You’re reading How to Follow a Healthy Mental Diet, originally posted on Pick the Brain | Motivation and Self Improvement. If you’re enjoying this, please visit our site for more inspirational articles.
Yon Cassius has a lean and hungry look.
-Shakespeare, “Julius Caesar”
I’ve never liked the word or concept of “diet”, because it implies something that’s temporary.
In fact, let’s put this eating plan into action, you make it permanent and rename it.
Come on over for a meal.
1-Healthy Conditions for Food Preparation and Enjoyable Dining
I started planning today’s “food” by consulting yesterday’s diary, my recipe book.
Yesterday went well, with the right mix of ingredients, good preparation, mindful eating, productivity, rest, and exercise.
Come on in.
A well-lit, spacious, uncluttered kitchen and eating area are a must.
Emptiness is the most surprising beneficial quality of mind that I’ve ever found.
So, let’s sit and be mindful. If your mind is empty, it is also well-lit, with new thoughts and feelings easily spotted.
An empty mind provides a clean and dry floor so that cook and diner keep their balance.
The cook needs to be attentive and observant.
Not judgmental, not critical, just observant.
Remember, this is a meal together, but it’s also a template for daily healthy living
2-Protein
These elements don’t have to be in any particular order.
Mindful productivity is the protein or fuel of mental activity, keeping off procrastination on the one hand and obsessive activity on the other.
The chef needs to be attentive for maximum preparation, and the diner needs to eat slowly
Chew the protein, observe the bites mindfully, enjoy healthy activity.
Of course, part of this mental protein is regular exercise plus necessary tasks.
3-Carbohydrates
Take the plate, please.
Creativity is essential for sustenance, and its equivalent in the eating world is whole grains.
This class of food that satisfies, but, due to the difficulty in breaking it down, it helps keep off weight and provides essential fuels.
Contemplation, structured or not, are the fruits and vegetables of the diet, yielding essential nutrients and the healthiest forms of sugar.
4-Fats
Don’t be put off by the idea of fats.
Fats are extremely important.
They provide insulation and temperature regulation.
Fats provide energy, plus, they aid in absorbing vitamins and producing hormones.
In terms of living, authentic emotion comprises the fat of a balanced mental diet.
Too much fat, in the form of inauthentic emotion, forces our psychic body to work too hard to be healthy and perform its required tasks.
Meanwhile, the stifling of authentic emotion produces defensive thinking, cutting us off from experiencing life directly.
5-Vitamins
Pick up the bottle, and take out three of them. I’ve checked the dosage, so don’t worry.
Here’s some useful information.
Vitamins come mostly from the food we eat, so the better we eat, the more we’ll take in the vitamins we need.
Vitamins are the experience, (Remember, I had you take three above!) the sum of our actions, our history, and our creativity.
6-Water
Hand me your glass…thanks.
Liquids and especially water are essential for health.
After all, 80% of our body is water. Thoughts are our water.
Sometimes it seems as if 80% of our experience is taken up with thought.
Water (not just ANY liquid) provides the best kind of healthy regulation of the body.
So, observed thought and productive thought that enhance intelligence and habit are psychological water.
Avoid the sugary sweet or intoxicating liquids of obsession, fear, or anxiety.
7-The Act of Eating
Okay, let’s sit for a moment and consider all that we’ve consumed.
Healthy eating requires mindful chewing and enjoyment of this balanced diet.
Both cook and diner must be patient and open to the experience.
Healthy companionship and relationships maximize a balanced life.
I hope you enjoyed sharing this meal; I enjoyed having you.
Sharing our gifts, like sharing food, is vital to helping both others as well as our own growth.
When we are “full” in a healthy way, we must note that observation and cease consumption.
8-Cleaning Up
While we enjoy the eating of life easily, we are reluctant to “clean up”.
As a result, some spiritual practices are hard.
But “cleaning up” requires forgiveness of others, repentance, self-sacrifice, and looking carefully at emotions such as anger and frustration.
So, when it comes to living, follow a balanced “eating” regime.
Call it whatever you wish, but eat follow a healthy psychic diet for the rest of your days.
Eat well, and be happy.
Lars Nielsen has decades of experience helping individuals and businesses discover and share their core message. Whatever your message or audience, grab his “Make YOUR Message Matter Cheat Sheet” (http://ift.tt/2v5s0a2) and put his time-tested techniques to work immediately.
You’ve read How to Follow a Healthy Mental Diet, originally posted on Pick the Brain | Motivation and Self Improvement. If you’ve enjoyed this, please visit our site for more inspirational articles.
Sig Nordal 