Be Mindful of What You Put into Your Body

Takeaway Value from this video:

1. Eat 4 meals a day every 4 hours to train metabolism.
2. Meals should be balanced - 1 part protein, 2 part carbs.
3. Learn how much fat is in your food.

Real Risk

Even though my waist to hip ratio indicates a reduced risk of heart disease, there are still many complications to being overweight. Here are just few from the office of the Surgeon General:


http://www.surgeongeneral.gov/topics/obesity/calltoaction/fact_consequences.htm

I saw several alarming facts that could pertain to me. More reasons to make better choices.

Beet, Carrot, Apple, and Ginger Juice

I was reading posts on Facebook when a friend asked for advice on what to do with beets. Suzy suggested she make this juice. After some investigation, I found out that it is posted on a site called GOOP, which Gwyneth Paltrow has. Who knew? I do know that Ms. Paltrow is beautiful and appears healthy, so she's doing something right!

Apparently, this is a basic colon cleanse. Suzy says, "If you want to maximize the health benifits to juicing, don't put juice from fruits in. It interferes with the alkalines from the veggies. If you dont care and just want a good sweet drink, throw in the apple and that little bit of lemon."

Beets are said to lower blood pressure, carrots pack a super beta-carotene punch, apples are cancer-fighters and ginger just loves your heart.

SERVES: 1
TIME: 5 minutes

1 large or 2 medium beets, cut into wedges
1/2 lemon, zest and pith removed
2 large carrots
1 large apple, cut into wedges
1" piece of ginger

Juice everything into a glass, give it a stir and enjoy.

That's My Story

Someone just sent this in an email,

"We all get heavier as we get older because there's a lot more information in our heads. So I'm not fat, just really intelligent and my head couldn't hold any more so it started filling up the rest of me. That's my story and I'm sticking to it!"

Wow. I must be a genius.

Prayer for the Journey

It just occurred to me that while I say, "Oh, God, help me" a lot, I'm not being faithful to ask that God help YOU. I know that God blesses those who bless others, and in my quest toward health, I've been focused on me, myself, and I. Now focusing on yourself is not always a bad thing. I have to say that in the past I've been one to neglect my own needs to help others. But before I wax too saintly, I also know that lately, I've been more, dare I say, too internally focused.

Please let me know your needs, too. I'm on my own journey, but that doesn't mean I can't reach out and help others along the way. I pray today that God strengthens you in your spirit, gives you peace as you pursue health, grants you wisdom in your choices, and healing that only He can give.

Remember - (I say this almost every Sunday as I teach my class...) there are NO small choices. And know that, if you're following this blog, I've called each of you out by name and prayed for YOU.

Here's a beautiful prayer by Apostle Paul to meditate on today. Have a wonderful weekend.

I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. - Ephesians 3:16-19 (New International Version)

*Art Courtesy of ChristArt: Christian Clipart

He's Working It Out

Another day, another doctor. Can you give a wild guess as to what my next step is? If you guessed more tests, ding, ding, ding! You're right. By the time I get done, I'm going to have had everything checked from head to toe, inside and out. The doc ordered two tests today and thought it was a good idea to follow up with the advice from my primary care physician and visit a rheumatologist.

Last night several people from church prayed for me. I love it when they do that - makes me feel their concern, and reminds me that God is ultimately in control. I have placed my trust in Him, and I know whatever happens in this life is for a reason. When I'm aching and complaining, I would do well to remember Romans 8:28 (NLT), "And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them."

Difficult sometimes though, huh?

Waist Time

In the subtitle of this blog, I indicated that I wanted to find my waist again. Vanity tells me I could buy cuter clothes and look cuter in them (well, at my age cute is not my goal, but I'd look better..), but my awareness of health issues has given me a real dedication to getting my numbers down.

Find a handy tool from the University of Maryland Medical System to calculate your waist to hip ratio HERE. According to this tool, my shape puts me at reduced risk of coronary heart disease, diabetes and stroke. I'm a 'pear' so I tend to keep fat off my midsection and more on my hips. I knew that, of course. The good news is that a body does not convert this lower body fat as readily as midsection fat, which keeps cholesterol down.

