Getting healthy in small steps

Okay so I'm writing this because some of you have asking me about my lifestyle changes. Let me start at beginning and then I will give you some tips. At my heaviest I was 180+ pounds. I never had low self esteem, but I was too big for my height of 5'2". I had the very active job of being a second shift CNA so I was moving, but my body had become accustomed to that level of activity so I gained weight steadily to reach that 180+ that I mentioned earlier. I ate fast food all the time, I was an emotional eater, and a glutton. The only thing I didn't eat was pork. I didn't drink any water, mostly sweet tea. I was a staunch advocate for plate cleaning. LOL

I don't remember process that I went through step by step, but that doesn't matter, because you are going to take these tips and make them your own. You will be able to do any one of these and if done consistently and later increasingly, you will see results. Sidebar--I will tell you this. I tried slim fast and it does NOT work...at least not long term. Because of the fiber without enough water most people, including me, just get gas and want to eat real food anyway. These tips can be utilized in any combination or alone. I told someone last night that I think you should choose one, stick with it until it has become a habit, and then add something else.

1. Water- I have always hated water until recently. I am up to a gallon a day now. I didn't get there overnight though. The way I did it was to set measurable goals for myself. I started with about one 20oz bottle a day. Then I gradually increased it. Any extra water you can do will do you lots of good. For weight loss I have used this "equation". Take 1/2 of your body weight and drink that amount of water in ounces. It worked, and my skin and hair loved me for it. Make sure to drink plenty of water in the cold weather too, which can be hard to remember but it is still very necessary.

2. Move!!!-Any amount above what you normally would do is good. Take the stairs. Don't park so close to the building. If you are a television watcher, march in place during commercials. Dance! Drive to your local arts district and walk around and look. Walk the trails or Greenways at your local park. Sit on the floor to watch television and stretch while your down there. Need anymore ideas? Message me.

3. Reduce Portion Size-Okay this one was/is REALLY HARD for me. The only way I am able to do it consistently is to change my plate size. If I know we have some food from my Mama's house I have to reduce portion sizes. I will normally use on of the kid's plates. A lady even told me once that she doesn't let her food touch and of course that will keep portion sizes down. If you are still eating fast food don't biggie size, get the kids size, replace fries with salad or something, get water instead of soda, or drive past the drive through and go home and cook. LOL

4. Reduce Meat Portions-I don't eat chicken, pork, or beef, but I don't eat sea food once in a blue moon. I don't expect everyone to give up meat, although it would make your life much easier, but do reduce the amount. The suggested portion is a deck of cards, but I say even less. I would suggest that you even have a vegetarian day once a week at least. Try this website for some ideas. http://www.meatoutmondays.org/index.php

5. Reduce Unhealthy Oil Intake-okay so you know that commercial about the "Buttertons"? Okay, well I was Mrs. Butterton. I could easily use 2-3 sticks of butter in one dinner. First of all look for cold compressed oils that can be found at your local health food store. On the label it will tell you if they can be used at a high temperature or not. Try different oils because they all have different flavors. DO NOT COOK WITH OLIVE OIL!!! Apparently when it is heated to high temps it changes and is very unhealthy. I like to use coconut oil. I haven't heard anything bad about cooking with it yet.

6. Reduce Make Eating Decisions in Advance-So your on your way to a family dinner or restaurant to eat, what are you going to limit yourself to? This would be a good time to eat vegetarian so that you don't go overboard too much or you should use a kid's plate. Whatever decision you make should be made BEFORE walking in the door and smelling all the food. If you want a rich desert, eat a light meal. If you want to eat a heavy meal, drink water, and get a healthy desert. You can take these suggestions and make them your own of course.

7. Don't Overcook Your Veggies-One of my clients just bought me a steamer and I love it!!! If you don't have one you can still achieve similar results. Put just a little water in the pot, use fresh veggies when possible, and cook until just tender. You shouldn't see all the vegetable's color in the bottom of the pot. It shouldn't be floppy when you take it out. Things like cabbage and spinach can even be stir fried in coconut oil and balsamic vinegar and eaten. Also add as many raw veggies to your meal as possible.

