Better Life Survey

Results

27.3.2019
Better Life. Better Performance.

Improved performance is a by-product

of improved health and wellbeing

We are often living in a reactive mode in many areas of

our lives. Fighting fires as they flare, and surviving from
day to day, rather than being proactive and planning
ahead.

The Hintsa model takes a preventive and proactive

approach to health and wellbeing. Addressing issues
early allows you to maintain optimal health throughout
your life. Rather than talking about your lifespan, we
want to focus on your health span. Not just paying
attention to how long you live, but more specifically on
how well you live.

However, the focus is not just on benefits that you may

see after several years. Simple lifestyle changes have the
power to positively impact your daily energy, mood, and
performance in a matter of days.

Remember also to enjoy the journey, one step at a time.

Doing small things consistently well leads to sustainable
results

Nature has a calming effect on us. Only fifteen minutes in the

forest will relieve our stress levels and reduce our blood
pressure. It is the natural cure for our body & mind. Finns are
one of the happiest countries in the world and we believe it is
due to our close connection with the nature. Start you journey
towards more balanced life from Finland.

Visit Finland
Your Circle of Better Life

Imagine your performance wheel constructed of six components. If one

component breaks down, the wheel stops spinning. For the wheel to
spin smoothly, all parts need to be in place and in balance. The key is to
build small improvements to your daily life.

Your score on each element (scale 1-5)

*) Average of all respondents based on 3000+ responses

4.3 3.3
4.0* 3.0*

3.7 3.7 3.7

3.2* 3.7*
3.1*

3.7 3.7
3.4* 3.2*

Areas to Areas to Neutral Good Excellent

improve focus on
Core
Exploring your Core encourages you to live your daily life with
meaning, realise more of your potential, and be true to what matters
most to you.

Physical Activity
Finding your individual physical level of endurance, strength and
mobility and developing these abilities in a balanced way, allows you
to perform optimally in life

Nutrition
Following a healthy diet, enables your body to function optimally in
areas including disease prevention, energy production, immunity, and
physical and mental performance.

Recovery
Giving sufficient time and attention to sleep, rest and recovery,
enables your mind and body to recuperate, regenerate and perform
optimally.

Biomechanics
Optimising your physical movement and control, improves your
performance, reduces injuries and enables lifelong physical activity.

Mental Energy
Improving your ability to manage yourself, your work, and your social
relationships, helps you maintain a positive energy balance in life.

General Health
Gaining greater awareness and understanding of your own health and
learning better everyday habits leads to a healthier life and greater
wellbeing.
Core
Your score: 3.7 (Good)

Ask yourself three questions: Do you

know who you are? Do you know what
you want? Are you in control of your
life?
Exploring your Core is centered around the
concepts of identity, purpose and control. It is
about knowing better who you are as a unique
and valuable human being, so that you can live
your daily life with meaning, realize more of your
potential, and be true to what matters most to
you.

The journey to your Core starts with learning to

find your true self in the midst of internal and
external pressures and ideals. It is about defining
what you want in life – and making sure that
your goals are in line with your priorities.

And finally, it is about maintaining control and

balance to stay on the right track, holding onto
what matters most to you.

Key recommendations:

• Identify your key values and principles

• Know your strengths and weaknesses
• Pursue goals with meaning and purpose
• Seek personal growth to fulfil your potential
• Have the courage to take control of your life
Physical Activity
Your score: 3.3 (Neutral)

Physical activity is one of the biggest

‘levers’ for change.

It is often spoken of as a ‘keystone habit’, as this

element can be the most effective in paving the
way for growth in all other areas of your life.

Physical activity is essential for health, wellbeing

and performance for everyone, from athletes to
business executives. Movement truly is
medicine, as it has such a broad positive impact
on various aspects of health.

A key question is magnitude and consistency. A

balance of gradual progression and overload
with adequate rest is required for improving
your fitness level. This is called
supercompensation.

For optimisation adjust frequency, intensity and

duration. Aim for variations in your activities,
sports and exercises.

Key recommendations:

• Move more. Natural activity, such as aiming

for 10,000 steps per day
• Move long. Aerobic Endurance Training, such
as walking, jogging or swimming
• Move fast. Short duration Anaerobic
Endurance Training, e.g. ‘HIIT’ training
• Move heavy. Regular resistance training, e.g.
gym or body weight training
Nutrition
Your score: 3.7 (Good)

Finding the optimal diet for you

requires tuning in and listening to your
body.

We encourage you to look beyond calories.

Calories fuel our body’s metabolism, but
nutrient dense “real food” is directly linked to
sustained health and vitality. Real food grows,
swims or grazes.

