Anxiety.
Depression.
ADD/ADHD.
Bi-polar disorder.
Seasonal Affectiveness Disorder.
Emotional Imbalance.
What do you think about when you read these words? Hereditary? Diagnosis? Prescription? Disease? Excuse?
The amount of pharmaceuticals available to treat these ailments is horrifying. Even more treacherous are the myriad of side-effects that would even scare the honey badger.
There have been some individuals who have stepped forward to testify amazing health improvements from eating Paleo. I found Jen Cardella's personal account inspiring and moving. People with Celiac disease make a complete recovery by going primal. Diabetes patients get a clean bill of health after removing grains, gluten, legumes, and dairy. What if mood disorders could be expelled as well? The Mood Cure, by Julia Ross lends great advice to rebalancing emotional chemistry through diet. Much of her information is consistent with the Paleo and Zone diets.
I am preparing my testimony for the next blog, but let me just say, I was quite a mess.
Imagine a life where you get the right amount of sleep. When you do sleep, it is restful, uninterrupted, and blissful. Upon awakening, you are calm yet alert. Breakfast is nourishing yet delicious. You leave the house ready to tackle the day. Work to you is hardly considered work because you do what you love. The morning is productive. Lunch, like breakfast, leaves you with an extra boost of energy to finish a few tasks. Your daily workout is strenuous (in a good way), and you depart your gym in a euphoric state of exhaustion and hunger. Dinner with the family is enjoyable. You find your young child's antics at the table an amusing pleasure of testing boundaries and learning about his world. Winding down in the evening is combined with planning and preparing for the following day. As you lay your head on your pillow, you are relaxed and drift into another blissful night of rest.
How many of you reading this is thinking, "Yeah, right. Only in a Fairy Tale, Liz." I must retort, why? Why can't you have everything you want? Why can't you have that dream job? Who is stopping you? Why can't you live a life full of health, happiness, and fulfillment?
How many of you feel trapped? Stuck? Cursed? Always 15 minutes behind? Barely keeping your head above water? Unmotivated? How about this one. How many of you are just waiting out your time? Stuck in a job you hate because you need the benefits and retirement? Waiting for something to happen to give you freedom to live the life you want?
My sister posted a link to this article by Scientific American today. It explains how neurons in the lower end of our digestion tract (enteric nervous system) affect mood and thinking. From a very elementary perspective; your gut's reaction to food can have an effect on your mental state. Consider the possibility that your gut as the same reaction triggering Depression as it does to Celiac Disease as a response to the food you ingest. Imagine that what some may consider a genetic mental condition could be alleviated by simply eating primal.
The first step to taking control back for YOUR life (By the way, if no one told you, you're living your life. It's not for anyone else but you.), is taking good care of your body.
An oldie, but a goodie. Here's how:
Fitness in 100 Words or Less
Eat meat and vegetables, nuts and seeds, some fruit, little starch and no sugar. Keep intake to levels that will support exercise but not body fat.
Practice and train major lifts: Deadlift, clean, squat, presses, C&J, and snatch. Similarly, master the basics of gymnastics: pull-ups, dips, rope climb, push-ups, sit-ups, presses to handstand, pirouettes, flips, splits, and holds. Bike, run, swim, row, etc, hard and fast.
Five or six days per week mix these elements in as many combinations and patterns as creativity will allow. Routine is the enemy. Keep workouts short and intense. Regularly learn and play new sports.
~Greg Glassman, Courtesy of CrossFit Inc.
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