Diet and exercise are something I am always plagued with. I am 100% Polish, and I love food! I come from a long line of fabulous cooks, which does not help matters! I am not one of those people who have been blessed with a size 4 waste. I have struggled with my weight my entire life, and I still struggle today. The craziness of life does not help matter either. Bouncing from work to school, and teaching and work, make it so easy for me to swing through a drive thru and grab a burger. I know that this is not a healthy way of living, but it is easy. Sometimes easy takes over healthy. However, I always find myself feeling guilty or beating myself for choosing easy over healthy. Not only does my body feel sluggish, and lifeless, I carry around guilt in my head/brain, that weighs more than a double cheeseburger!
I am finding that I need to balance my diet and exercise, and make it part of my daily life style. Again, this falls into the balance of life, that I spoke about earlier. We know it is so much easier to eat on the run, but the true joy of food, is being able to savor it. To chew it, to taste it, to break bread with our loved one's. In addition to healthier eating, I have found that incorporating a little exercise into my week is great. On my days off, I've made it a habit to wake up early, and go for a 30 to 45 minute walk. This is one of the best times of my day. Because it is early when I walk, the majority of the world is still asleep. The sky is blue, the birds are chirping, the sun is shining, but the hustle and bustle of every day life has not yet begun. I tend to spend a good deal of my walking time thinking about my life, and planning my day/week ahead. I find myself being thankful for the opportunity of peace and quiet, and I feel like I am stealing a little piece of the world before anyone or anything can stress me out for the day. While healthy eating and exercise is not something that is easy for me to incorporate each and every day, I feel very lucky, and more balanced to be able to incorporate these traits a few days a week.
Today's activity: feeling healthier
Today I encourage you to eat a bit healthier, and exercise a bit. I am not saying live on salad, and run a marathon on a treadmill...rather, I am talking baby steps! I am talking about being aware of every morsel of food that you put in your mouth. I am talking about leaving the cheese off of your burger, and just go for the burger. Chances are you wont even notice the missing cheese! I am also talking about drinking water, rather than that second or third cup of coffee. I went caffeine free a few months ago. I never thought I would enjoy water as much as I do. Now, I wake up in the morning and crave water. And let me tell you, I am a girl who woke up and had a cup of tea, followed by a Diet Coke, before I even got to work! In addition to making one healthy eating choice today, I encourage a little exercise. Again, I am not talking about going crazy, just a little physical activity. Perhaps you park at the end of the parking lot and walk to the entrance, rather than staking out the first parking spot. Or perhaps you walk the flight of stairs rather than take the elevator.
Again, it's all about baby steps. My taking these baby steps, I am sure, I guarantee, you will feel a million times better!
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