Time To Be Selfish – With Food {Health and Wellness Series}

Food! What a glorious subject! If only we could eat whatever we wanted and still feel fabulous, right? Way back when I was a teenager, I could eat whatever I wanted and not gain an ounce. I would regularly order a value meal (super-sized), finish it off in less than 10 minutes, and STILL be hungry. I know, super lucky, right? I wonder how I didn’t cause myself a heart attack.

(If you are following my health and wellness series, this is the third part in my four-part series. Check out Part 1 and Part 2).

As a working mom who keeps odd hours and sacrifices meal time for “catching up on chores time”, my healthy eating went right out the door.

My brain was telling me, “If you just have something sugary, then you will be able to energize yourself enough until time allows for a good meal.” I am pretty sure some of you people reading this relate to that statement. Sugar seems to help for a bit, but it is truly one of the most unhealthy ways to keep you functioning.

Once I got my sleep on a better track, I thought I would feel much better. To my surprise, I wasn’t nearly as energized as I thought I would be.

And it was far from the level I wanted to be at. It took me a bit to realize that I wasn’t just lacking sleep, but I lacked healthy eating habits, too. I really struggled with this…and still sort of do at times. It’s not only about eating healthy, but eating the right amount of food, often enough.

I am big on using apps on my smart phone to help keep me on track.

I feel it makes me more accountable to my health–my guilt kicks in when I stray from using them. There are many great apps that will help you log your foods; most already have nutritional values scanned into them. That is probably the lengthiest part, but well worth it! Such apps also ask you to track your water consumption as well, which goes along with healthy eating. And with all the ways to flavor your water nowadays, it makes it much easier to reach your daily goal.

Where do you get great tasting, FRESH food?

Well, it just so happens that you are reading this at the best time of the year. Farmers’ markets are my FAVORITE places to get fabulous food at a decent price. And the bonus is that many have fun entertainment going on while checking out the yummy goodies. In fact, many farmers’ markets are on different days, so don’t limit yourself just to your town. Here are some right here in the Seacoast:

• Dover: Wednesdays, 2:15-6:00 p.m. (June 1 – October 5)
• Durham: Mondays, 2:15-6:00 p.m. (June 6 – October 3)
• Exeter: Thursdays, 2:15-6:00 p.m. (May 5 – October 27)
• Hampton Falls: Mondays, 2:00-6:00 p.m. (June 6 – September 26)
• Lee: Thursdays, 3:00-6:00 p.m. (May – September)
• Newfields: Saturdays, 10:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m. (May 28 – October 8)
• Portsmouth: Saturdays, 8:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m. (May 7 – November 5)
• Rochester: Tuesdays, 3:30-6:30 p.m. (June 7 – October 25)
• Rye: Wednesdays, 2:30-5:30 p.m. (June 22 – September 21)
• Somersworth: Thursdays, 3:00-6:00 p.m. (June 2 – September 29)

We have talked about the importance of being selfish. We have talked about the first two components to the “Healthy Trifecta” (sleep and healthy eating). I cannot wait for you to join me for the final part of my series when we talk about exercise!