I get a lot of questions about getting “into shape.”

My answer is always that being physically toned is only PART of what I teach and live.

To me, this is much, much bigger concept. The beauty of this approach is that by shaping your body, you can re-shape your entire life.

To help you understand what I mean, I created a simple acronym around the word, SHAPE.

Let me break it down and share some of my favorite solutions for each step in the process.

S - SOOTHE

You might be wondering, “What??! What does soothing have to do with toning my body??”

Well, as it turns out, most people are so stressed out, with such elevated cortisol levels, shedding excess body fat becomes very difficult. And that’s not to mention the many other hormones like ghrelin, adiponectin, and leptin—all of which can play a role in stubborn fat.

So the first step in reshaping your body and life is NOT pushing your workouts harder, it’s soothing your nervous system and hormones. To do that, some of my favorite things are yoga (of course!), meditation, salt or magnesium baths (this includes float tanks). And last but not least, I love adaptogenic superfoods like the Pine and Lotus Pollen, which helps with stress, hormones and so much more.

H - HEAL

Healing is feeling. And you can only reshape that which you can feel.

You may know my story of battling with rheumatoid arthritis, and my lengthy healing journey back to health and wellness. I mention that because while healing can be dramatic, it doesn’t need to be.

We are always healing, all day everyday. We humans are constantly processing emotions, repairing cells, recovering from oxidation and countless other activities. Some of the ways I love to speed my healing are through extra sleep (make sure your room is completely dark!), modalities like cryotherapy (pictured), and healing specific organ systems, with gut-replenishing supplements like Super Human Probiotics.

Gut health is so important, it can influence the healing of your skin, hair, tummy, hormones, metabolism, energy and so much more.

A - ALKALIZE

Did you know that many foods, including so-called “healthy” foods, are actually acid-forming in the body? When you factor in all the chemical exposure, pollutants, stress and other issues we’ve covered—it’s easy to see how one can become overly acidic.

The problem is, our bodies are designed to function optimally at specific pH levels in order for electric and biochemical balance to be maintained. Too much acid means many critical systems, including the blood itself, can become unhealthy and even toxic.

There are many solutions, including eating more greens. The challenge is that it takes a LOT of greens to get enough nutrition to really shift your pH balance, and when too much fiber is eaten at once, bloating can result.

That’s why I’m a huge fan of green superfoods, especially Metamorphosis from Elemental Wizdom. It’s “complete” enough to actually act as a meal substitute, and far more nutritious than fresh green juice.

P - PROTECT

It’s not enough to soothe your body, you also need to protect it against foreign invaders, toxins and other pathogens. Every single day, we’re being bombarded and our immune system is under fire.

This is why the first step, soothing, is so important—because stress will compromise your immune system as much as anything. It’s also why it’s very important to ensure proper gut health with probiotics, strong digestion with substances like enzymes, and take superfoods like mushrooms to help boost your immune system.

Of course, not all invaders are microscopic. There are many “energy vampires” out there who want to take something from you—energy and attention most of all.

There IS a way to keep your heart open, and yet not allow yourself to be depleted by these sorts of people. It’s a matter of understanding your energy, setting clear boundaries, and giving what you can... withoutdraining yourself in ANY way.

E - Energize

Seems counterintuitive, but exercise and energy-enhancing activities should be your focus ONLY once you’ve established a strong foundation in the other areas of the SHAPE system. After all, if your nervous system is stressed and drained, or you need healing, or your biochemistry is off... hard exercise can be as damaging as it is good.

Of course, light exercise like yoga that helps rebalance critical systems in the body is nearly always energizing and recommended. I’m obviously biased though :-P

Another major consideration in your ability to energize is detoxification. Because clogged or congested cells cannot function energetically and must be cleansed for optimal energy.

There are many ways to cleanse and I recommend you trust your gut and whatever works for you. The point is to get the toxins out, and nutritional support in.

By: Jesse Golden