At the heart of robust wellness lies a tapestry far more intricate than just the threads of nutrition and exercise—though these are undeniably vital.

True health isn't merely a tale of the meals you savor or the miles you run; it's an orchestra comprising the melodies of your relationships, the rhythm of your thoughts, the cadence of your dining habits, the choreography of your workouts, and the soulful serenades with which you honor and treat your own being.

In this week's riveting episode, we dive deep into two ubiquitous habits that, much like sirens, seductively lure us into the treacherous waters of unwholesome choices.

One such habit particularly resonates with breast cancer warriors, like myself, as we navigate the uncharted waters of embracing a redefined corporeal vessel.

Shatter these two chains, and you'll not only revolutionize your self-perception but also liberate yourself from the burdens that shadow a vibrant life. Join us on this transformative journey and step into a world where health is not a task, but a joyous dance.

Read the full transcript: 

00:04

This is Laura Lummer, healthy lifestyle coach, personal trainer, and clinical Ayurveda specialist, you're listening to let your lifestyle be your medicine, your resource for creating and living a healthy life. In this podcast, we talk about nutrition, healthy thinking, exercise, and lots of other ways to connect with your body and live a healthy, vibrant life.

00:34

Welcome back to episode five of let your lifestyle be your medicine. Today, we're going to talk about two habits that you just have to break in order to have your optimal health and mental well being. And I really want to talk about these because they've come up so much in the past couple of weeks around me with women that I work with, talk with and just associate with overall. And I know that it's something that I have had to work on overcoming myself, and it's a big struggle. It's actually something that we have to train ourselves to become more aware of, and maybe be a little more gentle with ourselves in order to break these habits. So before we get started on talking about what these two habits are, I just want to thank you for tuning into this show again. And I thank everyone for the support that I've received so far for let your lifestyle be your medicine, just thrilled with the outpouring of support and positive feedback. And if you have a chance, and you haven't done so already, and you enjoy the show, please leave a positive comment on the iTunes Store. The more reviews that let your lifestyle be your medicine gets, the easier it will be for other people who may need to hear the information the show to find it. So thanks again. And let's get started. All right, habit number one that has to be broken. Calling yourself bad. And let me explain. I decided I'm going to eat healthier. And then I went to work. And there was a selection of Girl Scout cookies on the counter. And I tried to have every cookie. And the response then is I was bad, right? Oh, I was bad. I ate something bad. And when we tend to do this one, we're judging ourselves and you're certainly not bad. You ate a cookie, which was probably really good. Delicious. And that's all it was. And we need to get to that point of saying, Well, that's all it is I ate a cookie, I ate four cookies, I ate a box of cookies. Okay? A box of cookies is a little much, but that's okay. Because for the rest of the day, you can make healthier choices with your food. And when we consume those cookies, if we get back to this practice of eating mindfully, if you want to sit down and open a box of cookies and eat it, and my theory when it comes to Girl Scout Cookies has always been open a box eat a box. But you have to do that mindfully. Right? So take your box of cookies. And I'm sure you don't intend to sit down and consume the whole box. But it just happens. Right? You had one you had two, they're really good. You turned around the box was empty. How did that happen? Well, it happens by eating mindlessly. And we'll go into a little more detail on that. Because whatever it is you choose to eat is fine. As long as you're consciously aware that you're about to consume it, as long as you're consciously aware of how it feels and affects your body once you've put it in your body. So you grab that box of Thin Mints. But you commit to yourself, you know what, I'm not just gonna walk through the halls or sit in front of my computer. I'm going to eat these thin mints. But I'm going to make sure I sit down. And I noticed before I put them in my mouth, and I really taste them as I'm chewing them. And I really notice how they feel whether or not I'm enjoying them, and whether or not my body responds well to them. And this is going to help you and maybe it does maybe your body's like, Oh, this is good. Get another box. And maybe not maybe your body notices. Well, that was good. But two is enough. I'm done now. And you notice that the feeling of sugar starts to kick in. And do you think well I enjoyed that. It was good. I deserved that treat. I ate it for a good cause.

