Here’s an unfortunate truth about getting healthier.
You may actually have to change something.
I know. Terrible marketing. 😄
We’d all prefer to discover the food we love is perfect, the movement we avoid isn’t necessary, six hours on the couch counts as recovery, and somebody has finally invented a supplement that takes care of everything else.
I haven’t found that one yet.
When I was 55, I had type 2 diabetes, was nearly 100 pounds heavier than I am today, and my body hurt.
I wanted things to change.
Eventually I realized wanting different results while continuing to live exactly the same way wasn’t much of a plan.
So I changed things.
I changed how I ate.
I started moving differently.
I paid attention to what my body was telling me.
Some things I stopped doing completely.
Others I experimented with.
And over time, my life changed.
Not in 30 days.
Not because I followed a perfect program.
And certainly not because I suddenly developed superhuman discipline.
I just found changes that mattered enough that I was willing to keep making them.
That’s a very different idea from punishment.
I don’t believe you have to give up everything you enjoy to become healthy.
Quite the opposite.
The whole reason to take care of yourself is so you can enjoy your life.
But sometimes what you want most and what you want right now aren’t pointing in the same direction.
That’s where things get interesting.
Maybe you want another drink tonight, but you also want to sleep better.
Maybe the couch sounds wonderful, but you know you’ll feel better after a walk.
Maybe you love a particular food, but you’ve noticed you don’t particularly love what happens after you eat it.
You get to decide.
No guilt.
No health police.
No perfect score.
Just choices.
I’ve made thousands of them since I was 55. Some good. Some stupid. Some I’ve changed my mind about completely.
I’m still experimenting.
But there’s one thing I believe more strongly now than I did then:
If you want something in your life to change, eventually you have to change something in your life.
Don’t change everything tomorrow.
Pick one thing that matters.
Start there.
When you reversed your type 2 diabetes, I presume you ate real food all the time. Did you eat all the standard types of real food (fruit, veggies, nuts, seeds, whole grains, legumes, unprocessed meat, dairy, eggs, seed oils &/or EVOO) or did you eat only certain kinds of real foods (e.g. no fruit and grains, or all vegan, or very low fat)?