Many people feel that doing a few things like eating some warmed up frozen vegetables or maybe a salad here and there is being healthy. Often people think that if they take a walk once a month or visit a fitness center regularly, that this is healthy behavior and all they need to do. While these things are good things to do, they are just one part of the whole when it comes to the health of our body.
Too many in our society believe that they are healthy, when in reality they only do healthy behaviors as the need or time arises. If everyone was truly practicing healthy behaviors, our fitness centers would outnumber the Walgreen stores in our cities and our grocery stores would be selling much different products than they are. If you don't believe me, count up how many fitness centers are in your local community versus how many drug stores there are or take an inventory of how much space the healthy food takes up in a grocery store versus the junk food isles.
At one time, I used to get colds and flu just like everyone else. When everyone was sick around me, I would pick the flu up at some point. While I thought I was healthy, I have found out that I really did not understand what this meant at the time. We can fool ourselves like I did much, but unfortunately in our society, we do not have healthcare. We have sick care!
The following is what I do to avoid getting the flu. While I know this list varies for each person out there, these are the things that I personally do. I no longer get sick and in fact, if it wasn't for the news headlines talking about flu ravaging the country, I would almost forget that people get sick this frequently. So here is my list and please feel free to add what you do, but these are the things that work for me.
1) My top one is in regards to the nervous system and my stress level. So many of us go through life with stressed out nervous systems and we really don't understand what the balance of the nervous system is all about in our life. This is one of the main areas that I have worked on and I can honestly say that my nervous system is much more healthy than it ever has been. When it is out of balance, you can expect all kinds of health conditions including the flu to be present in your life.
2) Next on my list is whole food smoothies. I do this every day and it really does make a big difference. A few years ago, I heard about this concept in a QiGong seminar by Jeff Primack. At first, I was skeptical, but we decided to try it. In the beginning it was a pain getting the vegetables and fruits and cutting them up, but as we went, this got much easier. Today, there is no way we would stop this practice. It impacts our health in such a big way and it really energizes the body. If you wish not to believe the concept behind this, at least I would hope you would agree that eating unprocessed fruits an vegetables is one of the most healthy things you can do. For me, I know what goes into these smoothies and that is important because I am not paying someone to create some pill or drink and claiming it has healthy and healing properties. I would much rather do this simple process knowing exactly what is going into it and not just making some health company wealthy.
3) Exercise is one that is important but to be honest, I don't get as much exercise in as I should. It is a goal of mine that I want to work on because the body needs this. At one time in my life, I had jobs that required a lot of physical exercise in my day, but now I am more sedentary. Exercise helps get the toxins flowing in the body and it helps invigorate the mind. Without it, the body runs down and the aches and pains of life take over.
4) Hydration is also tops on my list. At one time, I used to drink some water in a day but I mostly drank soft drinks and flavored juices. I would say that at least 95% of what I drink in any given day is water with an occasional iced tea or soft drink. However, I limit sugared drinks and we don't have them in our house. In addition, I really try to make sure I drink several glasses of water in a day so I can stay fully hydrated.
5) Checking out the ingredients and reducing sugar intake in the food that we buy is another thing we do. If you are not reading the labels and checking out the ingredients on the food you buy, you are hurting yourself. Many ingredients are just not healthy or good for our bodies, but very few people really pay attention to this. In fact, if you do a little research on them you will see how toxic they can be. Our society as a whole consumes far too much sugar which is something that the cells of the body struggle to discard. It is not a healthy substance in the quantities that most of us consume it in.
6) Eating a balanced diet is essential in not getting the flu. I am not talking about having some steamed vegetables soaked in butter at your favorite restaurant or eating an occasional salad drenched in salad dressing. I'm not referring either to cooking some frozen vegetables. Our diet needs more whole foods that haven't had their enzymes obliterated by processing, freezing, or deep frying. Yes, I know you can state that these foods have x amount of various vitamins and minerals in them, but the enzymes and phytochemicals our body needs is missing. A balanced diet is one that takes all of this into account and doesn't just go for the processed fast food that you buy or that most restaurants sell.
7) Getting plenty of sleep is essential. The body needs this time to repair and rejuvenate itself. Without adequate sleep, our nervous system and cells of our body cannot find balance. Lack of sleep causes more stress on our body and sets the health of our body up for failure. Getting plenty of rest is essential in avoiding the flu.
8) Meditation and relaxation are extremely essential in helping our body stay healthy and avoiding the flu. This is not something you do as a New Year's resolution or while on vacation. It is something that should be a part of every day. The more we push our bodies and our minds, the more we are adding insult to injury. Our bodies and our minds were not meant to be pushed as hard as we push them without downtime in areas such as meditation and relaxation. If we really want our bodies to be healthy, we will find ways on a daily basis to relax. This of course, does not mean that relaxation is at the hands of an alcoholic beverage. It is purely stopping and letting our body come down and allowing our nervous systems to regain balance.
9) Understanding the healing power of the body is vital if we want to avoid the flu. Healing does not come from someone outside of us. Healing does not come from a pill or procedure or flu shot. True healing happens within the body. We are not only the source of illnesses, but we are the source of our healing. Other people can help us get to the healing within, but not at the expense of our role in this process. To learn more about this and not just take my word for it, check out the book, Breaking The Habit Of Being Yourself by Dr. Joe Dispenza.
10) Don't think sick! How many times have you heard (like I have) that everyone is getting sick, so I guess my time is coming sooner or later? How many times do you think that people are getting sick around you so you begin to feel fearful of getting the flu as well. It is almost like it is unavoidable. However, if you identify with being sick and you think sickness, then guess what your body does? It gravitates towards what you think about. Rather than worrying about the flu or sickness going around, focus on taking care of your body and doing the things that I talked about in this blog post.
We all can do much more for our body and our mind than we currently do. We expect a pill, flu shot, or procedure to heal us, and then we go back to the self limiting behaviors that make us unhealthy humans. If we don't begin to become aware of our role in the health of our body, how will we ever change it? If everyone did a few things on this list, our visits to the doctor's office for treatment would drastically reduce.
Of course, if you are like I was many years ago, I thought that most of this was just nonsense. I have learned now in my life that I can impact my health in a very substantial way and I don't have to get sick. Yes, I can go take all the flu shots and over the counter meds I want to, but at the end of the day I have not made myself any more healthy. The health of my body is a result of what I put into it and what I do to eliminate stressors in my life. It is a lifestyle choice that I make, but more importantly what I am saying in this blog post, works! It works! This isn't some high and pious new age mumble jumble. The evidence that it works is found in how healthy my life is and how I avoid the flu.
Blog Post And Images (c) 1/10/13 by Don Shetterly
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