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Source: Episode 22! Listener Questions!
I need to warm up!
And is there really any better way to do that other than a nice bowl of chili!
I am taking a page from my old book here and brining you this low carb chili.
May I suggest serving it with my low carb cornbread?
Low Carb Chili
Here’s what you’ll need:
Serves 5
Nutrition facts, per serving:
Calories 305
Carbs 7g
Sugar 4g (still higher than I would like)
Fat 13g (5g sat)
38g protein
I know you might be looking at me a little weird with the cinnamon and nutmeg, just try it. I quite liked it!
Soup’s On!
Liz Jackson
It seems only fitting on the last official day of summer that I break out my best Fall friend; the trusty slow cooker!
I ran across this recipe on Pinterest and it just looked too yummy to pass up. I chose it as this weeks “clean sweep” not because it is inherently unhealthy as it sits; it actually isn’t too bad really! Either way, I wanted to show what I would change to add a little more nutritional bang for your “buck”.
The base of the recipe really stays the same; I just made a couple very slight modifications.
You can find the original recipe here:
Ingredients
Serving 4:
Here is my modified version:
Ingredients
2. Cook on low for 6 hours.
3. Whisk oat flour into milk-let it sit and thicken for about 10 minutes (I actually let mine sit for about 20), stir into slow cooker and cook 15-30 additional minutes on high.
Serving 4:
I kept my servings to 4 like the original recipe but we all ate on it and I think I have 2 servings left over (at least)!
I also opted to shred the chicken and I am glad I did.
I went a little light on my seasonings this time I admit, but it was easily remedied with salt and pepper 😉
May I suggest serving this with Low Carb Cornbread?
Soup’s On!
Liz Jackson
So last week I brought you “How to Acronym Your Way to Becoming a Happy Wife“. It seems only fair to do the same for our husbands!
I continue the same use of the word “happy” as before and added my own add lib for “husband”.
I continue to urge you to check out Arlene Pellicane at: http://www.arlenepellicane.com
Now some of these might seem reverse but you see from my earlier post that husbands truly do, at their core, want to make their wives happy; which in turn makes them happy.
Men might think this post is a little unfair, sorry guys-you have more letters in your title!
H-opeful-keeping a positive outlook and always hoping for the best in a situation and in your partner.
A-daptable-keeping your options open and flexible (with limits!-you shouldn’t be bending every direction ALL the time
P-urposeful– know that you have a reason, a purpose and are important, not only in your marriage; but in your life.
P-ositive– Don’t allow yourself to become negative…in your outlook or in your thoughts; about your husband, your marriage, life or even when dealing with your kids.
Y-ielded, While it might be hard to swallow; the Bible does mention this…but I believe it goes both ways. I really like the term MUTUAL submission; always holding the other in higher regard than yourself.
H-onesty -Wives want their husband to be truthful to them in ALL..err.. MOST things and I venture to say that guys have a pretty good compass on what those issues are. Having faith in her husband is easy if a wife really has no reason not to trust and believe you. Honesty feels good, not only to you but to her as well.
U-nderstanding- Taking the time to truly try to see where your wife is coming from when she is talking with you. I know a lot of men tend to see things very differently than women, and both views aren’t “wrong”, it is just a different perspective. Give your wife the benefit of the doubt and stay open to what she says… a lot of times we are smarter than you may think…even though we think differently than you.
S-elflessness-I know a lot of women who bend over backwards for their husbands and their kids, though it doesn’t seem like the husband is quite as bendable. This plays hand in hand with the “Y” from “happy”. More often than not a wife is yielding to your wants, try to do the same; mutual submission, always keeping the other in higher regard than yourself.
B-etter yourself- that means take some time for the gym, to READ a book or read my blog ( 😀 ). Those efforts help exercise, not only your body but your brain as well. No woman (a good woman…) wants to be married to a man that might die at 40 because he isn’t taking care of himself and reading a book gives you something to talk to your wife about (maybe try one she suggests perhaps?)! Try reading the same one together and discuss it together; this gives you something to look forward to other than talking about the kids and their activities!
A-ttention-lavish attention, take an interest in what interests HER. I understand that everyone needs their “zone out time”… I am sitting in my empty quiet house as I type…but try to devote some attention to your wife (other than playfully tapping her on the butt as you walk by as she cooks your dinner-trust me she probably finds it annoying). We want to know that you find us interesting without our boobs or butts being involved (free tip: doing so helps facilitate involving those two things later…if you catch my drift). Sitting down and giving us your attention while we talk about the day, vent (give us a 5 minute cap on that….) or ask for your advice or help (because we want you to be our hero so we will ask for your help) let’s us know that what we have to say is at least somewhat important to you and being able to verbally engage in conversation about the topics at hand leads us to believe you are actually… LISTENING.
