Health and Fitness Goals

[TheRealAriel]

We had a really good sermon this Sunday at my church addressing the confession of sins and anticipating pitfalls so we can avoid habitual sin. If you're interested, here is the link to the video: Sermon on Sin

As I reflected, I believe a great habitual sin of mine is unhealthfulness. This can be laziness, gluttony, poor food choices, or just not drinking enough water. It opened the floor for a great conversation between my dad and I (he is also a binge eater), and we've renewed some goals for improving our health in non-drastic ways intended to anticipate pitfalls and stop them from happening. This is a huge positive change for our mindset because in the past we've fallen into a lot of crash dieting, way too intense exercise routines, fasting, etc that only last a short while before inevitable burn-out.

I've had similar conversations with several of you, so I know this is a problem and goal I share with some of you. So let's help one-another and be accountable to each other! Use this thread to share your pitfalls/solutions, goals, progress, or seek advice for your health and fitness journey! I'll share the pitfalls/goals I've identified so far in a subsequent post since this one is already a bit long Just imagine how much better we would feel by the end of the year if we really worked to fight against this area of sinfulness in our lives! Let's do it!

 

[TheRealAriel]

My plan of action steps to a more healthful life so far:

• No more eating/snacking in front of the TV. Meals at the table.
• Hit step goals each day (I am working my way up to a 10,000 a day goal, currently at 8,000 while that becomes manageable)
• Limit eating out to one time a week (except in special circumstances like out of town on vacation or a work meal)
• Be mindful of limiting dairy, refined sugars, and artificial sweeteners. (cheese is one of my greatest problem areas so if I can reduce that, it will be VERY helpful)

I have created a log to track steps, calories, and eating habits. Sometimes being able to visualize the issue is half the battle. My goal is to lose 35 lbs by the end of the year, but on a micro-level whether or not I lose that much I will be pretty pleased if I am able to make the improvements I listed above regardless!

 

[d taylor]

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A persons health is in their stomach, so make sure the food you eat is good medicine.

 

[Miles]

My major health and fitness goals:

- Exercise for at least 30 minutes every day
- Drink enough water
- Eat more fruit and leafy greens
- Get 7-8 hours of sleep each night

I recently had a blood test. Not all of the numbers were bad, but a few were disconcerting. The nurse practitioner recommended that I take a supplement and encouraged me to stay well hydrated among other things. Hopefully, diet and lifestyle changes will help me improve before my appointment with my primary care physician this summer.

 

[TheRealAriel]

My major health and fitness goals:

- Exercise for at least 30 minutes every day
- Drink enough water
- Eat more fruit and leafy greens
- Get 7-8 hours of sleep each night

I recently had a blood test. Not all of the numbers were bad, but a few were disconcerting. The nurse practitioner recommended that I take a supplement and encouraged me to stay well hydrated among other things. Hopefully, diet and lifestyle changes will help me improve before my appointment with my primary care physician this summer.

Great goals! Water is soooo important and so often neglected. And sleep... gosh, that's a really tough one to prioritize sometimes. Hoping these changes give you the results you want to see for that appointment this summer! Will be praying for you!

 

[trophy33]

For somebody who does not know where/how to start:

Eat real foods. Mostly plants. Not too much. Move. Sleep.

Repeat.

Many people have problems with many kinds of plants, depending on ones sensitivity. So be careful there and pick the ones that are good for you.

 

[DragonFox91]

I’ve always been slender. As a man, I felt inferior to other men being slender. I wanted to gain weight so much. I finally did thru exercising & eating more. I felt normal.

But now I’m thinking that’s a bad attitude. It’s easy to give into temptation. It’s a ‘I need it now & I’m gonna get it now’. What I was really desiring was to be like other men. There was nothing wrong w/ being slender. I’m trying to eat less, especially less meat, as well as healthier, fruit, salads, nuts, dairy, bread, etc. Trying to change my attitude.

Exercise is good tho. It helps me stretch out after sitting all day at work.

OP, try to tie your habits to your walk w/ Christ. Anytime you want to give in to items not to your goal, pray & focus on him. He would like you to succeed with this b/c it is healthy for us. & in our case as Christians will draw us to him.

 

[TheLastGeek]

Lifelong emotional/stress eater here.

I do well with what I eat in terms of nutrition. I drink mostly water, rarely anything else. I love salads and fresh fruit. I take walks daily.

But if I'm stressed, tired, frustrated, anxious, or just plain DONE with life... the snacks come out. That's my pitfall. If I can just get some ice cream and zone out with a comforting old movie, I'll feel better - I tell myself.

I wish I knew some sure-fire way to overcome this unhealthy habit. Still searching for it.

 

[trophy33]

Lifelong emotional/stress eater here.

I do well with what I eat in terms of nutrition. I drink mostly water, rarely anything else. I love salads and fresh fruit. I take walks daily.

But if I'm stressed, tired, frustrated, anxious, or just plain DONE with life... the snacks come out. That's my pitfall. If I can just get some ice cream and zone out with a comforting old movie, I'll feel better - I tell myself.

I wish I knew some sure-fire way to overcome this unhealthy habit. Still searching for it.

You may try a hot shower and preparing a good tea after that. The preparing of a (green) tea can be stress relieving too, depending on how you do it.

In any case, it helps not to have any junk food at home. If its stored in the fridge, brain knows.

 

[trophy33]

My goals are to be most of the time in ketosis or close to it (<30g of carbohydrates a day), while keeping plants to be about 50% of my plate and saturated fats to be relatively low.

From time to time to switch to carbohydrates to keep my body to be able to deal with a high carb diet.

Limiting junk food to very rare occasions. No alcohol.

Once a month, a 3 day water/tea fast.

