Estimated Reading Time 8 Minutes
Hello again and welcome to the Vibrant Life! My name is Emily Romrell. Today is Monday, February 8th and this is Episode 3: The First Wealth is Health. On this episode, I’ll talk about the importance of working for and living a healthy lifestyle in all areas of our lives. We’ll go over some tips to becoming healthier physically, mentally, and emotionally. And we’ll talk about how becoming a healthier person is a process that takes time. Thank goodness for that!
Do you have a list of dead heroes? I sort of think we all do even if it’s slightly weird or morbid. When you read or learn about historical figures, there’s something that sparks the imagination and ignites imaginary yet meaningful albeit one-sided friendships. And I think these fanciful friendships are healthy and important because they help us to recognize the positive traits of others and develop them in our own lives.
One such friend of mine is the late great Ralph Waldo Emerson. I love his writing and his optimistic outlook on life. He had a wonderful way of picking out the simple truths and joys of life like fruit from a tree and then offering it to us with open arms to taste. I think he was a great man and I’m sure we would’ve been great friends if only we had been born within the same lifetime. The title of today’s episode is a tribute to Emerson because it’s one of his more famous quotes: The First Wealth Is Health.
This is sometimes a tricky subject because the world is flooded with so many ideas of what it means to be healthy and what the right way is to achieve a healthy lifestyle. I’m no expert, and I have a long way to go on my own journey, but that is why I started this podcast. I want it to be a platform where we can learn and grow together.
We all know the basics. Eat right. Exercise. Get enough sleep. But it’s one thing to know what to do and another thing to make it a working part of your life. I’ve tried about a hundred different ways of losing weight and getting in shape but so far I still haven’t created the habits I know are vital. I know I’m not the only one. The only thing we can do is keep on trying until we do build the right habits in our lives
Here’s something I do know. We have to change the way we think. Rather than feeling deprived because we are missing out on things we are used to or comfortable with. We need to recognize the need to build something new and better, and we should get as excited about it as possible.
As humans, I think perhaps our greatest strength is our ability to adapt and change, our ability to make choices in our lives. Isn’t it wonderful to think that whatever or wherever we are right now, we are just one choice away from becoming a better person.
And it’s important to start small. Choose an apple instead of a cookie for a snack. Go out with friends instead of choosing to stay home inside your comfort zone. If you catch yourself thinking a negative thought replace it with two good ones. These small choices we make daily are what our lives are made of. Little by little, we can transform ourselves into the people we want to be.
So let take a look at the three biggest areas of a healthy lifestyle. As I just said I still have a lot to learn, but I do have some tips that have helped me on my adventure so far.
PHYSICAL
Obviously, the first thing to talk about is physical fitness. We all have different objectives here. Many of us like myself are trying to lose weight and increase energy. Some of us are more focused on gaining muscle or training for a marathon. Whatever your goals are, here are a few tips that have helped me tremendously.
- Get enough sleep.
If I don’t get a good nights sleep, I know I won’t be worth as much the next day. Sleep is vital to stay alert and focused. It allows our minds to analyze the events of the previous day and prepare for what is coming next. If your body’s tired, your whole life will be tired. Alternatively, when you are rested, you are ready to meet the daily adventure head-on.
- Vitamins
I personally take Melaleuca Vitamins, and I can’t recommend them highly enough. I can feel the difference when I take them and when I don’t. Most people don’t get the nutrition they need from their diet alone. Since I’ve been taking vitamins I’ve had more energy, more optimism, and I’ve felt a lot healthier.
- Regular meals with Fruits and Veggies.
Just because you take vitamins doesn’t mean you don’t need to eat right. Sadly, the most convenient meals today are the least healthy for us. It’s a lot easier to grab a hamburger for lunch than to pack a salad to bring to work. But personal experience has proven to me that when I make the time to each healthier meals, I’m more satisfied and I get hungry less often.
It is also super important to not skip meals and to eat snacks. If you starve yourself the first half of the day, you’ll turn into a ravenous monster at the end of the day. Hanger is real. Give yourself time to enjoy food the right way, and you’ll be a happier person.
