So,
Today we are looking at your physical health.
We will gain awareness of motivations,
Attitudes and feelings around exercise.
Our goal is to be completely aware of how moving your body impacts your overall well-being.
We will also gain knowledge about nutrition,
Recovery and sleep.
Munir Khan said,
Gym is a sacred place which makes your life feel worth existing by putting effort of care into the home of your soul,
Called body.
Let's use this beautiful inspiration to motivate you to look after the home of your soul.
So,
First of all,
Let's check how much of an active person you are already.
Don't think about exercise or sports solely,
Because going to the gym is only one way of moving your body.
Think about whether you go for walks,
Hikes,
Or if you bike to work,
Or if you do any other kind of exercise that makes you sweat.
If you already sweat for two hours per week,
You can consider yourself being above the minimum amount of physical activity needed.
If you are not there yet,
Then let's find some motivation to get you there.
Now,
Let us accept the unavoidable truth that you need to exercise,
There is no way around it.
If you want to live a healthy and happy life,
You have got to move.
You can choose how to move,
But you have to move your body in a somewhat exhausting way.
Now,
I understand that for some the actual experience of moving your body is not pleasant,
And I can acknowledge that.
But even if doing sports is not to your liking,
You have to move.
Because even if you hate moving and you go through hell for two hours per week,
The overall benefits and improvements in your quality of life outweigh the hate you have for those two hours.
Next,
Let's be detectives together to find out what kind of movement you might want to take up at this moment of your life.
Ask yourself a few questions.
Do you want to participate in a group or move by yourself?
Really think about this for a second.
Does it serve you to have a little bit more social interactions?
If yes,
Join a crew.
Whatever the group is,
A hiking group,
Frisbee group,
Gym group,
Rugby team,
Whatever.
If you need some more alone time in your life,
Then find some movement that you can do by yourself.
For example,
Sprints on the local field,
Running through the forest,
Swimming by yourself,
And so on.
Furthermore,
Think about whether you want to be indoor,
Outdoor,
Or flexible.
Do you want to exercise in one specific place or multiple?
Be curious as to what exercise might serve you.
It makes the start so much easier.
Next,
Once you have some options,
I would like to invite you to choose something that you lose interest in the slowest possible way.
By the way,
Losing interest is important and healthy.
It is natural and inevitable that enthusiasm and excitement slowly diminishes.
Or you want to find something that you can keep up for as long as possible.
If you are able to do something for a very long time,
It will become a lot more effortless and the real benefits will show themselves.
Now,
Let us talk about nutrition.
You are what you eat.
And even as a more direct effect,
Your body and your mind are heavily influenced immediately by what you eat.
What kind of physical and mental feelings do you enjoy?
Do you enjoy feeling heavy and lethargic?
Do you enjoy feeling sick and weak?
Or do you enjoy feeling energized and light?
Become completely aware of the immediate effect your food has on you.
All of us are unique and different,
So I cannot tell you what you need to eat specifically.
But of course,
There are some rules that are valid for all of us.
If you drink a bottle of wine and eat processed sugar products every day,
Chances are you are very unhealthy.
So first educate yourself about general global nutrition rules that apply to everyone.
Next,
When it comes to the details,
I would like to invite you to see your nutrition as a personal experiment.
Truly investigate how different kinds of food make you feel.
Also,
Challenge yourself to experiment as to when to eat and how to eat.
Do you shove food down your throat or do you take time to absorb your nutrition?
Be curious about the perfect way for you to eat food.
Be attentive to your body,
Listen to it and let your body tell you what your specific needs are when it comes to nutrition.
Now let us talk about recovery and sleep.
How well do you sleep?
Let's start with analyzing the end of your sleep.
Do you wake up easily?
Do you feel refreshed?
Are the last stages of your sleep a natural transition between the super relaxed state of sleep and the conscious world?
Or is it a fight,
A drag or a sad experience to wake up?
Next,
Do you have a great energy level all day long?
And in the evening,
Do you fall asleep easily and peacefully?
Is your mind completely shut off when you sleep?
There are a lot of components to sleep,
So let's dive in on some ideas of how you might be able to improve your sleep.
Improving your sleep starts well before you actually go to bed.
It starts with your food and drink intake.
So we are back to nutrition for a moment.
Obviously eating a very heavy meal and drinking a liter of beer just before going to bed will not make you sleep the best,
That is obvious.
But experiment with where your quantity and timing sweet spot is.
When and how much do you have to eat to feel light enough to sleep easily but not get hungry again?
It is a fine line to walk on,
But it is worth discovering.
Another good way to improve sleep is to start switching off well before trying to fall asleep.
It is unfair to your body to stimulate your mind right up until just before you want to sleep.
For example,
Working,
Watching crazy movies or scrolling social media before you sleep activates your mind and does not allow for a smooth transition into your night rest.
Reading is usually fine,
But be mindful of what you read.
Improving your sleep starts way before you even go to bed.
Next,
Try and experiment with what time serves you the most when it comes to going to bed.
Going to bed at midnight results in less quality sleep than when you are in bed by 8 for example.
I am not saying you have to go to bed a specific time,
But what I am saying is you should experiment and find out what serves you the most.
When it comes to your bed,
Comfy and soft does not necessarily mean improved relaxation.
Maybe you are the type of person who is most rested when sleeping on a pile of soft cushions or maybe you are most relaxed when you sleep on a wooden floor.
Both exist,
Both are perfectly fine.
Find out what serves your body type the most.
Now we have arrived at the practical part of today.
I would like to invite you now to write down 5 points as to how increasing or decreasing your exercise,
Nutrition,
Sleep and recovery could potentially affect your physical health.
Just think about quantity for now,
Keep it very simple.
How would increasing or decreasing exercise,
Nutrition,
Sleep and recovery affect your physical health?
Pause the course now and write down 5 thoughts.
Now I would like to invite you to write down one practical idea for each area.
How can you improve your way of exercising,
Your nutrition and your sleep?
Write down 3 points,
One for each.
Write down practical,
Easy-to-achieve ways to improve in these 3 areas.
Again,
Pause the course now and write down your idea.
Now usually my last prompt is for the next few days or a week,
But today my prompt is for longer,
Ideally to the end of this course.
I would like to invite you to carry out an experiment.
I would like you to observe how you feel when not eating products that contain sugar,
Alcohol or flour for a minimum of 6 days a week.
Do not consume any drinks or foods with sugar,
Flour or alcohol for a minimum of 6 days per week.
Try and see it as your personal experiment.
I am not saying you have to do this forever,
But I would love for you to observe yourself for a few months without these 3 foods.
Now please make a calendar entry for when you will continue this course.
It can be in a couple of days or a week,
But please set a reminder now so that you will stay on your path.
