How to Become the "Healthiest Version of Yourself"

Have you ever felt completely overwhelmed and unmotivated on your gut health journey? Well, after two years of working with a naturopathic doctor, I found myself at that point. I was second guessing my routine, supplements, food choices, and wondering if I was doing enough to heal my gut.

Eventually, the overwhelm won, and I took nine months off of my health journey to reprioritize my life. During that time, I reconnected with why I started this journey in the first place: To feel at home in my body again.

For me, the healthiest version of myself feels balanced, unrestricted, and true to who I am.

Now that I'm recommitting to this journey, I have learned that being "healthy" shouldn't require a rigid routine or the perfect protocol. Instead, it should be intentional, and a life-long journey of balance. That means embracing the small, meaningful choices, and letting go the pressure to be 100% perfect all the time. And by committing to your journey, it puts you in a better position today than you were yesterday.

So, don't know how to start? Start by committing to the version of you that feels at home in your body! And the below steps will help better guide your intentions and support you in becoming the healthiest version of yourself 🤍

#1 Start with what you put in your body.

If you don't know how to become the healthiest version of yourself - the one who isn't chronically bloated, fatigued, nauseous, and anxious - start with what you are eating.

90% of our body's serotonin is produced in the gut, regulating our mood and sleep. So if you don't think your diet can impact your mental state, think again!

We may need to start from the beginning, with the most basic tips for nutrition. Or, maybe you need to start with the elimination diet so you know exactly what will trigger your flare-ups.

Wherever you are starting, your health starts in the kitchen, and can be the first step to reversing your chronic gut health issues. While it may be difficult to learn that your beloved cheese boards are causing your chronic bloating and you need to cut dairy out for months, your future self will thank you when you take the time now to heal your gut. Otherwise, it will catch up with you later!

When you are able to re-incorporate these foods back into your diet, you will no longer feel that same discomfort. Your future self will thank you!

#2 Move your body in a way that feels empowering, not draining.

To become healthy, you need to care for and prioritize your physical health. Movement is the best way to do this. I wouldn't even recommend hitting the gym daily, since our bodies are already under stress from chronic inflammation.

Swapping your Barry's HITT classes for gentle movement, like walking, yoga, and pilates will improve your blood circulation, digestion, sleep, and mental health. Even if you don't feel like it, move your body TODAY and you will be one step closer to being healthy.

#3 Start regulating your nervous system.

Since stress is one of the root causes of my IBS, I have learned to turn my attention inwards to become in-tune with my body. Once I found the triggers for my stress - and how that manifested physically in my body - I became better equipped to guide myself back to a regulated state.

For example, one manifestation I have of stress is keeping my shoulders raised and tense while working or eating. I never understood this as a way stress shows up in my physical body, but it was putting me in a fight-or-flight mode and disrupting my digestive system.

When I realized I was holding onto stress in this way, I became more aware of it throughout the day. I am now proactive in taking moments to relax, drop my shoulders, take stabilizing breaths, and lower my stress.

If you want to be healthy, you have to turn your attention towards you nervous system, and your digestive system and cognitive function will improve. And if you don't know how to manage your stress (bc who actually does?) these are my fav non-BS ways to start looking at stress differently.

#4 Find your non-negotiables.

I talk about my non-negotiables a lot for going to the bathroom consistently, or when you are traveling. This is a one of the best tools you can use when starting your gut health journey.

It can be extremely overwhelming when we are told that in order heal our gut, we have to cut out multiple food groups, take 10+ supplements, improve our sleep, have greens powder, eat more protein, lower our stress, workout, take colostrum, etc... All of this noise is a sure-fire way that you will give up a week in.

You will feel like you are compromising your lifestyle, since all of your energy is being used for these "healthy routines".

When you want to focus on your health, understand that you don't have to do it all at once. Instead, I recommend finding 2-3 things that you can actually stick to, and do them every day. For me, it started with the elimination diet. Once I took out my trigger foods, I could then focus on my daily supplements. Once I had that down, I could be alcohol-free. It helped to focus on one thing at a time, achieving small wins on my healing journey.

Once you prioritize this, you will get the momentum to keep going!

#5 Don't let one bad day throw you off course.

There is never a right time to start your health and wellness journey. So, you might as well begin today. And when you do start, it will never be perfect, because sometimes, life gets in the way.

Maybe it's your birthday and you want cake, or it's a fun night out with friends and you want to stay up late. Maybe you're traveling and forgot your supplements so you can't take them for a week.

Whatever it is, don't let this one thing force you to give up. If you have a moment where your "healthy routine" isn't living up to your standards, don't feel shame and guilt. Accept it for a minute, then get right back to it.

But also, don't let this singular break in routine become the routine. If we say "just this one time" every time, that's not being the healthiest version of yourself. That's just being delusional and inconsistent. Instead, make your routine so easy, that you would be foolish not to stick to it, and recognize that the steps you are taking is helping the future you.

#6 Surround yourself with people who will support you.

It's not easy to be alone on your healing journey. You could already feel discouraged dining at a restaurant with multiple food allergies, or finding a social activity that isn't drinking in your 20s.

So, if your support system doesn't understand why you need to change your diet or lifestyle to heal, then you could be tempted to break the boundaries you set up for yourself.

By surrounding yourself with people that will understand and empathize with your healthy choices, it will make it tremendously easier to stick to your goals. And when it does get hard, you will have the friends to lean on to help you see it through.

#7 Knowledge is power.

To become the healthiest version of yourself, it starts with educating yourself. Learning from different sources like blogs, articles, podcasts, and books, you will be better equipped to start your health journey.

While there is a lot of misinformation when it comes to health and wellness, educating yourself on the foundations can give you the power to decipher which information will actually be helpful to you.

Not only will knowledge enable you, but it will open your perspective to new practices of healing. For myself, I try to remain very logical when it comes to gut health, based on peer-reviewed studies rooted in biology and chemistry; however, I also believe in the spiritual component that comes from ancient medicine, like Traditional Chinese Medicine and Ayurvedic medicine. I have loved learning more about these ancient traditions, the gut-brain connection, and more through education. Plus, this has given me more leverage when speaking with doctors and practitioners around health issues.

#8 Remember that you cannot heal your body overnight.

You most likely didn't wake up with gut health issues overnight. Even if it felt like it, it took your body years to get the this level of dysfunction. So, you are not going to reverse years of issues in one night, or even a month.

But, you can begin to improve your symptoms when you take the time now to build and stick to healthy habits. By starting now and extending your time horizon, you will be less likely to have worsening symptoms or disease down the road. As always, your future self will thank you for this!

#9 Learn to love the version of you, today.

Your healing journey can't begin with the mindset of "I'll love myself more once I'm better". That kind of conditional self-love only postpones what you deserve right now.

We know it will take time to reach the version of you who feels less bloated, nauseous, and uncomfortable, but if you wait to love yourself until then, you risk months (or years) of connection. And without loving the version of you right now, it's easier to get discouraged on the days you don't like how you look or feel.

By practicing self love and appreciation for the version you are in this moment, you will find greater empathy for yourself on this journey. Loving who you are today is going to keep you grounded when progress feels slow!

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I loved writing this post on becoming the healthiest version of yourself - especially because it's something I've needed to remind myself of lately, too. Healing doesn't happen overnight, but it does happen with small, intentional steps taken consistently, like the food we eat, the people we surround ourselves with, and the knowledge we consume.

So, don't be discouraged if you're not feeling your best today. With the above steps, I promise you'll become the healthiest version of yourself!

You are in the right place by just starting 🤍🌿