If you’re a woman, the waist-to-hip ratio should come out as no more than 0.8. A healthy waist-to-hip ratio for men is 0.95. If your belly has caught up to the size of your hips, you should start worrying about your heart, experts say.

Get that tape measurement out. What's your risk?

After the Celebration

What a wonderful time we had at church yesterday! Our choir sang a contata "In His Presence" that came with a DVD to play as the choir sang. Very effective. Because I've been so sick and tired, this year I didn't participate in the choir, and since we had a guest pianist yesterday, didn't play for the service. It was a special blessing to me to sit back and enjoy the service. Last night we enjoyed an Easter concert from Lavawan Riley. I so wish I could play like he does. Wonderful!

After church yesterday we met our son at O'Charley's. They have a new California Chicken Salad to die for - grilled chicken, mandarin oranges, pecans, and dried canberries. It came with bleu cheese, but I opted for cheddar. I also subbed Ranch Dressing for the dressing. I'm telling you, friends, I tried to eat just half, but it was just too good. I ate the whole thing. I think that's the first time I've polished off an entire meal since I started posting on this blog. No rolls for me though. And if you've been to O'Charley's, you know that took willpower!

Also - because I'm intent on finding my waist again, I got out a tape measure. Wow. That's an eye opener. You might want to do the same thing. I've read many times that waist size is more a predictor of health than weight. I'll try to find some research to back that up.

About the pic with this post - last week I posted about how I sang for our Palm Sunday service. A friend sent me a pic she snapped while I was singing. Good times.

Happy Resurrection Sunday

Just wanted to post a note to wish everyone a very blessed weekend. If you're getting together with family, I pray for a peaceful and joyous time. Don't eat the entire Easter ham or down twenty peeps without thinking though! lol!

Snack Yourself Skinny

Kim Bensen, who lost 14 dress sizes through Weight Watchers, cooks up yummy and healthy snacks with Kristi Watts.

Update and Recipe - Herb-Infused Spa Water

Well, I'm not sure who told me this would happen, but if it was you, you're welcome to say, "I told you so." After all the tests, I still don't have a conclusive reason for the rib pain. A couple of the tests showed arthritis, so it's possible to have referred pain from another area of the body, but when all is said and done, I'm being referred to a specialist - a rheumatologist. My doctor seems as frustrated as I am. BUT I'm praising God that nothing too serious showed up on any of the tests - just a couple of minor issues that are being addressed.

If you have whispered even one prayer asking God to heal me, I appreciate it. I know that God made this body in the first place, has a plan for me while I'm in it, and will give me strength to do His will. That's all that matters in the long run.

But in the meantime, please continue to pray that I get some relief from this achiness. It kinda wears on an old gal, you know?

AND if you've scanned this post to this point, I'd like to share another water recipe I found - Herb-Infused Spa Water. Now doesn't that sound refreshing? Click HERE for the recipe.

A Different Kind of Blog

Well, another busy weekend flew by. We celebrated Palm Sunday yesterday - my favorite day of the year. My husband (the pastor) gets hundreds of palm fronds for everyone to wave as we praise God. I sang "In the Name of the Lord" and we had an illustrated sermon. Then last night we celebrated with Communion. Most importantly, by the end of the day, four people had given their hearts to Jesus Christ. What a day!

On Monday, I'm usually exhausted, but I'm feeling energized, perhaps because we had such a wonderful Sunday, and also because I'm taking better care of my body. Yesterday, I ate less than half my meal and last night, I did the same.

As far as dietary changes, the only issue I'm still struggling with is drinking water. I got a thermos out to fill each morning, but I even forget to do that! Suggestions, anyone?

