WHY BEING LAZY IS THE BEST THING YOU CAN DO FOR YOUR HEALTH

In a world where we’re always striving for more, take a moment to tune out the external pressures and just be.


BY: MEME INGE, MS, RDN

Do you feel an overwhelming pressure to live a perfect, healthy life? In our society, it’s become increasingly difficult to ignore all the conflicting health advice and tune into your own body to do what’s best. It forces you to try to strive for more, as if you’re not ever good enough as you are.

So what’s the alternative? Consider being lazy.

Now, the word ‘lazy’ tends to come with negative connotations, especially when it comes to your health. But consider the following as a more positive way to reframe that word in the name of health.

What if being lazy just means making choices based on what your body says, and not on the one million conflicting rules about what you should be eating, drinking, doing, and wearing?

What if it means that you don’t want to spend countless hours planning, shopping, cooking, cleaning and organizing your food for the week? Or stressing about diet trends, exercising, and worrying about the way your body looks?  Are you feeling tired of fretting over what other people think about you, or exercising in a way that doesn’t feel good to your body

You see, being lazy is about taking the focus off of all the external noise about being healthy.

It’s turning the focus onto your body — and only your own body.  Every decision when you’re being “lazy” boils down to asking yourself: Am I compassionately caring for my body?

And then a follow up question: How can I do that to the best of my ability without complicating life?

What that can look like is the following:

  • You make choices based on how they make your body feels.
  • You eat food that tastes good and makes you feel good from the inside out.
  • You’re not making choices based on how something will make you look, or how “healthy” or “unhealthy” it is.
  • You accept your body.
  • You practice self-care.
  • You spend time doing things that bring you joy.

Simply put, do what makes you feel good, and not what you believe you’re “supposed” to be doing.

By reminding yourself of all the possibilities of how wonderful being ‘lazy’ can feel when you give up the things that don’t add to your life, you will find yourself again. Instead of feeling overwhelmed with all the conflicting health advice you’re constantly bombarded with, you will learn how to care for yourself in your own way.

Being lazy doesn’t have to be a negative term when you are compassionately caring for your body. And when you are compassionately caring for your body,

You can live life to the fullest.

Adapted from the original article.
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Meme Inge, MS, RDN is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist based in San Diego. She shares approachable, nourishing recipes to prove that living a healthy lifestyle can be budget-friendly, delicious and fun. Get to know more about Meme at Living Well Kitchen.