When it comes to the status of our health some of us tend to look at it from various perspectives. Some look at being in good health in regards to how you physically look, your weight, eating habits, and even the amount and consistency with which you exercise.
It is because of such a small and narrow view such as this that there is a lot of uncertainty about what is considered good health versus poor health. We tend to get caught up in the idea that healthy looks one way when the reality is that it doesn’t. Healthy looks different among everyone. This is because there are so many things to take into consideration when it comes to being in good health.
It’s not just how you look, in fact I like to argue that, that’s a very small part of it. Being in good health depends on your genes, your eating habits, your daily activity level, your sleeping schedule, and even the way you care for your mind and how that translates to your body. This includes habits such as meditation, practicing mindfulness on all levels, the kind of environment you surround yourself with mentally and emotionally, and even the kind of people you tend to consistently be around.
For me being in good health is a matter of how you care for yourself physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually through habits that are realistic and effective for you as an individual. It’s not one or the other rather it’s all four areas plus positive habits.
But why does society push so hard for health to be a matter of how you look physically? Why does weight play such a major role in how we ourselves define what it means to be healthy? Which should we really be focusing more on? Let’s take a closer and see.
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Weight
Here’s the thing, we all have been told that our weight matters. Especially women. From a very young age we are taught to always be mindful of our weight. Which means to be mindful of the foods we are consuming. We are taught to have a relationship with food that is going to promote a better body physically at any age.
It is because we are so young and vulnerable when this message gets communicated to us that we don’t understand the potential danger in that message. It’s toxic messages like these that cause us to get so caught up with how we look, and makes many of us obsessed with our weight. While weight is an important factor to be mindful of when it comes to your health ultimately, it’s important to understand that, that is not the only thing that matters.
Here are some of the ways in which our weight matters when understanding what it means to be in good health.
BMI
BMI is an individual’s body mass index. This tells you, doctors, fitness trainers, and the likes of what your weight to muscle mass is in relation to your height. Essentially, it’s what tells you whether or not you are considered underweight, overweight, obese, or normal weight. The reason this is so important is because doctors and other health professionals, like us to weigh a certain weight based on our height.
However, life does not always work in that way and sometimes a person’s weight and BMI are not reflective of their true health. This is because when it comes to being in good health what really matters are the healthy habits that are in place to help you be as healthy as you can possibly be. These habits are not always going to be reflected through your weight or BMI levels.
Other health conditions
Another reason weight is always pushed as a major factor in what it means to be healthy is because of all the other potential underlining health conditions that may follow. Usually we associate other health conditions with being overweight or obesity. However, it works in reverse too.
Being overweight or obese can lead to health problems such as high blood pressure, diabetes, sleep apnea, breathing problems, depression, anxiety, and difficulty with physical activities. Being underweight can lead to serious health problems as well. This includes health problems such as a weakened immune system, fertility issues, hair loss, vitamin deficiencies, lack of energy, and even developmental issues (especially in children).
While the number on the scale or an individual’s BMI does not necessarily matter for being in good health, they can tell you and health professionals a lot about the current status of your health.
Genetics
Believe it or not a lot of the way we look and how our bodies are built is determined by what our genetics say. If obesity is common among many of your family members it increases your chances of being obese. Same with other health conditions, if your family has a history of a specific health condition, or maybe multiple health conditions, it increases your chances of possibly struggling with maintaining a healthy weight.
All this to say that sometimes it’s not so black and white but rather you have to go under the surface in order to learn more about what is being seen among it.
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Health
So, what do we do with all this information? How do we change the language from a specific number on the scale to one that speaks more truthfully to what it really looks like to be healthy? By understanding the type of habits that we need to adopt in order to be the healthiest that we can possibly be.
Health is not just about your weight. Health is the way you care for yourself physically, emotionally, mentally, spiritually. Here’s a breakdown of why all four areas matter when you are striving to be in good health.
Physical Health
It’s important to move your body as often as you can. Physical movement can help us improve our health in many different ways. It can decrease the risk of developing serious health conditions, such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Physical movement also has a lot of health promoting benefits. This includes benefits such as having a strong heart and lungs, can help you maintain a healthy weight, strengthen your bones, and regulate your blood pressure.
It also can help improve your overall quality of life.
A lot of the time we don’t tend to see or learn about health problems that we can potentially be facing as a result of lack of physical activity until we are in older age. One great way to prevent this and start thinking about your older health now is to simply increase your daily physical activity.
