Sorry Guys!

I didn't realize just how long it'd been! I got so busy I guess I just let this fall to the wayside. This post is just a little catch-up, then I'll start back on my regularly scheduled programming.

So I graduated from high school last summer and just completed my first year of college. Now you know why it's been a little insane.

Yes, I did put on the freshman fifteen, I'm embarrassed to say, so I'll be using this blog to track my progress to get rid of it. I want those fifteen pounds off by my vacation (first in three years!) in June. So here's hoping you lose along with me!

Eat Right, Eat Happy

I've been eating so crappy lately and I hate to admit it, but it's true. I've been skipping breakfast, having only Luna bars for lunches (if I eat lunches at all), then I come home and home a spoonful of peanut butter. I usually expect to eat a healthy dinner of some sort (grilled chicken, steamed veggies, etc.) but lately I've been shoveling down burgers and fries like it's a lifeline. At least I haven't had pizza in weeks.

Tonight I'm having a salad and last night for dessert as my parents were forking ice cream sundaes I mixed up a light "cocktail" and all the water in it filled me up. I poured in ice, seltzer, and orange juice and made a light Orange Julius and it was so good. More importantly, I felt better in the morning and less dehydrated. Today, I had cinnamon rolls for breakfast. Felt awful. For lunch I had turkey and cheese. Much better. Then I had a banana. So much better. There is a direct correlation between mood and meals. That's the truth. Your body knows when you're eating badly. It wants the vitamins and minerals and healthy (if not so tasty) parts of veggies and proteins and fruits. If you go long periods of time without them, replacing them with, essentially, crap, you're only hurting yourself, in the long term and short term.

The Liquid Diet (and I'm Not Talking Cleanses!)

Thursday I had the misfortune of having all four of my wisdom teeth extracted. 10:00 a.m. I went in and at noon I walked out, feeling and talking like Kramer. For the next few hours I felt fine, numbness aside. Then, little by little, the numbness wore off and an awful pain started in.

The doc gave me a list of things I had to follow from Thursday to Monday: rinse with saltwater, don't drink anything carbonated, take the painkillers (which, evidently, are also sleeping pills, considering the fact that I've been sleeping at least fourteen hours every day). But the number one thing on the list was to eat foods that require minimal chewing. I stocked my fridge with sugar free chocolate pudding cups, Special K chocolate shakes, pina coloda protein shakes, cottage cheese, mac and cheese (one of my personal favorite foods) and Yoplait light yogurt. These are the six foods that I've been living off of. Doesn't sound all that healthy, right? Then why have I noticed that my jeans are fitting better, my stomach is smaller, and I've lost two pounds in the last two days (without exercising at all because doing so is off limits according to my doctor)?

Well this is why! For one thing, repetitious eating has been shown to limit the amount of food you eat. The reason for that is become your palette isn't being subjected to something new constantly. When you eat something tantalizing and new for dinner every night, your brain savors it and wants more, so you eat more. If you eat, say, mac and cheese like I've eaten for the last three nights, the first night your brain thinks, "Yay! This is good!" Second night it's like, "Oh ok, not exactly exciting but whatever it's still pretty good." By the third night it's saying, "This again? So boring!" When you subject your brain to food you like more often, you stop thinking of it as taboo. You stop craving it and you stop piling it on your plate.

Now take a look at the list again. The pudding is sugar free. The shakes are both less than 200 calories and are high in protein. The cottage cheese and mac and cheese are high in calcium and the cottage cheese is low in fat and calories. The yogurt is low in fat and calories and high in protein. While they all taste great, they are also all healthy takes on their original, high-calorie counterparts.

I'm also in a little pain and because of that I'm eating a lot slower, helping me get filled up faster and making my mind remind me to stop eating as soon as I'm full. I'm not saying that you should go take out your teeth to lose weight, but I am saying to eat repetitiously, sticking to healthier variety of foods and a healthier amount of each. It's way easier than you think!

Workout #17: Make a Run for It!

Even when I was little, running was my enemy. I remember running in the Presidential Fitness Challenge every year and I could never run faster than a twelve minute mile. I used to feel so bad when my friends would run beside me and try to get me to run faster, but I never could.

My sister is almost as bad as I am, but not quite. She's never been over weight but she's never been a great runner either. I was more than surprised to hear that she decided to run a marathon. On her way home for the Easter break, she texted me and asked if she wanted to go for a run the next day. My first thought was "Is she crazy?" I was going to immediately say hell no but I ended up texted back that it sounded like a good idea.

The next day she woke me up, tossed me a pair of sneakers, and pulled me outside. We walked down one house and then we made a run for it. Needless to say, I was ready to quit only a few houses down from that. I started to slow up, so my sister ran a little faster and I struggled to keep up.