04:54

And now I'm done. So, what I want you to understand As regardless of what you did in a diet, and when I say diet, I don't mean following a diet like a calorie restrictive thing. I mean, just what you consume in a day, you're your own nutrition, that it's really hard to change everything all at once. And so if you're trying to live a healthier lifestyle, if you're trying to consume healthier foods, that is awesome. And that step in itself is something you have to give yourself credit for, you have to say, Hey, I've made a decision that I'm going to start making healthier choices. And that by no means means that every single thing you put in your mouth today is going to be a healthy whole food. Because maybe you have a lot of change to make in your diet. Maybe you drink several sodas a day, maybe you eat a lot of sugar, maybe your diet is, is filled with a lot of processed food, and there are many changes you need to make. So if you think that you're going to throw all of that out today, and completely change everything and consume, you know, half a gallon of water every day and eat nothing but fresh vegetables and grains, you probably have a big surprise coming very few people would be able to make that kind of change, because it's so dramatic, that your brain will actually fight you on it. There is a wonderful book, and I'll have to post it in the show notes here. It's called the healthiest view. And it's a fascinating book where this neuroscientist goes into how our brain responds to too much change at once. And how it actually undermines us from being able to be successful. But when we make small changes, it's almost like we sneak it past the brain, you know, we've made a decision, we're going to eat healthier, that's a change in itself. Okay, your brain can handle that. So today, when you sit down, instead of having nine out of 10 pieces of bacon and eggs that are based in butter, maybe you have five pieces of bacon, and eggs that weren't necessarily based in butter, maybe sprayed the pan, or maybe you just put a teaspoon of butter on the bottom of the pan before you fried them, hey, that's something else your brain can handle. It's a small change. So when you're trying to be healthier when you're trying to create healthier habits, know that if you deviate from what you think is healthy, from what, you know, the the social prescription of this is healthy, this is not. And you've made a choice, like eating cookies, you are not bad, you're just enjoying a cookie. And you have to break that habit, because what tends to happen is when we say Oh, I was bad, then we kind of think I ate all those cookies, or I ate all that ice cream. So I might as well have a Big Mac too. And we throw the baby out with the bathwater. Because the approach to how you're treating yourself, which is really judging yourself and being very harsh on yourself. And then when we've done something bad it, you know, almost subconsciously is going to take us all the way back to when you're a kid what happened when you did something bad. You got in trouble. What happened when you got in trouble, you got punished. And so we expect that punishment, right? I was bad. So I don't deserve good. So I'm going to punish myself. So I'm going to do more of what I perceive as bad. And then I continue the punishment, which is what I deserve. You see that vicious cycle, that very unhealthy way of thinking can create a pattern of unhealthy behaviors and treatments towards yourself. So I want you to try to create some awareness of when you do something that you say is bad. Oftentimes, someone will tell me, you know, I come to me and say I really want to change my eating habits. I need to exercise more. And I'll ask them well, why? Why do you need to exercise more? Because is that because someone told you how to or do you really feel like, I want to be healthier? I want to be stronger. I want to have a greater level of fitness. And it's important to recognize that. Do you want that? Do you want that for yourself? Do you is there a feeling that you're experiencing in your life, maybe an inability to participate in things that you enjoy? And so you realize, well, if I'm not exercising, this is how I'm feeling and I don't like this feeling because I don't get to participate in things I enjoy. So I want to act You're Sizemore because I want to feel better. And I want to be able to be more active. That's awesome. So you make a commitment to yourself to exercise three times a week. And going back to this approach, and someone will come and ask me, and I'll ask them why, okay? Sometimes I hear, I want to be healthier, because I want to get pregnant, or I want to get healthier, because I noticed that I'm losing a lot of my strength. And I want to I don't want that to happen. I want to remain physically independent. Those are great, great goals to have, and great reasons to begin a program. But what's important to understand is that when you begin that program, if you decide to sleep in one morning, because you feel tired, or the alarm didn't go off, you don't wake up and say, Ah, man, that's it, I didn't work out, I screwed up.

