Health and wellness is not a destination.
I’d argue its an exploration or better yet... an invitation.
Old pines and palms were planted along the dirt path as we walked through a Florida state park. An old friend and I caught up and talked about all things life; more specifically we exchanged ideas on health.
Growing up in the Western world, my understanding of health was married to my body and the absence of sickness. If I wasn’t sick, then I was healthy. But, as I’ve journeyed through life, my perspective has widened, and my understanding of what health is has changed.
Even though the physical body CAN be an indication of internal health it’s not the only representation of health itself.
Health is so much more than just the physical body. It is a multifaceted, complex system that has many components to it. I love to think of the wellness wheel when thinking about health.
You are in the center and each piece of the pie contributes to your health.
To better understand Health we need to better understand the system of health and how it operates. From the foods we consume to the ways we gather.
It’s easy to dig our heels in and double down on our perspectives or better yet the perspectives we’ve been sold. And yes while having strong values is important, seeing things from another’s point of view allows change to occur.
While the Western health system is incredible, it’s also a money money-making machine that can taint the purity of health itself.
As we roamed shoeless through nature, My friend and I found multiple connecting points. One of those points was around food.
“What have been some of your biggest takeaways in your nutrition class?” he asked.
“I think we overcomplicate it,” I said. I then shared with him my three biggest takeaways from my nutrition class thus far.
Eat whole foods (Try and stay away from processed)
Buy organic
Explore and see what works for your body
I understand organic is not cheap, but I rationalize the purchases as an investment.
I love the quote, health is an investment, not an expense.
At this point in the walk, I couldn’t tell whether the peace I was feeling was coming from the conversation or the fact we were submerged in nature with no noise pollution.
I share this to remind you to fill your plate with quality food and your time with quality conversations.
Oh, and remember health is an exploration, not a destination.
be well,
Fletch