The State of our Health

I love this town. It's no secret.

I spend quite a bit of time in the Plaza at my office, the El Dorado kitchen Cafe :) working and observing people.

I am impressed with the way the people in Sonoma take care of themselves......fresh, local, organic, farmers market, people exercising and making good choices in the cafes......Still, I see people (every where I go, not just Sonoma) who wear their lifestyle stories on their faces AND on their bodies.........and for the most part, the story is the same........

Yea, their bodies are talking, sometimes SCREAMING that they are out of healthy balance.  Our bodies don't lie.  I am personally packing an extra 10 and there's no denying it, trust me....no baby doll smock, skinny jean, designer belt, sassy haircut, pitcher of margaritas can mask the extra ten and imprint of stress mileage donned here.

So here are my thoughts about the STATE OF OUR HEALTH today.......

Personally, I THINK PEOPLE FEEL LIKE CRAP AND THEY DON'T EVEN REALIZE IT.

Yep, clueless consciousness I like to call it.  Thinking we are healthier than we actually are.


COULD THIS BE YOU?

Of course not.  Me neither.  I am a Health Coach people, come on!!

After all, you eat Kashi cereal, exercise 4x a week, and cut out the diet sodas, right??.........you are ON IT!

Well, brothers and sisters, do you want the bad news or the bad news?

I would venture to say that most of us, including YOU and ME, are somewhat clueless when it comes to being fully conscious of the TRUE state of our health.  WE are, most likely, less healthy than we think we are and could ALL benefit from a hot soak in a bath of Reality while enjoying a shift in perspective for dessert....uhm...Yum, I think??

Reality CHECK PLEASE! 

1)  Are you on any medications?
2)  Are you on birth control pills?
3)  Do you sleep less than 8+ hours of uninterrupted sleep beginning by 10pm nightly?
4)  Do you have stress related to finances, relationships, work, children on a daily basis?
5)  Do you work out less than 4x per week?
6)  Do you eat less than 5-7 serving of fruits and veggies each day?
7)  Do you consume coffee daily?
8)  Do you consume processed sugar daily? (Careful with this one, it's in almost everything you drink besides water)
9)  Do you consume alcohol 3x a week or more?
10) Do you smoke or breathe in environmental toxins on a regular basis?

You know the deal, the more "yes" answers, the bigger the reality check about the state of your health.

I love this........

I review clients' health appraisal questionnaires and it amazes me when they score PERFECT on the score sheets. It's partly because people are so OUT OF TOUCH with the true state of their health that they don't even notice the symptoms after a while. They become DEAF to the language their BODY is TALKING.

Mind you, these are people who come to me for HEALTH COACHING, yet their questionnaires say they are healthier than Jack Lalanne. :-)

Me:  OK, so your score is perfect.   Fantastic.

Me:  Compared to WHAT?

Me:  Ahhh, your co-workers who drink Red Bull and play games on the computer all day and the ladies at Curves??  I see.......

Me:  You are on 4 pharmaceuticals, including BC pills and you answered that your menstruation and female cycles are perfect......can  you explain a little more??

Me:  Oh, so you went on the pill because your PMS was so bad you needed to be locked up one week out of the month???  I see......so PMS really IS an issue??  Got it.  Thanks for the clarification.

Uhmmm, yea.  OK.  Whatever.

Moving on then......

The simple fact is that most of us don't know what optimal health looks or feels like.  We live high-pace, high-stressed lifestyles that prevent us from looking and feeling our best. We are designed to feel generally optimistic when our body chemicals are in healthy balance.  We are designed to be lean and energetic, to desire to have sex, to rise with the sun feeling ready to conquer the day......... without coffee.

Now THAT'S what I'm TALKIN about.

Look around you........ do people look happy, healthy, vibrant?

Do you look and feel the best you can be?  The days are going by........are you going to settle for feeling 1/2 and looking1/2 of what you could and should?  Or do you feel you are already close enough.

And now here is the biggie.........

What are you going to do about it?

Resource for you - Book - How to Eat, Move, and be Healthy, Paul Chek

PERSPECTIVE, baby.

QFTD:  Sometimes your body is smarter than you are.   - Author unknown.

Yours in healthy perspective,

Heather

PS, JD, you rock, thanks for joining in!

Hey everyone! How goes it?

Living 80/20? Feeling 80/20? Funny thing, when you live 80/20 you feel 80/20.

If you are not feeling 80+%, you are probably not achieving 80% healthy living.

For those of you who need a refresher on the 80/20 rule, it's basically based on the fact that EVERY TIME YOU EAT OR DRINK YOU ARE EITHER FEEDING DISEASE OR FIGHTING IT. You are either supporting your healthy living goals or sabotaging them......

By living with the 80/20 rule, you are making sure that what you put into your body is HEALTHY 80% of the time. The other 20% is reserved for those moments when we want to enjoy things we would not consider to be fighting disease.

The best way to live this is to BE PREPARED with your calendar each week. Be clear on what events and activities in your schedule might tempt you to tap into that 20%. Plan accordingly by making sure the rest of the week is disease fighting activity.

Guys, THE RULE adds years to your life and improves your quality of life greatly. Like anything else, it takes practice, but when you master it, your golden.

This rule goes for all healthy living habits. Eating, exercise, spiritual practice, you time, loving relationship time, etc.


The KEY - being prepared, planning out your week and having the foods ready to go daily.


Truly, you are WHAT you eat and WHEN you eat.

Yeah, WHEN you eat has a huge impact on what your body looks like.

You literally WEAR your eating and lifestyle habits......there's no hiding em!

Eat balanced in the a.m., balanced in the afternoon and light (and early) in the evening, your body will look and feel balanced. If you don't eat in the a.m., eat more later in the evening, your body will reflect that by being heavy in those unwanted areas.

Is this you? What are your eating habits?

I am currently leading a nutrition seminar called Weight Loss Boot Camp.

These guys rock.

I am so proud of the participants for their honest, open, sharing and HARD WORK.

Besides the EDUCATION component, our fearless warriors are getting real with their lifestyle habits and the 80/20 rule.

L I F E C H A N G I N G.

I will be launching a Weight Loss Boot Camp on line via webinar in May, along with another one here in Sonoma in June, so it's not too late for those of you who want to get ready for summer.

Stevy, Thanks for joining my Blog!

QFTD: Yet this is health: To have a body functioning so perfectly that when it's few simple needs are met it never calls attention to it's own existence. - bertha Stuart Dyment

Yours in 80/20,

Heather