Embrace Your Life’s Rhythm, Play in the Dirt, and Help Others
Hi Folks! Connor and Nick here from Healthy Living With Nick and Connor. Thanks again for being on our email list, it means a lot, and we are excited to share our weekly email with you. We hope you enjoy it! Here is what we hope you take away from this one:
Sit and think about the current rhythm your life is in right now, and ask yourself if you are living the way you want to be in order to match that rhythm.
Getting outside and in the dirt will do wonders for your health. Get out there and get dirty.
What can you do that will benefit others? Do it, and enjoy the benefits that come with helping others.
Starter Mindset Tip: Embrace the Natural Rhythms of Your Life
“Patience begins with acceptance of natural rhythms.” (Rubin, p. 115) This one line from Rick Rubin’s book, “The Creative Act,” has a very powerful message. We all have different rhythms in our lives at different times, the key is to be aware of them, and to choose how to act during each new rhythm. If you never stop to think about the rhythms that you are in, or approaching, you are going to go through life never really changing your approach. Think about this at the start of every new chapter of your life, every year, every quarter, every month, every week even. Ask yourself how you are going to change how you live based on the rhythm that you are in. Here is an example from my life: When I had children, I made it my goal to work less, and be with my family more. I made this decision because I thought about what I wanted and how I wanted to approach this new stage and rhythm of my life. Kids start full day school at 5 years old, I wanted to be around as much as possible for those first 5 years because I will never get that time back. Work will always be there, but the first 5 years of your children’s lives will happen one time. Ask yourself what rhythm you are in right now. Are there any changes you should be making or are you happy with how you are handling everything?
Health Recipe: Get Out in the Dirt
Timing: Get outside and in the dirt as much as you can
Level of Difficulty: Easy to get outside
Serving Size: Does not take long to get the benefits of the dirt
Spiciness: Depends how much dirt ends up on your mouth :)
INGREDIENTS
Just yourself and the great outdoors
REASONING AND BENEFITS
Throughout history we have hung out outside in the dirt, and this has done wonders for the health of our bodies. Dirt makes us less disease prone, less prone to asthma and allergies, less prone to having issues with our guts, and less prone to getting sick. It is what's inside the dirt that is so beneficial; the incredibly high amounts of bacteria, microorganisms, and fungi. Being exposed to all of that on a consistent basis does wonders for our health. Currently, we are spending a high percentage of our time inside, in sterilized places, full of allergens, and we are missing out on the incredibly beneficial exposure to different types of bacteria and microorganisms. Food allergies disproportionately affect people in the most sanitary nations. (Easter, p. 264) Thankfully, this health recipe provides you with an easy fix; you just have to get outside. Getting outside, and in the dirt will expose you to the microorganisms and bacteria that will help reverse the issues that stem from staying inside in sterilized environments full of allergens. All you have to do is start with your backyard. Sit down in your yard or in a local park, read a book or eat a meal. Plant plants and flowers in your yard, grow food in your yard, these are all easy ways to expose yourself to the very things that will boost your immune system, and make your body stronger and healthier. Kids that grow up on farms have lower rates of allergies and asthma because of their constant exposure with high amounts of bacteria and fungi. (Miller, p. 76) We all don’t have access to a farm, but we can all get outside and start improving our health.
INSTRUCTIONS
Get outside any way you can. If you have a yard, get out in it more often. Grow a garden, grow some food, eat meals out on the grass, play in the dirt.
Go out for some hikes after work or on the weekends. Pack a meal and sit out in nature while you eat.
Don’t let the weather get in your way. As my grandma always said, “there is no such thing as bad weather, just bad planning.” Dress for the weather and get out there.
Enjoy the outdoors with your friends and family. Especially with your kids if you have any.
PRO TIP: Getting outside in your backyard is the easiest way to make this recipe happen, or your local park if you’re in an apartment. Grow a garden, grow some food, and play in the dirt.
* Eat fruits and veggies without cooking them, skip a shower or two and stop scrubbing your whole body every shower, avoid antibiotics when possible. These are all ways to save some of the good bacteria that helps keep you healthy.
** This is incredibly important for children in order to build their immune systems.
*** “There are more bacteria in the gut than stars in the galaxy. And only fewer than 100 of these species can actually harm us. Our constant exposure to low levels of a wide variety of microorganisms in the natural world toughened us. Without exposure, we become more disease prone.” (Easter, p. 264)
Dessert Quote:
“True goodness is like water in that it benefits everything and harms nothing.” — Lao Tzu, “Tao Te Ching.”
Now we want to hear from YOU! Please let us know what you think of today’s newsletter, and send us an example of how you applied the health recipe to your life! We would love to share how you introduced this week’s recipe into your life’s unique menu. Thanks and have a great Sunday!
Sources:
Learn more about matching how you live to your current life rhythm:
Rubin, R. (2023). The Creative Act: A Way of Being. Penguin.
Learn more about the importance of getting out in the dirt:
Easter, M. (2021). The comfort crisis: Embrace Discomfort To Reclaim Your Wild, Happy, Healthy Self. Rodale Books.
Miller, D., MD. (2016). Farmacology: Total Health from the Ground Up. William Morrow Paperbacks.
Montgomery, D. R., & Biklé, A. (2015). The hidden half of nature: the microbial roots of life and health. W. W. Norton & Company.
Learn more about living a purposeful life:
Tzu, S., Tzu, L., & Butler-Bowdon, T. (2015). The Ancient Classics Collection: the Art of War and Tao Te Ching. John Wiley & Sons.
