wellness – MY ADIPOSE & ME

Encouragement/Motivation, Food Stuff, intermittent-fasting

Lettuce Entertain You!

Posted on July 23, 2025 by HeatherLynn

Salads are a great addition for the journey to a healthier lifestyle. They are versatile and varied and nutritious if you choose the right ingredients and practice portion control. The heart of every good salad is based on the greens you choose.

Most people conjure up visions of salads where the Iceberg Lettuce is the base. Iceberg lettuce has gotten a bit of a bad reputation with claims that it has no nutritional value and I, like countless others, bought into this rumor.

An amazing sale on bagged “garden salad” caught my eye. I noted the star of the show was Iceberg lettuce and it just burned me that they (whoever “they” are) were offering discounts on food that would do nothing for me. It prompted me to do a bit of research, and I was surprised to find that I had been misled! Iceberg lettuce is reasonable and nutritious!

Nutritionally, it provides essential vitamins such as Vitamin A, Vitamin K, and Vitamin C, contributing to eye health, blood clotting, and immune function.

Iceberg lettuce also contains beneficial minerals like potassium and calcium, which support heart health and strong bones.

I’ll stop hating on Iceberg lettuce, for sure.

There are some other greens to add to your mix. I like to mix and match to keep my body guessing at what I’m going to throw at it next.

Raw Spinach – a great way to boost up your iron

Raw Beet Greens – vitamin A and vitamin K

Raw Swiss Chard – tvitamin A and vitamin C

Raw Dandilion Greens – high in calcium, iron, and prebiotic fiber & vitamin C

Raw Mustard Greens – a bit of Folate, vitamin C and vitamin K

Raw Collard Greens – Vitamin K, Vitamin C, and a small amount of E

Raw WaterCress – Vitamin K and Vitamin C

Raw Romaine – Vitamin K and Vitamin A

Raw Leaf Lettuce – Vitamin A

As you’ll note, there are two vitamins that seem to be present in nearly all forms of the lettuce family. Vitamin A & K

Why you need Vitamin A –

Vitamin A is essential in your Vision health, aids in Immune Function & Reproductive health, assists in Cell growth and development and is a workhorse for your skin health.

Why you need Vitamin K –

Vitamin K is important to contribute to blood clotting and is a major star when it comes to your bone health.

You cannot choose a “wrong” combination of the lettuce family. However, do not live on salad alone. This is only a supplement to healthy journey you’ve chosen. Continue to make wise decisions and eat mindfully!

Emotional Well-Being, Encouragement/Motivation

Pain in the Journey

Posted on July 16, 2025 by HeatherLynn

Pain. It is a factor in your journey that will provide a frustrating stumbling block you will feel helpless to overcome. When you are in chronic or severe pain from an injury, you may want to literally feed that pain. They call this “maladaptive pain-related coping”. The term “maladaptive” refers to behaviors or actions that hinder an individual’s ability to adapt or adjust to different situations differently. ( I hope we have BOTH learned something new today!)

Overeating in response to pain is basically just a coping mechanism. It makes you temporarily feel better. Psychologically, deep down, there is this primitive need to fuel up to replace the energies you are exerting as your body attempts to heal the injury.

This leads, obviously, to over-eating, knocking you off the journey you’ve worked so hard on, landing on a plateau and falling back into a sea of frustration. It can be a dangerous time for you as you risk falling back into old habits since your resolve is distracted by the pain.

There are some things you can do to help.

1. Be careful and don’t hurt yourself. I know, great wisdom coming from the Queen of Klutz. If I am not injured then something is certainly wrong!

2. Don’t suffer through the pain. Get to a medical professional and get the help you need.

4. Bulk up on the antioxidants. Fresh, leaf vegetables and fruits with complex carbs are much better than simple sugars.

5. Keep moving as much as you can. Depending on the injury of course. Take frequent breaks.

6. Get plenty of sleep. Your body repairs itself quite a bit during those hours.

Ice is your friend when it comes to injuries. Inflammation is what is causing most of that pain and ice packs greatly alleviate the discomfort.

Here are some foods you can partake of , that also reduce inflammation :

Whole Grains : whole grain bread, oats, brown rice, barly, quinoa, couscous, polenta, bulgur, and rye bread. Also stick with multi-grain or wheat pasta.

