Are You Eating for Your Health?

So another week has passed.  This was a big one for me.  I accomplished another goal I had set for myself.  I told myself back in April that I would finish the Insanity workout and I did, then when I started Focus T25 in July I made a promise to myself I would finish, and I did...today.  Today was the final workout.  I feel so proud of myself.  For years I would jump into a weight loss effort with both feet only to peter out after a short time.  When I started my journey toward better health back in March, I knew I had to go about things differently than I did in the past.  I had to look at this journey as a lifestyle change, not as a short term diet.  I have a family health history that I needed to overcome.  I knew it was going to take some effort on my part.  I needed to put my effort into getting up every-damn-day and working out, I needed to put more effort into planning and preparing food, and I needed to put the effort into defeating the naysayers.  Those naysayers come in all forms, family, friends, and occasionally, even myself. 

I've been contemplating what it was that was different about me this time.  And I have come up with some answers.  Number one, with Team Beachbody I have a built in support group.  My coach and even people I don't know are cheering me on.  I often wish that others could see my facebook wall.  I am friends with and follow so many positive people.  It is full of motivation and inspiring stories.  I feel blessed to be involved with Team Beachbody.  Number two, since I became a coach with Team Beachbody, I feel that I am being held accountable to reach my goals and prove that it can be done.  I know people are watching.  Most are watching and cheering me on, I'm sure there are some that are waiting for me to fail, but that is life.  I am choosing to pay attention to the positive people.  Number three, and possibly most important, my eating has changed.  You can't out exercise a bad diet.  I'm making informed choices about the food I am putting on the table for my family and me. 

I've come to realize over the past seven months that the food I had been preparing for my family the past 25 years was not the healthiest.  I am embarrassed to admit it was not uncommon for my kids to have a meal of chicken strips, tator tots, and a vegetable when they were young (I thought I was making it healthy by adding the veggies).  Of course whatever was leftover was popped into my mouth while I did the dishes.  I spent years buying processed foods, adding a salad or vegetable and thinking I was giving my family a well balanced meal. As a matter of fact, when my 3 year old daughter got a Barbie Jeep for Christmas, she drove it right up to a bush (her version of a drive-thru window), leaned her head out and yelled to the bush, "I'll take a cheeseburger and fries."  That should have hit home, way back then and there, but it didn't.  So today when I saw the coolest Chipotle ad, it really hit home to me how much I have changed what we are eating at our house, and even when we eat out at restaurants.  The pictures in this blog are from the ad you can here. 

 

Since April, I have been making every effort to make sure we are eating foods that are minimally processed.  It requires a bit more thought, planning, and prep time from me, but it has been so worth it.  I try to buy meat without added hormones, and non GMO foods.  We are eating whole grains, fresh fruits and vegetables, and making every effort to have five or six small meals a day.  For instance, my son was told in early spring of this year, that if he wanted to play varsity football, he would have to put on 30 lbs.  Otherwise, he would not be big enough.  So we went to work.  He worked out and lifted weights daily in the off season, and I fixed up his diet.  



My son, number 11



Fortunately, I had already been implementing the cleaner eating lifestyle into our family, or he would have just gained that weight as fat (by eating fast food).  He gained the weight as he was asked, he gained 30 lbs and is solid and strong.  And he earned a starting position on varsity.  He did it on his own, but I like to think I had a small role in that, by providing him with healthy choices.  I wish I had been a good role model living a fit and healthy lifestyle for his whole life, but there is no going backwards.  We just build from where we are.  From here on out, I purchase the healthy food, I prepare the healthy food, and we all eat the healthy food.  Along with exercising daily, eating right will prepare us all to live a long healthy life.

It's Just Too Easy For Me...Unfortunately

So, I had one of those weeks.  I got overwhelmed with life and I missed my workouts for two days.  I know now that really was the catalyst.  The not working out.  I missed my workout on Thursday because I stayed up too late on Wednesday, so the alarm clock was ringing at 4:30 am it was just too much, plus it has been oppressively hot here lately.  The temperature is not so high, but lots of humidity.  Anyway, when it is already 80 degrees outside at 4:30 am, I know my garage (workout room) has not cooled off during the night.  So I just hit snooze and went back to sleep.  Well, when Friday came around and I did the same thing, and that is when all the negative self talk started.  And truly it is an easy habit I fall into.  Not sure where it came from, but I've done it for years.  When I was younger, it was not as defeating, but over time I have become especially good at it.  That voice in my head telling me I'm too fat, not smart enough, too loud, not pretty enough, not rich enough, I'll never make it, I always fall short.  At my age now, I'm really good at finding specific flaws, my hair is too thin, thighs are too thick, too many wrinkles, I'm too this or not enough that.  I would NEVER speak to anyone the way I talk to myself.  And why do I do that??  Where did I learn that??  I guess those are questions for a therapist.  I just know that it has to change.  It has never helped me get out of a slump, so it just needs to STOP!

 

The good thing is that this time, I realized what I was doing pretty quickly.  I'm actually very happy about that.  For the past thirty-odd years, I would have let this moment defeat me.  I would have slid backwards and let it get the better of me.  Not only putting me in a slight depression, but I would have slowly (or quickly) gained back the weight I've lost and probably added a few more.  This time was different, not only because I recognized it starting, but I also gave it a name and talked about it.  I realized what it could do to me and what triggered it.  The truth is when I stopped exercising, that is when my mind freaked out.  I believe that is because I was now missing out on the natural high that exercise provides.  There are all sorts of articles I've read that talk about exercise causing the release of endorphins, like this excerpt from WebMD:
Improved self-esteem is a key psychological benefit of regular physical activity. When you exercise, your body releases chemicals called endorphins. These endorphins interact with the receptors in your brain that reduce your perception of pain (physical and emotional).

So I think that catching it early, realizing the negativity for what it is, and then working to solve the problem instead of criticizing myself for my mistakes, should help me overcome those negative feelings.  I've also decided to give myself permission to slip up occasionally, I am human after all.  Is life really worth living without an occasional piece of cake?  I think not!  I am learning that even though my workouts are tough and I'm not very fond of them while I'm in the sweaty middle of it all, they do help me to keep a positive outlook on the outside world and where I fit into it all.  Life is not always smooth sailing, and honestly I'm sure any sailor will tell you that sailing is a lot of hard work (even though they enjoy it).  When I started my weight loss and fitness journey back it April, I knew it was going to be a lifestyle change for me this time.  It was not going to be something that I just did for a short time and then stopped once I got to my goal weight.  I just never realized back then, that my body would NEED to workout to keep my brain on an even keel.  (sheesh! you'd think I was a sailor over here with all my references!!)  I have always drawn the line from eating well and how I felt, compared to eating junk and paying for it for days!  It is good to know that my body has accepted this new way of life and will "encourage" me to keep up with my fitness too, as long as I pay attention to what it is telling me.

 

Lastly, I want to reference this last picture.  A few years ago I read the book The Secret by Rhonda Byrne.  If you haven't read it, I recommend it.  It talks about the power of attraction.  The book said whatever you think about, you bring to your life.  So for instance, if I constantly thought about how fat and worthless I was, I would bring things into my life that would prove that to be true.  Have you ever noticed when something goes wrong and you get upset, then it is like everything that can go wrong does?  Well the same is true if you are feeling confident and grateful for all you have in your life, then you bring more good into your life.  I'm over simplifying it, but I'm sure you get the point.  The reason I am bringing it up is that I really noticed this week, how I was letting my negative thoughts about myself, control how I was feeling.  I need to be more mindful about keeping a positive attitude so that I bring more positivity into my life.  Who doesn't need a little more positivity??