+Salt = Big Time Poof

 

I’m feelin’ very poofy lately.

Blah.

I think I know why though….

First off, It’s been almost 2 weeks since I started my little healthy challenge and I still haven’t had any treats!  Wahoo!

I’m very happy about that.  If any of you know me personally, you know that is nothing short of miraculous!

HOWEVER, although I’ve been abstaining from treats, we’ve been eating out a TON this week!  We usually go out to eat about once a week AND I usually try to choose healthy items when we do.

Sadly, we’ve gone out to eat about 4-5 times this week!  I haven’t been too stellar in my food choices either.  I think because I’m depriving myself of treats, I’ve been letting myself indulge a little in other areas.

Really dumb, I know.

However, it hasn’t come without a price!

I am so stinkin’ huge and bloated this week!  It isn’t pretty.

I know it’s because I’ve ingested SO MUCH SALT!  Auuughh.  My body is sayin’ “what the heck!!???”

It’s pretty pathetic.  In fact, last night I looked down at my legs and feet and they were so giant.  It’s very sad.

Sooooo, I’ve been trying to improve and leave out the salt.  Salt might seem like a minor thing, but it is not!  If you significantly reduce your sodium intake, you WILL notice it on the scale.

Give it a try….you’ll see.

Don’t add any salt to your food, try to limit processed foods and choose healthy, light choices when going out to eat.

It makes such a difference.  Very hard to do, but the payoff is pretty big.

I’ve learned this lesson very well this week. 😉

Aside from all the cruddy restaurant fare, I have been eating fairly healthy at home….

Here are some pics…

Breakfast. Totally boring, I know. I have this breakfast about 50% of the time. I really love it though. 2 egg whites + 1 egg with peppers, onions and spinach topped with salsa. 1/3 C. Oatmeal mixed with 1/2 scoop vanilla protein sprinkled with cinnamon and topped with strawberries.

I made the Cheesecake Factory Pear and Feta flatbread thingys again. I really really love them. I didn't have any arugula, so I just used spinach and it was rather tasty! I made it for lunch one day and made extra so I could have it for lunch the next day too! Love it....and so filling!

I've had a couple of these yummy things lately! Healthy Cake in a Cup topped with strawberries, bananas and vanilla Chobani yogurt. YUM!

I made this for dinner one night...grilled chicken, sweet potatoes and salad. I had the leftovers for lunch the next day too!

This is a very typical snack for me lately. Protein shake and Kashi crackers dipped in lite cottage cheese! Love it! I especially love it with a side of Runner's World (special Trail edition!)

Bananas with peanut butter! I love this snack and enjoy it a lot pre or post workout. Perfect.

Well, there ya go.

I’m going to significantly shape up my diet this week in hopes that my body with deflate soon.  It’s tough to be patient especially when I’m doing so well in the sugar area.

It is SO tough!

Live and learn I guess.  I seem to have to “learn” a LOT!

Till next time!

xoxo

 

10 Small, yet Significant Things you can do to Improve your Health!

Losing weight is tough.

Maintaining a healthy diet requires hard work every single day!!

Exercising regularly takes a ton of time, effort, discipline and motivation!

Dang.

***************

It is easy to get discouraged and overwhelmed when it comes to improving our health.

But, just because it’s hard doesn’t mean we should avoid it.

There are a ton of small, yet very significant things we can do EVERY single day.

You may already be doing a lot of these things, but here’s a list I came up with:

1. Drink buckets and buckets of water!  It is so good for your body and such a simple thing to do.  If you don’t like water, try to drink a little more every day.  Eventually your body will crave it.  I promise…really.
2. Eat more fruits and veggies!  Try to eat at least 5 servings every day.  The more, the better.  Chop and prepare things ahead of time so you will be more likely to eat them!
3. Healthify your food choices!  When eating/purchasing food, choose the healthiest option available.  Here are some examples:  Drink lite milk (skim, rice, soy, almond, etc.)  Only use lite or fat free sour cream/cottage cheese/mayo, etc.  Eat only healthy breads (100% whole wheat, spelt, Ezekiel, etc.)  Use natural peanut butter. Purchase low sugar varieties of jams, syrups, yogurts, etc.
4. Control your portions!  When you eat a meal, portion out your food and then don’t go back for more!  Even if you still feel hungry….just wait.  It takes a while (usually about 20 minutes) before your stomach communicates to your brain that you are full.
5. Reduce your salt intake.  Salt causes us to retain water and hang onto extra weight.  It can also cause high blood pressure and wreak havoc on your heart and body.  When purchasing food, look for low sodium options.  Also, try not to use a salt shaker on your food at all.  Your body will learn to adjust to the taste of less salt and it will thank you for it!
6. Get 7-9 hours of sleep every night.  This one is tough and I’m definitely not a good example of it!  However, our bodies need sleep to repair, renew and refresh our bodies.  When we are sleep deprived, we aren’t as productive, we don’t feel like exercising and we tend to eat more convenient and comforting (i.e. bad) foods.
7. Pack food/snacks with you.  When hunger strikes, having a healthy snack on hand will insure that you always have something good to eat!  Pack things like nuts, string cheese, protein bars, fruit, veggies, etc.  You can bring a little insulated lunchbox or cooler with you to keep things cold too.
8. Exercise!  This is a no-brainer, but it is so vital to our physical and mental health!  Even if you just workout for a half hour a few times a week, you will benefit a ton from it!  If you are short on time, exercise 15 minutes in the morning and 15 in the evening.  Take a walk on your lunch break or after dinner.  Lift weights and do pushups, squats and lunges while watching TV.  Whatever works….just make it happen.
9. Keep a food journal.  This is a hard one for me to do consistently, but studies have shown it is very effective in helping people to lose weight.  Keep a small notebook with you or record your food intake online.  There are a number of websites out there that let you track your food intake and provide information about calories, fat, fiber, protein and sugar content as well.  I used the Daily Plate on Livestrong.com for a while and it was very helpful and informative.
10. Avoid processed and refined food as much a possible!  Always read labels and purchase food items with the shortest ingredients list.  Don’t buy food containing High Fructose Corn Syrup, hydrogenated oils, MSG, trans fats or sodium nitrates/nitrites.  You don’t need to be gestapo about it, but just try to consume the most “real” and minimally processed foods as possible.

Well, there is my little list.

There are so many other things we can do as well!

As we commit to small, healthy changes in our lives, they will eventually become habits!

Yay!

We can all become natural little health nuts!

Fun!  😉