10:54

I messed up my program. And I was just terrible. And you know what, I might as well get some, I don't know, get some Chick fil A on the way to work, because I'm sorry if you're a AAA lover, because I already did an exercise. So I might as well pick up fast food. Well, again, here's the better approach that I've decided I'm going to exercise regularly. I've committed to exercising 30 minutes a day, three times a week. And I did it Monday. And then Wednesday, someone booked an early appointment with me at work and early meeting or stayed up too late Tuesday night, so I was really tired. You don't wake up Wednesday morning, and and beat yourself up and judge yourself and say I'm bad. I'm bad. I can't do it. No. What you say is okay, what did I learn from this? If I want to exercise three times a week, for 30 minutes a day, I obviously can't stay up until whatever time it is on Tuesday night. So for me personally, I know that if I'm not asleep, not just in bed, but I'm not asleep by 10, then it's pretty impossible for me to be up at 5am feel like working out. Because I just feel groggy, I need a certain amount of sleep. And I know that. So I have to make a practice of that. And if I have a workout scheduled or planned for an early morning, but something else comes up. I might not necessarily cancel that because life is fun. And you want to do things with friends and family. And in maybe so Tuesday night, something comes up a friend comes into town and you want to go out and have dinner and have a drink. That's okay, maybe in your schedule, then you say okay, well, then I'm going to add that workout in on Wednesday evening instead. So I don't stress myself out. Or I'm going to add that workout in on Thursday morning instead of Wednesday morning this week, because I want to go have fun with my friend. Nothing wrong with that. You're not bad for doing that. You're not bad for making a choice, when you go out to dinner with that friend to share a Kraemer life or dessert criminally is one of the most delicious things in the world. Eat it. And when you eat it, eat it joyfully, and eat it mindfully and know that this is a part of enjoying life and a part of a healthy lifestyle. Probably the most important part is joy. So when I'm recording this episode, it's not so much about what you're eating right or making sure that you exercise. But it's about as you approach these things, these healthier lifestyles, the attitude you have towards yourself, approaching them with joy, being gentle with yourself, which is a big thing, I had to learn to be gentle with myself, because I did go through this, you know, it didn't work out, or a messed up, or oh, I can't believe I didn't follow what I wanted my plan to be today. And I had to realize that that's just a part of life. And you do that and you move on. You make a choice, not fall off the magnet, do something bad or wrong. Just make a different choice. You make a choice for something that sounds enjoyable to you at the moment. And then you notice how you felt about that choice. Did I enjoy it? Was it wonderful, great. And so if you think there's a healthier choice you can make later than make that healthier choice. So little bits at a time. But taking that habit of calling yourself bad out of your vocabulary, stop, stop, stop. I can't emphasize that enough. Because it just leads you down this spiral of destructive behavior and poor choices, unhealthy choices, and you just get buried in it, you know? So I want you to look at whatever the change is that you're considering. remaking, if you sit here and you're looking at your life now and you say, Well, ideally, this is where I would like to be instead, in three months, or in six months, or in a year or all of those, here's the steps that I'm going to take and begin taking those steps. And if you choose along that path, to deviate a little bit from the step you had planned, that's okay. And you tell yourself that, like, that's okay, hey, I'm doing the 9010 rule, right 90% of the time, I'm making the healthiest choices possible and tempers on the time I'm just having fun, or at 20. So you choose that, but make sure that you don't refer to yourself as being bad. When you make those choices that deviate from what you had planned. Okay, that's the number one habit we're going to break. I'm not bad because I slept in late. I'm not bad, because I had two martinis or three. And then instead of club soda, I'm not bad because I a Girl Scout cookies, I just chose to indulge in something that's kind of fun in life. And it maybe wasn't the healthiest choice, but that's okay. Because the majority of the time, I do make the healthiest choice. And there is nothing bad about that. Okay, number one, no more, wipe it out. create that awareness when you hear yourself saying or thinking because thinking counts too. If you're not saying it out loud, but you're thinking it was really bad. I can't believe I did that I'm so guilty. Stop, I want you to hear my voice. When you notice yourself thinking that and hear Laura say stop it. Stop it. You choose what you want it to it was fine, you're fine, move forward. If you want to make a different choice. Do that the next time, and there's nothing wrong with you, you're 100% Awesome, and perfect. And it's all as it should be. Okay. Number two, habit that has to be broken. Comparing yourself to yourself. And here's what I mean. Well, I can't do that anymore. I did that when I was 20. But now I can't do it. I'm so frustrated. Because, you know, my body acts like this now, instead of that now. Okay, having breast cancer going through cancer treatments, I don't care what any physician says or doesn't say, or, Hey, it's all temporary. And you'll all go back to normal over time. Not for me, and not for a single female that I know, has that happened, going through several surgeries, or maybe one surgery, being exposed to highly toxic and dangerous chemicals and radiation. It changes your body. It does. And I'm not going to sit here and quote scientific studies on what might get changed. And who says this might and who says that might this is my own personal experience. And the feedback that I have received from many, many women who have gone through cancer treatment. Your body is different most of the time after treatment. And what I what I found for me, and what I encountered with other women that I talk with is that's a super hard thing to go through. So it's really difficult to believe and I know I did that I thought, okay, everything's gonna be fine. You know, I just have to get through this treatment, and then everything's gonna be great, and everything's gonna go back to normal. And then it didn't. And I would I was kind of angry with my body like, oh, well is wrong year. You know, why? Why is it harder for me to lose weight now?

