{"id":663,"date":"2018-01-23T02:46:39","date_gmt":"2018-01-23T02:46:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/healthchicchatter.com\/?p=663"},"modified":"2021-04-25T21:57:50","modified_gmt":"2021-04-25T21:57:50","slug":"today-is-some-day","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/HealthChicChatter.com\/?p=663","title":{"rendered":"Today IS Some Day"},"content":{"rendered":"

I have a few questions for you\u2026<\/p>\n

How is your cholesterol? Your blood pressure? Your breathing? What about your ability to move without breaking into a sweat? Do you find you have no time to workout or prepare healthy meals? How much time do you spend going to the doctor? And how much money is spent on medicines that treat symptoms of disease?<\/p>\n

My friends, today IS \u201csome\u201d day. The day you decide to commit to a fit lifestyle.  Just do it.  For yourself, your family, your children, your community.  Because if you live a life with too little sleep combined with continual over-indulgences, ill health WILL creep into your body.  There is simply no way to sugar coat the cost of not committing to making small healthy lifestyle changes.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Often we create our own self sabotage by setting unrealistic goals.  However, you don\u2019t need to run marathons.  I\u2019m a big fan of \u201cevery little bit counts\u201d and the \u201c10 minute difference\u201d.   Small steps in a healthy direction, made consistently over time, WILL make a huge difference in your health. These 31 steps<\/a> (from Bulletproof) are an EXCELLENT place to start. Set small, simple goals and BE KIND to yourself along the way.<\/p>\n

And please, go moderately. Walking is a great way to start. Find an activity you enjoy so you are likely to continue doing it. (That is one of my most often asked questions, \u201cWhich type of exercise is best?\u201d My reply is, “Whatever workout you are most likely to stick to!”) And if you hate lettuce, don\u2019t eat it!  But don\u2019t set a \u201c10 pound weight loss in two weeks\u201d goal.  Healthy living is a journey that\u2019s about doing your best\u2014and forgetting the rest, one step and one day at a time. <\/p>\n

Here are some things I\u2019ve learned..<\/p>\n

Bodyweight involves more than willpower and biology plays a big role. And, when it comes to willpower, environment matters! (I cannot stress that enough.) Low fat diets blame people when they don\u2019t lose weight\u2014but \u201cfat-free\u201d is not the way to go; it\u2019s damaging and the very nature of that path contributes to failure! Society treats people with a weight problem with more stigma than anything else, sadly.   In a nutshell, a healthy “diet” is one that has REAL food, limits processed foods, and limits sugars.<\/p>\n

When it comes to fat, we NEED fat in our diets!  When we leave it out, our bodies goes into starvation mode.  Yes, we can lose weight.. but the body fights back, hunger goes up, metabolism goes down, and the stress hormones secreted erode lean tissue.  The best way is to reverse this recipe for failure is to focus on eliminating processed carbs (which raise insulin and drive fat cells into a feeding frenzy- ugh).  Once fat cells calm down, the calories you eat stay in the blood stream longer, so they are able to nourish your brain, muscles and organs. What happens then? \u201cHealth\u201d happens, that\u2019s what.  Hunger decreases, metabolism increases, and\u2026we lose weight.  I wish I could shout this from mountain tops and get the message out\u2014there are so many misconceptions around fat and carbs!<\/p>\n

The government quietly lifted the dietary limitations on fats in 2015, but who heard?  That\u2019s because their prior recommendations for \u201clow fat\u201d were erroneous and directed us to look at fat vs sugar. Quite frankly, this direction contributed to the obesity epidemic… along with processed food product quality and convenience–but that\u2019s a blog for another day!  Regardless, those earlier low fat \u201crecommendations\u201d were wrong.<\/p>\n

Note: In all fairness, Trans fats (partially hydrogenated soybean oil, for example) are AWFUL & should be avoided at all costs, but fat in general is needed and necessary.   Let\u2019s help get the word out that the low fat message was wrong.<\/p>\n

Now back to our healthy living journey!  Starting a new year is a great time to develop a plan, but honestly, I find short term goals work best. I create new lists, look over old lists regularly, and adjust them continually to suit life\u2019s desires.<\/p>\n

Here are a couple of ideas for you– but you can create your own \u201cGet Healthy in 2017\u201d list:<\/p>\n