Delina Neidorf. Photo: VU MF
Where do our lifestyle changes begin? What do sustainability and a healthy lifestyle have in common? What does our consumerism tell about us? Delina Neidorf, an academic consultant at the Faculty of Medicine, whose areas of interest include healthy lifestyle, and the influence of nutrition and physical activity on the quality of life, has agreed to answer to these questions. Delina is currently studying in the Bachelor’s degree Physical Activity and Lifestyle programme at the Lithuanian Sports University. This is the third degree programme pursued by Delina, who plans to continue her education in the next higher level of her field of studies.
Delina also holds the Health and Fitness Lifestyle Advisor’s certificate from the European Lifestyle Medicine Organization (ELMO). This means that she has the opportunity to apply the acquired knowledge in practice and help those who want to start a healthier life.
Change doesn’t happen overnight
Some people who seek advice from Delina expect a tool that would help them make lifestyle changes, others wonder what kind of miracle it is and how it works. “My main task is to build an overall picture of the person seeking advice, to understand the reasons why the person is seeking my help, and to provide all the necessary information or, otherwise, the necessary tools to the person. A healthy lifestyle does not cure diseases, it strengthens the immune system. If the immune system is healthy, it acts as disease prevention. Of course, genes and other aspects play a role – there is no magic pill and change doesn’t happen overnight,” Delina says and adds that she has no intention of persuading people of the benefits of the chosen lifestyle, but wishes to share the message of a healthy lifestyle by offering her own lifestyle as an example.
According to Delina, people tend to ignore minor ailments, because they consider them as normal: “For example, a person complains about an occasional pain in the shoulder. A further conversation reveals that there is a whole bunch of other health issues s/he has managed to ignore. It hurts a little here or there, but we think it’s ‘normal’. Afterall, who doesn’t have aches and pains? But, actually, it shouldn’t be so. A man is not created to be ill and to feel pain isn’t ‘normal’.”
According to Delina, the goal of achieving quick results is meaningless, because changes are not temporary. “It’s important for a person to understand that it’s not just a diet that s/he will follow for 2-3 weeks and then get back to where s/he started from, but a choice to live differently from now onwards. People can test research-based methods, see is they are suitable to them and, if necessary, choose companions along this path or reject them.
Exercises not necessarily in the gym
“Today we find many reasons to live unhealthy lifestyle – we don’t have time for it, we’re in a hurry or tired. When at the end of a working day we are invited to exercise or play sports, we say ‘sorry, but I have life to live’. Yet a healthy lifestyle can be fully integrated into our life. People get the wrong idea that an hour a day dedicated to sports means running or lifting weights in a gym,” Delina said.
A great start to a change would be a reminder every half an hour on a phone or a computer to get up from the desk. You can simply exercise your muscles, take a walk, and let your eyes rest for five minutes. “Speaking about sports, first of all, you must find the one that is interesting to you. One person may like to run, another to exercise or to play a game in a team. It’s normal that with time you will want to change your selected type of sports – afterall, our wishes, tastes and possibilities change,” Delina commented.
Delina Neidorf. Photo: VU MF.
Sustainability is inseparable from a healthy lifestyle
Delina maintains that “maintaining a healthy lifestyle consists not only of what you eat (i.e. nutrition), but also of what hygiene products you use, what dye you use for your hair, what perfume you use, etc. If you buy products containing chemicals or packaged in a non-recyclable packaging, it means you are causing harm both to yourself and the environment. Why do we act like this? We don’t even think about it, it’s just a habit.”
People are subject to marketing manipulations aiming at persuading us that buying things will make us happy. “If we look back, there was no plastic packaging in the past. I remember when my mother and grandmother used to make their own cotton tote bags. So we were able to live sustainably, but today we have lost the habit,” Delina said.
Delina insists that when one starts lifestyle changes, the desire to use environmentally friendly products gradually appears. When choosing one or another product, you begin to question whether you really need it, whether there is an alternative product packed in a reusable container, and whether it will really be possible to recycle it. “Eventually, you notice that you become more sensitive to the environment and odours. You discover new sensations and see the world in a new way,” Delina noted.
“It doesn’t depend on me.” Is it really?
Although most people are familiar with the damage to nature caused by non-degradable packaging or packaging that degrades over a long period of time, they do not believe that their contribution to change can be significant. “I’m simply a cog in a big machine,” we hear over and over again. Delina, however, reminds us that there are almost 8 billion of such “cogs” in the world today: “Let’s say, there are 2 million adults in Lithuania. If each of them believes that things depend on them – they will make a difference. Buyers exert influence on manufacturers. If at least 30% of buyers refused to purchase products packed in plastic or non-recyclable packaging, manufacturers would be forced to find different ways.”
Delina also takes a similar approach to food: “There is a very simple rule. If you don’t understand at least one word on the product label, you should not consume it. All ingredients are standard – flour, rice, sugar, salt... If you must google any ingredient it’s usually not useful for the body – they are added to keep the food longer, look or smell better,” she said.
Finally, Delina noted that, in addition to the careful selection of food and other products, it is important to refrain from “sales” temptations and to buy with moderation. “We often consume in order to fill the psychological void and get satisfaction, but it’s a short-term solution. Sometimes it seems that people feel a lack of self-fulfilment and try to compensate it by ‘filling up’ their space. We think along the lines of ‘I don’t do anything myself, so when the guests come, we will check out my things and at least talk about them.’ These are just conversations about nothing”, Delina commented.
At the end of the conversation, Delina expressed hope that people would have the opportunity to constantly rediscover the joy and meaning of communication and being together. Conversations about things will be replaced with sincere interest in one another – in each other’s feelings, everyday life, activities or hobbies.
Photo: VU MF