If You Want A Healthy Mind, Start With Your Body

Here at Get Fit Slowly, I try and write about how to be healthy. I write about eating right and exercising often. I write about family and friendships. I write about research that I find interesting and training exercises that I’ve tried or would like to try. Sometimes I even talk about BMI, blood pressure, insulin, body fat%, cholesterol and nutrition. Sure, these things are all components of health. But what does it really mean to be healthy?

Two years ago, I wasn’t a very healthy person. I ate poorly, I slept poorly, and I never exercised other than the occasional round of golf. I could no longer play basketball well and was often out of breath just going up a flight of stairs. Years of neglect had turned my body into a 221 pound doughball.

But having kids, and a healthy, active, athletic wife finally lit a fire under me. Slowly, I began to turn my life around. Eating right and frequent exercise became more important to me. The pounds started falling off my body and I became a happier and healthier individual.

To me, being healthy has many components, both physical and mental.

The physical components such as eating right, frequent exercise, and good sleep habits are relatively easy to learn about. One can read a blog (preferably mine), check out a book at the library, subscribe to a health magazine, or even watch the news for tips on how to live a healthy life. Now we all now that learning about things and putting them in our repertoire are two different things. But the information is out there if you want to look for it.

But the mental aspects of being healthy are a bit more elusive. For me, the biggest mental health hurdle that I face is allowing myself to believe that I’m no longer that man in the 221 pound body. I’ve been on many a successful diet. But with each previous one, there was always a feeling of dread. I knew that I wasn’t making permanent lifestyle changes and that eventually, the weight would come back on.

I sometimes still think these terribly frightening thoughts. But lately, the interval between them has been steadily increasing. The difference now is that I know I have made lifestyle changes and that chances are, I’ll stay successful. I’ve been working at this for so long that going back to the ways of the old Mac aren’t really possible because I forgot who the old Mac was. This makes me extremely happy.

The weird thing is though, I’m not a 221 pound brain inside a 175 pound body either. I actually think that because I have been able to lose my weight slowly through the proper channels that my brain has had time to adjust to my weight loss as well. All the habits trapped in the brain of the 221 pound man have been slowly transformed into the habits of a 175 pound man. I honestly feel that my brain and my body are finally on the same page. This also makes me extremely happy.

There are lots of ways to lose weight. And I always say that no one way is the right way. The way that works for you is the right way for you. For me, changing my physical habits for the better has definitely paved the way to a healthy mind. Have I mentioned that I’m extremely happy?

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