5 posts tagged “healthy me”
Finally.
After months of trying not to hate the way I look and feel and simply accept my post-pregnancy body and my love of all things sweet and edible (together) but wanting to change all of it, I feel like things have changed. Just a little, but enough.
The first sign was when I hit the treadmill after a few weeks on the elliptical, including a few workouts that went well past my regular 30 minute mark. Suddenly, I could run again. I felt strong. I did not notice all the jiggly parts (though of course, they're all still there). It felt good. (And yes, I will ignore the fact that I was ticked off at my husband at the time. I can be strong with out being angry, right? :)
Then later this week I stepped on the scale and the gym and it greeted me, not in the usual fashion, but in a you're-3 lbs- lighter-than-your-usual-range kind of way. Cool. Nice to see you too, Ms. Scale.
Then followed an Abs and Buns class where I rocked. Or at least I felt like I did. Super cool.
Oh, and the love of all things sweet and edible? Well, I decided that both my spiritual life and my eating habits needed a kick in the rear end so I decided to observe Lent this year. And what did I decide to give up? You got it - processed sugar yummy goodness. No ice cream, doughnuts, cookies, gummies, chocolate, desserts, etc. and ad infinitum (or so it feels like some days.) Except Sundays. On Sundays I get a treat, but just a small one.
Two weeks until Easter.
We're hitting the road again tomorrow and will be gone for more than a week. Chris has work so we'll be staying at thin in-law's condo on the Harbour and then with them at their house, along with my brother-in-law and his wife who will be coming home from Manilla for a few weeks between years of med school. All family, all the time.
p.s. Even though I'm not a fan of my post-partum bigness, I got an awfully cute babe out of the bargain, dontchya think? :)
It's happened again.
After the initial weight loss in the weeks following the birth of each kid, I managed to either stay at a mid-pregnancy weight level, or in this most recent round, manage to even gain a bit more back. At least, I think I have. I seem to remember my clothes fitting a bit better after Peaches was born than they seem to now.
I feel rather sheepish admitting all this. After all, I knew that I'd need to keep on top of things if I was going to lose weight - the year after Gus was born taught me this. I do breastfeed, but that hasn't really melted off the pounds like it does for some moms. In fact, I found it easier to shed some pounds after Gus had weaned. But in the meantime, I know I can be and should be staying fit and eating well.
Since Peaches just hit three months and has become more predictable, I feel comfortable going to the gym again and leaving her and Gus at the playcare provided. I started last week - some cardio and some weights. In the food department I'm doing my best to work on avoiding the sweets cravings. I'm planning on drinking more water and green tea. I have some other ideas of what I could do, and hopefully will do, but right now I'd like to hear from you all out there in vox-land.
I need inspiration.
I need ideas.
Let me the recepient of your collective wisdom!
What are a few things that you do that you find help make you feel and actually be healthy?
Let's hear it.
Because I know you all have nothing better to wonder about... ;)
Today I realized that, though I've enjoyed sweets over this holiday seasons, I haven't felt like I've gorged on them, which has been par for the course the last few seasons. It was a lovely discovery for me - that craving has diminished. Yay! I don't expect it to go away completely; that might just make me sad. Anyway, I figure it all helps when trying to living a bit healthier.
And this goes hand in hand with a discovery this morning while at the gym: I've dropped below a psychological marker! (We don't own a scale, so I use the one at the gym for consistency.) In reality this only means a few pounds, but it feels good to say I'm in a new 'tens' range. I'd like to think that the lack of sweets thing has something to do with it. Maybe it does. Maybe it doesn't. Who cares?! I'm shrinking!
As I've mentioned before, I've been reading a book very aptly named
It goes through different groups of foods and highlights how and why they are effective in preventing or fighting cancer. Here's a quick run down:
- Cruciferous Family - cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, etc.
- Garlic and Onions
- Soy - including edamame, dry roasted soybeans, miso, tofu, etc.
- Tumeric - yes, this spice that makes everything very yellow is in its own cancer-fighting category.
- Green Tea - especially the Japanese variety, but the Chinese ones work fine, too.
- Berries - pretty much all of them!
- Omega-3 Fatty Acids - which you'll find in salmon, sardines, and milled flax seed for starters.
- Citrus Fruit
- Dark Chocolate (yay!)
- Red Wine
- Tomatoes
I'd decided to try to feature some of these things in our diet during the week. I knew we'd be short on the Omega-3 category, so I've started hunting down recipes for canned salmon. I was surprised at how few turned up in my library of about a dozen cookbooks. Most were for salmon cakes - some sort of fried concoction, usually using potatoes as a base. And then I found this recipe in a book my mom gave me a few years back: One-Dish Meals. Some of the reipes are odd to me because they call for things like "a 12 oz. bag of frozen peas, carrots, corn and red pepper slices." I just chop the veggies myself. And they don't have much by way of vegetarian, but I did find a casserole that worked very well. It's basically a white sauce mixed with noodles, broccoli and tinned salmon and baked in a casserole dish. I added garlic, celery and onion to the mix and topped it with some cheese instead of the bread crumbs because I didn't have any handy. And it was very tasty, even if I do say so myself. And it was cancer-fighting packed meal: salmon (omega-3), garlic & onion and broccoli. (I was tempted to add tumeric; maybe I'll wait to the next time.)
I know that eating healthy whenever one can is better than never trying to do it at all, but the thing is, I think I'll find it hard to keep up. It'll take time to adjust what we buy (and how much we spend!) and the time it takes to think ahead a prepare things instead of just reaching for wieners and beans (which is a meal I love, especially when I add cumin to the beans and put it all in a wrap with cheese).
What's your healthy food tip?
What do you have, what do you need and what do you want?
Submitted by Miss Scotch.
As of this afternoon, I now have a high speed internet connection! Wheeeeee! (I've been living with dial-up forever.)
I need to pray and sleep.
I really want to lose fifteen pounds, at least. Twenty would be nice. Fitting into my fantastic pre-pregnancy clothes would be even better.
