Published in the SA Journal of Natural Medicine, August/September 2007.

A well known expression states that "charity begins at home". Being kind to oneself is at the heart of personal well-being as kindness is the source of compassion, and love and compassion the root of any spiritual practice. Practicing self-love and kindness is important because we spend 24 hours per day, seven days a week and every day of our lives in our own bodies and minds - therefore a healthy lifestyle should begin here, in our everyday home.

Everything we do in this life is rooted in a physical act. We are born into a physical existence, we think in minds that are housed in our bodies, we experience pain and pleasure through our senses annd feelings. We spend 24 hours a day, every day in the physical realm. Well-being thus begins with managing the physical vehicle as source of comfort and the means to all ends.

Yet the challenge of training the body is not to find the time and energy to work out for hours on end, or to meet some media driven, magazine and movie idealized physical perfection. Well-being, i.e. the wellness of the being, is not a competition with unfair advantage going to the slim, strong and beautiful contenders. Well-being means taking care of the whole being, body, mind and spirit, to be "fully in the being" as a way of living.

This starts with placing the body in a physical position in which it can move and breathe easily, while optimizing nutritional-, mental- and emotional health should take preference. Comfort of the body is achieved by acquiring good posture, an effective breathing technique, and the ability to move with fluidity - a functional, practical way to live an energized existence wherein stress management, relaxation and self-development does not require anything but the commitment to learn how to, literally, carry the body and be in a state of mindfull awareness at all times.

Practical Well-being

Making a 24 hour a day, 7 day a week commitment to  apply simple and effective techniques to use your body effectively is an achievable goal when implemented step by step.

Comfort of the body is achieved by acquiring good posture, an effective breathing technique and the ability to move fluidly - a functional, practical way to live an energized existence. Learning how to achieve this is a gradual process that requires much awareness and very little actual exercise time once the correct postural techniques are aquired.

When a physical discipline of awareness or body consciousness based on good posture, effective breathing and mobility is mastered well-being becomes a way of being instead of yet another thing to do in our busy lives. A not so subtle change takes place; realities and priorities shift to place well-being at the forefront of your life focus. Such a shift of consciousness may then become a default setting to improve everyday quality of life. In the long run this means lasting success and not the window dressing associated with our physically obsessive culture.

Our society contains a huge irony in the form of wealth versus health. So many manage to acquire material gains while negating physical comfort by failing to take care of the body. A simple shift in body awareness can trigger lifestyle changes that will invite the spirit of being into your everyday life. Develop the awareness and mastery of body techniques that will help you to make room for work, play and rest in proper proportions in your life. Making well-being a part of your everyday life means taking care in all your actions; how you think, eat, exercise and interact with others.

Develop a technique

Adopting an awareness campaign of self care learning a number of key techniques and practices requires and then employing it by taking responsibility for the self, objective self-criticism, discipline and self-motivation.

There are numerous ways to achieve well-being, and different techniques will appeal to every individual. Attending a few classes or workshops that teaches the universal, fundamental body-mind-spirit practices taught by disciplines such as yoga, meditation, NIA, Pilates, Tai Chi and the many hybrids and their derivatives, or doing a course of body alignment therapies such as the Alexander Technique, Rolfing and Body Stress Release is a vital investment of perhaps a few hours that will yield a lifetime of comfortable living in your body. Specifically ask your teacher or practitioner to guide you or your class with reference to posture, breathing and meditative awareness. Look for someone who can if he or she cannot comply with your request favorably.

The wonderful thing about good posture, effective breathing and mobility is that is can be maintained by a few focused minutes of stretching and mobility exercises combined with meditation, a meditative awareness, awareness of how you sit and move and a few random deep breaths throughout the day. Such practice can be incorporated seamlessly into your everyday living to achieve health based on common sense, practical well-being.