Tag Archives: Health

Who Are You?

Life 1 Comment

Do you ever get tired of people telling you how you should be as a person? 

I remember having issues with friends in high school. I took my early teenage struggles to a close friend of my aunt’s who told me, “Well, you do like to talk about yourself far too much and you make everything about you so they don’t want to be your friend.” I took it as constructive criticism and went to work correcting my ways. 

Years later, as an early 20′s something, I ran into another issue with friends who accused me of all sorts of things wrong with me. Again, hurt as I was, I used the information given to better myself. 

Now, somehow throughout my whole life, I’ve always thought myself to be ugly and fat, even when I was skinny I felt fat. And I grew up with the thought-process that my life would be so much better if I could just lose weight. 

Then I got married. And my emotionally abusive husband spent ten years telling me all I can do to be a better wife. Being a loving wife, I took that information and did the very best I could to reshape, remold and remake myself into the woman he wanted. I even subjected myself to suggestions from him on how I can be better, both in bed and out, based on his experiences with other women. 

This lead to endless meetings with various people in the Christian world – some had wisdom; some didn’t. Nevertheless, it all pointed to one fact: There was something always wrong with me and never with the people around me. It was all me. This is a rule-of-thumb I lived with during my marriage, also. 

Divorce hits the self-esteem in funny ways. To me, it affirmed all my negative beliefs about myself. It confirmed I was ugly. It confirmed my life would fall apart by getting fat. It confirmed how undesirable I was and how little investment even Christian people wanted to put into me. 

So I picked myself back up from the dust of all this and became…..myself. Not the prettiest but not the ugliest. Not obese but not skinny. Not really anything but wanting to be everything. 

Over the last seven years, my self-esteem has continued to take hit after hit due to various people giving me “constructive criticism”. Yet one common theme threads through my life: Not once did any of these people ever come to me and tell me they were also hopelessly flawed and working on themselves. Not once, did any of them take accountability for who THEY are while telling me who I should be. Not once did I ever tell them who I think they should be. Not once. 

Perhaps, this is why I’m so severely protective over others trying to do the same to my children. People try to take issue with Shelby’s hair being different colors. But you know what? That’s WHO she is! And thankfully, she’s not apologizing to anyone for it. Emilie is a mini-me so I’m working on her being her own person and not having to apologize for that either. 

There really are reasons why I don’t search for friendship outside of my family. And it’s a shame because I’m a great girl!!

How Heavy is Your Grudge?

Life, Philosophy 7 Comments
Forgiveness lesson from flowers

Forgiveness lesson from flowers (Photo credit: juliejordanscott)

 

All around me I hear it. “Do you remember when so and so did this?” “I remember when, two years ago, so and so said this to me!” 

It seems the older we get, the more “stuff” we feel we have to carry. By “stuff” I mean negativity, specifically those related to grudges or past wrongs. A while ago, I was having coffee with a friend of mine and relaying a story of extreme embarrassment, something I did to her. Although I had asked her forgiveness (and received it) at the time, I never forgot or forgave myself. So imagine my surprise, upon remembering it again, when she said, “When did that happen? I have no memory of that!” 

She had done what I had not. She forgave to the degree of forgetting. I still held that grudge against myself. And even though, I’ve forgiven myself, there are times when I look back on that event and cringe. 

Holding grudges is not anything new. We do it all the time. We hear people say, “I’ll forgive but I’ll not forget.” Actually, we should be saying, “I’ll forgive and I’ll learn a valuable lesson from this.” It takes effort to remember especially when remembrance often brings with it all those hurtful feelings we felt at the time. I can be perfectly content one minute and the next, by way of remembering the emotional abuse I suffered in my marriage, be totally upset and angry. Out of that rage stemming from events seven years old now, I’ll write something in my Facebook, or on Twitter – something hateful – because, you know, misery loves company. I really don’t want to let go of that anger; I just want others to feel it with me. 

When all is said and done, where does that leave me? Have I gained anything? No. Have I solved anything? No. I fight all over again to get back to my place of peace and contentment. Admittedly, in a divorce situation where children are involved, it’s easy to do this over and over and over again. But then what happens? Am I content to transfer any unresolved feelings to my children? Or is my grudge so heavy that I just need them to bear it with me? I can tell you it’s never, ever fair to ask anyone to help you carry a grudge when you simply need to lay it down. 

