July 23, 2015
Heath matters to me.
I just don’t like to act like it. You know- You have to play it cool. Have a plan. I act like I’m not interested in Health so it will start to find me irresistible. Then just when Health thinks it’s over -that I could never love a dull, plain, wellness style like that- I swoop in all strong, smooth, and witty! Bam! Health falls head over heels for me, and I barely have to lift a finger, let alone a curl.
Yep that’s the plan, and so far it’s going… well I’m still waiting for Health to make a move on me. So… not great.
Despite my intentions, I face the same obstacles we all do, including time, motivation, and understanding a proper lifestyle. This has deteriorated into some pretty outrageous habits, like my tendency to only eat one meal a day…at 10 o’clock at night. (Yeah, you thought you had a weird diet.)
The Secret to Great Health
So what’s the answer? What is the one most important change we should make today to turn this around?
That’s what we all want to hear, right? We want to know what that one most crazy crucial food, or exercise is that will take us on a rocket ship ride to the top. However, every time we find one, strap in, and count down to lift off, the rocket still can’t seem to get our flabby asses off the ground.
It’s not because there is not an easy magic cure out there… well it is, but that’s not the point. The point is this: There is not one change out there we all need to make. There is not one area we should work on. There are many! Together!
We like to isolate one part of ourselves to work on. However, whether we single out a goal as our weight, energy levels, stress levels, sleep quality, or whatever, these systems, and their symptoms all overlap. The food we eat, the exercise we perform, and the rest we give ourselves all contribute together to our health, and our goals.
(As a free bonus to this article, check out page 4 of The Daily Act of Defiance 14 Day Challenge Workbook for a quick 1 page guide for changing the way we think about the 3 building blocks of our health: Mind, Fitness, Nutrition.)
Getting Better Wellness Results through Synergy
We are tempted to focus on only one area of our lives because that’s what we think we can handle. Change is difficult. Changing habits in the midst of our busy lives seems impossible. So it makes since that we would want to focus all our energy on one goal, or one change to maximize our chances of success. However, I know I am more than just my diet, OR my workouts, OR my sleep amounts, OR my stress levels (must I go on?) OR my moods, my self-talk, my snacks, OR my cardio. The reason we burn out with our changes, or aren’t satisfied with the results is that we only address one aspect of our very complex lives.
Even though it seems more exhausting on paper, coordinating improvements in various areas of our lives sets us up for better wellness results through synergy that allows our the different aspects of our bodies to support, and reinforce one another.
More Energy
One of the biggest problems with our practice of making one change, and going at it hard, is that these singular changes rob us of our energy. It’s hard enough fitting this stuff into our days, and keeping motivation without it taking away the energy we need for everything else. That’s what we do though, and what’s more we’re baffled because “The Guy on the Thing” said it would increase our energy! Here’s why it happens, and why “The Guy on the Thing” wasn’t lying, he just wasn’t telling you the whole story.
Exercise is a great way to increase our energy levels. However, in the short term strenuous exercise causes soreness, and fatigue as our muscles, and bodies work to recuperation. If we don’t also maintain a nutritious diet it isn’t able to efficiently or adequately do this.
Likewise, diets that aim to restrict calories, or extensively change our energy production by changing the source of those calories (ie: more/less fat, more/less carbs, more/less protein) tax our systems too. If we over do it, do it wrong, or without enough sleep, and rest we aren’t going to be able to keep going.
Similarly, improving the amount, and quality of sleep we receive can do a lot for our energy levels. A great way to improve quality of sleep is to get some exercise earlier in the day. A great way to capitalize on that rested feeling is to get a little exercise in throughout the day.
These are only a few examples, but it should go to show how our various lifestyle components depend on one another to keep us feeling energetic. Working on one at the expense, or neglect of the the others is self-sabotage.
Feel Better
One of the vague goals I usually have for myself is that I want to improve the way I feel throughout the day. The trouble is even I don’t know exactly what I mean by this. Surely energy levels are a component. Mood, cognitive ability, stress levels, happiness, and satisfaction all come to mind. We like to feel like we are firing on all cylinders, like everything is clicking, and we’re loving every second of it. That’s a tall order, but one that I feel is integral to a well lived life.
There are so many areas of our lives that feed into this, that choosing one is like dropping a pebble in a river to alter its coarse. You know which foods make you very groggy, or alert. You know that satisfaction you get from a good workout, and the feelings you carry the rest of the day. Everyone know that euphoric taste of waking rested, relaxed, and excited about the day. (If you need to look waaaay back to remember this feeling, probably time to go after it again.) However, even more practices contribute to the goal of feeling better throughout the day. Meditation trains our brain to relax, un-stress, and maintain focus. Journaling about positive experiences, or the daily events we are thankful for trains us to seek out the good in life. Developing hobbies, or pursuing projects that we are passionate about adds meaning, and purpose to our lives. I don’t think it is too much to say that every thing we do works for or against this goal, and choosing only one improvement to focus on can never satisfy us.
Balancing Pain
“No pain, no gain,” that’s what they say. Still, if you think about it, pain is our bodies strongest tool for telling us not to do something. That’s what we are up against. An evolutionary mechanism, crucial to not only our species survival, but a whole planet full of animals. That’s what we want to go toe to toe with. Damn, we’re an ambitious bunch!
If pain is so strong a deterrent, even when it results from something beneficial, I don’t know about you, but I want a stacked deck. If you want to cheat the system to improve your health, this is how you “cheat.”
Undertaking several different changes at once helps to balance out the pain, and difficulty. Not only does a nutritious diet help our bodies recover from exertion, the improved energy, and feelings of wellness, we’ve been talking about, add some “good” to counteract the “bad.” There are a couple points we need to keep in mind to understand this.
First, you can’t even pay someone enough to be miserable. However, change is by its nature an unpleasant venture. All living organisms fundamentally function by resisting change. It’s why our bodies maintain the same temperature inside whether it’s hot or cold out. It’s why the fluid in our organs doesn’t fall out through our feet. We are built to resist change. So to overcome resistance, and pain, there have to be aspects of the change we like.
Second, all the improvements, whether diet, exercise, or any sort training, have moments, or periods of pain, or struggle. However, they all have instances of pleasure, or some other gratifying aspect as well.
Call it balance. Call is classical conditioning. Whatever the words, the “cheat” is to undertake multiple changes at once so the highs can balance the lows. Is it a perfect system? No. Does it work better that the alternative? Yes.
Results That Mean Something
Health is about quality, and quantity of life. It all boils down to just those two pieces. Quality without quantity is a tragedy. Quantity without quality is a waste.
Singular goals can, and often do, improve one, or both of these principals. However more often than not, we should be looking at a broader picture. By working on many aspects of our lives we are able to achieve complex, and meaningful results. Results that truely change the way we feel inside, the way we feel about ourselves and others, and the circumstances of our existence.
Health matter to me, and I think it’s time to take our relationship to the next level. My girlfriend’s going to be so jealous!
-Michael
P.S. If you are looking for fun ideas for activities to improve health and wellness, or you would like to challenge yourself to do just one thing a day that is good for you, check out my Daily Act of Defiance 14 Day Challenge Workbook. It’s completely free, and worth a look.