Over the past several months I have not been satisfied with my body or energy level so I decided to go on a diet. Not your traditional diet of cutting out carbs or reducing fat intake but a complete lifestyle change type of diet. My concern regarding my health came from observing my eating habits, reading about how certain ingredients effect my body and by seeing how the majority of the elderly are living the last years of their life.
Learn From the Lives of Others
Observing the lifestyle of the elderly was extremely humbling for me. I noticed that though some were actively participating in life, far too many others were spending their last years in nursing homes, in and out of hospitals or living void of energy.
I do not know about you but I want to live my life to the fullest. If I live to be 100 then I want to live all 100 years. I do not want to live to be 85 and then exist for the last 15. I am not trying to criticize our grandparents nor am I saying that if they are have a poor bill of health that their condition is entirely their fault. I am saying that I want something different for my life and I am going to do what I can to ensure that my decisions give me the best opportunity to live that life.
Our bodies are amazing machines that are designed to cure itself from sickness, disease, cuts, nicks and will even compensate for disabilities however over time those bodies breakdown. If your body was a car then naturally the older the car the more problems that you potentially will have with that car. However, there are some cars that were built in the 50′s and still run great today while others made in the 90′s are broken down. It is obvious that certain issues such as maintenance, the quality of car and oil changes and how hard and frequently that the car is driven are factors that play into the life of the car. In similar fashion the life of your body is determined by what you eat, how frequently you workout, quantity of sleep, genetics and stress.
Change By Taking Baby Steps
With this in mind, I decided to make monthly, gradual lifestyle changes in each of these categories. To start my quest I decided to begin in the diet category because that is the area of my biggest deficiency. Each month I have decided that I would cut out a certain ingredient that I have learned is bad for me and in this manner gradually change my dietary lifestyle for the better. In truth, I do not know when I am going to stop my monthly cutbacks or if I will switch to bimonthly cutbacks later down the road but my goal is to have a healthier lifestyle so that I can enjoy my later years in life. As the old saying goes, “If you fail to plan you plan to fail.”
This is my third month of cutting out certain ingredients thereby eliminating various foods that I have allowed myself to eat. Here is my track record of what I ingredient I stopped consuming, in which month and the effects of that ingredient on your body:
Dieting Track Record by Month
February – MSG – Known as Monosodium Glutamate is found in amongst other foods the beloved Ramon Noodles and Chinese food. Monosodium Glutamate causes mental problems through by over exciting the brain causing nerve impulses to the point where you cannot even control your emotions. Not to mention memory and concentration issues.
March – Hydrogenated Oils – Hydrogenated oils are found in peanut butter, most fried foods (french fries included), pretty much any fast food save Chic-Fil-A, chips, and Coffeemate Creamer. Hydrogenated oils are one particle away from being plastic and I do not want that in my body!
April (this month) – Carbonated Water – Carbonated water is the substance found in sodas that causes it to fizz. The carbonation raises the acidic levels in your body and needs either ample amounts of water or calcium to lower the dangerous acidic levels. Over time if enough water is not consumed or sufficient amounts of calcium not present in your diet then your body will pull calcium from your bones eventually aiding in the cause of brittle bone disease known as osteoporosis.
I decided to make gradual lifestyle changes because I have found that lasting changes happens in small steps. And through experience I have learned that when I tried to stop eating everything that was bad for me cold turkey and three things happened. First I was excited but I only knew of a couple of things to eat, secondly my body went into shock, and third after a couple of weeks I started cheating on my diet.
Habits are Gradually Formed
Let’s face the facts. You probably are not living the as healthy of a lifestyle as you would like. But, realistically you have been eating that way for years so certain foods are habitual for you to eat and you slid into this habit gradually. Therefore, the only way to change your lifestyle into a healthier one is to form a new habit by gradually changing your eating lifestyle.
And no you do not have to wait until January 1 in order to make this decision. I started cutting out foods on the 15th of February and the 15th of every month since then I have cut out a new ingredient so I could also break the habit of waiting until the first of the month in order to take action on a new decision. Regardless, of the changes that you decide to make, making them gradually will help you stick with your commitment. As the saying goes, “Slow and steady wins the race.”
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I like the method of taking baby steps…hey didn’t you get that line off of “What about Bob?”
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