Are You Taking Your (Lifestyle) Medicine?

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I am proud to share that earlier this year I completed Harvard Medical School’s Executive Education Lifestyle Medicine + Wellness Coaching course. Since I have loved sharing healthy lifestyle resources for years, I thought I would make it official and get a certification. I loved the course, and spending time with people from around the world who are as passionate about healthy living as I am! Lifestyle Medicine emphasizes the use of evidence-based healthy lifestyle interventions focused on 6 pillars: exercise, nutrition, sleep, stress management/resilience, social connection, and avoiding risky substances. By focusing on making positive changes in these areas we can prevent, treat, and possibly even reverse chronic diseases. Lifestyle Medicine is ultimately about taking control of your health by making informed, sustainable lifestyle choices. So, are you taking your Lifestyle Medicine? Let’s find out…

According to Harvard Harvard Medical School’s Lifestyle Medicine + Wellness Coaching course, these are the evidence-based guidelines that you should strive to follow to live your healthiest life:

Exercise

  • Complete 150-300 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity each week or 75-150 of vigorous-intensity physical activity each week. (Moderate means you can talk but not sing. Vigorous means you cannot sing or talk. If you can sing, you are doing low-intensity exercise.)
  • The second part of the exercise prescription is strength training twice each week on nonconsecutive days.

Nutrition

  • Enjoy a delicious and nutritious whole-food, plant-predominant eating pattern.
  • Include lots of vegetables, fruits, whole grains, nuts, seeds and legumes.

Sleep

Stress Management/Resilience

  • Practice at least 12-15 minutes of stress management techniques each day. This could include things like yoga, meditation, breathwork or being out in nature.

Social Connection

  • Make time to connect with at least one friend or loved one each day for a total of at least seven interactions in the week.
  • This can be with the same person or a different one.

Avoiding Risky Substances

  • If you smoke, quit.
  • If you don’t drink, don’t start.
  • If you do drink, work to limit yourself to one drink or fewer per 24-hour period if you are a woman and two drinks or fewer per 24-hour period if you are a man.

So, how did you do? Are there areas where you consistently meet the guidelines? Are there any pillars where you could use some work? Remember that nobody is perfect. Even I struggle to meet some of these guidelines! What is important is that you are aware of how you’re doing and how it’s affecting you and that you strive to meet the guidelines as best you can. I am incorporating some Lifestyle Medicine coaching into my private yoga sessions for clients who are interested. If you feel like you could use some support with any of these six pillars, please ask. I’m happy to help!