by Lucy | Nov 6, 2016 | Motivational Mondays
Cathy Passeun, aka Mama Cathy, is an inspirational woman. When we lived in Arizona she frequently climbed Shaw butte – A solid 3 mile hike uphill in the desert. When I was in middle school she went to grad school and completed a masters degree. When I was in high school she chose self-employment to have more freedom in her schedule and spend quality time with her teenage daughter (brave, right?!). She has bought and sold houses and investment property. She teaches yoga and stays actively involved in her church as a believer in Jesus Christ. The word you are looking for is multifaceted.
When my mom got above her desired weight range earlier this year she became motivated to get it in check, and lucky enough she has a dietitian daughter.
Mama Cathy is preoccupied with knowing how long it takes her to do certain tasks. For instance, she discovered it takes 7 minutes to empty the dishwasher – now when she’s contemplating if there is enough time she knows it’s just 7 minutes. Recently, in an effort to include more energy during the day my mom started including a whole grain English muffin and a microwave scrambled egg at breakfast (did you know this is a thing?!). One day, for fun she timed how long it took to prepare and eat this meal, which she discovered totaled 16 minutes – 3 minutes to cook and 13 to eat. Now she knows how to (1) make a simple, healthy and well-balanced breakfast and (2) block time for breakfast, which is important for her weight-loss goals. (see note from Mama Cathy below!)
I’m not trying to call her out; however, my mom is no stranger to fast food restaurants. As a busy executive for JDRF she is often on the road for business. Going to a sit-down restaurant is not always an option so occasionally Wendy’s, Taco Bell or aother drive-thru comes in handy. Last week while running around town, Mom realized she forgot to eat breakfast before leaving home. While driving by McDonald’s she noticed a grocery store in the same shopping center and passed the drive-thru to go pick up hard-boiled eggs and an apple to give her the protein and complex carbohydrates for energy to last through the morning.
For as long as I remember my mom has always been a walker, but in more recent years I’ve discovered she loves taking classes. Forever a student, she enjoys the community and encouragement in the group fitness setting. Now Mom signs up for water aerobics at the community center and looks forward to her workout and whirlpool time every Monday and Wednesday evening.
I’m so proud of my mom for many reasons, but this year I am especially proud of the commitment she made to her health. She inspires me and I hope has inspired you too!
Food for thought:
It can be overwhelming when you try to change your diet and lifestyle. Fortunately, you are part of the Well-Balanced Tribe who wants to encourage and support your healthy choices.
What is 1 day-to-day habit you can work on this week? ___________________________
How can you make it fun (like combining exercise with the whirlpool fun!)?
___________________________________________________
Note from Mama Cathy: 2 thoughts – breakfast takes 16 minutes because I’m also making a fresh made shake that I put in a travel mug and take to work with me. While I’m cooking my breakfast I’m also making my midmorning healthy snack. Also, just so folks know change can take a while-it took me six months of being on Weight Watchers to get to this point with my food.
It didn’t happen all at once it and it certainly doesn’t happen quickly and it doesn’t happen in the span of an hour show. It’s something where I believe little changes incorporated overtime are really what add up to the difference.
by Lucy | Oct 15, 2016 | Motivational Mondays
Monday, October 17, 2016
As your favorite dietitians, Kristen and I strive to give you lots of motivation, inspiration, and information to eat and live well-balanced. It is our goal to fill, not just your inbox, but your mind and wellness toolbox with plenty of resources and ideas to live a healthy and fulfilled life.
In the height of the election season, I cannot get used to what each of us is subjected to daily – if not hourly – with all the news, social media, and other interferences constantly bombarding us with negative messaging.
Politics aside, I’d like to speak about how you feed your mind. Aside from your weekly Motivational Monday and Wellness Wednesday articles how are you choosing to input information into this computer system we call our minds? Darren Hardy says it best in a recent Darren Daily episode that likens our brains to a Google search. The search engine is only as good as the information available – do you have enough reliable information on living well in your database?
