Primary foods are forms of nourishment that truly feed your hunger for life. Learn how to create a feeling of love and abundance in these areas and take your health and life to the next level.
If you haven’t already done so, make sure you read my last post to discover which areas of your life aren’t nourishing you properly.
Humans are hungry for fun, love, touch, romance, joy, self-expression, adventure, success and spirituality, but don’t know how to get it all, so they use food as a way to alleviate or suppress their hunger for these (factors) which in turn causes suffering.
Lets look a little closer at four factors that are just as important, if not more important, to your health as the food you eat, with key questions to ask yourself which will help them improve so you can live your best life.
Relationships
As humans we naturally crave love, friendship, intimacy and communication. These are all essential forms of food for the soul. The way these are incorporated and expressed is different for everyone. It’s important to understand your personal preferences.
- Do you love your alone time, or do you get high off consistently being around other people?
- Have you had a series of bad relationships and feel that it is time to step back and spend time on the relationship with yourself?
- Do you surround yourself with toxic relationships that don’t serve you just because you don’t want to be lonely?
Physical activity
Our bodies thrive on movement and it has many benefits including oxygenation, releasing endorphins (feel good hormones), keeping your muscles toned and strong and reducing stress. When it comes to working out, the challenge is to find the types of exercise you enjoy most and build them into your life.
It’s important to understand how different types of exercise nourish you, so you should choose styles that help you feel balanced. For example, running and weightlifting help you feel grounded, providing strength and stability; whereas walking and yoga improve flexibility, lengthen muscles and align the body. Develop a routine of exercise that keeps you feeling balanced and nourished and most importantly, choose styles that you enjoy!
- Do you like high intensity workouts, or a lighter more relaxed style?
- Do you feel that you need to get more grounded and build strength, or improve your flexibility and alignment?
- Are you self-motivated and enjoy exercising alone, or will you commit when you’re exercising with others because you don’t want to let them down?
- Do you love exercising inside at the gym surrounded by others in a motivated environment, or outside in nature breathing the fresh air?
Career
Most of us spend more than half of our waking hours at work, which ends up meaning we spend about ten years straight of our lives at work. It would make sense then that we should spend all of this time doing something we are truly passionate about! Yet how many of us really enjoy it? Would your life not improve if you spent all this time building your dream, achieving your goals and making the difference you believed you were here to make in this world?
Finding happiness in your career is different for everyone. Maybe it’s not possible to go out and create a new career right now, in which case, make a change, even a small one. Declutter you office or join a new project. Look at an area of your work that would bring you more joy and make that happen, adding worth to what you bring to the job.
Each individual is put on this earth with unique gifts. Discover what these gifts are and work towards creating a career out of them. This will help you work towards finding work you’re passionate about. Doing work you love will nourish you on many levels plus the money you deserve will follow in turn.
- Do you jump out of bed, excited to begin your day of work, or do you dread getting up in the morning?
- Does doing the work you’re doing now for the rest of your life make you smile or get you down?
- Do you love working in a corporate environment, or would you prefer the flexibility to work from home?
- Do you enjoy working for someone else and being told what to do, or do you crave to be your own boss and delve into entrepreneurship?
- What talents do you have that excite you which you’d love to turn into a career?
- What would you happily do every day for the rest of your life even if you didn’t get paid?
Spirituality
We are spiritual beings in a physical body. As with everything, becoming in tune with your spiritual self is a journey, one which can take many years to develop. Tapping into your spirituality is a journey which will feed and nourish you on a very deep level.
A spiritual practice can be things like meditating daily and focusing on the breath, going for a walk in nature, practicing gratitude and living in the present or attending religious services. Discovering and deepening a spiritual practice that resonates with you and will help you to cope with stress and emotions, find more joy in life and come from a place of love with everything you do.
“We are not only fed by food, but by the energy of everything else in our lives. When primary food is balanced and satiated, your life feeds you, making what you eat secondary.”
– Joshua Rosenthal
This blog, its content and any linked material are presented for informational purposes only and are not a substitute for medical advice, diagnosis, treatment, or prescribing. Nothing contained in or accessible from this video should be considered to be medical advice, diagnosis, treatment, or prescribing, or a promise of benefits, claim of cure, legal warranty, or guarantee of results to be achieved. Never disregard medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read in this blog or in any linked material. Olivia Budgen is not a medical doctor. Consult with a licensed healthcare professional before altering or discontinuing any current medications, treatment or care, or starting any diet, exercise or supplementation program, or if you have or suspect you might have a health condition that requires medical attention.
