It’s been a busy month for me – how about for you?
I don’t know where the days went… I did 6 evening events between Calgary and Fort Mc, made a trip to Chicago and the sprinted over to NYC and back… and still made it out to a hike before the weather changed…
I know I am not the only one who packs so much into my schedule.
And I often wonder how I do it 😉
Of course… I have secrets… hehehe.
Can you believe that we are on the home stretch towards Christmas and then a NEW YEAR? Oh!! And Halloween is tomorrow.
Isn’t this the time of year where we pack in even more?
We think it is ‘normal’ to get so much done in a week, or month… or into our lives in general, right? And we hold ourselves to standards that really are not realistic.
I’m writing to you because I want you to remember one thing… and to NOT do ONE THING.
Let me tell you a story first.
I saw a patient yesterday. Let’s call her Lori.
She looks fabulous for 51. Lean and trim. She keeps a schedule of a 30 year old.
Busy! Lots on the go.
She works out regularly with a trainer.
She watches her weight and figure – I’m sure everyone else watches it too 😉
(because it’s so surprising to see someone ‘her age’ be in such great shape!!)
I was taking her history as I always do… and I asked her about her energy.
She said, ‘Well I’m tired but that is expected. I’m busy’.
We reviewed her other symptoms and then her saliva test.
Her morning cortisol is on the bottom end of the range.
And some of her hormone levels have changed since she was last tested.
She also stopped taking her prescribed supplements as she got too b usb to remember.
Hormones are the chemistry of life.
They regulate and control your energy, your sleep, your fat burning and fat storing… And they ‘work’ by chemical reactions that use up nutrients (vitamins and minerals and enzymes).
When you are under stress or busy, you are using up more of your essential nutrients, depleting your stores, and you are making more hormones and using more hormones that you are taking.
Your hormone levels do not decline because you are aging.
You age because your hormone levels decline.
The point here is this: Ms Lori packs in so much into her day because she can, and because she is on hormones and has had lovely improvements in her sleep and energy since starting them.
She keeps pushing because she can … she assigned her ‘tired’ to being normal because she is busy YET … she is starting to run on empty.
She has forgotten the first principle of hormone balancing: it changes as your life changes, you need more or less depending on what is going on.
She starts her day with an almost empty tank of ‘gas’…
She exercises hard 4-5 times a week – this has a similar impact on stress hormones as stress. Did you know that?
If she continues to keep pushing, she is going to have lower and lower functioning.
My point here is this:
What you use up, you must replete.
And hormone balancing is not as simple as just taking it always and forever without looking at everything else that affects hormone balancing.
If you have to fill your car with gas (the more you drive the sooner you have to fill… right??) then you MUST fill your body with the right gas and at the right frequency.
So please, make time for YOU and your self care.
Schedule in your quiet time.
Take your prescribed supplements more religiously through busy times.
I am doing regular workshops and science updates JUST FOR PATIENTS and I am also holding sessions once a month for new guests to learn the first steps to staying AWESOME regardless of your age. Below is a list of dates – short events and longer ones, coming up.
Just as you must make time for you – you must also make time to learn what actually works and what the science supports, not just what sounds good via a Facebook article (unless of course it is MY FB post or Dr. Kar’s!!!)
I find that my patients forget what I teach them as the years go by… once they feel good, they forget to continue what got them to feeling awesome!
SIMPLE SUMMARY:
- Slow down
- Plan your self care
- Learn to say ‘No’ to a few things such that you don’t ‘run out of gas’ over the holidays.
Back to the busy times coming up:
DON’T get so busy that you forget about your health.
- schedule 10 minutes a day of quiet time
- make sure to eat regularly so that you are never ‘starving’ – that is when you make the worst choices.
And DON’T plan to ‘just have a great holiday’ and fix it later.
- Set your intention to manage your health and weight. It really doesn’t have to be a food fest and weight gain that you have to work extra hard to undo next year.
Why do I say this?
Moderation is better for your healthy aging and longevity than binges and dieting after that.
Happy Halloween!
Dr. Natasha Iyer MD
