Tag: change

Find solutions to your health weaknesses!

Find solutions to your health weaknesses!

I got home from the store today and my mom asked if I had bought her any jalapeno cheddar kettle chips.  My response was no because I don’t want to be the reason to encourage bad eating habits.  I didn’t say that to be mean, but because good family and friends help support those people they care about in their life.  By the way, I realize my blog as many post on exercise and health, but remember that in order to be healthy you must have a combination of emotional, nutritional, physical, social, spiritual, environmental, and intellectual well being.

So, why am I telling you about my mom’s chip addiction?  Because it is important to determine your eating and fitness weaknesses and find solutions for them.  For example, if it’s eating junk food, don’t buy tons of junk food like chips, oreos, french fries, and fried chicken tenders when you go to the store.  These junk food items tend to stare at you and reel you in if you keep them in your cabinets and pantry, encouraging you to eat more because of a food weakness you have.  If you aren’t capable of doing this because you don’t have the willpower to resist the urge of buying junk food, take someone with you that will make you be accountable for what you put in your cart.

If you struggle with having enough energy during your workouts then change your routine to include a power snack several hours before working out.  Apples, bananas, almonds, and carrots are great energy boosters to eat pre-workout.  If you don’t have enough energy at the end of your workout then you are probably doing something wrong.  Remember that the end of your workout should be the cool down.  This means you slowly ease your body and heart rate back down to its resting state.  So do NOT run 5 miles, swim, do a heavy cardio workout, etc and then suddenly stop once you have finished or met your goal.  One of the WORST things you can do for your body is to not do a proper warm-up and cool down (increases risk of spraining, straining, and other exercise injuries).  If you aren’t doing both now, I suggest you start to prevent injuries and slowly bring yourself back down to your normal heart rate.  It can be as simple as a 5 minute stretch.  This will help you ease into and out of your workout without dreading it or feeling energy deprived.

If your weakness is eating out, then consider making meals ahead and pre-planning meals each week.  For example, sit down on Sunday and write down your meals for the week and then insert what meals you will allow yourself to eat out.  I suggest you only eat out a few times each week.  You may think that you are able to find healthy eating options at restaurants, but often times you don’t know the calories, fats, and additives that are in restaurant prepared meals.

It’s summer and that means sunscreen season!  If you don’t wear it, you should!  If you think skin cancer won’t happen to you, think again.  It isn’t worth taking the chance!  Putting on sunscreen takes an additional 1-2 minutes or less (literally) and if that’s too long for you then consider a spray.  While I don’t think sprays are quite as effective, if that’s all the time you can or are willing to spare, then I am happy you at least do that.  One of the BEST ways to stay looking young is to apply sunscreen.  Why?  Because the sun burns and damages the skin around your eyes and nose where the skin is the most tender and thin.  This gives your face a more wrinkled and aged look.  So, next time you decide you don’t want to take the time to put on sunscreen, THINK AGAIN!

These may seem like nearly impossible changes to make to your current lifestyle, but remember that the above (along with most health choices) are learned habits, which means they can also with time, dedication, and discipline become unlearned habits!  I realize it can be hard to maintain healthy habits for your mind, body, and soul, but you will thank yourself if you work on changing your weaknesses into positives.  I challenge you to make a change to make a difference in your life, the life of those you care about, and the lives of others (through healthy choices, of course)!

~jj

Are you a statistic? Don’t be…instead, be the BEST you!

Are you a statistic? Don’t be…instead, be the BEST you!

When I was exercising this week, I was thinking about what lit a fire in me to make working out and nutrition such a big part of my life.  I have, for the most part, been mindful of my mind and body, but sometimes life gets busy and we don’t care for ourselves as much or as good as we should. In high school, I played tennis during the fall and considered what I put in my mouth occasionally, but the less than healthy lunch options were something I ate too frequently without much thought.  Once I got home from school, I usually ate a snack which often consisted of unhealthy microwave foods such as pizza rolls, bagel bites, or hot pockets.  While I may not have been fat, my eating choices weren’t nutritious and I was heading down the wrong road. Believe it or not, I actually weighed about 20 pounds more when I was in high school than I do now.  I was not considered overweight or obese, but I wasn’t exactly in shape either.

