It is no secret, when we feel like poo life just isn’t as fun, and the longer our health is down, the darker the lenses we see life through. The sun doesn’t seem to shine as bright, or it shines too bright, the weather feels like it is purposely changing to what you don’t want, your bed feels too good, or like it was designed to be as uncomfortable as possible, you know your productivity is not going to be anywhere close to ideal, your thoughts seem to go dark places they usually don’t go to, happiness can be hard to find, and arguably the lamest part of it all, food usually doesn’t taste right. The thing is: we will all get sick, injured, or just won’t feel good at points in our lives, some more frequently than others. We at StaySmilinLife hope to help you understand and internalize two basic principles when it comes to health:
- Health and happiness affect each other.
- How healthy you are, for the most part, is the result of everyday choices.
Before we get all into it though, we need to make a few things clear. None of us at StaySmilinLife are doctors. We cannot give medical advice and what follows is an overview of our opinions based on life experiences, the advice we have received from our doctors and other health professionals, as well as bits and pieces from books and articles we constantly are reading. Our stance is this: neither Western, Eastern, or whatever other philosophy, has it ALL right, rather we have found that there is truth in each philosophy and it is up to each of us to figure out what works best for our unique, yet similar vessels.
Let’s begin: what is health? The first line in the World Health Organization (WHO) constitution sums up health nicely: “Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity,” WHO, 1946. We like their word choice because they refer to “complete physical, mental, and social well-being.” We believe it is imperative to include spirituality into the definition of whole health, which is exactly what StaySmilinLife is about: looking at all aspects of life as interrelated with the understanding that how well we balance each component of our health influences our varying levels of happiness. Additionally, the WHO posits that health is: “A resource for everyday life, not the object of living. Health is a positive concept emphasizing social and personal resources, as well as physical capacities,” WHO, 1986. We do not live to be healthy, yet if we aren’t healthy we find it harder to live. Our health is absolutely a resource, and unfortunately like other resources, we often take our health for granted. Even health-conscious people have trouble with some parts of health more so than others. The following will speak to the “complete physical” component of the WHO definition of health. You can find more information regarding “mental and social well-being” in our other blogs such as Mental Diet.
Health and Happiness Dance
We like to think of our overall health as the dance, a balancing of our choices between happiness and health. When you are healthy, it is easier to be happy, and when you are feeling pain, discomfort, sick… your happiness has a tendency to start playing hide-and-seek. The length of time we have poor health can become corrosive to our happiness; our sense of happiness can push through being sick or injured for a day or two, but as the ‘feeling bad days’ add up their weight tends to push happiness out. When we don’t feel good (mentally or physically) we are less likely to exercise, we often seek comfort food which usually isn’t the healthiest, and we start having pessimistic thoughts. As these things feed off each other we begin to slide down a slippery slope to despair.
Fortunately, the opposite can be true as well. The more healthy we are the less time we spend sick and/or injured, and the more time we have to appreciate our health and environment. Being healthy and feeling happy positively build upon each other: when we make healthy choices and feel the benefits, the more likely we are to be happy with our decisions, which is fuel for us to make more healthy choices, such as: enjoy more Hobbies. When you begin exercising regularly you feel good after, your self-esteem gets a boost, and optimistic thoughts begin to prevail. You may start losing weight or toning muscle and you like the direction you are headed, so you are more motivated to continue. The more you put into health, the healthier you feel because you will likely start being mindful of what you consume in addition to exercising (more on feeding the mind in Mental Diet). Yes, we are aware all of this requires discipline, time, motivation, etc. etc. The most important thing for you to walk away with from this article though is: get started doing something.
Happiness and Food
When talking about food, for a majority of people happiness usually comes when we eat things that aren’t so healthy… that’s because sugar, salt, and fat bring our taste buds sooo much joy! Without getting into the science (we will in other blogs) think about this: processed foods get the most shelf area at stores, kids food is often sugary (check out school breakfasts nutrition facts), and fast food places are making killings selling salt and fat for cheap. All that sugar, salt, and fat add up as we eat it year after year, especially during the holidays. Most foods that are convenient for our busy lives are not convenient for our arteries, liver, or blood, thus increasing the chance of reducing the overall amount of time we have to be alive and happy, all for the sake of saving time each day.