N-ot your job-sometimes we need you to listen and not solve… and this might seem a little counterintuitive to what I previously said but sometimes in that “attention”, that will be all we need; just your ears’ attention. It might be hard to discern what we need from you and I think it is ok to ask (in a no judging manner) if we really want you to help or just need you to listen. If we are being honest with ourselves we will be able to tell you exactly which we need at the time.
D-ependable- Remember what I said about being our “hero”? That applies to every day life. Swooping in occasionally and “saving the day” is great….and I know some that will gloat about those singular moments for months. However, it isn’t really the things you do occasionally that mean the most. It is the things you do daily; without fail because you KNOW we depend on it and we depend on you.
I know my husband will go to work because he knows we depend on him. I know my husband will help me at the gym because I depend on him to. I lean on him daily because he has shown me that I can and I can trust him to be dependable. If he says he will do something, he will….eventually; though sometimes I have to remind myself it may not be on what I consider a timely manner…which goes back the wives acronym and the letter “F” (having faith).
These things are all “construction zone” things and it’s pretty much like road work in Oklahoma; it’s never done. While perfection is never achieved, each day we get is a gift and a privilege to work towards our own little version of it. Some days are epic fails (I think I might be in the middle of a epic fail WEEK myself) but if both husband and wife are continually striving and keeping these simple things in mind, having a bad week or a bad day won’t diminish the longevity of a happy marriage.
This picture truly does sum up how I feel about my husband.
To The Happy Couple!
Liz Jackson
The other day a dear friend of mine shared a recipe on Facebook that looked absolutely divine..and slightly devilish.
I took one look at the recipe and knew I could do better!
Check it out…
see the delish?
You can find the original recipe here:
http://realhousemoms.com/texas-sheet-cake-bites/
Ingredients
Cake:
For Frosting: In a medium sauce pan heat milk, butter and cocoa until bubbly, mix in sugar and vanilla until smooth. Add in nuts and blend until incorporated. Carefully spoon about a tablespoon of frosting over each bite and let frosting set.
Here is the DEVIL (Serving 12)
I only had a muffin tin to serve 12 so I adjusted the serving size to what I had on hand
I had to sit down when I read that!
Let’s see what I can do!
Here are my switches:
Instructions
For Cake:
For Frosting:
Mix all the ingredients together until you reach the desired consistency.
Here’s the UPDATED Nutrient breakdown
Enjoy!
For the Love of Chocolate,
Liz Jackson
A good friend of mine recently posed a question to me about that ever so elusive thing called: happiness.
This could go so many ways…
What is happiness? Where do I get/find happiness? Can I buy it, bottle it, inhale it? (no comment…)
I’ve thought about it a lot: I did a little digging around in my own brain and threw in a little “community research”.
What I found is that most people agree that happiness isn’t something that can be bought, though sipping mimosas on a yacht couldn’t really hurt, but rather happiness is a frame of mind…. And it takes a little effort.
I stumbled across a Podcast about a month ago called “Happier with Gretchen Rubin” and I was immediately intrigued by its synopsis and started listening in to learn all the secrets to; well, happiness.
I decided I would implement some of the suggested advice on the podcast and between that and my most recent transition of thinking (after reading things like Should We Really Kill All the Marriage Counselors?), I have compiled a short list of easy enough things to incorporate into your day that just might lead you down the road to finding that elusive little treasure at the end of the rainbow; the “pot of gold” also known as Happiness.
I have started making sure that I give Gray and Zach a big kiss and a cheerful “Good Morning!” greeting every morning. For those that know me well…you know this isn’t easy because…well…
I also have strived to come into work with a smile and a warm hello at work. Even though that might mean plastering a grin (not a cringe-those I think it might still look like a cringe anyway)on my face and being happy to be there, or at least faking it until I make it!
This spans from reading book after book that tells me I need to STOP overcommitting. Stop “Helping” so much that I am hurting myself and possibly hurting others because I become resentful (AKA UNHAPPY)of them because I am feeling resentful of the full plate of crap before ME…that I TOOK ON MYSELF. Step away from the plate and put down the fork my friend. Let someone else help themselves to the buffet.
Since you are going to stop overcommitting you are suddenly able to take some time to do something FOR YOU. Like I suggest in my post about Killing Marriage Counselors, make your list, pick your choices and DO THEM. A couple a day to keep unhappiness bugs away.
Pretty much the opposite of number 2. If someone offers to help you, instead of saying “that’s ok, I’ve got it” (don’t act like you don’t know what I am talking about…). I want you to say, “Thank you, that helps me so much!” Release it and smile.
