Little Doodle, Big Idea

Of all the things I’ve ever doodled in a journal or drawn on a whiteboard, this one has definitely had the most impact.  I first drew it for a client when I was at Riverside Health Club, in an attempt to explain why thinking about their sleep and happiness was more important than a high-intensity workout routine.  This is the “Health House”.

Why is it a house?  Because you live within your state of health 24/7/365.

Why is it so simple?  Because this is a very important, foundational idea that should be easy to express in order to make it easy to understand.

Why is “Lifestyle” at the bottom?  Because your lifestyle is the foundation of your health.  This means your day-to-day rhythms and routines: Your work and rest, your activity and sleep, your hydration and pee, your meals, digestion, and elimination, your relationships, your purpose in life.

Why is “Nutrition” in the middle?  Because your body is actually, literally, physically made of the stuff you eat.  This is the framing and walls of the house. The nutrients (macro & micro) that you put into your body become the new tissues of your body, and they provide fuel for your activities.

Why is “Exercise” at the top?  Because it completes the structure, gives it integrity, makes it whole, like a roof.  Exercise is protective against illness and injury–if you do it right–because it strengthens your immunity and increases mechanical function and resilience.  However, you would be foolish to put a roof on top of a house with no foundation and no walls.  The stuff underneath it comes first.

‘Nuff sed.