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A Journey to a Healthy Mind Body & Spirit

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Cheating on Your Diet Is Good?!?

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One of the major lessons taught to all of us as children is not to cheat.  Some of us didn’t listen very well and subsequently found ourselves in the headmaster’s office with a bare bottom and a paddle whistling through the air heading towards its destination with incredible speed and cruelty.  Afterwards, we walked uncomfortably back to the classroom, shoulders hunched, bottom throbbing, swearing to ourselves we would never cheat again, or at least not until the next math test.  Like I said, some of us didn’t listen very well.
Well I have great news!!  It turns out cheating on your diet is actually good!!
Ok.  Before you click the little red x in the corner and write me off as a cheating flake, hear me out.  It turns out that cheating on your diet may actually help you to lose weight.  You see our bodies are actually really smart.  Smarter then an eight year old looking at his buddies math test right in front of the teacher.  When you cut calories and start restricting your diet, your levels of leptin begin to fall.  What is leptin you ask?  Well first I’d like to know who names this stuff.  Seriously.  Anyways, leptin is a hormone in the body that keeps you feeling full and kicks up your metabolism.  When you cut calories, the amount of this hormone begins to crash causing your metabolism to slow down.  Uh oh.
It turns out that leptin is sensitive to glucose so some athletes have started a practice call refeeding.  Again.  What is with these names.  Couldn’t they call it like binge training or Cheeto lifting?  These planned meals after a workout cause increased muscle synthesis and lowered body fat according to scientists.  I’m sorry.  Cheeto say what?
It turns out you can benefit from splurging every now and then.  Here are some great tips for cheating without getting caught.

Plan your cheats and limit them to once a week.

 

Your cheats shouldn’t be every night with a tub of ice cream while binge watching The Walking Dead.  That’s not cheating.  That’s just a lifestyle.  Trust me.  I know about this one.  Seriously though, by planning your cheats, you get the benefit from the cheat but are still able to quickly get back on the clean eating train through the rest of your week.  And it gives you a goal to aim for during the week.

Make the cheat a meal, not a snack, and not all day.

 

You shouldn’t splurge all day long, and you shouldn’t pop the top of the Pringles jar and not stop.  But you can have the steak, baked potato, and split a dessert with your partner.  Mmmmm.  Steak.

Try not to splurge with your trigger foods.

 

What is a trigger food you ask?  For me it would be Pringles or Cheetos.  I know.  Big surprise.  It’s the foods that you can’t stand just to have a little bit of.  Like ice cream.  Mmmmm.  Ice cream.  Oops.  Sorry.  It’s best to avoid these trigger foods for your cheat because if you’re anything like me, self-control goes out the window and before I know it, a cheat has turned into a cheesy dust finger coated nap inducing binge fest.
So plan your cheat and enjoy it.  And no need to worry about that pesky headmaster.  He’s not watching anymore.

5 Common Myths About Diets

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So it’s time to get healthy.  You’re committed.  You’ve set your intention.  You’ve even picked an accountability partner and a start date.  Then you go on the internet to do some simple searches for diet tips and you’re immediately overwhelmed with five thousand articles each claiming they’ve found the one true diet that will make you look like a supermodel in 14 short days.  The next diet claims that eating only fat will make you skinny.  The next article shouts that all fat in your diet is bad and should be eliminated all together.  It’s loud, confusing, and obnoxious.  So today we’re going to cut through all the noise and discuss the top five myths about diets and find out the real truth.

Myth # 1:  The Best Way to Lose Weight is to Go On a Diet

Wow.  Bet you didn’t see this one coming right out of the gate.
The idea of a “diet” is to “start a program” that is specifically designed to help you lose weight.  The problem lies in the mindset.  If you look at a diet as temporarily doing something different in order to achieve weight loss, the odds are you’re going to stop doing it.  My best advice?  Don’t go on a “diet.”  Instead, decide you’re permanently going to change the way you eat.  Find a plan that works for you in the long term, and then make sure you’re eating the right amounts to encourage weight loss.

Myth # 2:  Eating Smaller Portions More Frequently Actually Boosts Your Metabolism and Promotes Weight Loss

This theory has been floating around the internet for a very long time.  The idea is that if you keep adding small amounts of food, your metabolism is always in high gear leading to more calories burned overall.
The truth is much different.  The amount of food intake has little to no effect on metabolism.  The one thing that does affect your metabolism is bigger muscles.  Yep.  You heard that right.  One pound of fat free muscle burns about 14 calories a day as compared to a pound of fat that only burns about 3 calories a day.  That doesn’t sound like a lot, but 14 calories a day adds up over time and can certainly lead to getting off those pounds, so try lifting some weights or any kind of strength training.

