Consistent
Healthy
Awareness
Now
Grow
Empowered
HEALTHY Outlook and Input
Just the word “healthy” often makes people cringe. We hold ourselves to such high standards that they become impossible to reach. But now that you are committed to establishing consistent habits, the next step is, assessing if they are healthy habits. In the previous blog, “Consistent,” we established that “perfection” is not the goal, being “whole” is. What you think and project on the outside is just as important as what you put inside of your mind and body.
I love the image of water here for several reasons. As the image above portrays, water just flows over obstacles. It does not stop to say “Oh! There is a rock in my way! I just don’t have the energy to deal with this today,” or berate itself for the way it approached the rocks yesterday or 10 years ago. It simply flows. When you drop a rock in a pond ripples occur and now you have just changed the floor or foundation of the pond. So how we think about or speak to ourselves and how we portray ourselves to the world should take the same approach. We cannot always prepare for the rocks or curves ahead but we can choose to approach it all with a positive outlook. Approaching the day with gratitude for life, or telling yourself in the mirror that you are beautiful inside and out, that attitude will create positive ripples and improve the lives of others. And it is always one day, one moment at a time.
Drinking water is the #1 best, and easiest way to nourish our “roots” from the inside out. Now if you are thinking that you hate the taste of water I probably lost you at “easy.” “You are not just what you eat; you are what you drink….. Water is the basis of all life and that includes your body. Your muscles that move your body are 75% water; your blood that transports nutrients is 82% water; your lungs that provide your oxygen are 90% water; your brain that is the control center of your body is 75% water; even your bones are 25% water.1 Don’t wait to feel thirsty, by the time you do you are often already dehydrated.
Eating healthy is also part of the balance. Thankfully the word “diet” is slowly being replaced with “healthy lifestyle.” And there are SO many “lifestyle” choices out there; Atkins, Ketogenic, Paleo, gluten-free, dairy-free, etc.…, it’s easy to get confused and just say forget it! But again “consistency” is key.
Paying attention to what you input will have a huge impact on how you feel and then how you think, and act, on a day-to day basis. So, pay attention to how you physically feel after eating fast food and compare that to your energy levels and attitude after eating a healthier meal.
Balance is key here. Try to balance your day to day activities with exercise paired with stretching; drinking coffee then water; eating healthy during the day and allow a treat in the afternoon; cleaning the house followed by meditating or breathing and relaxing; working because you have to with finding joy in what you do. Combining consistency with healthy habits and choices is the start towards building a solid foundation or root system. Now all you have to do to benefit the body or, trunk in our tree of life scenario, is bring Awareness to how it effects the function of your whole “body”; mind, physical body, and spirit.
by Denise Nichols
1 “You’re not sick; you’re thirsty. Don’t treat thirst with medication,” Dr F. Batmangheldi