Eating unhealthy processed food, irregular sleep pattern and inactivity create low level inflammatory response in your body. This inflammation gradually increases overtime, contributing directly to the germination of every major disease plaguing mankind - obesity, diabetes, heart disease, fatty liver disease, just to name a few.
The first and foremost thing to focus on is Nutrition - what you eat. Add lots of green leafy vegetables, whole grains, organic poultry, dairy and fruits in your daily diet. Keep your body hydrated. Drink plenty of water and raw fruit juice as fluids help keeping body temperature low and removes toxins through perspiration (sweat) and excretion (urine). Keep a balanced share of carbohydrate, protein, good fats and minerals. These small changes in your diet will contribute to your overall wellbeing. Cut back unhealthy fats from your diet slowly and target on stopping to consume them completely. Unhealthy fats include: dark chicken meat, poultry skin, fatty pork cuts, beef and lamb and high-fat dairies include whole milk, butter and cheese. Common ways to cut back on unhealthy fats are listed below:
Instead of frying meat, Bake / Grill / Broil it. Don't forget to take the skin off before cooking chicken or turkey
Instead of butter and cheese on bread, use low fat spreads or slices of tomatoes on it to enhance the flavour
Instead of scrambled eggs, eat boiled / soft-boiled eggs. Garnish with a pinch of salt and black pepper to taste best
Instead of using sugar in patisseries and desserts, use organic honey to satisfy your sweet bud and stay healthy
When it comes to a healthy lifestyle, the importance of sleep is worth discussing. Get yourself adequate sleep, because internal healing and tissue repair happen only when you sleep. Sleep deficiency contributes to an increased risk of cardio-vascular disease, kidney disease, brain damage etc. Sleep deprivation lowers the metabolic rate of your body, which is linked to weight gain. Studies show that sleep deprived individuals have higher levels of Ghrelin, the hormone which stimulates appetite and lower levels of Leptin, the hormone which suppresses appetite. Hence, good sleepers tend to intake fewer calories.
The last, but definitely not the least is the importance of regular exercise when it comes to a healthy and active lifestyle. No matter which age group you belong to, it is advisable and wise to include a minimum 30 minutes of workout / physical activity of moderate intensity such as running, brisk walking on most, if not all days of the week. As humans, we spend far too much time in our synthetic environment, disconnected from the outside world. This disconnect poses a serious threat to our health and general wellness. Think of your body as a complex machine, which houses equally complex parts (bones) and sub systems (organs) inside. If you let it sit idle, the parts and the sub systems will lose movement capability and eventually get rusted. A few tips to incorporate exercise in your daily routine:
Prioritize physical activity
Make it fun
Get a partner
Keep a track of resultsI recently came back from my own private silent retreat. Over the couple of silent retreats that I have done in the past few years, I have experienced the powerful value of this kind of work. Besides the obvious like switching off from the daily routine, the duties of work and the constant demand of raising children, there is a whole other dimension to it.
I stayed in our off-road, super cool camper on a farm in Robertson, a remote place in the mountains of Cape Town, South Africa. I was nestled in a gorgeous valley with a pristine lake, where I swam daily.
My intention was to experience seven days of solitude and silence, and to water fast, while I was writing my upcoming book "Unapologetically Me". This is my own private inspirational story of how I dropped guilt, shame, judgment, and blame and became a self-realised, switched on and vibrant woman.
I aimed to close all the exits to the external world so that my energy kept circulating within me, without distractions.
I wanted to sit with my self and watch my inner sky, with the space to notice the patterns of my thoughts and the growing emptiness arising in between them. I wanted to clear and crystallise my mind and my body so that I could become an open channel for the words to flow through me.
The silence part of it, I deeply cherished and I enjoyed the privilege of rooting deeper into my being - listening to the sounds of nature.
As a storyteller, I love talking to people and a retreat is a great occasion for revitalisation. The water fasting was the most challenging part. I had to take each day as it came, being totally present in the current moment and surrendering to the discomfort.
There is a powerful quality of higher spiritual connection when fasting and that was a great motivator to keep me going.
I feel that it is important at times to explore life out of our comfort zone and I chose to select my ways.
I have noticed that people who are too attached to their comfort zone often get shaken out by spirit in a form of an illness, an accident, loss of job, etc.
It is in this uncharted territory of the unfamiliar that our soul gets to expand and explore new qualities of the self.
I am grateful for the opportunity to witness my courage, resilience and utter trust in the guidance that I receive.
How can you leap out of your comfort zone?
I would love you to share your ideas.