Lifestyle plays a huge role in our health and well-being!

Why is obesity on the rise and our health deteriorating even though we now have all the technology and knowledge for us to be the healthier than we have ever been?

Our lifestyle surely plays a massive role in why this is the case. I have now worked in this industry for 10 years and watched people go round in circles with their health.

The gym and exercise is seen as a means to an end, rather than a lifestyle choice that provides longevity for our health. Most people exercise during the week so we can let the wheels come off at the weekend. This just sends us round on a hamster wheel of maintaining an unhealthy body composition, not to mention the damage that is done to our overall health creating oxidative stress and cellular damage. It's not all about what the scales are saying.

We are more sedentary than our previous generations due to being able to access everything at a click of a button and technology providing us with everything we need without having to work for it.

There are now apps for everything, to tell us when to eat, when sleep and our quality, how and when to exercise and although knowledge is power, are we becoming overwhelmed with too much knowledge, not knowing which way turn?

Have we lost the ability to intuitively know what our bodies require to keep us healthy, without looking at an app to tell us what our bodies are screaming at us, if we would only listen?

We are working longer hours, with both parents in full time work, we have less leisure time, more financial pressures and a greater pressure from social media to project success.

Our society today prioritises material success over a balanced lifestyle, promoting quantity over quality. I feel we should be focusing on the quality of our life, with less stress, improved health both mental and physical, and fostering better relationships where we are more connected. In a world where we are constantly connected to others we are more alone and depressed than ever. Is this because we are valuing the quantity of connections rather than the quality?

The mind & body connection is undoubtably one of the most overlooked aspects of our health. Many deficiencies with in our bodies which can lead to poor mental and physical health can be resolved with lifestyle changes.

There are basic principles to health that if applied regularly for a consistent period of time will eradicate most health issues. We have a rise in pre-diabetes, diabetes, cancer, heart conditions, auto-immune illnesses and obesity. With a dramatic change in our lifestyles over the past 20 years this isn't surprising. There are now apps for everything, a wealth of information at the tips of our fingers and yet we are becoming increasing more unhealthy. Is this because we want a fast, easy fix to our health, or because we have an overload of information and therefore don't know which way to turn? Personally I think it's a bit of both.

So how can we take back control of our own health without the use of an app to guide us? I think most of us know the basic principles of health, but we are seeking an easier, gentler way to achieve them. Unfortunately the bad news there isn't!

Change isn't easy, it requires work, consistency and perseverance, but if done steadily it will create sustainable and lasting changes to our health.

The Basic Principles Of Health

Nutrition

Eating a whole food diverse diet, will improve your gut health, metabolic health, metabolism, and body composition. I recommend a diet that is full of as many vegetables as possible, eat the rainbow. Fruit can be added, however, caution needs to taken here, although some fruits are high in antioxidants, essential vitamins and fibre, they are also high in glucose and fructose and therefore will affect the blood sugar and can still cause metabolic issues.

Ensure you are eating sufficient protein based on 1.2-

1.8 grams per kg of ideal body weight.

Gradually increase your protein intake to ensure this doesn't affect your digestion. Fibre is extremely important as this will improve your gut health and will also reduce the glycemic index of any foods you consume that are high in glucose.

Ensure all your carbohydrates are complex carbohydrates and try to consume plenty of mono saturated fats and reduce saturated fats and exclude trans fats and polyunsaturated fats.

Exercise

Workout 3-4 times a week, including resistance training twice a week to maintain muscle mass. As we age we lose approximately 1% per year of our muscle mass. Performing resistance training through weights, resistance bands or body weight resistance training will help to grow muscle mass and maintain what we already have. This will keep us mobile, strong and active!

Stress

Stress in life is unavoidable! How we choose to manage our stress in our lives is fundamental not only to our mental health but also our physical health. The mind & body connection is undoubtably strong and our mental health directly affects our metabolic health. There are many tools for managing stress, being out in nature, animals and pets, mindfulness and meditation, listening to relaxing music, and being with friends and family.

A daily meditation practice has been proven to reduce the production of cortisol up 50%. Cortisol is a stress hormone that is produced when the body or mind is under threat. This can be emotional, physical and environmental. Cortisol is a very important hormone as it is responsible for waking us up in the morning, reducing inflammation and protecting us from dangerous or threatening situations; however, too much cortisol can disrupt the effectiveness of the mitochondria being able to function making us feel tired and creating inflammation in the body. By implementing one of these tools we can dramatically affect our health.

Avoid stimulants to try to manage stress, such as smoking, alcohol, drugs and the overuse of caffeine. These will all have negative affect on your health, creating oxidative stress in our cells which damages our mitochondria, and will very often prevent you from implementing healthy nutrition choices and exercise into your life.

Sleep

Sleep is vitally important to allow the body to rest and cells to repair and rejuvenate. We are part of a culture that sees running on little sleep is heroic, however this couldn't be further from the truth. We all need sleep, admittedly some need less than others, however, without sufficient sleep our body becomes a breeding ground for inflammation, with heightened cortisol levels, adrenaline and free radicals causing havoc. Our muscles repair and grow at rest, so if we are performing resistance training we need to sleep to really see the benefits of training hard in the gym.

It sounds like a tall order to gain back control over your health, but the trick is to make these changes one change at a time. Don't try and tackle everything at once!

If you would like to join my whole food, healthy eating community and receive a monthly newsletter with recipes, guides and advice then please click the link below

THE WHOLE FOOD HEALTHY EATING COMMUNITYAll your health and fitness needs lifestyle-fitnessTHE WHOLE FOOD HEALTHY EATING COMMUNITY https://www.lifestyle-fitness.co.uk/recipe-books

Let's get healthy together and take back control of our health and well-being!

•