Tips for a more vibrant, healthy and energetic YOU.
By changing how you eat, you can become more vibrant, healthy and energetic.
The countless benefits of healthy foods.
The ingredients for a healthy lifestyle are simple: eating qualitative and varied foods, lots of exercise, not smoking, moderating alcohol and sugar, and selecting vegetarian options more regularly. Above all, you should enjoy every meal.
All of the above reduce the risks of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancer, osteoporosis and obesity.
A healthy lifestyle is a godsend for your liver. The liver is your inner laboratory; when it is out of balance, we feel tired, anxious and restless. Liver imbalance often leads to hormonal imbalance that cause symptoms such as PMS.A
Healthy diet not only keeps your body in shape, it also ensures optimal emotional and mental balance.
Through a health-conscious diet, you prevent cell ageing and can enjoy pure, radiant skin. Your skin is a mirror that shows your level of inner health. Are you convinced that everything you eat has a huge impact on your physical and mental health?!
Did you know..?
The 2013 Gezondheidsenquête (health survey) told us that almost half of the Belgian population were overweight and 14% obese.
Statistics from the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) showed that 49% of adults living in the Netherlands in 2017 were overweight.
In 1981, this figure was 32%. The percentage of seriously overweight (morbidly obese) individuals has almost tripled since then, from 5% to 14%. Numbers of overweight and obese children are also on the rise.
It’s high time to spring into action!
Almost half of the Belgian population admits it is too fat, and 14% say they are obese.
Dietary tips for health and vitality.
- (Red) meat, meat by-products and dairy in moderation (fermented dairy products are fine)
- Opt for non-dairy alternatives such as coconut, rice and almond milks
- Make water your favourite drink! Our bodies are 70% water. That’s why an intake of between 1 and 1.5 litres a day is so important, especially if we want to keep every physiological function in optimal balance.
- Avoid diet drinks and products. Artificial sugars like aspartame are harmful to your health. Still fancy a soft drink? Limit use and opt for a non-diet variety. It is simply not true that diet products help you to lose weight!
- Dieting products might contain less fat but have more sugar than non-diet versions.
Higher body weight and obesity are increasing, even in groups that use diet products.
This research shows:
- When using diet products, you are more likely to eat a larger portion.
Diet foods make us eat more!That might be explained by the lack of guilt. Imagine...you serve yourself some full-fat ice cream. This makes you feel guilty. So you only allow yourself 1 scoop. And a tiny squirt of whipped cream to top it off. You forget about the chocolate sauce – you have sinned enough.
- With diet products, this feeling of guilt falls away. You are more likely to have a larger portion or add extras. These actions strip away any potential benefits.
Even more tips:
- Want to lose weight? Go for a detox cure that eliminates waste products. Purifying your body is the first step towards weight loss. For more information click here.
- Eat plenty of fibre. Fibre helps to keep bowel movements soft and enables waste products and excessive hormones such as oestrogen that have been broken down in the liver to leave the body rather than being reabsorbed during slow digestive transit. The best sources of fibre are vegetables and fruit. For digestive complaints and constipation click here.
- Moderation in alcohol and caffeine. Opt for green or detoxifying teas, fresh vegetable juices and smoothies containing leafy greens.
- Avoid sugar and white flour products (refined carbohydrates) that cause blood glucose imbalances.
- Choose healthy fats: Fats can make your body happy for all the right reasons. They even make menstruation a much less uncomfortable experience. You will find healthy fats in nuts and seeds, avocados, oily fish, olive oil, butter, and coconut and evening primrose oils. Don’t combine with too much salt – salt binds to water.
- Cut out all ready-meals and salty snacks and prepare your own meals instead
- Add more fresh vegetables to your menu, especially cruciferous vegetables such as broccoli and cauliflower. Don’t forget bitter vegetables such as chicory that support liver function and help to remove excess hormones.
- The mineral magnesium is used in countless physiological processes. Make sure you get enough in your diet. You will find it in cocoa, so if you feel like a treat choose raw or extra pure chocolate with at least 70% pure cocoa content.
- Integrate regular vegetarian meals or a vegetarian lifestyle. You will also take care of the environment and reduce the suffering of livestock. Make sure to add meat replacement products on the menu or take dietary supplements to balance your vitamin B12 and iron levels.
- Learn more about the energetic values of nutrients. Everything is made of energy. The food that you digest can have a high or low energetic value. Food should be in an unprocessed, pure form. You should also be aware of its origin (e.g. grass-fed butter from an organic farm). Non-processed, organic foods increase your body’s levels of energy and vitality.
Exercise daily, meditate often and breathe through your belly.
Nutrition is important, but daily exercise is, too. You don't need to go to the gym every day - just walking around or being surrounded by nature offers countless health benefits.
Walking has many advantageous effects on your health such as improving the condition of your cardiovascular system. Just one brisk walk a week lowers both blood pressure and levels of bad cholesterol. Walking is also great for your muscles and bones.
- Walking gives a fantastic psychological boost and is great for a healthy night's sleep.
- Walking burns calories and is a much better choice than eating and drinking diet products.
- Walking will get your body into excellent condition.
Even better, nearly anyone can go for a walk, either alone or in a group. And it’s completely free.
In addition to daily exercise, the power of meditation and diaphragmatic (belly) breathing is an absolute must in order to reduce stress and its symptoms and to give you the opportunity to experience true relaxation.
Often, stress encountered during the day is the reason why you sink into the sofa with a bag of crisps, bowel of ice cream or a beer after your evening meal. You feel empty and tense thanks to a busy day at work; your body is screaming out for compensation.
Unfortunately, crisps, salted nuts, cookies and chocolate don’t have what it takes to soothe your body. The TV stimulates and distracts you, but it isn’t a method of relaxation.
It’s time to get yourself a yoga mat, put on some gentle music (e.g. a Reiki playlist or sounds of nature), close your eyes and breathe deeply using the belly-breathing technique. It takes some getting used to but replaces negative habits with positive actions in exactly 21 days – just 3 weeks.
The benefits of meditation are huge:
One of the major effects of meditation is that it helps to both prevent and cure depression. Typical characteristics of individuals suffering from depression are a tendency to worry and continuous thoughts spinning around in the head. Research has shown that meditation can help you live more in the moment, enabling more emotional balance in your life.
Furthermore, regular meditation contributes to increased focus and concentration.
In short, it makes you a happier man or a happier woman!
I hope my blog has inspired you to look more closely at your eating habits, get you out into the great outdoors, and swap the TV for relaxing mediation.
I wish you pure health & gentle balance.🌿
The best of success,
Lieve Plasch
Lic. Psychology