I once read a Facebook poster…
I know I am not alone when I say, “ain’t that the truth!” How many times do you let your own image of what you think something should be ruin what a beautiful thing it actually is? Have you ever prayed and then not received what you asked for? …Only to realize later you HAD received it, only not necessarily in the package you anticipated? Or have you gotten yourself worked up over planning the perfect party (at least in your mind), only to have everything not go as you planned at all; ruining the party? Or you think ruining it, only to be praised later for such an awesome event (which you then downplay any positive feedback you receive because you felt it wasn’t up to par, don’t act like you don’t….)?
Take things, embrace things and work with things as they are. Don’t let your expectations of how something SHOULD be in your mind ruin what COULD be if you will allow it to be. The more you will open your mind, you find that things usually turn out just fine and the stress just truly isn’t worth it!
I learned this while on my girls’ trip to Mexico. I wrote a whole post about it! Prying my phone, tablet and laptop out of my cold dead fingers isn’t always an easy thing to do but I believe it is necessary. Facebook, constant interaction, text messaging, face timing, Instagram, Twitter- do we really need all these distractions every day, 24/7? I think a lot of us will argue, YES! But I find the more I pay attention to those TIME SINKS the more unhappy I become and the more time I waste. I could be putting that time towards tip 2!
I challenge you to take some time every day away from those things and I challenge you to even try taking an entire day where you just turn them all off…and LEAVE them OFF, ALL DAY.
This suggestion from the Happier Podcast intrigued me because I have been on myself lately about keeping a journal. I keep telling myself I will…then I don’t. I start one…and then I quit.
Enter in the 1 sentence, and my own addition, the 1 minute journal. Every night before bed write a sentence about your day. According to Happier, research shows that you will remember and write about the more positive things in your day.
One sentence. Here is an example of mine from last Saturday:
Ended the day on a much more positive note than how it started; great time at the aquarium with Gray, he is getting so big!
Since I am keeping my journal digitally on my phone through a journal app I attached a picture to the entry as well.
Got anything you are harboring? Guilt, a grudge, anger, hurt, un-forgiveness?
Who are you truly hurting with that; Most likely only yourself? One of the many things I learned from reading the book, “Should We Really Kill all the Marriage Counselors” is that I can’t be grateful and resentful at the same time and I think that applies to all of the previously mentioned feelings.
It is time to LET IT GO.
Not for others but for yourself.
It is a waste of energy and a waste of time.
Who wants to walk around with all that baggage? Not me!
…And in the new saying we all love so much, truly, “Ain’t no one got time for that!”
Grass is always greener on the other side, right? …Until you realize that grass has to be mowed too. You can run yourself into the ground trying to keep up with The Jones’s or be as awesome as you THINK he or she is at X or Y. We ALL have someone that is more –ER than us. Ya know, Pretti-ER, strong-ER, wis-ER, Rich-ER, skinny-ER, strong-ER. We believe if we can just be like them then we will be happi-ER. Or we think if we can just get that new car then we will be happi-ER; and it might work for a while-but then we get back in an unhappy funk.
Growing yourself to learning to be content in your own skin and circumstance takes a lot of effort but I find the more I embrace the beautiful thing I TRULY am, the happi-ER I become. …and I didn’t have to become anyone else or acquire anything else to reach it. It was a brain train thing, not a “buy it now” quick-fix or achievement reached feat and I am thankful that isn’t the case. Otherwise I would probably have a mountain of debt!
You know I can’t let you go without a plug for moving your body! Studies have proven over and over again that being active (hear me, I didn’t say SKINNY), I repeat, being ACTIVE releases feel good endorphins in your brain; which in turn leads to a better attitude (for practicing that attitude of gratitude we talked about earlier) and overall better well-being.
You don’t necessarily have to invest in a gym membership or commit to 5am fitness classes (unless you just want to; **Shameless plug alert** then come see me at http://www.therackgym.com)- just not about the 5am part, sorry.
Simply taking a walk outside, with a friend or with your dog (they don’t tell your secrets..) can do wonders to elevate your mood and your heart rate simultaneously. I know my multi-tasking momma’s can appreciate that!
Admit it: Just looking at all this cuteness made you at least a LITTLE happier!
So there you go! My top 10 tips for hacking into a happier life.
What is your definition of happiness?
Define it, write it out and reach for that, life is too short for anything else!
In Happier Health,
Liz Jackson
Since my last topic was about supplements for our kids I thought I would write to you the supplements I currently take in MY regimen (you really didn’t think I was only neurotic with Grays dailies, did you?). As parents we worry ourselves to death about the health of our kids and making sure they get what they need, often times at the high price of our own bodies, neglecting them in the process. One day we wake up and look in the mirror and wonder, “What in the HELL happened?” Over tired, overweight and mentally exhausted are just a few of the effects that having even just one child can have on you as a whole-not to mention all of the other responsibilities that come with being an adult. Especially if you are working a job outside of taking care of a home (which we all know is a full time job!). Oh and let’s not forget to mention extracurricular activities you might over commit to or your KIDS might over commit you too added on top of that mix.
