Gallifrey Academy of Timelords:

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The 11 Things I Do (and Don’t) That Make Me

Healthier Than You

Ok, so I'm trying to sound like an arrogant jerk on purpose just to get your attention. If you're still reading, I guess it worked! But in all seriousness, I've compiled a list of habits that I am proud to say are part of my lifestyle (on a really GOOD day anyway) and think that you'll reap many health benefits if you are able to incorporate some or all of them into YOUR lifestyle. Read on!

1. I DO practice mindfulness.

It is practically impossible to be successful with the next 10 things if I cannot master this one. Mindfulness is doing things with purpose and intent; it’s recognizing the voice in your head as the devil on your shoulder and understanding that it’s not the real you. (The real you is all light and love and devoid of judgment! Swear!) You don’t have to listen to that irksome voice. You just have to recognize that it's continually telling you lies and then it will vanish like a dream upon waking. Mindfulness is also taking in the present moment and fully living in it with each of your senses so that you can make authentic choices that are for your greater good. Meditation helps bring me closer to this.

I try to meditate at least 5-10 minutes a day. Just because thoughts come back into your mind does not mean meditation isn’t working or that you’re failing at it. The point is to OBSERVE the thoughts and then try to let them go again. It is a bit of a see-saw in your mind, but growth is in the effort and the space you give yourself. If you've tried meditation and found it "boring", well that is just an indication that your mind is strong and fighting the effort of release (i.e., if anyone needs to meditate, it's YOU!) Interested in trying meditation? Start here. 

2. I DON’T drink crap

I drink water all day long. I have a reusable water bottle with me at all times. If I don’t have it, I feel like I’m missing a limb. Many people don’t like the taste of water. This kind of statement makes me stiffen. If there is anything we are all supposed to universally consume without question it is this giver of life liquid. The fact that someone finds it unpalatable is simply an indication of a sugar addiction; you got used to drinking crap, and now the one thing that your body unequivocally relies on for proper functioning is “gross” to you. If this sounds like you, you likely need a major beverage overhaul. You are likely drinking too many calories, and that will hamper your weight loss/maintenance and overall wellness. The graphic below clearly indicates exactly how much sugar you are consuming with every drink. I mean, that's horrifying. Look at that Big Gulp!

If you think your diet drinks are saving you the negative impact of real sugar, guess again.

There are ways to transition back to hankering for H20. I love flavored, unsweetened seltzer or mineral water. It is a guilt-free pleasure of mine. If you’re a flat water-hater, give it a try. If you need the “sweet” add some flavored stevia sweetener (avoid other substitutes out there). Then try regular, filtered water when it’s hot out, or you’re hot and super thirsty. Your body will remember it wants it. Other acceptable forms of hydration especially in hot weather or after a tough workout when water just doesn't seem to cut it include coconut water, in place of Gatorade (GROSS! and unnecessary) or kombucha, a fermented tea product with the added boost of probiotics. I don’t drink dairy.

3. I DO eat as close to nature as possible.

This means, whole, organic foods, free-range/pasture raised meats, and not processed/with limited ingredients, if you must buy something (like bread) that is a manufactured food. This is an expensive and challenging endeavor not yet attainable by the whole of society. A whopping 99% of our meat is factory farmed, an ugly business frought with ethical and health plights. After being everything from uninformed meat-eater to vegan and all points in between, I've found buying and preparing humanely raised meat is the only choice for me.

If you find yourself saying, “But everything is processed!” then you’re probably shopping wrong all together. You’ve heard the “shop the perimeter of the supermarket" mantra before, I’ll bet. I don’t shop regularly at those grocery stores, because they hit you with soda and Oreos before you even walk through the door. No wonder America thinks eating crap is normal. Yes, I am a Whole Foods shopper. It’s far from perfect, it’s expensive as hell, but it is the only option I have to make the right choices consistently. When you walk in the door there, you walk into the produce section. Trader Joe’s and Wegman’s are also decent options, that’ll drive to once a month. I’d rather invest my money into healthy food than say, a $500 Coach bag. That’s just who I am. Although the organic movement may not be as reliable as we would like, it’s still my best bet to get healthy food.

