My “Lifestyle Factors” Emphasized, Part 1

“Diet and lifestyle, diet and lifestyle…..diet and “LIFESTYLE”…..WTF are we referring to here?! I find it to be quite vague. There are so many “lifestyle” factors to consider and we all have different opinions about which ones matter the most.

When I say we have to address lifestyle factors I am specifically talking about renaturalizing. It’s not really a real word but it’s the most fundamental way to describe the need here. If we aren’t focusing on this, we are simply playing whack-a-mole with our health (physical, emotional, and mental health).

Everything is connected. Every thing is connected to our relationship with our environment.

EVERYTHING!

We must realign with our natural, biologically intended state before we can expect our bodies to work right. Perhaps one may assume I’m only referring to diet, because this is what I major in. But the truth is that food is just one of many “lifestyle factors” that we must adopt to transform our health from a struggle to feeling free. Food is an obvious and primary factor to dial in. Here are the other factors I prioritize.

Stress

Stress is a part of being human. We are designed for it. I see a lot of conflicting messages in the wellness industry today that may not be helpful. We all must endure stressors. Eliminating all sources of stress is impossible. Transforming how we metabolize it is the key to mitigating it. It is intended to be a part of any biological experience. There are always plenty of unjustifiable sources of stress that can and should be removed altogether. But adapting our response to stress is oftentimes a more efficient strategy to managing it.

The dysfunction of stress is arguably responsible for EVERYTHING that goes wrong with us because it essentially is how we are relating to our environment. Mindfulness around our stressors is required at every juncture of our wellness journey, and is an essential moving piece to any wellness strategy.

Having a response or reaction to stress is not the dysfunction. Our reaction to stress is a condition of our biology, environment, past experience, social conditioning, and core beliefs. When we take the time to thoughtfully consider these variables objectively, but also as an individual, we begin to transform our relationship with it.

It is a process to unlearn and relearn things. Stress is not something to fear. Yes it can cripple us. It can also empower us and bring us to a place where we can connect with our higher self and life purpose.

Breath work, HeartMath, EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique), Mediation, EMDR (Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing), are some of just a few techniques we can learn to change our biological response to stress.

Sleep

One of the more proactive ways we are able to endure stress is through better sleep. Notice I did not say “more” sleep. I say better sleep. Going to bed dehydrated, under the influence of alcohol, or when you’re still digesting food, are all things that many people do all of the time without thinking about it. All of these things trash your sleep.

What else trashes sleep? Procrastination, clutter, mold, dirty electricity, ambient blue light, noise, kidney dysfunction, snoring, irregular sleep schedules, Rx drugs, anxiety, anger, and fear. All of these are sources of biological stress by the way.

Many of us dismiss a lot of the variables I just listed because addressing these things one by one is guess what….A HUGE CONFRONTATION WITH OUR LIFESTYLE CHOICES. Late night snacking in front of the TV (junk light) can be a painful habit to break. Investigating a possible mold issue (which is very common FYI) can be costly and may require a lot of time and patience. But I cannot emphasize enough the importance of addressing this FIRST even though I am listing it second after stress. Stress negatively effects your sleep in a big way, yet terrible sleep makes if much harder to deal with stressful situations. They are tied pretty tightly together. To unravel one is to address the other.

Movement

Notice I didn’t say “exercise”. Not that I have anything against exercise. Quite the opposite. It’s just that words matter. We are only now beginning to understand what words caused us to grow up believing that sad and angry are bad/wrong emotions (aka a core belief and energy leak that fuels a dysfunctional stress response).

Understanding movement as a biological intention in order to keep your body working properly presents it as a need, instead of an option. The word movement creates a different relationship with how we use our body than the word exercise does. Exercise is a chore. Movement is therapeutic.

We must renaturalize not only our bodies but also the language that best supports the process. Find a way to use your body in a functional way every day. Yes, it can be a fitness class where you sweat and max out your heart rate. It can also be a walk, yoga in your bedroom, a bike ride with your kids, or having a more dedicated relationship with gardening. Our bodies are a high functioning, mechanical gift! We are meant to move.

Next up, lifestyle factors that renaturalize us are continued in Part 2……