This information is excerpted and adapted from the book, Recapture Your Health, by Walt Stoll, M.D. and Jan DeCourtney, C.M.T. Feel free to use any of this information in an article or story as long as you quote the source and ordering information for the book (at bottom).

Only 3 Steps to Change Your Health for the Better

Most people in America have some kind of chronic symptom or illness, but few people know they can be empowered to use their own personal interests, inspiration, and creativity to resolve their complaints and feel better. You can transform your life by introducing new healing habits into your daily routine.

There are 3 main areas that comprise the most effective, tried-and-true path to health. This path is named the 3LS Wellness Program after the image of support, stability, and balance of a wooden 3-Legged Stool. The three practices or legs are Relaxation, Diet, and Exercise. Most people benefit from making any improvement in these three areas.

People wishing to be free from stubborn or severe symptoms or illnesses need a more in-depth Program consisting of very careful practice of Skilled Relaxation, a Whole Foods Diet, and Right Exercise. Typical benefits reported from following the Program include a decrease in symptoms, more energy, better sleep, increased alertness, greater stamina, catching no or fewer colds and flus, and feeling happier, more relaxed, and more confident. Some are surprised to find they get rid of their stubborn chronic symptoms completely.

To improve your health, start simply from wherever you are. Here are a few tips for beginning to make positive changes in the three areas of Relaxation, Diet, and Exercise to start moving you in the direction of the vibrant health you desire.

Relaxation: Relaxation may be the single most important benefit to health in our hurried, worried society. Here are some ways to relax.

• Audiotapes or CDs: Listen to soothing music or music especially designed to induce alpha or theta brainwaves.
• Affirmations: Repeat positive phrases to oneself, via thoughts or words, to calm the mind.
• Centering or contemplative prayer: Focus on interior silence and quieting the faculties through prayer.
• Chanting: Repeat names, words, or syllables in a rhythmic fashion to dissolve worries, soothe the nervous system, and still the mind.
• Guided imagery: Visualize relaxing images or scenes by listening to a recorded cassette or CD that guides the process.
• Meditation (all forms): Still the body and mind. There are many ways to meditate, including sitting quietly, breathing deeply, and concentrating intently on some object or sound such as your own breathing, a word, or a candle.
• Mindfulness: Be aware of the present moment without judging, reflecting, or thinking; simply observing.
• Visualization: Invent or imagine your own relaxing images or scenes to create a peaceful mind and body.

To start a regular relaxation practice:

• Start by simply building the habit of practicing twice a day without being too concerned with results. Just do your practice and relax.
• Tell family members what you are doing and why, and elicit their support for having enough uninterrupted time and space on a regular basis for your practice.
• Think of relaxation as a habit or necessity like brushing your teeth something automatically done twice a day. Isnt it as important to feel good all over as it is to have clean teeth?

Diet: The healthiest foods are those that have not been refined, which means they have no parts removed. They are whole foods. Here are some ways to increase the amount of whole foods you eat:

• Eat all kinds of fresh or frozen, raw or cooked vegetables (like broccoli, carrots, celery, mushrooms, parsley, spinach, tomatoes, lettuce, cauliflower, and potatoes (that includes the skins).
• Select whole grains such as brown rice, rolled oats, oat bran, millet, hulled barley, popcorn, whole corn grits, whole corn or whole cornmeal, whole wheat flour, and 100% whole grain bread and crackers
• Enjoy nuts and seeds like natural peanut butter, almond butter, cashew butter, tahini, raw or plain roasted nuts and seeds like almonds, walnuts, pecans, pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds, and sunflower seeds
• Consume dried beans and peas, meat, fish, and poultry, dairy products, and farm eggs
• Drink spring water, peppermint tea, chamomile tea, ginger tea, herbal teas without additives (but not decaffeinated teas)
• Use unrefined oils and butter, and certain condiments and seasonings including fresh and dried herbs and spices, apple cider vinegar, mineral or unrefined sea salt, stevia, and baking soda
• Avoid all sugars, including honey, syrup, molasses corn syrup, sorbitol, mannitol, and any word that ends with ose.
• Do not eat foods that have parts omitted like white flour, white rice, and refined cornmeal, peeled vegetables (just dont peel them!), and any kind of starch added to foods.
• Eliminate caffeine and alcoholic beverages.

