For me, fitness is an entire lifestyle change, not just a modification of my diet or change in my level of physical exercise. True fitness is achieved by addressing and nurturing physical, nutritional, emotional, and mental health. In addition to drastically changing my diet to exclude most processed foods and adopting a vigorous exercise routine, I have made changes in my relationships, my hobbies, and my home life to work towards total personal fitness.
There’s no doubt that feeling better physically has affected my mental and emotional state for the better, but starting new projects has also brought about big changes in my attitude. I’ve been feeling more fulfilled through my new creative outlets, and I have increased energy to tackle the more physical activities {working in the garden, building a chicken coop with my dad}. I’ve also experienced a renewed interest in old activities that I thought I had grown tired of {cooking, DIY house projects, writing}. I’ve made a promise to myself to be active every day, even if that means only a visit to the flea market with Justin for a few laps around the chotzky tables. I make an effort to breath fresh air every day, even if that means only taking the time to water the garden for an hour in the morning before everyone wakes up.
So for today’s Fitness Diary post, I’ve attached a link to an article about the benefits of raising your own chickens.
Eggs from “backyard” chicken flocks could contain the following nutritional values vs. eggs from factory-raised chickens:
- 1/3 less cholesterol
- 1/4 less saturated fat
- 2/3 more vitamin A
- 2 times more omega-3 fatty acids
- 3 times more vitamin E
- 7 times more beta carotene
While I’ve definitely lost weight and have changed my body shape over the past few months, my fitness journey has become about much more than those things. I have more energy, I have a more positive outlook, my sleep is more solid, my skin is clear, and my moods are even. My cravings for junk food have all but disappeared {though my love for ice cream will always remain}. My weight loss has slowed to about 1 pound per week, but since I’ve already reached my weight goal I’ll be happy with wherever I end up. I’ll continue to grow my strength and muscle mass through weight training to ensure continued increases in bone strength and metabolic rate.
My current {physical} stats:
Weight: 154 lbs. 5′ 11″ {Starting Weight: 170 lbs.}
Pants Size: 6 {Starting Size: 10}
Favorite Supplements: Organic Flaxseed Oil, Raw Organic Apple Cider Vinegar
Favorite Snacks/Meals: Raw Organic Almond Butter/Organic Creamy Peanut Butter w/ Bananas, Ezekiel 4.9 Whole Grain Flourless Tortillas w/ Grilled Veggies, Homemade Veggie Juice, Watermelon, Sunflower Seeds, Brown Basmati Rice w/ Stir-Fry Tofu & Misc. Squash, Eggs!
Favorite Treat: Baked Golden Delicious Apples w/ Caramelized Light Brown Sugar & Natural Vanilla Bean Ice Cream
Finally, I have made a promise to myself to never stop investing in the health of my family or myself. I was watching Oprah the other day, and she said she failed and started to gain weight again when she told herself that she “got it”. The commitment to health is a lifelong commitment, so I will never stop learning or improving. It’s been so rewarding so far, I can’t imagine why I would ever want to…
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