...towards a Healthy Lifestyle
Ability is what you’re capable of doing. Motivation determines what you do. Attitude determines how well you do it. ~ Lou Holtz
I was recently asked to speak about 'Health & Wellness' with a focus on nutrition. Now, I am no nutritionist and have no qualifications to back up my shared thoughts. I do however have a passion for living a positive and healthy lifestyle of which my 3 main pillars are: Positive exercise, Positive thoughts (stress management) & Positive Nutrition. What do I mean about Positive? For me it is all about focusing on what you can do rather than on what you can't. Nobody likes being told what they can't do and I have found that when you focus on what you can do it makes for a much happier and enjoyable lifestyle.
So below, I share with you my talk. Enjoy!
Everybody loves a good story. Stories are how we can make sense of our world. They can help us to understand each other and to help define our values. Sometimes, I feel like, we enjoy stories so much that we end up listening to them again and again.
I know that I do.
Now, I am not just talking about fictional stories - I am referring to the stories that we tell ourselves and those around us. I couldn’t’ do that, I’m too unfit, I’m too old, I’m not good enough, I am too busy!
Look around, unless you are sitting next to your identical twin, you will notice is that we are all different. When it comes to ‘Health & Wellness’ there is no one size fits all approach as there are so many differences between us. This is your life and only you can find out what works best. When I work with clients we will discuss their current lifestyle, habits, preferences, limiting beliefs and then work together to find a practical solution. For me the pillars of wellness are Nutrition, Exercise & Stress management.
What a healthy diet means for you will be different from what it means to your friend, sibling, colleague or even me. And that really is the key here – because a ‘healthy diet’ is as unique as we are. I have found that healthy living is not always easy, and it can be harder by the conflicting guidance we are exposed to as well as the fact that we are all different. However, healthy living is possible and it is certainly important. We are in control of our lives and it is up to us to change the stories that we are telling ourselves so that we can take the positive steps forward towards a healthy lifestyle.
It is all about managing a sustainable positive change – I like to work with a positive mind set and I always invite my clients to do the same. Not only by looking at Exercise and stress management but by also looking at their set views on dieting.
For me it is a lifestyle change – forgetting the trends and marketing hype, forget the calorie counting and the clean labels. But most of all forget the worry, fear or inhibition you may have around food. Build things back up again from more positive, contented foundations.
I want you to start focusing on what you can and should eat. Focus on the positives.