Carla’s three pronged approach to optimal health

5 Apr 2011

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Healthy Living
Carla
by

Not Carla, but someone else with a happy tummy

 

Brace your collective selves.

It’s a serious & do as I say and as I do kind of blog post as that’s how close to my heart the subject of digestive health is.

Allow me to indulge in some back-story:

I’m a woman who is frequently complimented on her will power.

Whether it’s the contents of my restaurant order or my declining a delectable looking slice of gluten-filled birthday cake people credit me with will power I do not possess.

I live the way I do because as a result, I feel better.
I eat the way I do because as a result, I feel better.

(Please imagine a movie-like montage of me frolicking through a field of Attune Foods flowers)

For this misfit, digestive heath (the ability to break down and absorb nutrients in a fashion that optimizes both health and well-being) is inextricably tied to overall health.

Digestive health is far more than simply the foods I ingest.  It encompasses and colors everything in my life from lessening my stress to *allowing* me to be physically active.

For me, optimal digestive health (which includes being gluten free) results in a higher quality of life.

Period.

(See? I warned you this was a serious & seriously preachy post! I’m all kinds of emotionally involved in the subject-matter that way.)

 

How can you join me on this path of happy innards-working and allow it to lead you, too, toward optimal health?

I give you my three pronged approach: diet (food intake no calorie-limiting) exercise and stress reduction.

Diet:

  • Experiment with mindful eating. Make today the day you slow down your mealtime, eliminate other distractions, savor each bite and stop eating when you’re full.
  • Pay attention to your body’s responses to foods. Back in the early 90s when I went gluten free it was a relatively new concept.  I deduced how gluten impacted me through the simple process of journaling how foods caused my body to react.
  • Stay hydrated. We all know the importance of water.  We all need reminding of the importance of hydration. ‘Nuff said.
  • Fiber. There are myriad reasons I love Attune Foods’ Uncle Sam’s cereal and its fiber content is one of them.  Fiber helps the digestive tract stay regular, improves heart health and regulates blood sugar levels.

 

Exercise:

  • Schedule your workouts so you can relax and wait for food to digest prior to exercising. This is my best tip and one which I learned the, uh, hard way.  Don’t be me.
  • High-impact exercise/group exercise classes can wreak havoc on a delicate digestive tract. Listen to your body and perhaps join me in weight training, yoga, stationary biking, walking or other more digestive-tract friendly endeavors.

 

Stress:

 

  • Nervous stomach anyone? The best way to avoid digestive issues (which can degrade over-all health) is to mitigate stress wherever possible.  Practice deep breathing techniques, launch a yoga practice, employ visualization techniques.  Less life stress definitely results in fewer digesting ailments.
  • Live mindfully. Just as I’ve shifted to eating mindfully I strive to live mindfully.  The more I become in tune with my body and learn how it feels when in a state of health and calm the easier it has become for me to shift it there during times of unavoidable stress.

Yes (this is a topic which could be a book or dissertation & I have merely scratched the surface).

Yes (this has all been a process and one which is still continuing to evolve).

YES (you must join me. again, back to the preachy.)

You in?

 

*Please keep in mind that the information on this site does not constitute medical advice. Before embarking on any weight loss plan or making dietary changes, you should consult your doctor.

Carla photo Be well!

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Carla

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