6 things I don’t do that may be surprising
When you think “healthy person” a bunch of stuff probably comes up in your mind. Well, I’m not your typically healthy person. Here are 6 ways I am breaking the mold.
Caffeine.
Most moms drink coffee. Lots of folks drink pre-workout. Americans love coke.
Not me. Caffeine is something I have always steered clear of. It makes me feel dirty on the inside (actually unclean not morally wrong) and throws off my sleep. I do eat chocolate, but not very much.
2. Count marcos.
I don’t track my food at all. Tracking in the past led to me obsessing about food which led to always being hungry which led to binging. That binging and “failing” led to a feeling of not being worthy and the cycle just continued for years.
Instead I focus on lots of protein, plenty of fats, and no stand alone carbs (I try to always eat carbs with a protein or fat to lessen the insulin response)
3. Follow a set diet.
While I do try to avoid foods I am sensitive to, I don't follow any set “diet”. I used to be very set in the “I just did everything they say and follow the plan PERFECTLY I will be skinny and beautiful and my life will be easy” mindset. But what happened instead: I would eat something off plan, quit the plan, feel miserable about quitting the plan, mentally abuse myself, eat more junk, mentally abuse myself, eat more junk, etc, etc.
Now I just focus on fueling my body with real food. If I have junk, then I have junk in the moment then move on. I will eat the way my body feels great next time. No “I suck at life” mental dialogue necessary. Obviously this is a process not just a switch I flipped one day, but it is definitely getting easier the longer I practice.
4. Drink a gallon of water a day
Now I drink lots of water. It’s basically the only drink I drink, but I don’t track my water intake. I don’t have a hydro jug or anything like that. I only drink according to my thirst. Also, I add a little sea salt to my glass especially in the morning to help balance minerals and get more water in the bowel.
5. Weight or measure myself
Ahh the gravitational pull. I was so obsessed with it as a teen and young woman. I weighed multiple times a day. I weighed so often that I discovered I was lighter when I put my left foot on the scale first.
Then I learned of the glory of losing inches, so I started measuring my waist, arms, hips, and legs all the time. As well as taking pictures of myself.
But, I started to realize that I don’t live on the outside. I don’t look in the mirror or at myself more than a couple minutes a day. I was only obsessing about my looks because I felt like it was my duty to not be an eyesore for others. I wanted to be pretty to make other people’s lives easier. I didn’t care if they liked me or not. I was simply pursuing beauty (aka skinny) because I wanted to ease a burden for folks. The burden of having to look at something fat and ugly.
I realized I don’t actually care what I look like. I care about how I feel. Do I feel strong? Do I have heartburn? Do I feel bloated? Am I fatigued? Am I pooping well? These metrics are more important to me than the amount of space I take up or how pleasing to the eye I am.
6. Skip or Skimp on breakfast
Even with all the buzz about protein shakes or not starting your eating window till 8am, 10am, or even 12 pm you can still find me eating a solid breakfast around 6am every morning. And usually a hardy snack around 9:30am.
Ya’ll. I just can’t wait very long to eat in the morning. I also can’t just have a shake and call it good. It makes me too hungry. And my mood and mental clarity suffer majorly. I need fuel to do all the things I am responsible for in a day.
While I technically do intermittent fast each day because I usually stop eating after supper and don’t eat again until breakfast (usually giving me about 12 hours of fast) I never delay eating deep into the morning. I have tried and it’s bad news.
So there you have it. 6 things I do differently than the majority of folks in the health/fitness/wellness space. I have certainly tried these (except pre-workout) and they just don’t suit me either physically or mentally.
It feels so good to step out of that constant battle for bodily perfection. If you are interested in doing health your own way, but would like some help clearing unhelpful beliefs, identifying your starting point, and building new habits please click the “Let’s Chat” button to book a free call with me, Caitlin Gregory.
