I enjoyed this beautiful sunrise this week during one of my morning bike rides and it hit me how we take light for granted and how important light is for us, living creatures.
Let there be light.
A simple sentence but with so many meanings..
Let there be light can mean:
Let there be light in your heart, in your mind!
As president Thomas S. Monson said:
“If you want to give a light to others, you have to glow yourself!”
We need to be kind, positive, good hearted, optimistic so that we can be an example for others. In showing how kind and helpful you are, you inspire others to be so too.
In order to be that way, we first of all need to take care of ourselves: sleep enough, exercise, eat healthy food, meditate, create a positive thinking mind, …so that we can be that beacon of light!
Getting more light helps us to stay optimistic, prevents us from getting depressed, from stressing out (and as stressing out often means: stuffing ourselves with all kinds of unhealthy snacks/ habits: this is absolutely to be avoided!!)
A lack of light ups the chances of getting depressed by 11 times!!
By going into the open, fresh air
your heart will fill itself with light-ness, your mind will find peace.
Let there be light can also mean:
Let there be light: literally.
Light is important for our well being, relish natural light as much as possible.
The days are getting shorter and shorter already, so it really is important to go out and enjoy as much light as possible.
We absolutely need light for our well being: physically, emotionally and mentally!
Vitamin D is produced when our skin is absorbing the sunlight. Even on cloudy days, go outside because there is always light behind those clouds.
Vitamin D is very important for us:
– it helps to keep our bones strong
– it helps to prevent certain kinds of cancer
– it enhances your muscle function
– there has been shown a correlation between MS and a low level of Vitamin D
– Vitamin D has a positive effect on your blood pressure and prevents us from getting heart and coronary diseases
-…
The list can get even longer but I think you already have more than enough reasons to get those boots on and go for a walk, ride on your bike,…
Not only do we need the sunlight for our Vitamin D production but it also determines our biorhythm.
Getting up with the sun and going to sleep when the sun goes down. I know nowadays, this is a bit of a stretch but this idea has to stay on top of your mind.
Live by the sunlight as much as possible!
Sleep when it’s dark!
Our melatonin is being produced by our body, when it is dark.
The production of melatonin is responsable for our quality of sleep.
Lack of quantity of sleep, makes us 3 times more vulnerable to become ill when a virus/ bacterie reaches us.
But lack of quality of sleep leaves us up to 5 times more likely to become ill in the presence of germs. And germs are everywhere, always, it’s by making our immune system strong that we can make the difference between getting ill or not.
Sleep on the one hand and being outside in the light on the other are already 2 major factors!
Food and healthy drinks are very important too of course, but that’s a topic for another blog.
Now that fall and winter are in the air – after an amazing summer and a wonderful indian summer!!!!- we better prepare our body for this darker, colder, more ‘germy’ time of year. Humidity in the air determines the actual amount of germs in the air so we better take good care of our body with the changing seasons.
Dressing ourselves to match the outside temperature also helps us in not catching a cold. In dressing according to the climate, your body does not need to spend energy in keeping the body warm and dry, our clothes do that for us and so our body has much more energy left to ‘fight off’ other attackers.
Strengthening our natural germ fighting system is the best strategy for not getting ill.
Being outside is very beneficial for many reasons: it
– sharpens our focus ( multiple studies show positive results in increased concentration and producitivity by adults, by children,..after spending time in nature)
– calms the mind: as our body calms down when we’re outside: blood pressure is being reduced, our heart rate lowers, cortisol ( =stress hormone) levels decrease, …our mind calms down too: by being calmer, seeing more clearly, we can address our problems with an improved focus, so they suddenly seem less threatening, our self esteem gets a boost, we feel stronger, more in charge.
– improves our short term memory!! ( studies show that our memory improves by 20% after having taken a walk)
– improves our vision: an Australian study with 2000 kids show that playing outside reduces significantly their risk of getting near sighted. Indoor light makes it difficult for the young eyes to focus, so their eyes change shape in order to see clearly, which causes sight problems in the long run!
– kids who spend most of their time inside, create bad habits (too much gaming, watching too much television, eating too much snacks,..) which ultimately result in chronic diseases. So help them adopt a healthy lifestyle, let them go outside and play!: your most precious gift for them ever!!!!!
– prolongs your life expectancy! Air quality is better in more dense vegetation area’s.
– ……
Nature, sunlight, oxygen in the air,….all free gifts!
Accept them, enjoy them, let them keep your body and mind healthy!
My very warm request for you all this week is:
GO OUTSIDE AND ENJOY YOUR CONNECTION WITH NATURE.
It will help you become stronger, healthier, more resilient, more flexible, hence calmer, happier, lighter in every meaning of the word, in your heart, in your bodyweight, in your thinking, in everything!
Do not over-think ( when, where, how long,…), just grab your coat, put on your shoes and GO!!
Go Go Go! Enjoy!!
Katrien
katrien@lifecoachwomen.be