Sick and Tired of Feeling Sick and Tired?: Holistic Lifestyle Coach and Author Susan Smith Jones, Ph.D. Discusses Her 30-Day Plan for Jumpstarting Your Physical, Spiritual and Emotional Health

In her new book, "Walking On Air: Your 30 Day Inside and Outside Rejuvenation Makeover" Dr. Jones shares her advice on living a vibrant healthy life, "each of us is unique and has something very special to offer. Our Creator doesn’t make mistakes."

Holistic lifestyle coach Susan Smith Jones, Ph.D., and author of Walking On Air: Your 30 Day Inside and Out Rejuvenation Makeover offers 30 days of changes that will jumpstart your mental, physical and spiritual self. In a manageable 30-day plan, Dr. Jones shows you how to make simple, yet effective choices in food, health, home, relationships, finances and state of mind. She explains,"We must learn to trust and love ourselves as much as our Creator does. When you remove all blockages to the Loving Presence within you and align with the love that you are, abundance, prosperity, peace and success will be yours."


Commitmentnow.com: What is an 'inside and outside rejuvenation' makeover and can a person really transform their life in 30 days?

Susan Smith Jones, Ph.D.: Have you ever wanted to give not only your body, but your mind, home, and spiritual self a makeover as well? It sounds like a daunting task. Yet this is actually possible — if you are in my hands through my new book.

Breaking down life changes into a manageable 30-day plan, I show you how to make simple, yet effective, choices with your food, your health and healing, your home, your relationships, your personal style, your finances, your body, your lifestyle, and your state of mind.

So each shift is a daily turn toward better health, more conscious living, and greater awareness of the spiritual calm that can infuse all aspects of your life. Their cumulative effect is designed to bring you to a new level of vibrant health and deeper joy so that your spirit soars.

Yes, it’s completely possible to make massive strides in just 30 days. This book is based on my decades of work with 1,000s of people around the world. It offers a 30-day, life-changing, step-by-step program for a healthier, happier, and more successful you.

Commitmentnow.com: Tell us about your work as a holistic lifestyle coach. What do you teach your clients about living vibrant healthy and successful lives?

Dr. Jones: I offer my clients practical advice about super foods and spices, how to become the CEO of your body and life, how to cultivate joy and prosperity, how to overcome the major stumbling blocks that every person experiences in modern life.

Personally, I have never taken any medications in my life and haven’t had a cold or the flu in over 25 years. So I teach each person how to take loving care of their body so that their body can take care of them. I show them how to live close to nature in what they eat and how they live. I put all of this life-changing material into Walking on Air, as well as in the companion book The Joy Factor.

I work with only a dozen clients each year as a life coach and each makes a commitment for six to twelve months with me. Some of these clients live in my area, but most of then are located around the world.

All of my best coaching secrets and tools are featured in my two new books and my digital seminar package, Renew Your Life, which is available on my website: SusanSmithJones.com.

My goal in writing Walking on Air and in working privately with clients is to give attention to the whole person — body, mind, soul and environment.

The body reflects the mind and the mind reflects the spirit. So after a month’s dedication to my plan, everyone feels rejuvenated both inside and out, less bound to earth by anxiety and physical complaints, and more like he or she is walking on air.

Commitmentnow.com: What five recommendations in your book do you believe would help change a person's life for the better? What five do you practice often and feel are most important?

Dr. Jones: It’s hard to limit it to only five, but these would definitely be non-negotiable in my healthy lifestyle, what I suggest to others and recommend in my new book. These also help quell stress, boost immune function and energy, and bring a sense of empowerment and confidence.

• Sleep — strive to get a solid 7-8 hours of deep sleep nightly:

• Foods — Eat a diet of colorful, natural foods, as close to the way nature made them as possible. Include sprouts in your diet for their life-enhancing effect (refer to my website for information on growing sprouts;

• Water — keep your body hydrated with purified water. Dehydration suppresses immunity, saps energy, ages you quickly and causes depression.

