the health journey.

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Sat, 25 May 2013 21:27:17 -0400

Food & exercise diary 5/25/13

Sat, 25 May 2013 21:05:39 -0400

Meal 1: Biscuits and gravy with a side of sausage links (from restaurant)

Meal 2: Greek yogurt with honey, PB, and banana

Meal 3: Giant homemade taco with extra lean ground beef, cheese, greek yogurt, and salsa on a whole wheat tortilla

Meal 4: Starbucks tall caramel ribbon frappuccino (made “skinny”)

Exercise: None… tomorrow was supposed to be a rest day, but I rested today instead because I was super tired.

Totals: 1756 calories, 199g carbs, 71g fat, 104g protein

Notes: …Yeahhhh, just gonna go ahead and call today a cheat day. Not concerned about it, because I’ve been under my goals the rest of the week :)

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Sat, 25 May 2013 19:53:49 -0400

"Why Women Should Not Run"

Sat, 25 May 2013 19:51:19 -0400

eatrunbemerry:

thehealthjourney:

This article was a very interesting read and I recommend that everyone take a look. While I don’t agree that women (or anyone) should never do cardio, there is a lot of valid information in here regarding people who do too much cardio.

Some key points:

I watch my friend Jessica running on the treadmill—day after day, year after year—like a madwoman, and going nowhere. Her body seems to get softer with every mile, and the softer she gets, the more she runs. For her, I feel sympathy, because the world has convinced her that running is the way to stay “slim and toned.”

….

I’ve tried to rescue her from the clutches of cardio in the past, but my efforts didn’t work until a month ago, when she called to tell me that a blood test had confirmed her doctor’s suspicion: She had hypothyroidism, meaning her body no longer made enough thyroid hormone.

Her metabolism had slowed to a snail’s pace, and the fat was accumulating. This was her body rebelling. When Jessica asked for my advice, I told her to do two things: To schedule a second test for two weeks later, and to stop all the goddamned running until then.

…

Studies—both clinical and observational—make a compelling case that too much cardio can impair the production of the thyroid hormone T3, its effectiveness and metabolism[1-11], particularly when accompanied by caloric restriction, an all too common practice. This is why many first or second-time figure and bikini competitors explode in weight when they return to their normal diets, and it’s why the Jessicas of the world can run for hours every week with negative results.

…

Think about it this way: Your body is a responsive, adaptive machine that has evolved for survival. If you’re running on a regular basis, your body senses this excessive energy expenditure, and adjusts to compensate. Remember, no matter which way we hope the body works, its endgame is always survival. If you waste energy running, your body will react by slowing your metabolism to conserve energy.

…

And as for Jessica, my friend whose dilemma sparked this article? She took my suggestion and cut out the cardio. Two weeks later, her T3 count was normal. Go figure.

There’s a lot more to the article that’s worth a read. You can read it here. It’s a bit harshly worded in places, but if you can get past that it’s valuable information.

(If you’re someone who loves cardio, try not to get offended and disregard everything - you don’t have to stop doing what you like, but there is some interesting information in here you should probably be aware of.)

NOTE: Do read the original article! The chosen quotes here are a bit… well, not necessarily misleading but they take away the context.

The thing about this article is that the author is not a very good author. In fact, he’s a terrible author. He’s far too busy trying to be “sassy” to actually argue his point and he’s a bit (or a lot) all over the place, so the point that he’s trying to make (or that I presume he’s trying to make) kind of gets lost in the muddle. He fails to put himself properly into a context (he really is only talking to a small niche here: the pro- or semipro body building contestants) and tries to be provocative with phrases like the title, “why women should not run”, all of which only serve to hide his point.