Myth # 3:  Don’t Eat Anything After 7 at Night

There are three things you must remember:  don’t expose them to bright lights, don’t get them wet, and whatever you do, don’t ever feed them after midnight.  Gremlins is one of my favorite movies from my childhood and this myth completely reminds me of the warning given by the sage old man.
Your body burns calories morning, noon, and night.  Your cells don’t have a wristwatch they look at to decide when to burn calories.  The truth is most people who eat at night are tired and mentally fatigued from the day and the snacks they grab tend to be unhealthy.  So it’s really not about the time of day, but the snack itself.  If a tub of ice cream accompanies your Game of Thrones binge watching, maybe try a piece of fruit instead.

Myth # 4:  Cut Your Calories Down A Lot!!

Ok.  This one gets a little tricky.  If you cut your caloric intake down to say 1200 calories a day, yes you will lose weight.  The problem is that it won’t last for long.  Our bodies are amazing machines that are able to detect when we go into “starvation mode.”  On an extremely low calorie diet, the body gets very good at being efficient with the calories it’s been given to ensure your survival.  Also, because you feel deprived and hungry, the odds of long term success are much smaller.
The best way to lose weight and keep it off is to try a modest calorie restriction that you are comfortable with and then never stop.  Like Myth #1, this will set you up for the greatest level of success.

Myth # 5:  Diet Foods are Helpful With My Diet

Not exactly.  Low-fat, Low-carb, diet foods are everywhere in the grocery store.  They promise to make the process of being on this diet painless and easy.  The catch?  Just because they are low-carb or low-fat doesn’t necessarily mean they are low-calorie.  Just because something says diet on the label doesn’t mean in fact it is good for you.  Also, there’s a tendency to eat more of the diet food because it’s healthier.  The increase in serving size negates the healthy aspects of the food in the first place.
Look at the nutrition label and continue to control your portion sizes to promote weight loss and good health.  And don’t believe everything you see on the food labels.

I’m Good At Overeating

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This story about overeating starts and ends like every story where I’m at a restaurant. First, I’m handed a gargantuan menu with more writing than War and Peace, asked what I’d like to drink, and a complimentary basket of something is lovingly placed on the table right in front of me. At first I think to myself, I’ll just have one breadstick. Just one to tide me over until I order. Then I start digging into the menu. After page 37 I’ve narrowed down my dinner choices to my top 12. The waiter comes back and asks if we need more time. What do you think? I haven’t even reached the halfway point of your menu yet. And can you please bring more breadsticks? Choosing my optimal dish from your menu is real work here. Yes I’d like a refill on my Coke too. Thank you.

An hour later I’ve eaten more food then some people eat in a month, I’m leaned back in my chair wondering how in the hell I’m going to make it to the car, and I’m debating whether the fact that I’m sweating is a sign I’m having a heart attack or maybe it’s just hot in the restaurant.

Why do I do this to myself?

First of all, I’m not alone. That doesn’t make this story less glutenous, but it does make me feel better to know I’m not alone sitting in the shovel + face = me club. Second, it’s become so much easier to overeat now. So let’s take a look at why that is and maybe I can figure out how to keep my next chair from being a forklift.

Portion size –

It turns out that portion sizes in America have been growing in direct proportion to our waistbands. And the cruel trick is that visual aspects of a meal have been shown to influence how much we eat. For example, if you put pork chops in front of my beautiful wife, and a whole pig in front of me, I’m just as likely to finish my plate and report feeling less full afterwards. Sneaky eyes tricking my brain. So it’s pretty important to be aware that you are likely to eat however much food is on your plate, regardless of amount.

Variety –

So I’m at dinner and I’m on my 12th breadstick. Don’t judge. You know they’re good. After that many though, I’m getting kind of bored with breadsticks. The good news is the salad just came out. And it’s green so it must be healthy. Just when the salad is making me a little too green, out comes my soup, and then my main dish, and my side dishes are waiting for me after that, and then ice cream. You get the picture. Too much variety can cause us to eat more than we would otherwise. In fact, researchers found that people ate four times as much when given multiple different foods. Four times? Amateurs.