The balance of macronutrients on your plate is also important. My diet loosely resembles this graphic borrowed from Mark's Daily Apple, a great paleo blog:

4. I DON’T eat Sugar and Grains often

Even though this should be subsumed by #3, it bears emphasis. In a perfect world we would have zero added sugar. Unfortunately, I was born into this one full of donuts and Snickers bars. I know they’re out there and I’d be lying if I said I could do without for the rest of my life. So I leave them for a once-in-a-blue-moon indulgence and choose more wisely for my daily life. That means, on an average day I don’t consume any added sugar. As for grains, I realize this is a much tougher one for most people, and since I became pregnant, had a baby and my caloric and carbohydrate needs increased, it has been harder for me as well. So that’s why I say I don’t eat these treats often. I believe in much of the paleo lifestyle doctrine, and I think we would all do better eliminating most grains completely. But we love our bread, so it’s quite challenging to live a life devoid of all grains. I applaud those who have been able to do it (my heart goes out to Celiac sufferers). Personally, I recognize that I can feel just as good and still enjoy food (and life) by limiting as much as possible. That means most days I don’t have toast with my eggs. If I do, it’s one slice. I don’t eat crackers or processed snack foods, and I try to pair sweet potatoes with my dinner protein instead of rice. Try eating the non-grain items in a meal first and leaving the carb-y stuff for last when you’re likely to be more full.

5. I DO consume my food slowly

Here’s another challenge: Incorporate mindfulness into your eating ritual. Not just in your choices but within the process of enjoying a meal. This one is tough for me. I am a lifelong fast-eater and will sooner burn all the skin off the roof of my mouth eating scalding hot food than let it cool and eat it slowly. There’s an old Chinese adage, “Drink your foods and chew your liquids.” Meaning, chew your food until it’s in liquid form, and don’t guzzle your drinks, instead sip them slowly savoring the experience.

I’ve always had a problem eating pasta. It bloated me. I recently determined I have a gluten sensitivity and just stopped eating it and replaced it with gluten-free pasta or zoodles. I felt way better! Those moments, however, when the authentic semolina-based pasta crosses my path and I want to eat it (I am human, and Italian, after all), I try remember some 8th grade science: The enzyme amylase that breaks down polysaccharide carbohydrates is secreted in your saliva. Masticating your toast with saliva is what breaks down the sugars into di- (and later in the small intestines mono-) saccharides. If that first process isn't completed, than the second breakdown can't happen properly.  I had been gobbling my pasta down barely chewed at all, so how could it be digesting properly? Stomach acids breakdown fats and proteins, but if that pasta makes it past your mouth without receiving due diligence, that is a recipe for...indigestion.

So, I ate a bowl of pasta, S L O W L Y. I chewed every mouthful into a liquid mush and swallowed it down. Guess what? I only had one bowl instead of two! Guess what else? I felt FINE.

Same goes for drinking. Savor each mouthful and let it go down slowly. You’ll swallow less air and allow the signal for satisfying thirst have a chance to be fired. If you over drink while eating a meal, you can dilute your stomach acids. It’s best to have a glass of water (yes water!!) before a meal so it can filter right on through and hydrate you, leaving you to enjoy and digest your meal properly.

6. I DON’T skip breakfast

I simply cannot leave my house in the morning without eating anything. Breakfast really is the most important meal of the day. Most days it eggs, occasionally its oatmeal, rarely its cereal or protein bar. I always have fruit first. Coffee AFTER. I’ve found that most people who hate breakfast are also coffee addicts. If you get used to drinking coffee on an empty stomach, you will chronically dampen your appetite. A lot of people who have trouble losing weight are also breakfast skippers. There are always exceptions, of course, and some evidence that extended fasting is natural, but if it hasn’t been working for you then it’s time for a change. Start small. First, rehydrate with a glass of water, and put your coffee on hold. Then, an apple, or a banana, a piece of toast, an egg. Something. You might find after a week you wake up with an appetite. Then you can set your metabolism going at the proper cadence and will also be less likely to over indulge at lunch time when you’re body is trying to make up for the calorie deficit you created by not eating at “break the fast” time.

7. I DO keep my gut healthy

Did you know that the bulk of your immune response is in your gut? Did you also know that your mental health is also dependent on the balance of microbes in your digestive system? Don’t take my word for it, the research on probioticsis everywhere and readily available, and although all health claims have not been verified, many have. I cover all of my bases by taking oral probiotics, eating fermented foods when I can such as sauerkraut, pickles, even sourdough bread, grass-fed, unsweetened greek yogurt, and drinking fermented drinks like I mentioned above, Kombucha and kefir. They are indeed sour, and may be an acquired taste for some, but well worth it for the payoff. But if you can’t stomach that kind of strong libation, then at least take a reputable,probiotic supplement.