• Exercise — A regular exercise program does more than help you lose weight. It brightens your mood and boosts self-esteem and confidence.

• Meditation — Daily respites of deep breathing and meditation promote calmness, relaxation, and compassion and, if that were not enough, slows down the aging process. Forty years of disciplined meditation have shown me its powerful effects. It will have a positive impact on every aspect of your life.

Commitmentnow.com: You wrote, “You attract to yourself that which you believe you deserve.” How can a person get on a track of believing they deserve good things, if perhaps on a very deep level they believe they deserve to struggle and feel pain?

Dr. Jones: When you are not feeling good about you, you feel separated from others and God. When you see yourself as a failure, you create a self-fulfilling prophecy. You attract to yourself that which you believe you deserve. Your negative thoughts and attitudes about yourself, whether they originated within yourself or others, convince you of your inability to succeed.

If you feel like you don’t deserve success, prosperity, happy relationships, joy, and peace, then you’re settling for less than you are entitled.

When you feel unworthy, you cut yourself off from the fullness of life.

Unconditional self-love and self-acceptance can disconnect this vicious cycle. Through inner work, and my guidance in Walking on Air, you can develop genuine self-esteem, self-confidence, self-respect, and self-appreciation. We must go beyond our limited beliefs and realize our importance to ourselves and to the world.

Each of us is unique and has something very special to offer. Our Creator doesn’t make any mistakes. Understand that you have always done your best at any given time; you don’t have to be so hard on yourself. And now, you have the opportunity to choose again.

Every moment of every day, you can choose what’s best for you.

Commitmentnow.com: In Walking On Air you explain that in your work, you often see people who wrestle with a loss of faith in themselves and low self-esteem. How can a person can their sense of worth back? Why is this an ongoing problem for so many?

Dr. Jones: When we constantly judge ourselves, we lose faith in ourselves and our self-esteem plummets. As mentioned above, each moment we have an opportunity to choose again — to choose with empowers us. We have a choice to judge ourselves over and over, or to be kind and loving.

Whether we succeed or fail, enjoy our lives or struggle, depends largely on how we view ourselves.

In fact, numerous studies have concluded that the key to taking control of our lives is changing the view we have of ourselves.

Loving ourselves, feeling good about ourselves, is an inside job. It was Eleanor Roosevelt who said this: No one can make you feel inferior without your consent. I love that thought! It’s true. You must affirm to yourself often, “Not one drop of my self-worth depend on your (or others) acceptance of me.”

When you begin to see yourself as divine, chances are you’ll be happy with the miraculous physical body that your Creator provided for you, and you will establish a salutary health and fitness program to keep you body temple in peak functioning order…no matter your age.

Today I want you to begin developing a loving relationship with yourself. Think about what it would mean to be your own best friend. Choose to take wonderful care of yourself, your miraculous body temple, and your magnificent world. Look within for guidance and the answers to your questions.

If you are willing and open, you will find what you have been seeking and your self-esteem will soar.

Commitmentnow.com: You wrote, "We live in a friendly universe that always says yes to us." What does this mean? How can a person change from thinking that everyone is out to get them, to feeling that they live in a friendly world of yes?

Dr. Jones: Albert Einstein said that we all live in a friendly universe. For some of you reading this, you may disagree. As I wrote about in the Introduction of Walking on Air, the one tool that was missing in my life in my early years of trying to find myself was faith. According to Ralph Waldo Emerson, “The whole course of things goes to teach us faith.” That’s a very powerful statement. Faith in your goals and dreams — in your life and daily experiences — will lift all sense of discouragement, defeat and helplessness.

Nurturing faith will change your consciousness so that the creative flow of life, love and unlimited possibilities can fill your being. We cannot expect to see changes in our outer world without first making changes within.

We must stop looking outside ourselves for the answers, and instead put all trust in a Higher Power.

I believe that we all live in a friendly Universe that is always saying yes to us. Our responsibility is to identify and transform the beliefs that have been sabotaging our ability to accept and receive the good that is our birthright.

