I don't mean to freak out all of you folks who are wedding planning by chatting about babies. But I'm going to do it--if only for a minute (it will ultimately relate back to weddings--I promise!).
Matt and I are thinking about trying to get pregnant next summer. Since I'm a habitual planner, I've started reading books about how to prepare one's body for conception (yes, months and months in advance. I'm a dork. I know.).
Basically, it boils down to this: start eliminating unhealthy habits and beef up on your nutrition, which is good advice for anyone, no?
I'm not an advocate of the lose-weight-so-you-can-fit-in-your-wedding-dress-and-look-good-in-the-photos approach to weight-loss before a wedding. However, I don't see anything wrong with using an upcoming major life event to provide a little motivation to healthify one's life.
The trick, however, is to use the external motivation to make an internal, lifestyle change. Weight-loss is not something you can achieve, pat yourself on the back, and go back to your old ways.
In general, I maintain pretty healthy habits. I don't smoke or do drugs. I rarely drink alcohol. I don't ingest much caffeine. I try to avoid medications. I drink a lot of water.
However, Matt and I do eat out too much (and I never practice portion control when we do), and I eat a lot of sugar (cupcakes, brownies, ice-cream, etc.). Because of my new health kick, I'm trying to fulfill my daily requirements for protein, calcium, fruits, vegetables, and grains. It's hard to do (especially as a vegetarian).
The upside of trying to follow the good ol' food pyramid is that I have way fewer cravings for junk food. Maybe it's because I just started this new health kick, or maybe it's because my body is satiated in other ways. I find myself thinking, "Why would I waste a snack on something that doesn't contribute to one of my required servings?"
With a well-rounded diet (plus a multivitamin), I find myself feeling a lot better. It's a commonsense approach, but I don't hear enough about it in conversations about health and wellness.
What about you? Has anything inspired you to focus more on health and wellness lately?
13 comments:
My husband is my inspiration. He's a diabetic. And we all can benefit from a diabetic diet - low GI.
Recently, I've developed hayfever, which is such a pain. I decided to boost my immune system with multi-vitamin, evening primrose oil and cod liver oil.
I think whatever is the incentive to get healthy is good.
For me it is part wedding related and part energy related. When I am eating healthier and more active I feel better. And I love sugar and sugar isn't the best for you in excess.
It's also a good time to let your doctor know your plans. They can run a few simple blood tests and check to see if there are any additional things you need to do. Mine recommended prenatals instead of multivitamins for as long as possible before trying. I'm also on a daily baby asprin because of a possible clotting issue. And no that amound isn't bad for you if you get pregnant. You can take that amount of asprin daily throughout a pregnancy without any issues.
Uping your b-6 intake is also helpful for egg quality issues. Small doses of dhea are also good for that. Just be careful with the dhea, you can get too much and start losing hair which won't want to come back.
Check out some of the infertility blogs out there. You can get some really great information from them as well.
I wish I had been able to start trying a few years earlier than I did but even after 3 m/c in a year I'm still hopefull we'll figure this thing out.
Good luck!
What got me to start eating right (and stop crash dieting?)
I had a mild heart attack from an unknown source. Yeah, nothing says STOP EATING CRAP and NO IT IS NOT OK TO FRY A BLOCK OF CHEESE AND EAT IT like almost kicking the bucket at 26.
Kudos on the baby planning!
http://kristensraw.blogspot.com/
Check out this blog. Talk about eating healthy!
I got a blood test back that showed for sure I was gluten-intolerant. I had suspected for a while and had been half-assed low-carbing, but seeing the numbers on the lab report really put the fire under me to eat right and avoid all grains.
You didn't mention which books you've been reading, but I HIGHLY recommend Real Food for Mother & Baby by Nina Planck. I have already read it and will read it again before we start trying!
My fiance inspires me...he's told me before that he wants me to stick around as long as possible, and eating healthy certainly helps with that!
If you need some recipe-shaking-up, the blog Cheap, Healthy, Good has great recipes (and a sizable vegetarian section).
Oh I’m such a planner too!! Before I was even engaged I started to be more careful on what I ate and did because I wanted to give my body enough time get out anything bad (toxic) and give my skin plenty of time get that glow. It’s so important to plan ahead (in a lot of things that is!) and I’m so glad I did for my wedding because I looked the best I think I ever have!
My wedding gave me the incentive to make that internal lifestyle change you mentioned. I got a gym membership about four months before my wedding, and didn't lose more than a couple pounds of weight--but BOY did it help with the stress! ;) And now I have this year-long gym membership and an activity that I know helps with stress, so I'm exercising a ton more than I was a year ago.
Nutritionally, I started tracking how much calcium I was eating to help with foot cramps I was getting, and wow, it's tough to get my 100% DV of calcium without fortified juice or something.
I experienced a rather nasty bout of post natal-depression following a 13 week miscarriage: stopped exercising, ate crap, started to avoid social occasions.
Then on the radio there was a programme about how one of the best things you can do if you suffer depression is to start exercising.
Although I'm not 100% I feel a lot better after having a workout even if I really have to push myself to go.
Good for you Miss Sarah! As for books, I HIGHLY recommend "taking charge of your fertility". I resisted it b/c it seemed so over the top, but it is SO helpful in seeing what's going on with your body and preparing/timing conception. I'd start now, so you get a good sense of your cycles. We've already been trying over a year with no luck, so now I'm turning to that (and other naturopathic methods/accupuncture). Good luck! Yay!
Not having health insurance really kind of spurred me into wanting to live more healthfully.
I've been reading a few good books about eating habits (not diet books!) that have really been eye-openers. The first is "French Women Don't Get Fat" (Guillano) and I also just finished "In Defense of Food" (Pollan). Good reads for anyone thinking about changing their health habits.
Yes yes yes! I am feeling like I'm floating in a similar, nearby boat to you guys. Wanting the body to be prepared to create a new life. How exciting of an opportunity! I feel the same about making the simple lifestyle changes -and taking the first step in realizing it's no longer just MY body - it's the first exercise in thinking about someone who might grow inside. Props to you!
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