It's All Related

Yesterday in one of my classes, the professor was talking about cause-effect relationships. To provide an example, he talked about how what we eat and put into our bodies effects factors we may not even realize. He said he can really notice a difference in his two kids in their school performance, their attitudes and their energy levels based on what they ate for dinner.

One thing I'm starting to realize is just how in tune our bodies are with everything. It really is affected by everything. This week, for example, I ate a healthy breakfast and lunch Monday through Wednesday, and my mood steadily improved. Then yesterday and today my lunch wasn't so healthy, and I can sense the difference. It's not a substantial difference, but it doesn't go unnoticed.

This only furthers our need to eat right and really monitor what we do to our bodies (not exercising, not sleeping enough, stressing) and what we put into our bodies (cookies, pop, alcohol, large amounts of carbs). Sometimes it's just frustrating to know that what you do to your body reflects in everything else, and you either realize it too late, or you notice it, but don't make it a priority to change.

Not that I should be getting on soapbox. Things are always easier said than done. But I just thought that was something worth noting. Any experiences you have had? Do you notice a difference as well, or is it just in my head?

Stress It Is

Today I realized once and for all that it's stress that screws up my healthy lifestyle.

This morning started out good. We don't publish a paper on campus this week and I'm ahead in work hours, so my Monday and Tuesday are pretty free. That never happens. I was feel really good about life and the amount of time I would have to get some homework done.

For breakfast I had a bowl of cereal and glass of 100% orange juice. For lunch, I had a salad with light dresses and three pieces of celery. I even drank a liter of water - no pop! Even for dinner I just had some rice and cottage cheese. Nothing too big. I was feeling good about my diet for the first time in weeks.

Then comes the stress. All the sudden there's drama I have to deal with, an assignment I don't understand and my to-do list nearly doubled. And now I can't stay away from the sunflower seeds or vanilla covered holiday pretzels. It's absolutely ridiculous. As if I'm not stressed enough already, add the fact that I'm not eating well to it.

Why are we prone to emotional eating? What is it about stress that either drives us away from food or nudges us to the fridge every 20 minutes? Whatever it is, I don't like it.

Isn't it Ironic?

Well, we've made it through one holiday. I admit I ate more than I wanted to, but it's all about getting back on track.

Here's something that's been bogging my mind for a few days. Wednesday night, since it'd been awhile, I decided to step on the scale. I'd eaten somewhat poorly that day, and since it was nearly 10 p.m. at night I thought the number would just make me cringe.

But the weird part was that it was okay.

When I started the Eat Right Challenge at the end of July, I was X pounds (like I'm really going to disclose that - ha). I started really, but after my torn MCL and once I got back to school, it's like my diet plummeted. I haven't been feeling healthy, be it because of my lack of consistent exercise, imbalanced meals or insane amounts of Diet Coke. Perhaps it's a combination of all three - I just don't feel good about myself.

Anyway, I pretty much stayed around X for quite some time. Some days it'd be less (those are the good days) and then there would be days where I was above (those days make me want to start monitoring every calorie that goes into my body).

But here's the thing. When I stepped on the scale at 10 p.m. Wednesday night, I was four pounds less than my X weight. Two nights later, wondering how much I'd gained thanks to the holiday, I stepped on the scale at 7 p.m. and was X minus six. How weird is that?!

How does that work? How can I be less than my X weight but feel much, much less healthy? I'm starting to think that the number on the scale really has no meaning or value. I could exercise everyday and eat healthy day in and day out, and still be X. Or I could be as unhealthy as I currently am (mostly due to stress, I think) and be X minus five pounds.

It's a mystery to me.

Thanks for the Tips

I've been looking forward to Thanksgiving for longer than I can even admit to. It's a few days where I get a break from reality and it kicks off the holiday season. But I won't lie when I say Thanksgiving could be tough.

Typically I'm of the mindset that Thanksgiving only comes once a year, so why not splurge? The problem? Thanksgiving starts off the splurge that doesn't end until New Year's Eve when I undoubtedly make a resolution to drop some unwanted pounds.

So this year, I'm going to try harder to at least monitor how much I'm eating. It's interesting because what I eat tends to be fairly balanced. Turkey and eggs for protein, potatoes for carbs, cressant roles for grains, corn and green beans for vegetables. It seems pretty balanced. And yet the average person can eat around 2,000 calories. Ouch.

