What does wellness mean to you?
Many of us never stop to think about our health until something goes wrong. We assume that just because we don’t have a disease or an ailment that requires immediate attention, we are healthy.
But wellness is more than an absence of disease. There may not be one universal definition of wellness, but many people define it as having much more than just a physical component. It includes mental, intellectual, spiritual, and social wellbeing.
When I began to research the diet industry, and why people regain their weight so frequently, I asked myself that same question: What exactly is wellness, and how do we achieve it?
Weight is not the only issue
Of course, reaching and maintaining your ideal weight is important. But wellness is much more than not having an acute disease. To me, achieving wellness is about having vitality, energy, a positive outlook, and living your life deliberately.
That’s why I designed the 8 Principles of UdP Wellness. Although they are listed as single principles, they combine to make up the UdP (Ultimate diet Process).
If you skip one principle, you might be successful for a while, but you will undoubtedly fail in the long run.
Here is a brief overview of each principle, and how it can help you lose weight, maintain your ideal weight, and help you achieve wellness.
You can get the full details about each of these principles, in the 2 Day Gift of Wellness.
- Sustainability: This means having staying power. The one thing all diets have in common is that they are unsustainable, which mean that they will fail.
How can you tell if something is unsustainable? Ask yourself if you could do this activity forever. For example, if your goal is to exercise for one hour every day, ask yourself honestly if you could do that for the rest of your life. If not, then that goal is unsustainable.
- Eat when you’re hungry. When you’re hungry, your brain, in concert with your body, sends signals to eat. Your brain may override your body’s desire to eat, because your unconscious brain thinks there is a food drought, and becomes ultra-efficient at retaining calories – not what you want when you’re trying to lose weight!
- Eat mindfully. Eating mindfully means thinking about what your brain decides to put in your mouth. You need to pay attention to what you eat, because to a large degree your body doesn’t care which protein you eat. Once you recognize when you are truly hungry (tip #2), you have to decide if you’ll have an apple or an apple tart.
- Respect the Triple R day. This becomes the focus of the UdP, because it’s a day you choose, twice a week, where you reduce, relax, and rejuvenate. The main component is reducing calories to 600 a day, not to lose weight but to allow your body to repair and rejuvenate.
You can find detailed information on the Triple R day, in 2 Day Gift of Wellness.
- The buddy system: Studies show that you can change any habit or craving more successfully when you work with other people. A partner, friend, co-worker or family member can encourage and support you in your goal to achieving wellness.
- Mentoring: A mentor is different from a coach or buddy. A mentor is someone who has successfully completed the process you’re going through, and is a confidant, knowledge provider, and cheerleader to help you achieve your goals.
- Journaling: It’s important to journal every day, to record how you feel and your progress towards your goal. Committing to journaling helps you stay accountable to yourself, which leads to greater success in achieving wellness.
- Exercise: Most people associate exercise with weight loss, but working out does not automatically lead to losing weight. However, exercise is important to your health and wellbeing.
So there you have it, my 8 principles of wellness. I’d love to hear your thoughts and feedback. Which of these principles have you tried in your own journey to wellness?
Do you have your own principles that you use? Share your ideas here, or on our Facebook page!
*If you don’t already have a copy of 2 Day Gift of Wellness, scroll down this page to get it on Amazon, or get your 2 free chapters.
Then contact me about your free mentoring session: drmichael@2daygift.com
Your co-pilot to wellness,
Dr. Michael