“The body has its rights, and it will have them. The body must not be trampled on or belittled, otherwise it will be dangerous. The body is the soul’s best friend, its kindest and dutiful companion. However, many diligent people ignore this point, which is why many writers suffer. Some good people see it as the enemy, and then it becomes the devil that haunts them.” AUGUSTUS WILLIAM HARE AND JULIUS CHARLES HARE
Do you see your body as the soul’s best friend, or as the devil that haunts you? Is it a temple or a tomb? Your body is your avatar in the physical universe. It is the character you control, and you are the consciousness that controls it. It is subject to the laws of the physical universe, but your consciousness is not limited. The body is the channel through which you express yourself in physical form. It is your paintbrush on a physical canvas, so its health is important. If the body is not in good health, the “brush” will be defective. When it is alive, it becomes the purest extension of your mind.
I only became aware of my body when I was in poor health. When I was sick in bed, I realized the importance of health. My mind kept saying, “Let me get well again.” Yet when I’m in good health, I barely notice my body. It became almost an invisible extension of my consciousness.
How to achieve and maintain good health can seem confusing on the surface. Many experts come up with a fairly complex set of rules: “what to eat, how to eat, when to eat.” Every time there seems to be a consensus on an issue, a new book comes out in support of the opposite approach. However, you will soon see that the three universal principles of truth, love, and power can help you clear up this confusion and help you formulate sensible practices that will benefit you throughout your life.
Health and Truth
Overweight doctors write new weight-loss books; Supplement manufacturers publish health journals; Drug companies sponsor television news programs. Uncovering the truth about health can be difficult if you are overexposed to such marketing messages. Health product marketers often seem to follow Mark Twain’s classic advice: “Know the facts first, and then you can distort them as much as you want.”
I’m not trying to convince you of my views on health. Instead, I want to give you ways to think intelligently about the problem for yourself. I’m not going to overload you with statistics, it’s pointless. I can use data modeling to back up any case I want, but you’ll never know if I’m sharing part of the truth with you, or the whole truth. If I were really manipulative, I could even use distorted facts and figures to try to convince you to buy a special line of high-priced supplements that enrich only two things: your urine and the merchant’s pocketbook. I’m not a trained scientist, and chances are you’re not either, so let’s skip the arguments about smart statistics and come up with a smarter approach.
Take a moment to empty your mind of everything you think you know about health. As Bruce Lee said, “Empty your cup.” Let’s go back to the first principle and start with your basic perception. Put aside your struggles with what you should be doing and examine what your senses are telling you.
Take a good look at your body. If possible, evaluate yourself naked in the mirror. What do you see? Do you look too fat or too thin? Which parts did you like best? What do you wish you could change? What color are your eyes? How would you describe your hair? Pay attention to your perceptions and your inner reactions to them.
How do you feel now? In high spirits or in low spirits? Do you feel light or heavy? How often do you get sick? Do you sleep well and wake up refreshed at night, or toss and turn with difficulty? Are you relaxed or nervous? Is the emotional state positive or negative? What types of food do you eat and how much do you eat? How do you feel about your diet? Do you think it’s healthy, or do you have known problems? Do you have any unhealthy hobbies? Do you use addictive substances such as caffeine, nicotine, or alcohol?
On a scale of 1 to 10, how would you rate your overall physical fitness? What’s your aerobic capacity? What about strength, flexibility, endurance? What kind of exercise do you do and how often do you do it? What sports do you like at present? Are you playing well, or do you have some physical problems? Do you have the physical strength you want?
Be completely honest with yourself. Your opinion reveals something about your body’s current state of health. If you want more information, ask a friend or family member what they think of your body, and consider getting a full physical.
Now turn your attention to your predictions. You never know if these will be accurate, but you can certainly make a reasonable guess based on your current lifestyle. To be completely honest with yourself, use a third-person perspective. Imagine an objective, unbiased observer scrutinizing every detail of your life. What predictions would he make about your body? Is the prediction positive or negative? Is your health improving or declining? Where do your current habits take you? Is that what you want? If you’re feeling brave, ask a friend or family member to make these predictions for you, too, and then compare that prediction to your own. This will help compensate for your inner bias and make your situation more real.
In the past you may have contradicted your truest perceptions and predictions, especially if you didn’t like what you saw. But this time, accept everything as fully as you can. Accept where you are and what you have to do. Accept the body you were given, despite its flaws. For better or worse, it’s a tool you’ll use for the rest of your life.
