Over the many years of working in TV, radio and as a fashion model, what would you say are the best bits of health, beauty or life advice you have ever been given and how they have impacted you/what have they done to help you?
From working as a fashion model in my late teens, I learned very early on about the importance of prioritising your health and well-being to help you achieve glowing skin. The advice to eat nutritious healthy foods, get plenty of sleep, take your vitamins and drink lots of water, was given to me many times over the years by the makeup artists and other models I worked with. And yes, it’s all the simple self-care habits we hear all the time that really works to help us look good. It’s something I still do today, as focusing on health needs, such as the need for good hydration with water, is going to give you a better complexion and help you feel better overall.
Any simple and effective beauty tips you can share with us that you learned back then that you still use today?
Absolutely! I picked up lots of easy and effective beauty tips along the way that I still use now I am 50! These include:
Gel masks in the fridge:
A quick fix for tired and puffy eyes. Always keep some gel eye masks in the fridge so you can pop these on whenever you wake up with puffiness around the eyes. These work like magic to hydrate and freshen up the eye area and help transform your tired face, to a fresh face almost instantly. Easy and effective!
The other option if you don’t have eye masks, or want an alternative, is to use a good old-fashioned tea bag. This is something I tend to do when I am staying in hotels. After having my cups of tea, I keep the tea bags, put them in the fridge overnight, and in the morning I will take 5 mins to lay on the bed, pop them on my eyes, relax, listen to some relaxing music, do some deep breathing, and voila within moments, you have brighter, depuffed eyes and feel a whole lot better starting your day. Slices of cucumber will also do the trick, and are especially helpful when you have dry eyes.
Curl your lashes:
Another instant beauty fix I learned years ago from makeup artists, is the wonders of an eyelash curler. Takes seconds to do and really makes your eyes look more open and your lashes longer. Also makes it far easier to apply your mascara.
You seem very confident, but are there ever times you recall when you have felt really nervous when having to do something important, such as a red carpet, or a TV appearance when you haven’t felt yourself, and if so, what personal hacks do you use to boost your confidence?
A lot of people don’t realise this about me but I get nervous when I do almost everything. Red carpet appearances really scare me as there is so much pressure to deliver the perfect shot and angle and with the photographers shouting and lights flashing it can be a little overwhelming at times.
The way I have learned to help myself is by telling myself that these butterflies and nerves are just excitement! It sounds funny to think like that, but it really works. So many people I know get nervous and it’s just natural, but we can’t let it hold us back. We all can feel out of our depth when we are stepping into the unknown and might have fear around it, but you can train your brain to change that feeling of ‘ahhh’ and scared, into ‘whhhhoo’ and excited, by telling yourself that butterflies are just excitement waiting to happen.
I actually interviewed an expert called Dr Tara Swart who talks about using these life hacks to help us cope in times of stress, she calls it ‘Jedi Mind’ tricks as that is essentially what you are doing. Turning your nervous negative thoughts into positive.
You can listen to this interview with Lisa and Dr Tara and learn more here.
Could you please share three wellbeing/beauty rituals you do on a regular basis, and explain how they help you?
When I wake up I always start my day by drinking a big mug of hot water with a slice of lemon and taking four of Correxiko’s Wild Marine Collagen capsules. Then as often as I can, I do a breathwork meditation for 30 mins. This helps me get my mind and body into balance. The breath speaks the language of the nervous system and gets you ready to face the day – whatever life throws at you. Breathwork energises the whole system and has been such a powerful mental well-being tool for me.
I also always try to get out for a 45 min brisk walk to get my body moving in the fresh air, or I head to do a pilates class or have a personal training session with weights. Making time for some exercise and movement in the morning is a really important thing for me to help me feel good for the rest of the day.
Life can get stressful at times, so when it does, what do you find most helps you unwind and manage stressful situations?
Ha, ha, ha. I have to be honest, it’s having a big glass of red wine, watching a fun boxset and laughing lots with my friends and loved ones.
Your skin is always glowing and looks so healthy, as well as taking your daily Correxiko supplements and powder, please let us in on a few other skincare secrets you swear by?
Always make time for your skincare routine. I am religious about my at-home cleansing and skincare routine and ensure I do this every day. You just need to prioritise it as it’s going to make such a big difference. Cleanse your skin twice a day and use lots of good quality oils to massage and hydrate. I use the Emma Hardey Moringa cleansing balm twice a day, Bio Effect EGF serum, I exfoliate twice a week and use Strivectin retinol renewal. I also always use Dr Perricone factor 30 sun factor come rain or shine. It gives you a really nice glow and protects your skin from UVA & UVB.
