Be Connected

One of the amazing things about people is our ability to provide support and encouragement to each other.  Somehow, with a friend by our side, we can find the strength to get through a difficult time, the courage to conquer a challenge or the inspiration to change our comfortable ways.   When I think about the few popular  “diet plans” that seem to actually help people, they all have at least one thing in common: group support systems.  Although I am not a proponent of “diets” in general, I understand and appreciate the need for a positive, supportive network.  

My health support has been from my mom and Ange.  My mom and I have always talked a lot about healthy choices and body image and worked together to promote healthy choices and share things we learned with each other.  It is a very important woman-to-woman connection addressing the specific pressures and challenges women face with learning to develop a healthy body image and healthy eating habits.

From the beginning of our friendship, Angela and I have been preparing food and cooking together. In the past few years, we have both become very committed personally to health, food, and the environment, all of which are inextricably linked.  Even from the time we whipped up salads with homemade dressing on a floor set-up in our dorm from the mini fridge, she expressed a willing and enthusiastic desire to be healthy with me.  Now we are regularly squeezed into our tiny Manhattan kitchen together, experimenting with new recipes, trying out cool kitchen gadgets, and using each other as the taste test.

I have started to appreciate my yoga studio for this support also.  Save the physical, mental benefits and love I have for yoga for another day, just being a member of this community that is healthy and green has opened the door to meet many people who are interested in living a life committed to good health. Sharing a common bond of things that are good for you adds a new dimension to a friendship or relationship. It is about making your health and the environment a lifestyle. It takes teamwork. We are all in this together, so get connected.