Fitness Friday…Stop BS’ing Yourself! (Part 1)
POST #5 IN THE FITNESS FRIDAYS SERIES
Part one of a two part article – check back tomorrow.
Okay, it is time for Fitness Friday again with my Personal Trainer friend Rachel. So, I am, ugh, not sure exactly about this but I think I might have inspired this rather brutally honest post by my pal. Primarily because I am always deluding myself into thinking that I eat healthy and that my extra couple of pounds are a cruel trick of nature rather than my own fault. So… sorry if she is kinda forceful about it. Entirely my bad.
Stop BS’ing Yourself!
I’ll start off by admitting that I have extremely high standards when it comes to what I consider “eating well.” To me, eating well means eating very few, if any, pre-packaged processed or refined foods. It means eating a diet consisting of nutritious whole foods—plenty of fruits and vegetables, complex carbohydrates, lean protein, healthy fats, and of course, plenty of water. It means eating at regular intervals, not skipping meals, and not overindulging. In the fitness world, this is known as “clean eating”.
As a personal trainer and weight management intern at a hospital-based weight loss program, I talk to people all day about their diet and exercise choices. Most often I hear people say, “I don’t exercise at all but I eat really well” or “I exercise regularly and I eat well but I just can’t get this weight off.” How come then, if all these people are eating well, they are still so overweight?
I’m not trying to be crass, but I’ve got to call the BS flag.
Take a good look at the foods you consume on a daily basis—How many ingredients does it contain? Can you pronounce all of them? What is the origin of the food/ingredients? If a food has more than a few ingredients, you can’t pronounce most of them, or you don’t know where something in the food came from, you should probably think twice before putting it in your mouth. And just because a food item has a good quality about it doesn’t mean it’s good for you.
Take, for example, a Healthy Choice turkey breast and cranberries meal.
Sounds healthy, right?
One serving size is one 10.8 oz box and contains 320 calories, 3.5g fat, 1.5g saturated fat, 35mg cholesterol, 53g total carbohydrates, 7 grams fiber, 32g sugar, 16g protein, 530mg sodium. Most of these numbers aren’t so bad, however, 32 grams of sugar is considered the maximum amount of sugar an individual on a 2,000 calorie/day diet should consume. That’s equivalent to 8 teaspoons! And that’s just from one meal! There is also nearly one-quarter of your recommended daily value of sodium. Food manufacturers spend tons of money each year on marketing, while Mother Nature spends zero. Who do you trust more?
Eating clean doesn’t always have to be about weight loss—it’s also about improved quality of life: looking better, feeling better, and having more energy. These are just a few of the benefits.
Tomorrow I’ll give you a few tips to get your started on your clean-eating journey!
ABOUT RACHEL: Rachel Swartz-Hartje is an NASM certified personal trainer and is currently completing her degree in community health promotion. She enjo
ys running, bodybuilding and torturing her clients (and friends) into submission. She is definitely a bad-ass. Don’t let her nice profile picture fool you. Her mantra? “Discipline is the Bridge Between Goals and Accomplishments.” Oh yeah, she also used to be in the Navy. Don’t. Mess. With. Her.
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Twitter: thenagainphoto
says:
I have to remind myself not to come over here on Fridays. I hate being forced to admit I’m a fat-junk-food-stuffing-food-ho. I like BSing myself. It’s a way of life!
I have tried to eat more whole foods, or natural foods as much as shopping at walmart allows. I eat fruit, yogurt, seeds and nuts for snacks, and I always drink unsweetened tea all day long (and water). It’s hard to keep those calorie counts down even though I’m now tracking them again. I’m amazed at how a whole bag of mini-popcorn is about 100 calories, and how the same calories are in a mini-can of soda. Which fills me up more? If you start paying attention to what is good for you, the calorie counts follow. Fish, veggies, fruits.. all add up to lower caloric intakes than other ‘bad for you foods.’ Just my personal experience…
Twitter: brennbug
says:
I agree! I constantly struggle to eat as well as I want even though I try. I also struggle to exercise more than I do. No BS here! I know I suck.
Twitter: unemployed_mom
says:
Great post! I spend a small fortune on my weekly groceries at Whole Foods (and literally, walk out with just a few bags). Eating healthy is expensive, but worth it. We buy organic and natural products only and keep processed foods to an absolute minimum. I try to set a good example for my son; therefore, I believe in practicing what I preach. My son prefers fruits and vegetables over anything else, it is amazing.
I like water, so I don’t mind getting my daily quota (sometimes for a twist, I add a little lime and pretend it’s a Corona). Obviously, this takes a LOT of imagination on my part!
So, based on your description, I guess my family is “eating clean” (love that term)! Our weakness is wine though…cannot give that up!
Jessica´s last blog ..Passed The Test
Alright, alright. Geez, I get it already. I eat like crap, therefore I feel like crap. *sigh* I feel defeated!
Adrienzgirl´s last blog ..Guest Post: by Big Daddy Cain
Usually when I eat bad I just do nothing but drink metamucil and coffee the next couple days, it isn’t fun but it usually takes care of business! I guess i need to eat cleaner…
This is a great post. I thought I ate so well until I hired a nutrition coach (or whatever you want to call her, lol) and she saw my food logs and said, “You eat healthy foods, but you don’t have a good balance.” Basically, I eat WAY too many carbs (even tho they are usually complex carbs) and not enough fruits and veggies.
And I couldn’t figure out why I couldn’t lose a few lbs.
Funny thing, I started incorporating more veggies, fruits, and proteins and less carbs, and I lost 3 lbs in a week. WOOT!
I also try to avoid processed/boxed foods as much as possible.
Good luck on your journey to “cleaner” eating!
Musings of a Housewife´s last blog ..Links and Shout Outs