I decided to do some Door Dashing...
And my goodness, I have come to the conclusion that Bucks County is in desperate need for more healthy restaurant options!
All of my deliveries were from fast food restaurants. This confused me a bit as fast food is already easy enough, you just order at the window and drive through to pick up. But no! One step further now we need our fast food delivered to our doorstep, god forbid we get in a few extra steps to walk to the car. Sorry!
BUT C'MON!!!! CONvenience is a CON!
At the Institute For Integrative Nutrition I learned about Blue Zones, founded by Dan Buettner. So cool! There are five blue zones in the world where people live the longest, (centenarians = into their 100's) and are the healthiest.
They are:
1. Ikaria, Greece
2. Okinawa, Japan
3. Ogliastra Region, Sardinia
4. Loma Linda, Calif
5. Nicoya Peninsula, Costa Rica
QUICK, DO THIS ASSESSMENT!
Calculate your life expectancy using the formula Dan Buettner presents.
Calculate your life expectancy using the formula Dan Buettner presents.
Give yourself one point for each statement that applies to you:
1. I get at least seven and a half hours of sleep at least five days a week.
2. I eat at least four honest servings of fruits or vegetables every single day.
3. I haven’t smoked in at least three years.
4. I have never had unprotected sex with a stranger.
5. I belong to a faith-based community, and I actually show up at least four times a month.
6. I have at least three good friends.
7. I can write on a piece of paper in one sentence my life meaning.
8. I get at least 30 minutes of physical activity a day.
7 points or more – 90 years old
3–6 points – 84 years old with three years of morbidity
3 points or fewer – 76 years old with five years of morbidity
Anyways, my point being to go back to the fast food Door Dash scenario. Dan Buettner concept is to "Blue Zone" areas in America. Dan and his team will go to an area and say, HEY! These people need more sidewalks here, less fast food places, more healthy options. Changing menus. Figure out what the kids are eating in their schools, no junk food, no standing around in hallways. Buettner will help create or encourage Moais, which is something they do in Okinawa, Japan. When you are five years old you get put in a group of people that meet once or twice a month and you grow up together! You will be friends from five years old to one hundred and eight years old! Who knows!
Most Americans are lonely... which turns into anxiety, depression, inflammation, taking medications, and further health problems... Relationships are the most important healthy ingredient in our life!
Start a Moais! Connect with family. Talk to the people you encounter. Make eye contact. We are all in this together.
Another great practice in Okinawa is they say a prayer before every meal, "Hara hachi bu." This is a reminder to stop eating when your stomach is 80% full. A friend of mine reminded me how David Goggins states that the body gives up after we are 40% tired, but when it comes to eating we have no problem to go way pass the perceived 100%.
Some of the results of Dan's Blue Zoning an American city are the health care prices go down, obesity rates go down, smoking rates go down.
If you have a lot of fast food places, CONvenient stores, liquor stores, bars, then people are going to go there and consume what is available. If you have accessible, affordable, healthy restaurants, possibly even healthy fast food! Public parks, sidewalks, not a lot of liquor store, bars, more farms, farmers markets, then people will gravitate towards what is available to them. ACCESSIBILITY IS KEY! We the people want easy!
9 elements in the Blue Zones to take away:
Move naturally, walk, make everything by hand, have garden
Right outlook – prayer, meditation, naps, happy hour, know sense of purpose
Eat Wisely- Food, drink a little bit, plant based diet, meat 5 times per month, beans are the cornerstone for every longevity diet, and nuts (live two to three years longer)
80% rule, don’t be full, pre-plate food, not family style
Breakfast for a king, lunch for a prince, dinner for a pauper
Connect- Family first, put parents first, invest in partner, invest in children, belonging to a faith, some kind of community – more social network, thinking about who you hang out with, find the right tribe.
None of these people tried to live longer, never took supplements... just lived life, and loved the people next to them.