But the point is: we’re fed with this insane idea that if we want to lose weight or progress in any other way, we simply have to exercise more. What he’s talking about here is overtraining and this ridiculous idea, which especially women are fed (which is [I hope to god] the only reason for that revolting title), that hours and hours of training will make you skinny because every drop of sweat is one more calorie out and therefore logically more exercise means faster results, right? Usually this idea includes lots and lots of running. Like, run everyday for ten miles running. Partly it’s squishy women’s “fitness” magazines that spread this idea; partly it’s movies and television where running up that one hill seven times makes for a better (and cheaper) musical montage than any realistic training programme would; partly it’s because it’s such a tremendously alluring idea that there’s a direct and instant correlation between time spent exercising and results. Yeah, we are encouraged to overtrain ourselves. But the thing is, that does more bad than it does good.

So, cut out cardio because too much cardio can cause problems? No. I don’t think that’s the point here. That’d be a similar argument to all those who’ve heard that there’s something iffy going on with carbs, so they cut out aaaaaall the carbs. But the thing is, too much of anything will cause problems. We all know that Vitamin C is essential for our well-being, right? But if you take too much Vitamin C, you get diarrhea. You need to balance things out. Overtraining exists and overtraining is bad. If you’re putting too much strain on your body, at some point something’s gotta give. This is true for all forms of exercise, weight lifting and such included.

So, you know, he does have a point here, hidden in all that muddle. Maybe reading this article will be good for raising awareness about the dangers of overtraining. I don’t like his tone and his blatant fat-shaming, his scientific data mostly concerns only a very specific group of people so it should not be generalised, I think his point is a bit too much in between the lines and up for interpretation (so I suggest taking anything he says with a large pinch of salt), some of the things he seems to be suggesting seem a bit too logical to really be logical, if ya know what I mean… But you know, I’ve seen so many posts here on tumblr saying, “oh, I feel so bad for having desert tonight, I’m gonna go for a run even though I went already today”, that I think something like this article is a needed reminder about the dangers of that sort of mentality.

Reblogging my own post for that added commentary because I actually agree 100%! Don’t let this article make you terrified of cardio or anything like that, that’s not the point at all… I just see A LOT of “you need need neeeeeeed to do a lot of cardio to lose weight!” here on tumblr and I wanted to show a different perspective.

samis-fitspiration: Who wants to be my next blog of the...

Sat, 25 May 2013 19:36:55 -0400

samis-fitspiration:

Who wants to be my next blog of the week???!?!

Reblogs only, Likes do not count

I choose my BOTW myself!! no polls!

New BOTW will be chosen the morning of Wednesday May 29th!

Any fitblr/body positive/healthy blogs are considered

Must be following Sami <3

Check out my current BOTW HERE

Whats in it for you???

A follow from me if I am not already!

A screen shot in my BOTW tab for the week

Random promos during the week

On top of and bolded on every promo list I do during the week!

On the "why women should not do cardio" article, it states that STEADY-STATE cardio is bad, which is like hours on the treadmill without increase or decrease in pace or something, right? So running intervals for 30 minutes is fine right?

Sat, 25 May 2013 18:37:00 -0400

I definitely think that’s fine. I also think steady-state cardio is “fine” in moderation! I just agree with the article that people probably shouldn’t jog for an hour a day, every single day, if they’re trying to lose weight because it’s just not that helpful!

But interval training is wonderful, and cardio itself isn’t all bad! I just thought the article was an interesting thing to keep in mind, because I do see some people in the fitblr community who use the elliptical for like, 2 hours every day and I wanted to point out that that may not be beneficial!

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Sat, 25 May 2013 18:20:32 -0400

eatcleanmakechanges: love this

Sat, 25 May 2013 17:43:07 -0400

eatcleanmakechanges:

love this

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Sat, 25 May 2013 17:39:32 -0400

vonvonblossoming: healthiie: So, I’m pretty livid right...

Sat, 25 May 2013 17:31:30 -0400

vonvonblossoming:

healthiie:

So, I’m pretty livid right now.

I’ve been trying to recover from Binge Eating Disorder (I’ll be abbreviating it as BED) for the last 7 months. Its been an up and down battle, and for the most part I’m winning it. But when things get chaotic in my life, so does my eating. I can easily gain a several pounds in a couple days when I’m at my worst. I mentioned this to a nurse at my doctor’s office earlier and she looked at me like I was joking. She had absolutely no idea what BED was.