I am always seeking to further develop my personal growth and continue to improve myself. I choose to listen to podcasts such as EntreLeadership that build me up and feed my mind with new and motivating ideas to be a better leader. I enjoy reading books like Farmacology that provide information to using food as medicine. I attend Grace Church as a regular reminder of how to continue to grow spiritually.
Food for thought:
Here’s your chance to put this to practical application. Take a moment to list your common media diet (such as what news you watch or read, what social media you enjoy, or what radio stations or podcasts you’re listening to)
- ____________________________ ________
- ____________________________ ________
- ____________________________ ________
Next rank each one on a scale 1 to 5 – 1 being “junk food” for the brain and 5 include thoughtful, well-balanced resources or information.
For example, Snapchat is on my list and I’d give it a 2, because realistically that is fluff in helping me reach my personal development goals (but it’s so much fun!)
Bonus points! Take a moment to list two or three resources you would like to utilize to reach your own personal goals
- ______________________________________
- ______________________________________
- ______________________________________
by Lucy | Oct 4, 2016 | Well Balanced Wisdom
Do you know about this SIMPLE way of improving your overall well-being? There is one medicine that when taken regularly is proven to…
- Be an effective antidepressant in mild to moderate cases of depression
- Protect an aging brain against memory loss and dementia
- Defend your heart against heart disease and stroke
- Lower your bad (LDL) cholesterol while increasing good (HDL) cholesterol
- Keep your blood pressure in check
- Slash your risk of diabetes, asthma and some cancers
- Increase bone density and help prevent osteoporosis
- Support Vitamin D levels
- Boost your circulation and increase oxygen supply to the brain
- Increase muscle mass and tone
- Burn more calories
Now you might expect this medicine to cost you a fortune. I hate to tell you this but insurance does not cover it at this time. Lucky for you and me… this medicine doesn’t cost a thing.
So what is this medicine?
Walking. That’s right. The simple act of putting one foot in front of the other is proven to improve our well-being in many, many ways. All those benefits sound great, right!? So, why aren’t we all hitting the pavement more often? Although it requires no equipment or gym membership, walking just isn’t as easy as swallowing a pill. It takes a little more effort. That’s why I am sharing Peggy’s story with you today.
For her, walking went from a chore to “I can do more!’
Peggy was noticing that her weight was starting to creep up and results from a recent doctor’s visit prompted her to think about incorporating exercise into her days. She had tried going to the gym, taking group exercise classes, and doing exercise at home on her own. Nothing seemed to stick. She knew that exercise would help her cut back on medications, but it was always such a chore.
Then she made it a goal to walk one mile outdoors most days of the week. Sometimes she would think to herself, ‘if I can’t walk a mile, I might as well not walk at all.’ She didn’t realize it then, but this was a limiting belief that was getting in her way. One day she had a “lightbulb moment” when she read this quote: “It doesn’t matter how slow you go, as long as you do not stop.” It was then that she realized if she were to make walking a regular habit, she would need to do it nearly every day, even if her walk was short. She started walking 15 minutes at first and built her way up to 30-40 minutes most days of the week. Ten weeks later, walking is part of her routine, and she doesn’t feel right without her morning stroll.
“The first 2 weeks were the hardest. It wasn’t easy to get out there and get going. But once I started walking, I would feel the benefits and that motivated me to continue. Some days, I surprise myself. I’ll get out there for a short walk but then I end up going further then I planned! So to others I would say, “It’s okay to start small.” Just get out and be consistent.“ – Peggy Cole
Food for Thought
The moral of her story is this: You need to build momentum to make a new habit stick. The only way to build momentum is to get out there and go – no matter how slow, how short or how sloppy the result. Simply get out there consistently. Once you’ve done it a few times, you’ll feel motivated to keep going and before you know it you’ve built a habit.
by Lucy | Oct 2, 2016 | Motivational Mondays
Monday, October 3, 2016
I recently had the pleasure of meeting with one of my first clients, I will call her Allison, from last year who has done remarkably well reaching her goals while working with Well-Balanced Nutrition and Weight Watchers. I’m so proud of Allison for committing to her own well-being and her change in attitude and behaviors – must be all those tasty roasted vegetables!