To start eating a healthier diet of whole foods:

• View the nutritional changes as an adventure in eating, and use them as an opportunity to explore new foods and create new dishes.
• In your day-timer, schedule time in the kitchen for meal planning and preparation. This will be especially true for those who are used to fast foods and take out, but less so for those who usually cook meals.
• Substitute customary comfort foods with new, interesting, or exotic comfort foods. For example, instead of eating chocolate or candy, try eating macadamia nuts, cashews, fruit, or pistachios. Instead of having coffee, have a blended herbal tea or some warm milk (of any kind) with some spices and stevia. Instead of wine, have an exotic vegetable juice blend.
• To boost your recovery after years of eating refined carbohydrates, take concentrated whole foods supplements for a few months.
• Vary your menu so you do not become bored with your food and feel tempted to eat refined foods.

Exercise: If exercise ranks as the last thing you would consider doing, this probably means that it is the single most important thing you could do for your health. This is because people tend to avoid doing the very thing that would help them the most. Choose the right exercise for you:

• Aerobic exercise: bicycling, stationary biking, or spinning, aerobic dancing, jogging/running, jumping rope, rowing, running in place, skating (ice or roller), stair climbing, step classes, swimming, treadmill, brisk walking
• Non-aerobic exercise: walking, yoga, tai chi, Alexander Technique, balancing and coordination exercises, Feldenkrais, gentle rebounding (mini-trampoline), Pilates
• Strengthening exercise: isometrics, Pilates, progressive resistance exercise, and weight training.
• Flexibility exercise: Pilates, stretching or flexibility exercises, Synergetics, yoga.
• Some exercises fall into more than one category. Consider all kinds of sports and activities including: adventure racing, aikido, backpacking, badminton, basketball, body sculpting, bowling, canoeing, circuit class, coordination exercises. And were only up to the Cs. There are many to choose from.

To start a regular exercise program:

• Remember that exercise cannot be one size fits all and find the exercise that is fun and works for you.
• Exercise regularly, at least 20 minutes, three times a week.
• Listen to yourself before you do something that seems too challenging even if recommended by coaches, teachers, experts, or friends. Exercise is like good medicine for you, but you have to find the correct dose for your individual needs. Go at your own pace and do the amount that feels right for you and according to your capability.
• Consider previous injuries that might be affected when selecting an activity.
• Remember that doing something, no matter how little, is always better than doing nothing. Find anything that will be easy or fun for you to do. If you enjoy something, youre more likely to do it consistently. Find some activity that feels comfortable. Start with even 5 minutes each time.
• Its true that dramatic changes from exercise take time, but subtle changes happen immediately and can give you the encouragement to do more.

Wellness is one of the most fascinating and productive of hobbies. Whether you suffer from severe chronic illnesses like diabetes and heart disease, or just experience nuisance symptoms like allergies, insomnia, or anxiety, you can benefit from choosing one of the three steps to wellness and making it a part of your daily life. Add the other steps after you are comfortable with the first. The things you do today will bring about your happy, healthy future. Anything that moves one closer to wellness, health, or wholeness is a small step in the right direction.

Walt Stoll, MD, and Jan DeCourtney, CMT, are co-authors of the book, Recapture Your Health: A Complete Step-by-Step Program to Reverse Your Chronic Symptoms and Create Lasting Wellness, (ISBN 0965317129), available at local and online bookstores, and from Sunrise Health Coach Publications, 1-877-357-9355 or "http://www.sunrisehealthcoach.com".

Recapture Your Health by Walt Stoll, M.D. and Jan DeCourtney, C.M.T., (Sunrise Health Coach Publications, 2006)
Order at www.sunrisehealthcoach.com, 303-527-2886, or toll free at 1-877-3LS-WELL (1-877-357-9355)
Contact/info: Jan DeCourtney, info@sunrisehealthcoach.com, 303-527-2886, www.sunrisehealthcoach.com