COLUMN : how i found health

if you’ve read my other posts you might have noticed that i talk a lot about health. it’s such a fundamental part of my life, and i’ve got a very clear idea of what i think health is, that i’ve taken it for granted that we’re all on the same page. but my definition of health might not be the same as yours, or anyone else’s. so to make sure we all know what i talk about i thought it necessary to lay out the line.

so here goes – my definition of health is the sum of three things :
– how i eat
– how i move
– how i feel

in my life, i’ve realised that when i feel at most healthy and at home in my body, is when what i do is based on kindness. ok, i know this sounds very vague and flimsy, but the more i think about it, the more sense it makes. being kind to myself, other people and our animal friends, and trying to be as good to the environment as i can be, naturally makes me eat right, do calming and strengthening workouts, and puts my mind at ease at the same time.

how i eat
i’m completely convinced that my vegan diet is where it all starts for me health-wise. eating nothing but plants has made the biggest difference in my life, both with how my body feels and how i’m doing mentally. there’s a reason why so many vegans say that going vegan is the best decision they’ve ever made. i’m one of them. i didn’t even know i could feel this good, have this amount of energy, and be so happy with myself. i’ve now been vegan for almost eight years and i feel better than ever.

i’m into the whole foods concept, so i prefer to buy my food unprocessed, and eat the whole plant. there are so many nutrients in plants and we don’t know much about how they interact with one another, so i try to eat the whole olive instead of just the oil, the whole orange instead of just the juice, you get the idea.

there are a bunch of different vegan diets claiming to be the healthiest one – raw food, 80-10-10, raw till 4, high-carb, vegan paleo etc etc. i don’t really mind any of that. in my opinion they’re all good, but for me the only thing that really matters is eating a varied diet of all the plants i can get my hands on, and getting B12 in some form (the only supplement i  take). the rest is just fun ideas, to explore new ways of preparing food.

i don’t count calories or keep a food journal. i don’t weigh myself regularly. health is not about numbers – it’s about how i’m feeling. i don’t feel the need to validate my experience by applying numbers or labels.
also, i don’t keep track of how much protein, iron, or calcium i get in my diet. i’ve done blood tests on a few occasions since going vegan, and i’ve never had any deficiencies – quite the opposite in fact. so i’m all good.

how i move
i wrote a post on my daily exercise routine a while back, where i explain my view on healthy exercising, so here are just the basics :

i feel great when working out 30-90 minutes, about 6 days a week. i do low-intensity workouts like pilates or walking. i want my workouts to be relaxing and strengthening, not stressful or exhausting. it’s my form of meditation and getting balanced and grounded. i care more about doing it at all, than about how fast, hard, or for how long i can go. again, it’s about being kind to my body, not pressuring it. and i believe resting is just as important as moving.

how i feelit’s easy to disconnect your mind from your body. but our brain is of course just as physical as the rest of us, affecting and being affected by the rest of our body. so to be healthy, i find it logical to move in a more relaxed, low-stress, and happy direction. i don’t mean a life without stress, sorrow, anger or petty irritation. i don’t see it as my goal to never be upset again. and i don’t mean happiness as in those short bursts of joy or exhilaration. i’m more talking about the bigger picture, the overall platform my mood’s resting on.

to have a happy platform to bounce my mood off of, i need security and stability. i need kindness from myself and from the people i’ve chosen to have in my life. and i need a sense of being in the right place, that i’m going after the things that truly matters to me. living a life that i’ve chosen instead of one that sort of just happened. so i guess you would call that purpose ?

that’s it really. i’m still working on getting the hang of some of those things, but all in all i’m surprised at how pleased i am with where i’m at now. i guess the reason why i’m content is that this isn’t me chasing a goal or jumping on a quick-fix – it’s me trying things out until i find a lifestyle that’s completely maintainable throughout my whole life. because when it comes to health, i don’t care about 2 months from now. i care about forever – however long that turns out to be.

love and health // jenny