Health

#shaelife: Detox Update and Coming to Terms with Your Natural Rhythm

Katey Leigh Katey Leigh
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Hey friends!

Well, last blog post I was half-way through the ph360 Health Retreat on the Gold Coast of Australia. And all I can say is wow! What an amazing experience from walking in to walking out the door of that special, full-on, personalized immersion. Where else can you find a week of pure individualized health with a team of qualified practitioners who are on the cutting-edge of clinical practice and current knowledge? Thank you Matt Riemann, Dr Cam, Jules, and the rest of the ph360 team – I will be forever grateful for your compassion, enthusiasm, and knowledge.

Shedding the Toxins

And, the detox did it’s thing! I was surprised at the lack of negative reactions I had to the detox, and so were the practitioners. But I do believe it was due to the five factors I listed in my previous blog post [link to previous blog post] that my mind, heart, and body were ready for the shift. I am feeling GREAT – happier and lighter in SO many ways. Here are some before and after pics…

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So as you can see, I absolutely feel lighter in the purely physical sense because I did shed toxins and fat with the detox. But the neatest part of the detox, is how I actually feel lighter emotionally and mentally as well.

Shedding the Mental Burdens

An indirect benefit of being on the detox meant that I didn’t have to worry about meals or food as much (also thanks to the personal chef!) which freed up my mind to think about other things. One of the neatest parts of ph360 is that their definition of health goes beyond the “food and fitness” which we typically associate with a health plan. ph360 goes deeper than that. They also give you insights into your natural talents, how your mind works, what environment and climate your body will thrive in, and healthy social connections and relationships. A huge eye-opener for me was understanding (and coming to terms with) my body’s natural rhythms which it needs to be in a constant state of calm, not stress. Our bodies need to be in a calm state to lose weight. So it made sense to the practitioners that I had a hard time losing weight in the past because I also had a lot of stress in my life.

Slow and Steady Wins My Race

I learned that the natural rhythm my body needs to maintain its energy levels is a slow and steady pace – not a very attractive pace, in my opinion, but genes are genes I guess. I discovered I can achieve the same as other body types who operate naturally in a higher state of mental activity, but it will take me longer to achieve the same results as them. My body operates at its optimum level when I maintain an alpha state of mind. And, there is a very good genetic reason for this – I have the most resilient body type when it comes to enduring large and elongated amounts of stress.

In hunter-gather days, the function of this body type was to be the nurturers, or caretakers, of the community during times of great famine. My body wants to naturally conserve energy by eating calorie-dense foods and not pushing myself to 100% effort when I exercise. This is so my body can have extra energy stored away for when my community is in crisis. I will be the last one standing to ensure that other body types who are not as resilient as I am (think tall, thin, lean body types) are nurtured and taken care of.

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Embrace Your Pace

Now, this is a beautiful role that my body played in the “cave-man days” community. But the reality is, there isn’t as big a fear of famine for our communities. And in today’s society, we are not conditioned to praise or celebrate body types that have a naturally large muscle and bone mass which holds an extra layer of fat as a reservoir of energy in case of community emergency. Plus, this body type is definitely not the type of body we think of when we envision a modern-day CEO, leader, or successful entrepreneur like Steve Jobs or Barack Obama.

So, needless to say, coming to terms with my body’s natural rhythm and strengths was both empowering and unnerving to me as someone who runs their own business. But I tell you, since I learned this is the pace my body thrives on, I have been very cognizant of maintaining a steady pace and not trying to push myself too much. I’ve even gone so far as reminding myself to slow down my walking pace.

Do I really need to rush?

Do I really need to push so hard?

Why do I push myself to then only stress myself out to a point that I need more down-time than up-time?

I am very grateful I am in a place in my life where I can adjust my lifestyle, my pace, and my momentum as I travel while working online.

Embracing my pace is all about:

  • shedding any judgements about myself;
  • not allowing the media and society to influence my opinion of my body;
  • learning to love my body and it’s natural rhythm to keep me calm (because your body can’t lose weight when you are stressed);
  • and taking delight in creating new habits and behavioural patterns that allow me to operate at my optimal health level for consistent energy levels.

What about you? Do you feel like you are always pushing ahead and not getting the results in your life you are seeking? Does your pace feel right?

Comment below – I’d love to hear your thoughts.

Until next time!




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