The 5 Best {Health} Decisions I've Made

1. GIVING UP MEAT:

There are plenty of articles you can read about why eating a plant based lifestyle is beneficial for your health, but I'm not here to push my beliefs on any of you (well maybe a littleeee bit), just to share what makes me feel my personal best. Soon it will be 3 years since I decided to give up meat and become a pescatarian, and I honestly don't see myself ever going back to eating meat. I can count on two hands the occasions where I've "slipped" and had some form of meat whether it be a wing, a slice of pepperoni on a pizza, etc. in the past 3 years. The times that this happens I've found is if I'm at a big bridal shower or birthday party and there aren't many choices of what I can eat other than salad and I'm really really hungry....or if I'm at a happy hour, have had a few brewski's, and want one of my husbands wings (or like when I was in TX and these crazy kids made me try oryx for the first time). I don't hate meat, although ever since I stopped eating meat I can barely even look at chicken or sausage, I've just made a choice to cut it out of my life. Food is your fuel and I feel my best when I eat lots of vegetables, fruits, and fish.

If you are interested in eating more plant based or cutting out meat, I highly recommend trying a Meatless Monday (for example) or going one-two days a week without meat and see how it makes you feel. If you don't think you can give up meat entirely, that's OK, just make sure you are eating lean meats and watch your red meat intake. I've honestly never felt better, had more energy, and I fully believe it's because of this and numbers 2-5 that I'm about to share with you!


2. CUTTING BACK ON DAIRY, BREAD, AND PASTA:

SOUND THE ALARMS!

This one might be the biggest change I've made, even more so than giving up meat. I mean this not only because of how long it took me to realize how much dairy (cheese!) I was actually putting in my body, but because of how I've felt cutting back on these certain items. Holy cow! It will blow your mind (and scale!!) how much better you will feel and I promise you that. If not, I give you permission to come pound on my door and tell me how wrong I was and that I need to cut you 5 slices of cheese right away.

My husband and I are obsessed with cheese. We love all kinds, but it does NOT make me feel good when I eat it. The same goes with white flour breads and pasta. These do nothing for my body and I feel so weighed down after I eat them. That's why I had to say goodbye to them, for the most part. Do I still have white bread on occasion? Sure, but it's very rare. If I eat bread (which I would say is maybe once every two weeks), it will be 100% whole wheat with a lot of fiber in it, or a wrap that is similar. Pasta hasn't been very hard for me to give up, so I can't give much advice here for that. Do I still eat dairy? Yes, sometimes I will have a greek yogurt if I want one or put a small amount of cheese on my tacos, but this isn't very often and I make sure it's in moderation. Do I still indulge in ice cream or fro yo? Heck yes, I'm not saying I plan to give these up (#lezbehonest) anytime soon, but I just make sure it's not too often. There comes a time when a girl just needs her fro yo, mmkay? ;)

Once the shock of cutting back on these items subsides from your mind, you will realize how much you were eating in the first place and you won't want to go back. You will feel too good to do that! :) 

"It's not about restrictions, it's about creating new habits"

3. NO POP:

There is no reason you (yes, you) should be drinking pop/soda/whatever you feel like calling it anymore. JUST STOP. No more of this "I just have one diet coke a day" business. Just put them down all together.

In high school, I thought my Dad was going to have an intervention with me because I would order 3 Mountain Dew's BEFORE our dinner even came to the table. It was bad. Since I feared he would take away my car keys or AOL (not AOL!), I decided one day to just give it up. Best decision EVER.

Water is your best friend, people.

4. JUICING:

Ahh, the phenomenon that is juicing. You can read here why I love juicing so much, but I just want to say that ever since I bought my Breville juicer, I've had so much fun coming up with new combinations for juices and I look forward to making them. It's like your body craves it. Not even kidding.

My favorite combination right now: 1 green apple, 3 celery stalks, 1/2 a cucumber, 1/2 a lemon, 2 handfuls of spinach.

5. FALL IN LOVE WITH EXERCISING (OR YOUR GYM!):

Find one form of exercise you love doing. If you are sitting there reading this right now and thinking to yourself that you don't have one form of exercise that you love, it's time you branch out and find one! NO EXCUSES. There is something out there for everyone. For me, I've always enjoyed running (mainly the runners high that comes after it) but spinning is what I truly love doing. It's my favorite type of workout my gym offers because it's high intensity, doesn't make me bored, burns so many calories, pumps me up, and it never fails that I'm in the BEST mood when I walk out of that class (even if my legs feel like they might fall off). I love endorphins more than I love shopping for fall clothes which says a heck of a lot.

Now I know exercising is hard, but if you belong to a gym that you really like it's much easier to get yourself there. I belong to Lifetime Fitness and have been a member ever since I got out of college and if I had to switch I might shed some tears. I love what my gym has to offer, I feel comfortable going there, and it motivates me. Don't bother going to a gym that you hate! Well, I take that back, a gym is better than no gym, but try and find one that you don't mind going to, if possible. Find one that works for you.

 Because doing a Jillian Michaels DVD while on vacation in FL (with my hair down no less) is normal? Just go with it...

Last but not least, this should be #6 but since I prefer odd numbers today, let's just go with it-drink as much water as possible-lemon water, water infused with fruit, ANY water! Your skin and body will thank you.

Any questions? Feel free to leave in the comments below or email me.

At the end of the day, if you feel tired/sluggish/unmotivated you are the only one to blame and it's time to look at your eating habits. I mean, unless you prefer feeling like crap day in and day out. Evaluate what you're putting in your body. Are you exercising enough?

This is really cliche but you only have one body, so treat it right!

What are the best decisions you've made for your health?