There are parts of my body that I really like. I like my blue eyes; I love being left-handed, even though it can be annoying to live in a right-handed world; I like being six feet tall, just enough to get a good view of a crowd, but not so high that I have to duck when I walk through a doorway. I like that I have enough strength and endurance; I like my body to be less hairy; I know how to play tricks, and I don’t get sick very often.
There are some parts I don’t like. I don’t like being near-sighted and having to shave every day; My teeth are discolored from braces I wore as a child; I’m not very flexible; Posture also needs improvement; I was born color-blind, so I’ve never seen a sunset through someone else’s eyes. Of course, half the thoughts in my head seem to come from the waist down.
We all have our own unique physical issues to deal with. Some of them we have the power to change, others we may not. Whatever the specifics of each situation, the path to better, healthier lives begins with recognizing and accepting what we already know to be true.
Health and love
Use the principles of love to deepen the connection between your mind and body. Quiet your mind, turn your attention inward, and just listen. What did you hear? Is your body reporting problems that require action? Do you have any subtle emotions coming up? What is your intuition telling you?
The principle of love helps you connect with foods that are most naturally attractive to you. Pay attention to what your gut tells you is right and what is wrong. How do you feel about an apple? A hot dog? A bowl of rice? How about a stalk of broccoli? Do some things make you feel healthy and others don’t? Can you improve your health simply by being more respectful of your intuition? Are you treating your body in a loving way?
I feel most connected to natural foods, especially fresh fruits and vegetables. Something that comes out of a factory or slaughterhouse, something that intuitively feels wrong to me. I feel more love and connection when I eat natural plant foods.
Yet when I think about eating meat, I feel disconnected from compassion and love. I was forced to connect with the reality of rotting flesh. I know of a life that was violently killed before its natural end. It is often held captive from birth and then spends a miserable life in extremely painful conditions. I know that slaughterhouses lose a lot of staff, because few people can stand such jobs for long. I know that a lot of resources have to be expended and a lot of waste produced to get meat to my plate. I saw the profound dissonance and unfairness of some animals being treated as lovable companions of human beings and others as edible substances simply because of profit and taste differences. What I see are lives relegated to dollar signs.
The only way I can get used to eating meat is to ignore my instincts and deny my consciousness. As I have committed myself to a conscious life, I cannot do this. I haven’t eaten meat products since 1993, and I haven’t eaten animal derivatives since 1997. I wish I could say that my awareness was the catalyst for these changes, but the truth is that my awareness of the consequences of my food choices increased during and after my 30-day meat-free experiment, conducted out of sheer curiosity, to the point where I can never go back.
When I eat processed, packaged food, I feel even more lost and disconnected. What I see are lifeless chemicals that may fuel my body but will never fully nourish me. I know that such foods are marketed and sold based on their profitability, not their healthiness, so I have no feelings of love for these products. I have seen falsehood advertised as truth; Bits and pieces are introduced as wholes; What is weak is advertised as strength. Eating such foods lowers my sense of self and makes me less like myself.
How do you feel when you associate what you eat with what you eat? Your feelings may be completely different from mine, and that’s perfectly fine. Listen to your own feelings, not the echoes of other people’s opinions. What does your gut tell you?
Next, adjust and align your physical activity patterns. What does your intuition say about your current exercise habits, work activities, and stress levels? Do you really need an expert to tell you where you can improve, or has your intuition revealed the first step on the road to positive growth? Are you treating your body in a loving way?
What foods and activities do you eat that are most compatible with the real you? What incompatibilities? Does killing and eating animals feel good to you, or does it turn you off? How do you feel about fruits, vegetables, grains and legumes? Are you attracted to natural, whole, or processed foods? Can you feel the difference between loving and loveless choices? How do you feel about all forms of physical exercise? What do you feel when you think about everyday elements of your body, including work?
It’s not easy to use the principles of love to explore your innermost feelings. However, if you wish to grow into a more conscious person, you must follow the answers wherever they lead. Don’t deny what you know in your heart to be true. If you lack the power to change right now, that’s fine. It’s better to consciously smoke a cigarette or have a drink and be fully aware that it’s wrong for you than to lower your level of consciousness and get out of touch with your intuitive feelings.
Health and Strength
You might have guessed that I was going to tell you that your health is your own responsibility, and of course you would be right. In a world not entirely committed to health, the most natural and beneficial practices are often considered extreme. Eating a salad instead of a steak labels you as a health nut; Make it a habit to exercise every day, and you’re a fitness freak. Don’t eat industrial food, and you’re a fanatical purist. The truth is, if the average person doesn’t think your current health practices are extreme, you’re probably not healthy. In the United States, the average person dies of heart disease, cancer or stroke, all of which are largely influenced by lifestyle. Most ordinary people are killing themselves slowly.
