Health is personal, complex, and ever-evolving. Your wellbeing hinges on multiple interconnected and complex factors. Consequently, navigating the wellness world and striving for optimal health can be overwhelming, especially now when you have a multitude of information and products promising to help you attain your health goals. However, the pursuit of health and wellness can be fairly uncomplicated if you choose to focus on the basics.
The following are six pillars of health and wellness that can help you achieve all-round transformation.
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- Nourishment
What you eat can heal or hurt you. At the basic level, nourishment is about consuming whole and real foods. Based on Harvard’s Health Eating plate guide, you should typically consume whole grains, vegetables, fruit, healthy proteins, and healthy fats. Further, you should drink water instead of sugary beverages and limit the amount of alcohol you consume. Importantly, you should enjoy your food – cook with your loved ones, experiment with flavors, eat slowly, relishing every bite.
- Nourishment
- Movement
Movement is about how you move and exercise your body. This pillar isn’t only about burning calories and striving for the perfect physique, it’s also about incorporating movement into your everyday life in a fun and sustainable manner that will enable you to have a capable and strong body. Therefore, you should find activities that are fun, which encourage you to explore and push your limits daily. You can be outdoors and enjoy nature while engaging in activities such as biking, hiking, or surfing.
- Wind Down
Winding down refers to relaxation, sleep management, and stress management. It can be difficult to wind down in a culture that promotes busyness. However, being unable to wind down can take a toll on your nervous system and elevate stress that can affect every aspect of your health. You can manage stress through practices such as mindfulness, breathing, counselling, doing things that you enjoy, talking to friends, learning self-soothing skills, etc. You should also get adequate sleep because sleep is an essential building block of health. Therefore, create healthy sleeping habits such as turning off screens before bed, going to sleep when tired, cutting alcohol, sleeping in a cool and dark room, and taking a shower before you sleep.
- Protection
Protection refers to managing modern life’s toxic load. We live in a world full of toxins, from endocrine disrupters in cleaning products to glyphosate in vegetables. You can limit your exposure to toxins by first educating yourself and making meaningful changes to your environment. Always opt for organic produce and non-toxic products.
- Connection
Connection with your inner emotional self and others is essential for wellbeing and health. With this in mind, foster meaningful relationships with others and set aside time for connection practices such as yoga, socializing, journalizing, mindfulness and breathing, and meditation.
- Purpose
Purpose entails pursuing your passions and nurturing your unique gifts and talents. Purpose often grows from connection practices, like meditation, mindfulness, therapy, and journaling. Discover what excites you, your unique gifts that can be used to help others, and other talents that set you apart.
Are you ready to explore practical strategies to live better and optimize your vitality? Contact our experts at Genesis Performance today. We will help you incorporate holistic healthcare pillars into your daily life.
