2464: A Simple Guide to Wellness by Melissa Camara Wilkins with No Sidebar on Mindful Habits, Self-Care, and Intentional Living

[00:00:00] Hello, everybody, and thanks so much for joining me for our weekly bonus episode here on ORD. I'm Greg Audino, your host, but you won't be hearing from me much longer today. You'll be hearing instead from Dr. Neil over on Optimal Health Daily. You see, in these bonus episodes, I like to share posts from other shows in our network that I think have a lot to do with relationships, even if they aren't necessarily the main theme. I promise I wouldn't share them if I didn't think you guys would like them.

[00:00:26] So with that, let's hear this post that is great for those who want to improve both their health and their relationships as we optimize your life. A Simple Guide to Wellness by Melissa Camara Wilkins with Nosidebar.com

[00:00:45] No matter where you are in your journey towards simple living, you want to have energy and focus for your next steps. We all want to be centered and strong as we move toward a life of less busyness, less clutter, less meaningless stuff, and more. And more purpose, more clarity, and more of what matters. We want to be healthy and present for our families. We want to have focus and creativity for our projects.

[00:01:09] We want energy for ourselves and for our lives. Cultural messages about airbrushed bodies and diet foods are just another kind of clutter we don't need. Instead, we can choose to be our best, healthiest selves. You can create wellness routines with intention and simplicity. You don't have to learn everything all at once. You can start small, or you can simplify what you're already doing.

[00:01:31] You don't have to invest in every health program and wellness product out there. You can choose what's right for you. Start by making small changes that add up. When you're ready to go deeper in any of these areas, you can learn more. Small change number one. Eat simple food. Every body is different, but as a general rule, we can all benefit from eating more simple, nutrient-dense foods and fewer processed ones.

[00:01:57] Eating more real foods might seem less simple at first. It does take practice. You might have to learn new skills and new habits, and eating well requires preparation. Once you have a routine, eating foods that fuel your body will give you more energy, help you fight illness, and leave you feeling more awake and alert. Drinking plenty of water is another simple step towards nourishing your body. Rehydrating helps flush out your digestive system, leads to clear skin, and helps you maintain a healthy weight.

[00:02:27] Drink more if you're exercising or are in hotter weather. If you want to up your water game, be sure to drink some first thing in the morning. Simple step number two. Choose intentional movement. If you find yourself sitting in front of a computer often, you probably already know you'd feel better if you incorporated more movement into your day. Start small and inexpensively. You don't have to invest in programs or equipment that you might not even use.

[00:02:54] Walking, running, sprinting upstairs, at-home yoga, any of these can help you get started without investing in a whole lot of extra stuff. If your work doesn't involve movement, get up and take a stretch break or a short walk every hour. The important thing is to commit to your exercise routine, rather than leaving it open to consideration each day. If you have to decide every day whether or not to exercise, it's easy to find reasons to skip it.

[00:03:19] Having an exercise habit that you don't question means you don't have to use up mental resources convincing yourself to get moving. You just do the exercise, reap the benefits, and have mental energy left over for your own creative projects. Simple step number three. Prioritize sleep. Most of us don't get enough sleep. There are so many good things to do with our time that it can be hard to convince ourselves to come to a complete stop.

[00:03:45] If we keep pushing ourselves to work through our exhaustion, our health, our well-being, and even our productivity suffers. Your whole body benefits from getting better sleep. Your immune system, your energy level, your memory, your ability to focus, even signs of aging and the likelihood of developing disease are improved by getting more sleep. A before-bed routine of slowing down, turning off screens, and unwinding with a cup of herbal tea can help signal your body that it's time to sleep.

[00:04:14] Simple step number four. Spend time in nature. Being in nature has a surprisingly powerful effect on our health. Time spent in the great outdoors can leave you more calm, more creative, more focused, and less anxious and less stressed. When you make a practice of being in nature regularly, you'll absorb more vitamin D, get more fresh air, and get more exercise. Even beyond these measurable wellness benefits, being in nature restores your perspective. It helps you remember your place in the world.

[00:04:43] It helps you disengage from the cultural pressures that distract you from what matters. Simple step number five. Detox your environment. As you simplify your life and eliminate the unnecessary in your space, you often feel more light, more free, and more appreciative of your surroundings. It makes sense to make sure those surroundings are as life-giving as possible. To clean the air in your home or office, try these two simple strategies.

[00:05:09] Open windows every day that the weather allows, and bring in plants. Believe it or not, some plants absorb pollutants right out of the air. You can even improve your indoor air quality by choosing simple non-toxic cleaners, and by skipping synthetic fragrances or candles. Keep wellness in mind as you sort through your personal care products too. Your skin may absorb what you apply to it, so choose products that have an ingredients list you're comfortable with. And only keep your favorites.

[00:05:37] That makes storage and organization simpler as well. You don't have to do everything all at once, and you don't always have to buy more stuff to be well. Instead, intentional steps toward health and wellness can actually support you on your simplicity journey. You'll have more energy, more focus, and be more present as you pursue what matters. You can be well, simply.

[00:06:03] You just listened to the post titled, A Simple Guide to Wellness by Melissa Kamara-Wilkins with nosidebar.com. Dr. Neil again here. Now, what's the difference between health and wellness? Well, health is more about do you have a chronic disease or not? Do you have complete mental, social, and physical well-being? Few of us can actually say that that's true for us.

[00:06:29] Few of us can say, yes, I have complete physical, mental, social, and spiritual well-being. And it kind of seems to vary day by day, right? Wellness, on the other hand, is a little different. It asks, what steps are you taking to improve your physical, social, mental, and spiritual well-being? Wellness asks, what are you doing to make the most out of what you're given? And the steps that I just read to you are perfect examples of wellness.

[00:06:59] Each simple step brings you closer to that optimal physical, mental, social, and spiritual well-being. And like I always say, there were five steps that we mentioned here. You only need to really start with one of them. If one of them jumps out at you, maybe it's detoxifying your environment, and your first step is to go buy some real green plants and put them in your house, that counts. That's you taking your first step towards optimizing your health by incorporating some wellness.

[00:07:29] So whenever I mention these lists, whenever I read to you these lists, don't feel like you have to do everything at once. Just start with one. The one when you stop listening, you still remember. Do that first. And then move on down the line. And if you keep that up before you know it, you'll have completed all five of these simple steps in no time. All right, that's it for today. I hope you have a great Tuesday. I thank you as always for listening. I'll be back here tomorrow as usual. So I'll see you there where your optimal life awaits. I'll see you there where your optimal life awaits.

[00:07:59] I'll see you there. And I'll see you there. So you're at the end. Thank you.