I guess it’s never too late to make a New Year’s Resolution. So here are mine:
- Eat healthier.
I know I’m not going to become a vegetarian or someone who only eats all natural foods, but I could make some changes to my diet. Like instead of having PopTarts for breakfast, I could try eating cereal? Now that I think of it, it sounds more appetizing than eating the same psuedo-cinnamon-square everyday. PopTarts are only good for eating quickly, and if it’s a one of those nice, luxurious flavors, in my opinion. I’d rather have the chocolate chip cookie one than the ‘cinnamon’ one. And when I go to the mall, I could order healthier sides at the Chinese Food place. I’m going to McDonald’s less, but Lo Mein isn’t that much of an improvement. As long as I burn off the fat, that’s what matters, right?
- Drink more water.
Every time I hear someone say that people are supposed to drink 8 glasses of water a day, I always say that I’m going to do it, but then I forget about it. I’m not saying I’m going to drink 8 glasses of water each day this year, but just more.
- Sleep earlier.
Self explanatory. 
- Exercise more.
For vain and health reasons. I don’t think I’m fat, but I’ve been told that I look a lot like my uncles from when they were my age, and… they’re not exactly skinny now, so I don’t want to follow that path, too. Besides, my jeans are getting tighter and all of those trendy teen stores make all of the medium shirts small, so shopping would be more convenient if I lost some weight.
- Procrastinate less/Study more.
Once again, I know I won’t magically become some MENSA member who scores a 2400 on his SATs and graduates Harvard and Yale at the same time. But I just want to get all A’s and B’s. I have some motivations behind this. A single income household paying for 2 kids to go to college at the same time is going to be hard, and I want to get as much scholarships as I can to save on tuition and stuff. I want a high GPA to show all of those snobby kids (Like the class president, if any of you remember) that you don’t need to be good in math and science only to succeed. I want to show the private school that I used to go to that you can do well in life without playing a sport. I want to make my future family’s life easier. You get the idea. And I could achieve this by… studying more! Like for the biology quiz and Spanish test I have Monday! :/ Oh, and I don’t want to be in classes with people who don’t want to learn.
- Be able to look forward to something.
Right now, the only things I can look forward to, honestly, are new Heart Legacy posts, Friends,Boy Meets World, Roseanne, The Nanny, and How I Met Your Mother episodes, and Tumblr. I appreciate other things, but those are the only ‘real’ things that make me forget about everything else going on. So I just want to look forward to something that’s not on a screen, I guess.
- Make a friend.
I want to have a friend that I can go to the Apple Store and take random Facebook album pictures with. I want to have a friend that will accept me for my complaints, rants, and problems. I want a friend who accepts me for my neuroticness and clinginess. I want a friend who I could sit at lunch with and have my own table with. I want a friend who’ll leave inside jokes on my Facebook wall. Yes, SS already does all of these (excluding the Apple Store part ), because we’re twins, but… I want a new friend. I have some, but none who I’m this close with. Maybe someone in my school who’s my age and a boy? The only friends I have now are girls and not in my grade. So that complicates some stuff.
So, there are my resolutions. Will I follow them? Probably not. But hey, it’s worth a try.
A couple of tips for down the road? We switched out from beef to turkey. There is nearly ZERO change in the taste, and it's healthier. When it comes to drinks, I'm a sucker for Dr. Pepper and anything with taste, but I try to drink plenty of water before bed, and when craving a soda, I drink Apple Juice. I get Juicy Juice because it's approved by WIC which is the program for pregnant women and their children. WIC approves generally healthy food, so I pick Juices from the Juicy Juice brand.
ReplyDeleteI would suggest trying to switch to turkey for all your beef needs for cooking. Something we've stopped doing is making that hamburger helper crap because the sodium is simply INSANE. Basically, we stick with turkey, chicken, and fish. Tilapia is delicious and we avoid beef. We have plenty of salad, carrot chips, I enjoy cold broccoli.
Some staples I dunno if I'll be able to drop are waffles, or eggs with salsa [delicious]. Dr. Pepper is also hard to give up because of the taste and caffiene, so I drink apple juice when I can, and water before bed so I don't dehydrate and have a sore throat upon waking.
Sorry that I'm rambling, lol.
Me and the hubby have been really digging down into our nutrition. The problem with mass produced foods is that they ALL have corn syrup, which is where your sugar, fat, and generally bad ingredients come from.
Pretty much EVERY cereal, even the healthy ones, have it. There are SOME brands of bread that will say on the package "NO Corn Syrup" ALWAYS avoid corn syrup if you can. With bread, me and the hubby switch between Arnold's Stone Ground, and Nature's Pride whole wheat. Neither of those brands have corn syrup.
