Getting back in the groove
Comments Off on Getting back in the grooveAs I sit down to blog after the summer hiatus, the sounds of excited children, on their way to school, waft into my office.
It’s been a great summer full of celebrations, connecting, and reconnecting with family and friends from far and near. It’s been fun being out of our usual routine. In one way it’s hard NOT to eat well during the summer with the abundance of in-season vegetables and fruit … but there is also vacation time when we sometimes take a break from healthy snacks and meal prep. Those are the hedonistic days of summer … when the wine and beer flow and we eat food (and I use that term loosely) that we would not normally have – potato chips, cupcakes, and cookies with full-on gluten, visits to Isobel’s (a chip stand on Hwy 41) and, for me, oh so much coffee sipped while relaxing on a city patio or on the cottage deck.
So – I am treating this first day of school like a new year. Back to a routine. First up is the routine of drinking water. I’m already on cup # 5. Funny how quickly water was replaced by coffee consumption and now I’m turning that around. But I am not only cutting back on the quantity of coffee, but on the caffeine level, which I plan to do slowly so I don’t have a debilitating headache. During this week the scoops of coffee will be 3 parts “high test” to 1 part decaf … then ½ and ½ …then 1 part caffeinated to 3 parts decaf until finally it is all decaf, likely by end of week 2.
Funny thing about caffeine. For some people (me included) caffeine drives sugar cravings. Maybe because I drink my coffee black, my body feels there is a lack of sweetness in my life – but I think it’s more complex than that. What I do know is that when I don’t drink coffee I don’t have the “need” for dessert after breakfast.
The other routine I am getting back into this week is meal planning. I know exactly what we are having and I know we will be here to eat it. There are three kinds of greens in the refrigerator ready to be made into green smoothies and salad. We are back to Meatless Mondays (well in this case Tuesday) with lovely plump Portobello mushrooms awaiting the grill. We picked up a $33 basket of wild blueberries on the way home from the lake and will be enjoying these precious blue orbs everyday until they are gone. Those, along with the many other kinds of seasonal fruit, will replace the refined-sugar dessert habit that formed over the summer.
If you are reading this at your desk or sitting at your kitchen table or on the couch, please do me a favour – and STAND UP. Move for 30 to 60 seconds. Tap your toes, march around the office, run on the spot. Whatever you feel like. Repeat every 30 minutes. This is another routine that I am excited to be getting back to, in addition to regular workouts. I really enjoyed kayaking and swimming and hiking this summer, but it was all too sporadic.
And finally, we invested (and I mean invested!) in a new mattress and box springs to provide good body support for improved sleep. It’s not even a week old yet, so we are still getting used to it. I know that a restful sleep is so important to good health and I am hoping that will eventually happen. Our cat has already adjusted to the new system and is sleeping beautifully!
Here’s to the “new year” and getting back into a healthy routine! I will also be getting back into recipe development. Watch for something in the next blog. To your good health.