Of course, the most obvious problem of carrying a grudge is often the other person either doesn’t know or no longer cares about the event. They are content while you are miserable. Thus, not only are you carrying your grudge against them but now you have the added burden of being angry because they don’t recognize your grudge. And so the grudge keeps gaining momentum as it rolls downhill taking you with it. 

Because there are so many around me who love to bear their grudges and often want me to help carry them, I’ve begun the habit of asking people, “And how long ago did this happen?” I’m laying down my grudges. One by one, I cannot bear them any longer. I am resolved to be content and no one can or will disturb that without my permission. It’s true people may not change. It’s also true I cannot change people. However, I can change how I react them. I can determine what values I’ve learned. And I can resolve to forgive.

Understand two things about forgiveness. The first is it’s a process. Some days, you will need to remind yourself to remain in an attitude of forgiveness. The second is it doesn’t make what someone did you right. It doesn’t justify it at all. But it does release you from the pain and anguish. Trust me, every time I do this, I breathe a little easier! It’s so worth it! 

So, are you ready to shed a little emotional weight?

 

Ten Fitness Apps

Food, Health and Fitness 1 Comment

I found this on The Healthy Cook.  These apps are really helpful!

1. Fitocracy

Track your physical activities (anything from weightlifting to jogging to power gardening) and view your progress with Fitocracy’s performance graphs. Your activities will earn points that unlock badges and “level up”s. Invite your friends or join a Fitocracy group of like-minded people (like joggers, weightlifters, etc.) to build your network. Like a little friendly competition? Fitness challenges abound on Fitocracy.

2. Fooducate. 

Fooducate is a personal grocery advisor, helping people make healthy food choices for their families.It lets shoppers scan a product bar code in the grocery store for an instant read on a food’s health value, represented by a letter grade from A to D. Once a food has been scanned and recognized, the app offers healthier alternatives or can compare two products side-by-side. This free app is worth having.

3. Healthy Out

Healthy Out is an app that helps users find dishes and restaurants that’s on your diet. All you do is put in your diet(weight watchers, paleo, low carb, vegan, etc) and type of cuisine/dish you want, then voila! It comes up with a result that’s nearby! It’s very useful if your on the road and want something as close to healthy you can get.

4. Whole Foods Market Recipes

Whole Foods Market is an American chain at the forefront of the organic movement and its collection of recipes will never leave you short of inspiration. The smartest element of this app is how many ways you can search the database. For example, you can input meal type, dietary restrictions or better yet, just whatever ingredients you have in the cupboard, and a recipe will be instantly suggested. Genius. While Whole Foods Market is yet to open in Australia, this colourful and informative app is the next best thing.

5. Superfood HD

Form meets function in this beautiful app, which guides you through the best in antioxidant-packed, vitamin-rich ingredients. With an emphasis on raw foods, it is like having a personal nutritionist in your handbag. You’ll never eat the same way again.

6. Pocket Yoga HD

Three practices, three difficulty levels and three durations combine to offer a choice of 27 individual sessions. All sessions feature illustrated examples of the 145 poses in the program, a log to track your progress and updates with new poses.

7. Meal snap.

Don’t know how many calories is in your dish or meal? Simply take a picture of your food/dish and Meal Snap will tell you how many calories it is! It’s that simple!

8. Burn it.

Ate something you weren’t suppose to? With the app Burn It, you put in the food you ate and what exercise you want to do and the app tells you how long you have to workout to burn it off.

9. My Fitness Pal

I take this everywhere I go. This app is one of the best apps to track your calories, water intake, and exercises! Has over thousands of foods/dishes you can choose from in their database!

10. Simply Being: Guided Meditation for Relaxation and Presence

Stillness of mind is one of the key secrets to healthy living and this elegant application will not only help you begin meditation but guide you along the way as you become more advanced. It features clear directions, tranquil backgrounds and a choice of session lengths, and meditators are offered an impressive array of options and great value. Hailed by The New York Times and Yoga Journal, it is one of the standouts in an ever growing category. Tune in and tune out.

