I hate tips and lists but I’m not like everyone, or even close to the majority. But I’ve had many questions and conversations about what I do personally to create and maintain health expression. Hopefully this helps you in your journey.
Top 5 Health Tips To Keep You Out of Your Doctor’s Office
Read…a lot.
Reading isn’t just about information but also affirmation. It’s not a question that I ask my clients but maybe I should. “What was the last book you read or listened to?” If the answer is romance novels, then we just need to add in some reading pertaining to their health challenges. If they haven’t read a book since high school, that’s a problem.
If that resonates with you, then you’re destined to fail since you’re looking for someone else to solve the problem when you already possess the solution to 98% of your health issues. The only long term, viable solution to you getting well is your personal efforts, on a consistent basis, for an extended period of time. Picking up a book or listening to an audiobook about a health topic is the least expensive, yet most life changing thing you can possibly do to turn around your situation.
The clients that get the best results are the ones that say, “Hey, Dr. Kurt, have you read this book yet?”
Love Yourself.
I see too many parents, especially moms, running themselves into the ground to be everything and anything to their kids. What your kid needs is you not always tired, capable of running and tumbling with them, and engaged with them, not just only provide opportunities for life experiences with someone else. You can’t do this if your health struggles. You can’t sustain a health journey if you don’t love yourself enough to do the things that build and create health. If you treated your friends and family the way you treated yourself, how many would show up to your next party?
The clients that get the best results are the ones that take what they have read and love themselves enough to apply it to their families, regardless of resistance.
Say ‘No.’
Part of loving yourself is saying ‘no.’ I have 3 boys. We say ‘no’…a lot. At one point, our middle child thought his name was ‘Lukas Stop.’ We don’t say ‘no’ or ‘stop’ to suppress our boys ambitions. We say it because we love them and don’t want them to horribly injure themselves. Sometimes we have to yell it. “STOP LEG SWEEPING YOUR BROTHER NEAR THE FIREPLACE! We don’t want a head smashing into the tiles. Come away from the fireplace, onto the carpet, and leg sweep him there.”
The biggest offense I see with people is, “I’ve been good, I can have that cake…like the whole thing.” How do you change that internal dialogue that causes destructive behaviors? Switch the object of your desire with something that would land you in jail if you allowed your kid to do it. “I’ve been good, I can have that crack…like the whole rock.” “I’ve been good, I get to walk into oncoming traffic at dark.” “I’ve been good, time to chug some turpentine.”
The clients that get the best results are willing to do (and not do) the things that the unsuccessful aren’t willing to do (or not do).
Get Obsessed
An excuse I often hear is, “I don’t want to get obsessed or go too extreme.” Why not? When looking at people you admire in regards to their accomplishments, how many of them are mediocre at what they do? You have a favorite chef, tech guru, health advocate, athlete, pastor, political analyst (anal is in the word), author, musician, actor, or talk show host. Do you think they got where they are because they ‘do everything or anything in moderation?’
They are obsessive about their industry and craft. They have worked their tail off for years and decades to get where they are, where now you look to them in admiration. And I I would bet my house that every single person you admire that is tops in their field had set backs along the way. If they didn’t have an obsession, they would not have pushed through those hard times.
Why is America a nation of innovators? Because we are a nation of obsessors. Most of us have a lineage that immigrated to this land in search of bigger, better, faster, and stronger. It’s in your DNA. You are a dopamine addict. Use it. Just make sure you’re getting obsessed about things that make you a better person to serve a greater purpose.
The clients that get the best results are those that get obsessed.
Get Your Purpose
I don’t think health is ever achieved. It is only experienced. The moment you stop taking care of yourself, health will decline. And even when you’re doing many things right, there can be set backs from external influences that often are unpredictable. Health is not a bucket list like a marathon, a trip to Fiji, or watching a season of Better Call Saul in one sitting. Finding a purpose gives you clarity with your obsession. Finding a purpose instantly invalidates all the “I don’t want to, I can’t, and it’s too hard ” excuses. Finding a purpose gets you through the tough times.
There’s 2 ways to formulate a purpose. You are either trying to get rid of something you have but don’t want. Or you are trying to gain something you want but don’t have. Which do you think is more lasting? Getting rid of something, especially in regards to symptoms is often the initial action catalyst, but this can lead you down a path to do anything and everything, even to the detriment of the health journey. Want to lose weight? Chop off an arm.
The clients that get the best results and sustain them are the ones that own their purpose.
Start by figuring out what you want that you don’t have and start working. Be honest with yourself. Do you think you’re worthy of that achievement? Depending on how you answer will then direct you to what books you read and listen to. If you are worthy, get into books that develop healthy habits. If you honestly said ‘no’ (I don’t want you to say ‘no’ to this), then get into books that deal with mental and emotional hurt and trauma. Regardless of the situation, get obsessed and take action.
You can do this. I bet you can solve at least 85% of your problem on your own. If you get stuck and need help piecing that last bit together, you know how to find me.
Love this post and your philosophies! Along the lines of reading/education, what are your thoughts on Mercola’s book Fat for Fuel? How about your thoughts on mitochondrial fatigue?
I haven’t read Mercola’s specifically but am a fan of the fat for fuel. For sustainability, I implement a lot of intermittent fasting with clients. One of my favorite tests I run on clients is organic acids, which part of it is testing for mitochondrial efficiency. If this isn’t supported, then all other functions will be diluted, thyroid, immune, hormones, cognitive function, etc.