I probably sound like a broken record, but I can’t stress enough the importance of a healthy lifestyle in achieving and maintaining health. Everyone wants to be healthy, but how many of us really want to live healthy? Following natures rhythms, rising with the sun, retiring with the moon. Eating foods that nourish us when we are hungry. Avoiding refined, processed, denatured, store-bought preserved foods. That’s right, no ice cream, sorry. And how well does our career fit in with nature. The day to day stresses mostly over office politics and deadlines for the sake of what? How hard would it be to change to a line of work with a social benefit? To walk or ride a bike instead of jumping in the car. You can extrapolate further.
If one understands that the causes of disease/illness are mental/emotional excesses of grief, anger, fear, anxiety, stress, overthinking, greed; environment, pollution, chemicals, habits, diets, posture/structure, one sees the importance of moving back into harmony with nature. So, what price are you willing to pay to live or not live a healthy lifestyle. Will you gamble your health to live for convenience and a scoop of ice cream or will you forego transient pleasures to live in accord with nature and experience good health, vitality and longevity? These are questions I ask myself daily. In theory it is a no-brainer. In practice, a whole different story.
Ross, I can’t agree more that just knowing that a course of action that involves seeming sacrifices (ice cream!!)can lead to health and longevity doesn’t automatically translate into action. It is just so hard to break old habits and change behavior. I can’t maintain a workout regimen, either. What do you recommend for finding that discipline?
Hi John,Your question is significant and, of course, hard to answer. I can only discuss what motivates me and how I approach this subject, understanding that there are many roads to travel.My first step is to come to the conclusion that I am not as healthy as I’d like to be. If you believe that you are healthy and feel great and can’t benefit from changing your habits, then it is hard to make the change.Secondly, you need to be confident that what you have learned about healthy living and eating, etc. can make the improvements you are seeking.You see, it’s not about sacrifices. We are not looking to deprive ourselves. We are looking to nourish ourselves. The difference is huge. One needs a shift in perspective. People think, oh, the ice cream tastes good, it makes me feel good, etc. and not having it feels like deprivation. A different perspective would suggest, what is the long-term (or even short-term, not immediate) effect of what I am doing? Knowledge would tell us that the ice cream which is filled with refined sugar, chemicals, empty calories, etc. is restricting our circulation in the stomach and intestines, draining out our adrenals, creating a mucus lining in out gut that prevents assimilation of vitamins and nutrients necessary for our well-being, etc. When I think of it that way, I don’t feel deprived. I feel empowered.Understanding the tremendous difference between pleasure and happiness is crucial. Yeah, ice tastes good to many, but it also leads to suffering/illness/imbalance in the future. Is it worth it?These are the kinds of questions to ask oneself to help motivate change. But, yes, you are right. Change isn’t easy. It’s really difficult. And the best way to do it is to make small changes daily and commit to the process for one’s own sake.I hope this helps. Maybe it’s too vague? Let me know. I’d love to continue the discussion.Ross