Good Morning and Happy Wednesday. Isn't this Ash Wednesday? Looks like I had company with yesterday being a difficult day. I hope we all survived the little emotional setback and are once again ready to get on with the business of being healthy.
I won't even go in to all that made me eat and want to eat more yesterday. It's enough to say that I will eat with I am upset, just like any other good old addict may revert to their drug of choice when stressed. I have to recognize that it is an addiction and that I am reaching for my drug of choice before I am empowered to change the behavior. I also have to remember that I am NOT on a diet. I am simply eating healthy and when those pounds melt away, well it's just a wonderful fringe benefit. If I think of it as a "diet" that signifies to my brain that this is a short term situation. And if I can suffer through it, life will return to normal. No, brain, this is NOT the case. This is a forever situation and we are relearning habits that will keep us healthy! I must learn to change how I eat and make healthy choices become a habit.
Funny, when you start to think about it, eating is a pretty complex issue. We just pop things in our mouths and think it will all come out well in the end (no pun intended here). But that's not the case. What would happen if you put deisel in a gas engine or added oil in the gas when you aren't supposed to? What would happen if the gas was watered down too much or if there was debris in the gas tank? We used to have a minivan that would not run (literally leave you on the side of the road) if we put cheap gas in it. It had to have the premium stuff. And that was back when mere pennies meant a lot of difference to our budget. Oh, and it couldn't get below 1/4 tank of gas because there was something in the tank that would float up to the filter if you did and once again you would be by the side of the road. It just had to have the high octane gas, not that ethenol stuff. Then there was the old Ford LTD that, when you put the cheap stuff in it, would "PING" when going up hills. My Daddy said the engine was just "sluggish". Isn't that what happens to me when I eat sugar for breakfast, lunch, and dinner? I "ping" when I go up those hills and run "sluggish", can't wait for bedtime so I can rest my worn out body. And fatty foods and fast food- well, that just leaves me on the side of the road like I was running on Ethanol. And additives? That's like putting oil in the gas. Those chemical things we use to make our food taste "good", help kill our appetite, make us feel fuller........ yea, I'll say it again. We are ruining our engines!
Daddy always said that an engine is only as good as the fuel. HMMMM and he wasn't even trying to talk about food!
OK, SO I GOT IT! NOW LET'S GET BACK TO THE CHANGE!
Water: Let's drink at least 4 bottles (20 oz) per day. I used to label mine #1, #2, #3, #4 so I didn't get mixed up. It's easy to forget where you are in the drinking process if you are busy. That way, I didn't have to think about how much I had drank. When the bottles were empty, it was all good. I also kept a basket of crystal light packages of all different flavors for those times when I just couldn't drink another drop. I would reach into the basket and pull out the flavor of the day. My husband can't drink water straight up unless he is doing manual labor so I started keeping them around for him. Then the babies and I started drinking it a lot too. Overall, I just like that good old water. It flushes out all kinds of poisons in my system, fills me up, and kick starts my metabolism (like you said Glenna R). And research tells us that when we feel hunger pains, it is often dehydration. The body is telling you it's thirsty, not hungry and we are so used to eating that we don't know the difference.
I challenge you today to down those 4 bottles of water......... let's see if we can do it for a week. Starting today. Natalie, didn't you post something about what happens when you drink a soda? Can you post that again if you did?
Copied from a post by Dr. Mom: Great website. This is what happens within 60 minutes of drinking a soda.
ReplyDeleteI have to admit, as a former teacher, I used to cringe when I saw the amounts of soda my students could put away in a day. We may as well have installed a soda pop fountain instead of the water fountain. Later, as I worked with parents of infants, I almost choked on a bite of lunch one day to see a baby's bottle filled with Coke. Since that memorable day, I have met others who regularly purchase Pepsi for their tots and think nothing of it when they stock the fridge with Mt. Dew.
One thing I know for sure: soda in no way benefits your baby, your child (or you!)
According to the Nutrition Research Center, this is what happens to your body within 1 hour of drinking a can of soda:
-10 minutes: 10 teaspoons of sugar hit your system, which is 100 percent of your recommended daily intake. You'd normally vomit from such an intake, but the phosphoric acid cuts the flavor.
-20 minutes: Your blood sugar skyrockets. Your liver attempts to maximize insulin production in order to turn high levels of sugar into fat.
-40 minutes: As your body finishes absorbing the caffeine, your pupils dilate, your blood pressure rises, and your liver pumps more sugar into the bloodstream. Adenosine receptors in your brain are blocked preventing you from feeling how tired you may actually be.