We didn't talk much, so I ended up listening to my neighbors around me and focusing on my breathing. Eventually, I managed to steady it and fell into step with my sister. I kind of liked the sound of our feet hitting the pavement in unison. Every now and again she told me to slow up and pace myself or, when I started to feel like stopping, she'd tell me to focus on one thing at a time. Rather than focus on reaching home, she'd tell me to get to the next mailbox, and then I could slow down if I wanted to.

The thing was, after I reached one mailbox, I wanted to run to the next one, and the next one, and the next. Before I knew it, my house was in view. She told me earlier on in the run that we could walk from there, but instead she decided we'd sprint. I struggled to sprint but didn't slow up until I got back through my front door.

While I don't plan to run any marathons just yet, I don't mind training with my sister for the time being. Maybe I'll be running one in a couple years.

Happy New Year!

Happy 2012 everybody! My post today is going to be a little different. Recently, I was asked what I could remember that was good about 2011 and I realized I couldn't come up with much on the spot. My year was plagued with a lot of negatives, but I always seem to forget the positives. So this holiday may be New Year's Day, but I'm treating it a bit more like Thanksgiving and reflecting on all the good that came out of this year and everything I'm thankful for.

My New Year's Resolutions are usually things like tone-up, lose weight, have a long-term relationship, and publish my writing. This year is a little different. My resolution is to forget the bad and remember the good. I have friends that care about me and want me to be happy. I have the greatest best friend, who is like a sister to me and will do whatever she can to support me. I also have a sister, who is there for me and willing to dole out advice whenever I need it. I have parents who will do whatever, whenever to help me. I even have aunts, uncles, and cousins to help me. I should have been able to say all this on the spot when the question was asked what was good about 2011. Truth is, I'm pretty lucky.

So here is my question to you: When you are asked how 2011 was, what will your answer be?
Start the new year out right and remember that healthiness is not just about the body; its about the mind-set.

Tip #21: Stand Up to Fat!

I always look forward to getting my magazines at the beginning of every month, especially Health! They always keep me up to date on the latest studies and this month was no different. This month I found a study about sitting. Sure, doesn't sound very interesting, but read on because I can pretty much guarantee you'll learn something you didn't know before.

Sitting can actually make you fat! In your body, there is an enzyme (lipoprotein lipase) that burns fat naturally when you stand. When you sit, that enzyme stops and you store body fat! I know you may think exercising daily will be enough to counteract these effects, but it won't. The reactions causing you to store fat while you sit is unrelated to the reactions that cause you to burn fat while you exercise. I know, the human body is a confusing, annoying complex, but we gotta live with it.

Not only that but sitting also causes back pain. When you sit, you mess up the natural S-curve of the spine, creating a C-curve.The C-curve isn't strong enough to support your body weight. Even more of a reason sitting equals problems, sitting shortens your life span! A study in the American Journal of Epidemiology in 2010 reported that death ratets from cardiovascular disease increased 2.7 times for a woman who sat six or more hours every day, whether she was overweight or healthy or exercised.

Pretty shocking statistics, right? There are a few simple ways to remedy this sitting epidemic! Try to stay on your feet at work! Push the chair aside, put your keyboard on a book, and stand over your desk to do your work. At home, get off the couch. After dinner, take the dog for a walk rather than settling down for a repeat of The Office. If you have the Wii-Fit, turn on the freestyle step game and do step areobics while you watch your shows. Little by little, just try to lessen the amount you're sitting and add to the time you are standing.

Tip #20: Relieve Your Stress and Live Happier

Growing up, my favorite show was Boy Meets World and my favorite quote from that show was "Life sucks, get a helmet." Today, I'll give you a helmet and I hope you choose to use it.

Every now and again, life does prove to suck. Getting healthy isn't just about being in a healthy weight range; it's also about your mental health, which can be tested sometimes by the things you see, the people you meet, and the day's events. I've been so stressed lately and today was just the icing on the very, very bitter cake. My friend got into a publication that I'd been working for a long time to get into, but never did. The worst part was that she hardly had to work to get it. It's hard sometimes to see your hard work get passed over. It makes me feel like I'm just not good enough and I know I'm not the only one to feel this way.

A few years ago, when something like this would happen, I'd nearly breakdown. I'd cut myself off from human contact, get massive headaches, and spend a few hours in the bathroom crying and feeling sorry for myself. Needless to say, this is not a healthy way to deal with things. More recently, I've found a few tips and tricks to get me through the day and keep me sane.

