How To Balance Wellbeing, Fitness & Work – With Advice From Carly Rowena & Louise Aubery

When the demands of life become overwhelming, maintaining a healthy mind and body can fall low on our priority list. (How many times have you cancelled a gym class because of work?) Despite this, we know that we're our happiest, most productive and social selves when we've carved out time to exercise, hydrate properly and nourish ourselves with good food.

So how do we find that optimum balance – fuelling us to do more of what we love – and stick to it? We’ve partnered with evian natural mineral water to ask two women with busy lifestyles exactly that. UK-based fitness coach Carly Rowena and holistic wellness influencer Louise Aubery from Paris both agree that the coveted 'balance' is something you have to work at every day – and it's not always easy.

Even on the busiest days, simply remembering to stay hydrated will help. Water is vital for regulating body temperature, and keeping your mind clear and focused. evian natural mineral water has a neutral pH, making it the healthy choice for everyone, including expectant mums.

Read on for an inspiring look into Carly and Louise's daily routines. Full of tips from how to squeeze exercise into the day to hydrating regularly, they share what they get up to from sunrise to sunset and how that fuels them to do more.

Morning:
I have a 6-month-old daughter, Jax, so my mornings are a little different to how they used to be. Today she woke up around 5.30am, and we had a family cuddle with my husband and our French Bulldog, Steven. It’s a nice way to feel connected and start the day.

I’ve always been a morning person, but it’s so much harder now with less sleep. My top tips are get those curtains open, drink water right away to flush the body and hydrate, and take a quick shower. All these small actions spark the energy I need to take on the day. Oh, and for time-saving, it also helps to have your clothes for the day ready!

After I fed the dog and Jax, I made my own breakfast. I’m a creature of habit, and my favourite recipe when I’m short on time is a protein smoothie: one scoop oats, two scoops chocolate protein powder, ice, one banana and unsweetened almond milk. Blitz together and it tastes like a chocolate milkshake!

I was asked once if I could do the five-minute makeup challenge, and laughed: my entire routine takes less than two minutes! I let my hair dry naturally, and wear simple makeup. The biggest part of getting ready is breast pumping as I brush my teeth!

I plan my workouts every Sunday and aim to get in 3-5 a week – scheduled around my sleep or stress levels. Usually I join a team session at the gym, or train with a friend, but today I did a little workout at home with my evian bottle close to hand. Hydrating effectively after exercising is so important for keeping your body functioning at its best.

Afternoon:
Balancing a hectic lifestyle with wellbeing is something you have to work at every day. I use a scheduling app to plan my week, which helps me keep my brain in check. And I’ve swapped my never-ending to-do list for three simple daily tasks. Some days, I have to remind myself that it’s okay if all I did was keep a human alive. Other days, I feel like superwoman.

When I find myself reaching a 10 or 11 on the stressed-out scale, I take myself off to the beach or the woods to clear my head, and discuss it with my husband when he’s home. Asking for help is not something to be ashamed of if it makes you a happier person with a positive mindset.

My job is 24/7 so I always find myself working. I’m either filming, sharing my workouts on Instagram Stories or speaking with my online clients around the world. If I’m in London for meetings, like today, I aim to walk instead of using the Underground as it’s an amazing way to switch off, move your body and rehydrate so your mind is focused for whatever’s next.

The perfect break is visiting a coffee shop with friends or family, and walking outside. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve realised that the right people in your life want to spend time with you. No drama, just good honest chats; I try to make as much time as possible for that.

Evening:
Before coming home today I grabbed a quick smoothie with a photographer friend. It was brief, but lovely to catch up, have a squeeze and plan exciting collaborations.

Dinner was homemade pitta-pizza with prawns, broccoli and sweetcorn. Of course our dog did his best to steal it! Once Jax had her bath, massage, book and bed routine, I popped on my favourite playlist, lit the candles and had a cuddle with my dog and husband on the sofa.

At the end of every day I always count my 'wins', and today I am thankful for getting my little girl to nap without crying. And I finally felt confident doing handstands again! It was a challenge getting my workout in, but we did it.

I’m go-go-go all day and usually so wiped that I conk out, but one thing I have done for the past six months is set the screen time option on my phone. All apps apart from texts and calls black out after 7pm, which has really helped me switch off.

Tonight I fell asleep at 11.15pm...just as Jax woke up to feed. Wish me luck for the night!

Morning:
I wake up most mornings around 8.30am, but I don’t plan to get up at a particular time...it really depends on what time I went to bed the night before. When I find it hard to get up, my tip is to put some music on to get my morale up, it always helps. Well actually, the thought of my breakfast waiting for me is the best way to help me get out of bed!

Eating breakfast and drinking evian natural mineral water is the first thing I do once I’m up. I read an article once that said if you struggle to get up in the morning, it can mean you're dehydrated. I now drink water the moment I get up, because it helps me out of bed and gets my body functioning.

My breakfast varies each day; sometimes I fancy something sweet and sometimes something savoury. This morning, I wanted sweet potato waffles with peanut butter, bananas and homemade berry jam. I really need to feel full and hydrated to start my day properly, it gives me the energy to take on whatever lies ahead.

Over the last few weeks, I have started to meditate with a meditation app. I was finding it really difficult at first, because I tend to struggle to stay still, but it helps me to focus and relax ahead of a busy day.

After meditating, if I don’t have any meetings I’ll start work or, if I have meetings, I get dressed, do my makeup and head out with a bottle of evian water in my bag. I usually try to organise my meetings in the afternoon, though, so I can work peacefully in my pyjamas in the morning, haha!

Afternoon:
Just before lunch, I go to the gym for a strength training session. I really prefer to work out at this time because I tend to be too tired to exercise earlier in the morning, and in the evening I don’t reap the benefits that an earlier session provides, such as working off any stress and stopping me overthinking. Plus, if I work out before lunch I feel I can tackle the rest of the day being my best self.

I think that's why I drink so much water: gymming makes you sweat! With the heatwave in Paris at the moment, I'm really paying attention to make sure I hydrate enough.

After the gym I head back home to make a good lunch; I particularly love pasta and porridge. I have a shower before getting ready to go to my meetings. Depending on the day, I may be shooting a video, recording a podcast or attending meetings about projects I am working on.

I always carry a snack and evian water with me. Feeling hungry and thirsty drains my energy and impacts my mood so, to stay energised and fuel my day, I need to make sure I eat and hydrate regularly.

Evening:
When I go home in the evening I chat with my twin sister to unwind, as we live together. Or I meet up with friends, and then either eat out or cook at home. Tonight, I had sweet potato fries and homemade nuggets – I love sweet potatoes so much. But if you're a fan of my videos, you'd already know that!

After dinner, I’ll write a caption for my daily Instagram post. I mainly use Instagram to express myself, and help those that follow me feel good about themselves. I try to reply to as many comments and messages as possible, and then I start working again – whether it’s answering emails, editing a video or editing a podcast. There is always something to do!

When I am starting to feel really tired, I get into bed and read for 15 minutes, until my eyelids get heavy and I fall asleep – it may be midnight or 1am.

If I’m lucky, I dream about the breakfast that will wake me up the next morning to start another intense day. That’s motivating and sets the whole day right!