T
his is what I know for sure: you
have to have a wholesome mindset
and relationship with your body
in order to look and feel your best.
Your body listens to your thoughts and
your thoughts have an impact on your
physical health.
When we think of health, many of us
associate it with the physical: fitness,
exercise, movement, weight control
and just looking good. Often, we don’t
think about the importance of fostering
a positive mindset as a part of the
healthy life.
See, I used to view food as the
enemy. I used to fear food. I was a fad
dieter and I believed in food restriction.
I used to feel anxious and wary around
food, and to my utter frustration, my
weight kept creeping up. I also had a
terribly negative relationship with my
body – constantly body shaming and
immersed in poor body image. As a
result, I never looked or felt my best;
I struggled to maintain a balanced
weight. I looked depleted and exhausted
from the negative thoughts.
THE IMPORTANCE OF MINDEST
Having a positive mindset is the
foundation for a healthy body. When I
started healing my relationship with food
and my body, I physically started seeing
balance in all aspects of my life. I slept
better, my energy increased and I found
balance with my weight. This marked the
biggest lesson for me: you need to have
a healthy relationship with food if you’re
struggling with your weight.
Having a controlling and negative
relationship with food has an impact
physically. Why? It has a lot to do with
your nervous system, your digestion and
the power of your thoughts.
NOURISH YOUR NERVOUS SYSTEM
Many typical dieters have high cortisol
levels. Cortisol is the hormone that can
make weight loss a real struggle. I’ve seen
this first-hand, because mine was through
the roof. In order to lower cortisol, it’s
imperative to rebalance your nervous
system. A great way to do this is to
practise yoga, get more sleep, rest more
and drink less caffeine.
AID YOUR DIGESTION
Negative thoughts add physical stress
to the body, and stress slows down
the digestion.OBSERVE YOUR THOUGHTS
If you tell yourself all day that you are
fat, or that you can’t lose weight, you’re
just making it extra hard for yourself.
We have to turn our negative thought
patterns around and feel gratitude for
our body, right now in this moment. It’s
fine to have goals for your body, but
be aware of how you are speaking to
yourself from now on and replace the
negative thoughts with kinder thoughts.
Once you do this, you’ll start to notice
how much calmer your entire body feels.I have plenty of diet, lifestyle and
mindset tips on my website that will
help you to find balance with food. Visit
jshealth.com.au to read moreTIPS FOR
CHANGING YOUR
MINDSET
Let go of diets: they do not work long
term and, in fact, they cause us to think
about food in an unhealthy way.
Be aware of your negative thoughts:
when you catch yourself saying
something nasty to yourself, instead be
kind and be grateful for something about
yourself or your body. This will have a
physical impact on your body over time.
Become a mindful and intuitive
eater: this means being conscious
at meal times, which helps to reduce
stress eating. Remove your phone/
computer/TV from your meal times
and be present with your food – this
will help you feel more connected
to your body and appetite.
Practise yoga: I find it helps me
have a kinder relationship with my
body. I feel more connected to my
body after a class – it’s powerful!
Commit to stress reduction: this is
such an essential part of a healthy
life.Schedule in 10–20 minutes of
rest a day (no phone!), go to bed
earlier, say no to social arrangements
when you need to and switch off
social media when you can.JSHEALTH
SLEEPY TONIC
SERVES 1
I adore this tonic; it’s so soothing,
nourishing and comforting. It
contains everything your mind and
body craves before bed. The warm
almond milk is full of protein,
good fats and tryptophan, which
is an amino acid that promotes
sleep. Nutmeg has a calming effect
and cinnamon acts to control
blood sugar, which helps you from
waking up suddenly between 2
and 4am. Passionflower extract is
a powerful herb used for calming
anxiety and insomnia. Plus, the
stevia adds a lovely sweetness
without spiking blood sugar levels,
which can interrupt your sleep. I
drink this when my nervous system
is overworked and my sleep is
interrupted. I hope it helps you too.
1 cup almond milk
½ tsp cinnamon
pinch of nutmeg
1 tsp organic passionflower herb or
passionflower drops
(optional, see note)
3 vanilla stevia drops or
1 tsp raw honey
Heat almond milk on stove until
desired warmth.
Stir in spices,
passionflower
and stevia.
Sprinkle a little
extra cinnamon
on top and pour
into a mug.NOTE
Passionflower
herb and
passionflower drops
can be found in
health food shops
and online.naturalhealthmag.com.au AUSTRALIAN NATURAL HEALTH | 45