ML Coaching
Mind and body can only be strong if you take care of both! Full stop! New studies increasingly prove that there are strong psychosomatic connections showing that the body has a powerful influence on the mind, and conversely, that mental health can affect physical wellbeing.
This exact interplay, and this holistic understanding, is what I want to teach my clients in coaching. When you're constantly stressed at work, it affects your body. Cortisol gets released and your body suffers, no matter how healthily you eat or how much you exercise.
And conversely, no matter how smart you were born, if you let yourself go and only eat junk food, your mind can't operate at 100% either, and won't achieve as much as it actually could.
In this article, I want to take a closer look at what mental and physical health really means, what it demands of you, and why you should make sure to pay attention to both in your everyday life.
Mind and body: one unit!
As already explained, mind and body are one unit. One part can't function properly without the other. In the worst case, this can even lead to serious illness.
Mental health affects the body and can carry serious consequences. One example: experts estimate that the psyche is a decisive factor in 80% of heart attack patients. Physical symptoms often play a role here too, but when conflict or stress factors are added into the mix, that can be the deciding factor in a heart attack.
Conversely, the body also has a significant influence on the human psyche. There are countless examples of this. The simplest one would be a common flu. When someone is sick, they stay home and don't go to work. Why? Simply because they wouldn't be able to concentrate. In the most extreme cases, chronic and serious illnesses can make people depressed.
However you look at it, mind and body are in constant interaction with each other. But while I've only told you about the negative consequences so far, there's a positive side too. Because if you use this knowledge about the interplay between body and mind to your advantage, you can benefit from it.
Strengthening the body: the basics are often enough!
Mental and physical strength, that's all well and good. But what exactly do you need to do now?, you might be asking yourself. Let's take a look at how you can strengthen your body. There are two key aspects you should focus on: exercise and nutrition.
Nutrition
Many people simply eat wrong, that's just how it is. Which is often understandable, since when work gets really stressful, there's often not enough time and energy left to cook whole, nutritious meals. So it's often ready-made or frozen meals, or you just call a delivery service. But that's completely the wrong approach.
Cooking whole, nutritious food in your everyday life often takes a bit more time, but it also gives you the energy you need for your stressful work routine. It might not make a difference today whether you eat an apple or not, but over time your body will show you when it has a vitamin deficit. On the other hand, you'll also notice that your body can perform at a completely different level when you eat properly.
Macronutrients
So what do you need to pay attention to? Every food is made up of different macronutrients and micronutrients. With macronutrients, there are three groups:
- Protein
- Carbohydrates
- Fat
What you should know: each of these is important for your body. Yes, even fat! Healthy fats support a regulated hormone balance, which makes them essential for you.
Basically, you should make sure your diet has a good ratio of the three macronutrients. The type of nutrient matters too. You should avoid bad fats, meaning saturated fatty acids. Instead, you can definitely build healthy fats, like unsaturated fatty acids or omega-3, into your plan. The same applies to complex carbohydrates, such as whole grain and spelt, for example, and protein, both animal and plant-based. More on the topic of nutrition will follow in the coming weeks.
Micronutrients
It's also important to get your micronutrients right. These are vitamins and minerals. All types matter more or less, but with a balanced diet you should be getting all your micronutrients in. That means fruit and vegetables should be part of your daily diet. Not always the same ones, since variety is a good thing. If you notice you're not always managing to eat enough fresh fruit, you can also take your daily vitamins with supplements.
Exercise
If you eat properly, that's already a step in the right direction. Beyond that, you should also strengthen your body with the right kind of movement. This means exercising, staying active, simply challenging your body. We humans aren't made to sit in an office all day doing nothing. Instead, we need to move.
And this makes your body stronger too. You can do all kinds of sports, but whatever you enjoy is usually the best choice. If you don't know how to get started, or if no particular sport really appeals to you, a good mix of cardio and strength training is recommended. Cardio, like running, swimming or cycling, keeps your cardiovascular system active and healthy. 150 minutes per week is recommended, but you can work your way up to that goal gradually.
Strength training is also recommended. Especially when you sit in an office a lot, your muscles don't get used. A trip to the gym helps you build muscle and strengthen your body. This doesn't just affect your fitness — for many people, a better physical appearance can also boost self-confidence and satisfaction with themselves.
Mental strength: how to find inner balance!
As I often tell my clients in coaching: the mind is the driving force. When you strengthen your body, your mind can work properly and perform at full capacity. But for that, you also need to show a certain amount of mental strength.
There are many areas where your own mindset holds you back. Are you someone who can never say "no" and takes on so much work that you suffer for it? Why can't you just say "no"? Often the reason is a lack of your own mental strength.
Or are you unhappy with your performance and keep blaming yourself over and over? Here too, the reason often lies in behaviour and thought patterns that simply need to be broken.
Strengthening the mind is somewhat harder and more complex than strengthening the body. While the body simply needs better food and more movement, strengthening the mind demands much more. It means confronting your own problems and admitting to yourself where you need to change. For many people who rely on familiar old thought patterns, that's very difficult.
So how can you strengthen your mind? If you want to try it yourself first, meditation is a great option. Setting aside a certain part of the day for rest and stillness can work wonders against stress. In general, you should avoid stress simply to keep your cortisol levels low. Maybe you can plan your day to be less stressful, or maybe you're just stressing yourself out unnecessarily.
The balance between mind and body!
In many cases, though, it's hard to find this inner balance on your own. And this is exactly where I'd like to introduce myself: my name is Marco Laterza and I'm a trained personal trainer. My work focuses on helping clients reach their goals. This requires not just a fitness- and health-oriented approach, but the mental component as well.
If you're considering strengthening your mind and body together, feel free to contact me. I offer you guidance and support. If you want to know more about the topic of "strengthening mind and body" and these subjects interest you, you can also keep actively following this blog. More from me will be coming soon on the topics of nutrition, fitness and mental strength. Just subscribe to our newsletter and stay tuned!
Sources
- Depression and associated physical diseases and symptoms (Goodwin, 2006)
- Macronutrient Balance (Ministry of Health Australian Government, 2014)
- Meditation programs for psychological stress and well-being (Goyal & Co., 2014)
- Vitamins and Minerals (U.S. Department of Agriculture, n.d.)
- Interaction between body and mind (Villa-Forte, 2019)