Now, for the sake of your health, you must exercise self-discipline to overcome the resistance of social constraints. Summon up your maturity and make wise choices for yourself, regardless of what the “patients” are encouraging you to do.
Set physical goals that motivate you. Being slightly healthier than average is still unhealthy, so aim high. What do you really want in this regard? Do you wish you were disease-free, strong and energetic? An unhealthy body limits your strength, while good health increases it.
Improve your health habits step by step with progressive training. Don’t try to achieve perfection on the first try. Of course, you can find one small positive change. Start a 30-day trial today to implement the new habit. If you don’t like it, you can always go back to the old habit. Remember, it’s only 30 days. Diet and exercise are habitual activities that will have a significant impact on your long-term health outcomes. Use your self-discipline to practice the best habits you can do today, and then let them work on their own.
Health and oneness
Turn the lens of oneness inward, recognizing that the health of the body depends on the health of the cells and vice versa. The body and cells are completely interdependent. Neither side can survive and develop without the other. Your body and mind are also connected. Buddha said, “It is a duty to keep the body healthy,” because good health is necessary to keep the mind strong and clear.
You have to decide whether to extend the oneness principle beyond human beings. Would you apply the same principle to other creatures? To me, this stretch feels right. If I am completely honest with myself, I must admit that turning animals into food violates my sense of compassion and compassion and causes me to lose touch with my own heart. When I see a puppy being treated as a beloved pet and a pig being treated as food, I feel very unfair. Therefore, I like to make fresh fruit a big part of my diet because eating fruit doesn’t harm the plants that gave birth to it. Seeds can also be planted to produce more fruit. Interestingly, I found that when I shifted my diet in the direction of greater compassion and compassion for all living things, it also had a lot of benefits for my health. If you want to know my specific experience in this regard, please see Why Vegan? The article.
Turn the lens of oneness outward and realize that your actions affect others. Your personal health habits affect everyone else. Have you ever felt more motivated to exercise after watching top athletes compete? Has reading a book by a health expert inspired you to improve your eating habits? Do you realize that you have a similar effect on everyone around you? Your actions teach others how to live. What kind of example are you setting right now?
Team up with other health fanatics, fitness fanatics, and fanatical purists (i.e., sane people) to work together for wellness. Disassociate yourself from healthy habits that reinforce negative ones and support more positive ones. Think of your social circle as an extension of your body.
In 1998, I trained for many long runs along the beach for the Los Angeles Marathon. Unfortunately, when I went to register, I was chagrin to find that the date of the contest conflicted with my wedding. When I told Erin about the problem, the look in her eyes told me I had to get married and not compete.
However, I still wanted to run the marathon, so I tried again the following year. This time, I joined a popular marathon training group in Los Angeles and ran every weekend along Venice Beach. I like this kind of group running. I enjoy it more than training alone. One of my sisters also joined the group, so we were able to run together and enjoy many long talks. You can talk about a lot of things during a 20-mile run.
However, bad luck struck again. In the last week before the tournament, I injured my knee and had to miss the tournament. But I wouldn’t give up, so the next year I trained again and successfully completed the marathon, but this time I went back to solo training. It’s not so pleasant, and I really miss that organization. The lesson I learned is that I enjoy sports more when I use them as a way to connect with like-minded people.
Many cities have fitness groups where people get together to work toward physical goals. Try searching the Internet to see what’s going on near you. You may find, as I did, that training with others is far more motivating than going it alone.
Despite its distinctly personal nature, health is not isolated. When one of us is sick, we all suffer in some small way. Because of the interconnectedness of human societies, there is a practical limit to how far one can go in pursuit of the “big health” of society as a whole. It would be foolish to ignore our connection to each other.
For example, how do you escape the negative health effects of global pollution when all the fresh water on earth is contaminated with chemicals? It’s not enough to just pursue health for yourself. If you want to be as healthy as possible, you have to help others make healthier choices, too. As your personal health journey unfolds, share what you’ve learned along the way and you’ll help others grow and improve. We’re all in this together.
Health and power
Whether you currently have health knowledge or not, you control the fate of your body. While you can consult an expert, the only true wellness guru in your life is you. Your health is in your control. You can delegate control, but never responsibility.
