Health has become increasingly important to me since January 1st, 2013. No, it's not what you are thinking. This has nothing to do with a New Years Resolutions. My New Years Resolutions consist more of "Spend more time with my nephew and nieces" or "grow in the Lord throughout the year of 2013". Instead, the reason January 1st of this year sticks out to me is because I came down with my first case of heartburn. Random? Yes. I had never had heartburn before. My whole family struggled with it at some time in their lives. But their's is triggered by a specific food like spicy food, pizza, milk, or whatever. However, my issue was that I was having persistent heartburn for 4 days straight...Even throughout my sleep, it never seemed to stop. Still to this day I am unaware of what caused it to start in the first place. However, I had to go to the doctor, because as with every woman, my first thought was "I must be pregnant". January 4th I took my first ever pregnancy test...and it was the longest wait of my life! LOL. I knew in my heart I was not pregnant, but it was still scary. The test came back negative, and I was put on a 14 day treatment of Prilosec. It worked almost immediately. However, I was still worried. I had heard that Prilosec only masked symptoms and that symptoms usually came back after the last dose. And sure enough, after 14 days, my heartburn came right back. I went back into the doctor's office and they ran tests. My doctor calmed my fear of cancer, and said that this was not likely. But he did test me for an intestinal disease that could be treated with a set of antibiotics. That test came back negative. My doctor told me that Prilosec used to be taken for longer periods of time back when it was first on the market. Sometimes for several months. Thus, he prescribed prilosec again for a whole month. And sure enough, after my last dose in February, I haven't had heartburn again. I praised the Lord. The Lord allowed me to learn how to rely on Him for my health, I learned how to present my prayers to Him--even if I thought they were minuscule compared to others.
What does this have to do with my health routine?
Well, throughout this period of heartburn and medicine, I did my research. I was reminded of a nutrition class I took as a Junior. The average dying age of a woman is around 77 years old. The way to increase the amount of years we live, we have to incorporate healthy things into our lives, and eliminate unhealthy things. I remembered learning that 1.) 30 minutes of moderate exercise a day, 3 days a week, not only lengthens your lifetime, but helps decrease the potential of heartburn. This is how I began to get so interested in exercise...the rest just flowed from this one instance. I've had to cut out things that I absolutely adore eating...such as: hot cheetos, hot funyons, hot fries, popcorn. And this isn't even necessarily because of the fat or sodium content in these products, but it's simply because my body has chose to start rejecting such items. (These items also probably didn't help my heartburn in January). I have yet to step on a scale because my goal is not to lose pounds. It's all about health to me. Lengthening my lifetime, living sick-free. These are some of the things I am doing now to keep my body healthy:
- I have incorporated a cardio/interval training routine into my weekly workouts. This is how it works...I walk at speed 3 on a treadmill for 5 minutes to warm up, then 2 minutes at speed 4, then I jog at speed 5 for 2 minutes, back to speed 4 for 2 minutes, back to speed 5 for 2 minutes. This, after my 5 minute workout, I alternate between speed 4 and 5 every 2 minutes. Once I get up to 55 minutes on the treadmill, I reduce the speed back to 3 for 5 minutes to complete 1 hour of this interval training routine. I do this 3 days a week. (Usually Monday, Wednesday, Friday. I have just completed 3 and a half weeks of this routine, and I am already seeing results. Less bloat in the stomach, love handles decreasing, etc.).
- Just this week I have incorporated a strength training routine into my weekly workout. It focuses on arms and chest exercises...I start off with 10 minutes on the treadmill (First 3 minutes at speed 3, next 3 minutes at speed 4, next 3 minutes at speed 5, and 1 minute at speed 4). Then I do 3 sets of 10 of each of the following: Flat Chest Presses, Seated Shoulder Presses, Single Arm Row, Upright Rows, Hammer Curls, Tricep Kickbacks, Tricep Extensions. I plan to do this 2-3 times a week on my off days: Tuesday, Thursday, and sometimes Saturday.
- As far as my diet, I just try to incorporate a lot of fruits, vegetables, and water into each meal. I do eat 3 meals a day, and reserve a few snacks such as string cheese, raisins, applesauce, etc., for times when I am hungry. I am trying to get into the habit of not eating late as well. Trying to stick to no eating after 8:00pm. Sometimes this is hard because I might have other commitments and not even get to eat dinner until 8:00, but it's still a good goal to have.
- I also take a probiotic daily. A natural one, from Akins. This was initially for my own digestive issues, but it makes sure you have enough digestive enzymes in your stomach so that you
Please know that if you set your mind to it, you can do it. I never grew up doing any kind of athletics or exercising, but when health in the picture--it becomes important to incorporate this stuff into my life. I am, by no means, an expert on any of this stuff. But this is what works for me at this moment right now. The Lord does not want us to make idols out of ANYTHING---even food, or even being lazy. Once we begin to struggle with laziness and gluttony, we are committing sin against the Lord. We honor the Lord when we take care of our bodies because this is where the Holy Spirit lives in us.
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