8 aspects of a happy & healthy life

Soooo….. a healthy, happy life. Where to begin. I have always been a firm believer that the power of positive thought, good food, water, exercise, sleep, a higher power, the occasional supplemental herb and knowing when to stop and take a break is all an organism needs to perform at its best. Phew! That's a lot. Well.... not really. Half of it we already do without thinking.

Positive thought has always come naturally to me. I’m a glass half full, it was meant to happen type of girl. I can find the bright spot in the most crappy situation and always manage to laugh even when I'm in tears. I try to act happy even when I am not, and usually by lunchtime I’ve convinced myself everything is fine and I actually feel better!

Good food is a given. Just because something is good for you doesn’t mean it has to taste bad or boring. I wish people understood that more! And everything in moderation. That is something I could have a bit more control over. Well, apparently my husband thought so too, so we went out and bought 8.5 inch dinner plates as opposed to the standard 10-12 inch. I think it’s definitely a “your eyes are bigger than your stomach” type thing. If the plate’s full, it seems as though your brain sees that as enough food.

Did you know that buffets give you a plate that is between 11 and 14 inches?! Fill it up! And I don’t know about you but I tend to use the same plate for dessert that I did for dinner. So wow! A weeks worth of carbs and calories right there!

Water. Up to 60% of the adult human body is made up of water. This, of course, varies depending on a number of factors including age, health, weight and whether you are a male or female. So drinking the recommended amount of water daily, approximately 48-64 ounces, increases energy, promotes weight loss, flushes out toxins, improves skin complexion, maintains regularity, boosts the immune system, helps prevent cramping and is a natural headache remedy. One of the main reasons adults get headaches is because they aren't drinking enough water. Crazy! All that goodness from something that is all around us! 

Exercise. Running, biking, lifting, hiking, swimming, or should I say flailing ungraciously through a body of water while desperately trying to keep the holes in my face in which oxygen enters free of foreign bodies. I LOVE exercise of all kinds. I’ve tried 30 minute videos that guarantee rock hard abs in 6 weeks. (I feel as though it may have worked better if I had started with almost no body fat.) I’ve tried Cross Fit which I actually really enjoyed. I may not have been able to lift my arms above my head or bend my legs after but it was fun! I think I may try that one again. I have even attempted yoga. Hmm. The jury is still out on that one. In theory, when I think about yoga I feel excited and almost pre-relaxed. My hair feels more flowy, my curvy body seems more beautiful and my chipped pink toenails look more natural. But due to my inability to commit to any one exercise, when I attempt yoga, I find myself laughing at my shaky form and loosing my balance quite often. I like to blame a stress fracture I had in my foot a few years ago on yoga. (I’m pretty sure it was from running though.)

Sleep. HA! What the hell is sleep?! How many of us with kids, dogs, cats, spouses, neighbors, irritated bowl syndrome, a job, or pretty much anything else have actually had an uninterrupted night sleep in the past year? 5 years? 10 Years? Right, probably not many of us.
Apparently you are supposed to get somewhere between 7 and 9 hours a night. When we sleep amazing things happen in our body. They repair themselves and memories consolidate. Hormones that regulate growth and appetite are released, which is why when we lack sleep we have a tendency to eat more. Cortisol levels increase over night to help us be more alert in the morning. How many of us wake up ready to go without a shower and at least one cup of coffee?
I am fortunate if I get 5 hours of sleep a night. And that includes getting up a few times too. So needless to say, sleep is something we seem to sacrifice in order to be successful in the other aspects of our life. Go to bed late, get up early. And sometimes while I change a diaper, or feed a little mouth, I actually figure stuff out that I had been mulling over during my normal waking hours. So I like to think of my lack of sleep as somewhat successful. 

A power greater than myself. There is so much I can say about this one. I am NOTHING without my Higher Power. I would fail on regular basis if I believed that the human being was the most excellent existence. Even just a few moments a day of prayer or thought keeps my mind and soul on the right track for me. I have an ongoing dialogue about what I'm thinking, what just happened, what I should do next, am I being the best parent I can be. I feel selfish sometimes with all the requests for assistance, answers and guidance. But I always feel better after even just a pause in my day that reflects my faith.  So whatever your beliefs be, may you always have something that helps you along, gives you strength and allows for the mess that we call life to make a little more sense.

And herbs. Well, I don’t really know too much about them. But I’m learning. I know that when I’m feeling worn down and a bit stuffy to take a few echinacea and maybe I won’t catch a cold. Iron helps with that monthly disaster of mine. Vitamin E and Flax Seed Oil help maintain my skin, hair and nails. Ginko Biloba helps with brain function. My husband and I drink Bragg’s Apple Cider Vinegar every day. I’m not sure if it’s doing anything, but everything I’ve read says it is. It’s not creating any negative effects so what the heck!

Every once in a while though, you have to stop. You need a day that says, nope, I’m all done. I am not putting on makeup. Or shoes. I probably wont return emails or texts. All I want to do is snuggle with my kids and read my magazine from last Christmas. I will not sweep the floor despite the consistently shedding german shepard that parks herself on the carpet. Everyone in the house will have to do their own dishes. I will not run (unless it’s to the fridge) or feel guilty about it. I will have that extra cup of coffee and I will eat ice cream! 

Well, with all that being said, life seems pretty simple. At least to me. Time passes whether we work hard to improve who and what we are, or if we just sit around and eat M&M’s. Which I can be found doing every once in a while. But why not use time to our advantage? Make it work for us. Do something that will improve ourselves. I truly feel if I can maintain the above 8 aspects of my life I’m doing okay.


And now, I’m going to go eat some cake!

---