinFM presenter, impersonator extraordinaire and social media influencer, Doireann Garrihy, who is in the middle of her own 20 day challenge. “I’m a sporadic exerciser,” she says. “I go throug...

Karl has ten life swaps that he wants you to try over the next seven days that will make a massive difference to your mental, physical and emotional health. From sleep to tech, food to fluids and mindfulness to movement, these life swaps won't cost a penny and can be introduced immediately into your life. By swapping ten bad habits for these ten healthy ones you can start making a difference in yo...

Irish dancing wasn’t something that he wanted do, but after being made do it by his mother whilst growing up in New York, Padraic Moyles’ talent and determination to succeed were key to his future life and career. He went on to perform over 5,500 times for Riverdance and I wanted to find out the physical and mental training needed to succeed at such a high level for so long, performing eight shows...

This week it’s a world exclusive as U2’s Adam Clayton sits down with me to discuss all things health and fitness in the world’s biggest band. It’s a fascinating interview with insights you rarely hear from within U2 and it was a real pleasure to be able to interview Adam to find out about his health and fitness regime as U2 finish up the North American leg of their eXPERIENCE + iNNOCENCE Tour. Spe...

On this week’s show, Karl is going to be putting you to sleep – well, hopefully not in the next thirty minutes or so, but if you’re having trouble getting a good night’s rest, Karl speaks to sleep disorder expert, Deirdre McSwiney for the solutions and science behind sleep problems. “20% of the population suffers from insomnia at some point in their lives,” explains Deirdre. “Tired but wired is a...

On this week’s show, Karl sets out his Ten Commandments for Real Health. From fitness and fun, to planning and preparation, these are ten proven tips that will improve your life. “They work and will make a huge difference to your health and fitness,” says Karl. “It’s all about keeping it simple, giving them a go and see how you get on.” For more: www.independent.ie/podcasts/the-real-health-podcast...

Rob and Yvonne Cullen were a married couple who each hit 19 and 14 stone respectively, even though they regarded themselves as healthy eaters. But when running to play with the kids was even becoming difficult, they decided enough was enough. Rob and Yvonne tell Karl how they lost over twelve stone between them and brought health and fitness back into their - and their kids' - lives. It wasn't thr...

Health is booming and so are the business opportunities around it. If you have an idea for a health business, then Derval O'Rourke, former Olympian and with a new platform, Derval.ie, launching in July, Irish Biltong's Noreen Doyle and Niall Horgan of Gym+Coffee have great advice and insights into making it. Starting a business is like training for your first 5k. The first step is always the harde...

Karl discusses your mental wellness, how to improve it and treat it like your physical health, with expert coach, Neil O'Brien, as well Room to Improve's Dermot Bannon. Neil outlines the three main areas you need to focus on and measure: 1. Mood management 2. Habit management 3. Resilience and recovery While Dermot explains how he deals with stress and anxiety in his life, architecture and media w...

The nation's favourite doctor, Ciara Kelly, joins Karl Henry on this week's show to talk about her own recent health scare and how that forced her to re-evaluate her health and life situation. She also talks about her move away from medicine into the media and why she's not afraid to take risks. Plus, for her health check SOS on the health of the nation, she explains why weight is still the over-r...

It's time to stop fearing food says dietitian, Orla Walsh, on this week's show. She debunks common food myths that people have and provides some invaluable experience for confused parents and fussy eaters. Learn more about portion distortion, telly-belly time and other great food and nutrition tips from one of Ireland's leading food experts. Contact Karl with any health and fitness questions on re...

On this week’s show, Karl wants to inspire the men of Ireland to lose weight, get fit and healthy and make a positive change to their lives. To inspire them to take action, he’s joined by Killian Byrne, David Cryan and Isaac Butler who discuss how and why they decided to overcome weight and health issues in their lives. Their stories are real stories of inspiration from Irish men in their 20s, 30s...

On this week’s Real Health podcast, Karl Henry chats to the hugely popular Food Medic, Dr. Hazel Wallace. Louth-born Wallace started her blog on healthy eating and exercise whilst studying medicine and in the years since, from her UK base, her unique blend of expertise and knowledge has proven to be a big hit. Her focus is on preventative medicine with the importance of lifestyle the key and she w...