So when was the last time you scarfed down a bag of chips? Or a whole row (or box) of cookies? We all do it from time to time. Even after conquering my weight issues and replacing many of my unhealthy habits with healthy ones, I still succumb to the odd `Poor Me Eat Fest’.

But why do we do it? Well, yesterday in Metro , Smart Cookies – which is a group of ladies who give advice on frugal living – wrote an article on materialism and how to curb your spending, “Find the perfect day ”. They reviewed an Eckhart Tolle book, A New Earth , which reveals that many people fulfill their basic human needs by consuming things. They become obsessed with obtaining things in attempts to fill or complete themselves.

Now Smart Cookies relates this information to shopping, but any addiction applies whether it’s food, drinking, drugs, entertainment, etc. But what are these basic human needs that we fulfill through our addictions? Tony Robbins identifies them as: certainty, variety, significance, connection and love, growth and contribution.

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In its most pragmatic terms, health is basically: living (or dying, depending on how you look at it) gracefully.

All of Nature, from little ferns to humans to ancient elephants, when born begin a journey through life toward death. It’s the biology of life. We all start fresh and pink, and if we’re lucky to die of old age, we end the journey wizened and, well… used up.

But things work so much better when they’re new! So the trick to a joyful (and long) life is to treat your body with respect and keep it as new as possible. Healthy living is knowing what the body needs to slow down the aging process, and then doing it so you can maintain your youth.

But how do you get healthy? What is health ? Wouldn’t it be nice if someone just gave you some healthy living guidelines so you get started finding what your body needs to function at your optimal levels? Well, here you are! The following 10 tips are guaranteed to improve your health:

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A couple of days ago, I posted about how fitness is important to survival , referring to my boxing match with a Mazda earlier that afternoon. It was about due, considering I’ve been an avid, long-distance inline skater in Toronto for over 10 years now, 0 accidents; thank you very much.

But Friday was my lucky day because even though I’ve been meaning to pick up a helmet lately, I hadn’t yet and wasn’t wearing one when I ran into the Mazda. Thankfully, I didn’t hit my head. But I realize the error of my ways now, as part of healthy living is reducing the threats to your life. I love my life and I no longer want to take unnecessary risks with it.

So rather than stop rollerblading altogether because of the dangers, here’s an incomplete list of what NOT to do when rollerblading in the city, or 12 really bad rollerblading tips (depending on how you want to read it):
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Taking care of your body includes keeping moisturized. Drinking water is of course the number one way to maintain hydration. But our society’s focus on cleanliness and staying away from fats (good and the bad) also contribute to dryness and dehydration.

In response to this problem, manufacturers of skin care products come to our rescue! Only their help comes with more than one price. Their products wreak further havoc on our systems because of the chemicals they use.

Metro News and the editors of Alive magazine reminded me of this in an article, “Natural, Beautiful Skin ”

earlier this week. Rather than thoughtlessly continue slathering on harmful substances, they suggested eating healthy foods and choosing skin care products made with natural ingredients.

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“Peace does not mean one must be in a place where there is no noise, trouble or chaos. Peace means to be among those things and still be calm in your heart.” Marcel Morin

When I followed up with my Naturopathic doctor about this elimination diet adventure, I expressed some elimination diet woes as I was having a hard time sticking to it. My sugar and caffeine cravings were off the chart! All because of a heavy schedule, the fact that I’m still not 100% and an inability to manage my stress – one of my coping mechanisms is to reach for food and especially stimulants so I can still get things done.

So he gave me some homework, “First, get some sunshine over the weekend. Second, make a list of ways that you can bring balance into your life.” That was some pretty cool homework! Check on the sunshine (and I’m going to get some more after I post this article), and as for the list, here it is: Read the rest of this entry »

The last article defined detoxification as a necessary function our bodies naturally perform to keep our system free of poison. It is a regular, internal process of hygiene that helps keep us healthy.

That post left us pondering a few `what ifs’. This article answers the question, " Is it possible that our bodies can’t handle the rate at which our bodies are being poisoned? According to my research, most of us are functioning below optimal health levels because of toxic overload . Toxins and waste are killing us softly, decreasing our immediate quality of life and aging us at a faster rate.

The following article explains why some people believe that most of us would benefit from helping our bodies detoxify:
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We’ve been talking a lot lately about how to make getting healthy easy in the Live Lighter’s Health Made Easy Series . Much of what’s been covered so far has been intangible, like common beliefs about health, alternative perspectives, mental associations and developing habits .

This final post in the series is a follow up to 7 Tips to Easy Health and provides you with some hands-on, get-down-and-dirty suggestions that will help you make healthy living easy. The following 15 practical tips will have your body singing the right tune so it’ll be easier to develop your healthy lifestyle:

1. Get optimal sleep. Our bodies and brains need rest so that they can busy themselves with other work. You see, during the day we’re so busy sensing the world and living our lives that we don’t have the capacity to do much else. Being unconscious shuts down our senses and allows our brains to process the information and our bodies to heal. It is extremely important to get the right amount of sleep for your body to function effectively. Read the rest of this entry »

Like many people, you probably believe that getting healthy is hard. This article is intended to challenge those beliefs, and will describe why your current beliefs about health may be the very thing holding you back from getting healthy. AND this article will explain why it is absolutely integral to your success that you MAKE being healthy easy.

To make this secret work for you, you have to know a little about learned (or habitual) behaviour and evolution. In the game of life, the goal is always survival. As living organisms, we instinctually (that is, without total awareness or thinking) seek out means of life support (offense maneuver) so that we can keep all our senses alert for danger (defense measure).

So, you see, nature has made it easy for us to behave without conscious thought . We are naturally attracted to substances and activities which promote survival and we react negatively to whatever threatens our survival.

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This is the first post in Live Lighter’s Health Made Easy Series and it’s meant to ease you into the idea that maybe healthy living can be easy.

If you’re like most people, say the words, “healthy living” and your brow furrows as you imagine the sweating, extra baggage, extra showers, time, money, lettuce-based meals, hunger, guilt, suffering…well, no wonder you don’t want anything to do with a healthy lifestyle!

It doesn’t have to be that way. Check back in two days to hear about the secret to making healthy living easy . To help prepare you for the mind-bending suggestions in the following posts, please watch this introductory, 2 minute video on quick and easy health tips:

There is a misconception out there that getting healthy needs to be difficult. While I’ve experienced difficulty in getting healthy, over the years I’ve learned how to make it work for me so I can enjoy living a healthy lifestyle …and all the benefits that come along with it.

In my experience , life is easier and more enjoyable when you have total health . If l could show you that healthy living was easy, would you try some of the suggestions out for yourself?

If you want to know how I made getting healthy easy, then you’ll want to read the next 5 posts. The following articles will make up the Live Lighter’s Health Made Easy Series :

1. Quick and Easy Healthy Living Tips Video – February 7^th
2. The Secret to Making Healthy Living Easy – February 9^th
3. 7 Tips to Make Healthy Living Easy – February 11^th
4. Easy Health Humour – February 13^th
5. 15 Practical Tips to Make Healthy Living Easy – February 15^th

This series is designed to convince you that it is possible to make healthy living easy. It will get you thinking and maybe even get you up off the couch!

You can subscribe to the Live Lighter feed or keep coming back to find out how easy health can be!