Between our constant go go GO life in the fast lane and the FAST FOOD lane it is no wonder our health is eroding. While I truly feel that proper diet, exercise, SLEEP and time for mental health are MOST important when it comes to being and KEEPING yourself healthy, I also believe in the power of supplements to help bridge the gaps in our nutrition and uncontrollable bumps in lifes ever winding road.
I am not going to discuss Pre and Post workout supplementation (at least not much) because I understand that not everyone is like me. This is more focused on the things that every person could implement into their daily routines with positive benefits.
The timing of your vitamins is important and I think it is important to not try to take everything all at once (and especially on an empty stomach), because your body can only absorb so much of each nutrient in a given time. Whatever your body can’t use or store (that is water soluble at least) will be excreted out in urine. So in order to not piss on all your efforts, let’s try to keep your pee from being worth more than Gold, shall we?
I am going to give you my daily vitamin/supplement routine and explain my reasoning behind that nutrient placement and my recommendations on a product to use if you wanted to start doing the same. I must emphasis I am NOT a doctor and I am speaking only from personal experience. Check with your M.D. if you feel compelled to do so.
Immediately upon waking (literally-within 5 minutes)
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice in 3 oz. warm water (drank through a straw- don’t want enamel erosion)
Post Lemon Juice
3 tsp diluted to 1tbsp with water-Raw Apple Cider Vinegar (I use vitacost.com brand)-shot down like a shot (again, past the teeth)
-I find this particularly helpful if my throat is at all irritated and I will do it a couple times a day if a sore throat persists. Mid
Breakfast meal and also Pre Workout (I eat half my breakfast and then take these-I do this to avoid a queasy stomach)
2 Nutrabio Multi-Vitamin for Athletes, Women’s Formula (the multitasker!)
2 HMB (This is a Nutrabio product that helps maintain Lean Muscle Mass)
1 500mg Vitamin C (NutraBio)
1 30mg OptiZinc (NutraBio-I do this for an immune booster)
1 B-100 Complex (Nutrabio) -studies have shown that B vitamins help digestion of Carbohydrate Calories as well as supplying energy
1 Vitamin D3 (Nutrabio) -I usually only take this in the winter months when I don’t get as much sunshine
Mid Afternoon (taken with a snack)
2 Nutrabio Multi-Vitamin for Athletes, Women’s Formula
2 HMB (This is a Nutrabio product that helps maintain Lean Muscle Mass)
1 B-100 complex (Nutrabio)-sustained energy
I take the first two at breakfast as well and the rest of the recommended daily dose later in the day-my reasoning is that I want to spread out the vitamins and minerals throughout the day.
Before Bed
ZMA (a Zinc, Magnesium blend from Nutrabio that helps to promote recovery from training and works as a natural Sleep enhancer).
-I really feel like this helps me so much, I sleep like a zombie! I usually sleep 6-7 hours a night, which I realize isn’t enough and I am happy to have something that helps my body recover as quickly as possible from the day’s activities.
It might seem like a lot and maybe at first it feels like it, but I have found that the longer I have done this the more being part of my “daily morning ritual” it has become. Now as normal and routine as making my coffee or brushing my teeth.
Ready to dive into some of these? I highly recommend Nutrabio prducts to you-as the Company is a FDA and GMP inspected facility with complete label disclosure and product transparency (you know EXACTLY what you are getting) and I invite you to use my coupon code for 10% off and flat rate shipping!
http://www.nutrabio.com
Code: LJ2014 (just put it in at check out)
To YOUR Best Health,
Liz Jackson Team Nutrabio Athlete
*This post is extremely personal and hard for me to put out publicly. I am extremely nervous what others may think of me after reading it but I am compelled to share this with you, I want those that are like me to know they are not alone and I want others to see becoming what you said you never would become can happen to anyone. This is a struggle I have not told many people about and I sincerely hope that you can read it with an un-judgmental eye.
The Games We Play with Ourselves
I looked down at the best frienemy I have ever had and wanted to dance a jig. “101.2” she said, with no voice at all.
I felt like I had just won the game but as soon as I stepped away from her that same game was on again.
The thoughts start, “Could I keep this going? Could I get an even SMALLER number?? What if I lose all that progress and then it ruins the entire world!” …. OK, that was a bit far.
You all know what I am talking about.
It IS kinda funny… until it isn’t.
That best friend that we love to hate: the scale. I’ve named mine, The Bitch.
I hate her but can’t seem to stay away from her despite it. I see her dutifully every morning and our meeting might set the tone for my entire day.