Distractions –

The TV is on tuned to Westworld, the popcorn is popped, the butter is melted, and my Coke is on the coaster. I’m ready to go. An hour later the popcorn is gone, the Coke is empty, Westworld is over, and my wife is upset because I didn’t share a single piece with her. How did that happen? Well first, let’s be honest, I don’t share well. Second, I didn’t even realize I was eating. Eating while distracted by something else interrupts the mechanisms in our bodies that would normally stop an eating session, like feeling full. I tried to explain this to her. I didn’t know eyes could roll that far back into someone’s head.

So the answer to all of this is to eat mindfully and be aware of portion size. At a restaurant now, I might eat only half of the meal brought to me and no breadsticks. Practicing mindfulness while eating helps, and I don’t need a wheelchair assist to get to the car after dinner.

Self Care Sunday

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Do you have a self care routine? Do you at least once a week take time for you?
If you are anything like me, the answer to these questions may be a big fat no. If that is the case, it is totally normal but let’s work to change it, mkay?!
What is self care? To me and I am not Wikipedia, but my definition, is taking time to nurture yourself, whether that be sleeping in, unplugging and reading a book, going for a run, eating some ice cream or treating yourself to a mani/pedi. It is something that is just for you and fills up your cup a bit. This looks different for everyone and to be honest, depending on what is happening in your life it may evolve.
In order to make sure I am getting at least a little self care in, I have made a pact to have a self care Sunday. This can either be the whole day or an hour of the Sunday. I had to schedule this in my calendar in order to make sure it happens.
So can you do a pinky promise that you will give this a go and do at least an hour of self care each Sunday for a month? Then report back and let me know how you feel! Pretty please?
Need some ideas for self care Sundays?

Here are my top 10 go to’s:

  1. Unplugging from the electronic world and reading a book with a cup of tea for a full hour.
  2.  Putting on my favorite face mask (mine is the Arbonne french clay mask Click Here) while relaxing in a bubble bath.
  3. Splurging on a mani/pedi and enjoying the pampering.
  4. Going for a run/walk/hike some where in nature and just enjoying the views and the peace and quiet of nature.
  5. Journaling for 30 minutes, sometimes life can be hard and I just need to get it all out, this is where I will journal for 30 minutes, its therapy for my soul.
  6. Watching my favorite chick flick with my favorite ice cream.
  7. Painting or drawing or even coloring, going back to the things I loved as a child that involved art.
  8. Napping, okay I am not going to lie, sometimes you just need a nap.
  9. Going to bed early, enough said.
  10. Having a glass of wine with some cheese, meat and crackers. This is my favorite one, and I do not feel guilty at all (because well, cheese and wine, enough said).

Please share, what are some of your favorite self care practices?

 

Our Journey to Healthy Mind Body and Spirit

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Welcome to Our Journey!

Hi I’m new here! I’m Katie and this is Matt and we are on this crazy journey to health. More specifically a healthy mind body and spirit. Somewhere along the way we have both forgotten who we are, what our dreams are, why it feels good to be healthy both mind, body & spirit. It is time to change that and because we are learning so much on this journey we wanted to share it with you!

We think humor helps everything, so expect to laugh with some punnies or funnies along the way!

What does it mean to have a healthy mind, body and spirit?

To us it means a few things.

Healthy Body:

A healthy body is not what you are probably thinking, for both of us we want to feel good and have energy to go with it. I recognize that eating healthy is key but let’s be real I am not going to likely do it 100% of the time. I like beer, and cookies and probably 100 other things that are not considered healthy! So the key  for us, is a balance where the good outweighs the bad (no pun intended there)!  We both are signed up to “run” the Warrior Dash 5k in September and well we would both like to do it without dying (yes that may be a touch on the dramatic side)!

 

Healthy Mind:

Somewhere along the way, we both started listening to what others have to say which resulted in not believing in ourselves. You guys, Matt is so funny and has such a gift to share with the world. He was not doing this because of his horrible self talk and I am not any better. This is something that needs to change if we want to achieve our goals and ultimately be our best selves, cheesy I know, but that is our vision.

Healthy Spirit:

I am not sure about you, but in my day to day happenings, I often am the last person who I think of. Right now in both of our lives, self care is just a dream. Taking time for a hair cut/color, massage or a mani/pedi happens so rarely that I do not even remember the last time I enjoyed any of the above. One of the things that both Matt and I have been taught is that you have to have your cup full before you can fill others. This is a lesson that we have both seen come to be true. This journey is how to put ourselves first so that we can give.

Well, you have read this far, so I invite you to come along on our journey to a healthy mind body and spirit. We are about as real as it gets, so I am quite positive that this journey will include some funny outtake and blooper reals but just realize, its all real! Hold on, because here we go!