Yep. Surprise, bitch. My fat ass has an eating disorder.

Somehow, I keep running into actual, real life people working in the medical field that seem to think only emaciated people have eating disorders. (PS - you dont even have to be emaciated to have anorexia/bulimia/ednos. so.. they’re fucking stupid on multiple levels.)

So, in an effort to not DRIVE MY FUCKING CAR through a bunch of medical offices killing everyone in my path for failing those of us who are dealing with EDs: May I present my all over the place, angry, and hopefully a little educational personal story about living with and recovering from BED.

I guess I’ll start off by explaining what this disorder is. Put simply, its eating disorder where the sufferer has frequent, uncontrollable episodes of binge eating. The sufferer usually does this in secret, and is extremely ashamed of what and how much they eat. There’s generally no attempt to reverse the binge (like through purging), though people with BED do tend to cycle through occasional periods of restriction to try and change themselves.

There’s so much more to it than that, though.

When you have BED, your entire life revolves around food and binging. You hoard and stockpile food to binge. You eat normally or very little around others just waiting to get home and gorge yourself. You push everyone away so they don’t see how much you’re eating. Staying at a friends house? Letting someone stay with you? Absolutely not. You have eating to do.

Living with others becomes a game of ‘hide the evidence’. You binge on massive amounts of food. You can’t take the wrappers/boxes/plates back to the kitchen.. they might see it. You can’t just toss it.. they might see it. You can’t take it to the outside garbage can. Someone will see it. They’ll know how disgusting you’ve been. They’ll see how much you’ve eaten. So you shove it under your bed. You pile it in your closet. You pack it into drawers. You refuse to let people into your room. You sneak the trash out in your purse little by little. You take the bags to the dump yourself. Or you leave it there. Either way, all it does is remind you of what you’ve done and make you want to eat more. And if your stockpile is empty, and theres people around who might see you get more food? Well, good thing you have all that food packed into every corner of your room. You’ll be binging on your trash. Its still good, right? You wouldn’t want to waste it. Whatever. You’re desperate, and its the only option you have.

Think I’m exaggerating?

I live alone, and I still do all that shit when I relapse. I’m terrified that someone will open my trash can and judge me if they ‘just swing by’. I’m scared of what the fucking garbage men will think of me.

I had a hard week. I usually make myself strict meal plans and bag myself exactly what i’ll be eating for the week on my days off. This week though.. I didn’t. Shit has been chaotic. I worked almost 80 hours. I didn’t do my meal plans. I’ve been stressed. So, my eating reflected that.

I’ve taken two bags to the outside trash, but decided that was enough and that if I took more out I would be judged by my neighbors and the trashmen.

I just took all of the wrappers, bags, boxes, etc out from my closet and under my bed.

This is my bathtub.

This is my bathtub with the “evidence” of what I’ve eaten this week. Keep in mind this is without the plates of food I ate for my normal meals and the two bags outside. This is my binge food.

One week. All of that is inside me.

Once a binge starts, its uncontrollable. Its like I’m not even the person doing it anymore. I feel completely numb. Nothing else exists. I’m barely even aware of how much I’m eating. Eventually, I get so full that I’m not only nauseous.. but in intense physical pain. While I’m in binge mode, I get pissed and annoyed about the pain. I’m not ready to stop eating. I still have a ton in my stockpile. I’m not done yet. So I throw up to alleviate the pain and make room for more. Then I keep eating. Theres no point of satisfaction. Once I start going, theres literally no end until I’m either forced to stop because people show up, or I have to sleep. Or I run out of food. But theres always a way to get more food.

