Wellness Wednesday
From Ice Cream to Green Beans and Brussels Sprouts! By Donna Martelli (Fitness Trainer)
Last week I had green beans for an evening snack; last night I had Brussels sprouts. I chuckled as I thought about a typical evening snack in the 80’s and 90’s – a bowl of ice cream, sometimes with various incredibly rich toppings. True, I weighed 25 lbs more back then and was concerned about the continual expansion between my waist and my knees. I did exercise and was somewhat physically fit – but…oh, the ice cream!
How Things Have Changed
Education started it – learning about the extra calories and sugar and how they were affecting my body. Often I could not sleep because of the late night sugar onslaught. Then the next day, I would try to wake up with lots of coffee. The ultimate motivator to change things was not feeling well and getting sick too much. I also had a stressful life and developed Fibromyalgia.
So, What Happened?
Just like everyone else, I wanted to feel good! So, I tried to eat more fruits and vegetables (it always comes down to this, doesn’t it)! And I started taking a multi vitamin. Better? A little. I still had to deal with the rest of my diet which was similar to the average Americans. I never really liked fast food (except Taco Bell), so that wasn’t a major problem. I just ate what I was trained to eat - eggs and bacon or cereal for breakfast, a sandwich or salad (with lots of goodies) for lunch, and meat, potatoes, vegetables and dessert…plus the ever present bowl of ice cream at bedtime. No wonder I was carrying around that extra 25 lbs and gaining more.
Considering the options, I remembered my diet as a dancer: fruit and cottage cheese, yogurt, tea and coffee, meat twice a year or so – not so great for being healthy but effective for keeping weight down – especially with all of the strenuous dancing I was doing at the time.
OK, Back to the Future
I’ve studied and learned, listened to my body, and trained it to like the right things. Am I perfect – emphatically, NO! But I no longer carry that extra 25 lbs; my diet is full of whole grains, fruits and vegetables, and a small portion of lean meat every day or every other day. I drink plenty of water and take the right vitamins and supplements recommended by my doctor. A bite of dark chocolate in the morning zaps my desire for sugar and gives me some great antioxidants.
One More Change for the Better
One habit I got into through socializing and trying to medicate physical pain was drinking wine in the evening. It was a great sleep aid but became too important to me. It was great fun but it sharply cut into my creativity and leached my energy; not to mention, I felt sleepy and shaky most days. A minor health scare and a strong word from my doctor convinced me that this was NOT the answer. Excessive alcohol use has been linked to breast cancer and osteoporosis!! That is certainly not the path I am taking!
So, another turn for the better…and, I think it’s time for my evening bowl of…Brussels sprouts! Yum!
Photo by Make it yours
Well, good for you! I eat a ton of vegies, but I haven’t done the brussel sprout evening snack yet…lol.
I’m interested to hear more about this.
You do have to train your body/mind and it might not happen as quickly as you want – but the results are so worth it. Your body is very adaptable and it WILL totally change – you never have to be a slave to doing things the same way all the time. Isn’t that great news? Just take one step at a time in improving your habits, If you mess up – forgive yourself and keep going.
I totally agree with the one day at a time theory. Making better choices is how you gain health and train your body to enjoy good food.
The other thing is; don’t buy it, and you won’t eat it! Someone tell my husband this, please!
[...] From Ice Cream to Green Beans and Brussels Sprouts!90 Day Health Challenge: Week 11Enzymes: A Missing Health Link? [...]