When I work with my coaching clients to "own their wellness," I focus our conversations on four different aspects of health:
Nourish: How is what you're taking in affecting your health? Are the water you're drinking and the food you're eating helping you achieve your wellness goals?
Move: Are you moving every day? Are you moving in new and fun ways that bring you joy and aid in your overall long-term health?
Explore: What changes do you need to make? Do you have nagging pains or illnesses that you would like to get to the root causes of? Are there things you could learn about your gut health, hormones, brain function, etc., that might take your wellness to the next level?
Enhance: What kind of supplements are you taking right now, and why? Do you still need them? Are there things you should be taking? And how do you know what to choose?
While that is a lot to consider, I thought it might be helpful for you to hear how I am "owning my wellness" using these four aspects of health.
Nourish: Fast Like a Girl.
I recently read Dr. Mindy Pelz's new book and fell in love with the idea of tailoring what I eat and when I eat to my cycle. Now, bear in mind at 46, my cycle is rather elusive and unpredictable, but the concepts hold true whether you're 13 or 83. Since I don't have a "day 1" anymore, I just used the new moon instead. She explains how to play with different carbohydrate intakes and various fasting lengths and even how to fine-tune workouts based on the phase of your cycle to lean into your "superpowers." Whether you are a woman or know a woman who needs to make changes to how she is nourishing herself, I highly recommend this book.
Move: I hired my own trainer!
Well, actually, my hubby found him, and he is fantastic. It's the first time in my life I have had a trainer who is focused on me, my goals, and my form and really gets it. After much searching, Gregg landed on an open-air gym in Palo Alto called Functional Lifestyles. And by the sheer luck of the draw, ended up working with Damian. What a find. He kept coming home and telling me about his workouts (very reminiscent of what I used to do with him as his trainer), and I found myself salivating at the idea of getting in the gym myself. After a couple of sessions together (super fun thing to do as a couple, by the way!), I had my first one-on-one last week. Wow, now I know why clients stuck with me all those years; personal training can be addictive.
Explore: GI-Map, DUTCH, and Thyroid Labs
I've been running more of this advanced qPCR stool test on my clients: the GI- Map by Diagnostic Solutions Labories. So I thought it would be a good idea to run one on myself. Not only will the results tell me if I have enough beneficial bacteria, but it will also show me the general health of my gut. It will also show if there are any infections with negative bacteria and/or parasites and even illuminate potential nutrient deficiencies. I just sent in my kit, so I'll let you know what the results told me and what I'll be doing with that info.
Next week I'll be running the DUTCH test again, which I use for tracking how my hormone replacement therapy is working for me, as well as checking on my adrenal health. DUTCH stands for Dried Urine Test for Comprehensive Hormones. This easy urine test not only shows you hormone levels but tells you how your body is detoxifying them: very important information to avoid inflammation and disease.
Lastly, I'll be running my usual 6-month labs to monitor my thyroid function. For those of you that have thyroid disease or think you might, getting routine lab work done every 4 to 6 months is critical, especially if you are taking thyroid replacement. And please don't only test your TSH. Ask your doctor (or me) to also run a Free T3, Free T4, and TPO/TBG antibodies. This will give you a complete picture of how your hypothalamus is talking to the thyroid gland, how you are using those thyroid hormones, and what (if any) autoimmunity is involved. Learn more in this blog post.
Enhance: G.I. Detox
I won't go into too much detail about the ridiculous amount of supplements I am currently taking. However, over the next few months, once I get the aforementioned test results back, I'm hoping to streamline the ever-growing expense of pills and potions. In the short term, I have recently been adding G.I. Detox to my afternoons to help me with binding and detoxifying from mold exposure in January. We pulled our old fridge out to put in a new one and found that the wall behind it was riddled with mold. Even with a mask and gloves on, after cleaning that, I have been suffering non-stop: sinuses flared up, headaches, water retention, foggy thinking, you name it. So whilst we hire a pro to help with remediation, I am working to get that junk out of my system. The G.I. Detox by Bio-Botanical research is a unique blend of activated charcoal, zeolite clay, and other binders. In addition, I'm getting into an infrared sauna once a week, doing some dry brushing before my showers, and drinking a lot of purified water.
What are you doing to Nourish, Move, Explore, and Enhance your wellness journey? Not sure where to start? Email me now to set up a free consultation.
Yours in Health
~Daniella