So what sparked the change?  It’s quite simple and can be said in one sentence: I didn’t want to become a statistic.  I was getting ready to enter college and didn’t want to gain the “Freshman 15.”  For those who are not familiar, this is the extra 15 pounds college freshman tend to put on when they go off to college because of dorm food, cooking for themselves, and eating out with their friends in between classes, on weekends, and frequently when drinking.  Further, the change in schedule and the new college lifestyle typically contributes to poor food choices and irregular workouts.  That wasn’t the only thing that spurred the change within me.  While I was not overweight or obese, I was not in shape and that bothered me.  At 18 years old, I was not fat, but more than anything I was not in shape.  I could run several miles and I could play tennis, but I wasn’t in shape and I wanted to change that.  I wanted to get in shape and not become a statistic.  Statistics that are heard and read all the time such as increased risk for heart disease and stroke, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, or even Type II diabetes.

I was bound and determined not to become a statistic.  In fact, I still am.  I  refuse to allow myself to become a statistic that defines, determines, or tells me my choices are killing me.  You should consider the same thing and what impact it has on your body (i.e. eating junk food, smoking, texting and driving, etc.).  Choices that I can control are choices I will continue to try to sway in my favor to make me be in shape and stay in shape!  Like me, use statistics and negative health facts (i.e. Freshman 15) to spur your own health goals.  How did I go about making the changes I needed to get in shape and stay in shape to keep from gaining the “Freshman 15”?  I made nutrition, exercise, and wellness my way of life.  This was not a temporary fad or diet, but a permanent lifestyle change.

Now, I don’t eat overly processed foods as much as possible, my diet consists heavily of fruits and vegetables, and I eat scheduled meals that include diverse foods (spinach, sweet potatoes, broccoli, carrots, hummus, grilled chicken, etc).  It doesn’t mean I do not splurge and eat cookies or ice cream or some of my favorite foods such as Pad Thai or pizza, but I eat these foods in moderation and my pizza is homemade and loaded with veggies! 🙂

I wrote this long blog that either bored you to death or hopefully inspired you from beginning to end to make fitness, working out, nutrition, and wellness a way of life!  A life changing decision that you choose to embark on to make yourself a better you!

~jj

New Year, New Goals, New Rules aka Accountability

New Year, New Goals, New Rules aka Accountability

Hooray for a new year!  Hooray for 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, and so!  Hooray for new goals!  One thing that I love is setting goals for myself that are challenging and rewarding.  Rather than making new resolutions in January every year I typically have goals each month for myself throughout the entire year.  They can be simple goals such as setting a Christmas budget for myself in September, jotting down all the ideas I have for people on my Christmas list in October, and then finishing my Christmas shopping by the end of the first week in November.  Further, rather than setting “negative” goals and resolutions I try to set goals that have a “positive” spin.  So rather than setting a goal of losing weight, I would set a goal of eating healthier.  For example, set a goal of eating out for lunch once a week and eating an apple with peanut butter or caramel with your lunch so your goal doesn’t become dreaded and can easily be incorporated with your typical lunch routine.

Weight and eating resolutions are typical goals every year, but all too often these resolutions fail, not because the person doesn’t try or doesn’t care, but because the person loses motivation when he/she doesn’t see instant results or becomes wrapped up in the chaos of daily life.  While I know it is not New Year’s yet, there’s no perfect time to set new goals or resolutions for yourself.  Rather than putting off what you can start today, make a plan, set your goals, and make yourself accountable for what you want to accomplish.  One of my favorite sayings to remember is, “Why wait until tomorrow when you can start or do it today?”

So, rather than waiting until January to make a plan because you just want to “get through the holidays” aka eating the scrumptious candies and desserts and the exhaustion of finishing your Christmas shopping consider making yourself accountable during the holidays so you don’t feel so guilty in January.  Many people feel guilty in January because of all the food, chaos, and stress from the holiday season.  Then once New Year’s rolls around, people make resolutions to help make up for it.  The problem with this is that we often tend to make goals that are unattainable in order to fill the gaps and inefficiencies from the holidays.

My suggestion is to START NOW!  Happy day, month, and year of positive goals and accountability.  Change starts now, not tomorrow, not next week or next month or next year.  Change starts with yourself, not with an organization or group of friends, so start your goals today.  You will thank yourself tomorrow for what you accomplish today.  Cheers to the new year from me to you!

~jj

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