The last blog I wrote was way back in April 2020, when we were in lockdown. Now 6 months later, my fellow Americans and I are still trying to stay healthy by wearing masks, keeping at least 6 feet apart and currently getting ready to vote!
Our struggles are physical, mental and emotional; all real, all different and all important. The breath, whole foods and daily movement are three keys to good health. Weight matters with COVID19, especially weight around the waist/navel circumference. We are in this together. Currently, in America, 70% of us are overweight(including me)and only 30% within normal limits.
Today I’m writing about a couple people, one overweight and one within normal limits.
Both are very inspiring when it comes to their health and both work hard at focusing on food and daily activity.
First, there’s Mangotti, he’s 68 years young and enjoys keeping in shape.
Mangotti went for a physical 28 years ago and hasn’t eaten red meat or pork since. This ex-carnivore goes to bed by 9:30pm and gets up no later than 6am on a daily basis. He prides himself in wearing the same size pants as he did in high school!
He eats three meals a day, drinks coffee, has a couple beers, here and there and bourban on his birthday…if you don’t drink alcohol, don’t start!. He’ll have a treat once or twice a week too. Obviously, Man goddi knows the value of olive oil; virgin or not, he buys what’s on sale(swamp yankee). He also knows what foods can NOT be in the house….candy, potato chips, ice cream and cookies…just like a rat in the lab, he’ll eat the inside of the oreo first and continue through the entire package, if it’s there.
Instead of going out on his birthday, Mangotti requested the better half(who is very supportive)to make one of his favorite meals including homemade mashed potatoes and gravy(low fat heart healthy gravy, that is!) The day after his birthday dinner, he plans to jog 3 miles at a slow pace(~30 minutes) and if it’s raining, his backup is the stationary bike for just 40 minutes because afterall, he’s recovering from a torn menicus…no excuses for Mangotti, not rain, sleet nor injury will hold this Italian stallion back!
I’ve learned from Gramma Ruth too! She weighs and measures almost all of her food because she knows the truth matters. Like Mangotti, she strives for 3 balanced meals per day and a snack.
Unlike and like Mangotti, Ruth inherited a brain physiology seriously sensitive to sugar; she’s an old soul and like her ancestors, can only eat natural sugar surrounded by fiber or she’ll never satisfy the opiod receptors in her brain.
Sugar and cocaine have similar reactions in the brain. The truth is no human, not Mangotti or Gramma Ruth are programmed to eat highly processed foods, but some people are even more sensitive than the rest of us. Gramma Ruth is so sensitive to simple sugars that just talking about them can trigger an unwanted eating behavior. When we learn to become mindful of our own individual eating and drinking behaviors, we can ask for help from a registered dietitian or maybe at AA, Alanon, and/or Overeaters Anonymous. Our health journey is unique and can be changed or altered with continued focus and work. You know what needs to change and you will succeed. Gramma Ruth and ManGotti enjoy learning about themselves while gently helping others with words and music.
As Margaret Mead said, ‘Always remember that you are absolutely unique. Just like everyone else’.
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