Was my weight up? “Damn it Liz, you shouldn’t have ate two bites off Gray’s plate,” “you are going to weigh a million pounds if you keep it up, fatty.” “Why didn’t you work out another 10 minutes? You ate a bite of a KitKat you know!”
Was my weight the same or down? WOO HOOO, I haven’t lost all my progress….in one night. But don’t you dare take it easy on yourself, Liz. You could lose this and all your work with one simple mistake!
(Give me a break….)
Only I couldn’t give myself a break.
I would preach to women all the time, “step away from the scale! That number is only one factor in your health. Stop obsessing.”
I meant it too. That number wasn’t magical for THEM. They could be healthy without looking at that number. They could be balanced and fit without worrying about that number.
But those rules didn’t apply to me.
One word: Hypocrite.
Am I alone in this??
The rational side of my brain says, “Why don’t you take a baseball bat to your frienemy there, sweetheart, and do yourself and your family a favor-quit being so neurotic!”
The emotional, female perfectionist side of my brain says, “no… You weigh and let that number determine your worth as a person.” “You know if you slip up and gain 5 pounds no one will respect you in your profession! Your husband is going to think you are ugly if he sees that number, girl! You will let others down because if even YOU can’t keep it together then they have the excuse that they can’t either.” “It would be YOUR entire fault if they are not able to keep control”.
Oh, the PRESSURE!! This “friend” sure knows how to “weigh” down my day…No pun intended, or did I?
How did I get here? How did I get to a point where I was so completely obsessed with the SCALE that it would literally REIGN or RUIN my day? It wasn’t until I posted a picture of myself on Facebook showing off what I thought was a great looking, motivational photo of abs (thinking back now it was just skin and bone *ugh), and then proceeding to get messages from; not one, but THREE women I consider VERY inspiring, voicing their concern about my health that I started to see a glimmer of a problem….MAYBE.
I didn’t understand all the negativity around the post at the time, but I eventually deleted the picture.
With some not so gentle nudging from one of those great women, the next week I had an appointment with a counselor. …and I STILL didn’t understand why or what I was doing it for.
The counselor listened to me express my frustration, “I don’t understand what the big deal is, I EAT a LOT. I just don’t eat like an average person. I have extreme control over what I eat, when I eat it and how much of it I eat. I know exactly what my macros are for the day and I hit them.”
The counselor let me go a couple sessions like this before she stopped me and said, “Liz, you have an eating disorder.”
I argued with her relentlessly and then left.
I didn’t understand how she could think that, as I was eating as healthy of food as possible.
I wasn’t binging and then purging, or just not eating at all.
This girl loves to eat….but just not like everyone else in the world.
I told her so.
She explained that there are several kinds of disorders and it wasn’t that I was anorexic but that I had a distorted view of food.
When I finally made it back into her office she asked me about the stresses in my life, I laughed so hard I cried!
Stress???
Where did I start??
I was stressed to the nines with trying to run the business, keeping my rigorous training schedule (because if you don’t train 300% all the time you didn’t deserve to eat…*ugh), raising Gray, keeping the house, working at the hospital, cooking 3 different meals for three different people three times a day, running around like a chicken most of the time…. I was losing my mind, my marriage was suffering and my sanity was gone.
… but at least I could see my abs!! Err… or ribs, whatever.
The counselor let me vent it all out and when I finally shut up she just sat back, looked at me and waited.
I remember looking down, then looking back at her and then falling apart.
Shit…
“Liz, you have a problem.”
And those words weren’t coming from the counselor (see how I refuse to use the word “Therapist” ? )
That statement was coming from that rational, even headed side of my brain that I had shut up and stopped listening to I couldn’t even remember how long ago…
The best thing about that statement, though?
I HEARD IT LOUD AND CLEAR.
What had happened to me? This isn’t something that happened overnight. I slowly went down a rabbit hole and I was very close to a total breakdown. I walked around half in a daze most days, only feeling good when I would work out, though I lost that too when I started nearly passing out during training from over exertion and lack of fuel.
Thinking back I don’t understand how I could have ignored it so much, though at the time I was thinking I was just working out so hard and doing so much that I was pushing my limits and EARNING the right to eat. I exuded the upmost discipline and focus. Drive and motivation? I was the walking billboard for it. People needed me to be there to motivate, educate and show them how to work through tough times.
O…. how stupid had the depleted state of my body made me?? Looking back I am appalled. I still am not sure how I managed to get so far down the rabbit hole that I literally made myself ill from being “so healthy”.
One of the lowest points in all of this came one day when I was working at the hospital and a nurse I hadn’t seen in a while saw me and exclaimed, “LIZ? Is that YOU?..Honey, have you been ill??” I could tell by her inflection she wasn’t talking about a cold, no, she was talking like… cancer. Actually, that was the second lowest. The LOWEST came with what she said next, “O.. I didn’t even recognize you; you USED to be SO pretty!” Yup, that was the lowest point ever.
