Physical + Emotional Wellness - Hugs are healthy!

Have you ever had one of those days where you've just needed a hug? I know I have! While I've never been a touchy-feely type (in fact, I worked hard to allow casual touch without feeling weird about it), I'll admit, there are times when I've needed one... or a few.

Even an independent soul like me can admit that we (as people) really do need one another. Whether it's a lover, a friend, a parent, or a family member, giving and receiving physical affection can have some startling, scientifically proven affects!

A team for the University of North Caroline studied the effects of hugs on 76 people in 2005. BBC News reports - "The study showed hugs increased levels of oxytocin, a "bonding" hormone, and reduced blood pressure - which cuts the risk of heart disease." (Source)


The study goes on to note that, both genders had a rise in oxytocin, and lower levels of cortisol.
 
What is cortisol, and why is it important?
Coristol is a hormone secreted during stressful situations. When released chronically or in excess it can have pathological effects including (source):

• Suppressed immunity
• Hypertension
• High blood sugar (hyperglycemia)
• Insulin resistance
• Carbohydrate cravings
• Metabolic syndrome and type 2 diabetes
• Fat deposits on the face, neck, and belly
• Reduced libido
• Bone loss

Women, even more than men, showed a decrease in cortisol and decrease in blood pressure.

So - whether your single or not, hug someone today!

Emotional Wellness - "Comfort Foods" gone Bad (the effects of processed food on mood)

I love french fries. I used to be well addicted to them.

On my drive home from work after a stressful day?
$2 and a drive through McDonald's got me a few minutes of peace - a small french fry and small diet soda.  After all, I "deserved" it and "the calories aren't THAT bad if I get the smallest size", right?

What I didn't realize was that I wasn't comforting myself. I was actually making any stress or depressed funk I was in WORSE, though I swear I didn't feel that way in the moment.

Processed foods contain lots of sodium (bad for the heart), sometimes lots of fat (bad for the heart again), and lots of sugar. Yes, even french fries have refined sugars (especially McD's).

So what do we know about refined sugars? Let's glimpse at the science behind it -

"Processed sugars and carbohydrates, which turn into sugar, cause a rise in the insulin level of the blood. This also raises the endorphins level, a natural mood upper in the brain. These sugars causes the body to have a chemical high, mentally, which results in a lift in mood. Continuous large doses of sugar and/or carbohydrates, overtime, usually cause the brain's endorphins sites to slow production or close sites to regulate the amount of endorphins in the brain. When the body cuts back on endorphin production it reduces the amount of endorphins available in the body at any given time. The lack of enough endorphin in the brain causes slight to deep depression. " - Annette Nay, PhD (Source)


Basically - it many of our processed "comfort foods" give us a "fix" - a short term high that will cause a long term crash as we continue the behavior. Eventually, we'll need more and more of the processed sugar/food to get the SAME 'high' as that first french fry.

But have you ever tried to go off crap food (french fries) cold turkey?! If you're anything like me, you find yourself a bit cranky and moody for a while! Why? Well, as Dr. Nay explains -

"...when processed sugar is stopped there are two chemical related reasons for the resulting depression. There is the glut of insulin depressing the system and the lack of endorphins in the brain. "


So you're CHEMICALLY depressed! Now isn't that a nasty thing? You went out for some french fries to make you feel better after a long hard day, and low and behold, you walk out needing ANOTHER DRUG (anti-depressants) to fix the "fix" from the sugar!

I don't crave french fries anymore. I broke my addiction by realizing that a small order of French Fries is just the first step down a dangerous path for me.

Now - that's just because I can't stop at 1 french fry. Moderation is key in all things in life. But since this is an Emotional Wellness blog - here are a few thoughts.