19:01

You know, why can't I do the same yoga poses without having a muscle spasm, you know, I want to be the way I was I want my old body back. And there comes a time where you have to let that go. You know, I talked about being mindful about eating mindfully about using mindfulness exercises to practice being in the present moment. And this act of comparing yourself to what you used to be, especially when it comes to your overall health. It does affect the way that we make food and exercise choices. It affects the way that we're thinking and treating ourselves and that in itself, can have a negative impact on our health. So it's really important that we're practicing being present with our body. Now we're noticing when those thoughts come up, when that thought of, hey, well I can't do that exercise anymore. like I used to. So, you know, now I don't exercise I used to run, but now I can't because fill in the blank. And so now I just don't exercise. So having a healthy lifestyle, ladies requires exercise, there's just no way around it, you have to exercise your body needs it. Everything works better when you exercise. I know, you know, a lot of people say, Well, I'm already thin, I don't need to exercise arm, well, you know, my friend, she's really thin, she doesn't need it. Thin and exercise have nothing to do with each other. Okay? Exercise makes everything in your body work better, it makes your heart stronger, your lungs work better your hormones function better, it will help reduce your hot flashes, it can help reduce pain, it helps improve mood, blood pressure, cholesterol levels, it is not about being thin. Now, of course, when you're building lean body mass, exercise can support being thin. But what you put in your mouth, and what genetics are in your DNA, and what stage of your life you're in, have a much greater impact on your weight than exercise exercises for your health. And just because you may not be overweight, absolutely does not mean that you don't need exercise. Because there are many Finn, people who have diabetes who suffer strokes who have osteoporosis, all these kinds of things that can be prevented or the risk of it reduced through exercise. So never quantify or qualify, I don't need exercise because I'm thin, okay, you need it. Whether you're thin or not. So comparing yourself to I was really fit. And now I'm not because I can't do what I used to like to do is something that you're gonna have to move past, you need to be in this present moment with your body, recognize what it can do, and then do that. So if it is that now your joints hurt. So impact high impact exercise is not something you participate in, which is for me, I no longer jump. If it requires jumping, that doesn't happen. I may do that exercise. But when the jump comes up, I'm just going to be on my tippy toes, right. And I know that because I don't want to hurt myself, I want to be able to continue to exercise. So I modify. And it used to be that I did compare myself Oh, and I would get so frustrated. I can't do these things. And just you know, two years ago, or just three years ago, before treatment, I could do all this stuff. And now I can't Well, you know what, at some point, I had to say, Laura, suck it up. You're right, you can't, you can't do that anymore. So get present, and do what you can do and let that go and be grateful that you were able to do that before. You know, when it comes to weight and comparing ourselves and looking at ourselves saying, oh, gosh, I all my size fours and sixes are still in my closet. I'm gonna get back into them. Well, I think that that's an admirable goal. But if going through chemo, changed your body, put you through menopause, early menopause, changed your hormones, and everything's all out of whack. Maybe it's time to be easier on yourself. Maybe it's time that you don't compare yourself constantly to those size six genes that are hanging there. Maybe you let them go. And that's not to say let it go. Don't worry about your way to ingest. You know, who cares? That's not what I'm saying at all. What I'm saying is you are where you are now. And you have to embrace it, you have to get to a point in your life where like, this is where I am now. Would I like to change this? Yes. Okay, maybe you do? Maybe you don't? What I like to improve this, what I like to feel healthier, what are the steps I can take and let go of what has happened in the past. And don't say to yourself, Well, what I want to do is get back to where I was when I was 30 when I was 20 when I was 45, fill in the blank, whatever it was, okay, that's done and gone and your body is different now. And so when you get to that point where you can stop fighting your body, and that was such a hard lesson for me to learn, man did I want to fight I want to fight it, I'm gonna fix it. I'm gonna force it. And boy, nothing happened. And it made me so miserable because I was so frustrated because my body wouldn't respond the way I used to respond. And, you know, in one of my previous podcasts, I noted episode three, you heard Aaron Summerville the mind body oncology coach, and she was one of the first people that said to me, Laura, you You have to practice being gentle with yourself. And you know, I didn't understand really what that meant. At first, I was like gentle with myself as if I'm going to give up on my goal as if I'm going to give up on being worth it or you know, and that's not what it was at all. Every day, I work towards better health, because I like it. I like eating whole food, I like exercising, I like feeling fit. And I have issues that surround that. And so I work with them. And instead of fighting my body to go back to what it was, when I was 45, when I was 30, I just say, I'm so grateful that I can do the things that I can do now, with my body, that I'm still capable of this type of strength of this type of mobility of this type of awareness and participation in my life. Because my body a lived, and B continues to get stronger and healthier. I had to create a partnership with my body, and an acceptance of it instead of constantly trying to fight it and beat it down and compare it to the way that it used to be. So that is Habit number two,