I’ve destroyed my insides and my outsides. My teeth are weak from years of binge eating until I passed out without brushing them. My skin is covered in stretch marks from insanely rapid weight gain. My stomach is sensitive. My intestines are destroyed. I’ve had high blood pressure, high cholesterol, frequent kidney stones.. I’m 22 fucking years old. Last year I had to have a colonoscopy and surgery on my intestines because of the damage I put them through trying to force my body to process so much food. I literally ripped them apart. I had to have my asshole cut open (think of a Q) and pieces of my intestines cut out and cauterized (burned) shut. I spent weeks in a pool of lukewarm water and blood unable to stop screaming because I was in so much pain. And you know what? I still couldn’t stop myself from binging. I was supposed to be on a liquid diet. Nope. I ate and ate and ripped myself back open again. The surgeon who did the operation told me that it was the most painful surgery he does, and that if I didn’t stop I would end up back in the operating room. It took four months after that experience to decide to seek help for my relationship with food. Thats how strong BED is.

And you know what? Its not about laziness. Its not about simply “having willpower and self control”. Its not about the fat girl just needing to put in some effort and stop being such a fat fatty. I have a very physical job. I workout 5-6x a week. I run. I lift weights. I do yoga. I eat clean and do my best to eat healthy everyday. I’ve spent countless hours reading health and nutrition artcles and books. I spend almost every night helping others do the same & updating my health/fitness blog. I know how to lose weight. I understand it. I’ve lost 70lb since starting my recovery. I’m even 7 months clean and sober from hard drugs and alcohol.

But you know what? I wouldn’t be 7 months clean if I had to have a little bit of my drug of choice everyday to survive. BED becomes an addiction. & You can’t just stop eating food and stay away from it to fix it.

So. Yeah. Don’t tell me BED isn’t a fucking eating disorder. Don’t tell me I just need to “stop binging and eat right”. Don’t tell me I’m too fat to have an ED. Don’t tell me its just about delicious food and not knowing when to stop. Its not that simple.

And to everyone reading this who has BED or suspects they might have it? IT GETS BETTER. I swear to you it does. Recovery is possible. Even if you fuck up sometimes. Its possible. You’re able, you’re worth it, and I support you. My ask is always open if you want to talk to someone who’s been through it. I know how bad you want to change it. I know how worthless it makes you feel. Change is possible, and support is out there. Don’t give up.

This should have more notes

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Sat, 25 May 2013 16:47:15 -0400

"Why Women Should Not Run"

Sat, 25 May 2013 15:44:00 -0400

This article was a very interesting read and I recommend that everyone take a look. While I don’t agree that women (or anyone) should never do cardio, there is a lot of valid information in here regarding people who do too much cardio.

Some key points:

I watch my friend Jessica running on the treadmill—day after day, year after year—like a madwoman, and going nowhere. Her body seems to get softer with every mile, and the softer she gets, the more she runs. For her, I feel sympathy, because the world has convinced her that running is the way to stay “slim and toned.”

….

I’ve tried to rescue her from the clutches of cardio in the past, but my efforts didn’t work until a month ago, when she called to tell me that a blood test had confirmed her doctor’s suspicion: She had hypothyroidism, meaning her body no longer made enough thyroid hormone.

Her metabolism had slowed to a snail’s pace, and the fat was accumulating. This was her body rebelling. When Jessica asked for my advice, I told her to do two things: To schedule a second test for two weeks later, and to stop all the goddamned running until then.

…

Studies—both clinical and observational—make a compelling case that too much cardio can impair the production of the thyroid hormone T3, its effectiveness and metabolism[1-11], particularly when accompanied by caloric restriction, an all too common practice. This is why many first or second-time figure and bikini competitors explode in weight when they return to their normal diets, and it’s why the Jessicas of the world can run for hours every week with negative results.

…

Think about it this way: Your body is a responsive, adaptive machine that has evolved for survival. If you’re running on a regular basis, your body senses this excessive energy expenditure, and adjusts to compensate. Remember, no matter which way we hope the body works, its endgame is always survival. If you waste energy running, your body will react by slowing your metabolism to conserve energy.

