The Statistics of Stress

About the time this post goes up, I'll be taking a final exam. The exam is in a class that is a constant stressor in my life and soon the class and I can part ways for good. All I will have left to do for school this semester are some final papers in other courses,  which are always (in my opinion) much easier to prepare for and rock. 

However, with too many late nights of studying this week (I got a whopping 5 hours sleep last night and anticipate something similar tonight), I haven't had much spare time to do research for a post this week. I hope you'll understand. In the meantime, check out the Links to Health below and send some good vibes my way! :) 

Healthy Mall Foods to Help You Get Through Long Days of Holiday Shopping

Belly Fat Puts Women at Risk for Osteoporsis

Why a Lack of Sleep is Ruining My Diet

Antidepressant Use Rising as Therapy Rates Fall

Weight Watchers’ PointsPlus scores points with some

A PSA

Yesterday afternoon, I turned on the news to find out that Elizabeth Edwards had died of breast cancer. My heart goes out to her family and friends during this difficult time...

I am no expert on breast cancer, only having to deal with it in small doses. Members of my family have had scares, and the only person I can really connect to is a former roommate whose mother died of breast cancer. I can only imagine the heartache of losing someone to this disease.

Which is why I am using my post make sure that women (and men) are informed...

For example, are you aware that in 2006:

• 191,410 women were diagnosed with breast cancer.
• 40,820 women died from breast cancer.

(Source)

or that white women have the highest occurrence of breast cancer, followed by black women and Hispanic women

(Source)

Don't forget about men:
For 2010

• About 1,970 new cases of invasive breast cancer will be diagnosed among men
• About 390 men will die from breast cancer

(Source)

From breastcancer.org (click on the links for further explanation):

"Breast self-exam should be part of your monthly health care routine, and you should visit your doctor if you experience breast changes. If you're over 40 or at a high risk for the disease, you should also have an annual mammogram and physical exam by a doctor. The earlier breast cancer is found and diagnosed, the better your chances of beating it."

But, here is some good news. To lower your risk of breast cancer you can:

Stop smoking.

Get more exercise.

Maintain a healthy weight.

Reduce your exposure to estrogen.

Learn about good nutrition and start eating for good health.

Eat your fruits and vegetables!

My hope here is that with this little reminder, you will take care of yourself and remember that breast cancer is a real threat to both men and women. Please keep yourself informed about how to look for symptoms and how to check for it.

the reality of pinching pennies.

when i began this blog post, i was going to complain about something and then refocus on me and what i'm doing.  as i wrote it, something else, something more important, occurred to me.  i hope you'll read with a generous heart and commit to help those who are in much more frightening circumstances make the season a little bit brighter.

i recently read a blog post that rankled me and got me thinking.  in it, the well-intentioned poster (and she absolutely was) discussed watching a particular documentary and committing to buying local and organic.

please don't misunderstand me and get offended at this point.  i have ZERO problem with this. in fact, i think it's a wonderful idea.

what bothered me, personally, was her comment that the extra expense might mean that she buys organic meat and everything else instead of the $4 cookies, but that it was worth it, almost dismissing the extra expense as not a big deal. 

that's what bothered me, because for a lot of Americans, they don't have that luxury and to assume that it's a) easy and b) totally doable is a distinctly first-world attitude.  again, if that's your circumstance (and it has been mine over the past few months at times), that's wonderful. you are blessed.

but i don't buy $4 cookies. ever.  even if i could justify the expense, which i don't feel i can, i am usually trying to spend the money that we have on the things that will get us the farthest.  for me, right now, that's often staples--the full-price options are usually fruits and vegetables, beans and rice, and dairy products.  everything else, unless it's a rare occurrence (which bothers me to do), gets bought on sale or generic or cheapest, because making our dollar stretch farther is crucial to me.

