Healthy Aging With Your Body Within
Are your beliefs about healthy aging, serving you or holding you back?
Are you setting the stage for healthy aging?
We all have an idea of what we believe aging “should” look like.
For instance, many people believe their experience will be the carbon copy of their parents or other family members.
They may even go so far as to take inventory of the ailments in their family and believe that those things are their destiny, too. Or they become so preoccupied with the possibility of illness that they place themselves on the strictest of health regimens.
On the other hand, some people believe so strongly that they could never be affected by their family’s medical history that they forgo most preventative care. Unfortunately, that ego usually comes back to bite them.
Of course, some people fall right in the middle. They go for their routine check-ups and tests and believe they’re all set.
Is that enough?
How much is too much? How much is not enough?
Let’s start a new cycle, one that isn’t destined to repeat history. Let’s create a new family blueprint to pass down to our children and their children so our families can flourish for generations.
Read on for some tips on how you can set the stage for healthy aging with your Body Within!
Look into your “aging crystal ball.”
My family is predisposed to type-two diabetes, heart disease, and obesity. Plus, we’re all predisposed to chronic pain and muscular-skeletal dysfunctions from inflammation and food sensitivities.
I have always used my nutrition to balance all those weaknesses. As a result, I’ve managed to avoid most of the chaos that the rest of my family experiences daily.
Ask yourself, “How do I see myself aging?”
Do you assume that you’ll age just like your parents? Do you think about it all? Do you have a plan?
How do any of us know the right thing to do as we age?
My favorite saying is, “Chaos Breeds Chaos. Balance Breeds Peace.”
If you keep your energy and body in balance, you are less likely to be subject to chaos. The key is to stay present in your choices and connect inward to let your Body Within guide you. This will allow you to determine exactly what your body needs to stay out of the chaos.
2. Re-evaluate your beliefs around aging.
I remember when my kids were young, my father-in-law had colon cancer, my mother-in-law had cervical cancer in her 30’s, and my sister-in-law had cervical cancer in her late 20’s.
To say I experienced the fear of God is an understatement. I was obsessed with making sure my entire family had all their preventative care. I kept an incredibly close eye on all of it. It tortured my husband! Between all the diet and lifestyle restrictions and worrying every time someone sneezed, he was losing it!
As I learned more about how the body heals, however, my fears eased. I realized my father-in-law had a low-fiber diet, worked with chemicals daily for the majority of his life, and made lead bullets in an unventilated basement.
My husband doesn’t do any of that!
Does that absolve him of the possibility of colon cancer? Not necessarily. However, his father certainly had a lot more reasons for developing it than he does. The warning signs were there all along. Now, my husband simply stays on top of his preventative care, exercises regularly and pays attention to his body. And that’s enough for me.
For us, the fear subsided and our current practices make much more sense. Once you see reality for what it is, outside of your fears, the chaos starts to subside, and you start to know your truth, not the truth of others.
So… how present are you in your body? How connected are you to what it needs?
What do your “aging glasses” look like? Are you living in a clear reality? Or are you putting your own spin on reality based on what you want to believe?
Sit with the answers to those questions for a minute. View your family’s habits, lifestyle, and how they see life. Is your perspective the same or different?
Look for chaos in your behaviors, such as…
Avoidance
Fear-based thoughts
Recklessness
Destructiveness
Inflexibility/overly regimented
Closed off to other points of view
Believing you have it all figured out
If chaos is rearing its ugly head in your behavior, then that’s the place you should start introducing more balance.
(For more guidance on getting started with connecting to your Body Within, check out my free resources, including an eBook series and guided meditation.)
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Overall health and aging gracefully come from living in reality, not what you believe to be reality.
Healthy aging comes from knowing the strengths and weaknesses of yourself, as well as your family. It comes from staying present so the weaknesses can’t overcome you.
If you live and eat like someone who had colon cancer, then how can you avoid becoming them? Conversely, if you live in balance and eat what your body needs for fuel, then that’s what you become.
This might sound like a lot to think about all day, every day, but it’s really not. When you’re present, you don’t have to think when your body directs you to the choices that serve you. You just have to listen.
Get to know yourself and what you need to age gracefully. Avoid extreme diets and detoxing in pursuit of health. These things take the power away from your ability to know your body and what it needs to be strong and healthy.
Your body needs you to ditch the chaos and embrace the knowledge you have within. That knowledge is far more powerful than any quick fix or gimmick.
You are your own healer. All you need is some direction.
To get some direction on how you can become your own healer, check out Tapping Into Your Body Within, my 3-week self-study course, and get your body back into balance for good.