Life’s Balance

Is your life feeling out of balance?

No matter what we use as criteria when it comes to experiencing balance in our lives, we have certain needs that need to be filled throughout our lives and the more balanced our fulfillment of these needs, the smoother our boat will sail and the closer to balance we will get.

IIN calls it primary foods

Maslow called it a hierarchy of needs

Anthony Robbins called it a wheel

I call it a pie.

Whatever we call it, it all comes down to balance. If our life is not in balance then we are in trouble.

Self actualization (morality, creativity, problem solving
learning, lack of prejudice and acceptance of facts
Esteem (self esteem, confidence, respect) 
Love and belonging (friendship, family and intimacy) 
Safety (security of body, health, family, property, employment, resources and morality) 
Physiological (breathing, food, water, sex, sleep, homeostasis, excretion)

Everyone can rank these in a different order of importance. At the same time, we may each rank them differently at different times in our lives. What is certain? If one of the above is lacking and another is over emphasized, then we are out of balance.

Anthony Robbins does an exercise with a wheel representing career, physical, spiritual and financial. We have to rank each by “how it is going.” Visually we are able to see, for example, that we are doing great financially and physically, but perhaps not spiritually or career-wise. If we are out of balance, our wheel will not roll.

The Institute for Integrative Nutrition calls it “primary foods.” Outside our triangle of nutrition is a circle that consists of relationship, spirituality, career and physical activity.

The truth is, we can fix what we eat.  We can eat more greens and get rid of processed foods, but if we don’t take care of the other areas of our life, we will still not experience balanced health and happiness. You can be completely healthy with your diet yet still feel imbalanced.

To help you see the topics more clearly, take a look at the following basic needs and ways of fulfillment.

Self Actualization (morality, creativity, problem solving, learning, lack of prejudice and an acceptance of facts)

• Prayer, Thoughtfulness, Meditation
• Journaling
• Fun
• Study
• Spirituality
• Contribution

Esteem (self esteem, confidence, respect)

• Gratitude
• Feelings

Love and Belonging (friendship, family and intimacy)

• Relationship building
• Caregiving
• Forgiveness
• Intimacy

Safety (security of body, health, family, property, employment, resources and morality)

• Environmental safety
• Health & well being
• Job Security
• Career growth
• Financial empowerment
• Environmental preservation
• Ethics and morality

Physiological (breathing, environmental, food, water, sex, sleep, homeostasis, excretion)

• Clean air, meditation, breathing exercise
• Environmental impact on health and well being through design (ex. bringing nature into the home, healthy light, smart space)
• Nutrition
• PH Balance
• Probiotics
• Losing  weight
• Better Digestion
• Super foods
  • Acai
  • Algae
  • Aloe Vera
  • Bee Products
  • Cacao
  • Camu Camu Berry
  • Chlorella
  • Coconut
  • Goji Berries
  • Hempseed
  • Incan Berries
  • Kelp
  • Maca
  • Marine Phytoplankton
  • Noni
  • Yacon
• Raw Nutrition
  • Juicing vs. Blending
  • Nuts and Seeds
  • Sprouts
  • Grasses
  • Seaweed
  • Roots
  • Mushrooms
  • Recipes
• Exercise and fitness
• Water, the amount and cleanliness
• Intimacy as a physical need
• Amount and quality of sleep
• Digestion
• Bodily function, sight, hearing, pain
• Cleansing
• Illness and healing

We will be adding to this and focusing on each topic as total wellness.  Look forward to future blogs on each line item and broken down even further for more tips on how to improve the quality of our lives.

All my love,

Jamie

The American Health Crisis

The Truth of the Matter…
It is no secret that there is a tragic epidemic of obesity, diabetes, and a hundred other preventive health issues in America.  “Every year healthcare costs increase while overall health decreases; people continue to eat poorly, gain weight and depend on medications and operations to maintain their health” (Rosenthal, 6).  This really gets me fired up, and with my arms in the air asking WHY?

So…why?

There are a few reasons.

1) Lack of Fresh Foods/Time
Americans are all about convenience, right?  Fast food,  frozen dinners, take out, and pre-packaged foods.  We just simply don’t have time to cook healthy, homemade meals.  Or so we think.  The result of this lack of priority on fresh, healthy foods in our homes fuels this American Health Crisis unlike any other reason, in my personal and professional opinion.  In my own home, to solve the “time problem” for myself, I prepare all of the foods I buy when grocery shopping immediately when I return home from the market.  An hour or two of cooking and storing these meals in Tupperware saves an exorbitant amount of time throughout the week.  No worrying of what to cook for dinner each night, and no worrying of not feeling like putting that apron on and chopping some fresh veggies if you’ve had a long day!  It works perfectly for my household, and I truly suggest you consider implementing it into your life if you haven’t already.

2) Medicine
That’s the solution for everything in this country.  Everything.  Do I believe there’s no room at all for medicine in our culture?  I’m open-minded.  I’m not willing to say it doesn’t have its place in some instances.  But, I truly believe we’ve taken all of the responsibility off of our immune systems, and they are on permanent vacation!  Putting fewer toxins in our bodies, and allowing the beautiful machines that we live in work the way they were designed to will drastically change the health of our nation.  So, next time you get a cold, perhaps think twice before running to the Doctor to get an antibiotic. 

3)  No Prevention
This is huge!  We spend SO much money on fixing our health problems when they arise — but generally give no thought to spending time and money on preventing those health problems.  Think about how much money could be saved over a lifetime if prevention was a priority.  And, not just the money saved, but a much more enjoyable life along the way.

One Step at a Time…

If you take nothing else from this information, I hope you will consider making prevention a priority (if it isn’t already, of course!).  There are many routes to take in doing this.  My suggestions would be:

• an accountability partner who feels the same about their health.
• making a plan.  You are much more likely to follow through if there is a written plan in place.
• getting assistance from a professional, or being a part of a group of individuals who can support you.

I invite you to look over a GREAT starting point — a 21 Days of Wellness program.  It’s extremely affordable (less than a night out to dinner and a movie!) and packs tons of information you can save forever, reuse, and share with your family. 

The program focuses on one particular topic each day of the week. Each day you will receive an email with tips and tools on that day’s topic, including an “assignment” related to the tips that will move you toward taking action and making changes.

Topics covered each week in this program:

• Monday: Weight Management
• Tuesday: Cravings
• Wednesday: Energy and Mental Clarity
• Thursday: Emotional Balance
• Friday: Stress Management
• Saturday: Mindset for Success
• Sunday: Progress Check

Reserve Your Spot Here!

I wish you a wonderful weekend full of relaxation and loved ones. 

Talk with you very soon,

Jamie Jones
Owner of Obtainable Wellness

 

*Quote taken from Integrative Nutrition:  Feed Your Hunger for Health & Happiness by Joshua Rosenthal.