Most of us, set out at least once in our
lifetimes with the goal of losing weight. Losing weight is as much a mental
feat as it is a physical one. Many of us experience split personalities during
this struggle. I like to call The Dr. Jekyll to my Mr. Hyde, “Fran”.
Fran and I have a long history together. My first weight
loss battle came long before I had even left high school. My brain said, “Ok,
time to get healthy. Kick it into gear, eat that salad, and go for a run!” Fran
said “It’s ok, eat that cupcake and sit on the couch, you deserve a break.” Inevitably, life got crazy, going to college, and
working two jobs. Fran won that battle.
We had our second match after the birth of my son, now
almost 4. During my pregnancy Fran was my junk-food-eating, animal cookie
cheerleader. By the time I delivered my son I had gained almost 70lbs, had a
massive waistline, and a newborn sucking up all of my time. I tried every fad
diet known to man, and Fran laughed in the face of all of them. Then I decided
to drown Fran.
This method may not work for everyone, but it is how I
control that evil, sugar-loving, fatty-fat-fat in my brain. Every time I crave
a sweet I tell myself “Sure, you can have it. After you drink this huge glass
of water.” And I pretty much hate drinking water. So I either give up on my
craving deciding it isn’t worth the water, or I’m so full of water that I don’t
have room to scarf that mega-sized cookie anyway.greatist.com
Besides snuffing out your diet demons; drinking lot of water can do amazing things for your skin! Staying hydrated can give your skin a youthful glow and ease the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles enhanced when your skin is dry and dehydrated. Consuming plenty of water can help flush and detoxify your kidneys, which is key to reducing your chances of developing very painful kidney stones. Water also helps move things along if you know what I mean...WebMD
Other than drowning Fran, I also ran. When I say I ran, I mean I ran like I was running away from the everything that was sabotaging getting back into my fancy pants, I ran because I was running away from Fran. There are many studies that show a correlation between exercising and a reduction in all kinds of cravings, including smoking. Many people are under the misconception that an intense workout will actually cause them to become ravenous and eat more, but actually it can reduce appetite in addition to burning calories and increasing your metabolism for the entire day. womenshealthmag.com
I’m not claiming to be perfect or undefeated in my battles with Fran. Life does take over sometimes and the super stressful days just need some French fries, chocolate, or apple pie. They key is to not get discouraged after these moments of weakness. Slap your “Fran” across the face and get back on that healthy wagon.
Nutrition Evolution
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