Blog #23: Balance

Having been in the entertainment industry, virtually my entire adult life, it’s hard not to constantly compare yourself to others and the industry's standards of physical beauty. Being surrounded by beautiful people can be at once inspiring and totally depressing at the same time as the questions swirl in your head, “Will I ever be as skinny as them? How is their hair always perfect?”, etc, etc. With age, one starts to come into their own skin and feel a certain sense of contentment with their god given features and body with the knowledge that health and beauty takes work. Personally, I value intelligence, kindness, ambition and open mindedness over beauty, but these qualities may not get me my next singing job on stage. Damn. Sometimes I question my life’s path. However, beauty, for now, is still something I have to consider and pay attention to (and wanting to feel beautiful, inside and out is always something I’ll desire) but it will never be an obsession. The thing is, being skinny or being cut/built/muscular are not always synonymous with good health. Often times, body builders are at the gym, day in and day out, but their diet is predominantly meat driven which can lead to high cholesterol and heart disease. Sometimes, visibly thinner people store fat deeper inside the body and think they do not need to eat as healthy because of how they appear, however, they can have trouble processing  insulin which can lead to diabetes. What I’m getting at here is the age old and constant struggle for balance. Not all bodies are the same. Some of us have to eat smaller amounts, more frequently, to keep our energy up. Some of us can go longer stretches of time before the next meal. Personally, being 44 and having no major diseases, no chronic health complaints and taking no prescription drugs (while I understand that some things are genetic and unavoidable, I’m really proud of this fact as I hope to always take care of myself well enough to avoid this dependency based on health digressions), I’d like to share a few basic rules I always have for myself that I think are working for me. Now, do I still need to get rid of that Covid 13? Yup! Still working on it. I’m so far from perfect and I’ll always have a hard time seeing myself as beautiful, BUT, I’m proud of myself for keeping up with my overall health, without frequent doctors visits, crash diets and a constant obsession with physical beauty. Aren’t there more fulfilling things to think about? 

Here are some basic rules that have become second nature to me and I always follow. 

EVERYDAY:

 

1.Eat your vegetables. Your mom has been telling you this since you were a toddler and it still holds true. Even if it’s just one serving (not enough, but it’s something), make sure that you get vegetables in every. single. day. No skipping, no excuses. I grocery shop in such a way that I have enough vegetables, that won’t spoil or go bad, for one week. Frozen vegetables are just fine too! 

2. Water. Frequently. More than your body may naturally crave. I live in Las Vegas and I’m a singer so the combination of the 2 means I have a bottle of water permanently attached to my body. However, for some, it may be an afterthought. Buy a great water bottle that you love and just make sure it’s always full. I don’t measure out my water per day or count the bottles or anything. It’s just a way of life for me. I know that people drink a lot less soda these days (which is great- what were we thinking in the 80’s?!) and there are a lot of no sugar, carbonated options so that can be fine too, but, there’s nothing better than just drinking good old fashioned agua. You may find that it will curb your supposed hunger as well (often when we think we are hungry, we just need to hydrate). 

2. Protein over carbs. I’ll never be a person to say, “cut out all carbs!”. Carbohydrates are your main source of energy and important to a balanced diet. Also, they just taste good! However, making a conscious decision to not have every meal be centered around carbs (pastas, sandwiches, white rice, etc) is probably a good idea. I’ll often just have spiced scrambled eggs for breakfast with avocado instead of toast or switch out a bean burrito for a black bean soup. If white rice is a staple in your culture (where are all of my Indians at?), switch to brown rice at least 3 times a week. And chips and pretzels?! So void of nutritional value. if you want the salty crunch, go for some kale chips (seriously, they really are good) or snap pea crisps. My favorite is popcorn (but sorry folks, you’ve gotta leave all of the butter and salt off! Save that batch for a special occasion). And remember, there are plenty of carbs in alcohol! Choose wisely. 

EVERY WEEK

I try to implement this rule of only eating the “bad thing” I love, only once a week. Pasta. Pizza. A fried food (fries or fried chicken). Ice cream. A cheeseburger. Roberto’s cheese enchiladas (my absolute favorite). If it’s Friday and I’m craving a pizza, but I had pizza on Sunday, I won’t order one. It’s as simple as that. Since I’ve been doing this for so long, I am able to remember what I’ve eaten throughout the week but, if you’re new to this rule, write down what you eat for a week and see how it goes! Listen, I know I’m still eating some unhealthy stuff here, but isn't it better to eat it once a week rather than every other day? It’s just a bit of self monitoring without having to cut anything out completely. And no, that doesn't mean I eat all of these foods once a week either! It’s just a way to gently tell yourself, “no…you can wait 3 more days before eating that again”. I think it’s help me find a balance. 

SNACKING

Personally, I think snacking is good. It just depends on what you snack on. When I was teaching English, I would eat breakfast so early that I would be hungry for lunch by 10am! But, you can’t eat lunch at 10am, or you’re going to be hungry for dinner by 3pm! Healthy snacking can keep you from waiting until you’re absolutely starving to eat, and devouring 2x the amount of whatever is in front of you for your next meal. Some great snacks to stretch your appetite are nuts (not too heavily salted), yogurt, hummus and baby carrots, fresh fruits and popcorn. Portion out your nuts though. I’m serious. They can be deceivingly high in calories if you absent mindedly snack away on them. And, what kind/brand of nut makes a difference too. 

Do these tips seem blatantly obvious and like things you’ve heard all of your life? Well, it may be so, but are you implementing any of them? Were they good reminders for our January (still trying to make healthy choices, right)?My goal in sharing this is to make long term good health more attainable. I’m no poster girl for picture perfect health, but I think I’m doing all right. We can all, always do better. Beauty really does often shine from the inside out, so if you are nourishing your body and feel good from the inside, that will be a part of your radiance and attraction! Don’t compare yourself to botox and boob jobs if that’s not your thing (and if it is, no judgement here!)- just be the best possible version of yourself that you can be in this moment, today. We’re all in this together and should build each other up! Good luck, everyone. You are beautiful, simply because there is only one, unique YOU.