A trip for exploration and relaxation

Whilst Cycling's Tour de France was in full swing and France won the football World cup (pretty comprehensively in my opinion), my wife and I did our own little France explorations!

Over 20 days, driving from our home in Gloucestershire we explored some of France. Staying in cities - Bordeaux, Nice, La Rochelle to name a few, mixed in with some of France's top tourist destinations like the Loire Valley, the Doidoigne, Verdon Gorge and more. We intended on a mix of hotel stays and camp sites in a tent we took in the car, Getting as much as France had to offer us! Culture, scenery, wine, cheese and more. Couple of times, we went "off piste" (rural) and camped in some very quiet and friendly places in land, coastally and otherwise just really remote!

We went with the view of it being a holiday/adventure/nomadic lifestyle, to test of a way of living that I personally have never done and a chance to experience what it might be like living in a country we knew an embarrassingly small amount about (& spoke very little French!).

It was, in short, a fantastic and memorable trip! We stayed on a yacht in La Rochelle harbour during their annual music festival( on our 1st anniversary), camped on beaches and river banks. We watched England crash out the World cup in Rouen around a Joan of Ark memorial and then, in an amazing experience in Bordeaux - watched France beat Croatia in the World cup final. Notably, almost exactly at kick off, the heavens opened and it poured! 90% of people in the city were watching outdoor TV screens and we all got soaked to the skin. After the game the celebrations went on all night and in a really impressive, friendly fashion. (watch the clip!)

After this pretty unbeatable 1st week, we carried on to see the largest sand dunes in Europe in Arcachon. Then to nearby St. Emilion to try some the great wine and experience the Wine caves and the actually, whole feel of a small tourist town that managed to keep a really strong feeling of authenticity.

We carried on to the Doirdoigne, Montpellier, passing through Marseille and Toulon. Stopping 2 nights in St Tropez, Cannes and Nice. Visiting Monaco whilst down there, of course.

We then travelling back up through the Alps, seeing the amazing sites the mountains offer and the most remote hamlets and lifestyle I think I've ever personally experienced.

Finally through Bergerac, Dijon, Troyes and the Champagne region. With our last stop in Lille and a visit to Lillie and the Beaches of Dunkirk for some History!

Everyday seeing new greatness and experiencing new things.

Plenty of people have done similar trips or visited the places listing above so this is not about some travel guide or trip advisor.

Instead, I want to focus on a few aspects of diet and nutrition I noticed early on in the trip that lent themselves to being topics of interest to Hence (and you lovely people) and how the differing lifestyles people lead that I perhaps previously had overlooked.

When everyone else is taking photos, who else is thinking of Macros and micro nutrients?

Holidays and in particular travelling are notoriously hard on your body, your diet and sometimes overall health. I was expecting this, but as we were in the car and camping I felt we had full control over our diets.

Because it was a holiday, we drank more alcohol than normal, and we were in France! I mean you can't go to France and not drink more than your fair share of local wine. We also tried lots of the local foods - pastries, crepes, breads etc.

So from the start it was about a conscious balance of foods and not over indulging.

The tiredness from long stints of driving and lots of walking as well as battling through a supermarket to find lean meats. This took its toll on the diet and therefore body.

All these things are to be expected for everyone who is mindful of what they eat and far from the 1st time I'd experienced it!

I wanted us to keep my protein up as we were not training but were doing a lot of exercise - walking, cycling and kayaking etc. We aimed to eat a good mix of foods, staying away from unnecessary processed food as much as possible.

We took protein powder as a sort of back up if we struggled anywhere and of course a pot of Greens Stack.

I planned to keep mindful of how I felt each day and use GS as needed, just like I do at home. 2-3 times per week, generally 4 scoops. Within a few days I found I was more tired and more fatigued than I'd expected, so added in more GS, and slowed down the wine drinking and caught up on any lost sleep.

That , I hoped would keep me "normal" and initially I felt happy, energised and on top of things. But I noticed a couple of times, I would have "a wobble" physically or mentally. Things I have been keeping a close eye on as indicators from stresses or strains - like a rough night's sleep or a moment of Hanger, a spot of my skin etc. All things I don't generally get in my day to day routine and (what I consider) pretty healthy lifestyle.

It felt like I couldn't get to grips with it at first, it frustrated me, which didn't help. This was far from ruining the trip but I was something that was in the back of mind and it got me thinking...

Is this normal? Should I just put up with it?

I don't mean this to sound like that I am in some way different or special.

More like

a) to be thinking about this kind of stuff, is it at all normal?

b) I'm lucky I can understand and control my general health, I think, quite well.

Then I progressed on to thinking - When lifestyle can be so varied what can I learnt from it?

even - how does Hence fit in?

I set about pondering...

Skipping the deep work (ha!). In brief, some of my conclusions were as follows

1. It confirms my idea of understanding your body and mindset is the key to health.

2. Its why there is no magic pill or powder that will fix all (not even Greens Stack).

3. Not even any guide or plan you or I can use without discretion, all the time.

4. City living vs countryside life is going to cause different stresses and strains on your body.

In looking to get the most out of yourself for short term performance and long term health, as equally weighted goals (the mission of Hence), only you can know what is needed for your body. Knowing how many calories you ate or exercise you have to cover each day/week, or how much of a particular nutrient or vitamin is needed at any point... How are you going to follow a plan or buy a product?

Being flexible and continually understanding how your body reacts and performs. Learning What you need, not what the label recommends or the Workout Plan suggests.

It's not that it's not often good advice, it's that you have to apply a greater level of discretion and understanding to get what you want from life. An online workout plan cannot do it all for you. Nor can Greens Stack.

Wrap it up now Luke!

Wherever your life is, as long as you like it and get the benefits from you environment that's great! It doesn't mean you should have any real compromises on health and physical performance. Yes there is a sea of distractions in an urban environment - bars, restaurants, fast food, treats! But by the same respect, rurally, you have to be fully prepared every day, there is no second chance if you're not prepared and don't have the resources for a decent workout.

I think putting this into writing has helped me, as least, get a better understanding on how Hence fits in this World.

We will offer quality products that tick the right boxes with no compromise so you don't have to think "...how many of these ingredients are actually doing something positive for me?" or "...what on the potential negatives of excess Sucralose or bleaching?" . We will also continue to free provide research, insights and, where helpful - tools and guides to maximise results.

For us, this is about performance now and future health, equally weighted, no compromises.

And in return, it's very much down to you! You have to learn more about how you get the most out of whatever is being thrown at you. And want you need at any one time to improve and develop.

It reminds me of a book - Rich dad Poor Dad by R. Kiyosaki I read a few years ago. His system of Assets vs Liabilities balancing for long term wealth creation and cash flow -

Having assets like decent food prepared and quality supplements has to outweigh your liabilities, like enjoying yourself a bit too much, travelling until you're tired/annoyed or eating some crappy processed food and not getting the macros or micros you need.

With that thinking, like Rich Dad Poor Dad, all sorts of adventures and achievements can be open to us.

Not a bad principle to borrow from Hence's Tour de France!?!