And we get it, sugar, salt, and fat can be so DELICIOUS! We at StaySmilinLife understand eating habits can be hard to change, and what’s healthy for one person may not be the best for another (two of us are vegan, two of us aren’t). StaySmilinLife is proposing you start out with moderation and balance so you aren’t setting yourself up for failure (try quitting sugar, salt, and fat cold turkey and you will find yourself at ColdStone with a Caramel Frapp in your hand after eating a steak with no veggies, just ask Carlos). So try this on for size and see if it fits: “Should I eat this bag of M&M’s?” Well, how about 10 instead. “This steak looks amazing!!!” Maybe just eat ½ and finish the salad and veggies. “I’m always exhausted…” How about instead of drinking more caffeine, you cut back to one caffeinated thing every other day, eat less sugar, get more sleep, and drink more water. The caffeine withdrawals suck at first but go away in a few days (just ask Tayari).
Our Happy Physique
It’s time to move. We have yet to find a sound study that recommends a sedentary (sloth-like) lifestyle for the average human is the key to a healthy body. Our bodies release awesome chemicals when we exercise, and there’s no feeling like proprioception (is the sense of self-movement and body position. It is sometimes described as the “sixth sense”). Nothing like being sore the next day and the weird pride that comes with the feeling that we made ourselves sweat, or had an awesome yoga session. Simply walking 30 minutes every day at a pace that will increase your heart rate can be like magic. If that’s too much for where you’re at, try walking around the block every day with the goal to increase the distance a little every few outings (tiny progress is still progress, don’t judge yourself). You’ll be surprised how a simple routine – like walking, over time, can result in positive impacts. The point is: start doing something and stick to it. Understand that you’re changing your life so it requires a lifestyle change and not a new year resolution that lasts just 17 days at the gym. It takes an average of 66 days for a habit to stick. You’ll be amazed at what you can accomplish when you take just one step and are open to the idea of taking the next, and then another. Remember, there was a time when online dating started that people would write in their profile, “I enjoy long walks on the beach.” Hey, cheesy as it may be, those walks are amazingly good for you! How about hitting up a friend, acquaintance, partner, and/or pets, and go for a walk, today. In addition to the exercise, you can get the added benefit of enjoying time together and connecting with people (and pets) you care about (here is more info about the benefits of Human Connection). If you already enjoy your physique, whatever physique that may be, by all means, we aren’t suggestions you need to change. Health is more than physical appearance, rather, it includes how you feel inside as well. What we’re proposing is: being more active in your life, even if just a little, can help you find a bit more happiness.
Healthy Everyday Choices
For some of you reading this, you will need to take back control of your health. What a concept… but this is the world we live in, for now. If you are in poor health, or are unintentionally working your way towards poor health, it can feel as if you’re crawling out from under a heavy rock. We want to help you understand that you can change the way you think of your situation so that you can experience something better and spend less time under rocks. Why, because we believe you deserve it. We believe that when you feel better, you do better. And when you are healthier, others may become healthier… and like they say, “The more the merrier.”
Having said that, part of living a StaySmillinLife is understanding your choices: the choices you make in regards to the way you treat your body. Visiting WHO again, “To reach a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being, an individual or group must be able to identify and to realize aspirations, to satisfy needs, and to change or cope with the environment” (1986). It is necessary to constantly develop and reinforce your self-awareness so that you can be in tune with the positive and negative signs your body gives you depending on what you are doing, eating, or thinking. There is a happy balance in the physical, mental, and social well-being which can contribute to experiencing more happiness in life.
