Choose You Blog

Weight gain is not inevitable as you age, alleged a Mayo Clinic article that hit my inbox today. I decided to click through and read what miracles I was missing yet .

I closed my eyes and ticked off my lifestyle list to see how it measured up from another article from the experts:

• only whole grains
• small portions
• healthy, fresh food choices
• strong limits on junk
• “eat this, not that” choices such as fat free sorbet instead of ice cream
• no sodas, juices or drinks other than water except in rare cases
• daily exercise
• healthy sleep (6-8)

and so on.

Okay…here’s their magic formula:

• Don’t eat: Potato chips, Potatoes, Unprocessed red meats, or Processed meats. Or see pounds creep on despite otherwise good habits.
• Do eat: vegetables, nuts, fruits and whole grains. And see less weight gain.
• “Alcoholic beverages and fruit juices were associated with a small but gradual increase in weight. Sugar-sweetened beverages were a major contributor to weight gain.”
• Limit TV.
• Get a good night’s sleep.

No surprises, and I see that I’m on the right path, although I still have a few things in my life it appears good medical science would rather me leave behind: the sitting in the desk chair job, meat, wine (and sometimes margaritas), and an addiction to Bravo.

So I paused and wondered whether I’d be willing to utterly give up any of that, cold turkey, to be healthier? I decided I’m willing to cut back further. But not quite to eliminate.

What about you? What do you still have in your life that medical science would rather you leave behind? Are you willing to do it?

Or…what have you cut, bad habit-wise, out of your life already?