Healthy Living Starts from Within

Our true state of health cannot simply be measured in statistics or numbers. Still, as human beings, we seek to assess our health using some kind of formula to calculate how much we measure up to our peers—or by how far we miss the mark. To that end, we constantly find ways to quantify and evaluate what we eat, how often we exercise, how much temptation we have strength to avoid. In the end, though, this process leads us to fact-finding protocols to compute how our weight and body shape compares to that of other people, and not necessarily what the right ingredients are for us as individuals. As a result, our focus is taken away from practicing a mindful approach to healthy living and is placed with complying with social pressure instead.

How can we change this pattern? Well, the first step might be to throw away your bathroom scale.

Each of us, believe it or not, already possesses all the equipment necessary to measure our success at achieving a healthy lifestyle. When we feel energetic and buoyant, then we know we’re in the right zone, regardless of how much we weigh or what dress size we wear. When we can move, bend and walk without interference from pain or immobility, then we can be sure that our joints are in sync with our movements, just as they’re supposed to be. Likewise, when we feel good about ourselves, we’re able to keep moving forward as our minds also exist in a place of well-being.

If we look at healthy living from this framework rather than from a quantitative point of view, we can begin to see that real whole-health adds up to a lot more than any number of pounds, inches, or how many low-fat recipes we can collect in a lifetime. Rather, our guidelines for looking and feeling good can be based on our innate system of monitoring instead—and none of it has anything to do with the numbers on a scale. When we choose to listen to the signals that our own bodies give us over measurements that only serve to make comparisons, we can truly walk the path to healthy living.

Some key points to remember as you start each day on this path…

- People are like snowflakes; no two are alike. Diversity is a blessing. So are your natural curves.

- Satisfy what your body truly craves—a hunger for whole, nourishing foods and freedom of movement.

- Stop counting calories. Instead, make your caloric intake count.