First, analyze who you surround yourself with a bit. My friend who was published is one of my best friends who I spend a lot of time with, but she's not my only friend. I went out with friends for lunch this afternoon and, after listening and trying to help them with a few of their own problems, I told them about the publication. They reminded me that I'm young yet and I have plenty of time to get published and, although they were very simpathetic, they helped me to laugh it off. When I first got the news, I felt like it was the end of the world, but by the end of lunch, I'd nearly forgotten it.

Second, take some time to let go of stress at the end of the day. In order to get rid of my headaches, a doctor suggested that I try meditation. At the end of every day, I sit on my bed and close my eyes in silent darkness. I picture the most relaxing place that I can think of, with the greatest and happiest people I know. I like to think of sitting in an inner tube, floating down a creek. It works for me because I took the suggestion of something that I read a long time ago: picture all the things you worry about and watch them float away. It's like casting away your problems from your mind, leaving only the things that make you happy.

Third, remember that everyone isn't perfect. Think of the things that you like about yourself, the things that are unique and make you, you. I know it's a bit of a cliche, but try to remember to write down these things. You can do this whenever you want, but just try to remember to do it. Seeing these things in writing will help you remember them and your mind will remind you of them next time you feel low.

Health isn't always physical; it's mental too. Stress can ruin your day and mess with your head, so it's important to try to relieve stress every day. A little stress is a good thing; it keeps you trying to work to your maximum potential. However, if you have too much stress, you'll overwork yourself. Keep yourself balanced and you can live a happier, healthier life.

TIp #19: Take Your Mind Off Food

The newest thing I've learned that has helped me lose weight (down to 146!) is staying busy with something that gets me out of the house. I've joined a writing group that gets me out of the house every Thursday, study at the libery rather than at home, volunteer on weekends, and go out with friends every Friday night. I've noticed that the less time I spend at home, the less calories I'm consuming.

When you are out and you get a little hungry or are overcome with a craving and don't have any food with you, you have to go and buy it, right? Well, that costs money! By the time you realize you have to walk or drive to the shop to get it and fish out money from your wallet (and let's face it, most of us don't have the extra spending money) you've probably overcome that craving or you remembered that you have dinner in an hour and you don't want to ruin your appetite.

So volunteer in your community on your down time, go to that museum exhibit you've been wanting to see, go the movies with your boyfriend (forgo the food of course), do a little extra studying and get that A, go to your school's football game, or even just go out and party with your friends! Go ahead! I give you full permission (if you are over twenty-one) to hit the dance clubs and flaunt it! Just go easy on the booze and you could even call clubbing healthy!

Tip #11: Thinking Negatively Gets You No Where

I recently picked up the book Skinny Bitch, thinking that it was a diet book that would be sarcastic and funny, based on the title. I was sadly mistaken. The book says that it gives you tough love when all it really does is insult you and decrease your self esteem. It basically calls the reader a fat pig. Its like a bully in a book. Do yourself a favor and skip reading this one.

Truth is, when it comes to creating a healthier life, tough love is not what you want. I admit that I'm sensitive on topics like my weight so reading that eating a burger makes me a fat cow doesn't exactly put me in the right mindset to want to lose weight. For me, I found that the happier I feel about myself, the more I want to treat my body right. Many people are emotional eaters, like me. When someone used to mock my weight, it only made me sad, which made me eat more. I'd convince myself that I wasn't worth losing the weight. That I wasn't worth increasing my lifespan and that I'd never reach the hourglass figure I wanted anyhow so it wasn't worth trying. So I ate, and ate, and ate.

The best thing for emotional eaters to do is to let go of the negativity. Surround yourself with people who know that you are trying to get healthy and are supportive of your mission, not rude-comment-making, self-esteem-busting frenemies. Keep a good friends number handy to call when you feel so bad to that you are ready to start a binge session, so that he or she can talk you down from the ledge and put your emotions back in check. Try reading a book that is uplifting, like Portia Di Rossi's Unbearable Lightness. Reading about her overcoming her own problems might help you do the same. Or squeeze in a workout you like. It gives you endorphins which makes you happier and healthier. Plus I always found that a workout can clear my mind and relax me better than any slice of cake is anyway.

The thing is, being overweight doesn't make you a pig. Last time I checked people look nothing like them and have different gene codes anyway. If you are overweight, yes, losing a little weight won't hurt you, as long as you don't overdo it. Listening (or reading) negative comments, though, that does hurt. Bullies, wherever they may be, aren't worth the time listening to. I'm not trying to give you that speech saying that they are just jealous or wish they could be you. I'm saying that bullies are people that don't deserve your time. They make life harder and take too much effort to deal with. Ignore them and focus on the good people (and good books) in your life that are worth the effort and time. They'll make you happier in the long run. There is no sense in pleasing bullies, and trying to lessen their insults is doing exactly that.