Greetings, friends in health and wellness! This week on Generation Regeneration, we featured guests Nathan Phillips and Yancy Wright, in To a Sustainable Mid-Life, and Beyond! If you missed it, you can catch it here on Demand.
Nathan is the General Manager of Catalina Offshore Products, a San Diego based wholesaler and retailer of sustainably sourced fish, shellfish and seafood. Nathan leads a team of 100+ people, focusing the organization on maintaining standards founded in a commitment to sustainability, fishery management, and Triple Bottom Line. CatalinaOP works with local fisheries in Southern California, Baja Mexico and the west, handling their products with care and integrity. Nathan’s team celebrates small boat, sustainable fishing methods, while partnering with organizations such as Trace and Trust and Seafood For the Future to monitor traceability of their high quality fish. Yancy has over 12 years of experience shifting behaviors and business practices in the construction industry as a green building consultant, construction manager, and educator. Driven by his passion to create a better world, he left the corporate world, moved to Puerto Rico, and started Alternavida; a sustainable lifestyle and wellness retreat that helps people create a lifestyle they don’t need a vacation from. Designed for corporations, nonprofits, and groups of like-minded individuals, Alternavida brings wellness practitioners in from around the world to create authentic, soul-enriching experiences that inspire a lifetime of sustainable living.
Both Nathan and Yancy started their respective careers in the conventional fashion, where there was perhaps not a big emphasis on sustainability and healthy living. But then they each had a health scare and made the shift to a different type of corporate environment and more healthy lifestyle. During the show, they each shared their journey to living a life that regenerates the body, mind and spirit, both on and off the clock. It was empowering to hear about how they took ownership of their destinies and made significant changes for the better. The underlying message being that if they can do it, you can too, regardless of your age!
Nathan, in particular, referenced the book Younger Next Year, by Chris Crowley and Dr. Henry S. Lodge. This book emphasizes how to age gracefully beyond age 50, which they refer to as the Next Third. In the book, Dr. Lodge explains how relentless Mother Nature has been for millennia at deciding whether we are in growth or decay mode, and treating our bodies accordingly. (Dr. Lodge also gets into the biochemistry in the book, which is fascinating!) Nathan explained how a sedentary life, stress, separation from nature, and lack of emotional connection sends the decay message, whereas physical activity, positive attitude and connection to others and nature sends the growth message. The amazing thing being that although aging is inevitable, rapid decay is not if you continue living in growth mode in the Next Third. Nathan explained how he is doing just that now, through regular physical activity, great diet, a job he thoroughly enjoys at Catalina Offshore Products, and spiritual connection. He gave a shout out to Bhava Ram, his yoga instructor, who will be on Generation Regeneration on 1/27 to share his fascinating story of physical, emotional and spiritual regeneration.
Yancy then shared his journey from green construction expert to founding Alternavida. He explained how he wanted to have a more profound impact on people’s lives and how retreats at Alternavida will create the sacred space for personal transformations to occur. He went on to explain that the eco-friendly Alternavida resort is scheduled to open in mid-2017, and in the meantime, his company will host unique retreats in Puerto Rico that return guests to nature, provide nourishing food, and give them the opportunity to work with a variety of holistic practitioners. (Sounds wonderful!) Yancy also made the point that one of his goals is to teach guests the beauty of simplifying their lives and letting go of attachments, as therein lies true contentment and happiness.
Although Nathan and Yancy come from different backgrounds – sustainable/healthy food and sustainable/healthy retreats, respectively – there were a couple of common themes that we discussed. One was the importance of individual choices in shifting the direction of our society. It’s easy to blame others for the ills in our society, but it all really comes down to our collective choices. Nathan and Yancy each made the choice to live in growth mode and work toward a healthier and more sustainable future for all of us. They are walking the walk! If we all did that, then our farming practices, food supply, and health care would shift dramatically for the better.
The other common theme was the importance of community, as it’s tough to be a trailblazer! Nathan made the point that it is extremely helpful to find a tribe of like-minded people. He said that he found his at Bhava’s Deep Yoga studio in San Diego. Another would be the wellness retreats at Alternavida. I chimed in and mentioned W Cubed’s online platform called Whole-treatment.com, which we will launch early this year and provide a community of practitioners and clients who are fired up about real health care. These are just a couple of examples!
And there you have it! If you would like to learn more about the topics we discussed, please check out the following websites: Catalina Offshore Products, Alternavida, and W Cubed, Inc.
Thank you for your consideration! We have more exciting Generation Regeneration shows in the works. Next week on 1/20/15 we will feature Diane Hatz, founder of non-profit Change Food and organizer of the TEDxManhattan “Changing the Way we Eat” conference. Then on 1/27/15 we will feature Bhava Ram. I am super excited about these shows, so tune in for some fun! #WeAreGenR
W Cubed 