Grow: Healthier Eating

Tuesday, May 12, 2009, by Leigh Anne & Sherra

We're moving! Visit us at Find Your Sock Yarn and re-subscribe to get the latest updates. Your favorite features like Question of the Week, Words of Wisdom quotes and fun giveaways will be there. Archives will remain here for now. Thanks for visiting!

We have designated Tuesday as a day where we will have different women share “Moments & Memories” in their lives.

We plan to feature women from all walks of lives – it may be in the form of an interview or as a guest writer. The column on Tuesday will be centered around our word of the month. We’d love to feature you as a guest writer. Qualifications: No experience necessary…just be willing to share a great moment or memory with other women. Send us an email and we’ll schedule a date. Our guest writers do not necessarily have to have a website or a blog as we want iLashGirls to be a place where every woman has a voice!

Leigh Anne says…

Before I had the privilege of meeting Liz Rosenbaum I met Liz’s mother – over 20 years ago. I took a memory preservation class from Liz’s mother while I was in Utah attending Education Week at BYU. It was at that class that my love and life long involvement with scrapbooking began! When I decided to start blogging two years ago I came across Liz’s blog – at the time it had to do with scrapbooking. Liz was the very first blogger I contacted. Liz has since left the scrapbooking industry and become a personal trainer. I actually got to meet Liz in person a year ago while attending a Startup Princess event. Liz is as energetic, darling and fun in person as she is on her blog. I only wish I lived closer to Liz so I could train with her!

I am so excited to introduce Liz Rosenbaum to you!!

****************

Liz Rosenbaum has been a health nut all her life. Her passion, not only lies in helping women work toward their physical fitness goals, but in also helping them restore inner peace and acceptance of themselves – regardless of their fitness level.

Favorite color:

Pink and anything bright and happy!

Pet Peeve?

Waking up to a dishwasher full of dirty dishes!

What is something that no one knows about you? (That you want to tell the whole Internet world)

I take my blender with me EVERYWHERE! If I’m going out of town, my blender is coming with me! It doesn’t matter if we’re going to Disneyland or camping in the mountains… I never leave home without it!

One word that describes you:

Genuine

What’s your motto or mantra:

It changes depending on the season of my life, but lately it has been, “Life is to be enjoyed… not only endured.”

What are the top three things that are most important to you — the things you love to do and you are passionate about?

Spend time with my family of course! They are my most favorite blessing and I’m always focused on trying to be a better wife and mother to them.
Cheering people up. I find that I am much less likely to dwell on my own frustrations in life, if I focus on helping to lift someone else’s spirit.
Living a healthy life. I am a complete health nut… not only physically but, emotionally and spiritually as well.

Growing a Healthier You!

It’s no secret that women are very busy creatures! We run here and there, do this and that, and often juggle several very important projects at a time! To keep up with the demands of life however, we often sacrifice our own health by making the wrong choices when it comes to the foods we eat. However… since us women are achievers, (and many times, over-achievers), we tend to rationalize our unhealthy choices by thinking, “when life slows down a bit I’ll be able to eat healthier foods and spend more time in the kitchen… but for now, I just have to hurry so the fast food joint will do for today.”

The good news is, I completely understand that way of thinking… I really do. Not only am I a personal trainer, I’m a mom, wife, business owner, friend, taxi driver, church go-er, landscaper, blogger, facebooker, and housekeeper… just like many of you are! I completely get how crazy, busy our lives can be!

But here’s the flip side of that. To put it gently, eating unhealthy foods, (while it may be convenient at times), will always backfire in the end! Making the mistake of assuming that you are too busy, and don’t have enough time to eat healthy foods, is a false belief… and one that will end up proving you wrong, sooner or later in life!

A good way to look at it is like this: Considering all of the important things you are responsible for in life, you certainly do NOT have the time to be sick! You don’t have days and weeks that you can devote to diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, obesity or depression. You are much too busy to be spending time searching for solutions to your ailments at doctor’s offices, in hospitals or even as you lie in bed. However… illnesses aren’t quite as polite as the PTA president is, when she calls to ask if you could help with the next school activity. Illnesses, don’t take NO for an answer. They don’t say, “Oh I completely understand that you are too busy right now, so I’ll just catch you next time.” Poor health does NOT take a number and patiently wait for its turn.

So what is a busy, successful, go-getter type of a woman supposed to do then? How can she possibly stay on top of it all and still manage to eat healthy, nutritious foods that will aid against many mental and physical diseases? Let me share with you my three favorite strategies that will make life easier for you, as you incorporate healthy eating into your every day routine.

1. Stop and THINK before you eat.

Every single time you eat something, it needs to be a conscious decision. Ask yourself if the food you are about to eat is wholesome and whether or not it will give your body nutrients.

2. Take food with you.

Every time you are going to be away from your home for more than a few hours, take along a small cooler with you. Pack it full of apples, almonds, string cheese, yogurt or cut veggies. This way, instead of settling for fast food when hunger strikes, you’ll have healthy options right at your fingertips.

3. Plan Ahead

Taking just 30 minutes each week to plan out the meals you will make for breakfast, lunch and dinner will keep you on the right track to eating healthy. If you have a plan, you are less likely to grab highly processed, fat-laden foods at the last minute when everybody is hungry and ready to eat.

When it comes to eating healthy and living a vibrant, energetic life, it really comes down to this simple concept: If you want your body to take care of you, YOU have to take care of your body!

Make healthy eating a priority in your life and make it a priority NOW! When things are a priority to us, we do whatever it takes to give it proper attention, and then we act on it. If your health isn’t a priority to you now, sooner or later it will be!

Won’t life be much more enjoyable and productive if you don’t have to waste time in the future, fixing what you could have prevented in the first place?

Here are a few great healthy recipes:

Be sure to check out Liz’s blog where you’ll find more healthy eating and fitness tips. Leave a comment and share a favorite way that you are growing towards a healthier you!