I remember going to the bathroom to wipe away my tears, though I would never admit to that as I have no tear ducts.
So I knew I had a problem.
I knew I body and mind were suffering and sick.
I knew my family was worried and I knew I had to change.
What I didn’t know is HOW to change.
How did I go from obsessing about every morsel of food, every training session…well, EVERYTHING; to a more balanced, healthful version of what I USED to be.
How do you facilitate change? I hate change! I am a creature of routine and ruts.
I like doing the same things in the same way I have always done them.
I had a new thing to obsess about, How do I bring myself back from this place? This horrible place?
Then it dawned on me and it was simple.
As slowly as I had went down the rabbit hole I had to dig myself out of it.
How do you do that? One day and one decision at a time.
It took and, might I add, TAKES daily decisions to choose health and balance over my obsessive tendencies.
I have to constantly remind myself to take steps to avoid going back down that rabbit hole. It is SO easy to fall back into the same trouble again and I would be lying if I said I didn’t struggle with it still today, hell, who am I kidding? This minute.
The therapy ended barely a year ago.
It seems so long ago and then not really all at the same time.
Day in and day out, I have to make decisions to bring me back to a state of better health (no, not perfect health). Just BETTER.
I am happy to report that I can now go to a pizza buffet and actually get my grub on without *much* guilt and although I am very well aware of how much I weigh (I am back in a healthy range ) I take it with a grain of salt.
I am stronger and my body shows it. I can work out and feel great during my sessions and I still have energy!
I enjoy my family more and I know they are enjoying having a little bit of the old Liz back. Though, she is not without scars.
I am paying the consequences of my severe personality even as I type.
Psoriasis has invaded me, though I am genetically predisposed to it- I now have it visible to everyone.
My hair (which had started falling out, but has recently stopped)-is so thin I cut nearly 10 inches off trying to save it.
My eyesight has still not fully recovered from the lack of fat (take fat out of your diet for a while and see how well you can “see”), and I have yet to fully regain my ability to enjoy a night out with my husband without “food drama”.
I haven’t even touched on the long term effects this will have on my health. I am praying that through constant effort I can reverse some damage done to my bones and tissues.
Remember Kelly Ripa, a few years back when she fractured her hip from too much stress and from too much exercise? I wonder how much of my story here she can relate with? The pressure, the obsessive working out, the restrictive way of eating. I wonder if I was just lucky I didn’t break any bones from lack of nutrients. It seemed after that incident she wised up and has become a healthier version of herself too. I am happy for her. I am happy for me. But the struggle is nowhere near over.
I take all this in stride. Lessons learned for sure. The things we go through are meant to make us stronger, wiser and in this particular case, I think-Older.
Why did I write about this?
Because I am tired of women running themselves into the dirt over a stupid number on a machine.
I am tired of women deciding their worth based on a number that is really only ONE indicator of health.
Is the scale important? Yes, it can be. But is it the all deciding, all knowing decoder of your overall HEALTH?
NO IT IS NOT.
Being healthy, feeling good, looking good and having the energy to do what you need to do are better indicators of how you are doing than whatever number you see on that scale.
If I had one piece of advice I wish I could get every woman to listen to, it would be that.
How many times have you started a weight loss journey, or tried to start exercising and only judged your progress by the scale? Be honest! Now how many times have you quit because the SCALE didn’t tell you what you wanted to hear?
If you are tired of starting over, STOP GIVING UP. It really is simple:
You want to be healthy, fit and happy?
Educate yourself on healthy foods, like a TRUE education. Learn your food groups for starters!
Be as active as possible.
take the stairs when you can-play chase with your kids-get a gym membership (shameless plug, www.therackgym.com)
Don’t try to be extreme one way or another, just TRY period.
FOCUS on being a better version of who you were yesterday, every day and the rest will fall into place.
Take it from me, LEARN from my mistakes-PLEASE. Love yourself enough to STOP the games. Unless, of course, you want to play baseball. In that case, I will lend you the bat and we can use your Bitch as the ball.
This picture was taken in the middle of me “digging out of the rabbit hole”
In Our BEST health,
Liz Jackson
If you own an activity tracker raise your hand! If you own more than one, raise both hands (…hang on I can’t type now…).
I guess with my personality I either go ALL or nothin’ because what started with a simple well intended gift from my husband has turned into quite the obsession!
Are you the same way (please tell me I am not alone!?!?)?
These trackers, depending on how “data crazy” you want to be, log everything from sleep patterns to stress levels and if you are one of those people that love to see progress in “real time” then this little TECH ticks that box quite effectively. But I sometimes wonder, Have I gone too far?
