No Borders

What is “No Borders?”

The name “No Borders” sounds like just another diet. It’s catchy, simple, and rings aloud as some of the other well-known diets out there. We have the diets Keto, Atkins, South Beach, or Whole Thirty. However, “No Borders” is not a diet, rather it’s a concept, that when put in action, moment to moment, leads us to results we’ve only thought about.

“No Borders” is a free-thinking approach to changing the way we eat, in order to live a lifestyle of wellness. It is not a 2-week, lose weight instantly trend that we see all too often. However, it is a concept to when a deliberate application is practiced, leads to positive change and a path to complete health and wellness! Having a healthy lifestyle doesn’t just mean going to the gym. The gym helps; however we need to have a balanced, “No Borders” way of eating to heal our bodies inside and out!

To put it simply, it’s a mindful way of releasing the limitations we apply to ourselves, in order to garner complete harmony and balance on eating our way to a lifestyle of health & wellness.

In order to release the limitations, the “No Borders” concept applied to your way of eating is the first step. Too often, we want to be healthy; we want to be well; we want to have tons of energy so we can do the things we want to do day in and day out. Yet, the limitations we place on ourselves prevent us from even taking the first step.

Take the vegan challenge for example. When I first started on my journey towards complete health and wellness, it took me forever just to get started. There was always an internal battle inside myself saying that I could never be healthy. I could never eat healthy foods as they are not the foods that I love. Furthermore, how could I be Vegan when I love meat? The Vegan community would come after me for Fraud.

Then it hit me! I asked myself, “Why do I have to do this journey any other way, then the way I want to do it?” It was this question that was the catalyst for the “No Borders” concept. For me to get to the healthy place I wanted to be, I told myself I would dissolve ALL the borders in my way of thinking that limited me from becoming completely healthy. I told myself that if I want to be healthy, I’m going to do it my way. Who says I must be totally vegan in order to call myself vegan? Why can’t I have the best from all that’s out there and create a custom plan for myself?

That’s exactly what I did! I challenged myself for 7 days to eat vegan cuisines. But if I wanted to eat meat, I would do it. The first week was tough! I went 3 days eating vegan cuisines, then the craving for meat hit me hard. So, instead of getting discouraged, or derailing all the progress I had made in those three days by giving up entirely, I simply added a meat component to my dish that night.

Historically, hiccups such as this, have had the potential to derail the progress you’ve made by giving the desire to give up on the journey simply because we’ve made a mistake. However, that perceived mistake only held weight, because we give it weight. When I removed the limitations and dissolved all borders by not fitting into any one mold, my progress increased exponentially.

“No borders” is a complete approach to wellness in any area. It is a concept centered on “balance and harmony!” Balancing the desire to eat the foods you love, and the foods you know your body loves is what drives this concept. When I only made it day 4 of the vegan challenge, with the No borders concept, I was able to regain my composure and maintain my progress even though I had a “slip-up” as they call it in the dieting world. To resolve that, segmented intentions and declarations are a key component of the No borders concept. So when I added a meat component to my dish that night, I understood that I am not confined by borders or any one way to do things. An easy No borders concept I used looked like this:

“I know I added meat today and I’m going to enjoy it! After all, I love meat! However, I intend to be mindful of this feeling the next time. I’m determined to enjoy giving my body the foods it loves, and I intend to do that during the remainder of the challenge” (which was about 3 more days).

It’s this free-thinking, no borders approach to eating healthy that allowed me to succeed on my journey to wellness. While using this approach, I gained more stability and discipline in eating my way to a healthy lifestyle.

Removing the limitations and borders we set on ourselves provides you the platform to go further than you have before. Everyone is different, even genetically different, so there is no one “cookie-cutter” plan that works for everyone the same. It’s quintessential on finding what works for you! What works for others, may not work for you, so don’t be afraid to remove the borders and embark on this journey the way you want.

Every week subsequently turned into a Vegan Challenge for me! The vegan challenge was my way of starting on this journey. Increasing the ratio of plant-based meals to animal protein-based meals helped me reach the level of health and wellness I desired. The main goal of eating healthy however is to increase the intake plant-based meals! Our body is just a make-up of numerous chemical reactions. Through my learning as Executive Chef at Healing Springs Ranch, I’ve learned that plant-based cuisine provides the best nutrients and minerals our bodies need for complete health and wellness. However, keep in mind that harmony and balance when eating your way to a healthy lifestyle is key. Thusly, as a reward, I allow myself the choice of eating animal protein-based meals in a sporadic fashion.

Our intentions with the No Borders concept is simply to give you the framework and blueprints necessary for a healthy lifestyle and give you the plan to complete it successfully. All based on you! Your genetics, your likes, your dislikes, your favorites, etc.

Through mindfulness application of the No borders concept and lifestyle plan for eating, health and wellness are goals that are surely reachable.