Choose Wellness Before Wellness Chooses You

Don't do what I did and wait till your life is falling about. Choose wellness now.

Sometimes, wellness doesn’t come as a New Year’s resolution. Sometimes it’s not a choice at all—it’s a demand. And when it shows up that way, it’s rarely pretty.

For my niece, it began with a freak incident. She got dealt what most people would call a bad hand—but in my eyes, it might have been the best hand, because it pushed her into a healthy lifestyle early.

My own genetic card stack read like a cautionary tale: high lipoprotein-A (a precursor to heart disease), debilitating asthma, and a wiring for addiction. And by my own choices, I stacked on COPD, hypertension, obesity, and prediabetes. When wellness found me, I wasn’t looking for it—I was on my way out.

I didn’t have the mind for my body’s collapse. When it began breaking down, I became suicidal. I’ve always admired people who can fight cancer for years—I couldn’t imagine it. Eight years ago marks both my last suicide attempt and my last alcoholic drink. Those two were chained together like a ball and chain. Near the end of my drinking career, every time I poured a spirit into my body, all I could think about were ways to die.

The lifestyle I knew wasn’t conducive to wellness. All I knew was that I had to make earth-shattering changes—fast. I might have to do everything differently, especially eating and drinking.

My Old Lifestyle

The life of comfort. Every moment revolved around what could make this moment better—or make me better for the moment. Maybe I needed a coffee. Maybe a snack. Maybe a smoke, a toke, a drink at the bar, or something stronger. It was all consumption and comfort. Sound familiar? I hope, when you truly listen to your thoughts, they don’t sound like this. But if they do, then you’re like I was—and that means it’s time to make changes before your lifestyle changes you.

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Breakfast of cheesy eggs cooked in the bacon fat and wrap it in a highly processed flour tortilla. Lunch would be fast food naturally. My stable McDonalds order was two double quarter pounders with cheese and two mcChickens. I'd take the two double quarter pounders and put them together under one bun. The McChickens I'd usually eat a little slower, but the burger would be down before leaving the parking lot. I love double quarter pounders.

Evening was my fried chicken or country fried steak from the deli with mac and cheese, or pizza, Stouffers lasagna, or something hearty. Before every meal, I'd smoke and after, I'd smoke. Depending on how much I was drinking at the moment would dictate how much I ate. If I really wanted to concentrate on drinking then minimal food was added.

All of this had to change nearly overnight for me or it was going to be fatal.

After Wellness Found Me

Eating and drinking were the most obvious lifestyle changes I needed to make—clear as a 180-degree turn. Exercise and sleep, on the other hand, didn’t seem as urgent at first, but don’t be fooled—these less obvious factors are just as essential to wellness. I had simply discovered them in that order. Before, my eating habits were dictated by nothing more than how intense my munchies were or how much I planned on drinking.

Fitness—that’s where it all started to click. I was lucky enough to begin my wellness journey with a larger-than-life endurance goal: conquering an Ironman triathlon. The sheer volume of training required demanded an equally outrageous amount of food. But I quickly noticed that if I ate my go-to hamburger anytime before a session—even hours before—my performance suffered. I became so attuned to my body that I could feel the difference grease made: my blood felt slower, my run times lagged, and my legs hit the ground with less smoothness and power. That’s when I began shaping what I now call my purposeful eating diet.

Purposeful Eating Diet

The purposeful eating diet isn’t a fad—it’s simply conscious eating. To me, it’s about looking at food and asking, What’s the point? How will this help me get to where I’m going? If it doesn’t answer either of those questions, it probably doesn’t belong in my diet—or on the ingredient list of anything I buy.

Once I started eating this way, my engine began to run smoothly. I got on the right supplements, each with a clear purpose, and every meal became intentional. As my body ran better, so did my mind and emotions. I realized that alcohol and drugs certainly didn’t serve my goals—but neither did chronically poor eating. I still enjoy the occasional double quarter pounder, but I can proudly say it’s been over eight years since I’ve taken down a 2x double

quarter pounder.

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Where I am Today

Today, I make decisions from a place of power rather than comfort. I base them on a balance of facts, not just feelings. That might sound a little confusing, so let me explain.

When I’m running, there are moments when I crave something salty or something fruity, like an orange for potassium. If I ignore these signals, I might end up with a dreadful cramp or completely bottom out on energy. But if I listen to these feelings and compare them with the facts, my run or race goes well.

For example, if I feel like I need salt and choose a salty pizza, I won’t finish my run nearly as well as if I had eaten a salty electrolyte stick.

I began to recognize that certain foods worked better at different times of the day. I started to see that even the timing of my meals had a purpose. If I ate late, I would sleep less and wake up groggy. It was also harder to fall asleep—especially if I had a big steak within two hours of bedtime.

Learning how long certain foods take to process and break down in my body has been incredibly important for performance. We all know protein is good after a workout, but I also learned I need it before a workout, because my body starts breaking down during long sessions if I don’t have it.

Fitness gave me countless opportunities to listen to my body’s needs in relation to wellness, and it became clear— Our body, not our mind, knows the truth.

Want to learn how to listen to your body and step into your best fit wellbeing life? Book a consultation today!

Think About the Earth from Where We Come

I want you to expand your mind with me for a moment. As you read the above, you may not have realized that the same principles apply to the Earth we stand on. We don’t want to reach a point where the Earth’s well-being is forced upon us through crisis. We want to keep moving toward sustainability now.

I know some people politicize this, but this isn’t a political stance—it’s a person-centered, Earth-centered stance. I couldn’t care less about what politicians do in their puppet rooms compared to how much I care about what you and I do, and how we treat our neighbors, our families, and the planet we call home.

Choose Wellness before Wellness Chooses you

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About The Author

Mark A. Turnipseed

is an author, wellness coach, and endurance athlete who turned a life-or-death wake-up call into a mission for radical health. After overcoming addiction, genetic health risks, and suicidal depression, he rebuilt his life through intentional living, endurance training, and what he calls the Purposeful Eating Diet. Mark’s work blends raw personal storytelling with practical wellness guidance, helping others choose health before it chooses them. He is the founder of Empire Self, a platform dedicated to conscious living, personal sovereignty, and deep connection—to our bodies, our communities, and the Earth.