The Four Zones of Health: Are You Just Surviving or Truly Thriving?

"Health is not a static state but a dynamic process." - Dr. Jeffrey Bland

I want to ask you a question that might change everything about how you view your health journey: Are you healthy?

Seems simple, right? But what if I told you that most of us have been thinking about health all wrong? What if being "not sick" is just the beginning of what's possible for your vitality and wellbeing?

The 3 Major Challenges We're Here to Solve Together

1. The Limited Definition Challenge: Most of us define health as simply the absence of disease, missing the vast landscape of possibility beyond "not sick."
2. The Passenger Mindset: Many people believe their health is determined by genetics or circumstances outside their control, surrendering their driver's seat.
3. The "Fine is Good Enough" Trap: Accepting mediocre energy, nagging symptoms, and chronic fatigue as normal when extraordinary vitality is possible.

Would you be open to exploring a new framework that could transform how you experience your body and mind every single day?

The SelfCare Framework: Learn-Do-Embody-Teach

1. LEARN: Understanding the Four Zones of Health

What if there were actually four distinct zones of health, and knowing which zone you're in could completely transform your approach to wellbeing?

Let me introduce you to a concept that has revolutionized how thousands approach their health journey:

Red Zone: This is where chronic disease lives. Unfortunately, it's where many people find themselves today, struggling with burnout, chronic fatigue, and persistent health challenges that conventional approaches aren't solving.

Orange Zone: The territory of dysfunction. You're not sick enough for a diagnosis, but you're certainly not thriving either. You feel tired, stressed, or disconnected. This is where many of us live, accepting "fine" as good enough when extraordinary is possible.

Green Zone: Now we're talking! This is good health. You have energy, vitality, and resilience. Your body functions as it should, and you feel a sense of purpose in your daily life.

Blue Zone: This is optimal health territory. Think of those communities around the world where people routinely live past 100, still climbing trees and dancing at parties. They don't just have longevity – they have vitality and fulfillment until the very end.

2. DO: Shifting Your Health Paradigm

Your body has an incredible intelligence that's constantly working to maintain balance, heal, and thrive. Remember these fundamental truths about health that most conventional approaches miss:

Health is Dynamic: It's not a destination; it's a journey. Every choice you make either moves you toward greater vitality or away from it.

Health is Holistic: Your physical health can't be separated from your mental, emotional, and spiritual wellbeing. They're all connected in ways modern medicine is only beginning to understand.

Health is Personal: What works for someone else might not work for you. Your body has unique needs that require personalized approaches.

Health is Environmental: Your surroundings shape your health more than your genes do. As Bruce Lipton's research shows, "The environment, not genes, determines the vast majority of our traits."

Here's one simple practice to begin today: Take five minutes to listen to your body without judgment. What is it telling you about which zone you're currently in?

3. EMBODY: Creating the Conditions for Thriving

Stop thinking about health as merely the absence of disease. Start thinking about it as the presence of vitality, purpose, and joy.

Your body wants to be healthy. It's designed for it. Your job isn't to force health but to remove the obstacles and create the conditions for wellbeing to flourish naturally.

When you embody this perspective, you move from being a passenger in your health journey to taking the driver's seat. This shift in identity – from someone who is just hoping not to get sick to someone who is actively creating extraordinary vitality – changes everything.

4. TEACH: Sharing the Wisdom

As you begin experiencing the transformation that comes from understanding these four zones, you'll naturally want to share this perspective with others who may be struggling with burnout, feeling disconnected, or accepting fatigue as normal.

Remember: When you help someone else move from surviving to thriving, you create ripples that extend far beyond what you can see.

Your Next Step: Discover Your Current Health Zone

Which zone are you currently in? Which zone do you want to be in? What small step can you take today to move in that direction?

Your health is your greatest wealth, and it's time to invest in it wisely. The 12 Medicines of SelfCare provide a framework for supporting your body's innate wisdom and moving into the green and blue zones of extraordinary vitality.

Would you be curious to discover exactly which zone you're in and the personalized path to move into greater vitality? Join our SelfCare community where we're creating spaces for transformation to happen naturally.

Join our community: or Get the SelfCare book

Key Research References:

Level 1 evidence - Systematic reviews

• World Health Organization. (1946). Constitution of the World Health Organization.
• Bland, J. (2015). The Disease Delusion: Conquering the Causes of Chronic Illness for a Healthier, Longer, and Happier Life.
• Buettner, D. (2012). The Blue Zones: 9 Lessons for Living Longer From the People Who've Lived the Longest.

Level 5 evidence - Accredited Health Experts cited

• Dr. Mark Hyman
• Dr. Gabor Maté
• Dr. Jeffrey Bland
• Bruce Lipton

Other

• Chopra, D. (2018). The Healing Self.
• Huffington, A. (2014). Thrive.
• D'Adamo, P. (1996). Eat Right 4 Your Type.

REFERENCES

This is directly referenced from the Amazon best-selling SelfCare Book "Lifestyle Medicine For the People" by Rory Callaghan. If you would like to read more content like this, grab the free online chapters of the book or a hard copy.

We have done our best to reference everyone's expert opinions, peer-reviewed science, and original thoughts, all references available here and referenced in the text.

We also understand that most thoughts are not our own and there is a collective unconsciousness, unconsciousness, and universal mind stream of energy that is always at work. How our references are sorted and filtered is here.