I'm still a stress eater. When I'm stressed out, I want to just eat and eat and eat. I don't keep stuff that will throw completely sabotage my weight around the house, so if I do reach for food when I'm stressed, it's an apple (same sugar addiction at work, only this is a healthy way to get a mood boost - "The difference between fructose, that is the natural sugar in fruit, and processed sugars is that fructose still has its chemical bonds intact. This causes the body to take a longer period of time to break down the different chemical bonds. As the body dissolves each type of sugar it is releases a moderate amount of sugar over time. This gives a continuous energy boost to the body and a slightly elevates mood (Whitney, Cataldo, & Rolfes, 1991)." )

I thought the information was interesting just to throw out there. If you're looking to control your anxiety or depression, it might be worth looking at just what you're literally feeding the inner dog. If it's processed foods and sugars, you might just be compounding the problem.

No one is cheerful all the time. That would be as unnatural as the processed foods we scarf down from drive-thru windows. It IS completely naturally to sit with our feelings and feel them whatever they are - sad, happy, stressed, etc. Stuffing emotions (with food or just by clamming up) only makes them harder to cope with.

So here's to "unstuffing" ourselves.

Comment activity for readers:

What do you "stuff" your stress or negative emotions with?

Emotional Wellness - FAQ "Feeding the Dog"

"If you wish the dog to follow you, feed him."

I love the visualization in this quote. Everyone knows it's true too for nearly all scenarios in life. It's true in a nature - water a seed and it will grow. Dedicate yourself to something, and you will succeed even if it takes some time.

This wasn't an easy lesson for me to really learn.
In my early 20's, I was the queen of feeding the "you're not good enough" dog and it shadowed me for years. It affected my relationships - I found myself constantly waiting for loved ones to roll over and realize what I already knew (that I wasn't "enough") and to bail on me. Being overweight and having PCOS really killed my self esteem. Add that to the abandonment issues that were already exaggerated (a very common side effect of being adopted), and I was a bundle of "I'm not good enough for anyone."

It took getting the rug pulled out from under me to realize that I'm just fine. Sure, I'm not perfect, but there is nothing more fatally deficient about me than anyone else. It took a lot of support from family, friends, and the help of an amazing Therapist to realize this simple lesson. See - but giving up on me and deciding that I wasn't "good enough", I was continuing in self-destructive behaviors like choosing not to nourish my body with healthful things which just added to the obesity problem and my self loathing. I was choosing relationships (or behaviors in relationships) that weren't what I wanted, feeding the "everyone will leave me because I'm not what they want" dog.

It was a self-fulfilling prophecy. I was feeding the dog that was destroying me.

Over 10 years past all that now, I look at my current life, and ya know what? I guess I stopped feeding that self-loathing dog, because he doesn't come around much anymore. But you know what I did start doing? I started feeding a pair of pups named "I Can" and "I Am". A director believed in me. Which started a chain reaction. Soon enough I realized that "I Can" and "I Am" were with me all along, I just had to start feeding them so that they would grow!

Soon enough, they did!

I found a strength there. Yes, it took friends I am forever grateful for to show me the way, but that's what friends are for! No one is an island into themselves.

Now, as I sit here writing this, I'm amazed at how far I've come. When I look in the mirror now, I don't see "You're Not Good Enough" anymore. I see "I Am". I am enough for me.

My favorite way to feed the dog is self-talk! Seriously - I've lived along long enough to know that occasionally ya just need a friendly voice telling Self-Loathing and Fear to "Get Lost!". So it's not unusual to see me working out and glancing in the mirror to offer a little pep talk to myself! I've "broken up" with different parts of my body several times (try it! It works!).

That doesn't mean I don't have my moments when I break down and cry about it. Sorrow is part of a healthy life as well. Grief is okay too. During those same deployments, I have a rule: I allow myself 24 hours of being a wreck. I know once I have a kids, this will be a luxury I won't get, but for now, I believe it's reasonable. I get 24 hours after he leaves to be miserable. After that - life goes on.

So what "dog" are you feeding - or not feeding?

Comment Topics:

"Break Up" with whatever dog you're feeding that needs to stop shadowing you.
"Feed" the dog that you want to follow you today.

