Understanding the Wellness Wheel

Some days or months or even years leave us feeling ~unwell~. Even worse, the longer we’re muddled down by unwellness—the harder it can be to describe the reasons behind it. 

It’s just…I’m just…aagghhh!!

Enter: the Wellness Wheel. 

The Wellness Wheel is a tool for self-exploration that takes into account the multi-dimensionality of wellness. By understanding its spokes, we’re more inclined to understand wellness within ourselves as a positive, active process to achieve inner balance and recognize our own potential. 

There are eight areas of wellness to consider—each with its own problems and opportunities for growth:

1. Emotional

Although all spokes are connected—emotional (un)wellness tends to be the area in which we feel most significantly. Because…well…it’s about feeling.

Emotional wellness involves the ability to feel good about one’s personhood, talk about emotional concerns with others, relax, and say “no” guilt-free.

Try this: Take a mental time-out. As triggering events occur, remove yourself from the situation to focus on your breathing: In for 4…hold for 2…out for 4. This will help reset your emotional equilibrium, and you can approach the triggering event more rationally. 

2. Intellectual

Intellectual wellness refers to the active participation in cultural, scholastic, or community events in order to expand your knowledge and skills. Exposing yourself to new people, ideas and beliefs helps improve your critical thinking and mental clarity.

Try this: If you’re feeling intellectually stagnant and want a “quick” brain buzz—ask a friend to play a game of chess or try solving a crossword puzzle. Did someone order the New York Times?

3. Physical

Restless nights, lack of motivation to workout, feeling bloated and achy—these are all symptoms of physical unwellness that may be preempted by outside hardships. On the flip side, the high you get after a great workout can ease the pains of life’s adversities

Getting 8 hours of sleep, drinking water, taking your probiotics, and a 30-minute workout can transform your life.

Try this: Check out these quick workout ideas for boosting your wellness that you can do on a yoga mat at home in 30 minutes or less.

4. Social

Feeling connected in relationships is important—yes, even for you introverts. Having a strong and stable support system makes dealing with a move, job loss, heartbreak, etc. so much easier. And simply put…life is better with friends!

Try this: Join a group workout class. Getting involved in organizations is a great way to meet people who have like-minded interests and goals (i.e. future friends). Bonus, if you refer a friend to Sports Research, you can earn $15 through our referral program.

5. Spiritual

Spiritual wellness is all about feeling connected to something beyond yourself and having established values, principles, morals, and beliefs.

Try this: Meditate! Meditation is a great way to both ground yourself and transcend yourself. Check out this beginner meditation to get started. 

6. Financial

Financial wellness isn’t just about being wealthy. It’s about having a sense of security and the freedom of choice for your present and future.

Try this: Develop financial goals and a budget for how to achieve them. For instance, if you’re saving up for a car— determine the amount you need to save and when you’d like to obtain it, then set aside a monthly allocation.

7. Occupational

Different from financial wellness, occupational wellness is the ability to achieve a balance between work and leisure. As you spend at least one-third of your life working, it’s important to both enjoy that time and enjoy your time away from work.

Try this: Make a pros and cons list of your current workplace. If you find the cons significantly outweigh the pros—you owe it to yourself to put out feelers for other opportunities more suited to your wants!

8. Environmental

Last but not least—environmental wellness. This involves connecting with nature and finding comfort in your surroundings. Ultimately, your home should feel like home.

Try this: Rearrange your desk to make it more conducive to working or your workout space to make it more motivating. (And check out this article for optimizing your home workout space). 

We could all work on being a little more well. Hopefully, understanding the components of the wellness wheel can help you understand and iterate on your own personal wellness!

 

This article was written by Melissa Pelowski.