Whole Food Plant-Based Lifestyle
Hello. My name is Jamie Lynn and I am one of the luckiest women alive. I have two incredible children, a supportive partner, a healthy body and I love my job. Yes, I love my job. On a daily basis, as a wellness coach, I empower and support my clients as they move forward towards the change they seek.
The wealth of information about healthy eating, exercise, and mindfulness available today can be overwhelming. To simplify things and add some perspective, I sometimes describe a healthy lifestyle as having three components that we can play with. These are Mind, Body, and Fuel. Let’s examine our daily life in terms of our mind (what we think), our body (are we exercising wisely), and fuel (what is in the food we eat).
Mind
“The thoughts in our head create our world,” says Mac Bledsoe, esteemed educator and founder of Parenting with Dignity. (hyperlink for online issue, http://www.parentingwithdignity.com/). For example, even if our spouse or a friend comments on how beautiful we look, some of us might translate this into something totally different, like “yeah right, you’re just saying that to make me feel better.”
Sound familiar? What we think often determines what we manifest, so noticing what we think and learning to recognize thought patterns that hold us back is usually one of the first steps in moving towards healthier habits.
For some of us though, our most difficult struggle is in asking for help. Very often friends and family or professionals like myself are ready and willing to support, however we are waiting for you to be vulnerable enough to share where you are at and what you are struggling with. Being vulnerable can pay huge dividends and without it we are held back, stuck in our old patterns.
“There is no escape from vulnerability. When there is little vulnerability, there is little joy, happiness and gratitude. When we truly allow ourselves to be vulnerable, with it comes more joy, happiness, and gratitude.” This comes from Brene Brown’s TedTalk 2011(hyperlink for online http://www.ted.com/talks/brene_brown_on_vulnerability.html ), which I highly recommend watching.
Body
Exercise smarter, not necessarily harder. What works for your body may not be appropriate for your best friends’ body. It is very common and natural to compare ourselves, but thoughtful and lasting change in our bodies originates from within. So, because we each have unique needs, we need an exercise plan that acknowledges who we are, where we are coming from and where we want to go.
Ultimately, each person’s individualized exercise plan should include moderate amounts of cardiovascular training, resistance training, and stretch/flexibility training, none of which needs to happen in a gym. And all of which can be fun and satisfying.
However, for many the appropriate first step is simply going for a 10-minute walk a few times a week. Adding too much too soon can lead to frustration, feelings of failure and giving up altogether.
So, it is important to be gentle with ourselves, and to reflect upon our journey along the way. In doing so, what we discover is that every small success is a wonderful opportunity to feel good about the healthy choices we are making, however insignificant they might seem.
Fuel
We are part of a great experiment with the food (or Fuel as I like to call it) that we eat. Never before have so many people consumed so much highly processed food, full of so many unnatural ingredients. Life spans are now actually decreasing and a prime suspect is the food we are putting into our body.
Strangely, there is an abundance of information available about healthy eating, however much of it is conflicting. It takes time to sort through it all and most of us simply don’t have time to do it.
So many of us are left feeling confused and overwhelmed. First and foremost, eating well requires making a commitment to ourselves and to our families. And while this can seem daunting for many of us, it is possible for all of us, one micro-step at a time. Helping to empower families with food planning and preparation ideas is one of my best and most enjoyable skills. Healthy meals throughout the day are a prerequisite for a healthy body and mind.
We simply cannot function optimally if we are using calorie rich, nutrient poor food as our body’s fuel. Yes, the learning process takes time, however you will be surprised at how easy, fun and empowering it is.
Ideally, making a commitment to be a healthier family involves the whole family. I encourage family meal planning, shopping, preparation and cooking as much as possible. We want our children to grow up educated and prepared for what lies ahead and doing so is a great way to empower them to a healthy future.
