I've Been Thinking...

There has been so many things going on the past couple of weeks my head has been spinning.  This week is a busy one, however this was hubby's 2nd day at his new job and we are slowing starting to get used to the transition....thank goodness!  I also had today off which means I'm COMPLETELY alone ALL DAY.  And I love it!  Not that I don't miss my hubby and kiddos, but I've just been so busy lately that I haven't had much time to just rest, let alone be...well...alone!  After I put the girlies on the bus I decided to head out on a 5-mile training run.  Last week I was only able to run 3.1 miles all week and that was only because I had signed up for a 5K.  And I have to work the rest of the week (and some days will be long ones...10-12 hrs, etc), so I knew I needed to take advantage of the time I had and get runnin'!  It felt great.  I didn't push myself super hard, and I walked when I felt like I needed to catch my breath but running is just so great for your mind.  When you are able to clear your mind, guess what happens?  You have empty space in there where all the junk used to be!  So what did I do?  Yup...I started thinking again.  I read something recently about fat loss that intrigued me.  Mainly because I feel fat.  I know I have muscle on my body, but it's just not noticeable because I have a layer of fat all over.  So naturally I want to lose this fat.  

What I read was that consumption of sugar and carbs messes with our blood sugar, which in turn triggers our insulin levels to increase to deal with the increased sugar in our blood.  Insulin is a fat storing hormone.  Now, I'm not a nutritionist by any standards, but I get it.  The more sugar and carbs I eat, the more fat I am going to store on my body.  Ugh.  And when I really think about my diet, I eat alot of carbs...and sugar in the form of evaporated can juice, honey, etc.  Even though my sugar-alternatives are better for me than white sugar, I'm pretty sure my body doesn't really know the difference between them in my blood.  Ever since reading that information, I'm starting to really feel inspired to try it.  And honestly it goes along with my goal to eat healthier..namely more fruits and veggies.  Yesterday for lunch I had some fresh strawberries and pineapple, a homemade granola bar (you can find the recipe HERE), and some California Blend veggies with some Parmesan cheese sprinkled on top.  And you know what?  It wasn't bad.  And I didn't feel as run down by the afternoon/early evening.  

My dilemma is that this week is going to be BUSY.  And I'm at the end of my 2-week grocery budget, which means I won't be buying much/any groceries until next week.  So I'm going to have to get creative on what I can eat.  And I'm not going to go all gung-ho either.  I just want to really start to make conscious decisions about what I am consuming.  And I also need to do some more research about foods & recipes that fit this lifestyle.  

When I got home from my run I hopped onto Facebook to see what was going on and found an interesting article that a friend has posted.  You can find the article HERE.  It sort of goes along with what I read, but gives more of the long-term effects of eating sugar and simple carbs.  

I will keep you posted on how it goes!