What is called modern health care is still fairly primitive, sloppy and error-prone, especially compared to other technical disciplines. If you talk to your doctor about a health problem, there’s a good chance you’ll be misdiagnosed and you’ll be treated based on that. Even if you get the right diagnosis, your treatment may be limited to words like “should,” “hope,” and “side effects.” When you ask your doctor why this problem happened and how to prevent it from happening again, you may hear: “We’re not entirely sure.”
If my mechanic says to me, “Your car should be drivable now, Mr. Pavlina. Of course, there may be some side effects, including shaking, sudden deceleration and fluid leakage, but hopefully not too bad.” I don’t think I’m gonna be here anymore.
Alternative health care is not immune to these problems, and we still end up with “shoulds” and “coulds.” I am not saying that these problems are the fault of health care doctors, I believe they are doing everything they can. However, these are issues that we cannot ignore.
What’s your best long-term health choice? I don’t know. I’m not you. Even if I explain to you exactly what works for me, it doesn’t mean it will work for you. Even if I could tell you what had a positive effect on the average person, would that guarantee that it would work for you? Consider your unique mix of genetic, environmental and personality factors. How close are you to the average person?
The simple fact is that when it comes to your physical health, the only authority you can really trust is yourself. Even so, you have to be careful not to be brainwashed by misinformation and media. If I give you some advice that doesn’t resonate with you, you should reject it. Trust your own judgment! That last sentence is pretty dizzying if you consider that it applies to you too, but I think you get the point. You are in charge here, and you should trust my advice only if it is consistent with your own perception.
If you can’t refuse to blindly trust so-called experts, how can you possibly be a qualified health authority? First, you can carefully observe your own opinions and predictions. Second, you can adjust and connect more deeply with your choices over time to see what intuition has to say; Third, you can fill in the gaps with personal tests and experiments. Sometimes, when you’re not sure if an option is right for you, the only way to know the truth is to try it out for yourself for a while.
On the physical side, I have had great success with 30 days. That’s how I became a vegetarian. That’s how I became an early bird who wakes up at 5:00 every day. With each experiment, I wasn’t sure if the change was right for me, so I ran a short-term experiment to find out. The outcome is often decisive, and it’s a no-brainer to either make the change permanent or abandon it altogether.
Sometimes my experiments have had mixed results. For example, in January 2008, I conducted a 30-day trial of low-fat raw food. I only eat raw fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds, and only 10 percent of my calories come from fat. I keep accurate daily records of everything I eat and share them on my website (the final summary can be found here, in case you’re curious). Although the experiment didn’t turn out as I expected, I still learned a lot from it. It was by far the hardest 30-day experiment I’ve ever done, but one of the things that motivated me to keep going was knowing THAT I wasn’t just doing it for myself, I was also creating a lasting resource for others. Although the experiment wasn’t perfect, it gave me enough information and experience to successfully become a raw foodie two months later. Of course, as my eating habits continue to change, I will continue to share the latest information on my website.
Personal experimentation is a powerful tool for self-discovery. Try different diets; Try a variety of exercises; Try different sleep patterns. Find out what works best for you by direct trial and error. Such exercises are always risky, but blindly following social norms is inherently risky. Remember that you are ultimately responsible for your own health.
If you do conduct a personal experiment, please consider these additional suggestions. First, keep a training log of your results, if not daily, at least once a week. Down the road (maybe even a few years down the road) you may find journaling very useful, so be as honest as possible in your reporting; Second, consider sharing your records publicly, for example through a blog. This allows others to learn from your experience as well. When I experiment with raw food, I get a lot of encouragement, guidance and practical advice from experienced raw eaters who can see exactly what I’m eating every day. This helped me stay on track and avoid some potential pitfalls during the trial. I really wish I had logged every day of my early vegetarian 30-day trial, because I would love to look back and see what I was eating. These records will be an important resource to share publicly with others, especially since my results have been so positive.
When you get very positive results from a temporary trial, make it permanent and lock in your gains. Let this new habit improve your baseline. If you continue to make this kind of personal improvement year after year, you are likely to encounter some setbacks from time to time. But in the long run, it’s reasonable to expect substantial improvements in your health. For me, the biggest benefit is mental rather than physical. Because of the healthy changes I’ve made over the past 15 years, my mind is clearer and sharper than ever, and I can block out distractions and stay focused all the time. It’s good for me personally and for the people I serve.
Your path to health may differ from mine, but the good thing about general principles is that they are not affected by personal circumstances. You can use the same process I did to become the ruler of your own body, even if you ultimately decide to manage your body differently than I do.
