Healthy Body, Happy Mind
This year on a personal level, I decided to set intention around my body. After all it is my temple, which holds my spirit.
It’s all connected.
I believe in the philosophy, “healthy body, and happy mind”. I admit to spending most of my time working on a happy mind, but I can’t ignore the interconnectedness of the body too. They say “you are what you eat, so whatever nutrients you put into your body will not only have an impact on your health but also your thoughts.
Things are not how they used to be.
Like many of us, when I was younger my metabolism was faster and I would burn off energy very easily so I barely put on weight. After leaving secondary school, I found out there were rumours were about me, how they believed that I was anorexic as I was tall and seemed to be too skinny. That’s children for you. It was after leaving school when I hit my late teens/early twenties that I discovered how my body shape had changed. I can no longer eat what I wanted to eat without being active, as I would simply put on weight. Mainly around my thighs and bum. I can never forget the first year of University where I put on weight; and my uncle one summer said: “Look at you, what happened? You used to be the pretty [skinny] one”. That comment did cause issues. It was a full three years later when I finally learned to accept love my body.
It’s all about what you put in.
I learnt over the years that what I eat will have an affect on my body. It’s a bit like baking a cake – if the ingredients consist of sausages then it will turn out to be a sausage cake! It can be challenging sometimes, keeping healthy, especially when you may have a fast paced life but fast food and convenience can be replaced with healthy wholesome food. I have been re-educating myself, spending more time going back to the basics and reducing the junk food. Not to say that I was a junk food addict. I do like wholesome food.
In terms of the body, it’s not only about what you put in but also your state of mind. Are your thoughts negative or positive? Stressful and negative thoughts do have an influence on your body. Stress has been proved, time and time again, to be at the root of certain illnesses.
The body
Going back to my body, I naturally have an athletic build. I would say that we're all naturally athletic and should be using our bodies as beautiful instruments. In terms of fitness and diets, it has always been about lifestyle for me. Doing things that fit into being me. I like movement. Movement is very important. As a writer, which can be quite sedentary at times, means I don’t move as often as I should. Then the pounds will pile on. I will feel sluggish and it will affect my wellbeing. So I like to power walk. My current challenge is finding regular activity that is fun and involves movement. I recently commenced working on a fitness programme used by models called Methodology X. It does work on your core and I do feel the burn. But like gymnastics, which I did when I was younger and won awards for, it becomes second nature after a while.
I look forward to returning to a higher rate of fitness. To emphasis it’s not about getting skinny, it is about returning to natural form. Feeling comfortable. Loving my instrument, the body. Connecting with happy mind, healthy body. My “love your body challenge” continues.