I started the blog in an attempt to help myself and others. I was always such a skinny kid. I never really thought about my weight that much until after my second child. Since then I've gone up and down, up and down, then up and up! At my age, my first concern is that I won't have the energy to minister the way I should. I'm also concerned for my joints and mobility as I age. I have a whole slew of blogs, but none of them are 'personal' type blogs. So it's kinda weird posting this way. I wouldn't do this at all if I didn't know there are a lot of women like me - busy with crazy lives. I'm thinking of having guests post on this blog. I've never done that with any of my others, but this one seems so completely different that I think it would help all of us to chime in with our thoughts now and then.

I'm headed back to the doc this afternoon to find out the results of all the tests I had done last week (on my birthday!). I cut back on the anti-inflammatory medicine and my tummy issues seem to have subsided. It's tough to know what to do.

I look forward to hearing from you!

Brain Stimulator and Cancer Killer?

Today Dr. Chauncey Crandall was on the 700 Club touting the spiritual and physical benefits of fasting. Since I'm hypoglycemic, I've never fasted, but the good doctor almost has me convinced that not only would it not harm me, but it would help me tremendously. He mentioned that fasting helps inflammation.

Here's a link to some recipes Dr. Crandall recommends with names like Brain Stimulator, Cancer Killer, and Garlic Breath Delight. lol!

Click HERE.

Have you ever fasted for either spiritual or physical reasons? How did you benefit?

Bad Way to Spend my Birthday

My last post was Thursday when I went to the doctor. He gave me a pain shot. Friday I was back in his office for another one. It kinda knocked the edge off, but I still suffered all weekend. This morning, I called and scheduled my tests. The woman who scheduled them was so nice. She said, "You don't want to schedule these tomorrow. That's your birthday." I assured her I wanted to get them over with, so tomorrow would be fine. I'm having a CT Scan, X-Rays, and a bone scan. That should keep me busy!

My blood tests did come back normal, so praise God for that! Keep praying.

On a more cheerful note, my church threw me a surprise birthday party after church yesterday. What fun! I so appreciated them remembering me like that. I'm very blessed.

Since I don't want this blog to be simply about my ailments, I found a fun link to share today. Anyone ever heard of Spark People? They offer a free diet plan, recipes, calorie counter, and a whole lotta stuff. I don't like to put a link in my recommendations unless I've checked it out first. If you'd like to give a looksee, click here: SparkPeople. Let me know what you think.

Oh, and one of the sweet women from church brought me a homemade cake that looks almost just like that clipart. I'm saving it to share with my family tomorrow night. But I'll just have a little - I promise!

What's Going on in There?

For the past six months, I have been in pain. Some days it's bearable. Other days, I have to catch my breath when the pain rolls over me in waves. The last time I went to the doctor, he diagnosed me with costochondritis - inflammation of the cartilage between my ribs. In other words, I feel like someone has punched me all the time.

So, today I went back to the doctors and surprise, surprise - I'm in for more tests. It would have been very convenient if God had made our bodies in such a way that it wasn't so difficult to see what's going on inside!

I don't know if you've noticed that I haven't mentioned exercise on this blog. At least not yet. I'm hoping that when I start feeling better (and I say that in faith!!), I'll have the energy to get moving. Since I started this blog, I've actually lost about ten pounds - a small step in the right direction, but a great step nonetheless. Portion control and better choices are making a difference.

If you get a moment, remember me in prayer. My birthday is next week. I'd like to feel like celebrating.

And how are you doing these day? Anyone feel like checking in?

Eat This, Not That

Oh, my goodness! An eye-opener indeed. Matt Goulding, the author of Eat This, Not That! Supermarket Survival Guide, was on the 700 Club today helping viewers deciper food labels.

As I've already admitted, I'm a chipaholic and chocoholic. As for chips, here's an example of his advice:

Eat this: Popchips (1 sm bag), 100 calories, 3 g fat (0 g saturated)
Not that: Lay’s (1 sm bag), 160 calories, 10 g fat (1 g saturated)

This is something I've already been doing! So yay for me! Uh, oh. Now he's talking about granola. 14 grams of fat and 30 grams of sugar?? Wow! Click HERE to get the highlights of his segment AND download a Free Fact Sheet. And I love it that he has a book for kids, too!

