The Happiness Project, May: Nutrition

Month 5 down in The Happiness Project….man, this is flying by. Since our gym (Lynx Fitness Club for those of you locals) was having a nutritional challenge in May, I thought this would be the perfect topic to incorporate into my happiness project. After all, doesn’t our nutrition and our body have a huge impact on our happiness? I know that when I am eating well and looking good, I feel a lot better and I am way happier.

Nutrition is a huge part of every single person’s life, whether they recognize it or not. Nutrition effects our weight, our mental health, our physical health, our sleep, our mood, our relationships and so much more. The hard part is that in pretty much every home, the kitchen is the “meeting point” and where many families spend most of their time. While it is a constant challenge for many of us to find the balance between health & indulgence, it is possible. I think that with the proper tools and a good attitude, we can all create a well-balanced lifestyle that allows us to remain healthy.

Nutrition to me is a three part beast: food/drink, sleep/recovery and exercise (ok, I kind of threw that one in there but they go hand in hand). Therefore, I’m going to break this down into three parts to discuss them one by one:

Part 1: Food + Drink

A. Food: Ahh, food. What female doesn’t have a love-hate relationship with food? We all grew up with parents who affected our eating habits and we all went through a borderline eating disorder phase in high school or college. We all have images of what the “perfect body” looks like and it’s unattainable for 99.9% of us.We have to let all of that go! What matters is how we choose to address food from this day going forward. It is an incredibly difficult challenge to have a positive relationship with food – to not label foods as “good or bad” but rather have a well balance diet that may include a cookie or cocktail. every now and then. I’ve learned through this process that the relationship we have with food is everything. To me, it has been best to focus not on what I “can’t have” (<- again, bad food mentality) but rather focus on what I should be getting an abundance of – vegetables, fruit, lean proteins, healthy fats, grains & legumes, etc. When each meal is built around these main, healthy ingredients, it seems to just fall into place naturally. If I had a big ole’ salad loaded with nutrients and I want to indulge in a cookie after, who cares?! The problem is when we think “no cookies” for weeks on end and then one night when craving strikes, we eat the entire bag. We’ve heard it a thousand times but I truly believe that moderation is key and as long as we focus on eating clean, the rest falls into place.

Tip: For those of you starting out, I recommend tracking your food via My Fitness Pal or a similar app. Documenting my daily intake helped me to identify unhealthy habits and have a realistic view of what I was actually eating.

B. Drink: What we drink is often as important as what we eat. Lucky for me, I am obsessed with drinking water and absolutely love the way it tastes. I start every morning with a cup of coffee (black) and then switch to water. Sometimes I’ll have a La Croix midday when I need a pick me up – something about those bubbles! While I mentioned moderation above, this is the one area I don’t believe that fits. There is no reason to drink sugary, calorie filled drinks – soda, juice, milk, sugary cocktails…all of these have no place in a healthy diet. Water is SO good for our bodies in countless ways and all of the aforementioned drinks basically have a reverse effect – they’re full of sugar, chemicals, toxins, etc. I can’t think of any situation where it will benefit someone to drink anything other than coffee, tea or water…and wine, of course!

The Verdict: Diet is everything. And not being “on a diet”, but what your everyday food and drink intake it. Your lifestyle. Food tracking is immensely helpful for me and dining out is the devil. Yup, those are my verdicts.

Part 2: Sleep + Recovery

A. Sleep: We all know sleep is absolutely critical to brain function and overall development and performance, though it’s safe to say that the vast majority of the population is sleep deprived. In the first week of our nutrition challenge, the coach asked us to write down one small goal for the week. Something that is attainable, but that helps to create a healthy pattern. For me, it was to be laying in bed by 10:00pm every night, no matter what. For the first few weeks I stuck to it and now I am using it as a daily benchmark. Of course, there are some days where I have a work event or social obligation which keeps me out later, but for the most part I’ve been sticking to it. I find that if I can get in bed by 10, I will get at least 8 hours of solid sleep per night. Within days I felt a noticeable difference in my energy level, my mood, my food cravings…I coudln’t believe the impact that a proper night’s sleep was having on my body. As our coach said, it is pretty much impossible to lose weight or lower stress without enough sleep.

