Building A Strong Foundation

and key ways to manage stress

I’m so glad you all loved the Feel Good story from last week! There are more where that came from, and honestly, that's one of the reasons I’m so excited about Substack. It’s much easier to share these kinds of stories with you all. We all need inspiration to fuel our motivation, so that’s our hope here! I plan to share some personal struggles as well as my own Feel Good testimonials in the near future. Let’s just say being a mom at this stage of teen and tween is very different than being a mom of littles. One is more physically straining, and the other is more emotionally straining.

To rewind on last week's story, it all comes down to building a solid foundation. For someone like my sister, she was never totally off track when this flare-up happened. She prioritizes her health: food, exercise, sleep, and water. But she wasn’t as diligent as she needed to be. And while I wanted to support her with supplements I knew could ease the pain, I knew it was more important to help her heal and not just address the pain. So often, I see people who are overconsuming supplements before they’re confronting the root issues or establishing a proper foundation. 

So, what all makes up our health foundation? Food is a massive part of it, and I’ll always remind you that food is the most important because it isn’t just calories for energy; it’s also information. It starts processes in our bodies that communicate with our brains and every cell in our being.

Food can reset our cell communication and improve our mitochondrial function. Food can regulate blood sugar, transform our liver and other detox organs, and manage adrenals and other hormone health. Food is the first line of defense in any health challenge!

So, knowing the CCN way of life and putting it into practice is pivotal for health longevity. And there are protocols with food that can even target DISease in the body! So, food is the place to start here!

Sometimes, we need slightly more restrictions like AIP to help the body use energy to heal rather than digestion. Did you know that upwards of 70% of our energy goes towards digestion in a healthy person? It’s no wonder that so many people struggle with digestion. It takes a lot of energy! Easing the burden of that energy requires us to take out food that helps the body fire so we can just be restful and resourceful when needed—more on that in the new year. We have big plans to teach the foundation properly through meal plans, videos, and further education in our membership!

Food can also be a stressor if we eat things that don’t agree with our bodies: allergies, intolerance, too hard to digest, etc. Stress is the most under-cared-for aspect of our bodies and minds. Stress to our minds manifests as stress to our bodies and vice versa. Managing and reducing stress is another critical component of our best, healthy selves.

So often, I talk about healing as if everyone is healing from something. I may be jaded because I see a lot of sick people who have tried different systems before trusting me and my process. I know not everyone is sick, but we’re all dealing with stress on some level, and it’s either running us or we’re managing it well. I want to share with you briefly the key ways to manage stress. 

1. Food – I bet you saw that one coming. Eating for a regulated blood sugar is critical. 

2. Exercise – Moving your body in a way that supports your neurotransmitters and your musculoskeletal is such a huge key! We have learned that our Dosha is a big help in understanding the best exercise for our body types! 

3. Sleep – This is the most underrated aspect that people start addressing only when it becomes a problem. Keeping our sleep window consistent helps regulate our circadian rhythm, which is a huge part of keeping us healthy. 

4. PNS – Managing our PNS (Parasympathetic Nervous System) can be life-changing with simple breathwork and prayer throughout the day. 

5. Supplements – Building the proper foundation with supplements is more important than supplementing for symptoms. A good multivitamin that includes proper ratios of minerals is a great place to start. Adding in Omega 3, probiotics, and enzyme support can be life-changing for regaining health. Then, add in tier 2 and 3 supplements after rebuilding the foundation for 30 days. 

As you can see, this is simple and complex at the same time. If we manage our stress with a strong foundation that we’ve already built, we can prevent haphazard health issues. We can get through hard times or even, say, colder, darker months that have been pegged as the cold and flu season. We’re more equipped to make food choices that work for us rather than against us, and we’re more intuitive about how certain things make us feel.

For instance, an intuitive approach might help us say no to certain inflammatory foods at certain times a month because they make us feel sluggish or bloated. An intuitive approach with a strong foundation helps us realize that we can’t do the same workouts with the same results as some friends. We learn to nurture ourselves as the person God made us and not the person society is trying to make us. 

Building a stronger foundation isn’t just getting the six-pack you’ve always dreamed of. It’s using what you’ve been given and blessing it with the longevity of the mind, body, and spirit. I’m dreaming of helping more and more people see their health as the blessing that it is and starting with the basics. Are you with me? Are you following the ways listed above to support a strong health foundation? Can’t wait to talk more about this in the new year!

Blessings!