Immunity of the body, mind & soul

Part 1 – Immunity & the body

Eden always strives to live a healthy lifestyle, which we like to share with our guests. To boost our immunity we need to focus on the bigger picture: the body, the mind and the soul. The state of our body affects the mind, the state of our mind affects the body. The body, mind and soul need to be aligned to feel happy and healthy. Curious how we are boosting the immunity of our bodies here at Eden? Read on and book a retreat at Eden!

Get some fresh air

The fuel of our bodies is the oxygen we breathe (along with food and water). The average person who is moderately active breathes about 20,000 liters a day. Inevitably our lungs are exposed to a lot of dust, mold, bacteria and viruses, which make them vulnerable, especially in closed unventilated rooms. Fresh air is super important if we want our lungs to be in good shape. At Eden we mostly live outdoors, luckily the climate in Nicaragua allows us to, but wherever you live, we can all find a way to go outside and get some fresh oxygen into our body. If you mostly live indoors, essential oils like lemon, eucalyptus and tea tree are great ways to purify the air. There are different kinds of diffusers to spread the oils into your room. Another way of clearing the air is using plants! Aloe vera, Areca palms, Spider plants and the Boston fern are a few examples of how to make your house more cosy and healthy, win-win!

Move!

Regular exercise improves our lung capacity and cardiovascular health, this is crucial for healthy lungs. Exercise also increases the number of white blood cells used in fighting diseases. At Eden we wake up with either a swim, a workout at our jungle gym or a yoga class, it’s part of our daily routine. Of course not everybody has access to these amenities in their home, but nowadays I am impressed how many yoga teachers and personal trainers are sharing their classes online. Yoga has been a morning routine for us for many years. To not even get into the benefits yoga has for the mind, which I personally find it even more beneficial for, it gets our body moving. It literally feels I have more space and more energy in my body after a yoga class. Sometimes I like to spice it up with some HIIT exercises to get that heart rate up. One of my favorites is the 7 minute workout app, it’s free and it only takes you 7 minutes of your day! Personally I love my morning ritual, because it feels like it benefits my whole day.

Get enough sleep

Most people at Eden go to bed early and rise early, we almost live with the same rhythm as the sun, which is a very natural way of living. Sleep is important because it enables the body to repair and be fit and ready for the next day. Another benefit of sleeping early is that we are avoiding our late night snacks. We usually have our breakfast after our physical exercise.  Allowing at least 12-16 hours to pass between dinner and breakfast our white blood cell count in the body is lowered, and therefore tells your body to produce more immune system cells.

Eat your fruits and veggies!

We are trying to eat as many different fruits and veggies in as many different colors, so we are getting all our vitamins and minerals. The fibers will support the good bacteria in our gut. Adding probiotics, which you can find for example in kombucha, sauerkraut and pickles will add more of that ‘good bacteria’ into your gut.

Groceries in Nicaragua

Doing groceries here in a small town in Nicaragua is not the same as we do at home. We do at least 5 different stops to complete our grocery list. The variety of products is not the same as at home. For this reason, we end up making a lot of products by ourselves and are not using any pre-packaged goods. The fruits and veggies available are only those which are in season. These ‘inconveniences’ work out pretty well for our health. We are eating wholesome, seasonal and local so we are getting the most nutrients out of our food. Since we are mostly eating a plant based diet, we are creative with our seasoning and like to use a lot of different spices like garlic, turmeric, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, oregano etc. These spices not only flavor our food, but we are also getting a boost of antioxidants, which protect cells from damage. Nuts, lentils and chickpeas we add to our diet for our protein and make our food so filling and delicious. Personally I am not a fan of having to count my nutrients to see if I have enough of everything, but with this diet it isn’t necessary!

Make a change

Nowadays most of us are aware of what is and isn’t healthy. What’s difficult is changing certain habits like too much sitting and eating fast food into starting to cook with fresh ingredients and enough exercise. The first step to change certain habits starts in the mind. Deciding you want to make that change. Our body and mind affect each other. One of our missions at our Eden retreats is to inspire our guests for a conscious and healthy lifestyle, which might be that first step to change! Do you want to be outside in the sun, get fresh air, move, get enough sleep, eat healthy -> Book a Retreat at Eden. Stay tuned for part 2 – Immunity & the mind.