Eating: Paleo(ish)
I always love watching people's faces when I add the "ish" to the end of that word! I eat meat, a lot of it. I eat fruits, vegetables, and nuts...I eat rice (basmati) and I eat Ezekiel bread. I tried not eating those carbs and my body does not do well. For me, I found evidence that there must be carbs present for my body to be able to use my thyroid meds. Done deal.
I try to avoid: highly processed food. Additives. Dairy. Soy. Corn. Gluten. I say I try to avoid because I've been known to slap my burger in a bun...I LOVE hamburgers! I also LOVE corn on the cob but realized corn is an inflammatory and my body doesn't love it. I encourage EVERYONE to try a week with the elimination of dairy. I honestly did not think I would feel a difference. Almost overnight, gas was no longer an issue. Bloating was lessening. It was crazy to me! I recently read soy is almost always GMO. GMO is a topic for another time but try to avoid soy in your diet. It is harder than you think - I was eating KIND bars because they are gluten free and *healthy*. A friend challenged a group of us to look at all the labels of our food and guess what was on my KIND bar label?!? SOY! Ugh...
My breakfast lately is a smoothie, my lunch is a salad at work or something I've packed (pb&j or leftovers and fruit or veggies) and my dinner is usually meat, veggies, and sometimes rice or potatoes. Snacks are meat, nuts, or fruit.
My take home message. I am not at the point of having to be a complete drill sergeant about my food. I completely understand if you are. If you aren't at that point either, try to eat as little processed food as possible. Eat more fruits. Eat more veggies. Treat yourself occasionally and NOT at every meal. I try to treat myself twice a week - once mid-week, once on the weekend. Otherwise, I feel deprived. And, by treat, I mean I will eat pizza for a meal...I will eat a hamburger with cheese and a bun. Gone are the days where I eat a whole pie...or 3/4 of a pie because I have to share with my hubby and the littles. If you are still doing this, forgive yourself. And try to do better next time. I was there and it was because of other things going on in my body that I didn't know about. Keep striving for healthy and eventually you will conquer those demons. The biggest lesson I learned that helped me move beyond is not throwing away the whole day or the whole weekend because of one mistake. I would forgive myself for that mistake and the next moment get myself back on track. I have saved myself a lot of calories doing this.
Exercise: Weight lifting, yoga, running/walking
Here is where you might have more fun! I realized after my thyroid crash I have to make priorities with my exercise. At this point, I can't do it all. I have to weight lift. I am 35, I have scoliosis, and I am in menopause. I don't want to end up hunched over at 40!! My gp and I had multiple conversations about the fallacy of calcium protecting women's bone structure. He explained women stop bearing weight, their core breaks down and they start hunching over. I work at a desk 5 days a week and I need to make weights a priority. At this time, weights will be my main focus because it is less taxing on my system than cardio.
I want to run!! In the summer, I was running 3-4 times per week. I didn't feel it but it obviously was too much for me. Inflammation is a problem. So, I am going to work to running 1-2 times per week. Running is a huge stress reliever for me and I just love pounding out my day on the treadmill or road!
Yoga is good for keeping me limber. Since menopause, I have noticed I tighten up if I am not practicing. It also helps my muscles after running.
Walking. I haven't been working out since this past summer. I am starting to get back into it by walking. If you have no desire to run, maybe walking is for you! After the shin fractures, I walked. And I walked. And I walked. I would try to log 15k plus steps on my pedometer. I gained so much muscle tone!! And stamina! Walking is good for you and is low impact.
Mind/Spirit: ???
This is an area I am not good at. I love to read, I don't make time for it. I love to create, I don't make time for it. I love to write, I don't make time for it. I love to take photos, I...see the theme?? So, right now, my goal is to make time for myself every week. Regenerate, restore. What ideas do you have?
So, take a few minutes and make some resolutions. In reality, I am always considering what I want to accomplish. On my other blog, I have a list I call my dreams. Start thinking about what you want to do. Where you want to be. And start making a list of things that you can accomplish that will get you closer. Let's call it our short list.
Short list:
- Get new battery or new scale (must be able to track progress)
- Get new battery or new pedometer (FitBit??)
- Renew membership to gym (need to get back to weights!!)
Let me know what is on your short list - we can do this!
