People often come to me to help them with issues around food. But really, it’s our lifestyles that determine our health. So it follows that the correction of serious health issues requires significant lifestyle changes.
While I do support some elements of Western medicine, I consider its tendency to prescribe a pill and alleviate the symptom, rather than find the root of the problem, to be one of its strongest downsides. Doctors rarely tell people to change their lifestyles. My methodology begins with a discussion about lifestyle changes.
I’ll be the first to admit that these changes aren’t easy. When I was diagnosed with stage four bone cancer, I had to change everything: my eating and drinking habits; how I exercised; even relationships and who I spent time with. It’s all linked. Now I’m able to take that experience and guide others in positive lifestyle transformation.
The process starts with a focus on stress management. Stress is problematic because the body deals with it through inflammation. And inflammation is the root of nearly all disease. In order to reduce inflammation, we must reduce stress. There are different forms of stress and they are managed in different ways.
Specialties:
Managing Emotional Stress:
Emotional stress can stem from many things: relationships that don’t go how we expect them to; heavy burdens at work; behavior issues with our children. The list goes on and on. While some of these stressors cannot be completely removed, they can be reduced through the implementation of a few simple tools.
Meditation
I strongly recommend that my clients build some kind of an intentional, mindful break into their daily routine. I call this meditation.
Don’t worry, I won’t mandate that you sit cross-legged on a pillow and chant–although if that works for you, then that’s great. Instead, let’s expand the definition of meditation. For me, creating a meal is meditation. I focus on the smells, the rhythmic chopping of the knife, the color of the food and the art of creating something delicious and life-giving. For you, going for a walk might be meditation as you look at the rocks, the passing clouds, the shimmer of the leaves in the trees, the call of a bird. Reading can be meditation. So can listening to music or a podcast.
The goal is to focus on the experience you’re having right then–to be in that moment–and to give your mind a break from your worries, even for a short period of time. Almost certainly, your mind will wander to that to-do list or those fears; it’s almost inevitable. The goal is to bring your mind gently back to your meditation, to re-center and refocus, always without self-judgement. There is no right or wrong in this.
Also recognize that you can meditate anywhere: driving to work, in line at the grocery store, in the shower. All those moments when you’re somewhere, but not actively doing something are opportunities to meditate.
During our Initial Intake [LINK], I will ask you what you’re passionate about as a way to point you toward meditation strategies that will work for you. I want to figure out what brings you joy–and thereby increases your health–and help you to do that more often. Together, we’ll figure out the best meditation strategies for you.
Self-Care
Ultimately, I want you to give yourself the freedom to spend time doing things you enjoy doing. This might seem basic, but so often I talk with people who describe hiking, massage or just getting coffee with friends as something they’re passionate about, yet they only do these things a few times a year. If we claim to value something, then we need to make the time to do it. Schedule time for your passions and don’t allow other to-do list items to infringe. Make being kind to yourself a priority. Schedule massages for yourself, take a nap, sit in the sunshine or even watch a favorite show. Make yourself happy.
Managing Physical Stress:
Exercise stresses our bodies no matter how well we do it. In fact, that’s the point. By stresing our bodies in that way, they become stronger. Take weightlifting. Lifting heavy weights creates stress on our body, and our body reacts by getting stronger. The same thing happens with cardiovascular exercise like running. Eventually, running that 10K is less challenging because your lungs can hold a larger volume of air; they got stronger.
I frequently have clients who exercise or move in unhealthy amounts, whether too much or too little. Both are stressful on the body. As a former physical trainer and thanks to tools like the MyFitnessPal app and exercise diary, I’m able to help my clients find a better exercise/movement regimen for their body.
Too Little Movement
Most people live too sedentary of a lifestyle. They sit behind a desk for roughly one-third of their waking hours, stuck in a relatively repetitive motion. That isn’t healthy and it’s not what our bodies were made for.
Think about our ancestors and their hunter/gatherer lifestyles.They bent over to pick crops, stalked animals and sprinted to hunt them, and kneeled over a stove to cook. They were active constantly, but differently each day. That movement was what our bodies were made for. Today we bend over a keyboard and get up once in a while to get more more coffee. That’s not what our bodies were made for.
Our bodies like to be kept guessing about what’s coming next, not sit in one position for 8 hours a day.
In fact, this lack of movement throughout our days is stressful on our bodies, and it causes inflammation, which we often detect as stiffness. Ever worked all day only to stand up and feel a tightness in your neck and shoulders? Or a have eyes that feel tired after staring at a screen all day? That’s stress that’s built up into inflammation.
Too Much Movement
Moving too much, or over-exercising, also puts stress on the body.
Exercise/movement should add short-lived, uncomfortable, physical stress, but afterward you should be left feeling good. With your endorphins revving, you should feel joyful and optimistic about life in general. If you feel exhausted mentally at the end of a typical exercise/movement experience, your body is telling you that something is wrong.
When we over-exercise, our bodies become energy deficient and are required to prioritize body systems based on urgency and available energy. As the immune system and the digestive system are not life threatening if shut down, they are often the first to be passed over in favor of more critical systems. This leads to inflammation and illness. Frequent over-exercise perpetuates this issue and is hard to escape from without assistance