i am not alone.  not everyone even has the luxury that i have, to buy bananas and grapefruit and bagged salad when i choose. not everyone has the luxury of fresh ingredients, regardless of where they were grown, or healthy options in their shopping choices. meg and i have discussed this before, and it's a personal pet peeve of mine when people don't seem to recognize how difficult circumstances often dictate what choices we make.  even the most well-intentioned moms and dads can have truly huge issues providing their children and themselves with the nutritious food that they want. in chicago, for example, advocates have recognized this perilous issue and have begun taking steps to assist families to meet those needs.

beyond this being a personal soapbox for me, what does it mean for us?

it means that, all around us, people are living in extraordinarily difficult circumstances. in this economy, it can sometimes be desensitizing to be hit with statistic after statistic, like that 276,000 more people were unemployed in November or that the personal savings rate is lower than it has been in more than 50 years. but that's 200,000 more families who are wondering where their next meal is coming from or how their bills will be paid.  it's a sobering reality for those of us who find ourselves cared for and kept safe through circumstances for which we should be every day grateful.  it's no wonder, in a world like this, that 1 in 6 Americans suffer from "food insecurity," according to Feeding America. 

what can we do?

let's combine our efforts to not only help the hungry but to help provide them with healthy, nutritious foods.  here in the teachergirl/musicboy household, we will be making a donation to our local food pantry of healthy staples, including canned vegetables, beans, pasta, and fortified cereal. it will be one small step, but it's a step that recognizes not only how blessed we are to have what we have, but a step that will hopefully allow one more family to have healthy, nutritious foods available to them regardless of their circumstances.  

i encourage you to do the same. you can find your local food bank here, or you can find them in your local yellow pages. many organizations, including the salvation army, routinely run food drives at this time of year in preparation for the holidays.

on a smaller scale, but nonetheless important, as you prepare your holiday treats for friends and family, perhaps think about adding a loaf of whole grain homemade bread instead of one of those batches of cookies or fudge.  you'll be not only providing a delicious treat, but also a staple to a family that you love.  we don't always know what people need.  you just never know--1 in 6 is a staggering statistic. 

over the coming weeks in my posts, i will be revisiting the idea of balancing the budgetary needs of a growing family with the desire to eat healthy, nutritious foods.  perhaps i'll share my struggles, and you'll share yours; perhaps i'll share my recipes, and you'll share yours. 

whatever i do, i will do it with a grateful heart. i hope you will as well. i hope you will also share your stories of giving, as a way of encouraging each of us to reach out a little bit more.

Chicken Curry

The temperatures here have really dropped and that means it's time for soups and stews. Curry is something good and hearty, and even loved by toddlers. I adapted this recipe from one out of Martha Stewart's Everyday Food magazine (do you ever read this? It's GREAT!).

Chicken Curry

Ingredients:

2-3 tbsp canola oil

4 chicken breasts (skinless, bone-in or boneless)

Salt and pepper

1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 tsp ground cumin

3 tbsp curry powder

1/2 tsp dried thyme

4 carrots, thinly sliced

1 can (13.5 oz) coconut milk

1 10oz package frozen peas, defrosted

Cooked rice, white or brown, for serving

Directions:

1. Heat oil over medium heat in a large dutch oven or soup pot. Add onion and garlic and cook until translucent. Add cumin, curry, and thyme and cook for about a minute.

2. Season chicken breasts with salt and pepper and add to pot with a 3/4 cup of water. Cover and allow to cook over low heat for about 3o minutes to 1 hour, or until chicken is cooked through. Keep an eye on it so that you don't run out of cooking liquid. Once cooked, shred chicken in pot (I use a wooden spoon and just have at it until it's broken up enough for my taste).

3. Add milk and carrots. Allow to cook partially covered until carrots are tender (the thinner you slice them, the quicker this will go), about 15 minutes.

4. Take off heat and add peas. Season with salt to taste. Serve over rice.

This makes super yummy leftovers, just mix the remaining rice with the remaining curry before storing.

10 for '10 Midpoint Checkin

 If you recall, in late October I started a 10 for ’10 challenge, and set healthy goals for the final 10 weeks of the year. Well, we are at the midpoint right now, so I thought an accountability check-in was in order.

