21 Day Fix: Day #6: Happy?

21 Day Fix: Day #6: Happy?

 

THE TALK

Are you happy?

I recently did a research paper on happiness across cultures for a class I have and some things were surprising and some were to be expected.

To be expected is that our happiness is subjective. What makes me happy won't be what makes you happy. We all process daily events in our lives differently, something that I see as undesirable you may find desirable or at least tolerable and that's okay.

But happiness is something that is deep rooted. More deeply rooted I believe than almost anything in our psyche. Truth is that I'm not sure that anyone can ever really say if they are happy or not.

Now you may be saying, "I think I would know if I was happy or not." But do you? Would you?

We live in a world where we are made to put on masks. We are made to believe that we are happy when we aren't because it's the right thing to do or because we don't want to give off negative juju, or because we won't ever do any better and so we may as well be happy with what we have.

This isn't to say that money or things will buy happiness, they won't. But they sure can contribute to your happiness in some ways.

Our happiness can also be skewed by our day to day lives. We get so busy. So busy with our day to day that we forget to even look for what makes us happy, we forget to even notice the little things that bring us joy.

 

Does your health influence your happiness?

I believe that it can.

This isn't to say that fat people can't be happy. You can. You can be happy with your life, your family, your career, some people even make a career out of being fat and that is fine for them too. But sometimes being overweight or being sedentary doesn't make you happy. Sometimes it can make you very unhappy in fact.

Sometimes you can't do the things you want to do.

Sometimes you can't ride the rides at the theme parks when you go with your kids.

Sometimes you can't run with them or play with them at the park.

Sometimes you can't go shopping with your friends.

Sometimes you health is already in decline and you find that you just aren't able to do the things that you want to do.

If you aren't happy with how your health is treating you, guess what? You can do something about it! That is the great thing.

See I was allowing my weight to have a negative influence on my happiness. It's no wonder that it did. I had no energy, I couldn't ride the rides, I couldn't do ziplining, I couldn't go shopping with my friends, I felt bad all the time. It sucked so bad. I was sick. I was tired. I was depressed. I'd go a week without a shower because it was just too much effort to put into anything.

Changing my diet and changing my lifestyle has definitely had a positive effect on my happiness and my day to day life.

That's not to say I don't still have days when I'm feeling low, I do, but now I look at things differently. I feel better. My days are brighter. I start to notice more things that make me happy. I start to see life as a little brighter because I know I'm not filling my body with crap, I'm not sitting on my ass watching my life pass me by. I'm not feeding my face and waiting to die, I'm making strides everyday to LIVE.

See my poor health made me feel down. It made me forget all the great things about my life. Days when I don't see the scale move or I get depressed and eat something I know I probably shouldn't or whatever I can lose sight of what makes me happy.

 

So I'm issuing this challenge to you! I challenge you to join me in the #100happydays challenge! Haven't heard of it? Well first you can go online to www.100happydays.com and sign up for the challenge. Then everyday you will find ONE thing that makes you happy. Snap a pic and upload it to social media (you can choose your outlet on the sign up page) with the hashtag 100happydays. If you don't want to share online you can email to them. If you can complete the whole 100 days you will be rewarded by the movement and you will probably feel rewarded for yourself. Surely we can make time everyday to find ONE thing that makes us happy. It can be a person, a food, your favorite hat - ANYTHING! I will be posting mine on Instagram with the 100 happy days hashtag AND #fattofitheavytohealthyhappy so that you can see mine! If you choose to participate share yours with us too by using that # so that we can all see what makes you happy.

 

Don't allow your happiness to be ruled by your health, but allow your health to transform your happiness!

 

So ask yourself, are you happy? Are you finding happiness everyday? Amidst the hustle and bustle of life, take some time to be happy.
 

The Food

BREAKFAST

Chocolate Mocha

Started the day off right with my Shakeology! With coffee this morning because boy did I need it!