This article is for informational purposes only and should not replace professional medical advice. Always consult with your healthcare provider before beginning any new health regimen.

From Surviving to Thriving: Your Guide to the 4 Zones of Health and Vitality | Chapter 5

Let's dive into Chapter 5, where we tackle a deceptively simple question that might just change how you think about your entire life.

Chapter 5: Are You Healthy?

Here's a radical thought: What if everything you've been taught about health is only part of the story?

Most of us think of health as the absence of disease. You know, not being sick. But what if that's like defining wealth as the absence of poverty? What if there's so much more to it?

The World Health Organization defines health as...

"a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity" (WHO, 1946). But even that doesn't capture the full picture.

Let's talk about the four zones of health:

Red Zone: This is where chronic disease lives. Unfortunately, it's where many people find themselves today. As Dr. Mark Hyman points out, "Chronic disease is the biggest threat to our species, yet it's largely preventable" (Hyman, 2020).

Orange Zone: This is dysfunction territory. You're not sick enough for a diagnosis, but you're not thriving either. Sound familiar? You're not alone. This is where many of us live, accepting "fine" as good enough.

Green Zone: Now we're talking! This is good health. You have energy, vitality, and resilience. Your body functions as it should.

Blue Zone: This is optimal health territory. Think of those communities around the world where people routinely live past 100, still climbing trees and dancing at parties. As Dan Buettner's research shows, these aren't anomalies - they're examples of what's possible when we align our lifestyle with our biology (Buettner, 2012).

Here's the thing: Your body is incredibly intelligent. As Dr. Gabor Maté explains, "The body has an innate wisdom that we ignore at our peril" (Maté, 2003). It's constantly working to maintain balance, to heal, to thrive.

But here's where it gets interesting:

1. Health is Dynamic: It's not a destination; it's a journey. As functional medicine pioneer Dr. Jeffrey Bland says, "Health is not a static state but a dynamic process" (Bland, 2015).
2. Health is Holistic: Your physical health can't be separated from your mental, emotional, and spiritual wellbeing. They're all connected. As Deepak Chopra notes, "Every cell in your body is eavesdropping on your thoughts" (Chopra, 2018).
3. Health is Personal: What works for someone else might not work for you. As Dr. Peter D'Adamo writes in "Eat Right 4 Your Type," "One person's food is another person's poison" (D'Adamo, 1996).
4. Health is Environmental: Your environment shapes your health more than your genes do. As Bruce Lipton's research shows, "The environment, not genes, determines the vast majority of our traits" (Lipton, 2005).

So, what does this mean for you?

First, stop thinking about health as merely the absence of disease. Start thinking about it as the presence of vitality. As Arianna Huffington writes, "We need a new definition of success that goes beyond the metrics of money and power to include well-being, wisdom, wonder, and giving" (Huffington, 2014).

Second, understand that your body wants to be healthy. It's designed for it. Your job isn't to force health but to remove the obstacles to health and create the conditions for wellbeing to flourish.

Here's how to start:

1. Listen to Your Body: It's constantly sending you signals. Pay attention.
2. Focus on Foundation: Sleep, nutrition, movement, and stress management are non-negotiable.
3. Create Supporting Environments: Both physical and social environments matter.
4. Think Long-Term: Health isn't about quick fixes; it's about sustainable practices.

Remember, you're not broken. You don't need fixing. You need nourishing.

Your body has an incredible capacity for healing and renewal. The 12 Medicines of SelfCare provide a framework for supporting this innate wisdom.

As you move forward, ask yourself: Which health zone am I in now? Which zone do I want to be in? What small step can I take today to move in that direction?

Your health is your greatest wealth. It's time to invest in it wisely.

Join SelfCare skool to find out what zone you are in :)

References:

Bland, J. (2015). The Disease Delusion: Conquering the Causes of Chronic Illness for a Healthier, Longer, and Happier Life. HarperOne.

Buettner, D. (2012). The Blue Zones: 9 Lessons for Living Longer From the People Who've Lived the Longest. National Geographic.

Chopra, D. (2018). The Healing Self. Harmony Books.

D'Adamo, P. (1996). Eat Right 4 Your Type. Putnam Adult.

Huffington, A. (2014). Thrive. Harmony Books.

Hyman, M. (2020). Food Fix: How to Save Our Health, Our Economy, Our Communities, and Our Planet--One Bite at a Time. Little, Brown Spark.

Lipton, B. (2005). The Biology of Belief. Mountain of Love Productions.

Maté, G. (2003). When the Body Says No: Understanding the Stress-Disease Connection. Wiley.

World Health Organization. (1946). Constitution of the World Health Organization.

REFERENCES

This is directly referenced from the amazon best-selling SelfCare Book "Lifestyle Medicine For the People" by Rory Callaghan. If you would like to read more content like this, grab the free online chapters of the book or a hard copy.

We have done our best to reference everyone's expert opinions, peer-reviewed science, and original thoughts, all references available here and referenced in the text.

We also understand that most thoughts are not our own and there is a collective unconsciousness, unconsciousness, and universal mind stream of energy that is always at work. How our references are sorted and filtered is here.

This article is for informational purposes only and should not replace professional medical advice. Always consult with your healthcare provider before beginning any new health regimen.