Let's do a little exercise together. I'm going to give us both 4 simple steps to follow. I'll share my answers along the way and let you figure out yours on your own. It's nothing profound, but I promise by the end of it, you'll have a pretty good idea of how to be the healthier you that you want to be - money back guaranteed ;)
Step 1: Figure out why wellness is important to you.
Is it to live longer? To live better? To minimize pain or sickness? To challenge yourself? Because Sharon from work keeps telling you how important it is? What's your "why"?
My personal "why" is to live better. Honestly, I'm not too concerned with living as long as I can, but it scares me to think that I could go through life and not live it to the fullest. It's about living as well as I can during whatever time I have.
Do you have your why?
Step 2: Figure out what exactly wellness looks like to you.
Envision a healthier version of you. What do you see? What changes? What stays the same?
In a healthier me reality, I'm more confident and capable. I'm able to do more in a day without being in pain. I'm able to travel and hike and explore without wondering if I'll make it. I guess my healthier me simply looks a little more fearless and carefree.
Can you see it for yourself?
Step 3: Figure out what it would take to get there.
Mentality shifts? Physical changes? Lifestyle or habit alterations? More of the same?
If you're anything like me, it's probably a combination of all of the above. If my wellness reality looks like a fearless and carefree hike up a mountain, I have to look at what's stopping me today from being that version of myself. Mentally, I would have to break down the self-defeating barriers that say "but what if you can't make it" or similar phrases of the sort. Physically, I would need to build my strength and endurance until there's no question of whether or not I can make it. Daily, that would mean carving out time to hike/exercise and increasing the priority of eating healthy, energizing food.
Got it figured out?
Step 4: Do it.
It's as simple as that. I don't mean to be crass, but it's true, isn't it? Getting healthier isn't that complicated. It may be hard and frustrating and really, really tiring, but it's not complicated. And no matter how many articles on health you read or wellness gurus you follow on Instagram, nothing can give you the answers you want until you figure out what exactly it is that you want and start taking the steps to get there.
Here's the thing...I can't tell you how to get "healthier" either. Sure, I can tell you the optimal diet, some proven exercise and lifestyle tips, maybe even provide products that assist, but I can't tell you how to be the healthier version of you that you're looking to be. No one can look at you or me and say "this is who you would be if you were healthier...really, truly, fully healthier, so that's not the goal here.
There's nothing wrong with seeking health tips, looking for inspiration, and I'm not saying that you won't find that here, but that's not the primary mission of Well Lived. My mission is not to make you the healthier version of you that I see...it's to empower you and equip you to become the healthier you that you want to be.
To the world, healthy might look skinny or muscular or happy all the time, but that's not what the healthier me looks like. There are sure-fire signs of physical health, and we should always strive for those first and foremost, but full health, whole-self wellness isn't always something that can be tested for or seen. It's physical, mental, spiritual, and looks just as different as you and me.
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