8. Try New Veggies-Every week try a new vegetable. You can try it alone or mixed in with a familiar veggie, but either way just try it. Look for vegetable recipes. There are entire sites devoted to vegetarian recipes.

9. Try New Recipes-This will encourage you to eat at home more and in turn will help you eat healthier. Learn to substitute high fat ingredients for lower in fat and healthier ones. Now is a good time to make soup since it is cold out. Most times you can look around your kitchen and find stuff to make a quick healthy soup out of. You'd be surprised. LOL

10. Find Restaurants with Healthy Choices- Find out who has a healthy choice menu and try to go there. Even if they don't have a healthy choice menu, ask to make substitutes. Look their menu up online before you go so that you can make a clear decision about what you want to eat, before the sights and sounds lull you into a bad meal choice.

11. Fast-You should shoot to fast at least once a year for at least 7-10 days. The optimal fasting routine that I know of is 4 times a year during the solstices and equinoxes for 10+ days, which will give you 40+ days of fasting per year. Fasting is a way to give your body and digestive system a rest. There are all kinds of fasts as you may well know. My thought process is that you fast to improve your health, so when you come off you shouldn't go back to your normal diet. Your diet should improve every time in some way until you see no room for improvement. I used Master Cleanse to help me get started. I used it to get my body clean to get rid of headaches. Some people have used it for weight loss, but if you go back to your normal diet, you will also go back to your normal weight probably with a little extra. You can try juice fasts, green smoothie fasts, fruit and veggie fasts, or even water fasts.

I really hope this helps and give you a jump start for your healthy eating journey.

Let 'em hang!

This note is going to be about breast health or at least a small issue in breast health. I ran across a couple of sites some time ago that talked breast health as it pertains to bra wearing. http://www.all-natural.com/bras.html

Let me say this first of all I have always hated buying bras, because I have never been well endowed and so paying $10 for a bra was my limit and even that seemed like too much for the little bit of fabric required to make my bras. My reasons for wearing them are probably the same or similar to many of you.

1. rite of passage- getting your first bra is a BIG deal--even if your lil' nibblets weren't.
2. proper undergarments-you just plain old have to wear one cause your Mama told you to.
3. saggy boobs-at some point the girls start to hang. If you have breastfed this may be even more pronounced.
4. western ideals-in most "developed" countries we like to keep up the appearance of youth and so we fight anything that doesn't look youthful tooth and nail. This is the main reason that so many where underwires and pushups and have red marks and shoulder marks.

I have gotten to the point that I wear a bra maybe once a week for a couple of hours. I have been bracing myself for my husband to say something but I think he has thrown in the towel on many things and simply lets me be me, bless his heart. I mostly wear the tshirts with the tittie sling in it, but some days I literally let 'em hang. I understand that some of you still work outside the home and aren't able to do such things. Maybe you are just blessed abundantly in the area of boobage and don't feel comfortable with them being unleashed. Whatever the cause just try to cut back on some of your bra time. I learned from hanging with my cousin as she went through breast cancer that the lymphatic system in one of the first things they check after diagnosis. You can do your own research, but let's just say that your breast need to be able to be flushed out by this system regularly and underwires and pushups are too constricting to allow for good flow of lymph.

The normal movement of you body when you are sans bra will encourage lymph flow. When you unleash them after a long day massage is good to make up for the lack of flow all day. This can be done by you for you (bufu) or you can have your husband do it for you which will probably be more fun.

I have tried to make light of this subject, but breast health is really serious especially if you are in my matrilineal gene pool. Please take this seriously as a precaution and do your own research. We have been fooled into thinking that breast are only sexual objects, wombs are unimportant, and menstrual flow is unclean. We have to teach our daughters better than we were taught.

Here is one of the links and if you google you can find some others. By the way don't be naive enough to think that the medical field is going to back this one up. If you aren't sick they are broke.

Peace, light, love, & balance