How to help the young women in our lives live well

When you find out that this large, beautifully presented lifestyle book is written by a former Miss Universe Contestant, you must make the decision that Jesinta Campbell will not be dismissed as a bit of bottle blonde fluff. Instead, this hard working fashion ambassador, Channel 9 TV presenter (Getaway and Today) model, and mentor of young women is an intelligent young woman who is passionate about living life to it’s fullest advantage.

This book proves that she is articulate, thoughtful, compassionate and fully aware that her role as an ambassador and mentor to young women must encourage them toward steps where hard work, a clean lifestyle and goal setting will be the doors that open up the future. Live a Beautiful Life is inspiring, insightful and very practical.

Let me tell you why.

Jesinta welcomes us with a short blurb on her ‘why’. We get insights into her teenage years, her dreams and her aspirations. We find out why she is hardworking, focused and yet a very down to earth young woman. She is no shallow and vain show pony, but a young person who has forged her own way forward in a very hard industry – all through persistence and commitment.

The first chapters deal with health and wellbeing. There are good tips for any age, I even found some that are good for older women too. She discusses clean eating, adequate hydration, regular exercise, sleep and work/life balance. We learn of her disciplined morning routine, how she deals with peer pressure, how being aware that you are part of sisterhood (not a solitary prima donna) and how to be kind to yourself and others.

The beauty chapter was probably irrelevant for me, but for a young woman who wants to know about good skin care routines, how to apply makeup and look your best, it is a simple but comprehensive step by step guide. The next chapter deals with a good exercise routine. The lunges, squats etc are all exercises that this old lady has encountered before, but even I felt inspired as her perfect, leotard-clad body made them look simple.  She includes a four-week exercise program and an ab workout.

Probably her most relevant chapter to me was her extensive recipe collection. Jesinta discusses in some depth her clean gluten free way of eating, and she certainly looks the picture of health. There is an excellent array of recipes with a lot of vegetable dishes as well as clean protein meals. For a young woman setting up a pantry, she provides a basic list of must haves. Her recipes also include gorgeous smoothies and snacks.

I would possibly describe this as more of a recipe than a lifestyle book as there are dozens of great recipes. Breakfasts are simple but energy packed, the lunches look fabulous and her dinners also look great. The photography enhances this part of the book to full advantage and I spent a fair bit of time drooling over some of the possibilities.  The bottom line is that the food is healthy, nutritious and easy to prepare – something that any busy young woman would find essential.

The final part of the book is entitled ‘Big Dreams’ and Jesinta encourages the reader to have a personal vision. This includes a work journal where visualisation and asking yourself big questions about your place in the world get the mind ticking over. The reader is encouraged to think globally and act both locally and globally by giving back to the world. You are encouraged to create your own vision statement and to live and share your dream with others.  This part would be relevant to anybody.

To my way of thinking, Live a Beautiful Life would be an excellent gift for any young woman who is at that all important stage of her life where she is considering her future engagement with the world about her and what role she will play. Jesinta encourages the reader to consider their own world view and how they see themselves in it through the twenty-page question and answer space at the end.

The other thing I like and respect about this book is that it takes the young woman away from the uncertain charm of the beauty pageant and gets down to some real issues. Yes it was the platform that Jesinta used to launch her career, but it has certainly been a successful vehicle to propel her into what she really wants to do – to be a truly useful human being who will leave a positive imprint upon our planet. So don’t dismiss this book as just another self help book. It is well worth a second look and I’m sure that you will find any woman of any age would find that there are parts of it which would be relevant to her own lifestyle. Check it out.

Live a Beautiful Life by Jesinta Campell (published by Hachette Australia) is available from Dymocks. Click here to learn more.