We must learn to trust and love ourselves as much as our Creator does. When you remove all blockages to the Loving Presence within you and align with the love that you are, abundance, prosperity, peace and success will be yours.

Believe in yourself. Have faith that nothing is impossible. Walking on Air will provide you with the step-by-step plan to take your life from ordinary to extraordinary in just 30 days.

Commitmentnow.com: You write, “And there are three choices over which we always have control: what we eat, how we move (exercise) and what we think." So my question is: what foods do you recommend eating often, what type of exercise do you recommend, and what type of thoughts do you suggest we try to bring into our minds as much as possible?

Dr. Jones: Many of us make the wrong choices every day by consuming foods that were never intended for our miraculous bodies. You can choose to eat delectable foods that just happen to be potent medicines — that heal the body and help restore vibrant health.

Here’s a good way to think about nutritious food:

Produce is the most important health care your money can buy. Whenever possible, choose organic foods.

In Walking on Air, I have a chapter devoted to my favorite age-defying superfoods and natural remedies. If I were to pick one food that could heal your body quickly and boost your energy and vitality, it would be fresh sprouts. Visit my website, SusanSmithJones.com, and do a search on sprouts and growing sprouts.

When I was a teenager, my grandmother taught me how to grow sprout in the corner of the kitchen. Ever since, I have been growing and harvesting my own fresh sprouts. In hardly any space, in only a few minutes weekly, and for pennies a batch, you can grow over 30 varieties of fresh sprouts as I detail on my website. Kids love to participate in the sprouting process, too. Did you know that ¼ cup of broccoli sprouts eaten daily will cut your chances of getting cancer by 50%?

The best source for getting your organic sprouting seeds and sprouting supplies is HandyPantry.com. It’s the only place I shop for all-things-sprouting, as well as wheatgrass supplies. They have the best products and prices in the country. They can help you get started and answer any of your questions.

Regarding exercise, being fit is the key to enjoying life—it will unlock your mental power and physical stamina, as well as give you a positive outlook that will make each day a pleasure. You must develop a well-rounded fitness program that includes strength training, aerobics and stretching. Make your program a top priority in your life and keep the commitment to this.

Finally, you must also cultivate an attitude of gratitude. Keep you mind focused on the positive. Your life and all of its magnificence is a reflection of how you feel about yourself and what you think about all day long.

At the end of each chapter of Walking on Air, I give you a positive affirmation to use throughout the day, based on the message of the day, to help you stay optimistic. Similarly, each day I have a new inspirational quote and another positive affirmation that I post on my website to support you in creating your best life.

Each day, I recommend that you take a moment and be grateful for all you have in life. Gratitude, after all, is a great stress-buster. What you think about consistently brings more of the same into your life.

So focusing on the positive, even during difficult times, is the best way to reduce and alleviate stress and transform your life.

As I mention in Walking on Air, here’s the secret to living a life of balance and peace: Each and every day, live thankfully.

Commitmentnow.com: It is evident in reading this book that you are a joyful person who aims to live a very happy life. How did you achieve this state of mind? How can a person train their mind to see the best in everyone and everything?

Dr. Jones: My life truly changed for the better when I became very disciplined about my daily meditation, exercise, sleeping, and eating more raw foods.

Aside from the health benefits of raw foods, you become more positive and filled with joy when you upgrade your diet of color fresh fruits and vegetables, sprouts, raw nuts and seeds, etc. That’s because raw foods change the vibrational rate of the cells of your body. Seriously, they do and this results in a happier you.

Yes, you can train your mind to be more positive and it begins with being aware of what you are thinking. You can’t change what you don’t recognize. Focusing on the positive takes practice, and you must stick with it. One of the biggest deterrents to feeling joy is living an unbalanced life — a life filled with too much stress and little to no “down-time.”

