Listen to your body
The quality of our health is a reflection of our lifestyle choices and our environment. We are constantly exposed to mental and physical stressors that we often passively or unconsciously accept. We frequently and blindly seek instant gratification with the foods we eat. Choosing foods that leave us bloated and tired also demotivate us to be active or even positive. Do you take walks and play sports in your free time or do you prefer to enjoy yourself on a couch with your phone, indulging with ice cream?
Although we know the importance of healthy foods and exercise, we choose to eat foods that leave us feeling mentally and physically exhausted.
Why can't we be consistent with our diets, say no to the junk foods, and practice healthy habits?
Communicating with our bodies is essential for healing
STRESS & SELF-LOVE
Cope with stress in ways that don’t harm you.
The better we handle stressful situations, the more control we have avoiding negative habits. Emotions, energy levels, free-time, and social environment are big influences on our lifestyle. When we feel insecure, fearful, angry, or sad, we often seek temporary pleasures to counter persistent negative emotions. We indulge in food and alcohol or perhaps smoke cigarettes or take drugs.
Coping indulgences are quick fixes that release neurotransmitters such as Gaba and Serotonin that offer brief relaxation and pleasure. The danger lies in practicing these stress-coping behaviors for a long period of time. When the fleeting lift fades, we are left feeling worse and stuck in a withdrawal cycle. We train our brains to default to easy pleasurable moments, which turn into habits, and ultimately may develop into severe addictions. By consciously working to improve ourselves and our environment, empowering habits can replace unhealthy patterns.
PHYSICAL ACTIVITY
Do what you love
What do you imagine when you hear "exercise and maintaining a healthy weight?"
Do you think painful running, boot camps, and heavy gym workouts? Or do you think about activities that are social and fun such as taking a brisk walk with a dog, swimming in the ocean, or perhaps playing sports with friends? In order for it to contribute to a healthy lifestyle, physical activity must be both ACCESSIBLE and ENJOYABLE. There are many wonderful options to increase your heart rate, burn some calories, and most importantly have fun. Until you can find activities that are both fun and available, your exercise goals will not be sustainable.
Why just lounge around
NUTRITION
Choose foods that make you feel good.
Stress comes from our environment but also from food and drinks we consume. We are so busy with our habitual lives that we often eat for convenience and are not mindful of the consequences. Fad diets and fasting are desperation fixes.
The answer to better nutrition is simpler than you think. What is your body telling you it needs? How can we listen to our bodies and understand the effects of food on our physical and mental well being? Without enough vitamins, sleep, nutrition, water, or oxygen, our body talks to us through pain, weakness, or emotional imbalance. If we learn to better attend to our bodies, we can sense energy, digestion, food sensitivities, and even allergies. If we don't listen to our bodies, we might cause more harm.
Do you listen to your body's needs or do you ignore it?
Have you ever consumed tons of coffee or sugary foods to feel energized? You probably ended up with anxiety, mood swings, and finally a crash. Your body was communicating with you that it needed sleep, but you chose to cope with it your way. Pushing your body out of its normal balance by using drugs, energy drinks, alcohol, and eating too much sugar changes your body's homeostasis and can result in addiction. Give your body what it needs by consuming whole, fresh, natural products and feel its response to these natural healers.
POSITIVE SOCIAL ENVIROMENT & SUPPORT
Find your life values and share them with like minds.
Does your energy drop when surrounded by certain people? Do you sometimes not act like yourself so you can fit into a group? Sometimes we are around people that don't share our values. This creates an internal contradiction and the fight to fit-in consumes mental energy and feels uncomfortable. Respect yourself enough to leave the group and instead surround yourself with people who inspire and support you, and who look upon you with respect. Find those that share your life values.