Hi Reader,
Last time, I told you about my own recovery after back surgery—and why I still work with someone who can see what I can’t always see in myself.
Because healing takes more than information.
It also takes a way of thinking.
So today I want to share the framework I come back to again and again when I’m trying to understand my own health or helping someone else understand theirs.
First: What is health?
Health isn’t the absence of a diagnosis.
Health is your body’s ability to produce the energy you need to meet the demands of your life, recover fully, and adapt as those demands change.
So how do you know if you’re healthy?
You look at the appropriate labs, of course.
But you also look at something much simpler:
How do you feel and function?
Ask yourself:
How often do I get sick—and how quickly do I recover?
Do I have enough energy for my daily life? (without three cups of coffee :))
What is my energy-to-anxiety ratio?
How easily do I fall asleep and stay asleep?
Can I move without pain?
How is my libido?
How well do I recover from physical and emotional stress?
Your body is giving you information every day. The question is whether you are listening.
The Five Principles of Health
the philosophy guiding you to health
1. Start where health is created.
Think cells and gut first.
Your body is made of cells, and those cells need energy to produce, repair, maintain, communicate, detoxify, and protect.
Inside those cells, your mitochondria convert nutrients from food into usable energy.
That energy helps determine how well your body can do everything else.
Your gut, meanwhile, influences nutrient absorption, immune signaling, inflammation, metabolism, and communication throughout the body.
When your cells and gut have what they need to function well, the rest of the body has a much better chance to thrive.
Health starts in your cells
2.Understand before you treat.
Most people start with: "How do I get rid of this symptom?"
I want you to ask a different question: "What is creating this dysfunction?"
A symptom is information.
Instead of immediately suppressing it, get curious about why it is there.
What is missing? What is irritating the system? What is the body trying to compensate for?
Stop guessing. Start understanding your body.
3. Remove before you add.
We love adding things. Another supplement. Another medication.
Another protocol. Another health hack.
But sometimes what matters most is what needs to be removed, reduced, or changed.
Food that isn't serving you. Alcohol. Poor sleep habits. Chronic stress.
Environmental exposures. An infection. A nutrient imbalance.
A behavior you've normalized for years.
Before asking, "What else should I take?" ask:
"What may be getting in the way of my body working well?"
4. Nourish your body according to YOUR needs.
There is no perfect health plan that works for everyone.
Your genes, labs, environment, lifestyle, age, stress, history, and current circumstances all influence what your body needs right now.
This is why I teach the Live Well Method
We nourish the body based on the person in front of us.
Not trends. Not somebody else's routine.
Your body. Your needs. Your life.
5. Observe, adjust, and keep choosing health.
Your needs will change. So pay attention.
Your symptoms. Your labs. Your sleep. Your energy. Your recovery. Your mood.
Your digestion. They are all feedback.
Use that feedback to adjust rather than expecting one plan to work forever.
Health is created through the choices you make every day.
Not one perfect choice. Hundreds of small ones.
And that brings us back to what I shared with you last time.
You don't need to have everything figured out.
You need to understand what your body is telling you, know what to change next, and keep adjusting as you learn.
That is the work. And that is how health is built.
One Simple Shift
The next time a symptom appears, instead of immediately asking:
"How do I make this go away?"
ask:
"What is my body trying to tell me?"
Stay curious. Be open and willing.
