Will the new year bring a new
me? Will I be able to implement and stick to the directives given by my
doctor? Only time will fully tell that but only I can succeed or fail in
the attempt. I have a family history of heart worries and cancer on my
dad's side and diabetes and cancer on mom's. There is also the concerns
over high blood pressure and cholesterol levels. I am myself a cancer
survivor with currently no sign of cancer but I do have concerns over my
cholesterol levels going up. All of this should make it apparent that I
need to take charge and take care of my health. The lifestyle that my
doctor recommended will benefit all of the health history concerns.
The
worst battle is going to be against my junk food and chocolate habits.
Sugar is not mine and it is not your friend. Most if not all of the
articles that I have read state that cancer feeds on sugar. If you take
the time to read the ingredients listing on the food products that you
purchase you will find that sugar in at least one of its many forms is
present. If you think that purchasing a food that is labeled "low fat"
is more healthy, check that label of ingredients, it has been told often
that when places reduce fat, they increase sugar content to save the
flavor.
As
I begin this journey to a more healthy me, I hope to chronicle that
adventure here. My own doctor stated that as a nation we need to move
from reactive to proactive care in our health. In other words, don't
wait until we get sick and then seek help, work to prevent the illness
to begin with. But to get there as a nation, it takes each individual to
make that first step. It will not be easy as that means leaving many
bad habits behind. How much easier is it to stop at a coffee shop or
fast food restaurant for a quick breakfast over preparing one at home?
Even though popping a single serving of healthy oatmeal in the microwave
takes mere minutes and the possibly more healthier version on the stove
top only a minute or two more. Top that with cinnamon and a serving of
fruit and you have a win for the healthier you. How much quicker is that
pastry, diet soda or micro-meal over healthier choices? Truth be told,
not much actually, but our bodies have become addicted to the taste and
reactions of the sugars that we tend to gravitate toward the junk
quicker. I know that I do, even as I know that there are those who have
corrected their diet and do follow a healthy lifestyle. That is the
lifestyle that I an hoping to emulate in the coming year.
It
will take baby steps, some of which I have already began implementing
in my life. I am not one to stop anywhere where I could purchase coffee
and load up on any of the fancy coffees that are loaded with the
ingredients that I have been told to avoid. I prefer preparing my
coffee-usually instant- at home. Thing is, when I did that, I made it
strong and dumped a big helping of non-dairy creamer and sugar into the
cup. Since the discussion with the doctor I have almost weaned myself
from the sugar and creamer in my coffee and am getting closer to
drinking it black that I would have imagined possible. In my quest for
information across the internet on this new lifestyle one of the things
I found was the the drink of preference is water. Good, cold, bland,
water. There are of course many ways to add flavor to water, some
healthy others not so much, and some down right need to be avoided. I
have a reusable water bottle that I have been taking water to work with
me and was recently given an insulated mug which I will also be using.
It has recommended stopping all consumption of sodas whether they are
regular or diet as the chemicals in the diet can and do cause harm in
different ways. Personally I could never drink the diet as the chemical
taste was something I had no desire to becoming accustomed.
The lifestyle he suggested does not depend on diet alone. It also
covers exercise, mental and emotional health. It tells you to get up and
move, purchase a pedometer and keep up with how much walking you are
doing daily and it does have a recommendation of 10,000 to 13,000 steps
per day. It tells you to find something that will calm your mind,
something that you enjoy doing and doing it. Whether it is a hobby such
as painting, sewing, music...etc or meditation. It tells you to do this,
and invite someone to join you as we are more likely to stick to
something if we have someone that will hold us accountable.
Where I currently work has a health assessment once a year in February.
I have until then to see what difference I can make in my health and
cholesterol levels. That will be my first check point with the next one
being my annual physical a couple of months later. That is why I have
actually already began the first steps. I will admit that I was told
this on December 4th. I will also admit that Christmas Dinner and the
various family who we visited I was not able to hold to the diet part.
Sugar addiction is sugar addiction and we will fall and we will give in-
especially when my mother's fudge, banana pudding, and pineapple upside
down cake are involved. The good thing is, we can see how we stumbled, we can pick ourselves up, dust off the cake crumbs and begin again.
As I take this journey and begin this adventure I hope that you will
join me. I hope to share what I learn and the improvements in my health.
I offer you, the reader, the opportunity to share what you know, what
you are dealing with and how you are working to improve your own health.
I admit to being a bibliophile who purchases books galore. I have a few
on diet and health and several good cookbooks to follow those healthier
lifestyle choices. It is my desire to find healthy foods, and healthy,
simple ways to prepare meals that won't be overly expensive. It is my
hope that this grand new adventure will lead to better health and lower
the possibility that my cancer will return. It is also my hope that
those who follow along and participate on your own will reap the same
benefits.
Here is to better health and a healthier lifestyle in the new year and after.
