Livin' Lean Topic Tuesday: Eating is a Priority

Of course eating is a priority...at least it should be. Consuming food is one of our basic needs. It keeps us alive. So how come cleaning, running errands, party planning or doing homework seem to take priority over such an important thing? Because they just do. I will be first to admit that I am soooo guilty of getting wrapped up in what I'm doing. Fueling my body just doesn't enter into my mind. That is, until I am blind sided by faint feelings or extreme hunger! I know it shouldn't get to that, but the truth is, it does. Not all the time, but sometimes. It's not intentional. Time just gets away from me...and those times are almost always on a Saturday.

Saturdays are my days to cram as many productive and fun things as I can all in about 16 hours. You would think I'd work in a fun meal somewhere, right? I usually do, but one meal isn't enough. To keep our bodies happy, we should be eating 100-300 calories every 3 hours; making each snack or mini-meal a good balance of fat, protein and carbohydrates. When we go long periods without food, our body thinks we are starving and therefore slows that metabolism down. The next time we do eat, the body tries to hold on more to that energy; afraid it may be a long time before eating again. Basically, the body stores fat and we don't want that. But aside from all this, when we don't eat, we feel sluggish and are unable to think clearly. Just a simple 110 calorie Pria bar is all it takes to turn things around if you find yourself reaching 3-4 hours without food. It sounds so simple, but it takes effort.

It takes some planning. It involves being prepared. I am able to do this during the week, so I really need to focus on doing this over the weekends too. Especially on those days where it is go-go-go, non-stop, running around. There is no excuse for not properly meeting our basic needs. I take time to feed my daughter, so there should be time to feed me too!

We are busy people, but there is always time to eat! Many stores are selling items that make eating-on-the-go easier for health conscious people. Saturday is a good time to take advantage of this. I'm really going to make a conscious effort to work on this. I'll let ya know how it goes.

Have a fabulous Tuesday!!