Diet-- To Die or Not to Die?

My cousin inspired me to write today's post, (Thanks Monique!) and so I will give you my opinion on dieting and exercise.

There are two things that my parents enstilled in me and most of my siblings; first and foremost was a religious foundation, but the second thing they made completely clear to all of us was the importance of healthy eating (hence the subject). I am very grateful to them for both of these foundations.

Have you ever noticed that the word "Diet" begins with the word "Die"? Some of that may have to do with the fact that many people in our country associate the word with deprivation and starvation, when in actuality it is defined as "food and drink considered in terms of its qualities, composition, and its effect on health". You are what you eat. If you eat healthy foods moderately, you will have a healthy body. If you eat a lot of unhealthy foods, you will have an unhealthy body. It's not so much about being fat or skinny as it is being healthy. I know this now from my own personal experience. Shortly after my husband and I got married, I gained a bunch of weight. At the time I wasn't too worried about what or how much I was eating, but I thought it was strange that even though I exercised (more than needed) I just couldn't seem to shake off the weight completely. I hear things about metabolisms slowing down and such, but I was only 20! It wasn't until almost a year after I had Brooklyn that I decided to give the good old-fashioned food pyramid a try at mypyramid.gov. (guidelines and portion recommendations for ANY foods) I never felt like I was sacrificing any of my favorite foods, because I knew how much of what category I was allowed to consume for my age, height and weight. The important thing is to keep most of what you are consuming healthy, and limit the junk food and sweets, or as the food pyramid would call it, "extras". I've been losing weight at a steady 5 pounds a month from this and 30 min. of moderate exercise 3-5 days a week, and have found that I am still losing weight! All because I changed how I eat, not what I eat.

Moral of the story? You don't need to die to lose weight! It's really quite simple once you get the hang of it.

The Excitement is Here!

The holidays are finally in the air, I can just smell it! I've finished my gifts for half of my family members...however, they are not wrapped and put under our tree. Why? Well, because when I pulled out our Christmas tree a couple of weeks ago--the top of it was missing! So while I might be full of Christmas spirit, my house doesn't really show any of it :( . Brett promises we'll get a real one this year, but those won't come out until AFTER Thanksgiving! And while most of you think that's how it's supposed to be, well, I won't even be in my home long enough over Christmas to enjoy it! By the time I actually get my tree up, I'll only be home for about 2 weeks, and then we're out of town for the rest of the holiday! So I feel like my festive mood has been snuffed this year, and I can only hope for better luck next year... oh well. :(

Day 7: My Honey...

My husband would definitely be that someone who has made my life worth living for. He's a romantic, he surprises me all the time on days I would least expect it. He's there for me through thick and thin, whether I'm being a perfect angel or a pain in the butt! He's a wonderful father to our beautiful little Brooklyn, he's spiritual, intuitive and loving. I will always love him, whether he's being a saint or a pain in my butt! He's my man, and I can count on him no matter what's going on in our lives.

Day 6: Fast Food

Something I hope I never have to do is work at a fast food restaurant! Nevada's economy isn't looking too hot these days, after all, it is the WORST state in the U.S. when it comes to economical issues. A lot of people are desperate. But working somewhere greasy like McDonalds?? Please, please, please no!! Just the thought of coming home in work clothes with that smell....yuck! Anyway, that is all on this particular subject (short, sweet and to the point! ;)).

Day 5: Religious History

So the thing I hope to do one day, is visit all of the places with religious (Christian/lds) history. I've already been to palmyra, I want to visit Kirtland, Far West, Haun's Mill, Nauvoo...but most importantly, I REALLY want to see Jerusalem! That about sums up today's subject ;)

Day 4: Salon Drama

So today I have to forgive someone for how they ruined my life! So here it is...I went to get my haircut (when I say cut, I mean style cut not actual cut!) at a salon I was referred to, and the end result was actually pretty good (style-wise) for the price...but then I realized that 3 inches of my hair went missing! I didn't notice how much length she really took off in there until I got home! So now, instead of having really long hair which was the way I WANTED to keep it, I came home with medium-length. :( So lately, I've been wearing my hair in ponytails everyday just waiting to get some of my length back, because I didn't like the way it looked any other way. So, (deep breath) my dear stylist, I forgive you. Just please don't ever scare me like that again! :p

Day 3: A little too organized...

Okay, so I may not always look like an organized person when you catch me on the wrong day... :) but when I really get into organizing things, I literally can't stop! I start getting rid of things that we're not using but most importantly, giving away clothes that aren't fitting. After 5 months of committed exercise, I have dropped almost all of my excess weight...but because of my organizing sprees over the years, all of the clothes that I would've had that would fit me right now, are GONE! So in essence, I have almost no wardrobe right now and I am kicking myself for EVER giving away those cute clothes! It's nice being small again...but awkward because I have to wear clothes that are loose or too big because I have no other choice right now! THIS is something I have to find in my heart to forgive myself for, and I am just hoping that I have actually learned from this terrible mistake. In the mean-time, I will continue to be frumpy-looking until I can afford to fix this horrible tragedy! (Why oh why??)