The Weekend

Another Monday morning. I made it through the weekend. Yesterday I taught an adult Bible class, then played the piano for morning worship. We took my husband's mother with us to a new place to eat. Keeping to my portion control, I split a sandwich with her, and even brought leftovers home.

Then we headed to the funeral home. The mother of one of my son's best friends died unexpectedly. Of course, we were shocked, but even more so because this woman was a doctor - and close to my age. She left three sons, all standing in a row beside her casket.

My son has been extra sweet to me all week, and more than ever when he heard of Joyce's death. He keeps telling me to take care of myself, to get this pain in my side checked out, and to watch my diet. He's goading me along on my Road to Health. I'm thankful for him - a gift from God indeed.

After the viewing, we went home for a few minutes, and then headed back to church for a 5 PM meeting followed by church services. We had some wonderful missionaries to Africa as our guests.

So, we ate dinner last night at 10 PM. I might have had an excuse to eat whatever, too tired to even consider whether it was good for me or not, but I didn't. I ate with awareness.

I think I might be 'getting it.'

How was your weekend?

Where's Your Trigger Setting?

You know how it is. You go to a party and as if by magic, none of the appetizers have any calories. The fat's been sucked out of that cream cheese ball, and the desserts taste sweet without sugar. Amazing.

Or you stand in front of the refrigerator sucking down Coke and eating cold pizza. Calories don't count if you're not sitting down, right?

Until you get on the scales the next day. Ouch.

I have to say my Trigger Setting is in front of the television. As I mentioned in the "Trigger Food" post, I love to start with something salty followed by something sweet - preferably chocolate. When I'm watching TV, I can consume an entire $.99 bag of Sour Cream and Onion potato chips in one sitting - and never even be aware that I've eaten the first chip - especially if I'm watching Lost, Life on Mars, or The Big Bang Theory. Although if I'm watching the last one, I'm prone to spewing Coke all over from laughing so hard (Sheldon's my favorite).

So, what's my solution? I don't relish the idea of giving up television. Perhaps I could buy the baked chips. Or eat lowfat popcorn instead. I've already switched to Iced Tea with Stevia. Small steps, but steps in right direction.

Where do you find yourself most vulnerable?

What's Your Trigger Food?

In the flurry of new posts, I think this one might have gotten overlooked. What's your trigger food? I found this definition on The Fit Shack:

Trigger foods are any foods that trigger you to overeat and/or binge. They are foods that you just can’t get enough of; one bite is never enough and one helping isn’t enough. Trigger foods can also lead you to overeat on other foods that initially you weren’t even thinking about eating if you feel guilty for eating your trigger foods in the first place!

I've decided mine must be potato chips. My first thought would have been something sweet. After all, I am a chocoholic. But really, it's the crunchy snack foods that get me, because I eat the chips, and then want to follow it up with something sweet - like chocolate.

What's YOUR trigger food? In a later post, we'll tackle ways to combat the urge to eat them and cover other things that trigger us to overeat.

The Weekend

So, how did your weekend go? We showed Fireproof, the movie with Kirk Cameron, at our church Saturday afternoon. I couldn't get to sleep that night and woke up early the next morning unable to get back to sleep. I'm not a therapist, but that movie touched me psychologically, I believe. All day Sunday, I felt like I'd been hit by a Mack truck. I taught Sunday School, played for church, left church, went to eat, straight to a baby shower, home for a 45-minute nap, and back to church to play and run the sound.

Keeping in mind my goal to gain health, I ate a WeightWatchers meal before the movie Saturday night so I wouldn't pig out on the pizza we served afterwards. Late that evening my husband and split a turkey sandwich on whole grain bread, which kept me to my promise of portion control.

Last night after church my husband and I ate pizza I'd picked up at Sam's Club made by Kashi. It was good! Vegetarian on a whole grain, super-thin, almost like a cracker crust. I think I could be a spokesperson for Kashi. I love all of their products.