Thankfully I stumbled upon a 10 Tips for a Thinner Thanksgiving site that actually may help me and others hold themselves more accountable. Two things really got my attention. One, skip seconds. That tends to be a problem with me. I eat more just because I can, not because I'm hungry. Two, the site recommends that you don't eat things that you could eat any day of the year. This is a bit hard since Thanksgiving may not be complete without some of those items, but it does have a point.

Feel free to share your Thanksgiving and holiday dieting tips here. The American Cancer Society is about to launch it's Great American Health Challenges, so we're going to try our best to stay healthy this holiday season.

Owning Up

Yesterday on the way to one of my classes, there were a group of us catching up about news and gossip we'd heard over the long weekend. One girl mentioned that one of her friends was just getting over mono and had lost 15 pounds from it.

No joke, three of them immediately said, "I want to get mono!" One girl, who is getting married in December, promptly said, "Mono is the only way I'm going to look good in my wedding dress." She's probably a size four or six.

When did our vision get so tainted? I don't get it. Now we're hoping to get mono just to drop 15 pounds? You're willing to feel miserable and exhausted and unable to do anything just to lose 15 pounds? What happened to the good old fashioned way of eating right and exercising?

I'm the same way, so I can't really judge, but why are we always looking for easy answers? We all know that hard work pays off. You can get the high GPA or the great job or a stable relationship unless you really work at it. Why do we assume it should be different for losing weight?

A little hard work never hurt anyone. I know why I'm not seeing results and feeling healthy. And instead of sitting around just waiting for mono, I should be going to the gym on a more consistent basis and eating balanced meals.

Sometimes you just can't help but shake your head at all the silly comments people make about ways to lose weight.

Confession

Last night as I was trying to fall asleep, I was recapping my day. I always try to figure out where I could have minimized wasted time and when I could have been more productive. Mostly I wonder what I could have done to be healthier.

Then it dawned on me. I'm doing a terrible job of helping my readers (the few that I have left...). This is supposed to be the Great American Eat Right Challenge. When it launched in August/September, I was all set. I was ready to take on the world and really apply the things I'd learned through the website.

And it worked...for awhile. But soon enough I was back to my busy schedule and making excuses for not working out and not even cooking my own meals. What kind of example am I setting? Can I honestly say I'm making an honest attempt at leading a healthier life? Unfortunately, the answer is now.

I was looking back at some of my previous blog entries, and I was always searching for answers and ways to really change the way I viewed eating, dieting and lifestyles. It really hit me that the decisions I make today and tomorrow really do impact my future.

It's hard for me to say this - but what's going to be more important in 20 years? The exam I took or the health decisions I made. My guess is I won't be kicking myself in the butt if, just once in a while, I opted to workout or cook a healthy meal instead of study for an exam.

Who knows. But I do need to be a better advocate for waht I preach. It's one thing to complain and wish to be healthy. It's another to actually do it. It's time to put action behind my words.

A Step in the Right Direction

Last week (mostly because I didn't have any exams, papers or meetings, which is a very, very rare occurrence) I made dinner three times! One night it was goulash, another night it was tuna casserole and Thursday night was the best of all - light caesar salad with chicken tortellini casserole. Yummy!

What's tough about cooking dinner (at least what I found to be true for me) is that it either takes too much time or I don't have all the necessary ingredients. I was going through recipes on the food network, and half of them, while they looked appetizing, didn't sound very feasible for a college student on limited time and budget.

But this week I found myself looking at other friends' eating habits. Isn't it amazing how different people have different perceptions on food? One of my co-workers refuses to eat Cream of Chicken soup, and I love to pair it with rice and peas, or even noodles for hot dish. I mean, I eat that stuff on a weekly basis. But my co-worker swears that it's absolutely terrible for you. He never eats anything with too much fat, sodium or sugar. But how do you know when it's too much? Another one of my friends believes in the "everything is good in moderation" theory. Another friend just eats whatever and works out extra hard if he feels he ate like crap.

It's tough to find out what the best approach is for your own self. Mine varies, which probably isn't a good thing. One week I'll try to focus on eating natural and organic foods. The next I eat whatever as long as it's in moderation. One week I'll swear off pop, and the next I'll put pop back in but I'll take out anything with high fructose corn syrup.

I need to be more consistent with my diet.... and with exercising. I read in a magazine a few months back that even going 48 hours without working out can have harmful effects on your body. It's harder to get back to working out and you body starts to lose its muscle (at least according to this magazine). Being as I haven't worked out in two weeks, I could be facing a tough workout the next time I hit the gym - which will hopefully be this week.

How do you know what's best for you? Is it a combination? Are there any hard and fast rules that people should at least be aware of in terms of eating or exercise? And if there are, why don't we know about them??