First thing I do in the morning after a quick peek into the “Daily Devotional Scripture” put out by YouVersion, is put on my trackers (yes, I meant for that to be plural). I hate to hardly even take a step without it being logged, (the reason for that will become apparent soon)… I might even walk an extra lap around my house if I have time in the morning hustle too, I mean, every step counts!
I now have a FitBit One and a Samsung GearFit and My most recent “game” of choice? Checking them against each other, of course! I laugh at how off they are during certain periods in the day! I wear the FitBit on my hip and the GearFit on my wrist. If I have been cooking a lot and stirring, the GearFit counts that as a step (works for me… I mean, I can really wear my arms out sometimes!) while my FitBit doesn’t record that.
But then other times I am walking around the grocery store with my arm stationary and GearFit doesn’t catch me walking but Fitbit does. It is always shocking though, at the end of the night they are never more than a couple hundred steps away from each other. My SECOND most recent “motivation game”? Making sure I hit my goals on both before moving to my “prize”.
I am not sure whether this should be considered extrinsic or intrinsic motivation because no one sees my trackers but me. I am not proving my steps to anyone, well-except Zach (and he honestly doesn’t care).
Either way it is motivation, and motivation is ALWAYS a good thing!
How motivating is what has surprised me though!
I mentioned my daily goals, let me explain how those came about. When I got my first tracker I was quite surprised (and then disgusted) that I wasn’t walking nearly as much as I thought I was! I was certain I was logging 5 miles a day at least, all at the speed of a “chicken with its head cut off”, and I think most people probably think they are more active than they actually are. When I got my first tracker I was only averaging around 7500 steps a day. Knowing that studies show the average person walks 10000 steps a day, I remember asking myself, “I GO from dawn till dusk, how is this possible?!?!” and I considered myself pretty active.
(where did they get those study numbers from anyway…..?!?!?!)
SO… I decided to start challenging myself to “Step Goals” throughout the day. For example:
Want a cup of coffee? Hit 1000 steps (might explain why my trackers go on STAT)
Ready to eat lunch? Hit 7000 steps (because you know I like to EAT)
Ready to hit the hay? Hit 10000 steps and don’t be sitting down until you do! (this goes for every day but one day weekly)
…Yes there have been some nights I have been brushing my teeth walking in a circle-don’t judge me.
My dear husband, who has spent some time laughing at me behind my back about this, has even started catching my little “fever” and he occasionally will log his steps. I always find it fun when we get into “step wars” or I catch him moving around a little too much at odd hours of the day until it hits me… he is trying to reach his step goal too! Then I laugh at HIM.
My line of thinking, at least we are laughing!
Am I too serious about it? Maybe. But does it really matter if I am having fun keeping myself off my butt (believe it or not I have so many lazy tendencies I am constantly battling) and my husband and I are having some fun times together with our “step wars”? I don’t really think it does and I am ok being a little obsessed.
I mean, I can stop whenever I want. … I think.
Keep Calm and Track On!
Liz Jackson
Team Nutrabio Elite Athlete
Coupon Code LJ2014
The Struggle is REAL!
As you age, your hormone profile, muscle mass and body composition transition–SOOO the things that used to not have any effect on your weight “magically” start having a huge impact. Let’s see if we can figure out a way to STOP and reverse this nasty little conundrum!
I am almost always in some level of conversation about weight loss to women of a…certain age. Usually these women are around the late 30’s to mid 50 range. These Warriors of the World (and we all know these women are the true BA’s: raising kids, keeping a home and job and taking care of pretty much everyone else except herself), all come to me with nearly the same struggle-creeping weight. All these beautiful women (and yes, I am talking about YOU) tell me nearly the same thing:
“I don’t eat any differently than I did 10 years ago, but all the sudden I have a spare tire around my midsection that will not go away! I don’t understand and I don’t know what to do?!?!!”
The problem lies in the fact that we, my dear, are not who we were 10 years ago and neither are our bodies.
We spend the greater part of our lives taking care our families and doing the best we can to get from point A to point B without losing any limbs… ( I might be stretching it a bit but you haven’t been to my house around bus time either..). All the sudden you wake up one day and look in the mirror in horror. Asking yourself, “how did I come to THIS?”
Often times we push ourselves into a self inflicted bubble of depression and self hate (often accompanied by a nice pint of Ben and Jerry’s) when in reality, we should take this opportunity to STOP the creep and take back our lives. It is starts here:
Time for a short lesson:
Point 1)
Most women start losing muscle mass at a rate of 3 to 5% every decade around the age of 30, a condition that actually has a name, Sarcopenia, this is pretty much a fancy name to describe muscle atrophy as you age.
Point 2)
Muscle tissue has about a 3 times higher metabolic rate than fat tissue.
