HL week day 2: chocolate, cheese, and bacon?

what?
you mean those AREN’T essential food groups? (it’s chocolate, peanut butter, and bacon, right?). just kidding (mostly). i’ve decided to play food blogger for the week, and reviewing the photo evidence from yesterday, i clearly have no shortage of decadence (or deliciousness) in my diet. but before i get to the photo round-up, some thinking about what this whole healthy lifestyle thing means . . . to me.

my healthy lifestyle, defined:
■ being active in some way on most days. i believe that we were meant to MOVE so much more than our current society sets us up for. both my body and my brain get so much out of my workouts, running and otherwise.

■ sleeping enough. every night. this is reason #1 (and #2, #3, #4, and #5) why residency makes people feel awful and inhuman. although once babies come down the pike, i understand that the challenges in meeting this requirement will multiply thousandfold.

■ eating for fuel, health, and enjoyment. i think that listening to the body’s signals regarding hunger and satiety are paramount here. however, in order for this to work, one has to choose foods that are REAL. our bodies don’t know how to feel when we eat processed crap and fake sugars.

that said, the enjoyment part is important to me, and something i grew up with. it’s SO cliché, but it’s all about finding a balance between super-nutrient-rich options and personal favorites. proportion is also key — in my opinion, an all-or-nothing approach is one of the least healthy ways to think about food.

diggng deeper, i suppose there are some foods i consider ‘off limits’. but in general, this list consists of thing i don’t like and/or have no desire for because they just kind of gross me out. examples: soda (regular and diet these days — i’m just not into it), cilantro (personal hate), liver (meh), most fast food/fried food, any fakey-tasting candy, low-quality baked goods. i may be a food snob to some degree, but . . . there are worse labels to have.

■ taking time to relax. i haven’ always been great about this one, but lately? i’ve been better! taking time to not rush and just do fun and enjoyable things is part of being mentally healthy, so i believe it fits in with the HL theme.

■ practicing healthy self-care rituals. for me, this list includes taking vitamins (and calcium — as you’ll see i’m not great at getting enough of this in via food choices), flossing, and wearing sunscreen. it makes me so mad that my gym has an affiliated TANNING SALON — i realize that there are those that work out 100% for vanity and not for health at all, but i thought that most of us were dually motivated.

■ accepting yourself. of course, i’m all about self-improvement! but there is a vast spectrum that exists between wanting to be better, and true self-loathing. one tenet i have heard before is “choose the lifestyle, accept the body.” i agree, although i think that it might take time to find that right balance. i know it did for me.

so there you have it: my personal definition of a healthy lifestyle. but as i crafted this list, i decided that i definitely don’t think this is the right or only answer to this question — just my own. after all, it is different for all of us! living in a way that makes me feel good might not work for you, and vice versa.

what would you add or take out? what do you think about the term healthy lifestyle, anyway? if you blog, do you consider yourself a HL blogger? i’d love to hear your thoughts!

now onto the bacon: yesterday, in food
i do not have aspirations to become a food blogger, though there are certainly some that i love! i just thought this would be a fun experiment for just 1 week. when others write about food (and aren’t food bloggers), i often wonder, “well, what DO you eat?”. this week, i’ll answer that question. and then some . . .

breakfast (while blogging + before the gym): whole grain flax waffles, almond butter, strawberries, black coffee in giant starbucks philadelphia mug

lunch, eaten during our required conference — leftover crostini with sundried tomato spread + basil, made into mini-sandwiches; red pepper strips

snack #1: eaten while @ work — peanuts + raisins

snack #2: at home, at around 5pm. plain low fat yogurt + cranberry granola. i don’t typically eat 2 snacks, but i was hungry and on a roll working on my senior talk, so i went for it.

dinner: absolutely delicious spicy shrimp and grits from cooking light. i used red pepper instead of tomato and added sun-dried tomatoes to the grits.

dessert: i pretty much always eat something sweet after dinner. i’m still working on the valentine’s see’s! last night’s was caramel.

so there you have it. looking at the day as a whole, i think it was pretty representative, although a little light on the vegetable front. it was sort of eye-opening to see how it felt to do this — i have to admit i am wondering (worrying?) about what people will think of this post. why does food invoke these feelings of self-consciousness in someone who (overall) is comfortable with her body and lifestyle? it’s interesting, to say the least.

black tie update
thanks for the input regarding the dress yesterday. while i do love that little number, i concede to the majority opinion that it just doesn’t quite make it for black tie.

as luck would have it, mere minutes after hitting ‘publish’, i randomly came upon a long, layered and awesome yellow-green caterine malandrino gown in the wondow of a consignment shop that is next to my gym. not only was it my size, but it fit almost perfectly (i think i’m going to just make it slighhhhtly less low cut). i took it home for $40 and felt good about the eco-friendliness and cost-effectiveness of my purchase! pics to follow, of course.

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3.8.10

workout: 35 minutes on the elliptical + weights — and i’m sore today!
— 2 x 12 pushups
— 2 x 12 squats to tricep press
— 2 x 12 bicep curls, 12 lb weight
— 2 x 12 walking double lunges, 8 lb weight
— 2 x 12 lateral/forward raises with lunge

senior talk progress report: i’m done with the title, pathyphys, history, and prep slides. i feel like i’m finally making a dent!