Enjoying the Journey
Writer and philosopher Robert Persig ( Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance) wrote "Mountains should be climbed with as little effort as possible and without desire. The reality of your own nature should determine the speed. If you become restless, speed up. If you become winded, slow down. You climb the mountain in an equilibrium between restlessness and exhaustion. Then, when you're no longer thinking ahead, each footstep isn't just a means to an end but a unique event in itself."
This is some great advice to apply to our health journey! Focusing your energy on what is attainable today, on what you can realistically accomplish today, will help you see the reality of your own nature. You have your own learning curve, and you don't need to keep up with anyone else. Don't let perfection be a roadblock in your health journey. Developing good habits one at a time will help you develop a good mindset. "What the mind believes, the mind creates." (Melanie Fernandez, M.D.) Success does not come from what you do occasionally, it comes from what you do consistently. Mountain climbing takes strategy and practice. So does maintaining your health journey!
Think about what is most important to you and your family. Is good health one of them? We usually create strategies for our finances, budgeting what we can afford, when can we buy a new car, etc. Creating a health promoting environment for you and your family should be part of your life strategy. This means prioritizing learning about health, learning how to make healthy food choices, taking time to engage in the right kind of exercise, and paying attention to all the other factors that lead to optimal health. Our strategy should be to live a healthy lifestyle to old age.
Did you know that the belief held by the medical field is that people are not willing to listen to information about diet and lifestyle and that they just want a "magic bullet" as a solution to their health issues? This is not true! I see more and more folks wanting to learn more about their health and wanting to learn the causes of their diseases. And it's not "just genetics". People love seeing the research that supports dietary changes instead of suppressing symptoms with pills and procedures. The problem is that more time is needed by doctors with patients in order to discuss and teach lifestyle changes. Doctors are incentivized and rewarded for prescribing more drugs. According to the AMA, 71% of medical students think nutrition is clinically important when they start their education. However, the average doctor has only received about 19 hours of nutrition training in medical school.
Most people are interested in many years of healthy living and not just changing their biomarkers with a pill. If you address the totality and breadth of your diet and lifestyle, long-term health can be achieved.
Liz
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