Overload

I don’t know about you, but typically we all overindulge ourselves during the Thanksgiving holiday feast. This was the first year I consciously decided not to do that! I went to my son’s new In-Law’s house for the gathering, and I was asked to bring a salad and the ever-so-delicious pecan pie. They have a beautiful new home, and it’s perfect for entertaining.

Since everyone was asked to bring an item or two, you can imagine there was an abundance of food. The spread looked wonderful. Mike grilled a turkey and Alaska salmon. With all this amazing food, I was determined to not stuff myself because I would feel horrible afterward – mentally and physically.

I took small amounts of the foods I wanted to eat. I did not deprive myself of carbs or gravy! I stuck to one plate, and small portions. There were many deserts to choose from, and I took a sliver of two pies. That was it. I drank water with my meal too. I am proud to say I did not feel stuffed or blotted in any way. I was done eating by 4:30pm and that was the end of my eating for that day.

I hope you did not overindulge. It is so tempting, right? When that much food is set in front of us, it is hard to say no.

Most medical reports state the flu season starts after Thanksgiving and in part, may be attributed to overeating all day long and sitting around watching football all day. There may be something to that, I don’t know. I do know that three people in my office were out sick last week with the flu. Knock on wood, I feel great and healthy.

I have dropped 32 lbs in 6 months. I wish the weight would drop off faster, but I remind myself it took years to put on, so give myself time to lose it. I’m very grateful!

I hope all of you are doing well. Be mindful of what you eat and how much. It takes dedication, determination, and reminding yourself of the GOAL!

Here’s to health and happiness.

Deanna

Treat your body as you want to be treated

Our emotions are a powerful driver of what we eat. When we aren’t eating we are thinking of what we will eat for the next meal, or what we will cook. We even snack in between meals when we probably aren’t really hungry, but thirsty! We assume when we feel hungry the need is for food, but I’m sure 90% of the time our body is asking for water! We eat and eat and eat… it’s the western culture. We do not deprive ourselves – even if we eat healthy food.

If you really think about it for a minute, it’s our emotions that drive our eating. Stress, sadness, depression, feeling unseen or heard, the need for love, desire, and I could list 100 more…. Eating with emotions is slowly killing us, making us obese and unhealthy. I’ll write more on this topic later.

Back to overeating. Do you think our bodies need to eat so much? Think about it for a minute. Do you think our ancestors ate like we do? They hunted and gathered and probably didn’t eat for days until they hunted and collected again. Food was even more scarce in the winter – hunting was even harder so eating was few and far between. They had strong bodies and none of them were obese or had gut issues. I could be wrong since I wasn’t living back then, but have to think I have a point to some degree.

Have you tried fasting? Have you tried not to EAT ALL DAY LONG? Our bodies are used to eating so much that the liver and pancreas can not keep up with the demand of their time. They are overworked and tired. We don’t need to eat so much.

If you compare the overworked and tired feeling to your job, then you will begin to get some sort of understanding. I had a job once where I was working 70 hours a week, and in the beginning, I didn’t mind doing it for the “cause” of the organization, but then I slowly began to get sluggish, tired, have brain fog, and didn’t even want to get up in the morning to go to work. It took a heavy toll on every part of my being. I couldn’t keep it up but my boss demanded I do it.

This is the same for your body. It’s tired, overworked, and can’t keep up with the 24-hour pace of the job. But you are demanding your body do it by eating all the time. Yes, you are that boss! You may not want to be that boss, but your eating habits demand it.

I lived in Germany for 3 years and loved the way Europeans feel about work. I was the foreign money teller back when each country had its own currency. I loved the job. When I started, I was given 6 weeks of vacation to start, plus 2 bonuses per year – one in June (vacation bonus) and one in December (Christmas bonus) which was a full month’s salary. That would NEVER happen in the United States. Countries abroad believe in a happy employee. They believe people need a break from their job, promote vacations and in doing so, the employee comes back rested and happy. Happy employees become faithful employees. Happy employees want to show up for work.

Give your body a break. Let your stomach get empty – you won’t die! Don’t eat breakfast and slowly push back your first meal to 11 or 12pm. Eat a big healthy salad with protein. Chew your food 32 times before you swallow it. This breaks the food down so your stomach doesn’t have to work so hard. Take your time when you enjoy this meal. Savor the taste and time away from your job. TAKE A BREAK and give your body a break. Treat your body as you want to be treated. Love and respect.

Here’s to being Happy and Healthy.

Deanna

What YOU put in your mouth

What’s going in your mouth matters! This might be the most crucial realization you face.

Your health and well-being mainly comes down to what you decide to put in your mouth to eat. Every day all of us choose what we will eat. We typically are driven by cravings, how much time we have, how we are feeling, and if we want to cook or not. I’m sure there are many other factors I haven’t listed, but we might make the wrong choice based on several factors.

If I am stressed at work and simply want to go home to relax and release the stress, I usually make a bad choice on the drive home! The dreaded “FAST FOOD” swing in the drive-thru. But there are other weeks when I PLAN ahead, meal prep on Sunday nights so it’s all in containers for me to reheat when I get home during the week. My meal prep is veggies/salad and protein. It’s in those weeks when I’ve planned ahead, I eat better and FEEL better.

What we chose to eat also affects how we feel on the inside. When I have a day of sugar/sweets my body feels sluggish and I want to take a nap! Our bodies are incredible when we really think about it. It responds well when we feed it well. The flip side is the same. When we feed it poorly it responds poorly.

For me, I’m trying to be more mindful about food and what I put in my mouth. “Sugar” is addictive and extremely bad for our bodies. Eat fresh, out-of-the-ground food that you can chop with a knife or peel – not food typically on the inside isles of the grocery store with so many preservatives you have no idea what the words on the label mean.

I know it’s not always easy. My road is an up and down one with my weight and health. I think “it’s never to late to make a change”. Try to plan your meals to avoid last-minute choices. That’s where I get hung up – it’s in the last-minute choices when I make terrible choices!

You have heard all of this before – What I’m sharing is more food for thought.

Here’s to our health and well-being! Keep going….

Deanna