So far, I’ve only used a Fooducate and My Fitness Pal but I’m looking forward to trying the rest. Try a few and drop me a line telling me how you like it!

 

I Love Me Some Leslie Sansone

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Hey you all!!!! How’s everyone?

So today, I wanted to give a little fitness tip about a girl whose videos I love!!

http://www.walkathome.com/

I started walking at home to Leslie basically because I love that little tracker that moves across the bottom of your TV screen telling you how far you’ve walked. Then I realized, that in just an hour, I can walk five miles without ever leaving my bedroom! For someone like me, who is seriously self-conscious about herself, this is amazing!

Now, I admit, I’ve not been nearly as consistent as I need to see the results I want to see. However, I did start doing her Walk and Jog DVD just before doing a 4-mile walk for Diabetes. What a difference. I managed to do the walk with ease and in just under an hour. Now, I want to get back to it so I can get this weight off and go running.

She has other DVDs also, such as her Walking Down Blood Sugar and The Heart Healthy Walk. I love the fun way she talks you through each workout as well as the ease of her movements. There is always someone demonstrating a more moderate version of her movements for beginners.

Most of  her DVDs are under an hour and quite enjoyable. She has some Pilates dvds in her collection also.

So now that I’ve sounded like an infomercial, I hope this is useful. I’m going to go workout now!

 

 

Develop A Drinking Habit

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weight loss resort - Morning Beach Walk

(Photo credit: ninahale)

 

…of water!

 

We’ve all heard these tips. But I thought this would be a good reminder.

 

http://healthcave.com/17-health-benefits-of-drinking-water/

 

So eat right, drink up and be healthy!

 

By the way, I’ve lost a total of 10 pounds on my weight loss journey. I confess while the food part has come more easily than I thought, the exercise part is proving to be much harder. I’m not a morning person so I really hate the idea of getting up extra early to workout. However, by the time I come home, eat dinner and do the few chores there are to do, I’m just too drained.

 

I must do something, though. Any suggestions, readers?

 

 

 

Photo Friday!

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My babies!

Emilie, myself and Shelby

 

I’m going to try not too hard to gush about these two people. 

Fifteen years ago, my life was changed irrevocably by the birth of my daughter, Shelby. One year later, Emilie came along. Since then, my life has changed from being a self-centered, fashion-plate interested in little more than food, fashion and fun to being the center of the world for two small babies. My days have been spent creating their world, watching that world collapse and reconstructing it, brick by brick. 

I’ve not slept correctly since their arrival. I’ve not bought anything for myself before making sure their needs and wants have been satisfied. I’ve become bent on maturing and bettering myself for their sake, working to become a role model for them to follow. Not one thought for my future has not included them. I’ve cried myself to sleep out of joy for their love and friendship and I’ve cried myself to sleep heartbroken over what I cannot protect from. I’ve laughed until tears ran for the goofy, silly things they do and say and I’ve struggled to fill their every moment with entertainment. 

I’ve been not just a woman, but a mother, educator, nurse, actress, protector, provider, minister, friend, comforter, counselor, multi-tasker extraordinaire, and so much more! 

Shelby asked me not too long ago if I had it to do all over again, would I do anything differently? My answer was a resounding yes! Yes, I would suffer all the hell and abuse of my marriage if only to be able to emerge once more with these two precious, precious people in my life. They are worth more than I can say and since their birth, the world has been a much brighter place.

 

Why Try To Make Bad Foods Good?

Food, Health and Fitness, Humor, Shopping Leave a comment

Boxes of the two most popular Girl Scout cooki...

 

I came across this article the other day…http://shine.yahoo.com/shine-food/futuristic-girl-scouts-cookie-causes-controversy-231700533.html.

 

HEY READERS!! GUESS WHAT TIME IT IS??? IT’S GIRL SCOUT COOKIE TIME! 

Time to order all your favorites! Mine are Thin Mints, Shortbread and Peanut Butter. It’s expensive at $4.00 per box but it’s only once a year and if you freeze them, they last for a while and then it seems worth the money. However, reading this article, now they’re trying to make them healthier? 

