Most people associate health with food, nutrition, vitamins, minerals and some physical activities. Thus a direct relation between the body and food and physical activity are made.
But is that really it? Is that what we are? Bodies? Who must consume in balance what we expend? Does that make a healthy person? Well what is missing in this puzzle is the understanding that human beings are not just bodies, yes we do have bodies and some nicer than others, but that isn't it. That isn’t health. Full health is when we as humans have fulfilled our necessities and needs. What does this mean? Well lets step back for a second and think what a human being needs in order to survive.
We need water;
We need air;
We need food, in the form of carbs, proteins, fat, vitamins and minerals;
We need physical exercise.
But wait does it really stop there? If all these needs are fulfilled, does that mean that a person is healthy?
Well my answer is NO. Yes it’s true, if you satisfy all these needs, then physically you are in good shape, and yes your organs are functioning properly, and yes your body is receiving what is needs in order to perform its daily functions. So from the neck down, yes you are in a good state of health.
But that isn’t it. What about everything from the neck up? We are forgetting about a little something called the brain, which plays a huge role in our lives, and unfortunately sometimes we neglect what it needs in order to be truly healthy. Yes I said it, YOUR brain needs to be healthy. Ok, so now the question is, how do we fulfill the needs of these 3 pounds in our body? Ahhhh good question! Lets think, the brain is an organ right? It’s the mother ship, the main controller, the commander in chief, and if it fails, then everything else stops. SO why are we sooo focused on feeding our bodies but not so focused on feeding this powerful entity without which we cease to exist?
Ok ok, so I guess the next question is, how exactly do we FEED this brain of ours? Hmm lets think for a moment. The brain, the concept of the mind is quite extensible, it not only has physical functions but it also has mental functions as well.
Physically, the brain's main fuel source is carbs, and it does require certain other nutrients to function optimally to perform the basic body building and maintenance functions. Now let’s look at the other side, let’s call it the non-physical, or the virtual. By virtual I mean something we cannot see or touch, but it does in fact exist (ever heard of something called emotions??).
Virtual functions and virtual needs of the brain are one way of putting it, but really and truly these terms are just another way of describing the concept of our mind. So, what are some of the things our mind requires? In a nutshell, social interactions and challenges.
Our minds needs communications, feelings, happiness, sadness, anger, and frustration. Our mind needs challenges, goals and accomplishments. Our minds needs to be constantly challenged and our passions must be fed. This is essentially what makes us people, our minds actually makes us people. It defines who we are, our likes, dislikes, and passions; it defines our values and our beliefs. Those emotions, feelings, obstacles, and accomplishments that we endure, are actually things that our minds feeds off of, and causes it to grow.
So again I ask you, are you healthy? Next time you sign up for a gym class, or buy some groceries, ask yourself do I have everything I need to be healthy? Cause remember, if we only feed and nurture our bodies and neglect to take care of our minds, then that’s what we become. Just a healthy body, with nothing to make us a person
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