Whole-person health in practice

Whole-person health in practice

Last week I shared a bit of an introduction to a little series about ‘whole-person health’ (if you didn’t see it, you can click HERE to catch up) and it provided a little background of what I mean when I use that term, and why it’s important that when we explore any aspect of what it is to be human, we consider it through this broad lens.  As I’m so fond of saying, everything is connected to everything – so if we aren’t sleeping well, we often see a negative impact on our mental health, eating habits / choices and physical health.  Likewise, if we are struggling mentally, it can have profound impacts on all other aspects of our health and therefore our life.

Just as a reminder, these are the five pillars of health that I believe we need to consider ensuring we are ‘whole-person healthy’:

• Physical health / movement
• Mental health / psychological health
• Nutrition / fluid health
• Spiritual health / mindfulness
• Sleep health & rest

This week I want to share some practical thoughts, suggestions, prompts and resources for you to dig into some more detail around the first of these – physical health / movement.

Physical health / movement:

This is pretty broad, and I tend to focus on each facet separately.  When it comes to physical health this can include the basic physical health ‘maintenance’ activities such as having annual blood tests (keeping an eye on iron, hormones, inflammation levels etc.), regular cervical screening / HPV tests if you have a uterus, checking for lumps and bumps in places they shouldn’t be (boobs and balls) etc.  And of course, if you’re navigating chronic health conditions then they need to be managed well – whether that’s being across your sugar levels if you’ve got diabetes, or for me having 6-montly Prolia injections to help manage my rubbish bones.  I’m a big fan of building a healthy, respectful relationship with primary healthcare providers like GP’s, and / or if it’s your thing Naturopaths, Homeopaths, Traditional Chinese Medicine practitioners etc.  Then there’s the other things that I also consider ‘maintenance’ but can also feel like an indulgence (they’re not though) – regular bodywork whether it’s remedial massage, osteopathic / chiropractic treatment (whatever your jam is) or acupuncture.

And then there’s the movement part that I think also falls into this category. There are numerous research studies that provide evidence demonstrating that physical activity of various forms can help reduce anxiety, depression, and negative mood by improving self-esteem and cognitive function.  Exercise has also been shown to reduce symptoms including low self-esteem and social withdrawal.  There are also a few other significant aspects of what’s involved when we exercise.  Depending on what kind of movement we engage in, we might be developing and mastering a new skill which helps develop a sense of mastery and self-efficacy, which helps builds self-esteem, increasing life satisfaction and thus improving mood.  If we do something as part of a group – structured exercise or team sports – there’s also the additional benefits of social connection.  The most current research suggests that the most important thing is to enjoy the kind(s) of physical activity that you engage in – not only does it directly impact engagement levels (I know, pretty obvious) but also appears to significantly impact the buffering effect it has on mental health.

Now the World Health Organization guidelines stress that for optimum health outcomes we need to:

• Limit our sedentary behaviour (sitting on our butt’s)
• Engage in some movement (any) is better than none
• Engage in 150-300 minutes of aerobic (‘moderate-vigorous’) movement per week (ideally +300 minutes per week)
• Engage in strength training exercise twice a week

But over 1/3 of the global population aren’t physically active (i.e., don’t meet these guidelines) and women are less physically active than men (often because we are tied up with child-rearing, housework, out-of-the-house work leading to insufficient time to prioritise exercise that we do in our leisure-time).

However, I really recognise there are so many barriers around moving our bodies.  Some of us have so many negative experiences around exercise, others have chronic pain / health conditions that make it really hard to do in a way that doesn’t cause flare-ups, and we all have probably had negative impacts of our quite unhelpful (even toxic) health and fitness industry via social media, in gym / fitness settings etc. This is why it’s beyond important to learn what works for you, what environment feels safe for you and your nervous system and with whom you need to help you move your body.  There are some incredible trauma informed spaces (not many sadly but me and some other researchers are on a mission to change that!) and I really encourage you to seek those out.

When it comes to the type of exercise you do, apart from enjoying it, try to explore variety and a good mixture of cardiovascular (aerobic) exercise where you get your heart rate up, some strength work (body weight is a great place to start) and then some balance / flexibility work – especially as we get older.  Personally, I have found that being consistent with movement makes a really big difference to my overall sense of wellbeing – but there have been two really important learnings here: 1) consistency is more achievable when I have attached to a sensible ‘why’ – if it was purely about aesthetics (weight loss, looking good for an event etc.) or attached to an end-point goal (like when I did a triathlon) it was never sustainable and 2) for me I actually really need variety so as long as I’m consistently and deliberately moving my body every day then I’m ok with whatever kind of movement I do – sometimes it’s yoga, sometimes a walk, other times a run or reformer Pilates.  In the past it’s been swimming, cycling, gym, weights, boxing and even aqua aerobics.

Resources:

• Feel Better Live More – Dr Rangan Chatterjee with Helen Hall: ‘Exercise without Pain’
• Feel Better Live More – Dr Rangan Chatterjee with Dr Gabrielle Lyon: ‘Muscle & Longevity’
• Feel Better Live More – Dr Rangan Chatterjee with Dr Kelly McGonigal: ‘The Joy of Exercise’
• Feel Better Live More – Dr Rangan Chatterjee with Prof Shane O’Mara: ‘Walking for Brain Health’
• The Diary of a CEO – Steven Bartlett with Dr Vonda Wright: ‘The Healthy Ageing Doctor’
• The Diary of a CEO – Steven Bartlett with Dr Wendy Suzuki: ‘The Exercise Neuroscientist’
• The Diary of a CEO – Steven Bartlett with Prof Daniel Lieberman: ‘World’s No. 1 Exercise Professor’

If you’d like somewhere to talk about aspects of your whole-person health, please get in touch with us: www.theabaker.com.au / hello@theabaker.com.au / 03 9077 8194.