Looking back at how my body healed, I realized that I failed in 3 of the 4 essential elements. My food choices, although considered healthy were not right for me. My sleeping habits fell below 7-9 hours, and I often suffered jet lag from excessive travel. My stress levels were over the top. Exercise was the only area which was adequate. No wonder my body fell out of balance.
How to get your SuperBalance on:
Start by selecting which of the 4 essential elements need improvement and choose one of them to focus on.
Take baby steps and make a plan to change one behavior at a time. BJ Fogg, PhD’s book Tiny Habits (The small changes that change everything)
Go easy on yourself and celebrate the successes you make with each small step.
Nutrition: The goal is to eat real food that is not processed. Check the labels when buying food. If the ingredients are longer than 3 lines and you are unable to pronounce the words - do not buy it.
It is recommended to eat plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables, quality protein, fats and carbohydrates. Eat the rainbow and vary your diet. It is recommended to reduce sugar intake especially from artificial sweeteners and high fructose corn syrup. The key to our health is in our gut. Who knew? It is essential to have a broad range of healthy bacteria. How do we achieve this? Feed the “good guys” and starve the “bad guys”. If each time we eat or drink something, we ask ourselves the question, is it feeding the good guys or the bad guys, it will be easier to make healthier choices. Most health issues are a result of an unbalanced gut.
Check out Environmental Working Group (EWG.org) to see the dirtiest and cleanest fruits and vegetables in order to make improved food choices.
In the book, Food: What the Heck Should I Eat? by Dr. Mark Hyman, Director of the Cleveland Center for Functional Medicine and Founder and Medical Director of the UltraWellness Center, provides an excellent guideline. Every day I wake up and ask myself that question (Original title WTF should I eat?)
Sleep: Get ready for a good night’s sleep! Aim for 7-9 hours a night as that’s when our bodies detoxify and regenerate on the cellular level. The things we do before we go to bed often affect how we sleep. Try to get out in the morning, take a walk in nature, in the park or to the office, as this supports our circadian rhythms and helps us fall asleep in the evening. Turn off all your screens 1 hour before bedtime. No emails, no TV, and no social media. The goal is to finish dinner 3 hours before bedtime to allow our digestion to be complete. Keep the bedroom as dark as possible. Wear an eye mask and keep the temperature cool. Set your goal to go to sleep around the same time every night and wake up around the same time in the morning. Your body will thank you for this! Sleep is one of the most important elements for our health and the least appreciated.
Check out the research of Matthew Walker PhD, a professor of neuroscience and psychology at UC Berkeley, the director of its Sleep and Neuroimaging Lab, and a former professors of psychiatry at Harvard University. In his book Why we Sleep, Unlocking the Power of Sleep and Dreams, he explains the science that will convince us to prioritize getting a good night’s sleep.
Stress Mitigation: Stress affects everyone in a unique way. The challenge is to constantly be aware of the triggers that cause stress and try to avoid and mitigate them. That includes stressing ourselves. Always working on this one myself! The goal is to live in the moment and not to wallow in the past which leads to depression and not to worry about the future as that leads to anxiety. Letting go of the many things that we are unable to control leads to a less stressful life. Let’s turn off 24/7 breaking news and listen to soothing music. Let’s be grateful for all the good things in our lives and seek joy everyday. Let’s be kind to ourselves and to others and practice compassion and empathy.
Ways to mitigate stress: Affirm every morning when you wake up” I am healthy, happy, strong and powerful and able to fulfill my purpose in life. My life is full of love, success and abundance!”When we say these affirmations, we will start our days feeling great! A recent study from the Harvard Medical School states that “stress is one of the root causes of many health issues including autoimmune disease, cardiovascular disease, depression, high blood pressure, development of obesity, insomnia, type 2 diabetes and strokes. It can create a devastating long-term consequence on our health. It raises our cortisol levels and disrupts our immune systems”. It is noted that stress iS the number one health epidemic of the 21st century.
Add Rangan Chatterjee’s quote and book
Exercise: The benefits of exercise include enhancing the quality of our sleep and resetting our circadian rhythms, as well as boosting our moods and brain performance. It helps us manage weight control, blood sugar and insulin levels as well as supporting cardiovascular health. It. Contributes to better balance, flexibility and muscle mass. As we algae, Exercise keeps our thinking, learning and judgement skills sharp. Move it or lose it. In his book, How to be Well, Dr. Frank Lipman puts forth the theory of moving our body consistently through the day. He claims that movement not exercise is one of the keys to a happy and healthy life. Moving our bodies as much as possible during the day is the ultimate. Choose an exercise that keeps you engaged.
More Tips:
Slow down and feel your body.
Adopt a healthier rhythm - Find something you love to do
Food is medicine
Set out glasses of water or a water bottle at the start of the day so you remember to stay hydrated
Relax or “switch off” as Dr Rangan Chatterjee recommends.
Be mindful
Be resilient
Taking a small step on behalf of oneself is a big step such as soft belly breathing to reduce stress. When we feel we can make a difference in our health we no longer feel hopeless and helpless we can do something to be well. When we begin to understand how stress comes into our lives and we begin to find ways to deal with it and avoid the flight or fight reaction in our bodies which cause our cortisol levels to rise and cause innumerable negative reactions in our bodies, gradually improvement starts. We begin to think if I eat this I will fell better. We have to find out what works best for us - our sweet spots. Become partners with our doctors for our health. Ask questions, work with a health coach for lifestyle changes need a lot of support and are not easy.