Tag Archive for 5 things

5 Things I Do Everyday to Stay Healthy

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Staying healthy in an unhealthy world can be really, really tough.

Are you surprised that I called the world unhealthy?

Obviously, not the whole world is unhealthy, but there sure is an abundance of it.

In the U.S. alone:

 

  • 68.5% of adults are overweight or obese; 34.9% are obese.
  • 31.8% of children and adolescents are overweight or obese; 16.9% are obese.

(Source: www.frac.org)

Personally, I think one of the toughest ways to get around this is the temptation that is literally EVERYWHERE.

I’m healthy, but I’m also human. Do you think that just because I’m a fitness professional that I don’t get tempted by all of the marketing ploys that surround me at the grocery store? Of course they do!

It’s tough, man. You head to the store with a healthy mindset of the fresh fruits, vegetables, and lean meats that you’re going to buy when BAM, there’s a bag of chips in your face and oh, how bout those cookies to your left? Don’t look to the right…it’s ICE CREAM!

I’d be lying if I said I never gave in. I do give in sometimes (which is totally fine)….but I wish it wasn’t even there! I want to make that decision WITHOUT it being shoved in my face.

In any sense, the crap food IS there and in our faces, and it’s there to stay. That isn’t necessarily a bad thing either, as long as you can practice moderation. I personally love ice cream, chips, and cookies and eat all of them. Just not very often.

So in a world that seems to be closing in on us with all kinds of unhealthy foods, how do we stay healthy day in and day out?

5 Things I Do EVERY DAY to Stay Healthy

1. Drink Water. I know you’re probably sick of hearing this, but seriously. If you’re going to do nothing else that day to be healthy, drink some water. Or even a lot of water.

2. Sneak in some fruit and vegetables. Even if you’re going to have a bunch of crappy foods, sneak in some fruits and vegetables beforehand. It can help you stay a bit fuller so you don’t eat as much crap and it gives you boost of antioxidants and vitamins. (Plus, they’re delicious!!)

3. Walk. I workout most days, and still try to walk places when it’s possible and I have the time. Sometimes I drive places that are definitely walkable, but if I’m having a lazier day, I always opt for some type of walk. I’ll go walk to the coffee shop, or to the Co-Op. If there’s nothing close-by, I’ll just walk around outside to get my legs moving a bit. Even if you plan on sitting around all day, find 15 minutes to just take a walk.

4. Eat a healthy breakfast. I’ve learned over the years that whatever I have for breakfast sets the tone for the day. For example, if I eat something sugary for breakfast, I feel lethargic and gross. That spirals me into just feeling meh, and most likely, my food and exercise choices for the day will follow that. If I eat a healthy breakfast, I know that my chances of a healthy day are that much greater. I can honestly say, I haven’t had an unhealthy breakfast in over a year. (Just a personal choice.) Do I think it’s bad to have an unhealthy breakfast here and there? Of course not, but I do know that I can always have an unhealthy breakfast for dinner if I still want it. (Breakfast for dinner is the BOMB anyways!) I’d rather start my day out with good foods that will likely set me up for a better day. I highly encourage you to try testing this theory out to see how it affects your choices for the rest of the day.

5. Don’t take the day too seriously. If I’m having a lazy day where I don’t exercise much and I’m eating less than stellar foods, I don’t sweat it too much. There was a time where I would internally beat myself up so badly for not eating well or not exercising. These days, I remind myself that one meal or one day of unhealthy eating isn’t going to ruin anything. As long as I consistently eat well and exercise, I’ll be on a good path.

Question of the Day

What are some things you do every day to stay healthy?

 

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5 Things I Will Probably Regret Admitting

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Today has been the most boring Monday in history. Not boring in the sense that there was nothing to do, but boring in the sense that it was very routine and blah. I don’t like routine. I like unroutine. I also like making up new words.

I got up feeling like I could stay in bed for another 2 hours, but I decided not to be a loser and to get my butt to work. I worked for about 3 hours and called it quits. I debated on going home and coming back to workout, but had a feeling if I went home I’d never come back. To the treadmill I went…..

WORKOUT

babyworkout

Today’s workout was just cardio. I put my legs through the ringer the past few days and my upper body is sore from yesterday’s workout as well. I did 30 minutes on the treadmill (8.0-12.0 incline, 3.3-3.5mph) and finished with 15 minutes on the “moon machine”. I call it that because when I’m on it I feel like I’m walking on the moon. Since I know what that would feel like.

RANDOM

Since today was so mundane, I figured I’d spice it up with 5 things you may not know about me. There are no rules to this game except that if I don’t think twice before typing it, it’s not good enough to make the list. Here goes..

1 I once lied about having a dog. No, I wasn’t 5 years old, I was 19. It was an accident, but by the time I realized what was going on, I couldn’t turn back. Let me explain….

My dog had died about 3 months prior to this conversation. This person we shall call “John” had been talking to me about his dog quite a bit. I may or may not have had a crush on John and started talking about funny things that my previous dog did. (At this point, it could have been a current or former dog, I hadn’t clarified either direction.) He then told me that we should take our dogs to the dog park together and for some reason I just blurted out “Yeah that would be fun!” I think I was just nervous and I said it before I had a chance to think. I felt like an idiot, and it was too late to say “Oh wait, I mean my dog is dead!” So, for the next week, I had to pretend that I had a dog whenever I was asked about it. Finally, I came in one day and told him that my dog had gotten hit by a car a few days before. It was a lie, it had happened about 3-4 months prior, but I didn’t know what else to do. 

2In kindergarten I peed my pants on the playground and tried to blame it on the water fountain exploding on me. The water fountain DID explode on me….internally…

3 When I was a little kid (2nd grade maybe?) our cousin was staying with us for the summer while he interned at a company in Phoenix.  I would literally bug him day and night and go in his room when he wasn’t home messing with his stuff. He had a scanner, so obviously I needed to scan every part of my body and every object in the entire house. I think I was just excited to have someone new around, but at 19 years old, I don’t think he was all that amused with me. Or at least not 24/7. I can’t remember if he got mad at me or just started ignoring me, but one day I got mad that he wasn’t paying attention to me and I took the keys to his rental car and threw them in the dumpster. I denied ever seeing them and eventually, he had to get a locksmith out to make new keys. I never admitted this to anyone until I was in college. Mike, if you’re reading this, SORRY!! 🙂

4 Continuing with my angelic childhood, my sister used to babysit a lot and actually made pretty decent money for someone her age. She kept it in a piggy bank in her bedroom. It was weird, because every few weeks a few hundred dollars would go missing and that exact amount would end up in my wallet. It was a strange phenomenon that never quite got explained…..;-)


5-2 Banana peels don’t get you high. Don’t ask me how I know that, or why I learned that at age 14. 

banana peel

So now that I’ve admitted that I was the devil’s child and also quite gullible, what is one thing you will probably regret admitting? Leave a comment! 

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