Make time to sleep and get as much of it as you can. I just always make this a priority as it’s going to make you feel so much better emotionally and my skin looks so much better when I get myself off to bed for an early night, it’s really worth it.
Since taking collagen over the last year, what would you say are the biggest differences you have noticed and how it’s helped you overall?
I have noticed so many great things since I started taking it, the list is long! But some of the really obvious ones are in my hair, which has got so much thicker, glossy and silkier since I started. My wrinkles have softened, my skin all over feels much softer, and the menopausal/age-related aches and pains I was experiencing have gone away. I especially noticed this in my knees where I used to struggle with a bit of discomfort, this has gone away.
How do you usually like to enjoy your Correxiko collagen?
I start my day with four capsules of the Wild Marine and then add the Wild Marine powder to my tea, or mix it into the water with a squeeze of lemon, I also love to add a scoop to my smoothies or mixed into yoghurt with blueberries for breakfast.
When it comes to food, what are your favourite healthy dishes you like to cook at home?
I love to cook for convenience and make simple things with healthy ingredients that I can enjoy, but are also good for me. In the mornings I make a fresh blueberry smoothie with some banana, oats, blueberries and some dairy-free milk or daily free yoghurt and some Correxiko Wild Marine Collagen, or dairy-free yoghurt with blueberries and some seeds sprinkled on top. and blueberry yoghurt. Or at the weekends I will often have smoked salmon with some poached or scrambled eggs.
I am a big fan of sweet potatoes and they will often feature in many of the dishes I make. I love cooking with spices, so each week I will make a big healthy veggie curry with sweet potato and chickpeas flavoured with turmeric, cinnamon and cumin. Another regular dish I make each week, often for lunch, is a Greek salad loaded up with brown rice, feta and black olives – it’s so refreshing.
For dinner, I like making Japanese style salmon with soya sauce and fresh ginger. And another favourite is roast cauliflower with cumin and caraway seeds, served with chickpeas and rice.
I always keep my cupboards stocked with tins of different style beans and pulses which can be added to any dish I am making to make sure there is some healthy plant protein and extra fibre. You will also find plenty of dried herbs, spices and tins of coconut milk and tins of tomatoes so I can always knock up a quick healthy veggie curry.
Now you have reached the fabulous age of 50, what bit of advice would you now give to your younger self?
Try not to be too judgemental of yourself, life is going to go fast, try and learn from the mistakes life is teaching you. Learn to have an element of self-acceptance and to love yourself and your spirit, basically who you are, be kind to yourself.
Laughter is so important, trying not to sweat the small stuff and to not take life or ourselves so seriously. I find surrounding myself with people who are.
Self-love is crucial, and also to practice gratitude for your body and everything it does for you every single moment of every day.
And finally, you often talk about the importance of having a positive mindset and the power of things like visualisation and manifestation. How does this help you and what advice can you give us to help us start using these life hacks?
Using manifestation and visualisation techniques has been an unexplained phenomenon for me. It’s so easy to slip into a negative mindset and get taken off track by something that you read or think about. But when you start your day visualizing and focusing on good thoughts and imagining all the things you want to achieve, it can be so powerful to shift your life and take you much closer to your goals in a shorter space of time.
I have spent a great deal of time listening to many life-changing audiobooks that have helped me stay focused on this. The source by Dr Tara Swart is one, and Deepak Chopra power affirmations. I listen to this when I’m cleaning, cooking in the garden or when I am drifting off to sleep. It works like planting positive seeds into consciousness and your life feels so much more enriched. Doing this on a regular basis has really helped me get through the bumpy parts of menopause, so it’s a great tool.
I also use a vision board to help me manifest my goals. I use a simple corkboard and cover it with pictures of beautiful interiors, houses I would like to live in, places I want to visit and beautiful images of things that make me happy. I keep this in my bedroom and make sure I see it first thing in the morning when I wake up and the last thing at night before I go to bed. I change it up as and when new inspiration and goals come to me. It’s a super simple, uplighting and effective way to change your life for the better.
Want to get the same results as Lisa Snowdon? You can start by adding CORREXIKO’s Marine Collagen to your daily routine. It only takes a second to change for the better!
