The closest thing to a “magic bullet” for maintaining youth and optimal health is a well-balanced combination of proper nutrition and eating habits and regular exercise. Health for me is the ability to lead a happy and creative life. Dis-ease is a limitation on that freedom. Here are some simple “golden rules” to follow to maximize your chances of a healthy and productive life.
1. Don’t overeat. Leave the table before you are feeling really full. It is better for the food to rot and be composted in the earth than to rot and be composted in your body.
2. Chew your food properly. 20-30 times is a good average. By chewing your food properly, you are allowing the proper breakdown of the food so that your body has the nutrients available to assimilate. It is also a really good discipline to prevent overeating.
3. Be relaxed when eating, as much as possible. If you are stressed or eating when you don’t really feel like it, you compromise your parasympathetic nervous system.
4. Eat whole foods and eliminate as much processed food as possible.
5. Whenever possible eat uncontaminated and organically grown food.
6. Eat simply. It is a treat to really get to taste the food itself and enjoy it.
7. Eat a varied diet with as many different fruits and vegetables as you can, as each one has a different set of phytonutrients in it.
8. Eat as much locally grown food as possible.
9. Eat a large percentage of your food raw, and remember to chew it well.
10. Don’t eat right before going to sleep. One of the things that happens right after we fall asleep is that the anterior pituitary gland produces human growth hormone that burns fat tissue, promotes lean muscle, and stimulates immune function. If you eat right before going to sleep, insulin is produced that blocks the growth hormone release.
11. Exercise on a regular basis…..even if it is just walking around the block each day. Regular exercise improves digestion and elimination, increases endurance and energy levels, and lowers overall blood cholesterol. It also reduces stress and anxiety which are contributing factors to many illnesses and conditions.
12. Take a high quality liquid vitamin/mineral supplement, preferably from organic whole food sources. Our land based food sources are severely depleted of essential vitamins, minerals and trace minerals. Without these minerals the body cannot utilize the vitamins you do take in.
[…] Sometimes we need a reminder of the basics in our busy lives, and John’s Healthy Lifestyle does just that with Some Simple Golden Rules for Nutrition and Health. […]