8. I DON’T buy snacks.

If it’s there, I’ll eat it. If you’ve ever been to a party with me, you may have stood, mouth agape, watching the endless stream of finger foods find their way into my mouth. Mindfulness lost. It’s a miracle (more likely, genetics) that I’ve never had a weight problem. But that’s where I see my shortcoming: I simply have to exercise restraint from the start. My pantry is BORING. There are staples in there but nothing to snack on at all. No cookies, no crackers, no…..i don’t know? What do people snack on? I eat meals so that I am sated and snacking does not become a necessity. And should I purchase a package of cookies, it won’t last two days, so I just don’t do it. If I have a hankering for something sweet I buy one serving, and don’t leave the possibility of binging open to myself. I DO have a bar of quality, fair-trade organic dark chocolate that I go through in about a week both to get a high dose of antioxidants and other health benefits dark chocolate provides and to fulfill the chocoholic in me. It’s better for you than a snickers and can even be "tasted" like a fine wine.

9. I DO eat fistfuls of greens

I’m not kidding. Something about breastfeeding changed my palate to prefer bland foods. Putting salad dressing on a salad just seemed unnecessary, and well, a little gross. I also had to kaibosh cruciferous veggies for a while because they also didn’t sit well with little one, so one day, I just opened up a bag of baby spinach and started eating it like chips.

I feel like a whole new, pressure-free world opened up to me. I always felt like I had to prepare, cook or create a salad to get my daily dose of greens in. I actually don’t mind the taste of spinach, so eating it by the fistful doesn’t bother me at all. I eat more of it, and it assuages a need to “pick” on something unhealthy. So there you go. Try it if you’re bold.

10. I DON’T stare at a screen all day

My, my, what have we all become? Cyborg creatures with a smart phone permanently planted betwixt our fingers, textnecks fixed at a 60 degree angle to our torsos, and brows furrowed intently at the pretty-pretty blue light of our devices.

Of course, this is our world now and I’m not saying that we can evade technology completely. But be VERY careful by what motivates you to look at your phone. Or your computer. Or the t.v. (There's that mindfulness thing again). Is it necessity or compulsion? Certainly if you have a computer job, you need to look at your computer (just try to build in regular breaks! Set your alarm every hour). No one NEEDS to look at the TV, yet there is certainly value in letting go and being entertained. It just shouldn’t be hours on end unless you have a broken leg or the flu. And your phone serves a purpose today, no doubt. But should you be playing Candy Crush when you’re complaining about having no time to workout or cook a healthy meal?? I think not….Since an angel has been born to me, I hardly ever turn the t.v. on anymore except for the news and one late night show.

First of all, screen time for kids under five is simply awful (researched heavily and pretty universally detrimental for infants). So I keep it off for her, except for the Music Choice, because my kid likes a good round of 90’s hip-hop dancing with her mommy. But really, she keeps me busy enough that there’s just no time for it. I feel oddly balanced now, like the couch has been sucking the life out of me all along.

Other benefits to limiting screen time: better sleep, more movement, more social interactions, less stress.

11. I DO exercise

Well, duh. But even someone like myself who makes a livelihood of exercise, working out is not always easy to work in. My motto has always been, “Something is better than nothing.” Ten minutes of stair climbing trumps ten minutes of sitting on your ass. Every time. But please don’t get too comfortable here. Push yourself outside of your mental and physical comfort zone when that option is available to you. Don’t get caught up in numbers, whatever they may be….30 minutes or 60 minutes? 3 times a week or 6 times a week? 80% of my heart rate, or 65%? Not that all of these numbers don’t have value and meaning, but if you’re starting at the beginning, just get moving for Pete’s sake. As you progress and things start to get easier, and the need to fine-tune your plan becomes evident, then start answering those pesky numbers questions. Since I have successfully procreated I have become an “average” person in the ways of exercise. I have only managed to be consistent in working out once every two weeks, running once every two weeks, but at least walking and stretching every day. I am humbled by how difficult I have found it to even WANT to exercise let alone find time to do it with a baby. But it is a simple matter of time management and priorities. With a little support and prodding from my hubs, my routine is starting to resemble something of my pre-pregnancy self, working out included.

Are there more things I do to contribute to my health or detract from it? Certainly. But these are the habits that form the foundation of choosing more wisely in all areas of life and health.

Anything you’d add to the list or take away?

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