As an overweight woman working to eat healthier and be more active, I have to state this: LEAVE THE COOKIES ALONE! In fact, leave all food alone! Food is not the enemy of the obese. Too much food is what can caught obesity. There’s nothing wrong with having a cookie. Eating the whole package, however, can be a problem. Folks, when are we going to get it through our heads that bastardizing our food is not going to make it better. In fact, it makes it worse. 

Take it from one who knows. Give the old me a can of Pringles and I’ll eat some of them. Put a label on them that says “reduced fat” and guess what? Now, I’m eating the whole can? Re-processing our food to make it lower in salt and lower in fat doesn’t always lead to lower in weight. It’s a matter of the mind. And it’s a matter of lifestyle. 

I remember last year being really frustrated with my sister (who doesn’t even know I was upset) because everything we bought in our house was processed. I argued that it was low fat, low sodium, low this, and low that. She argued back it doesn’t matter. Processing is still processing. It’s all I can afford, I argued. Yet, I’m somehow affording prescription drugs for my mom (thank God for Medicare). I was pretty upset to the point of not wanting to talk about food. I gained weight last year and my mom’s blood sugar numbers were not good. 

This year, we’ve made a choice to go healthy and to make healthy a lifestyle. I now know what my sister was talking about. The more I buy fresh foods and enjoy the flavor of them, the more I dislike anything processed. And somehow, we’re affording fresher, healthy foods because we’re not busy buying processed. Our portions are also being brought into line. That’s why Weight Watchers works so well. It’s all about portions. 

So what does this have to do with Girl Scout cookies, you may ask? 

Plenty, in light of this article. We’re now spending more money and causing food costs to rise because we want to make everything we want to eat, everything that’s on the naughty list, good for us. We’re over-processing. But it’s not good and it’s not good for us. What is good is treating yourself. Treat yourself to two cookies instead of twenty. In our house, we have one treat a week and I indulge. And not only am I losing weight but my mom’s blood sugar numbers are fabulous and stable. It’s all about how much – not what you eat that matters. I know I sound preachy so I’ll step off my soapbox. But one more thing before I go…..as a former Girl Scout….

LEAVE MY COOKIES ALONE!!!!!
 

 

I Don’t Understand…..

Family, Life Leave a comment

I don’t understand: 

  1. Christians who don’t act in a loving way
  2. Women who openly discuss personal bodily functions in the workplace
  3. People who speak nasty about their spouses in public
  4. Why people are so scared to discipline their children
  5. Why we must medicate our kids instead of correct them
  6. Why is it ok for our young pre-teen daughters and teen daughters to dress like they’re 10cents a dance
  7. Why do we think it’s cute when they do? 
  8. Why do we glamorize tv shows like “16 and Pregnant” when we should glamorize “18 and Graduating High School” 
  9. Why do we take the ridiculous and glamorize it on tv and then wonder what is wrong with our kids? 
  10. Why do we allow music to be pornographic? 
  11. Since when is it acceptable to show sex and nudity on prime time tv? 
  12. Regarding 10 and 11, why do we still continue to act like the decline of our young people is their fault? 
  13. Why do we look to Hollywood to define marriage for us?
  14. Since when did marriage become so disposable? 
  15. At what point did we forget how sacred a promise is? 
  16. Since when did parents decide it’s ok to allow temporary disobedience? 
  17. Since when is it ok to drug our kids into a zombie-like state then preach our schools as a drug-free zone? 
  18. How is it possible to have a government who preaches gun control yet gives more rights to those in prison than we, paying tax-payers, have? 
  19. When did we become to entitled that no one wants to work for anything anymore? 
  20. How will this generation ever lead the one after it? 

Words of Wisdom Concerning Weight Loss

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I found this on Pinterest and it’s so very true!

“Is the decision or suggestion to lose weight really about health? Consider weight-loss attempts for what they really are: efforts to protect against weight-based discrimination. The fact is, fear and loathing of fat are real, and American attitudes about fat may be more dangerous to public health than obesity itself. Yale researchers have shown that weight discrimination in the United States is now comparable in prevalence to rates of reported racial discrimination, especially among women.”