Muscle burns about 6 calories per lean pound of muscle in day while fat only burns about 2 calories per fat pound in day.
Point 3)
Since we lose muscle mass every year as we age- do our bodies just disappear? ..If they did I wouldn’t need to write this post!
What do you think happens? We lose firmness for fat!
Point 4)
There are foods that we consume that are more likely to lead to fat storage versus lean body mass over others and often times highly touted “Healthy Foods” make this list all too often.
Pop quiz time!
What burns more calories in a day? Muscle tissue or Fat tissue? (I hope this is rhetorical)
Which builds muscle better? Walking/running on a treadmill OR lifting weights?
A calorie is a calorie, right? Or is it??
So let’s think about this. Women, continuing to eat the same way they did when they were 20, into their 30s and 40s-coupled with inactivity and poor diet choices, I will go ahead and throw in genetic predisposition (though it ain’t all your momma’s fault) all the sudden start adding on weight as a lower metabolism, hormone profile changes and not so healthy habits catch up. There are usually several factors contributing to how you have you have arrived at this place. But one thing is for sure, what used to work (or at least wasn’t hurting) isn’t working anymore and we need to discuss how you can stop it!
Before you panic in despair- Thankfully, all is not lost and we CAN stop it and we CAN reverse it.
Here are my top suggestions to get you going in the right direction!
First, let me suggest you read my previous post The M.E.D., once that is done come back and continue on!
1) Pick up that dumbbell… but only if it weighs more than your purse, your toddler or the heaviest thing you might lift in a day. There is one sure fire way to slow the loss of muscle tissue, USE YOUR MUSCLES! Weight training and resistance training is vital to protecting yourself from muscle loss, osteoporosis and fat gain. Don’t know where to start? Don’t let this stop you, FIND SOMEONE THAT DOES.
2) Go for protein. The Standard American Diet (S.A.D.) is usually very carbohydrate heavy and lacking in high quality protein and fat sources. Think: Chicken, Salmon, Tuna, Grass fed Beef just to name a few!
3)Stop over sugaring your life! Sugar hides in all sorts of foods that hide under a “health food” obscurity blanket and besides from the the obvious cakes, cookies and candy most Americans get way too much sugar in a day. It isn’t recommended to go over 25g of added sugar in a typical day and you can easily max and exceed that recommended limit in one Starbucks coffee!
A lot of times people are even more shocked by the next thing I am getting ready to dive into:
Often times people think they are doing good with their fruit and vegetable consumption, but on further investigation we find that, while most do great getting a ton of fruit; veggies fall off the table. Fruits and vegetables do NOT interchange and there are a lot of fruits that have more sugar than would be recommended for a normal person. Am I telling you not to eat fruit? Of course not! I am telling you to learn about which fruits have health benefits and a high nutritional value-without an overload of sugar per serving. I suggest looking into the Berries first!
4)Start keeping a food journal. While life is hectic and hard, if we take a hard look at what we are eating (or what we are NOT eating, for those of you that just don’t eat…) in between soccer practices and dance lessons we might find that our choices are not the best for optimal health. Which brings me to my final point.
5) Educate yourself! Started your food journal?
Now start figuring out how many calories you are eating in a day.
Ask yourself these questions:
1) How many grams of Fat, Carbohydrates and Protein am I eating a day?
2)What is a normal healthy amount of those Macronutrients listed above for your body type and size (these are what make up your CALORIES)?
3)Are you maintaining your weight with what you eat or do you want to lose or gain weight? Start RESEARCHING the best way for you to go about your goals.
Your health is YOUR business. You can’t expect your Dr. (though he’ll be happy to push some pills your way), your husband or friends or even your Government (and yes I am talking about that that stupid Food Plate or Food Pyramid diagram) to do it for you. You take on every other responsibility for your family, it’s time to step up to the plate for YOURSELF (no pun intended…).
I don’t think everyone wants or NEEDS to be a size 2 with a 6 pack but I DO think we all want to be as healthy as possible. Whatever that looks like for YOU.
Think of yourself as a really nice sports car. You wouldn’t go around putting water in the gas tank or using crap filters to keep it running at peak performance. Your body is the same way! You can’t excpect to put JUNK in and get high performance out! It will catch up and it will have consequences.
We all want to be able to have the energy to play with our kids and live to see our grandkids. We all want to feel as beautiful as we did when we were 20 and even be healthier than we were when we were 20 (because older is wiser-and wiser is BETTER).
This is serious, this is YOUR HEALTH. You have one body, use it wisely.
Here’s to Getting Better with Age!
Liz Jackson
Team Nutrabio Elite Athlete
Coupon Code LJ2014
References:
http://www.webmd.com/healthy-aging/sarcopenia-with-aging
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