26:20

we have to stop comparing ourselves to where we used to be physically, we have to embrace where we are now. And take the steps to make us as healthy as we can be going forward. So we're always thinking right now, and what is to come. Right now this is where I'm at, this is what I can do. And I'd like that it produces this outcome later, but I'm not going to be attached to it, I'm just today going to make these choices. And if I fall off, I'm gonna rewind that not use that phrase, if I make a different choice, I'm not going to beat myself up for it and say that I'm bad. I'm just going to accept that that was the choice I made at this point in my life today, I needed it right now I wanted it. And I'm gonna evaluate how it made me feel. And maybe I won't make that choice in the future, maybe I will, maybe I'll make it less often. But I'm not going to judge myself and say I'm bad for having done it. And I'm not going to compare myself to where I used to be. So these are two pretty big onions to peel. And I'd like you just to focus on, first of all, creating awareness of where and when you do these things to yourself of where and when you judge yourself to be bad, or where and when you compare yourself to what you used to be. And then just through creating that awareness, hopefully we can take some steps moving forward, to change that behavior. And to just let it go, you know, you don't have to like, I'm going to replace it with this and replace with that. You just have to let it go. You just have to say, I'm just not going to do that anymore. I'm going to notice when it comes up and I'm going to say, no, no, I'm fine. I'm that I'm not bad. I'm good. And it's okay. And through that awareness, I believe that those changes will begin to happen. And then you're going to find a lot of stress has been released from you. And it's going to make it easier for you to live a healthier lifestyle. And that's what this is all about. It's not about discipline. It's not about deprivation. A healthy lifestyle is feeling good. You know what comes to your mind, I think healthy. I think feeling good, not feeling deprived, not feeling angry, not beating myself up not punishing myself for not doing the quote unquote, right thing. Being healthy is a vibrant, joyful, fulfilling way to exist. All right. So I hope you go forward for these next two weeks between this podcast and the next one. Practicing these two breaking these two habits of comparing yourself to yourself and of telling yourself you're bad judging yourself for the choices you make. And I look forward to hearing some of the results. So post them on my facebook page at Laura Lummer. You can also find me on Twitter and Instagram at one fit grandma. That's the number one and I'm really excited to finally announce today is April 7, and this weekend will be the formal rollout of my revivify program, eight weeks to a healthier lifestyle. And go to my website, Laura lummer.com where you can look at the revivify page and see what that whole program is about. But it's basically a wellness coaching type of program where I give you a lot of basic information, some great videos on PDF, some hands doubt and then we all participate in a group with some Facebook Live some coaching questions and exercises along the way to help you figure out what it is you want to do to create a healthier lifestyle for yourself. So I really hope you check that out. And again, if you enjoyed this podcast, if you enjoy these episodes, please leave a review and positive feedback for me at the iTunes store. I thank you again so much for joining. It really is just such a thrill to be able to work with other women who survived cancer who are trying to create a healthier life. And I just love being able to put this show out there. I want to acknowledge that the show today was brought to you and made possible by Beautycounter a wonderful skincare and cosmetic line that is committed to reforming the cosmetic industry and making it making it so that we have to use safer products and safer chemicals. So beauty counter uses love the safest possible products and most natural products and elements in their skincare and their cosmetic line and I hope you check it [email protected] forward slash Laura Lummer Thanks again for joining me this week and I'll see you in two weeks until then let your lifestyle be your medicine. Your mind is clearer than before your heart is full and wanting more your futures even all you know has you been waiting on yours this is your