 

RECIPE

1 Scoop Shakeology, Chocolate

1 cup coffee, brewed & cooled

2 oz Coconut/Almond blend Milk

1 Packet Nectresse Sweetener

1T. Vanilla Flavoring

1T. Dark Cocoa (unsweetened)

4-5 Cubes Ice

1 RED

(I didn't count any yellow for the milk because a serving for this is 8oz for sweetened, I didn't even have enough in the fridge for 1/2 a yellow, I don't think I can measure 1/4 of a carb.)

MID-MORNING SNACK

RECIPE

Spinach

Tomato

2 eggs

Mozzarella Cheese, chredded

Eye of round Roast

Van's Gluten Free Blueberry Waffle

Frozen Peaches & Strawberries, thawed

Italian Seasoning

Minced Onion & Garlic Powder   

In medium skillet drizzle about 1/2 tsp, EVOO (extra virgin olive oil) or go once or twice around the pan.

Add spinach, tomato, and beef to wilt spinach and heat through. Add desired spices. (I used those listed in the ingredients.)

Once spinach is wilted add beaten eggs. Stir around the pan to scramble.

Once eggs are cooked, sprinkle with shredded Mozzarella and allow cheese to melt.

Plate up with your thawed fruit and waffle!

2 RED; 1 YELLOW; 1 GREEN; 1 PURPLE; 1 BLUE; 1 TEASPOON

 

LUNCH

 Lunch, simple, quick and easy. Got in some carbs before I went and did the workout for today. Used mostly left overs or pre-made things.
RECIPE
Ground turkey
Barilla GF Penne
GF Tomato Sauce
Raw Spinach and Green leaf lettuce
Balsamic Vinaigrette Dressing
Mango Chunks
Oatmeal Chocolate Chip & Pecan Cookie (from 21DF Eating plan book)
1 RED; 2 YELLOW; 2 GREEN; 1.5 PURPLE; 1 ORANGE

 

DINNER

I learned something very important today. I am NOT A FAN of winter squash. I ate this. But it was only when it was mixed with the peas. No lie, I threw out the rest. It was horrible. I mean, it was bad. BAD. Maybe you will like it, that's great if you do. I however, did not. Sorry winter squash, you are just not as tasty as your cousins.

RECIPE

 Eye of round roast
Sticky Fingers GF Carolina BBQ Sauce
Peas
Winter Squash
1 RED; 2 TEASPOONS; 2 GREEN

 

LATE SNACK

 

I had class tonight so I ate what would be my dinner before I went, knowing that I would need something easy to eat there. Guess what I had? RIGHT!! My old reliable! Ha, ha! I know that you must get so sick and tired of seeing this, especially since I talk about how you don't have to always eat the same thing over and over and how you can have variety and everything. I just want to say that I eat this not because I don't have other choices, but because it is quick and easy and delicious!

RECIPE

Fage 0% Greek Yogurt, plain

Udi's Gluten Free Cranberry Granola

Mixed Fruits (Blackberries, Strawberries, Blueberries, Kiwi, Banana)

Mixed Veggies (Broccoli, Cauliflower, Carrot)

1 RED; 1.5 PURPLE; 1 GREEN; 1 YELLOW

 

THE WORKOUT

Today was Total Body Cardio day! I know, I should be super excited, right? I was dreading more cardio. But, you know this really wasn't that bad. There was a lot of upper body work and almost everything was with a hand weight. There were quite a few crunch like moves too.

I will say this for these workouts.

They are tough! I mean they will make you sweat! I haven't had one yet that I wasn't covered in sweat!

BUT, please don't misunderstand this. YOU CAN MODIFY THESE EXERCISES. I would encourage you to always try to push yourself a little harder. I mean it's just 60 seconds that you have to do these. I'm sure that you can try to hold out for 60 seconds. If you can't that is certainly alright, you can do what YOU can do. Then try to go a little longer next time.

I have noticed that the 30 minutes doesn't seem to take as long as it did the first few days. You will work on these. You can work at what makes you comfortable. If you can only do 15 seconds to start, well that is fine, you do what you can.

Total body cardio. you were my friend today. Who would have thought?