How do you show your spouse, children, and friends that you are grateful for their support and love? Feed them unhealthy foods, waste their time, stress them out consistently for no reason, and take their health for granted? If you wouldn’t do that to them, why do you so often do this to yourself? By being concerned for your own health and well-being you add value to every aspect of your life. Without your own health it will be impossible to enjoy life with those around you and the unfortunate truth is that you may even become a burden to them.
Suppose your family really wants to take a vacation together. Will you have the stamina and strength to travel with them? Will you be concerned about your ability to go on long walks or even hiking? How about enjoying the outdoors? Are you so out of shape that the heat or cold puts a strain on your body? This is the future you may face if you neglect your health and adopt unhealthy habits.
Your age doesn’t have to determine your physical abilities and health, but your habits will!
Two completely healthy people born the same year can have very different outcomes in their health and abilities as they age. For example: From the Age of 23, You and your best friend (let’s call her Jane) had completely different habits. Jane, over the years maintained an active lifestyle exercising most days. She followed an organic and un processed food diet, and maintained her happiness by being thankful for the small gifts in her life each day.
At 53 Jane may have some general aches and pains as would be normal with the wear and tear of years of exercise, but nothing debilitating. Jane’s blood pressure is within the healthy range. Her bone density and muscle mass is well above the average for her age. Her weight is within a healthy range. Her blood sugar levels are normal. Her coordination and balance has not gotten any worse and she isn’t taking any medications and has no immediate medical concerns.
You on the other hand, exercised sporadically, ate out consistently, and let the small stuff stress you out from the Age of 23. What state is your health and your body in now, 30 years down the road?
You face a very different reality at 53. Your joints, especially your knees cause you discomfort and pain most days. Your blood pressure is borderline-hypertension, your bone density is at the borderline of osteopenia. Your muscle mass is average for your age or perhaps even at the beginning stages of sarcopenia. You are 30-40 lbs overweight with pre-diabetes. And you haven’t done anything to test your balance and coordination in years due to fear of falling or injury. Your Dr. has prescribed blood pressure and diabetic medicine as well as recommended cortisone shots and knee surgery to relieve your knee pain.
Ok, I have put myself into this Predicament. How do I get out?
If you have come to the point where you are prepared to make the necessary changes and are ready to love yourself again, congratulations! This journey is lifelong so start to settle into the idea of a healthier, happier, and more vibrant you. The first thing you need to understand is failure while putting forth effort is expected, but failure due to lack of effort is disastrous.
Identify the things that you love most about your life. Specifically, your everyday experiences. Once you have identified these things you can start to identify what habits are tied to them. Are these habits healthy or are they unhealthy? I believe most all habits can be categorized as either healthy or unhealthy and to build a healthy life you need to build healthy habits. Tying healthy habits to the things that you love most and do daily will automate the habit development process and speed things up!
Review Your Progress and Habits Regularly
Without a gauge of your progress there is no way to know how you are doing. We can all expect to fall off the trail occasionally, but with regular check-ins we can catch ourselves quickly and get back on track. Over the years you need to remain aware of how your goals and intentions have changed and a regular review is the best way to reset and adjust. It’s ok to want to learn and work on something different or to have a new desire to understand more. I believe this is a true sign of you “growing wiser” instead of the cliché “growing older”.
With these new goals and intentions, you will need to review the habits that will be tied to them. So, once again ask the unhealthy or healthy habit question. As you do this over the years it is crucial to understand what long-term effects these consistent habits will have on your health. Even some good habits done in excess or without an educated approach can cause harm with flawed repetition.
Do You Live a Balanced Life?
Life is meant to be lived to the fullest and we are genetically engineered to enjoy almost anything, even unhealthy things with a balanced approach. Evaluating each habit will help you balance things out and avoid any long-term negative health effects. Take into consideration habits or things that you know are bad for you, but you are not going to give up completely. Instead, try to counteract them in some way. If you are going to drink alcohol, counteract this with drinking a lot of water, spreading your drinks out and avoiding drinking in excess. This process of counteracting can be applied to any unhealthy habit.
The bottom line is you are either going to help your body heal and grow or you are going to harm your body and speed up the process of breaking it down. Neglecting your health is like giving away your most prized possessions with no way to retrieve them. So, start loving your body, mind, and soul today with a healthier approach to your habits!
