Eating well and regular exercise has been shown to have very positive effects in helping to prevent dis-ease, and also to help in dis-ease reversal and healing. 

If we live closer to and give more respect to nature, eat more raw, fresh items from the plant kingdom in all its many forms – the myriad of organic vegetables, especially leafy greens and fruits, nuts, seeds and pulses, our cells and tissues will reap the rewards from receiving high levels of various nutrients and importantly, the life-force from the plants. It’s very important to eat organic as much as possible, as this will mean a huge reduction in cellular toxicity, which plays a huge part in dis-ease development and progression.

Applying the above is hugely beneficial for everyone. Healthy eating is vital for all life forms!

Although healthy eating is largely regarded as the most important aspect of health and healing, it is not enough to raise and maintain our vitality. We must move our bodies to gain and maintain our vitality.

Movement in this context means gentle exercise to assist all levels of health and fitness. Even those who have limited motion because of injury or illness, can still do some exercise to improve health and vitality.

The muscles and joints need gentle movement and various pressures to help the cells function and allow a smoother flow of nutrients into the cells and conversely, the removal of toxins from the cells to maintain homeostasis. Exercising benefits the heart and lungs which improves blood circulation and oxygen utilisation.

Walking in nature helps to raise our vibration because we are gently exercising the heart, which is a complex muscle. Exercising the lungs, the muscles, the bones and the joints, the tissues that make up every organ in our body are all getting a workout just by taking a regular walk.

For those who are well enough to increase their exercise, it is always vital to build up gradually to prevent stress to the body. For example, if you walk regularly and are in good health, you can increase your pace gradually to raise the heart rate and lung capacity. Although walking is considered to be the easiest way to improve fitness, the most important consideration is that you enjoy whatever it is that you are doing. Try something new, or return to a sport or activity that you did in your younger days – just make sure that whatever form of exercise you choose, you start at a comfortable level and gradually increase the time and intensity, preventing any stressful spikes in your heart rate.

There are some good tutorials to guide you through walking workouts and even running as your health and fitness improves. A really good book for walking is ‘Chi Walking’ by Danny Dreyer, and for those ready to step up a level, I recommend ‘Chi Running’ also by Danny Dreyer. The easy to understand lessons in both these books can be used with many activities to make exercising safer and enjoyable.

At Together Against Cancer, our workshops such as Introduction to a Healthy Lifestyle, Detoxification Techniques and Stress Less also explore simple and safe ways we can exercise in a not too strenuous way. Browse our full list of workshops and book your space at: https://www.togetheragainstcancer.org.uk/events/

Words by Stephen Gamble, Naturopathic Nutritionist at Together Against Cancer.