I am huge believer that in order to solve a problem, you must first understand your problem. Or at least understand the operating system to which the problem is wreaking havoc. If we understand operating systems, it becomes a much simpler task to fix malfunctions when they occur. If we comprehend theories of operation, we almost never need to rely on others to finely tune our systems for us, unless they have something specialized beyond the basics. This is a truth with our health and wellness as well.
For the vast majority of us, when we have a problem with our car, we usually resort to taking the car to a repair shop where we are at the mercy of the mechanic to fix the breakdown while hoping he does not bankrupt us in the process. We go to the shop for repairs because we either lack the expertise, or the specialized tools required for the task at hand. If we had the same knowledge and tools as the mechanic, we would probably save ourselves money and time and do the repairs for ourselves. We do not do this simply because it is easier and quicker to hand money over to another individual to fix the breakdown for us. And hopefully we can go on our merry way and our problems have gone away. But, if you watch your local news, you likely have seen the fairly common story where a local mechanic charged a high fee, only for the car to still have the same issue arise soon afterwards. If this has happened to you, are you comfortable with going back to that mechanic, or are you going to try another one, and maybe another few until your problem is resolved?
Why do we treat our body’s the same way?
Have you ever made the observation that some folks treat their car better than they do their own body?
They do their preventive maintenance, they fine tune their machines before major repairs are required, and they keep it looking good. For many guys, their car can become an extension of who they are. Yet, while they are fueling their car with premium fuel, they are fueling their own body with low grade foods. They will place expensive oils in the engine, while putting unhealthy oils into their body. Our body is much like that car though, when we put bad fuel and poor quality oil into it, we are soon going to have major issues which require fixing by someone with more expertise and equipment than ourselves.
Something any reputable mechanic will tell you about your car is that if you take care of it, most oil and fuel additives are not necessary. In fact, if you just add them randomly without no true understanding of why, you can cause damage to your engine. This is true with supplements we buy for ourselves. Some help us when we have good reason to take them, while others can actually bring us harm when they interact with medications in a bad way, or we take too much. The thing is, we often take supplements to help us feel better, or to help with losing weight. Just the same, when our car might be running rough after years of neglect, we will begin pouring additives into our motors to hopefully make them run better. This works in the short term, but long term, nothing works as good as taking good care of your motor in the first place.
The take away message is that with a little bit of thought and basic knowledge of nutrition and fitness, we can almost all have a healthy body at a healthy weight or body fat percentage. When we understand proper nutrition and apply that knowledge to our dietary habits, we can fix ourselves of many ailments that are a direct result of our nutritional lifestyles. When we fuel our body with wholesome foods and cut out foods that are full of added sugars and unhealthy fats, we instantly begin to feel better. Like how a car runs better when it is driven often, when we lay about and never exercise, our body runs inefficiently. The power to fine tune your body is in your hands, you do not need anything special to make your motor purr like a kitten. Fuel it with good fuel and then get it out of the garage on a regular basis, and it will run just fine.