Treat Your Body Like a Temple, Not a Trash Can!

“Your body is a temple, but only if you treat it as one.” ~ Astrid Alauda

“It’s also helpful to realize that this very body that we have, that’s sitting right here right now…with its aches and its pleasures…is exactly what we need to be fully human, fully awake, fully alive.” ~ Pema Chodron

I’m beginning today’s blog with not one, but two wonderful quotes about the human body. The reason why I’m venturing onto the path of the very “woo woo” is because, yet again, I find myself in bed with bronchitis and sinusitis, as well as a fractured toe or two. There isn’t much for me to do in bed, except watch Food Network ad nauseum or reruns of old sitcoms. I don’t have the energy currently to pick up my crocheting or a book, because my eyes burn from the fever. However, I’m learning a thing or two about my body that I didn’t realize was possible.

During my time in bed, I’ve been subject to fits of coughing, for which I’m taking herbs, as well as some pretty strong over the counter medications. There’s not too much energy left in me to do much of anything else, although today, I felt a bit adventurous and created a potato lentil stew for dinner. I realized, looking back over the past few weeks, that I’d made a habit of popping a sweet treat into my mouth instead of reaching for an apple or a pear. Although I have been a vegetarian who avoids gluten and dairy for health reasons, I’ve still fallen back on eating junk on more occasions than I’d care to admit. Yes, I usually opt to go food shopping when I’m ravenous, which is why you’ll find chips and salsa, kettle chips, and some sort of chocolate peeking out among the other produce and foods that I’m purchasing for my family. We all are creatures of habit. My junk food habit has to be at an all time high, especially when I’m feeling quite exhausted at the end of the day. I’m holding my addiction to junk food (as well as myself) personally responsible for this momentary lapse in physical health and well being.

The foods that we put into our body help to fuel us throughout our day. We’ve been told this so often that I believe that we’re actually becoming immune to the statement. Obesity in children is at an all time high, especially because poor food choices are cheapest, and in an economy such as ours, it stands to reason that we would reach for anything, in order to feed our kids. Schools serve pizza with French fries as a lunch option. Where’s the green, people? Where’s the protein? Because of money, school districts in our area, as well as throughout the country, are opting to sell out on our kids’ health. It cannot be rammed down our throats enough -- we are what we eat. I don’t know about you, but I certainly don’t want to end up looking like a Large Fry.

As adults, we find that food on the run is quick, satisfying, and works into our busy schedules quite easily. Taking your kids to soccer practice after a busy day at work means stopping at the drive-through for a quick meal of burgers, chicken and fries, all of which could easily top out your maximum caloric intake for the next three days. We choose to reach for a cookie or a handful of chips instead of reaching for a piece of fruit or a salad made of crunchy, fresh veggies. We fail to make the time for our health, and we suffer the consequences afterwards, in the forms of illnesses and obesity, to name a few. And don’t even get me started on GMO’s. If these products have the capability to kill off insects, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out what havoc they are wreaking on the human body. Not to mention the advent of more and more cases of food allergies and “wheat belly” being diagnosed on a daily basis.

I’m not saying anything new here. We all know the drill - make time in the morning, or the night before, and set out a healthy lunch for yourself for work. Make time to create a good dinner for your family before you leave, or if you have time, whip up a few meals on the weekend and freeze them. The next time you want a healthy, savory meal, take it out of the freezer, defrost it, and heat it up. It isn’t that difficult. Teach your children to choose healthy foods instead of the ones that are the quickest. That Lean Pocket that you just reached for isn’t so healthy. You are their role models. If you have the time and the foods available, make a meal for your kids. The old stand-by, PB&J, is a lot healthier for you than the mystery meat in the school lunch on Fridays (provided that you are sitting at a table in the school that allows peanut products to be consumed.) There are hundreds of websites all over the Internet that show wonderful ways to get your kids to eat healthier. Search them out -- take it from the voice of experience, those ideas are a boon to a busy mom!

