Exercise
Our bodies need to move to stay healthy, and our exercise is increasingly taking place inside - on the treadmill at the gym, in a step class at the community center, doing water aerobics at the spa pool, etc. These days, we can even participate in an intense, ten-mile bike race without ever leaving an air-conditioned room: they call it a spinning class. Of course, we should all get our exercise whenever and wherever we can. But there's a reason people everywhere envy the active, invigorating California lifestyle - the thrill of exercising outdoors, in harmony with nature.
California health is about being active, and engaging with the natural environment. Californians can run on beautiful coastal beaches from San Diego to Big Sur to Eureka; bike through the urban canyons and mountains of LA, unspoiled redwood forests, or the stark and beautiful high desert; hike amazing mountains and trails from the Sierras to the Cascade range. The climate and terrain varies dramatically, and the close proximity and diversity of outdoor activities offers a wide variety of interesting exercise challenges. In a single day, one could stroll the breezy cliffs of Santa Monica in the morning, take a quick run through the scorching heat of Palm Springs in the afternoon, and throw on a sweater for a night hike at Mount Baldy.
These are among the reasons that California health has become symbolic of natural health. Adding more outdoor activity to your daily and weekly exercise routine can help energize your body in the same way.
Nutrition
You may have read that spirulina and blue-green algae are superfoods that are considered the cutting-edge of today's nutrition. It's because they provide the natural energy that everyone needs. Fresh, invigorating California superfoods such as these have long been essential to sustaining an active west-coast lifestyle, and naturally harmonizing exercise with the body. They also combine well with many other elements of a balanced and health-focused diet.
Massage Therapy
Massage is a wonderful companion to nutrition and exercise, especially when too much activity results in pain, or when your body needs relief from everyday stress. Today, California health practitioners and hospitals are increasingly turning to massage therapy as a remedy for both short and long term illnesses.
Massage has always helped speed physical rehabilitation from injuries, but now it is also being used to treat pain and symptoms associated with everything from fibromyalgia, arthritis and carpal tunnel syndrome, to bronchitis, cancer, headaches, depression and addiction withdrawal. Medical professionals are also looking to massage as a preventative tool, as manipulation of muscle and tissue has been shown to increase blood pressure and flow, stimulating both heart rate and lymph system circulation.
Combined with exercise and superfoods such as blue-green algae and spirulina, massage therapy can help increase the body's complete health and well-being.
Meditation
The peaceful act of meditation has been part of traditional Eastern health practices for centuries. These pathways to serenity and well being have also long been part of the California health culture, where the focus is on mind, body and spirit.
In meditation, the challenge is to experience what it's like to be completely quiet, both physically and mentally. Our minds and bodies are always churning, going, moving on to the next place, project or conversation. Or so wound up from the day's events that we can't unwind, or be in the moment. Meditation uses breathing, posture and focused thought to help channel negativity and stress into positive energy our bodies can use in healthier ways. Inner peace and balance are the goal, and meditation can be practiced in various timeframes and locations to suit one's lifestyle.
Meditation and positive thinking are a nice compliment to a diet rich in blue-green algae, spirulina and other natural California superfoods. Aligning the effort of mind and body helps one stay calm and focused, improves digestion, and allows us to operate at our best.
