I hope everyone had wonderful holidays! I was able to travel and visit Boston — which is a new area for me. It was cold but with the right coat, some sunshine and coffee, I was able to enjoy the personal walking tour my adult son took me on. The mix of old and new is interesting.
I loved the indoor mall full of local vetted craftsmen. We walked down to the Long Wharf Pier and saw the “Boston Harbor.” Very modern now with jets taking off from Logan Airport just across the Harbor. While I am saying I enjoyed this walking tour, my body that is accustomed to the mostly desk sitting did not. So a detour for Advil was required along with a festive and hot Peppermint Mocha to warm us up. I can’t help thinking that “wow, I need to be training for old age!”
Now, with the New Year here I can’t put off that doctor’s quiet admonition, he wrote on the paper that you take up to the desk and hand them to check out, “diet and exercise.” After several knee injuries, an ankle sprain and foot fracture I may have gained a pound or 10. So, I know he is not wrong and, in the past, I have successfully achieved a healthy weight. However, in the past it may have been running (now out of the question), extreme calorie restriction (not healthy) or both — ended up sick. Therefore, I started researching to see if there was anything new and healthy to try. And there are some new schools of thought to approaching lifestyle changes but they still require will-power. I have heard that if you make something into a game, it is always more fun. While this may not become your favorite game, it may help you “up your game!” What game you say?
I think most folks are aware of the Jenga game of stacking little blocks and then pulling out blocks randomly to add to the top — all the while trying not to have it collapse into a heap. Did you know the root of the word Jenga is from a Swahili word, kujenga, which means “to build.”
Recently, I have been reading about “Habit Stacking” where you take a habit you already have — a healthy habit and then stack a new healthy habit onto it to “build” your healthy routine. Which also reminded me of Jenga … especially if you are trying to remove a bad habit and replace with a good habit on top of other good habits. I couldn’t help but think about how this can be a metaphor for our diet and exercise habits. Actually, most studies show that diet can have more impact than exercise on your weight.
Remember the old food pyramid? The USDA has redesigned the food pyramid to be “My Plate.” to aid in building a healthy diet. When looking at your diet, it’s not just about the calories but also the nutrient content. You may also hear folks talking about the “Macros” which is short for macronutrients. Macronutrients is a term used to describe the carbohydrates, fat and protein your body needs. And, not sure about you, but I am very sensitive to sodium so I am always looking to achieve a balance of the electrolytes. What I have found is, it’s not just about the liquid electrolytes but balancing the sodium and potassium content in your solid food can really improve your blood pressure. This is now starting to get complicated! And, it can be a bit overwhelming at first.
So we need a way to make this more of a game. Food Tower! is what I am going to call this New Year’s eat healthy game. I really would love to call it Food Jenga! but Jenga is actually trademarked! In our Food Tower game, and in keeping with the aforementioned habit stacking, we can break this down to pulling out a block and replacing it with a healthy block. Habit Stacking, like in Jenga and your electrolytes, balance is key!
Good eating habits can also go along with saving money. Even though everyone has been complaining about the prices of groceries, there are things you can do. Tiny good habits can stretch your groceries, improve your health and save you money 💰 The roasted turkey was actually enough for two people for several meals. So even though it may have looked expensive (approx. $19), the whole meal above cost about $35 to buy the ingredients (minus the wine). So per person per meal brought it down to less than $10 per person which honestly is less than 4 people eating at a fast food restaurant and arguably more healthy. Cooking a turkey breast on a Sunday would provide a lovely meal and then the meat can be sliced for sandwiches for lunches.
Cooking fresh and/or frozen veggies (without sauces) are naturally low in sodium and low in calories. Also, even if you have no time and you make the frozen pasta meals, throwing in a handful of frozen veggies can stretch the meal, add potassium and fiber. Frozen peas also add zero cholesterol plant-based, protein. Keep bags of peas, corn or your favorite veg, in your freezer to add extra veggies in to your diet. Also, if you have a pup, you can help with your pup’s diet — steam some peas and before you add butter or seasonings, scoop a tablespoon or two out to cool. Mix in with your pup’s dinner to provide some extra low-fat nutrition.
One of the keys to changing your habits is to realize it takes on average 3 weeks for something to become a habit. Therefore, it can be best to slowly add in or otherwise stack the new habits. Perhaps, create a plan to swap out one bad habit for a good habit each month, using the habit-stacking idea. So think about what new habits that you can do to replace a bad habit or add in to improve your health, wallet and over all life. Small changes that you stick with will be easier and lead to a much healthier life which is a very comfortable place to be.
Wonderful article, Mary. We are also working on forming new behaviors this year. One is eating at the table! I find it interesting that the Myplate is basically the four food groups we followed until the 90s except that fruits and vegetables are their own category. And, of course, portions and how often to eat are now included.
Thank you, Rebecca! It’s a big step to eat at the table! Yes, Myplate seems to help with portions more than the food pyramid! I had no idea it had even changed until I started doing some research.