And if you don’t get enough sleep every night, you’ll feel more stress, agitated, anxious, negative and disempowered. It all goes together, and In Walking on Air, you will learn how to bring this much-needed balance back into your body and life. It’s not difficult; you just need the tools.

Commitmentnow.com: On Day 12, you recommend cultivating a tender heart and loving-kindness. How can a person do this? Why is it important to living a healthier life? What stops many from having a tender heart and loving-kindness?

Dr. Jones: Those how have a more loving and tender heart — who live with compassion for themselves and others — are happier, healthier and more successful at work. This has been proven in scientific studies. And the quickest way to live a more compassionate life, according to recent studies, is by meditating for a few minutes each day.

I have a popular audio book titled Wired to Meditate that’s available in my website’s Store for those of you who want information on starting a program or upgrading your existing meditation program.

I prefer to surround myself with people who are tenderhearted and live by the Golden Rule in both my personal life and also in my business life. It’s simply an 18-inch journey we can all take living more from our hearts than our judgmental, critical, and oftentimes insensitive minds.

Commitmentnow.com: You mentioned that "The Sound of Music" is your favorite movie. Why is this your favorite and what great life lessons does this movie hold?

Dr. Jones: Well, who doesn’t love Julie Andrew’s character in the movie. She is such a positive role model. She shows us, by shining example, that we can create the extraordinary out of the ordinary, change the negative to positive, and cast fear aside in favor of love and faith.

Even in the darkest of times, we must keep the faith and know that we are never alone. We are surrounded by a loving presence and it’s always available to us 24/7, just as Maria in the movie turned to her faith and prayer. Keep your attitude open and positive.

The attitude is like a paintbrush, my grandmother used to tell me. It can color anything. So color your life happy, positive and open to possibilities.

Commitmentnow.com: What are some of the age-defying natural remedies you mention on Day 17?

Dr. Jones: These include a variety of different foods, herbs and spices such as berries, apples, spinach, cinnamon, parsley, garlic, almonds, sprouts, and turmeric. In other words, fill your grocery carts with superfoods.

What is a superfood, you ask? All foods are not equal. Some are full of calories and void of nutrition, while others are low on calories and so packed with nutrition that they earn the title of “superfood.” You see, there’s a difference between food volume and nutritional potency—you don’t need a lot of food to get a lot of nutrition.

For example, blueberries are often considered a superfood because they contain significant amounts of antioxidants, anthocyanins, vitamin C, manganese, and dietary fiber with relatively few calories. Superfoods are the best whole foods out there, but not one is a magic bullet; make sure you include many different superfoods to help maintain optimal health.

Commitmentnow.com: On Day 9, you recommend cultivating the art of perseverance and determination. Why are these qualities important and how can a person bring these qualities into their life?

Dr. Jones: You can’t get to the top of the mountain of soul achievement until you choose to persevere and stay determined to achieve your goals. We must live like an eagle who soars above the ground and can see farther and with greater clarity than the earthbound rabbit — who has its nose pressed up against the blade of grass and can only see what’s in front of him.

And as an eagle uses the wind to keep it aloft, you can choose to use determination and perseverance to keep yourself on course.

Keep in mind that you can make massive progress in your life one step at a time — one day at a time as I describe and implement in Walking on Air.

Ask yourself this question. Are you willing to do what it takes to become master and CEO of your body and life? Do you have the sheer will to give it your all, and then some, even when the odds of attaining your goal appear to be insurmountable?

I let nothing and no one deter me from accomplishing my goals.

As a co-creator with God, you have the power and ability to achieve your heart’s desire. Let your perseverance and determination fuel your mind and body into action. Through daily meditation, you will tap into the power that’s already within you.

Know that the power, the loving presence within you, is your strength and guidance. When you feel that connection, peace will be your constant companion, and success will be yours.

Commitmentnow.com: You write about the profound influence and life-lessons learned from your mother and grandmother, who sound like amazing and wonderful women. Can you tell us what you learned from them and how in your everyday life, they continue to impact and influence who you are today and what you teach as a holistic life coach and author?