B. Recovery: This one is hard for me. I am very on the go, I am very high energy and I am very nonstop. I cannot sit still for long periods of time and I am terrible at “vegging out”. I totally recognize this about myself and so it literally takes everything in me to take a day off from working out or just relaxing on the sofa for a few hours. But let me say, I have found my own ways to recover. For example, I have recently found the joy of bubble baths! HA. A lot of my mom friends say they look forward to this every night and I never understood it until recently. There is nothing more relaxing than getting out of a bubble bath and straight to bed. I’m out within 10 minutes. Also, I have been trying to incorporate more yoga into my weekly routine. Admittedly, I haven’t been in weeks (I try SO hard but I just can’t find my groove with it) but I know how critical it is to muscle recovery and how important it is for mental health also. This “recovery” area is definitely one to work on.

The Verdict: Sleep and recovery are just as – if not more – important as what you put into your body! I challenge each and every one of you to pick a bed time and stick to it. Listen to your body – it’s the most powerful tool we have.

Part 3: Exercise

While you can in no way out train a bad diet, exercise is still important. Your diet is 100x more important on your external results, though exercise is equally important for your internal results. To me, exercising provides so many benefits – it is a stress reliever, a mood booster, a great social activity, and so much more. We are so fortunate that these days we are having children older, living longer, traveling more – don’t you want to be in the best shape to experience all of this in the most comfortable way? I sure know I do!

 Over the years, I have found that there are two keys to making exercise something that sticks with you. First is to find something that you love. Whether that’s playing tennis or doing yoga or working with a trainer or running races…if you don’t love it, you won’t stick to it. There are literally hundreds of different types of workouts around – try them all until you find one that sticks. The second is to implement a routine. One of the main purposes for me doing THP in the first place was to try and implement healthy, productive habits into my life. Exercise is no different. Whether you have a workout buddy or an instructor you love, it is critical to hold yourself accountable to attend your workout every day. They say it takes 21 days to create a habit so why not schedule your workout in your calendar for 21 days straight and then see what a wonderful habit you have created?!

The Verdict: Working out is obviously important for our physical, emotional and mental health. Creating a habit and sticking to it is key. Everyone’s workout looks different and that’s okay. Find what you love, create a habit and stick to it. Then watch the change happen.

Quotes + Articles Worth Reading

10 Reasons Why You Should Drink More Water

5 Ways to Stay Healthy While Traveling

14 Foods That Cause Inflammation

5 Easy Exercises You Can Do at the Office

Happiness Habits Implemented

From January: Power Hour is going strong here, typically on Fridays before we head out of town for the weekend. It is so nice to finish up small tasks, tidy up the house and come home to a clean, inviting home. I also try to take about 15 minutes each morning (between finishing my coffee + starting my work day) where I pick up dog toys, sweep the deck (omg the pollen!), make the bed and tidy things up. A little bit each day just makes life easier!

From February: Forever a challenge, but trying super hard “not sweat the small stuff”. While dirty dishes in the sink and clothes on the floor still happen (let’s be honest, they always will), I’m finding it best to ask for help where it matters most and just put out friendly reminders here and there, rather than nagging.

From March: Still doing my part saying “yes” more. This has been a wonderful practice to put into place. Summertime is always very impromptu and unplanned and that is always when the best days are had. This has quickly become one of my favorite new practices.

From April: Finances are in full demo mode right now. I’m taking my own advice and trying really hard to stick to a budget (do I really need another work out top? No, probably not), to watch our savings grow and to invest where I can. We’re currently saving to purchase a home while saving for a big vacation while sticking to a budget and trying to have a life. It’s a balance!

Have you started your Happiness Project?!

If you’re new to South End Style, you can catch up by viewing my previous posts –  month 1: vitality,  month 2: marriage, month 3: attitude and month 4: financial freedom.