All of my goals are slightly off after a week with family for Thanksgiving, but rather than beat myself up about it, I always allow myself an opportunity to make up a missed workout (or two). Honestly, that is something that was initially hard for me. In the past, I would tell myself, “Well, you missed it. You stink. You fail.” But I made a conscious decision in the last year that thinking like that didn’t benefit anyone, especially me. I had to find a middle ground though…I can’t go into goals thinking “I have a pass if I mess up, it’s no big deal,” but I also can’t beat myself up for a misstep.  

With my goal of swimming laps once a week, I have been doing pretty well. Not perfect…but pretty well. But let me tell you, as the temperature drops here in Florida, it becomes harder and harder to get myself to the gym for laps…because I immediately start dreading the walk back to the car with wet hair. But I know that the payoff (a totally physically draining workout) will be worth it.

My goal of 3 cardio and 3 strength workouts has been going good, but my goal of attending 5 yoga/pilates classes is quickly heading in a bad direction. I am bummed to say that 5 weeks in, I haven’t been to one of either! I need to get on the ball with that. I still haven’t been to another swim stroke clinic, so that is on my December to-do list as well. I have been reading a book on Clean Eating, but I imagine that I will be put to the side for the next two weeks, as I’ll be in the midst of final exams. There will be plenty of time at toward the end of the month to wrap that up though.

Some lessons I’ve learned in the past few weeks:

-Constantly trying to beat my personal record (PR) while running is what drives me to despise running. I need to focus on running for the workout, not running for the PR.

-I need new sneakers

-Food journaling 4 days a week is much more time consuming than I remember

Links to Health

Calorie Burning Cold Weather Activities

Three Ways to Change Your Life in One Minute

Next Day Turkey Soup Recipe

Wendy’s Introduces Natural Fries

Risotto Recipe with Turkey Mushrooms and Peas

New Program

For all of you who follow Weight Watchers....

The changes are here.

For those of you who do not follow Weight Watchers, let me tell you about the changes that have been made to the program.

1. The points still exist, but food is valued differently. There is a push to have more fruits and veggies in everyday eating, so they are now zero points. This is in effort to have people snack on more healthy and sustaining foods than 100 calorie packs

2. Points values are found using more than just fat, calories, fiber. Instead, calculations are now based on protein, fiber, fat and carbohydrates.

3. The "Flex Points" still exist, but have now been bumped up to 49 points (because food now has higher point value, you need more points).

There are still a lot of new things, but these are the biggies. Weight Watchers says that due to ongoing research, they found they needed to revamp their program.

For those of you on Weight Watchers, what do you think of the changes??

brainfail.

i totally forgot about my post yesterday.

whoops.

it might have been the lingering cold that i'm still fighting (it feels like it's been a year, but it really hasn't). perhaps it was the perplexing decision about what to make for dinner.  perhaps it was Baby Girl kicking me and doing somersaults so vigorously that i just sat and watched--because i could SEE it.

maybe it was the grapefruit juice craving.

i don't know.  but i'm sorry.

i will say this--yesterday was a good day for self-discipline for me. i had decided that i was eating too much sugar and not enough substance, so i tried very hard to discipline myself.  i was successful, and found myself taking each decision at a time, trying to choose wisely, and recommitting to cooking dinners with healthy ingredients that come from the earth (instead of pizza, which is what i wish we could eat every day).  it felt like a bit of a triumph for me.

sometimes it's the small ones that count the most.

i was going to also take my post opportunity to be accountable and set some goals. beginning on december 9th, and continuing until i can't manage to waddle down the street, i'll be walking 4 times a week. if i can do it outside, i'm going to, because i don't think there's much more that's invigorating than a walk outside. but i also pay a sizable chunk of money to a local gym, so there's no weather-induced excuses for me to lean on.  during times when i'm away from home, i'll bring my sneakers or hit the yoga.

that's my commitment--i'm getting back on the exercise horse.  i'm not saying how long i'll walk (though i do have a distance in mind) nor am i saying i'll be perfect at it (6 days a week seems insane to me right now, especially since i want to integrate prenatal yoga as well), but i'm saying i'll do it.

you heard me, so you should keep me accountable.