22/07/2024
I'm curious, how do you rate your health and well-being? Would you say that you have good health? Possibly you have excellent health or do you have poor health? Have you thought about your current health and entertained the idea of making changes to improve it? Moreover, have you ever thought about what would happen if you became ill through disease? How would you continue to work and provide for yourself and your family? It isn't a pleasant thought, is it? Nonetheless, it needs to be considered, doesn't it? With this in mind, let us look at the following;
Measuring Years Of Healthy Life.
Due to the multidimensional nature of health assessing years of healthy life is more complex than measuring life expectancy, and the field is still evolving. Various measures are used nationally and internationally to measure the health component of expected years of healthy life. These fall into the following general categories:
1. Physical Fitness {cardiovascular health, physical strength, posture, flexibility and balance/harmony of the musculoskeletal system, including bone density}
2. Well-Being {are you living a harmonious lifestyle whereby your work, family, friends and diet nourish and nurture you. Also, do you make time for hobbies and interests?
For the sake of pragmatism and efficacy let us streamline this discussion by highlighting the key issues i.e. Your health and well-being. Therefore, I'm going to put you in the 'hot seat.' Tell me, how do you rate your overall health on a scale of 1-10? 1=Very Poor 5=Average 10=Excellent. Be brutally honest with yourself. Allow me to guide you. How many days per week do you engage in consistent moderate to intense physical activity of at least 20-30 minutes? 0,1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 7? If you don't exercise at all, then it's time to change this, isn't it? If you exercise 1-2 times, then you can improve and aim for 3-5 times, if you exercise 5 or more times then great! Keep it up. Just remember not to overdo it. I recommend having one day off each week although you may wish to have a low-key day and enjoy a walk with your family or partner.
Next, let us look at your hydration. Most of our body is made up of plasma and saline fluid and it is a vital regulator and mediator within our bodies' Microcosm and Biological Terrain. FACT! Most people are oblivious that they are acutely dehydrated. To confuse the issue there is no set standard volume of water that we need to drink each day. There are simply too many variables such as body mass and size, climatic conditions, exercise intensity, duration and frequency to consider. Suffice it to say that a young child of ten will require approximately 1 litre/day, a teenager 2 litres and an adult 3 or more litres. This is a very rough rule of thumb. Another consideration is the temperature of the water. Ideally, it should be close to your body temperature i.e. 37.5 Degrees Celsius. Refrigerated and chilled water actually inhibits your guts' ability to absorb water. I also recommend adding Celtic Salt to your water with some slices of lemon or having a warm drink of green tea in a thermos flask. If you drink alcohol I recommend reducing your intake to a minimum. Even better don't drink at all. There is no documented benefit to consuming alcohol at all. So, why drink it?
I would also urge you to minimize your consumption of fruit juice and sodas. They contain excessive sugar. As do most processed foods and many brands of yoghurt. Read the label. Speaking of sugar, the average person consumes between 10 and 20 teaspoons of sugar per day. Scary isn't it! When you consider that the recommended limit is 6 teaspoons. An ideal sugar substitute is honey, specifically Manuka honey. Which is not only incredibly sweet but also has a host of medicinal and nutritional properties. You could also use Mollasses which is healthy and high in iron so particularly beneficial for growing children and women. And can be consumed straight with a tablespoon. And added into baking. *WARNING! Avoid artificial sweeteners such as Aspartame and Nutrasweet. They contain Neurotoxins and a cocktail of toxic additives. Corn Syrup is also used as a sweetener in many processed foods. It is sourced from GMO corn and is highly refined. Therefore avoid this.
Let us now look at nutrition and your diet. It is an extensive topic and relatively complex therefore I'll provide you with a brief overview of what to consider. My first suggestion is to listen to your body. Some people do not like to eat breakfast and prefer to break their fast at lunchtime. Whichever preference you have here are some suggestions for your meals;
BREAKFAST:
1. Organic muesli e.g. Chantel, Cerus or your own combo with oats, seeds, nuts and fruit. Perhaps with a generous dollop of organic yogurt. Avoid the commercial brands of yoghurt due to the high levels of sugar. They also lack the necessary probiotics and prebiotics.
2. Pancakes. Why not? They can be healthy, nourishing, tasty and convenient. Are you a sweet tooth or more savoury? The main ingredient in pancakes is flour and not all flours are equal. So, here's a list of healthy flours to choose from;
a. Buckwheat {gluten free}
b. Spelt
c. Oat
d. Almond
e. Rye
f. Rice
g. Amaranth
When preparing the pancake mixture I would recommend adding two eggs for each person. Eggs are a complete protein and packed with goodness. Next, if you're making savoury pancakes then you could add some raisins, dates, bananas, chopped nuts and seeds in addition to spices e.g. Cinnamon powder, Clove powder, Ginger powder, 5 spice and Pepper. All of these ingredients can be added to the mixture provided they are diced into small pieces other it will make cooking a challenge. Once cooked you can top it with fresh cream and yoghurt. If choosing savoury, then follow the same format as for sweet pancakes. Just swap the sweet ingredients and spices for savoury spices and herbs. And a tomato mix with chilli Whilst adding cheese with sausage, minced beef and beans, chicken and beans, fish or Jackfruit. These are just quick examples.
I recommend that you use olive oil or butter for cooking your savoury pancakes and coconut oil or butter for your sweet pancakes. * Note. Avoid Canola oil margarine.
For lunch or the evening meal you could choose a rice dish as a base or pasta and why not consider a nice hearty meat or vegetarian stew or a thick sweet potato and pumpkin soup. Adding in meat or vegetarian foods such as; Pearl Barley and Red Lentils or Quinoa and Amaranth with Split Peas. In addition to a good quality organic stock of Beef, Chicken, Fish or Vegetable. Alternatively, you may prefer a casserole or roast. The main thing is to have variety and flavour with natural ingredients so that you and your family are nourished.
I'll now recap and summarise my outlined recommendations. I suggest that you set some goals and objectives before beginning your quest. Get specific and identify your objectives. What do you want to achieve? Is it weight loss and improved cardiovascular fitness or flexibility and strength? Once you have identified your goals then it is time to prepare for change and be able to track your progress. A simple and rudimentary yet effective way to measure your changes in body weight and distribution of body fat is to simply measure your girth {waist} and chest with a measuring tape. And repeat this assessment every month. To measure your cardiovascular fitness, a simple assessment is to measure your resting heart rate in the morning upon waking. While lying down in a prone position with a stopwatch, place your index finger on your carotid artery located on your neck {alternatively, you may have a heart rate monitor watch to use}. Take your pulse for 15 seconds and multiply by 4 to get your resting heart rate per minute. Repeat this every month and compare the data to monitor your improvements.
Thank you for taking the time to read my post and I hope that it has been of benefit to you. If you have any questions or would like to consider a consultation with me to coach you towards your goals please feel welcome to do so. I can be contacted via email, mobile phone or on WhatsApp.
I look forward to receiving your comments.
Wishing you optimal health and well-being
Damon Baragwanath
Firstinhealth Holistic Health & Life Coaching Ltd
