Month: September 2016

I don’t focus on the details.  Like I said in my last post, I focus on simplifying my life.  I choose simple, basic, and wholesome ingredients.  I don’t go to a gym or use a trainer.  I don’t obsess about what I eat, how much I eat, and I never feel guilty over food.  That is not the point of living a healthy lifestyle.  It is about moving past the details, and just choosing to listen to your body, your mind, and your heart.

If anything I say is overwhelming or stressful, it is not for you. Find a place to start that makes you excited. For example, find a great hike, and go with a friend. Or listen to a playlist that makes you happy about what you are doing in that moment.  Focus on how you feel. Focus on the scenery. Focus on the view. Live the here and now. And I probably wouldn’t think about kale…

In today’s post, I would like to discuss 10 ways I choose a lifestyle of health:

1. Do what makes you happy.  First, aim to get excited about being healthy. If you don’t like something, you will dread it and grow to despise doing it. A great example is how I feel about the gym. I don’t like it. Period! I don’t like how it smells.  I am not a fan of people staring at each other.  I don’t love that I jump on one of many treadmills lined up along a wall, and how the super stinky guy or the girl with too much perfume always manages to pick the machine next to me.  I also don’t like the way girls glare instead of encourage, and how the guys act like they are amazing enough to stare at themselves in the mirror. Get over yourself buddy! Also, it is so much work to get there.  By the time I get my kids in the car, park, get into the locker room to change, I am already hungry and have lost all motivation. Exercise or good food choices may always be a hurdle, but if it is doable and maybe even a part of day you get excited about, then you will keep it up.
2. Learn to love to sweat.  The more you move, the more your body will learn to love it. Do it to feel good, not to change how you look. It sounds odd, but I know when my body needs to sweat.  My chest feels tight, and I feel like my body desires more than the stress of the day.  I am not thinking about how much I ate or how much cellulite has creeped onto my legs overnight. I am thinking about how good I feel when I take care of my mind, my body, and my heart.  I feel stronger for it in so many ways.  And I never think about how many calories I burned or whether I am going to look great in the new jeans I bought.  I think about how I feel when I am done. Proud and accomplished. And probably more sane.
3. Don’t think about size or weight…think about HEALTH. I never weigh myself. I don’t count calories or fat. I choose things that make my body feel good. I want to be strong. I want to have energy. I want to sleep well. So I move my body every day, and I think of food as nutrition and fuel.
4. Read packages for nutrition content, and if you don’t understand it, your body won’t either. I love fat-filled foods…avocado, oils (coconut, avocado, olive), whole fat cheese, almond/peanut butter…it really is found in all meals of my day. I use it to enhance the flavors of my food and fill me up. I also salt almost everything with Pink Himalayan salt.  It is nutrient dense and gives my body things it needs. Focus on quality foods and put things in your body that count. Often times, the less ingredients the better!
5. Change your focus on meals. Food is a source of energy and a foundation to how your body functions. It should be enjoyed and considered, but not a center point. See food as a supply for what your body needs. The basis should be fruit and vegetables. It is essential for fiber and gut health. Let’s face it…pooping regularly is a great sign for how your body is functioning. But those essential foods should not be a stress. Find things you enjoy. You need your MIND to change, and your taste buds will follow.
6. Stop focusing on how you look, and instead focus on how you feel. If you feel like crap…change something. Desire more for yourself because you deserve better. Your body is telling you something, and you are not listening.
7. Never stuff yourself. Why would you? So you can feel terrible afterwards? Not worth it. Your body won’t use it, and it will probably all be poop later…because it’s crap!
8. Watch out for blood sugar spikes. I really do eat very little sugar.  I broke that habit, and it honestly changed my life.  Sugar is addictive, and they have found people really do get a”high” off the feeling of eating it. I highly suggest removing as much of it from your diet as possible. It will not be easy, but once it is limited, you really will crave it less. Instead of feeling “high” when you consume it, you will feel like crap.  It has no nutrition content, and makes your body have a strong reaction.  Every time sugar is consumed, there is a spike in blood sugar, and insulin is released. If this occurs frequently, and your blood sugar takes the form of a roller coaster, your body will react negatively. With this, the risk for diabetes increases. Instant gratification can turn into a life-altering health condition in the future.  And if you do feel like a cookie or piece of cake every so often, timing is important.  Have a great meal and drink lots of water first. The spike will be less dramatic, and you may find a smaller amount will be more satisfying. If you do indulge, enjoy it! Having a treat is not to be followed by instant guilt or regret. It is a part of living and enjoying life.
9. “Skinny.” Fat.” “Diet.” Words that are not in my vocabulary, and will not be spoken in our house. Period. Those words suck. “Strong and healthy” are the only words my girls will hear.
10. Just LIVE. It doesn’t matter what you look like. If people around you think differently…get new friends! The only person you have to impress is yourself. If you were a good person today and felt loved…it was a good day. So live like it.                                                                                                                                                                                                                         Strong mind. Strong heart. Strong body.

