Thursday, September 17, 2009

Love Yourself Enough ~ Part Two


This is the second installment of the blog post I wrote about 'Loving yourself enough to CARE for yourself.'

The concept 'what you put into it is what you get out of it' came to mind when I wrote this. Your body can only be and do its' best when you give it the best fuel possible.


Love yourself enough to Eat Right

a. Give up Fast Food. Period. There is no such thing as healthy fast food. It is as empty a calorie as cookies and chips only with tons of fats, preservatives and fillers. You deserve better, so eat that way!! Shower yourself with fresh fruits, nuts, lean meats, fish, veggies, cheese (yes cheese!) and you won’t miss that nutritionally deficient fast food filler.

b. Clean out your cupboards. Like cleaning out your closet of clothes you no longer wear, cleaning out your cupboard of chips, cookies, cakes, pies, pretzels etc. will help you stay on track. Instead replace these nutritionally empty snack foods with better choices. Since no one is perfect, if you do get the urge to splurge, try to limit your intake of these types of foods to ‘special occasion’ single serving sizes – and try to eat just one.

c. Drink water or tea instead of juice, soda or alcohol whenever you can. By keeping your body well-hydrated, you are allowing it to operate with maximum efficiency allowing you to burn more calories and digest foods more efficiently. Hydration is crucial, but what you use to keep hydrated is just as important - fruit juices, alcohol and even soda are full of sugars that your body metabolizes as FAT. Diet soda is just as bad – it is all chemicals that still cause your body to read the artificial sweeteners as sugar that create FAT. Get bored of water and tea? Buy naturally flavored sparkling water, or buy plain and flavor it yourself with lemons, limes, berries, apples and other fruits.

d. Eat more foods that are plant-based. Fruits, vegetables and nuts, should be a big part of your daily menu. They taste best when they are freshest (even frozen is okay, just not canned – too many preservatives and sugary syrups). They make you full faster and help your skin, hair and nails look better.


e. Had enough on food changes? Not sure you can make them all? That’s okay, just do your best each day, keep track of what you eat and make sure each of your three meals (skipping meals equals a slow metabolism) include fresh fruits, vegetables and lean protein and no fast food or snack foods!

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