Regular strength exercise to keep and grow muscles.

 

[TheLastGeek]

You may try a hot shower and preparing a good tea after that. The preparing of a (green) tea can be stress relieving too, depending on how you do it.

In any case, it helps not to have any junk food at home. If its stored in the fridge, brain knows.

Yes, the NOT keeping tempting foods in the house is key for me, too.

 

[TheRealAriel]

Lifelong emotional/stress eater here.

I do well with what I eat in terms of nutrition. I drink mostly water, rarely anything else. I love salads and fresh fruit. I take walks daily.

But if I'm stressed, tired, frustrated, anxious, or just plain DONE with life... the snacks come out. That's my pitfall. If I can just get some ice cream and zone out with a comforting old movie, I'll feel better - I tell myself.

I wish I knew some sure-fire way to overcome this unhealthy habit. Still searching for it.

Oh my word, yes! I so relate to emotional/stress eating! I'm hoping my no eating in front of the TV rule helps with that, because it's usually emotional eating/binge watching TV that go hand in hand. Also trying not to have unhealthy options in the house.

I just started logging daily calories... I had been avoiding it for so long. I'm still being lenient with it (not measuring things out to be exact), but it helps me get a ballpark of my calorie intake for the day. It's been eye opening... I went to Longhorns yesterday for my mom's birthday and got a side salad and fries and it ended up being over 1000 calories!! When you know better, you do better.. and I'm finally starting to know just how bad I was.

 

[trophy33]

Snacking during watching movies/youtube etc. - I was also used to do that.

Instead of "from now on, with all the strength of my will, I will 100% stop to do that since today" I would recommend a gradual change:

First step - snack healthier foods (nuts, berries...)
Second step - snack less of nuts/berries and add drinking a tea
Third step - just drink tea while watching something
Fourth step - either nothing or stay with the tea

Generally, gradual steps are more sustainable in health/fitness/lifestyle. When people change too much in the beginning, they fail and return to old bad habits, sometimes even deeper, because of the failure.

 

[TheLastGeek]

Oh my word, yes! I so relate to emotional/stress eating! I'm hoping my no eating in front of the TV rule helps with that, because it's usually emotional eating/binge watching TV that go hand in hand. Also trying not to have unhealthy options in the house.

I just started logging daily calories... I had been avoiding it for so long. I'm still being lenient with it (not measuring things out to be exact), but it helps me get a ballpark of my calorie intake for the day. It's been eye opening... I went to Longhorns yesterday for my mom's birthday and got a side salad and fries and it ended up being over 1000 calories!! When you know better, you do better.. and I'm finally starting to know just how bad I was.

Counting calories was very successful for me when I did it. Good luck with that! It was a handy learning tool. Also eye-opening to see how many calories DRINKS contain, too.

 

[timewerx]

I do intense aerobic and anaerobic exercises everyday. I soldiered with the routine until my body adapted to increasing release of natural body endorphins to the point I feel pleasure when my muscles ache during exercise, allowing me to push harder and increase intensity.

I needed to do it as time efficient method of burning as much calories. I have hypertension and it's the only way I keep high blood pressure at bay without taking any meds nor any natural herbal remedies. If I stop doing this even for just one week, my blood pressure would be in the red!

I also do daily Intermittent Fasting (IF) in addition. Zero calories and no drinking during a 12 to 16 hr fasting window. Finally, I limit the number of my meals to only two meals a day. I personally found the two meals a day to improve sleep and also allowing me to sleep twice a day (shorter amount of time each) which is really good for exercise recovery and if you have a changing work shift.

I add tiny amount of salt to my drinking water. It helps to avoid swelling first time you drink water after fasting without eating and drinking. Salted water also gives feeling of fullness and helps to decrease feeling of hunger.

I am very slightly underweight at the moment but holding and maintaining it which is good. I found being slightly underweight to be of huge advantage in this hot summer temperatures like keeping comfortably cool in the >100F heat index even without A/C nor fan.

 

[TheRealAriel]

I'm proud of myself! Took a trip this past weekend and somehow managed not to gain a single pound while I was away. Definitely ate some unhealthy food and did some drinking, but was able to keep it moderate enough and stay active enough that it was a net zero. Huzzah!

 

[TheRealAriel]

Y'all.. after so many years of doing everything BUT calorie counting I have to admit... I am a fan of calorie counting. Calorie counting has helped me so much in eating proper portions and making better food choices. And when I have a ballpark of how many calories I want to eat in the day, I choose the type of calories I'm going to take in much more wisely. I had always thought it would be way too time consuming to count them, but I've found a really lazy way to do it. I have two big meals a day. One is always avocado toast (because it's fast, delicious and I like how it makes me feel) and the other is something I've prepped to eat all week. So I always know how much I'm taking in for my toast and I only have to do the math once to figure out the other meal for the week. Then the third "meal" of the day is just light snacks that keep me within my calorie range for the day.

Feeling good and optimistic!

 

[TheRealAriel]

8 lbs down so far, but leaving for a trip tomorrow so I hope I can stay on track!

Any success/progress stories from y’all so far?

 

[DragonFox91]

8 lbs down so far, but leaving for a trip tomorrow so I hope I can stay on track!

Any success/progress stories from y’all so far?

Does your's count

 

[CoffeeClaw_1986]

I had to make some dietary changes due to being diagnosed prediabetic four years ago. My a1c was 3/10 of a point higher back in may than it was when I was diagnosed. During the past couple of months I have gotten more serious about dietary changes, going low-carb, and am down 15 pounds from my highest ever weight so far. I do struggle sometimes with junk food cravings and still have a long way to go, but my goal is to be at a healthier weight and to be able to look and feel better about myself.