Considering how busy our weekend was, I did plan ahead and ate with awareness. Until now, I suppose I would have scarfed down a bunch of pizza after the movie and eaten like crazy after church last night using the excuse, "Well, I've had a long day. I deserve it. And besides, I'll start on Monday."

Tell me - does it ever really work to start something new on Monday?

Oh, and I'm praising God because I just got word from a friend that his entire family of wife and four kids were in a horrendous car accident over the weekend where they had to be extricated with the 'jaws of life' yet every person came out of that accident with no serious injuries.

How'd your weekend go?

A New Mindset

Is it a mindset? When do you switch in your head from being someone who's drifting along through life to someone who intentionally lives every moment to its fullest?

With every magazine touting the best ways to lose weight, stay thin, and live forever young, thinking of food and aging as our enemies comes easily. But we need food to live, and with God's grace, we live another day.

When did getting older become so disgusting?

Now I understand wanting to be healthy. That's my goal. I have a feeling that as I've become an 'older woman,' my metabolism has changed, and it's likely I will never be thin again, and that's okay.

Sometime along the way, I began to drift. Grabbing another handful of M&M's, absent-mindedly eating a 'few' more chips, spooning an extra-large dollop of sour cream on my potatoes. And it all adds up. I need to more intentional in my eating. As a Christian, I'm very intent on living a spiritual life of purpose, but I'm afraid my body has suffered as I focused on the spiritual, ignoring the physical.

What I need is balance - to somehow flip that switch in my brain, eat intentionally, and turn my willpower ON!

Romans 12:1-2
Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God-this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is-his good, pleasing and perfect will.

Portion Control

I was happy to see several friends who are joining me for the journey!

I keep thinking of that riddle. How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time. So I'm making small changes every couple of days. I'm filling up the thermos with refreshing water first thing in the morning and drinking it all by day's end.

Step #2 - Since one MORE bite always seemed like a good idea, my second step in this process is to start cutting portions. I think I eat long after I'm full, many times just because the food is on my plate. After all, I was taught to clean my plate. Weren't you?

My son and I went to Skyline a couple days ago. I got the vegetarian 4-way with beans with the cheese on the side. I only ate half, brought the rest home and had it for lunch the next day.

What's your next step? Care to share?

Sassy Water - My First Change

I don't drink. Never have. And I'm not talking about just alcohol (although I've never drank that either). I'm referring to water. I drink tea, coffee, and Diet Coke. I can go days without ever having a full glass of water. Since the body is mostly water, I'm thinking I need to drink.

So my first step on the Road to Health is going to be to drink water. I've realized in the past that if I drink a glass first thing in the morning, before coffee, then I'm more thirsty the rest of the day. It's like I have an inner thirst button that gets activated.

My first change will be to make Sassy Water - a step between my flavored teas and plain water. Sounds wonderfully refreshing and is supposed to calm your GI tract.

SASSY WATER RECIPE

• 2 litres/3½ pints water
• 1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger
• 1 medium cucumber, peeled and thinly sliced
• 1 medium lemon, thinly sliced
• 12 mint leaves

Combine all ingredients in a large jug, chill in the refrigerator and let the flavors blend overnight. Drink it all in one day for at least four days, making a fresh batch each day.

Here's to good health! (glug, glug, glug...)

Definition

Found a definition for 'sick and tired.' I just thought it was something my mom always said. Funny!

Sick and Tired

I've Had Enough. Have you?

Okay, people. I'm sick and tired of being sick and tired. It's about time, or should I say, past time, that I take charge of my health once more. I'm always tired, and lately, sick more often. At my age, this is not a good thing. I see my body going down a path that my mind, for a long time now, has refused to acknowledge.

Plus - it seems wrong on so many levels that I have allowed my 'temple' that God has blessed me with to get in such a state of disrepair.

I'm starting this blog in an attempt to get good advice, find kindred souls, and bring friends on board so that we can keep each other accountable. Care to join me on this journey?