Why is the obesity epidemic continuing to spiral out of control? We know that being obese makes us more likely to have heart disease + high blood pressure + diabetes + sleep apnea. It raises our risk of stroke and some cancers. It puts constraints on our lives and what we’re able to do physically. Yet nothing has changed. Despite all we know and all the money we’ve spent, we are getting fatter and sicker as a society. I was listening to a podcast while hiking yesterday and something clicked. We don’t need more awareness or more programs or more funding. We need a new normal. The way of eating that contributes to the ever-evolving health crisis we’ve found ourselves in is NORMAL. As human beings, we want … [Read more...] about Punk Rock Eating
Eating With Structure + Freedom
Meals. What on earth are we doing if we’re not eating meals? I will tell you: We're doing things like… bingeing grazingfastingpickingsnackingdietingstarvingand eating all day long Fifteen thousand years ago (or thereabouts) our ancestors stopped grazing all day as they roamed. They settled down, sowed crops, and developed a pleasant schedule of getting together regularly to eat. We went from eating all day long, berry after berry, to sitting down to lunch. Regular, repeated mealtimes is a human design pattern that stayed in place until kids had to get up at 4am for swim practice, and bagels or Pop Tarts were consumed while driving. Until we were forced to take jobs that don't even allow us bathroom … [Read more...] about Eating With Structure + Freedom
The Freeing Power of Personal Rules
Without reminders + gentle nudges + bumpers to keep us in our lane, we will inevitably default to autopilot mode. In other words, we will do what we’ve always done. Autopilot works brilliantly when we have zero interest in changing our actions - but when it comes to self-improvement, it’s kryptonite. If you're serious about getting better at something, you’ll need.. 1. Self-awareness2. Accountability tools3. Personal rules Yes --- rules. Guidelines. Instructions. Behaviors. Habits. Whatever you want to call them. The idea of setting rules to live by strikes fear in most people. We immediately recall all the times unfair or cruel rules were forced upon us - or the times we attempted to live under unbearable … [Read more...] about The Freeing Power of Personal Rules
Why Nature Makes Us Healthier, Happier and More Creative
I knew that spending time outside was good for me before reading Florence Williams’s, “The Nature Fix.” To be honest, I wasn’t sure I’d learn anything new from the book. I was wrong. Williams decided to write the book after a move from Boulder, Colorado to Washington D.C. left her depressed and wondering if it had to do with the sudden shift to metropolitan living. Nature, Williams concludes in the book, isn’t just something nice, it is a necessity - and one that is profoundly undervalued. Researchers have found that time in nature can reduce blood pressure, anxiety, depression, stress, rumination and mental fatigue. It can also improve attention, memory, cognition, sleep, self-esteem and happiness. And … [Read more...] about Why Nature Makes Us Healthier, Happier and More Creative