Me too.
I don't know about you, but in my opinion, there are few things more important than health. If we're not healthy, we're struggling in some aspect of life.
My husband and I just returned from a conference that focused on health and wealth. What a beautiful combo. The first half of our 8 days was focused on health. The second half was wealth.
In my next two blogs, I plan to share with you my biggest take aways from each portion. So buckle up, here are my top 5 health actionables that I've added into my life since returning home...
1. Leafy greens for EVERY breakfast:
A 2017 study conducted by Medical News Today showed that out of the TEN leading causes of death in America today, SIX of them are directly related to diet.
Holy crap guys, this is serious. And this also means, some of these deaths are completely avoidable.
The quality of our health relates directly to the quality of our cells. Based on what we put into our bodies (mentally and emotionally too), our blood is either primarily acidic or alkaline. Disease grows in an acidic environment, it cannot grow in a highly alkaline one.
So with every bite, we are either contributing to disease, or contributing to longevity based on our choices (stress and lifestyle can be acid forming too).
Here are some common examples of ALKALI forming foods: almonds, carrots, dates, avocados, lemons, limes, coconuts, celery, cucumbers, cauliflower, brussel sprouts, asparagus, green beans, broccoli, peppers, onions, green leafy, veggies, wheatgrass, walnuts, tofu, lima beans, spinach.
Here are some common ACID forming foods: pork, veal, fish, beef, chicken, turkey, eggs, shrimp, lobster, hot dogs, whole wheat and rye breads, refined sugar, cheese, milk, sour cream, yogurt, margarine, mushrooms, coffee, tea, wine and beer.
Though I eat well, my new plan is to eat raw veggies for breakfast too. I plan to make sure each meal is 70% raw (in smoothies counts!) or lightly steamed veggies in order to maintain an alkali environment. Fresh, alive foods give more energy than they take away from the body and help maintain alkaline balance. I do eat fish sometimes, but I figure if I eat this much raw plant food, I'm staying on the cleaner side of things.
2. Once per month colon cleanse:
I know, it's disgusting. But you know what's even more disgusting? The fact that the average human walks around with 10-15 lbs of compacted fecal matter in their colon.
I had my first colonic in Nepal 20 years ago when studying yoga. My husband and I have dabbled with enemas over the years. But for this conference, we fasted for four days, ate only greens on the other four days and did 3 colon cleanses.
Holy shit. Literally.
Toxins first build up in the bowel as a result of stress or consuming too many acidic foods. When the bowel becomes toxic, it contaminates the blood, which then spreads toxins elsewhere in the body, as you can imagine.
Cleansing the bowel allows you to remove accumulated mucoid plaque in order to protect from disease. So next time you feel like you're about to get sick, try doing colonics!
We were told at a MINIMUM we should be doing this once per year. I plan to go once per month. Fellow Coloradans, I'll let you know when I find a colonic center I like!
3. Daily oil intake:
I've dabbled with taking fish oil throughout my life. I was especially good when pregnant, but am pretty inconsistent on a daily basis. Attending this conference gave me reason to get real serious about oils and essential fatty acids.
Udo Erasmus, founder of Udo's Oil came to talk with us about oil in the body and the confusion about how all oil is bad for us. Many of us know this by now.
He spoke about how pediatricians are seeing kids with all kinds of mental and emotional problems, kids who are low energy or hyperactive and more. He believes this is directly related to low consumption of healthy fats. Kids get plenty of bad fats, but it's hard for any of us to consume enough good fat to keep our mind agile, our skin supple, and our emotions in check.
So, 3 tablespoons of Udo's oil is my daily jam. One after each meal. So far, I've only been able to convince my kids to do it once per day, but it's a start.
4. Activate lymph:
The lymphatic system is a fluid system in the body that is not moved by a major organ. The blood moves by the pumping of the hearts. Our lungs move air through us. But our lymphatic system needs to be stimulated in order to continue to cleanse and detoxify our bodies.
Here are 3 ways we can stimulate the flow of lymph in our systems:
A. Deep belly breaths. This is a new addition to my morning practice. Inhale for 8 seconds. Hold for 32. Exhale for 16. Do this 4 times.
B. Exercise or rebound. Any kind of running, jumping, moving etc can get our lymph flowing. My husband and I bought a mini trampoline a few years ago and we have it in our bedroom. We use it in the mornings and I use it when I need a break or a reenergizing moment between tasks.
C. Dry brush. Buy a dry brush from a health food store and create circular motions starting on your extremities and moving towards your heart. This gets the lymph flowing and recirculating towards your major organs. I've been using a loofa, but I think it's time to step up to a dry brush.
5. Emotional health
How healthy are we really if we feel completely out of control of our emotions? We all have emotional homes we settle into. For some of us, our emotional home starts at a much higher place than others. What is your emotional home? What is your self-talk like?
Knowing and understanding how to get out of our emotional pitfalls when we're in them in my mind is the key to emotional mastery. I believe spending days or months feeling mad, sad, sorry, etc adds more acid to the body and does more damage than eating donuts every day for breakfast.
I am a big believer in having a morning practice. It doesn't have to be in the morning, but some kind of daily practice. During this time, a person can pray, set intentions, create positive self-talk, meditate, take deep breaths, do energy work, journal, dance, jump on a trampoline, exercise (if it's done with mental and emotional intention) and more. All of these things are a way to claim and set our day.
We cannot exist at the mercy of our rampant (and sometimes random) emotions. We have more power and control over our wellbeing than this. Having a daily practice allows this.
Here's to you and your incredible health. My birthday happened while we were away and fasting, and I couldn't think of a better way to spend it. My birthday wish for you is incredible commitment to your own health, however that may look for you. As one of our facilitators said: "We must get our bodies out of the way so our spirits can shine through them."
Love,
Brie
Emotional health is why I started hosting retreats. We all need time to pull away and reconnect to ourselves and our deepest intentions. Think you could use an opportunity to find new inspiration in your life?
March 16-23rd