-45 minutes: Your body increases dopamine production, causing you to feel pleasure and adding to the addictiveness of the beverage. This physical neuro response works the same way as it would if we were consuming heroin.
>60 minutes: The phosphoric acid binds calcium, magnesium and zinc in your lower intestine, which boosts your metabolism a bit further. High doses of sugar and artificial sweeteners compound this effect, increasing the urinary excretion of calcium. The caffeine’s diuretic properties come into play. (You have to GO!) Your body will eliminate the bonded calcium, magnesium and zinc that was otherwise heading to your bones. And you will also flush out the sodium, electrolytes and water. Your body has eliminated the water that was in the soda. And in the process it was infused with nutrients and minerals your body would have otherwise used to hydrate your system or build body cells, bones, teeth.
-60 minutes: The sugar crash begins. You may become irritable and/or sluggish. You start feeling like crap. Time to grab another?
MOTHER!!! Ash Wednesday is in February. Falls on the day right after Fat Tuesday. What the heck are you thinking? I'm embarassed for you.
ReplyDeleteOh don't be. I'm a forgetter as Joey says. Just ignore it and talk about watr. At least I got a response! lol :)
ReplyDeleteI will accept the water challenge, and I forgive you for the Ash Wednesday. I think this is Passover. I will try to post everyday how much I manage to drink. Hopefully I can make the 80oz. My two bottles at work are 24 oz, so I have to refill them by lunch. That will be my goal anyway. I love it that the company keeps us supplied with spring water for drinking.
ReplyDeleteThank you for reminding me that I am not on a diet. Honestly I hate that word. For this to work, it has to be a lifestyle change. My lifestyle needs a complete makeover. Ha!!
I am cringing at the soda post. I must give that to the girls at work. No wonder they always complain of feeling like crap. Soda is not a regular at our house. My daughter is rarely allowed to drink it.
I cheated for dinner tonight. I had to work 10 hours today so I didn't feel like cooking dinner. I had a southwest salad from MCD's. I got vinigerete dressing so hopefully that made it better for me. I am sure that grilled chicken was loaded with sodium. Yeah, I just looked, 320 calories and 960 g of sodium. I guess I could have done worse. I figure my menu will be pretty shabby for the next several work days. I will be working 10 hour days for a while. Yuck, but $$$.
Thirst isn't on the bottom run of Maslow's hierarchy for nothing. You can even go a month or longer without food (I know, it doesn't seem possible!) but try to go without water and you're a goner within a few days. Water makes everything in our body run more efficiently. It makes you feel good, and it literally makes you look good...hydrated skin is blemish-free and supple. Additionally, medical science shows that our mechanisms that signal hunger often get that confused with thirst. Next time you think you're hungry, drink about 8 ounces of water and see if that does that trick.
ReplyDeleteThat being said, I must ask you to keep the environment in mind. using a new plastic bottle every time you drink water is not only very environmentally un-friendly, but the plastics in the bottle aren't that good for you anyway. A good option is to fill and re-use your own container. I like metal water bottles. They keep everything nice and cold. Just don't try to put your coffee in them...OUCH!
But Candice, I'm too lazy to mess with all that. These plastic bottles are repurposed around here. They become play toys for the dogs, kids, even me. Ever tried to suck the air out of one and listen to it crunch and crinkle?
ReplyDeleteIs this Ash Thursday? I know tomorrow is GOOD FRIDAY so don't you guys worry. I'll get that one right!
Love you guys for posting! I'm turing up that plastic water bottle now. Candice, you'll have to keep working on me for that. I need to get one of those bottles with the filter in it I guess. I can't stand the taste of the water here.
I didn't get my full 80 in, ate too much sodium, and today my hands are swolen and my arthritis hurts in my fingers. WATER TODAY!!!
Me too. My bottles are plastic repurposed as yours. I only managed to down 48oz of water yesterday. Maybe I will do better today. It is Good Friday and I am off for the day. I have to take my daughter to school in a bit.
ReplyDeleteWell, I made pizza last night. I had a little sausage and some onion and bell pepper on my portion and that was better than normal. But, after that small piece, I had another from my husbands. I couldn't help myself. Oh, the regrets on the morning after, LOL.
My hands have been swollen for the last 2 days. Seems like my joints are awfully achie.(Did I spell that right) Being formerly of the teaching world myself. I can't believe how much I have lost in the last 15 years. Anyways, I was wondering if maybe the moon phase has anything to do with joint pain. I know it has effects on so many other things on earth. My friend and I used to know the moon phase by how our children behaved. Well, talk about rambling on.
Let's keep it up. I am enjoying the exchange.
Oh, and FYI, each chicken nugget has 100g of sodium. Yikes!!!