getting healthy!

Well, I have been neglecting my blog for no reason other than I’ve been spending my time getting healthy. Well, at least I’m starting to get healthy. I knew I wasn’t the healthiest person, but I never realized how bad things really were until I changed my lifestyle 3 weeks ago and have seen amazing results.

Here’s my background (aka the old me):

I ate too many processed foods, refined carbohydrates and vending machine junk. I got in the horrible habit of buying a $0.60 vanilla cappuccino coffee from the vending machine every morning. [It was the yummy kind of coffee that you’d get at a gas station in the middle of the night to get you through a long drive.] For breakfast I’d have a banana, yogurt or oatmeal. Lunch was usually a sandwich from home or somewhere fast like Jimmy John’s, Potbelly or Chipotle. (all what I considered to be pretty healthy fast food!). For a 3:00 afternoon pick me up…I’d always visit my BFF, the vending machine. Coke Zero with Swedish Fish, Hershey with Almonds and Ruffles Cheesy Sour Cream and Onion chips were my favorites. Dinner usually meant eating out at one of Kevin and my favorite spots: Keystone, Indian Restaurants, Sushi Restaurants, Skyline…you get the idea. We eat at home a lot too and usually made pasta or turkey burgers with some salad on the side. I knew I wasn’t being as healthy as I could be, but I never really considered this lifestyle to be a major problem. I figured if I wasn’t ingesting too many calories, I was okay. My exercise is always walking…and taking a few walk breaks at work seemed to be enough walking for me!

I’ve started to take a closer look at my lifestyle, and I’ve realized how unhealthy I really am. Counting calories doesn’t really do anything if you are ingesting toxins all day!

Welcome the new Sarah:

I swapped out the vending machine coffee for the [occasional] coffee brewed at home, or more frequently, tea. This week I’m enjoying Trader Joe’s Organic Ginger and Pear White Tea. Its amazing and $1.99 for 20 bags of tea… I’m not a math person, but I’m pretty sure that’s cheaper than $0.60 a day. (I’m also not an idiot and know that’s a $0.50 savings or $120/year). I still have an organic banana for breakfast…or organic Greek yogurt or whole grain oatmeal. Lunch is now a salad or fruit salad with more fruit on the side. My afternoon pick me up no longer resides in the vending machine. It’s always fruit or protein (or both). I like apples or bananas with peanut butter or a handful of nuts: walnuts, cashews and almonds are my favorites. I've replaced any pop consumption with sparkling flavored water or tea. I’m working on cutting out caffeine completely. I picked up Organic Dark Chocolate from Trader Joes last night that is 73% pure cocoa. It is rich and yummy and filled will all the good stuff you only find in real cocoa and not the processed Hershey’s. Dinner is now chicken or whole grain organic pasta, and lots of salad and fruit, with the occasional whole grain sourdough slice on the side. I’m working on incorporating fish and other lean meats and still eat a lot of vegetarian dinners. I’m taking work walks (usually 2, 15 minute walks since that’s what my work encourages)…and I’m finally getting use out of my gym membership! I walk Bella about 2 miles every morning weather permitting, and do another 3-4 miles at the gym. Add that to the walking I was already doing it and it’s anywhere from 7-10 miles a day. I FEEL AMAZING.

This lifestyle change hasn’t been easy. I’ve searched for motivation to do this for years and I’ve also been trying to lose the same 15 pounds for years…only to lose some and gain it right back and then some. 

We all know the truth: diets don’t work, it takes a lifestyle change.

But WHY would anyone WANT to do that?

Well, I found the key and it's a spiritual thing for me. I realized that I deserve to feel great everyday and look good in the process. I ask God daily to give me the strength to go to the gym, to select healthy foods at the grocery store and then to actually eat them. I also thank God everyday that I have this amazing opportunity to be healthy. I’m thankful for the iPad challenge at my work as it really jumpstarted this transformation in me. I knew that an iPad itself wasn’t going to be enough motivation for me to get in shape, but it could be a part of something bigger. 

I’ve been reading and watching documentaries about healthy living. So far, I highly recommend Candace Cameron’s book Reshaping It All: Motivation for Physical and Spiritual Fitness and watching Food Matters as well as Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead. I’ve always loved food documentaries and while I always try to implement what I’ve learned, I never feel any healthier…until now.

I turned my wants and desires to live a healthier life over to God, and He delivered. I absolutely love the gym and look forward to going during my day (for the record, this has NEVER, EVER happened). I find myself craving healthy food and actually feel repulsed by the bad stuff. It’s almost too easy. 

I’ve been praying that Kevin will get on board with my new health plan and join me in the lifestyle change.  Two Sundays in a row he’s joined me walking. Once he got up early to walk Bella with me before church and this week, I had him in the gym, next to me on the treadmill. He’s never worked out before. 

I’m sharing this very long story for several reasons. I want to remember how awful it felt when I was filling my body with junk every day. More importantly I hope to motivate at least one person to seek out God with starting a lifestyle change. He really has made it easy on me.

The results: I’m about 11 pounds lighter than the most I’ve ever weighed. [I would like to lose about 10 more.] I used a belt notch today on the belt I’ve been wearing for over 2 years that I have never used before. I’m noticing little things like my rings are too big for my fingers (I had to stop wearing them because they kept falling off!) and I realized my calf felt “hard” while shaving the other day…umm is that muscle?! I am more productive and alert at work. I am more confident in everything I do. I feel better than ever and I must look better too as I’m getting a lot of compliments lately! 

I know for a fact that I only look better on the outside as a result of what’s going on in the inside.

I’m using the pure food that God intended for me to eat to nourish my body and I’m keeping the man-made toxins out. “They” (whoever they is!) say it’s takes 21 days to change a habit/form a new one and I’ve reached that mark and I feel great! 

Here's to a life-long journey of health. Cheers! 

p.s. don't think for a second that I've given up all the junk: I just frequent the fast food (Jimmy John's, Chipotle) and dinner's out (Indian food, Skyline) A LOT LESS. And when I do go to these places, I order less and eat less. I do hope to eventually cut those out all together, but this is America people, it's going to take some time.