Returning home from a fun summer vacation in Florida, Allison came back unmotivated to get back in the groove. After reviewing her Fitbit data, she was horrified to realize she only exercised 4 times during the entire month of August where she was previously working out up to 6 times a week. During our session, it came to light that Allison had not fallen that far off track, but she felt like she was back to her old ways. Together we came up with an action plan to get her back in motion and successfully packing well-balanced lunches and snacks for the workweek.
You may be sitting there thinking, “Yep, that sounds familiar.” You are not alone!
Life happens.
If you find yourself in a similar situation, check out a few tips below to get you back on the road to your most healthy and well-balanced self.
Start small. If you’re feeling mentally unbalanced perhaps just 5 minutes of prayer, journaling or meditation will offer the peace your mind craves. Sometimes, the hardest part is getting off the starting line simply because it feels like there is too much to do. Living healthy does not need to be complicated or include a complete 180 degree turn. If you’re currently not moving during the day then adding a 10 minute walk at lunch is a small yet powerful change to live well.
Make it easy. I’m so grateful for Bulldega market in downtown Durham that makes it easy for me to pick up fresh local produce for dinner or a quick lunch from their prepared food fridge. Another way to make it easy is by picking one day a week to do a bulk of your chopping or food prep. Spend a couple hours on Sunday and you will have food ready to heat and eat for the rest of the week.
Pick only delicious & nutritious. Eating well should taste good! Add salt or other seasonings and herbs to your meals. Trust me, you are likely not adding nearly as much as the fast food and sit down restaurants you may be frequenting instead of cooking at home. Check out this tasty resource – RawSpiceBar – for monthly spice packets and recipes delivered to your front door!
Food for thought:
I don’t know about you, but I am my own biggest critic. It’s okay to have high expectations, but even better to practice self-love.
What is one way you can better take care of your own wellness this week?
by Lucy | Sep 24, 2016 | Motivational Mondays
Updated: Monday, April 2, 2018
The temptation to quit will be greatest just before I am about to succeed. -Chinese proverb
I am reading a very short book called, The Dip by Seth Godin. This is “A little book that teaches you when to quit (and when to stick).” At the beginning of the year, many of us felt called to make new habits and become healthier. Perhaps that included a gym membership, buying a few self-improvement books, or starting a clean eating plan.
Inevitably, real life keeps happening. No matter how good our intentions there is always a dip – where the fun fades and the journey feels HARD. The book is a reminder to pause and discern if it is the inevitable dip or a dead-end that is ultimately keeping you from succeeding.
In case you’re feeling like some of your new healthy habits are not working here are 3 steps to take to move through the dip.
- When those negative thoughts start to invade your brain say to yourself “cancel, cancel, cancel!“
As the meditation and hypnosis expert Chel Hamilton reminds us, use your inside voice – inside your head that is – or else people might start to look at you funny. The benefit of “cancel, cancel, cancel” is you stop negative thinking in its tracks instead of following those thoughts down the dark hole of despair.
- Focus on the positive – Clearly, being healthy is important to you.
Take a moment to pat yourself on the back for at least 3 to 5 healthy choices you made in the past week. This action step will redirect your negative thinking, allowing you to reinforce the positive truths and behaviors.
- Identify the trigger – What was the situation that caused your mind to spin into doubt or frustration mode? For me, it tends to be that I am overtired, too self-absorbed or caught in the comparison trap.
By identifying and recognizing your triggers, you empower yourself to redirect and overcome negative thinking.
Food for thought:
Remember, the darkest hour comes just before dawn, but that morning light is coming.
When your journey doesn’t seem to be taking you where you want to go, be gentle with yourself. These things take time and consistency.
