I have some amazing news to share. A recent study published in the journal Diabetes Care observed a reduced risk of diabetes (type 2) in older women who walked just 1000 steps more every day. You can access those findings here. This week’s post might, at first glance, seem a little dry to you, but if you’ll stay with me for a couple of minutes, I think you’ll find an important observation here that may resonate deeply. It’s not about diabetes, or even walking for that matter. It’s about success. Continue reading
Category Archives: Mind-Body Connection
Your Health is Where You Want it to Be
Good morning, and happy Sunday! I want to tell you about a conversation I had with a patient this week. She was someone I’d never met before, and, like many before her, she was absolutely flummoxed about what to try next. She had already done everything she could think of to lose weight. I think you know this story. I’ve told it many times before, and you may even have experienced it yourself. Maybe you’ve been on practically every diet, eaten cabbage soup, denied yourself your favorite foods, carved out time you didn’t really have to get more exercise than was comfortable at the time. Of course none of this was sustainable. You can’t eat cabbage soup for breakfast forever. So what’s next? Next comes balance. Continue reading
Baby Steps
This week i had a conversation with a patient, a math tutor, about the difficulty she was having measuring up to her impossibly difficult personal standard. Why “impossibly” difficult? Because I’m sure that she was doing the best she could. And to ask more of herself, at least right now, was impossible. Continue reading
Set an Intention
These are not easy days, to say the least. But one thing that really helps me is to start each day by setting an intention.
What does that mean? Well, I might say to myself, “Today, I will take a few deep breaths.” Or, “I will keep my eyes on the road.” Or, “I will be kind to myself.” Intentions can be abstract or concrete. They can help you study, close your eyes, or stretch your arms to the ceiling a couple of times a day. They can let you stay in bed, ask for a back rub, take a long bath. Intentions are multi-purpose, which is an essential part of their charm. I weave them into the fabric of my days, and they make my weeks more interesting, resilient, even productive. The possibilities are endless. Continue reading
Take Care of Yourselves, My Friends
This is not an easy time, no matter how much time you have, but we can all make a moment, or take a turn to take better care of ourselves. In hopes that we will have more moments to show up as our best version of our best self, or that we will have a little bit of ourselves to share with those, young and old, who might need them, a tiny bit of self-love goes a long, long way. Time is the ultimate resource, and no one gets more or less. Each day you get twenty-four hours, the same as everyone. You can’t create more out of thin air. But there is some very hopeful news to share. Continue reading
Momentary Mindfulness
I think that it would be nice this week to share some examples of mindfulness. Goodness knows we can always use more of it.
Some of the examples from the list below are mine, some are from friends, especially this one, some come from my co-workers, and some are from members of my own family. One contribution is a gift from our beloved 12-year-old chocolate labrador retriever (may her memory be a blessing), though truthfully it was more of a demonstration. Continue reading
Walking and Wellness
I have a pedometer that tracks my daily steps, and I absolutely love it! Attached to my wrist with a fancy little contraption that I found last year on Etsy, it ventures forth with me every day as I plot my path, set my course, walk the walk, take a hike. Continue reading
One Step At a Time
Some time ago, Gene [not his real name] the computer guy showed up at my office for the first time in a while. Right away, I knew something had changed. I said, “You’re looking very well! How are you doing, Gene?” He responded with an uncharacteristic grin, and answered with an observation that all of us know, but few believe (despite numerous confirmatory personal experiences!). I sat up fast when he said, “Diets don’t work.” Continue reading
Lifestyle Literacy
My colleague, Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn uses the phrase “lifestyle literacy” when he talks about inspiring people to take better care of themselves. Wow! Lifestyle literacy! I like that. I especially like the fact that this makes it into a project that gives you the opportunity to improve. Continue reading
Body Maps for Healing Obesity
Do you know anyone whose faint accent or slight lisp becomes pronounced only when they are excited, or distracted? I think that something similar is happening to people who were once obese, but whose weight is now closer to the normal range. Continue reading