Val

I know what you are thinking…another blog. What does this girl know that hasn’t been posted a million times before?  You are right! What do I know?!? I have a love of health.  I don’t push theories and opinions. As a nurse, I have a science mind. I love how the body works, and when it does what is should, it is amazing! If you have a cut, a cold, or you are just hurting from lack of sleep, things that are going on inside you are healing you and fighting for you.  For anyone who has had poor health, you know how much it has sucked. You felt helpless, and had no control.  As a nurse, I have seen medicine cure…but it is really your body who was fighting. Treat it like it will one day bring you back to life.

I have never dieted. I don’t weight myself…ever! I also don’t look in the mirror trying to find the “ugly.” I LIVE to love life.  I enjoy food. I like a cocktail here and there.  I focus on how I feel, and I love to feel healthy and happy. I want to show other people how I have changed my view of my body, and the world I live in. I focus on being strong…strong mind, strong heart, and a strong body.

Each week I want to share with you different ways I strive to better myself and my family.  No one has time or energy to incorporate a bunch of different things into their routine or diet.  If you have to plan and stress, you won’t keep it going.  I have found a way to simplify my routine, to focus on quality, instead of quantity.  I am not a perfect wife or mother, and I don’t have very much control of my day with two busy little ones.  I want to show you products and foods that I love, how I learned to love working out, and how I can let go of all of the negativity.

I have always been an active person.  One thing I haven’t had to work on, is the desire to exercise and stay fit. But I was not putting the right things in my body, and I wasn’t feeling the way I thought I should at a young age.  After years of being unreasonably fatigued, in a mental fog, and feeling my happiness was falling as much as my weight, I started trying to find answers. Every month I would come home from college for another visit to the doctor for scans, blood tests, and stool samples, and finally I was diagnosed with Celiac Disease at 21.  Then after getting married and suffering hormonal and menstrual problems, I was diagnosed with PCOS at 26. I was suddenly facing reproductive issues and infertility.  I felt as though my body was against me.  I was falling apart from the inside out.  At that point I started to gain weight, and I lost some interest in my health and my desire to exercise.  I felt lost.  But as time went on, with the assistance of doctors, I was able to get pregnant. I was going to be a mother, and I now was the luckiest person in the world. It was time to stop feeling sorry for myself.  And that began my journey to clean up my diet, my work out habits, my skin care and cleaning products, and the way I viewed the world. So I started caring about what was in products. I became passionate about learning how to use things in my environment to heal myself from the inside out.  I started buying natural, clean, and organic everything.  I loved going to health food stores, and learning everything about anything I could get my hands on. One of the things I love the most about being a nurse, is learning how the body works.  I now use this new knowledge to focus on filling my life with the things that allow it to do so. I believe in science and holistic health, and I am passionate about making every day count.

People often come to my house, and leave with some new ideas of how to make their lives better.  I love telling people about things I have discovered, and giving them a realistic view on how they can change.  I want others to get “high” on doing something good for themselves, and making each day a little better than the last. No one is perfect. No one goes to bed at night without feeling some self doubt and negativity. Therefore I am hoping that if people get anything out of reading my blog, it is that we are all in this together. We are all on a different journey.  Life is about learning from our mistakes, and trying to be better each and every day. Be kind. Be healthy. Be strong.

Strong mind. Strong heart. Strong Body.

Val