Considering Going Vegan?

It seems like I keep running into Vegans over the past few years. I myself was a vegetarian from the age of 13-15, and ended up with an iron deficiency it took years to correct. So I haven't really gone back to it, but something has stuck with me from those days.

If I don't pay attention to my meat intake, I'll go veggie again. I find that when I'm focusing on high nutrient, low calorie foods, I end up eating a lot of salads, steamed veggies, beans, etc, and I naturally veer away from meat.

So it's been really great to see all these people turning Vegan as a healthy lifestyle choice. Now, there is a "right way" and a "wrong way" to do ANY lifestyle. Meat in excess will kill you (heart disease). Just veggies can lower your immune system and still make you fat (beer and wine, for example, are perfectly vegetarian friendly, and will still make you sick and/or fat in excess).

If you're thinking about making the change, check out my blogger pal Kyle's 21 day recap of going Vegan by clicking here. Enjoy!

Physical Wellness - What's in that milky white Stuff?

We all know that what we put in our bodies is essential to fueling our day to day existence.

When I turned 20, I started getting ear infections. I'd never (to my recollection) had trouble with them before. Suddenly, it seemed to be my body's reaction to any form of stress all of a sudden. I also noticed, as I got older, I developed allergies to pollen. Changes in the weather also left me blowing my nose until I looked like a human relative of Rudolph.

Then someone mentioned "The Singer's Diet", which wasn't much of a change from how I naturally am inclined to eat, except for one thing - No (or limited) dairy. You see, dairy (cow milk particularly) creates and encourages the production of mucus in our bodies. Honestly, when I cut out the cow juice (or cut it back to the occasional cheese, yogurt, or ice cream, rather than a "daily" food) I felt world's better almost immediately... and I lost weight. Most people, it turns out, have some form of mild milk allergy, and usually don't recognize it because symptoms rage from what I was experiencing, to constipation and gas.

Intrigued, I did a bunch of research, and here's what I found:

We are the only animal who wean our own children, only to give them the boiled milk of another animal. Even cows wean their calves off of it. But we decided it's healthy for us to force cows to produce it so that we can drink it? This logic was pointed out to me in high school by a chemistry teacher.

Dr. Spock (no, not the one from Star Trek, the famed 1980's pediatrician the revolutionized the way pediatrics is practiced in the USA) stated: "Cow's milk is not recommended for a child when he is sick-or when he is well, for that matter. Dairy products may cause more mucus complications and cause more discomfort with upper respiratory infections."

I know what you're thinking, "But it's a great source of Calcium and Vitamins, right?" Sure, but also, consider it's intended use. Just like breast milk is to humans, cow milk is intended to help a calf grow to the point where it can eat SOLID FOOD so that it can eat and create the calcium it needs to grow past the suckling point. How do adult cows get their calcium? Through eating leafy greens, just like we should be doing, once we have teeth and can chew and swallow. Also, milk doesn't have the magnesium balance we need to ABSORB the calcium cows milk provides anyway.

(Rumor also has it that the USDA has the highest allowance of mucus and blood in milk when compared to other industrialized countries, but I was unable to confirm this with my research skills. Wouldn't surprise me one bit though.)

So other than "It tastes good," I couldn't find a reason to keep be drinking milk. Sure, I'll have the occasional ice cream, cheese, or yogurt, but it's rarely a "daily" occurance anymore. I lean towards Almond Milk (unsweetened vanilla) whenever possible. Soy milk is a close 2nd, but certain medical conditions I have keep me smart about how much artificial hormones I'm putting in my body (soy milk has estrogen).

  Sure, I don't drink a big glass of milky white stuff anymore, but it's perfect in cereal, protein shakes, coffee, and other milk made products. I even bake with it.

The more I learn about what I'm putting it, the better I feel about my fuel choices - and the healthier I feel over all.

 Just a little "food" for thought!

Journey on!