Emotional Health
It can be hard to understand the connection between your mental health and overall health but there is a connection that exists. The basic version of what I’m going to share with you is understanding the relationship you have with food based on your emotions. A lot of the time when we eat it’s because it’s a natural instinct or reaction. We either eat because we need food to survive or we eat our emotions, good and bad.
While in a perfect world there is absolutely nothing with this, I also understand that it can potentially become harmful when we are not mindful of our own personal emotional relationship to food. It’s so important to make sure you are eating when you are hungry and that you are eating a normal portion of food at all times. And while we all love our go-to favorite junk foods and snacks, we should also be doing our best to eat as clean, plant-based friendly (not necessarily a plant-based diet), and healthy as possible.
The reality is food makes us happy and it can be a place of comfort. However, you have to be mindful of the space food takes up in your life emotionally. Don’t eat your emotions out of habit. Eat to fuel your body with the energy it needs to function in the way you desire. Essentially be mindful, that’s all.
Mental Health
This is pretty simple and straight to the point. Much like the connection we can draw between our emotions and food, our mental health matters as well. I like to think of this in terms of how we tend to perceive ourselves, and what we tend to believe to be true about our own health. If you are someone who constantly hates the way you look, or you’re obsessed with a specific number on the scale, or maybe you’re obsessed with constantly dieting in order to achieve a specific health goal, that to me is a clear sign of having a cloudy mind.
So much of what you believe to be true about yourself reflects in the type of habits you tend to create in order to reach a specific health goal. The more negative your truth about yourself is, the less likely you are to have healthy habits in place that are going to help you achieve and maintain a good health status. The reverse can be true as well.
So, while health is really more so about creating and maintaining healthy habits it is also about what you believe you are and are not capable of doing. If you believe you are capable of being in good health, and that your weight or body size does not define you, and you genuinely enjoy doing activities and implementing habits for a better health, your overall health is going to reflect that.
Spiritual Health
Finally, this can be a little mind boggling and I can understand why. A lot of people do not equate spirituality to be a part of health. Hell, not many of us even focus on this part of our overall well-being simply because I believe that we all can define what it means to be spiritual in many different ways. However, I believe that when it comes to spiritual health it’s not about religion or culture but more so about what you do physically to be of sound mind.
For example, meditation is great for centering the body and practicing mindfulness. There are so many health benefits to practicing yoga such as improving your energy, increasing muscle strength, and even balancing a healthy metabolism. These are just a few of some physical activities that you can do to really foster your spiritual health.
At the end of the day to be in good health spiritually means to understand that you have to balance everything out by knowing how to check-in with yourself. You don’t want to constantly have a cloudy mind or a heavy heart. So, take the time to notice how you are responding to everything that you are exposed to and make changes as necessary.
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All of these areas matter because they feed into one another. They are a direct connection to the type of habits that we create and maintain in order to be in our best shape possible.
Here are some basic healthy habits that you can adopt now.
Drink plenty of water
I cannot stress this enough. Water is so important and so key to having good health. Water does so much for our overall health such as assist in weight loss, improve our immune system, curb our eating habits, and can even provide us with a clear and strong functioning mind.
Eat clean
The reality is this look different for everyone but the common goal is to eat more foods that are organic, whole, fruits, or plant-based of any kind. There are literally tons of eating lifestyles that you can adopt to improve your eating habits but the general idea is to just eat less foods that are processed.
Increase your physical activity
While the go-to idea is to exercise more this is not all that this entails. Yes, exercise is good for your health, but so is getting up and going on a walk, going on a hike, or even running around the house and playing with your kids.
Weight vs. Health: Which matters more?
So, what matters more and which one should we be focusing more on? The reality is we should consider both but put more focus on our health. Yes, the scale can tell us a lot of things that are important to know such as potential health problems as a result of our weight. However, this is not the only factor that matters for determining what it means to be in good health.
To be in good health is a matter of what good and bad habits you have that are ideal or unrealistic to your personal health goals. It’s time to let go of the narrative that your weight determines your health. While it matters it’s not what you should be mainly focusing on. Your focus should be on the habits you have in place to improve and maintain a better health.
That is the key to what it means to be in good health. You have to learn to live unapologetically in the skin and body that you are in.
You always know when it’s time for a change. Listen to your body and give it what it needs, and don’t be afraid to spoil it every now and then. Most importantly focus on implementing healthy habits that are realistic for the health goals you personally desire.
At the end of the day if there is anything you take away from this post, I hope that it is this…
No matter your weight or size you are BEAUTIFUL just the way you are.
-Xo
Kimora