February 16, 2005

(Daniel Joseph Hebert is a professional Shiatsu Therapist, Gym Coach, and Optimal Health Consultant living in Toronto and Northern California.)

When my friend Corinne asked me to write a feature article for Feeling To Infinity I was humbled and excited. I want to give away as much information as I can to the general public about straight talk regarding optimal health, so this is a great venue for that.

If you engage these 8 practices, you’ll be healthier than virtually everyone you know.

Does this require a little discipline? Yes. But not that of a monk. It’s a practice. You don’t have to be perfect. But you DO have to practice-- if you want tangible results.

And of course -- you should never believe anything you read or hear. Prove it to yourself by honest trial. Self-authenticate. Then do what is best for you.

So, here they are…



The Eight Baby Steps to Maximum Energy and Vibrant Health


1. Fasting and Raw Juices

Fasting is when you stop taking all food for an extended period of time, ingesting only water or diluted juices. It’s the single most powerful health practice a human being can perform.

Fasting is radical in that it evokes the great healing power of the body itself, unaided by any medicinal substances or nutrition.

The radical practice of fasting all foods and drinking raw juices is the best course (under guidance) to arrest and reverse the process of almost any disease.

Baby Step: Pick one day every two weeks (for me it’s a Sunday) and do a raw juice fast. Using whatever fruits and vegetables you like best. This is perhaps the best health practice you’ll ever do for yourself over the long haul.



2. Pure Water and Cleaner Air

Clean water and air are two of the most important elements that support health, so ensuring their purity makes a lot of sense.

Just think about it: your body is over 70 percent water. You can live for weeks without food, but only days without water. And our constantly breathing lungs feed on and “digest” air 24 hours a day for as long as we live -- not just at dinner time.

Water and air should be considered the fundamental energy sources that sustain our health and well-being. Simple, natural, clean air and water themselves are the secret elixirs of longevity.

Baby Step: Get a decent water purifier. British Berkefeld makes the best, and Gaiam is a great place to find quality air purifiers.



3. Raw Organic Foods

No big surprise. Raw foods contain the living nutrients and enzymes that cooking kills or makes unusable or even toxic. Don’t listen to the hogwash about organic being no better for you than conventional.

It’s true that organic isn’t necessarily as a rule more nutritious than consumer/generic foods (although in my opinion, it still tends to be), but the point is organic foods contain less or no added chemicals or genetic modifications and such nasties.

Baby Step: Start buying your groceries at a good health food store, or gravitate toward the organic when you’re cruising through the produce section of your local market.



4. Essential Oils

Therapeutic essential oils are the missing link to health and wellness altogether. A therapeutic grade organic oil is as good as gold for the body. It’s the oldest, most studied science in medicine, and the applications of oils are literally more than you could learn in lifetime.

Baby Step: Diffuse the core healing oil blends of Valor and En-R-Gee.

5. Breath and Body-Work

Breathing is the primary sign of life. Without breath our hearts will eventually stop beating, and we will physically die. Breath, then, is our principle food, or “soma.”

We need air to live. Our primary dependency is therefore not ideas, or people, or food -- but oxygen.

Bodywork is essential for helping us to relieve tension and become more actively aware of our own peculiar structural misalignments. Shiatsu, Massage, and Chiropractic as well as the Alexander Technique are excellent choices.

Baby Step: Parcel out money to get yourself a deep massage once every two weeks without fail. And remind yourself to breathe slowly and deeply while receiving the treatment.



6. Focused Exercise

No, not just doing the bike in front of the T.V. (although that is definitely better than nothing). But real participatory movement that engages your awareness and makes you compensate for balance and rhythm.

Yes, aerobics and weights are good. But so is Tai Chi. Pilates is excellent, maybe the best. And of course Yoga is always warranted.

No matter how gentle the exercise, some sweat is always a good welcome sign, even if it’s just from concentrating.

Baby Step: Sign up for a weekly Pilates or yoga class (and hold yourself to it...!)



7. Avoid Radiation and Chemicals

Don’t microwave your food. Why? Because it kills it. And if you do, don’t come within three feet of the oven when it’s operating because its radiation is dangerous to your health.

This is no joke. Tons of people now put screens up over their PC monitors to minimize radiation. Try not to put your lap-top on your lap for too long.

And chemicals -- understand that certain chemicals and combinations of them can cause disease both directly and indirectly.

They are famous for causing every manner of immune system dysfunction you care to name and are related to the development of every kind of cancer.

Seriously -- throw out your shampoos and detergents and household cleaners for a start and get natural ones, but don’t be fooled by just “natural” labels. And yes, these things are more expensive. But absolutely worth it in the long run.

Baby Step: Start by replacing what’s in your shower, and go on from there…



8. Meditation and Emotional Balance

If you’re not beginning your day with a simple meditation -- whether that’s just a continuous breath exercise, or prayer, or just sitting still and witnessing the arising of all the mind that is trying to formulate and orchestrate your day by sheer habit, then you are basically living out unconscious patterns of mental (and emotional) activity.

This creates all kinds of unnecessary stress and it also reinforces the underlying conditions that create disease and physical weakness.

Meditation is about resting – and relaxing the habits of the body and mind. So that your life and experience become less bound, and more free.

Always at least start your day with this conscious focusing of attention and energy.

Tap into something that is just your being, without a thought or effort, that is already still, essentially at rest, and not dependent on how the day turns out.

And on that basis, practice emotional balance throughout the day. Volatile emotions and lack of relaxation are serious risk factors to health that cannot be underestimated.

Baby Step: Meditate for 20 minutes before you begin your day and before you go to sleep at night. A small favor to yourself you’ll come to greatly value.



Final Thoughts

These eight steps are the most basic beginning to a healthy life.

Each one is worthy of a full article in itself, but in the time we have here, basics are where we need to begin, and the beginning is the place where it’s easiest to say, Yes!

If you want advice on anything I’ve mentioned or want an exact weekly health program for your body, just tell Corinne and she’ll pass some more information on to you.

She’s at corinne@feelingtoinfinity.com

I made a promise to make time for Corinne’s friends at Feeling To Infinity and that’s what I’ll do.

Looking forward to hearing from you.

all the best,
Daniel