Physical Wellness - My Mantra

April 2011, 210 pounds

"There are NO vacations from a healthy lifestyle - because when you're healthy, you don't WANT a day off from it!" - Me


We all like to believe that the calories we consume when we're out and about with company or on a vacation don't "count".


We're fooling ourselves.




Humans have been "celebrating" with food for as long as there has been a society to celebrate. We woo with food. We celebrate holidays with feasts (Thanksgiving, anyone?). But if we look back at different cultures around the world - just before they dissolved into nothingness, they got fat. Really fat.

In fact, in most cultures, an increase in body habitus was seen as a status symbol. It ment you could afford to eat very well and do nothing all day long, everyday.

Fast forward to the year 2012 - 
We sit on our rear ends at our jobs all day every day (at least in a large number of occupations), and still think we deserve to "feast" whenever we can find an excuse (Super Bowl, vacations, holidays, etc.)!

So let's redefine "wealth" when it comes to life now-a-days. To me, the truly wealthy are those who stay healthy enough to have many years with their friends and family - rather than struggle with preventable health issues which damage these relationship and diminish our years to love others. True wealth, to me (a recovering 255lb, 5'9" woman) is having more time to influence the world in a positive way. While there is no avoiding some tragic ends, we can increase our odds of living longer significantly by living a healthy lifestyle. Not everything is preventable. But some things are within our control to avoid.

And that is empowering. After all, who would choose type 2 diabetes or hypertension over a life of NOT having to check your blood sugars or not having to take hypertension medication?

As I write this, my weight is at a 3 year low. That 255lb woman I was, whose feet hurt her even lying down, is a distant memory. While I still have a long way to go, 200lbs looks much better on me than 255 ever did! Most of all, I feel better. Not just about how I look, but I have more energy and confidence. Yesterday someone commented, "I don't know how people can eat healthy all the time." I guess I'm motivated to because it tastes good, but best of all, because it makes me feel good - physically and emotionally.

Now, does that mean I shouldn't have a Disneyland churro now and again? No way! In fact, I had one of those about a week ago when I was traveling with a friend. But the key to a healthy lifestyle is Balance. One churro.

December 2011, 201 lbs.

And best yet - we shared it.

Moral of the story: What can you do to achieve balance while vacationing , traveling, or during  holidays?

Goals and What this Blog is about

Greetings fellow Bear Hunters!

"Some days, you eat the bear. Some days, the bear eats you. But always dress for the hunt!" - The Adventurer's Club
The Bear - whatever self-destructive tendency that gets the better of you.
Dressing for the Hunt - Being prepared, no matter what.
Ammo for the hunt - Knowledge, Support, Self Discipline, Positive Thinking.
Roasted Bear Meat anyone?

So what are the goals that I have for this coming week?

1) Drink at least 5-6 28oz bottles of WATER every day. (Totaling between 140-168oz/day)

2) Work out 5-6 days this week for at least 250 calories.

3) Eat a spinach salad EVERY DAY during at least 1 meal.

What is my Master Goal?

Lose 15 lbs by the time My Sailor comes home. That will put me well into Onderland and lighter than My Sailor has ever seen me in person. 10 more pounds to go! You can track this progress on the right. I'm currently working on week 4.

So what's this blog about?
In case you didn't follow my previous Wellness Blog, I like to take some time to address different kinds of Wellness, since it all contributes towards the overall picture.

CREDO: ALL WELLNESS IS TIED TOGETHER!

Physical Wellness -This will include my weight loss journey, work out information, food and recipes. I can't wait to share what I'm discovering along the way.

Emotional Wellness - I'll address whatever things I'm going through, and different coping mechanisms, including meditation, journaling, and even the effects of physical wellness.

Financial Wellness - I'll address saving and paying off strategies.

Spiritual Wellness - I hope to do this without getting too much into the "religion" side of things and more into the spiritual side of things, as my journey goes on. I believe there is a lot to learn in this world and that there is a lot we don't know and may never be able to explain in our life times.