Tune in and listen to your body. Focus on how

your diet impacts your wellbeing and what
works best for you. Pay attention to food quality
and eating behaviours to better manage your
daily energy levels. Choose carbohydrates, which
have a low glycaemic index and a high fibre
content, and find a rhythm for eating that suits
you.

Remember that everyone is unique – with

different genes, lifestyles and environmental
exposure. There are no black and white solutions
in nutrition.

Key recommendations:

• Find your rhythm

• Eat real food
• Avoid dieting
• Eat a rainbow of colour
• Love water
• 80:20
Recovery
Your score: 3.7 (Good)

Sleep, rest and recovery is essential for

your mind and body to recuperate,
regenerate and perform optimally.

Sleep is vital for your health and performance.

When you alter your natural sleep cycle or don’t
get sufficient amounts of sleep, you are
increasing your risk for obesity, diabetes,
cardiovascular disease, poor immune function,
cancer and mental health issues. Sleep is also
linked to memory and learning, good brain
function, cognitive capacity and emotional
intelligence.

Your brain also needs rest during the day. Short

recovery breaks should not be viewed as
lazyness, but rather smart choices to improve
productivity and focus. When discussing
recovery, it is important also to pay attention to
recovery from exercise, and travel related
fatigue. Remember that your next performance
is only as good as your recovery from the last.

Key recommendations:

• Know that sleep and rest is productive

• Set a consistent bedtime
• Sleep 7–9 hours
• Learn to switch off
• Schedule daytime breaks
• Have at least one day off per week
• Balance stress and recovery
Biomechanics
Your score: 3.7 (Good)

Biomechanics is the tool that helps

your body to work as it was designed
to work.

As a high-performing system, the human body

needs maintenance to run smoothly. Many
people struggle with some type of
musculoskeletal issue or limitation. Lower back
pain is the leading cause of absenteeism, with
80% of people suffering from it at some point in
their lives.

A simple improvement is to move more, as

evidence shows prolonged sitting not only leads
to musculoskeletal problems but is also a
significant risk factor for all-cause mortality,
independent of time spent in exercise.

Think about the positions your body has to

perform in, are they comfortable? What needs
changing? Is your body prepared for exercise
and the tasks that you want to achieve? What
action do you need to take now to prepare both
now and for the future?

Key recommendations:

• Take active breaks every hour

• Stand or walk a few hours of your workday
• Train your flexibility and mobility regularly
• Prepare your body for exercise and the tasks
you need to do
• Maintain good muscle condition
Mental Energy
Your score: 3.7 (Good)

Mental energy describes the capacity

you have for managing your life and
environment.

Imagine your mental energy as a budget. Some

aspects of our life drain our budget, others
replenish it. The goal of mental energy is to
improve your ability to manage yourself, your work
and your social relationships in order to maintain
positive energy balance.

To gain optimal energy balance, you need to be

able to manage your:

1. Thoughts: what you think and how you speak

2. Emotions: how you feel and react
3. Time and tasks: what you prioritise and
commit your time to, and how well you can
stay focused
4. Relationships: the people you spend your time
with and how you interact with them

Key recommendations:

• Minimise energy drains and ensure sufficient

energy gains
• Self-reflect, but don’t ruminate
• Choose a responsible growth mindset
• Avoid multitasking and polarise your workday
• Say yes to what is most important
• Recharge your batteries daily, weekly, monthly
and annually
• Invest in key people
General Health
Your score: 4.3 (Good)

Consistent and reliable optimal health

is an essential element to living a
better life.

The human body is a complex and highly

integrated system. Optimal health is a result of
genetics and lifestyle behaviours. You can’t
change your genetic inheritance, however
understanding your predisposition to disease
and illness is crucial to managing your health.
Knowledge about these genetic, non-modifiable
factors allows you to make better informed
lifestyle choices.

Your actions can have positive or negative

impacts on your health. Negative actions can be
modified, thus it is essential to identify and
evaluate actions that could be detrimental to
your health.

Despite optimising positive health behaviours,

major and minor illnesses are a part of life.
Consistent health relies on proactively and
intelligently managing these illness to minimise
their impact on our lives.

Key recommendations:

• Seek treatment for acute illnesses or injuries

• Determine your risk factors from your family
and
• environmental history
• Determine your own lifestyle risk factors
• Invest in prevention
 Dear Reader,
We are glad you decided to take the first step towards better
life and better performance by taking part in our Better Life
Survey.

This personalised report provides you with a review of your

current wellbeing according to our science-based
methodology, which has been tested and refined during the
past 20 years in the most challenging environments of
business and sports.

To learn more about our model, and how we can help you
improve your life and performance, please visit at:
www.hintsa.com/method/.

With kind regards,

Your Hintsa Team in co-operation with Visit Finland

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