“It’s my life! It’s now or never. I ain’t going to live forever. I just want to live while I’m alive.” These are the famous words of Jon Bon Jovi. They resonate with many people but is it a good philosophy to live by?
Being a health “evangelist,” I’ve had my fair share of conversations with people about how diet, lifestyle, stress, sleep, etc. impact health and longevity. One of the stances that always leaves me a bit bemused is taken by those whom I like to call the ‘Bon Jovis’: the ones saying, “I just want to live while I’m alive.” It’s also not uncommon that those same people will say, “You have to die from something!”
These people want to have their cake and eat it too, literally! I understand what they mean: they want to enjoy their life by eating what they want to eat and spending their time doing what they enjoy (which rarely includes cooking and working out). The problem is history proves that you can’t have it both ways. Eating whatever tastes good, not exercising, stuffing emotions, drugging emotions, and ignoring your spiritual health all lead to major problems. But these problems are chronic. Sure, people will die from a poor lifestyle, everyone dies! Not before they suffer 20, 30, or even 40 years of health problems.
I know what you are thinking. What about my uncle who drank whiskey everyday, never exercised, ate whatever he wanted and lived to over 100. Then there is person who did everything right who died early from cancer. What about them? Those are not the norm. The majority of people will not have these results. Besides, isn’t it our responsibility to take care of our bodies? They are a gift from God.
The question I have for you is: why do people think that taking care of their body has to be a “punishment”? Many of the “Bon Jovis” seem to have a black and white view of the future. Either they will:
- live their life full of enjoyment and pass away a little earlier due to the indulgences (the fun life) or
- suffer through making healthy choices to extend their life here on Earth (the life of punishment) and for what, a few extra years?! No thanks.
What do I mean by that?
A poor diet and lifestyle certainly increase your risk of death from “the silent killer” (hypertension that can cause heart attacks and strokes). But more than likely, it will cause other health issues first that will detract from the enjoyment of life: chronic pain, cognitive decline, cancer, and depression or anxiety, just to name a few.
It also is very short-lived pleasure. Yes, the bad food/drink tastes good for a moment but then within minutes we feel the long-term effects of heartburn, bloating, obesity, shortness of breath, hangover, pain in your joints, brain fog, etc. It actually doesn’t produce pleasure, it produces pain.
As someone who has lived the life of chronic pain (having been diagnosed with my first autoimmune disease at age three and my second at age eight), I can tell you that while “living your life while you’re alive” has enjoyable moments, life is significantly much more enjoyable when you’re in good health!
Living for Now AND for Later
The best way to “live while you’re alive” is
- Understand that some healthy habits will be painful in the moment but create long-lasting pleasure
- Knowing that healthy eating, exercising, experiencing emotional stability, having spiritual habits and ultimately discipline over your life are far more enjoyable because they are congruent with how God created you
- Discovering ways to make living healthier, more enjoyable, and/or easier for you.
Here are some examples of things you can do to make this lifestyle easier:
Making Walks More Enjoyable
- Invite friends
- Listen to an audiobook, podcast, or music
- Challenge yourself with increased distance, speed, or elevation change (e.g. try to beat your previous distance!)
- Watch a movie while walking on a treadmill
- Practice a “gratitude walk,” taking notice of the beauty in nature and mentally listing what you’re grateful for
Remember, moving doesn’t need to mean walking/running, either. It could be dancing, swimming, playing pickleball/basketball/soccer, etc.
Eating Healthier
- Invest in a meal delivery service, menu planner, or meal planning app
- Meal prep with friends
- Do a meal prep swap (you meal prep a few meals, a friend meal preps a few meals and you split them)
- Try a cooking class to get more comfortable cooking from scratch
- Buy vegetables pre-chopped
- Eat carrot chips or roasted nuts instead of potato chips or candy
- Sip sparking water instead of alcohol or soda
Living a healthy lifestyle does not need to mean depriving yourself of fun, but it may mean finding new avenues of having fun or doing/eating certain things in moderation.
If you want to improve your lifestyle and health, meet with one of our functional medicine practitioners to dig deep into your personal health and determine what changes would have the most impact for you. Call our office at 952-949-0676.