- Get Active / Involved
Exercise is one of my hardest things. I have an office job where I sit at a desk eight hours a day. When work’s over I’m mentally tired and don’t feel much like working out etc, but that’s exactly when I need to.
I have a gym membership to Planet Fitness, and I think they’re great. I’ve noticed that when I go to the gym after work I am re-energized and my body feels refreshed and ready to take on the evening part of my day.
That is something that works for me. You may be different. A lot of people prefer to exercise early before work. Some people like playing team sports like soccer or basketball. But whatever you do, it’s important to find something. The human body is an incredible machine, and it was made for running, jumping, playing, and loving life.
MENTAL
It’s just as important to keep our minds fit as it is for the rest of our bodies. Here are some tips for increasing brain power.
- Read. A lot
I love books. I love how reading influences your imagination. There is something magical about how our minds work when we read. We are transported into new worlds and discover endless possibilities.
Readers have an advantage from this. When difficult things cross our paths, we have the mental experience to teach us how to beat them. Because we have overcome hard things vicariously from books, we can imagine new solutions to problems in everyday life.
- Think Happy Thoughts
This is one of the most important things I have learned so far in my life. I am very hard on myself sometimes in my thoughts. I compare myself to others and think I should be a better person than I am. It is so easy to self criticize and become trapped in a circle of negativity.
Gradually I’ve become very observant of my inner dialogue, and when I find myself thinking negative things about myself or others. I stop and force myself to rethink something positive. By replacing negative thoughts with positive ones our eyes are opened to how great life is. Gratitude and hopefulness abound. It’s amazing!
- Learn New Things
I love facts and trivia. My family members teasingly call me a factoidian. There is so much to learn about in the world, and I love it. They say you get a new wrinkle in your brain every time you learn something new, and I want my brain as wrinkly as possible. The more I learn about the world, the more I am in awe of how majestic and beautiful it is. I’ve come to realize that each little truth I learn is a puzzle piece helping me understand the bigger picture of the universe one little bit at a time. A healthy brain is a wrinkly brain.
- Visualize
If you play sports, you’re most likely familiar with the power of visualization. I once heard a story about a prisoner of war in a Japanese internment camp during WW2. He loved to golf, so every day he would visualize himself playing eighteen holes. He imagined himself taking each swing and his mind’s eye would follow the imaginary golf ball as it flew across the green. When the war ended and he finally came home he played the best game of golf in his life even though he hadn’t actually played the game in years.
We become what we tell ourselves we are. Visualize yourself succeeding in your endeavors and your almost guaranteed success.
EMOTIONAL
Emotional health is overlooked a lot of times. I guess we just take it for granted, or else we feel that we must simply suck harmful feelings up and get on with life. These are big mistakes. We can never live a vibrant life until we can face our emotions. Here are a few tips for a healthy heart.
- Cultivate Special Relationships
A lonely life is not a healthy life. Our relationships with others are our most valuable possessions. Make sure that the people in your life know how much you care about them. Make time for them and support them in the things they are involved in. Listen to them and share your thoughts and feelings. We are all here to love each other and to help each other reach our vast potential.
- Let Go of Emotional Baggage
This is hard to do. Hurt is inescapable sometimes and once something has hurt us, we tend to carry the hurt with us. But when we choose to carry hurt we are unable to carry compassion and understanding. It helps me to remember how human we all are. We all make mistakes. I’ll try to forgive you your shortcomings if you can forgive mine. Then we can move forward together.
- Recognize, Accept, & Act on your feelings.
Sometimes we may not realize how much our feelings are holding us back. We may be angry at something for so long that we forget the anger and think what we are living with is normal. This isn’t healthy. Once we can recognize and accept our feelings, then we can deal with them. We can talk things out if we need to. This can also be very difficult, but our lives will be a lot healthier if we can accept our feelings and then deal with them.
So, as you move forward in the week, maybe you can take a few moments and seek out opportunities to make healthy choices and changes in your life. Start small and see what happens. And if you feel inclined to share your experiences. I’d love to hear how it goes.
