Happy Fat Tuesday everyone!! The day when droves of people gorge themselves on delicious foods! Just a quick reminder - you will pay for those empty calories sooner or later. Be it your heart or your pant size, every single item you consume has a consequence, be it good or bad.
I love the festivities, parades, the colors, the lavish costumes, the beads and all of the fun ambiance of Fat Tuesday & Mardi Gras. Just make conscious decisions. You can have chicken wings - just don't eat the entire dozen of them lol. You can have your cake and eat it too - just don't eat the entire cake.
The issue with eating too much is that our bodies only burn a certain number of calories per day. Have your RMR (Resting Metabolic Rate) taken at a health clinic. This tells you the number of calories that your body burns at rest. They then figure in your activity level to determine how many calories you should consume per day. This is one of the critical staples that I had taken years ago (and I probably should have it re-taken). This is the number one reason I have lost weight - because I know from a scientific standpoint how many calories I burn per day (not an estimation).
The reason America is getting fatter is not only because convenience foods and boxed foods have tons of calories, it is also because we are moving less. The convenience of cars, dishwashers, washing machines and all of the items I use on a daily basis make us move much, much less than our ancestors did. I can hardly even fathom the amount of hard work that my great grandparents put in doing everything by hand. They burnt countless calories AND they also ate fresh from the garden. Canning was a staple of their lives and the food came from their garden. Meats came from the animals they raised (and burnt tons of calories raising the animals).
Today, Americans no longer have to pull that enormous amount of weight to get their food. Milk "comes from the grocery store" is something that is the norm for a lot of kids. When we burn fewer calories, we need to eat less. When you burn a lot of calories (such as through exercise), then you need to consume a little more. Food is fuel and the type of fuel you are feeding your body also does matter 100%. If you feed it nutrient dense fruits and veggies and lean proteins, your body will more efficiently process those foods and more efficiently convert them into sustainable usable energy. If you feed your body empty calories and simple sugars, your body burns up the fuel so quickly that you crash within hours.
Please take a moment today and consciously think about your food decisions. If you do eat those wings or cake or have a few drinks, try to balance it out with some veggies and perhaps just bump up your daily activity level a bit for the next few days. We only have one shot at this life and I know a lot of people say that they want to enjoy it through food - but consciously enjoy it or you will be sorry later. Party on - just party on with a little less stuffing of your face & dance a little more today! :)
~Cathy
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