Founder Thoughts
All four of us at StaySmilinLife have struggled, and are now dealing with, health issues during our journey. We have all been at a place where poor health has made us think, “Is this pain going to last forever? Will I always feel this sluggish? I don’t know how much more I can take, and I’m not sure I want to be around if it doesn’t go away…” Thankfully, we have all overcome the negativity spiral that comes with poor or failing health, and we believe that you can as well. A few of us even have chronic health challenges that will ride along with us for the rest of our journeys. At some point we thought we couldn’t live with our conditions, yet here we are more inspired than ever. What changed was how we re-defined our struggles into challenges, and then we vowed to make continual choices to do what we can to minimize their impacts on our lives and happiness, in a healthy way. What we learned was diets and quick fixes might help for days or weeks, but to find true health we had to make lifestyle changes.
Tayari’s “Two Cents.” After traveling and working in Greece, Italy, and Spain, I did what was done in Rome, with espresso. And boyyyy ohhh boyy, not only was my pinky up, but so was I… at 3:00 am trying to catch some zzz’s before my alarm clock sounded off at 5:00 am!. When I got back Stateside, so did the espresso habit, and the zzzz’s became more elusive than trying to catch a breakdancing bat. After a few years of walking through my days in a daze like a zombie I decided to put my pinky down along with the espresso, sugar, and caffeine. It was a rough start, but after a few days, I felt cooler than a bucket of ice & twice as nice! I no longer got the jitters, and felt a level of mental clarity that was quite surprising. I felt like more of my authentic self then I had in a long time. From there, it became a game; how much of myself could I get back. So I decided I wanted all of me back and so I burned the boat and went for it! In doing so, my energy has shot through the roof and people continually would ask or comment, “I don’t know how you do it?” Thing is, with the right fuel in your tank, you can keep it zoomin’ like a sports car. If your car calls for 92 octane and you’re putting in 87 every time you pull up to the pump, the motor is going to run like Garrbagge (Ghar-badge!). The same goes for you. You are what you eat, so keep it clean and keep that smile for miles!
It’s me, Yoichi!: There’s a difference I noticed in my health being single and having a girlfriend. When I was single I was eating anything I wanted but the problem was at whatever time I wanted to eat it. Of course that led to weight gain but eating junk food in the middle of the night before going to sleep made me feel like crap all day long. But when I had a Girlfriend it made my eating habits better by making me eat at a reasonable time. (still eating junk food sometimes) The time we were eating was more important to a healthier lifestyle I think. After starting to watch the time I ate my breakfast, lunch, and dinner, I felt better throughout the day. Eating at certain times of the day keeps your blood sugar in check, energy higher, and an overall mental feeling that makes you feel happier throughout the day. Eating healthy would be the next step. But each of our bodies are different and are affected differently by the levels of sugar, salt, and fat. But you won’t know how you react to less of each unless you try to do something. Start small, instead of the sugary mocha latte just have a black coffee, then ween off that and then just have water or have tea instead. When you have to go have a burger, try grilled chicken or even protein style.
Kristina’s Truth… It helps me to log food so I can track what I’m eating. I recommend MyFitnessPal. I had the app before… but you know how it goes with apps… and how soon you don’t even see it as you swipe past it… But about 2 months ago I decided enough was enough and signed up for a macros coach and they got me back onto MyFitnessPal (a free app). I can tell you that the act of tracking what you eat in itself makes a huge impact. For me, it was eye-opening to see how many grams of fat a “healthy” salad has, or how much food I actually was consuming a day. I also noticed patterns about my eating… all of those little snacks, chocolates, and chips in the office added up! I realized that a lot of the time I wasn’t even necessarily hungry when I snacked, just bored or wanting a change in scenery. I have moved to a change in habit instead – by doing several things. I make sure to stay hydrated, which can also be tracked in the app: dehydration feels a lot like hunger so you may be surprised by the result of just drinking more water in the day, and if I feel hungry I go for a short walk. If I find I’m still hungry when I get back, then I grab an herbal tea with protein powder in it or a healthy snack that I make sure to always have at the ready. My go-to snacks are Chobani yogurts, pistachios, and seaweed snacks.