Health and Courage
Strive to adopt a mindful health and fitness program. Don’t be intimidated by goals that are challenging. A weak mind makes a weak body. Turn the pursuit of health into the adventure of a lifetime. If a goal doesn’t scare you, it’s probably not worth pursuing. Would you like to run a marathon or triathlon? Do you think mountain climbing will be an interesting experience? Does earning a black belt in martial arts appeal to you? Take a break from the treadmill and do something physical that motivates you. Live your life the way you think a healthy and active person should.
Be proactive in preventing health problems. Fight disease with diet and exercise, and keep yourself strong and energetic at all times. Don’t wait for a crisis to improve your health. Traditional medical treatment should be considered as a last resort when preventive measures have failed. It makes no sense to provide primary care by people who profit from your long-term illness.
Keep your fitness routine simple and straightforward. Don’t overcomplicate your life with fancy or expensive exercise equipment; Don’t mistake artificial supplements, powders, and milkshakes for a healthy, natural diet, either. Here’s a simple rule of thumb that can save you a lot of money: If it comes in a can, bottle or barrel, you don’t need it.
For years, my only form of exercise was to get up before dawn and run outside for 25 to 45 minutes. I do this almost every morning and enjoy a high level of energy and alertness throughout the day. On January 1, 1997, I made a New Year’s resolution to exercise for at least 25 minutes a day for the year. When it rains, I run in the rain. When I’m tired, sick, or don’t get home until after midnight, I still go out and exercise. I successfully completed the challenge without skipping a single day, smashing all my previous excuses for not exercising. If you’re worried about getting sick, rest assured that regular exercise will greatly strengthen your immune system.
A little rain is hardly an excuse to avoid exercise. In fact, it’s quite exhilarating. I did a 12-mile training run with running Buddy in heavy rain and high winds. People driving past us honked their horns and waved signs of encouragement, probably impressed and amused by all the fitness fanatics hanging around Ocean Drive. I don’t remember most of the details of those past training runs, but I remember that one very clearly, even though it happened nine years ago. Running for two hours in the rain is a worthwhile trade for such a prominent, fun memory. By the way, when I finally ran the Los Angeles Marathon, it rained for the first two hours of the race.
It is far more cost-effective to invest your courage in preventing illness and enjoying good health than to be forced to confront a major illness. But if you find yourself going the latter route, realize that the best health habit to reverse a disease is the habit to prevent it, and that the habit that causes it is also the habit that prolongs it. Breaking your most ingrained negative habits and recovering from a serious illness can take a lot of effort, and success is not guaranteed. But if you value your life and do what you can to restore your health, it’s worth some effort to enjoy a few more days in this world.
Health and Wisdom
Smart health habits create long-term sustainability and enable you to spend more time and energy on the things that really matter to you. When you let good habits take care of themselves, you don’t have to worry about your health anymore. You can simply use your body as a vehicle for creative self-expression, and your background habits are successfully maintaining and even improving your health.
While establishing good habits can be challenging, once they’re up and running, they shouldn’t be too hard to maintain. In fact, even in the short term, you should expect to reap a net benefit from your best health habits. For example, regular aerobic exercise makes me feel refreshed with significantly less sleep, so the habit is a bargain. Eating fresh fruit throughout the day is also very effective. Peeling and eating a few bananas is almost effortless, and the payoff is increased energy and alertness, without any sleepiness. A set of healthy habits creates a sense of constant positive flow.
The human body is a delicate and beautiful marvel, but inner health is more important than appearance. When it comes to body image, your truest choice is to accept and love yourself, including the parts you may find unattractive. Try to ignore social constraints that say you have to be a certain way. If you look like a toad, there are many color-blind people who will mistake you for a noble frog.
The last
All of your experiences in the physical universe are through the body. It’s your main tool for interacting with the world, so it makes sense to take care of it properly. Strive to get the most out of the “make” and “model” you currently live in. Build up some extra capacity so you can go through your days feeling alert and energized, rather than tired and sick. Even if your health isn’t perfect, take a moment to appreciate whatever level of fitness you have. Learn to appreciate being on this wonderful planet as a body.
Maybe one day we’ll be ready to upgrade these soft shells into almost indestructible mechanical bodies, or maybe we’ll simply transfer our conscious minds into a collective singularity, but as of this writing, that day hasn’t arrived yet. Therefore, I recommend that you maintain your current hardware for the long term rather than breaking it.
Of course, one of the best reasons to stay healthy is that good health will expand the love you build and enjoy… (See next chapter)