Good health habits in 2014

The day after Christmas I finally got in gear and developed some healthier habits.  The first step was joining the YMCA as a family.  We knew this membership would be helpful for my husband to have a place to walk as he continues to recover from back surgery (we live on a busy street).  For my oldest son, he could continue training for 5k races...in the warmth of the gym and not the bitter cold.  And my younger son is playing basketball and there is a full court and training room for his sport.  Our daughter loves it all, especially the hot tub and swimming pool, which we need to visit more often.  We have required the children to exercise at the Y with us at least 3 times a week, which is such a good pattern for them to learn now.  Personally, I set a goal of exercising 30 days in a row, without missing a day.  I achieved that goal on Thursday, so I am pressing forward and setting a new goal for 60 days in a row!  I have found that the track and the Zumba class scratch my itch.  Maybe I will venture out and try new things this month!




Besides the exercise habit, I have given up my beloved, but evil-on-the-hips, Dr. Pepper habit.  Instead, I am drinking 72 ounces of water each day.  I have found that it tastes better in my Tervis cup.  That cup has magical powers that make any water taste cool and fresh.  In the past, the 8-glass-a-day water rule was really overwhelming for me.  But with my magical cup, I have only missed the mark a day or two in the last month. 




Along with these two big changes, I have been extremely careful with my nutrition.  I eat around 1500 calories a day.  Because sugar and carbohydrates are so high in calories, and I am hungry at meal times, I do not eat them hardly at all.  It's not that I am trying to only eat certain food groups, I just want the most food for my calories!  I eat a lot of fruit, vegetables, yogurt, and proteins- nuts twice a day usually.  We drink and eat organic as much as possible, but always with chicken, milk, and beef.  We are in the process of planting container gardens on our deck to have access to organic produce again, since we left the farm.  I am so excited about that opportunity, as it is so expensive and there are no farmer's markets open this time of year!  Salads and vegetable-based soups are a favorite, as well as hummus and almonds.  I usually have meat or chicken at dinner and always a banana and peanut butter smoothie for breakfast.  I am thinking of trying almond butter this week.  Love all-natural fruit popsicles, too!  I think I have found a reasonable, healthy diet. I keep reminding myself that this investment in my nutrition is more valuable than I could realize.  It's not cheap or convenient, often.  But it is valuable!




I have been very pleased with the results.  I feel very energetic, and have no problem exercising after we get home from school or later in the evenings.  Before, I would often drag myself through the rest of the afternoon and evening.  Also, I have had some pretty intense digestive pain and issues since going back to teaching in the classroom.  But that issue has gone completely away!  I was thrilled when I weighed on Thursday (4 weeks in) and I had lost 10 pounds, which exceeded my goal of 6 pounds a month. 

So I am going into month 2 with excitement and hope.  I have a few goals I want to reach between now and March:

-exercise 60 days in a row (total)

-lose a total of 20 pounds

-stay the same course!!

"People are fed by the food industry, which pays no attention to health...and treated by the health industry, which pays no attention to food." ~Wendell Berry

Dining for 4

We have had quite a bit of cool weather around here. When the air turns breezy and smells fresh, I become obsessed with baking and cooking. I guess after such long, hot months, it is nice to enjoy warm food again. Also, due to my diet we really do not eat out except after church and on Wednesdays when Lydie and I spend the day in Birmingham and have lunch together. I find it embarrassing to have to say, "I'll take a grilled chicken salad. But the chicken can not be grilled with any oil or butter- it has to be grilled dry. And no salad dressing. And only spinach, cucumbers, and onions." I hate being that girl. So I cook a lot. And consequently, clean the kitchen a lot. :)
This past month I have cooked rich casseroles, baked with pumpkin (chocolate chip pumpkin muffins are a favorite), made steamy cinnamon swirl cake, an apple pie, and created new soup recipes. The children are enjoying chili for the first time ever. The secret? 2 teaspoons of sugar (per crock pot) and sauteed onions. Apparently it makes a real difference. Who am I kidding, of course, it does. It's butter and sugar!
It sounds like the kids eat junk all the time. But really they only have a dessert one or two evenings a week. And we usually have one casserole a week, and the other nights I try to make a lean protein with veggies. They do love carbs at breakfast (waffles, muffins, pancakes) but I try to serve appropriate portions with fruit. Remember when you counted your baby or toddler's servings of fruits, veggies, dairy, etc.? That habit never went away with me. I find myself telling them, skip the chips for yogurt, you need another dairy. Or skip the crackers for nuts, you need another protein. Is that silly? And do you feel like you are constantly reminding your kids to drink another glass of water?
The most ironic part of all of this baking is that I can not eat a single thing that I am making! My diet consists of fresh fruits and vegetables, and 6 ounces of fish, chicken, or beef each day. (Plus lots of water and gum!) I haven't had a carb, milk/cheese, or any sugar in 35 days. And I have only had snippets of caffeine in the occasional unsweetened tea. Isn't that stifling? But I have 21 pounds of weight loss as reward. And those pounds propel me to keep inching forward. I don't want to have this attitude forever, because I do not think it is what God ultimately intended for us...but right now food is just a means of energy (and not enough!), and nothing more. Because I have been so disconnected to taste and the feeling of being full, I am able to still enjoy watching my family eat all the goodies. Some how instead of torture, it's very gratifying.
I think in order to reach my ultimate goal at a moderate pace, this will be my way of life until December. So no fall goodies for me! I just keep repeating to myself: No more belly fat! No more belly fat! The belly and I have been enemies for a while and I am determined to win this battle once and for all! And in the meantime, I am going to enjoy happy, crumby-faced kids, yummy smells, and good times in the kitchen baking with my kids. And if I'm lucky, I'll dream of feta cheese again. I mean that literally.