Lost in the Wellness World? Focus on these 3 wellness markers to simplify.

With a new trend going viral almost daily, it is hard to know what will work for your body and mind. One day Paleo is supposed to help, and the next it seems to be Vegan is the healthiest way to live. Then there are the fitness trends that keep changing as well; even ancient practices like yoga have so many different paths to choose from.

So with all this noise, it is easy to get overwhelmed. Here are three markers that will help simplify your wellness journey so you don’t get stressed by the same thing that is supposed to help heal you.

Appetite or Digestion:
This is the first marker and doesn’t always depend on your food. I once had a coaching client named Jamie (name changed for privacy), who worked in the fitness industry.
As you might have guessed she appeared physically fit and was eating healthy but often suffered from poor digestion. Considering her healthy lifestyle, she could never really figure out why that was happening.
When we started working together, we addressed her symptoms of poor digestion by changing the way she consumed her food based on her Ayurvedic body type. Once she learned to reduce the symptoms, we explored the deeper causes of her poor digestion.
Jamie had an overly agreeable personality, she had a hard time saying no to anybody. She didn’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings so she always put others in front of her needs. This happened both at work and with friends. So she constantly felt overwhelmed and over-booked. She was not able to keep up with work deadlines.
She also realized that whenever she met her manager for their weekly check-in, she would feel very anxious and have the worst digestion problems. We worked towards better time and energy management. She started using the golden phrase “I will get back to you later” more often and took the time to check her commitments before taking on more tasks. Over time she managed to take on tasks she had time and mind space for. This helped her manage her anxiety issues which in turn helped improve her digestion. Also, she realized that saying no doesn’t mean she would be looked upon as less competent. She was surprised that all her digestion issues came from something beyond food.
So if you have issues with your appetite or digestion, pay attention to your emotional health. Is it the root cause?
Sleep:
A good night’s sleep is one of the easiest ways to get healthier faster provided you are rested enough to reach the restorative sleep state. There are a lot of things that affect your sleep which are beyond just getting 6 or 8 hours of sleep every night. Your stress levels during the day, what you do before bed, food, and so on. So if you wake up with brain fog or feel tired during the day, you want to look at other areas of your life affecting your sleep.
Energy:
This is the third marker and the best way to gauge your mental health in my experience. Do you always feel tired or are you primarily energetic throughout the day? Now we all know that when we are doing things we love, we have a lot of energy. So think about how many things you do during the day you are passionate about. If you always feel tired, then ask yourself if you can work towards doing things that fill your heart and bring you more joy. One simple way to help improve these three areas is to learn how to manage your breath. With breath awareness, you can manage anxiety and energy levels helping you think clearly and make better decisions.
One simple way to help improve these three areas is to learn how to manage your breath. With breath awareness, you can manage anxiety and energy levels helping you think clearly and make better decisions.