As for cereals? Haven't found one that doesn't have corn syrup unfortunately. It's part of living in this world where everything has to be mass produced.
So, lemme organize this.
Avoid Corn Syrup
Replace ground beef with lean turkey
Drink juice with low amounts of sugar
Eat your vegetables and fruits whenever possible
Drink water before bed so you stay hydrated [mouth breather, so my throat can easily become sore], also drink water as much as possible, especially if you live in a drier climate.
As far as exercising
You don't need anything extreme. An hour on a treadmill, or even better, an eliptical machine will get your heart rate up, which will burn calories.
Also, finding ways to increase your metabolism!
Exercising for at least 30 minutes ups your metabolism for 24 hours
Drinking ice water [and drinking 64 ounces which equals to 8 8oz glasses of water] helps
Eating smaller meals increases it!
Those are all the tips I can give for you. Exercising also helps your mind, producing a chemical that makes you feel awesome about yourself. So, eating smaller meals and more meals a day, like 5 or 6 small meals, and exercising will help you immensely.
I start going back to the gym on Monday, so I'm definitely going to be following all these tips! Good luck!
I don't do the grocery shopping for my family, so I'll have to remember the beef -> turkey tip for college (I'll probably be the definition of Freshmen 15) or later. I like chicken and fish, though. :) The water and juice tip also sounds good. Is Iced Tea okay? I don't eat cereal a lot because of school and laziness (I know, I sound like a tool for not even wanting to get milk, cereal and a bowl out on weekends xD), so I guess I don't have to avoid sugary cereals.
ReplyDeleteFor exercising, I don't want to go out in public like at a gym, because I run too awkwardly and stuff, and I don't want to be the n00bie 15 year old at the gym. :P I want a treadmill for my birthday, but I also have an indoor bike (which has one strap thing that broke) and Wii Sports (okay, so that's not exercise, but still), so I guess I could do those half an hour after school. :) Thanks for the advice! Good luck with the food and gym stuff!
And one last question: Is Subway healthy? Or at least, a smarter food choice than other food court places?
I think Iced Tea would be okay, just in moderation, especially if sugary, sweetened, etc., but it's better than soda, lol.
ReplyDeleteAs for the gym, I'm the same way, but I go because everyone else is just worrying about themselves. I'd rather go to the gym and walk on a treadmill with five other people instead of walking out in public alone, and these days, with the amount of psychos around, it tends to get risky sometimes.
Especially remember that at the gym, people there have similar goals as you, to stay in shape, get in shape, or be healthier, so there's not too much to worry about. To take your mind off it, have something portable like an mp3 player with you. Once you start listening to your music, you'll forget all about them. ^_^
As far as Subway goes, I'm a sucker for their chicken and bacon ranch, but it's certainly not the healthiest. I'm also a slightly picky eater, so when I'm feeling like I want a healthy sub, I get the turkey and ham and just have them put lettuce on it. Like I said, not a fan of banana peppers, or onions, or pickles on subs. If I remember correctly, the calorie count on that sandwich was only around....300 or 400, and I always get it on the wheat.
I think Subway IS good because you can pick and choose your toppings, your bread, your veggies, your meats, it's your own little healthy combo. I think instead of chips you can get apple slices instead?
I forgot to add another important aspect. TREAT YOURSELF once in awhile. Just because you're trying to get healthier, doesn't mean you shouldn't let yourself indulge, but as long as it's in moderation.
And when you're talking exercise, eating, lifestyle changes, the biggest word used is moderation. Sure, have a soda, but only have it once a week. If you're being extra good on your diet, treat yourself to a cheeseburger. It's similar to having to pinch pennies. My husband and I were in some major debt, so we were going to start really baring down on our budget, but we were told "don't forget to go to a movie once in a while, just so you remember what you're working for", and those words really hit home.
A diet shouldn't be a lock down in some hopeless tunnel with possibly no end in sight. Give yourself a cookie once in awhile, so you remember what you're losing weight for. Cookies aren't bad, cheeseburgers aren't, and neither are sodas. What's bad is that some people [like me] had them WAY too much. Moderation. :)
Sorry for replying late. D:
ReplyDeleteYeah, especially with the recent AZ shooting and stuff. It feels like even walking to my bus stop is scary, sometimes.
I'll try out Subway the next time I eat at the mall. I read that they have buffalo chicken sandwiches, so it looks like I'll enjoy it there. :) And it's only 420 calories, but the Sodium looks high (according to the website).
You really should get a show or replace Oprah or something. Your advice is good, especially the last part. :)