…

And as for Jessica, my friend whose dilemma sparked this article? She took my suggestion and cut out the cardio. Two weeks later, her T3 count was normal. Go figure.

There’s a lot more to the article that’s worth a read. You can read it here. It’s a bit harshly worded in places, but if you can get past that it’s valuable information.

(If you’re someone who loves cardio, try not to get offended and disregard everything - you don’t have to stop doing what you like, but there is some interesting information in here you should probably be aware of.)

Holy cow it i am so glad I found your blog! Really inspiring to see someone be dedicated to be not only in college but going to law school and living a healthy life style!

Sat, 25 May 2013 15:24:00 -0400

Aw thank you so much! :) It’s definitely hard to stay on track with so much going on, but having this blog keeps me motivated!

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Sat, 25 May 2013 15:13:56 -0400

thehealthjourney: I want to thank you all so much for the...

Sat, 25 May 2013 14:01:53 -0400

thehealthjourney:

I want to thank you all so much for the support you give me every day!

In honor of reaching 2,500 followers, and because I have plenty of free time, I’ve decided to do a blog of the week!

RULES:

Must be following me (I follow back!)

Reblog this as many times as you want! Reblogging multiple times willincrease your odds of being chosen!

Likes do not count!

I will choose the winner(s), there will be no voting!

Reblog this anytime between now and Saturday, May 25th! On the 25th I will choose the winner(s). They will be promo’d for the week of May 26th-June 1st!

Healthy blogs only! No thinspo, no pro-ED, and must be at least somewhat health/fitness related.

REWARDS

My top 10 favorite blogs will get:

Promos in a list 3 times during the week

One additional entry each into the giveaway I do when I reach my next follower goal

The winner will get:

Screenshot solo promos every day for the whole week

Self-promo in my ask any time you want for the week

Three additional entries into the giveaway I do when I reach my next follower goal

A link to your blog on my blog

Any promo games I do throughout the week will require that people follow you as well as me

A fan banner for your blog, made by me!

I will check out every single blog who reblogs this and the winner(s) will be chosen very carefully! Thank you all so much again and happy reblogging!

Picking tonight!! Last chance! :)

bri-love1216: Eat the rainbow!

Sat, 25 May 2013 13:40:48 -0400

bri-love1216:

Eat the rainbow!

youngwildgirlsyoumakeamessofme: runnersbliss: fitforinfinity: ...

Sat, 25 May 2013 12:38:26 -0400

youngwildgirlsyoumakeamessofme:

runnersbliss:

fitforinfinity:

foodopia:

fresh fruit chocolate bar: recipe here

fffff I wanna make these with dark chocolate

oh wow.

I made these once and they were sooo yummie so I’m reblogging the recipe again so everyone can enjoy this :p

fatt-cheerleaders-suck: The first and second photo are Nina...

Sat, 25 May 2013 12:07:11 -0400

fatt-cheerleaders-suck:

The first and second photo are Nina Dobrev featured in Seventeen.The third is Nina on on the beach, unphotoshopped.

in-fit-nity: I also like to take half a lemon, put some brown...

Sat, 25 May 2013 10:33:51 -0400

in-fit-nity:

I also like to take half a lemon, put some brown sugar and honey on it, then use it as a scrubber on my face. The honey/sugar exfoliates while the lemon cleanses.

"Instead of saying “I don’t have time” try saying “it’s not a priority,” and see how that feels...."

Sat, 25 May 2013 10:17:23 -0400

“Instead of saying “I don’t have time” try saying “it’s not a priority,” and see how that feels. Often, that’s a perfectly adequate explanation. I have time to iron my sheets, I just don’t want to. But other things are harder. Try it: “I’m not going to edit your résumé, sweetie, because it’s not a priority.” “I don’t go to the doctor because my health is not a priority.” If these phrases don’t sit well, that’s the point. Changing our language reminds us that time is a choice. If we don’t like how we’re spending an hour, we can choose differently.”

- Unknown (via the-healing-nest)