Get Started Slow

Get Healthy! And make it last!

The Tortoise wins the race! A slow and steady pace wins the race! You can do this but get started slowly!

“Where do I begin?” “How do I go from unhealthy to becoming healthy?”

I have had a lot of questions lately about “going healthy” to become healthy and the paradigm shift that is required for someone to get started. It seems overwhelming to many people and rather than getting started in the right direction, it seems easier just to forget it and continue the same bad habits.

Getting healthy simplified:

Make a small step every week. It will be different for you than someone else and you do not have to choose to make the same change as someone else. Your friend might pick doing a 90 minute aerobic workout but if you’ve been sitting on the couch all day and the only strong muscles you have are in your thumbs from playing “World of Warcraft”, doing 90 minutes of aerobics is out of the question. Someone else may choose to throw out all the food that I list on “The Nasty List” (a list of bad ingredients and bad preservatives) but that may be an expensive proposition for you.

So make it simple:

If you want to start exercising, start with walking. It may be easier for you just to park the car a little further away at the grocery store or walk up stairs rather than taking the elevator. But keep it simple or you will not keep it up. This can progress to more activity as you desire and as your exercise tolerance increases.

You may choose to start reading labels on food when you are shopping for groceries. At first it will be difficult to recognize all the bad ingredients in food but it will get easier with time. You will then be able to pick new products to replace ones that are less healthy.

You may also choose to eat fish at least once per week. Please read my list on my recent blog about Good Fish and Bad Fish.

Maybe you’ll start by changing your shampoo to remove the negative effects that sulfites have on your scalp (see my blog post on Shampoos and dandruff).

Or you may decide that you would like to save money while improving your health by eating chicken instead of red meat or pork. The less expensive chicken will not only save you money but will benefit your body by raising your Nitric Oxide levels, improve your sense of well-being and maybe even lowering your blood pressure! (read my recent post “Just Say Yes to NO“)

Remember, by getting started you will be healthier and what you choose to change is up to you. Start slowly; a slow and steady pace wins the race.

PS. You may wish to enroll in a Free Personal Health Record at ZebraHealth and start tracking your changes.

Best wishes,
Brian Goertz MD