Neither and Both.

This is what I mean…..

The true definition of diet is the food we consume.  However, people now use it as how they restrict the food they eat.

So, meal planning and planning what you are going to eat is important in that you want to start switching your food consumption to natural foods with little to no additives.  

Most of the time it is the additives that reeks the most havoc on your body.  Like unhealthy fats, sugars and man-made ingredients that your body has a hard time understanding and processing.

When the body has a hard time processing food you ate, or rather the foreign ingredients, it tends to store it until it knows what to do with it.  And it stores it in Your Liver.

When the Liver becomes over taxed with the stored ingredients it has to find new places to put these items so they do not harm you. Which means they get stored throughout the body.  

This happens by the stomach leaching it out through its lining so it avoids the bloodstream.  This however causes inflammation in the stomach lining and many other places in the body.  This of course is a very simplified explanation, but I think you get the point.  Additives are reeking havoc on your body!!!!

This also goes for the foods that you have become sensitive to.  Once you get your liver and body straightened out you will probably be able to go back to those foods.  But for now, avoiding them along with the bad fats (Click here for a list of Good and Bad Fats), sugar (Click here to get a list of ingredients that is actually hidden sugar), man-made additives and genetically modified foods.

So, Diet (the foods we eat) is very important to your overall health, including getting and maintaining a healthy weight.  However, we never want to restrict ourselves of any of the food groups or of any natural healthy foods that our body loves.  It is the ones that have been altered and created in labs that are the real culprits of our issues and should be avoided.  Not healthy foods like Bananas and Pineapples.  More on that in a later blog. 😉

Now Exercising…..

People do not realize that the exercises that they choose or when they choose to do them is actually causing them more harm than good.

Moving our body and getting and maintaining a strong body are very important to our health.  

That being said you do not need to go and do a crazy hard workout and lift massive weights to do so.  And actually, doing that when you start out will probably set you back.

We need to MOVE, not exercise for good health.  What things can you add to your day where you move and possibly get a bit warm and maybe a bit sweaty?  They are the things that I recommend starting with.

Remember that your body needs to move in all directions and needs time to recoup.  That doesn’t mean to do nothing.  That means to give it a break from what is sore and tired and do something else.

Here are some examples from my own life: 

So, at my lowest points over the years walking, teaching Zumba, and following along with some easy workout videos like Richard Simons & Lesley Sansom (Walk away the pounds). 

Yes, this is “exercising” in some regards, but at its base they are dancing and moving.  No heavy weights.  No exhausting the body.  Just simply moving about with some guidance from an instructor.  

Making sure you are able to stop when you need to and not feel the need to continue to exhaustion is a really big thing.

The other VERY easy way to boost your movement and get a healthier body is from simple chores around the house.

Want a healthier body?  Want to burn Calories?  Clean your house!  

I have no idea what your house looks like.  And I am not saying that if you are overweight you have a messy house.

What I am saying is tackle 2 things at once.

If you want to spend 30 minutes working out (or 10min, wherever you are at right now) each day, then spend it cleaning or organizing something.

If you already have a well-oiled house and every room is spotless and there is no clutter or extra stuff anywhere, they AWESOME!  However, I bet you there is something that you have been wanting to get at.

Don’t wait to have the energy and strength to tackle something in the house.  Use it as a way to build your strength.  Clutter and mess wreaks havoc on our lives in ways most people don’t understand.  Cleaning it up will give you more energy than you can imagine.  More on this in another Blog 😉

Just GET MOVING!  And rest when you need to.  Stress, even from exercising, causes the body to eat away at our muscles and store fat.  So sweat, get a little winded, but know when your body is saying STOP.  AND LISTEN!!!

So, here you have it….

Moving your body and eating natural foods are super important to your health and a healthier weight.

Each one on its own will help you to be healthier.

BUT……

Putting them together more than doubles the effect.

If you are thinking that you do not want to concentrate on both at once then start moving.

Why?  Because by moving more you will see how different foods affect you and you will be more likely to pick the foods that make moving easier.  And unknowingly start eating healthier too. 😉

Just a little trick I learned over the years that I am happy to share with you.

Clean your house, do yard work, finish projects you have been wanting to do, follow simple workouts videos, and eat natural foods are my secrets to a healthier mind, body and spirit.