Dr. Jones: By their shining examples, my mom and grandmother taught me about the healing power of kindness, compassion, never giving up, staying focused on my goals, living by the Golden Rule, and always taking loving care of my body.

My grandmother taught me about nature’s remedies and how to heal the body and enrich vitality through foods, herbs, spices, and other lifestyle choices. It was from their loving guidance that I chose my career in holistic health and have now written 27 books focusing in holistic health and work with clients around the world.

It was my mom who encouraged me to be a motivational speaker. I didn’t think that was possible because I was terrible at speaking in front of a group. But she cheered me on and helped me move past my fear. Now I get offers to speak worldwide to corporation, businesses, women’s groups, and  spiritual organizations and give keynote addresses, lectures, seminars, workshops and retreats.

Rather than being scared to speak anymore, I embrace any opportunity I have to teach others how to live a healthy, prosperous, peaceful, happy and balanced lifestyle. Sometimes I speak in front of audiences of over 5,000 people and I know that my mom and grandmother are always watching over me and sending me their love. I can feel their presence.

Commitmentnow.com: You wrote that three of your favorite words are choose, cultivate and celebrate—why are these your favorite words? How can we make these words an integral part of our everyday life?

Dr. Jones: If you have already peeked at the Table of Contents for Walking on Air that’s in the sidebar of my website, SusanSmithJones.com, you will see a theme going on with three of my favorite words: Choose, Cultivate and Celebrate. For me, this is what we all need to do every day — choose the best for us, cultivate a holistic lifestyle, and celebrate our blessings.

We have the power to cultivate our dreams and celebrate each day and ourselves. It’s always about choice. The power of choice is what living fully and successfully is all about.

To Purchase Walking On Air click here.

About the Author: www.SusanSmithJones.com

For a woman with three of America’s most ordinary names, Susan Smith Jones, MS, PhD, has certainly made extraordinary contributions in the fields of holistic health, anti-aging, optimum nutrition and balanced living.

For starters, she taught students, staff and faculty at UCLA how to be healthy and fit for 30 years!

Susan is the founder and president of Health Unlimited, a Los Angeles-based consulting firm dedicated to healthy living and human potential.

Susan travels internationally as a motivational speaker and frequent radio/TV talk show guest. She’s also the author of over 2,000 magazine articles and 27 books, including her latest titles Walking on Air, The Joy Factor, The Healing Power of NatureFoods, Health Bliss, Be Healthy~Stay Balance and a full-color recipe book Recipes for Health Bliss.

Susan also has a celebrated digital program entitled Renew Your Life, which is changing the lives of people around the world.

Susan is in a unique position to testify on the efficacy of her basic message that health is the result of choice. When her back was fractured in an automobile accident, her physician told her that she would never be able to carry “anything heavier than a small purse.” Susan chose not to accept this verdict; within six months, there was no longer any pain or evidence of the fracture. Soon, she fully regained her health and active lifestyle. Susan attributes her healing to her natural-foods diet, raw foods and home-grown sprouts, the power of Spirit, faith, determination, living a balanced life, and a deep commitment to expressing her highest potential. Since that time, she has been constantly active in spreading the message that anyone can choose radiant health and rejuvenation. Her inspiring message and innovative techniques for achieving total health in body, mind and spirit have won her a grateful and enthusiastic following and have put her in constant demand internationally as a wellness consultant and motivational speaker.

A gifted teacher, Susan brings together modern research and ageless wisdom in all of her work.

For over 30 years, Susan has also been a culinary instructor with a passion for teaching others how to optimize their diet using natural, organic foods, with an emphasis on raw foods. Her grandmother taught her how to grow sprouts when she was a teenager and Susan’s been honoring this healthful practice ever since. Any day, you’ll find a variety of sprouts, wheatgrass and microgreens growing in her kitchen.

For more information on Susan, her books and audio programs and other work, please visit: SusanSmithJones.com.