In this crazy world, where people are running at breakneck speeds in order to make a dollar, only to spend said dollar to heal the body, we need to create a place of space in order to be good to ourselves. We might tell ourselves that we don’t have time to exercise, but we find that we’re scrolling through our Facebook news feed or playing Words With Friends or Candy Crush Saga, and before we know it, an hour has passed, and we could have spent our time a lot more wisely. We need to become more conscious of what we are doing, because we’re becoming a race of sheep, being led to the slaughter. We are becoming less and less mindful of the foods that we put into our mouths, we’re becoming less and less conscious of things that we could be doing for our bodies, we’re forgetting to drink water…all because we feel that we’re much too busy to take the time to take care of ourselves. The electronic pollution that we are bombarded with on a daily basis also adds to the numbing of our minds. We must take back the control, folks - we need to take care of ourselves, to set the example for our kids. Otherwise, we’re going to witness them becoming less and less connected to themselves…and in doing so, they will become even more overwhelmed, stressed, and unable to handle the pressures of anything. It’s happening already. It’s time for us to take back control. We need to take care of our temples.

Most of us are also caretakers ourselves, which means that more of our time is devoted to things other than ourselves. Some of us feel that to take a few moments of time to meditate, clear our heads, put some healthy food into our bodies as fuel, is selfish. It isn’t selfish to do any of these things -- it’s vital to your survival. You cannot possibly be any good to anyone else if you are not kind to yourself first. That includes self-talk, too, folks - caring for ourselves includes being kind to ourselves by loving ourselves enough to do all of these things, and then some.

While meditating this morning, I became increasingly aware of the peacefulness within that only comes from letting go and allowing oneself to be one with all. It’s during these moments of clarity that I am greeted with the most profound truths. I took with me from this golden place of stillness that I must care for the temple that I have been given. I need to start anew, to step away from the chocolate, to resist the urge to crunch on a potato chip. I need to offer my body healthy, clean eating, in order for it to remain strong, to heal properly, to serve me well.

I love to go onto the Instagram app on my phone, because I see wonderfully creative ideas for meals that focus on wellness. I've made a few of these, and my daughter and I love to make interesting meals that not only fill you up, but keep you going all day long. I just have to learn to stop reaching for a bag of Fritos in the snack aisle when I'm perusing the aisles in ShopRite. Sometimes, I can be my own worst enemy. Which is why I have to remind myself to SLOW DOWN and stay PRESENT and focused.

The best part about your body is that it’s here to help you to feel, to enjoy every single moment of your life here. Emotions, feelings, people around us - these are all joys that we must revel in, that our bodies may also feel free and peaceful. We must experience Life, for in doing so, we realize the very reason why we are here. We are here to experience, and our temples are our vehicles for this purpose. We are here to create, to be, to love, to feel. This is only seen when we can slow down long enough to realize it, for otherwise, this is only a fleeting thought, and we cannot process it because we are moving altogether too quickly.

Normally, during an illness, I give myself a few days in bed, and then I’m up and moving, and I realize that sometimes I err in doing so. The reason for my feeling that I am in error is because I plunge headlong into my daily routine, including my exercise program, with little regard for the fact that my physical form has experienced the trauma of fever and infection. The body cannot possibly heal itself if I am forcing it to jump through hoops regularly, especially after an illness. And so, I’m going to be good to my body. I’m going to consider it the temple that it truly is. By resting, waiting out the infection, going slowly as I ease back into my daily routine, and by eating much healthier choices, I am sure to be back to my old self in no time at all. I know that I’ll probably slip up along the way, and that’s okay. The most important thing that I personally have to remember is to stay mindful, to stay present, and to take care of myself. That’s your job, too. You must take care of yourselves. You are precious, you are important, and you matter to all of those around you, whether you realize it or not.

I’m asking all of you out there to join me in the pledge to get healthy. Yes, we are allowed to slip - that’s the beauty of being human. Nobody ever said that we had to be perfect, we just have to be ourselves. But we do have to take care of ourselves, just as much as we take care of others -- maybe more than we care for others. If we aren’t there for ourselves, nobody else can be, either. It’s our own responsibility to find the time to relax and take a five minute time out for our own mental health. It’s our own responsibility to reach for a stalk of celery or a raw pepper instead of a box of Oreos. It’s our job to find ten minutes in our busy day to do a few squat thrusts while cooking dinner, or to walk laps around the house. We can do this together. Our bodies are our finest creations. Let’s stop treating ourselves like yesterday’s trash, and let’s reach out for something better!