It’s so Confusing!! 
HIIT, aerobics, weights, run, cycle, swim…
Train in the morning. Train in the afternoon…
Get up earlier, work harder, work smarter not harder…
Keto, CSIRO diet, Blood Sugar diet, it’s all calories in/calories out…
Eat 5 times a day, only eat if your body is hungry, time-restricted eating…
Oh my gosh.
How do we know what to do?
Health is important and we show that through our appearance, right?
But one moment it’s “this research says…” or “a study has revealed…” or “Nutrition guidelines say…” or celebrity chef xyz / social media influencer/ celebrity TV star…
Just STOP!
I’ve tried lots of ‘new’ ways of eating, not calling ‘it’ a diet, dreaming of being thin with gorgeous calves. I know that this is obvious, but I didn’t realise how influenced I was by more than 50 years of societal conditioning, that all the dieting and exercise in the world will not change that I was genetically designed a certain way – to be strong with sturdy bones (think Warriors and Vikings). We are not all built to be lithe and agile. Some of us are meant to be solid and strong. And lots of us are in between.
But (I hear you cry!)… what about the magazines, the social media, the print media… all those ‘almost promises’ of if I just do ‘this’, I’ll look like ‘that’?
How do we know what’s best for our physical health let alone our mental health?
Well firstly – we’re all in this together. Science learns more and more each day – so guidelines change. Take for instance, the fats are bad so cut them out. Now carbs are bad, cut them out. The good food triangle looks very different today than it did 30 to 40 years ago!
There are other things that we’ve ‘known’ but never really been able to explain. A section of our community at large can restrict calories but find that they’ll GAIN weight. I’ve heard people say “Oh they can’t be sticking to their diet”. And to be honest, I’ve questioned it myself.
There are 6 different Health Types according to ph360 and Precision Health Alliance.
ALL those recommendations above in the first lines of this article, are good for your health, depending upon your health type.
HOWEVER.
Addressing overall health (not only weight) varies so much between the health types.
For one health type, their health (both physical and mental) will not improve until they have their ‘space’ and ‘time’ sorted out. For another health type, it’s about making sure that their ‘inner circle’ is okay – if they’re okay, I’m okay. For another, it’s about making sure their neural system gets rest and if they’ve had a hard day, will consciously or otherwise ensure that those around leave them alone (cranky when you get home and the kids run for cover??). For another health type, it’s making sure that they have an outlet for all their energy.
Would you like to know more?
For the month of October, Mental Health Awareness month, I’m focussing on stress and the different health types. Stay tuned for more posts.
Would you like to know your health type?
You can take a free test here: https://healthtype.ph360.me/
