What is wellness? As regular contributor and Naturopath Angela Derks always says, wellness is holistic and it is about being the best version of you.
This whole website is about providing tips to help you to become the best version of you, whatever that means, because we are all different. And because we are all different, there is no one prescribed recipe for wellness, health or happiness, you need to find the mix and the balance that’s right for you.
So, I read this article today by columnist Ruth Ostrow in The Australian and sat there nodding away and muttering in agreement, “Yes, Yes, totally, 100%”.
She’s not a morning person. Neither am I, and you know what – that doesn’t make us lazy or inefficient people, it just means that you’re better off waiting until we have had our coffees before you try to engage us in conversation….
“I have to stare at a wall and drink my strong coffee in total silence for at least half an hour before I can even talk. Then it takes another hour to rev into functional communication…..But the real world waits for no one and here we are, forced out of our cocoons to face the day, and each other.
Many people are made to feel wrong for their lifestyles. Nocturnal creatures are on the hit list. But some people are just made that way. Our circadian rhythms are different. Some of us suffer a known medical condition called morning depression so we are most productive at night. Yet we’re considered lazy or deficient because we don’t bounce out of bed early and merrily unless forced to by routine.”
Ruth goes on to talk about the conflicting information regarding foods, in particular those that should be avoided one week and consumed in abundance the next because of surprising health benefits that were once overlooked. I sat there and thought about the latest research from the CSIRO and their ‘new’ low carb diet – which has been termed the ‘Miracle Diet’ – and thought to myself – prime example. If you haven’t read about it, basically the CSIRO researchers have ‘discovered’ a clear link between a low carbohydrate diet and diabetes management. Well this is ground-breaking stuff. You’ll find the amazing new research to support the fact that a low carb diet is in actual fact a healthy way of living. I am not going to bang on about this here and I will apologise for all the inverted commas and overt sarcasm, but all I can say is, surprise, surprise.
As Ruth reinforces, our bodies are all different and she claims that her body thrives on starches. Mine on the other hand, certainly does not. I am most healthy when I am living a Paleo lifestyle free of grains, starchy foods, dairy and refined sugars. Pete Evans gets consistently slammed for this because people really don’t take the time to understand the Paleo lifestyle. Once again, I won’t bang about this but the fact is Paleo is founded on pure, wholefoods, consumed in moderation, free of preservatives and additives. I am just so glad that the CSIRO has finally endorsed my way of living.
The Daily Mail reported on the CSIRO diet and I must say their lead cracked me up:
“Putting down the toast and picking up a steak might well be the key to achieving your dream body, according to science.”
There you have it. Now, as I’ve discussed many times, I am coeliac so the toast went out the window a long time ago. I was also a vegetarian for a long time and suffered from terrible anaemia. Here I am today, a coeliac vegetarian who turned to the Paleo way of life and I have never felt better. That’s my body. I am in touch with what makes me thrive and what does not so I listen to it. There are plenty of people out there whose bodies may not thrive living this way. I think the important thing to remember, and I love that Ruth pushed this point in mainstream media this week, is that health and wellbeing should not be overcomplicated. Don’t get too wrapped up in the ‘new research’ and the ‘expert’s views’, instead just take a sensible approach to how you treat your body.
If your stomach ache’s when you eat bread, or you get an itchy back with gluten laden foods – cut them out of your diet and see how you feel. If you feel bloated when you consume diary, avoid it for a while and see how you feel. If you get headaches when you eat sugar, or if you get reflux when you eat citrus fruits or you just feel sluggish when you eat carbs – avoid, avoid, avoid and see how you feel.
Start listening to your body. Tune into it and then give it what it wants and then see how you feel.
