As the weather gets colder and the stress of the holidays begins, I thought it might be nice to hear a little pep talk about staying healthy through this holiday season and beyond. Here are thoughts from our resident integrative physician, Alexa Fleckenstein, M.D.:
Did you know that you can reverse the aging process with a snap of your finger?
Your body has an amazing ability to heal and to reverse age. Not indefinitely, of course. Experts now think the natural span of life lies somewhere between 120 and 150 years for humans.
Our bodies start healing immediately when we remove things that get in the way – like smoking, unhealthy foods, too much alcohol, negative thoughts. And when we add things that are missing: enough sleep, exercise, water, light, and fresh air – to name a few. This means if you make just one change today, you will feel it tomorrow.
When I have fallen off the wagon – which happens because of traveling, emergency situations, or just pure laziness– I get back on with a day of vegetable broth fasting. After that day, I feel light, my head clears and I am ready for more improvements in my life. I feel good about myself. Then I want to do better. And I do.
The Five Health Essentials (Water, Movement, Food, Herbs, Order) give you a guideline for reversing aging. But the reality is that at any given moment your body tells you what it needs to heal. If only we would listen. Pain is one of the ways our bodies speak to us. Heartburn after eating? Instead of taking a pill, figure out what food item is hurting you – or did you simply eat too much? Feeeling a little sluggish or down? Try a few seconds of a cold shower after your hot one!
Other ways your body sends the alarm that something is amiss are fatigue and depression. Batteries are not replenished, you are running on empty. Maybe you are getting too little sleep, your personal relationships are draining instead of nourishing, your food is junk instead of the stuff of life (veggies, veggies, veggies!), or your systems are rusting because you don’t use them in a healthy work-out (our bodies are made to move!). Sometimes you need a health professional to guide you through this process of listening to your body; often you know quite well what is wrong, and you just need to do something about it.
Pay attention to your body and you will learn what you need to reverse your aging, and how to get fun back into your life. Then make the decision to change one little thing today – and let me know what happens!
2 Comments
November 17, 2008 at 10:17 pm
As a reply to your comment on my weblog: I told someone about my cold showers and he told me that in Germany this is promoted by someone by the name of Kneip(p), so I started searching and found your website!
I like it.
November 20, 2008 at 5:36 pm
Hi there, I’m a longtime writer for women’s magazines. I LOVE your writing and your story topics. I’m currently working on a story that will link back to you. I just wanted to let you know. I’d love to do an interview with you, too, if you’re interested. Best, kristenATkristenkemp.com