7 Pillars to Great Health
Like Cher Once said, “If a great body came in a bottle, everyone would have one.” Wouldn’t we though? I mean, to be able to just pop a pill and have the healthy results we want in a snap would be wonderful. Alas, achieving great health is not that easy. It may seem like a lot of work, but great health only takes a little bit of focus is all.
From my own experience, I’ve come up with 7 pillars that I do personally to keep me feeling awesome. I am absolutely amazed with how good I fell, every single day. I wish I could bottle up the way I feel and give it to everyone I know!
Here are the 7 pillars to great health that I implement in my life.
1. Eat Well – By eating well I mean to eat real, organic, healthy foods. These are real fresh fruits and veggies, organic, grass-fed dairy and meats. And no, corn and potatoes don’t really count as a good vegetable intake. Eliminate processed foods and sugars as much as possible. I have a simple motto…if God made it, you’re good to go. If man made it, RUN! I live by the 15/6 rule. If we eat three meals a day for week, that equals 21 meals. If you eat 15 meals at home during the week say, that leaves you with 6 meals to use for variety as I say. You know, life events that happen like going to a wedding, movie night, out to eat with family or friends, or lunch date with co-workers. I believe life is full of variety so leave room for it.
2. Quiet Time – It’s true. We all need to learn to take a time out. Having quiet time brings about a peacefulness in the body and in today’s society, we need more peacefulness in our lives. Our days are so filled with our busy schedules, work, bills, and all the other stressors you can think of. Taking some quiet time helps to relax the body, mind and spirit. Learn how to meditate. There are different levels of meditation, so no need to be afraid of trying it. It’s all about quieting the mind. My favorite is to listen to nature sounds, like beach waves, rain, or birds and wildlife. This can be from a recording or get out in nature for the real thing! Trust me on this one. You’re going to love having quiet time in your life once you make it a habit.
3. Play Time – Yes, adults need play time too. Take time for yourself to do the things you love to do. It can be reading or crafting, hiking or walking, watching a great movie or even working on your car. Any activity or hobby that makes you happy and feel good. Our brain sends feel-good endorphins when we are doing things we enjoy. Play time can help to improve your overall mood, stimulate your creative side, and even help to calm you down through some of life’s constantly happening challenges.
4. Exercise – Our bodies were meant to move. Our bodies hurt and become sore when we don’t move. Our muscles atrophy quickly, especially as we age. Exercise and movement also create more oxygen in the cells of our body. This is good because cancer cells hate oxygen. Regular exercise helps to keep our joints fluid which can help to minimize injury. It also improves balance, posture, bone density, strength, mobility and flexibility. Here too, the brain sends out those feel-good endorphins that keep us feeling youthful.
5. Self-Care and Self-Love – These two are very close so I lumped them together, but I think they are very different things to some degree. The act of doing self-care, like grooming and good hygiene, relaxing, maintaining good nutrition, maintaining your social network, exercising and getting good sleep (to name a few) are all key components to staying healthy and balanced. Eliminating toxins in our surroundings, as well as what goes in and our bodies is also part of self-care. Self-care is what really got me through the brunt end of grieving after my daughter passed away from her cancer. It’s super important. What I discovered though, was that I wasn’t really loving myself enough. Yeah, I love myself and I was going through the motions of doing all these things, but I felt like something was missing. When I finally figured out how to truly feel loved by myself, I find I am more active in doing these self-care acts. I make appointments with myself and I never miss a date.
6. Visualization – I use visualization every night before going to sleep and every morning when I wake. Visualization helps me to focus my energy on the things I want like good health, a comfortable home, and memorable family time. This also helps me with staying positive. Again, after the death of my daughter, trying to stay positive was sometimes a difficult task. I remind myself often that where your attention goes, your energy flows. Visualization helps me to stay focus on the positive way I want to feel and live. It also helps to heal the body. Visualization exercises like mediation, can help to decrease pain and relieve stress by helping you to relax.
7. Gut Health - Finally, gut health plays a very important role with our immune system and overall well-being. Its microbiome controls our digestion and many other aspects in keeping us healthy. While bacteria lives throughout our entire body, the bacteria that live in our gut has the biggest impact on our health and affects everything from our mood to protecting us from sickness and disease. Our gut is often called our second brain with a connection to our brain through the enteric nervous system. Put simply, gut health equals brain health. Eating a diet loaded with fresh, real, organic foods, probiotics and good quality supplements to start with, will help to keep that good gut microbiome flourishing, thus allowing great health and vitality to flourish as a result.
An added bonus pillar, if you will, would be to drink lots of water. Water is life and essential for all the cells in our body. Check out my blog post titled, Drink More Water, about tips on staying hydrated and also my blog titled, Immune Builder Basics, for basic tips on how anyone can boost their immune system.
I believe an imbalance of these 7 pillars (and the bonus pillar) leads to being unwell and unhealthy in a myriad of ways, including cancer. If you’re just beginning your health journey, start by choosing one or two pillars from this list and build from there. Your new healthy behaviors are contagious, and you’ll find the momentum will keep going for you!