I can go on and gush more about MyFitnessPal, but I’ll leave it there for now. If you don’t want to sign up for an app, or if for some reason you don’t have a smartphone or room on your smartphone for another app (seriously how many pics do you have on your phone? j/k!), go back to the basics and log your food on a sheet of paper. Heck, use the back of all that junk mail and start your food diary, not tomorrow – but today.
Carlos Thinky Thinky… Growing up my stomach almost always hurt. My mom experimented with vegetarianism and so we all thought we were eating super healthy. A lot of greens, veggies, fish, fish sticks, tv dinners, and a bunch of homemade amazingness. We also ate a whole bunch of dairy. And I mean a bunch. Eventually my mom went full vegetarian and cut out all meat, but sure did keep the milk, cheese, sour cream, and iiiiiiccceee cream, and we loved it. I got to college and my soccer coach convinced me to start eating chicken so that I could bulk up. My problem was that I was an 18-year-old vegetarian living on dorm food… I lost a lot of weight and wasn’t eating right. The chicken helped, so did the protein shakes. I was in top shape, usually the fastest guy on the field, and could run for days. My teammates always asked how it was that I could run so hard for so long, and I would joke that while they ate steak burritos I ate chicken salads. But my stomach still hurt, and I’m talking about cold sweats curled up on the floor wishing I could get whatever it was out, or die. Dr. diagnosed me with Gastritis and prescribed me 150mg of Zantac, twice a day. Talk about a rock and a hard place: I either take the meds and replace the pain with a soup stomach that made me nauseous all day, or deal with the pain. In the winter of 2006/2007, I did an internship in Ukraine and had to eat red meat, because my only other options were potatoes and pickled cabbage and carrots (there was slightly more than that, but finding fresh veggies was impossible, but I did find a $30 mango!). After several weeks I realized my stomach stopped hurting… I figured it was the red meat. That reprieve only lasted while I was overseas.
The idea of returning to be a vegetarian returned when I was in my mid 20’s and never really went away. I tried doing it a few times and got super sick every time. A super active guy can’t seem to live on tofu and salads for very long. I kept watching all the health videos to keep my knowledge up, but the book Salt, Sugar, Fat really made me angry about the entire food and diet system. The book spoke about dairy and I realized the only time I ever gave up dairy was when I lived overseas… I barely ate dairy then, and I had no stomach issues. So I cut the dairy. Let me tell you what, the stomach issues went away about 80%! For all the reasons you could think of I wanted to go vegan and so I spoke to my Aunt, a 20-year vegan, and learned how to do it properly. I’m happy to say I’ve been a vegan about 3 years now and I’ve had not one stomach issue since. Not only that, I’ve continued to work out five days a week since I graduated college in 2004 and feel at my best (except college because I had trainers and was pushed harder than I seem to be able to push myself). Generally speaking, anytime I find myself starting to feel depressed or blah, 9 times out of 10 it’s because I stopped working out for some reason (sometimes I just don’t “feel” like it and take several days off), and/or I start eating more sugar and processed food (I love eating out but yo that stuff isn’t that great for you every day). I also noticed that if I slip with one I generally slip with the other soon after, and it doesn’t matter which one goes first.
We Believe In You
Think about your hopes and dreams… don’t they usually involve you being relatively healthy in every sense of the word? Thankfully, for the most part, our health is something we can influence. We can put in work to improve our physical, mental, spiritual, and social well-being, or we can ignore the countless warning signs and let it all slip away. True, sometimes you get sick or things happen. Wouldn’t you rather be healthy when you get sick or injured and increase your chances and speed of recovery, so you can get back to doing what you love and feeling happy?
The four of us at StaySmilinLife believe life is a gift and should no longer be taken for granted. The degree and length of time to which you can enjoy said gift may very well be correlated to how well you manage your health. We encourage you to start implementing moderation and balance in what you eat and drink, get your sweat on, and set yourself up for success by being mindful about making healthy choices. So go on, love, and take care of yourself well so that you increase your chances and opportunity to enjoy everything this life, and your imagination has to offer.