Beans,nuts, seeds, pod foods : peas, edamame, black beans, kidney beans, chickpeas, white beans, hummus, walnuts, almonds, pecans, peanuts, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, pinenuts etc. :

Fruits : berries, pomegranates, cherries. Darker colored fruits are especially good. Avoid fruit juices.

Vegetables : yellow, orange and red peppers and tomatoes, Spinach, chard, kale, leaf lettuce, romaine lettuce, arugula, mixed greens (focus on dark leafy greens) Purple and green cabbage, onions, garlic, broccoli, brussels sprouts, cauliflower, radishes, cucumbers, green beans and green onions.

Olive Oil: replace butter and other oils with this for cooking.

Fish : Go for cold water fish like salmon, herring, anchovies, sardines and mackerel.

White Meat ; chicken, turkey and other birds. No frying or deep frying.

Dairy: Eggs, natural cheese ( not processed ), low-fat milk, yogurt.

Herbs ; cinnamon, ginger, turmeric, garlic, rosemary, cayenne, pepper, black pepper.

Honestly, looking at the list of “anti-inflammatory” foods, it is not much different than how you should be customizing your diet on a regular basis when you are not in pain.

Above all, know that an injury does not mean your journey has come to an end. This is just a setback. The hard work is not in the physical, its in the mental. You are going to have to mentally pick yourself up and get yourself back into the driver’s seat and start walking again. How long will you sit on the side of the road using your pain as the reason you have failed?

Day five – My Journey Phase 2

Emotional Well-Being, Food Stuff

Food Noise – Hear me Roar

Posted on January 24, 2025 by HeatherLynn

When I was young, I remember breakfast discussions between adults about lunch plans and dinner plans. To me this seemed normal, it would be necessary to have this information so you would know to get things out of the freezer to thaw or to know what time a meal would be served.

As I grew older, I found myself planning future meals while devouring a current meal. Often, I would be thinking about it as I drove to work or took a walk. It was okay, that was the way it was supposed to be. I was being proactive.

Now let’s go back to those younger days and fill in some time gaps. When I was offered a baked good or sweet treat, it was GOOD. They made me feel warm and happy inside, albeit only for a short period so I always wanted more and the cravings would become obsessive. As I gained in years, I also gained in pounds. I had a yen for the sweets. Since I lived in an area where fast food was twelve miles away and an absolute special occasion, processed goodies were not yet an issue. However, I gained my independence and loved the taste of cheeseburgers and fries.

Adulthood came upon me. Still planning my meals, thinking about yummy snacks to get at the store, stopping at convenience stores for a quick chocolate bar and then mentally berating myself for being a compulsive snacker with no self-control. I would become angry with myself and sometimes I would be able to turn away from the temptations, but 90% of the time I would give in. The underlying reason? Food had always been a comfort to me and although it was making me miserable physically and mentally, it was giving me brief moments of comfort that I apparently needed as I struggled with life.

I had no idea this had a name. Currently its trending as “Food Noise” and I am most certainly a victim of this.

Food Noise is a preoccupation with food. For example, after (or during) you’ve had a meal, you may instantly start thinking about your next snack or next meal. It is an internal dialogue that can be influenced by factors such as diet, mental well-being, and nutrient deficiencies.

– fixate on what, when, or how much to eat.

-plan the next meal before having finished your current one.

-compulsively check restaurant menus or delivery services

-stress about the consequences of food choices.

– internally beat yourself up over your lack of self-control but still give into the impulse

However it manifests for you, the impact on your life and eating behavior can be both harmful and overwhelming to your physical and mental health.

It is possible to quiet the Food Noise.

Focus on a healthier diet

Eliminate the processed foods (no more Fast Food! )

Meal Prepping – having the meals prepped makes it easier to not overeat

Stop buying the unhealthy snacks, get them out of your house, if they are not there you cannot eat them

Educate yourself on healthy recipes and learn how to prepare them. Taking this time to prepare your meals makes you more mindful of what you are doing.

Eat Intentionally

Make an eating schedule and stick to it.

If Joe brings in donuts for the office, you don’t have to eat one, you can politely decline and remove yourself away from the temptation.

Bring healthy snacks for yourself so when you are tempted to give in for that sweet stuff, you have a workaround.

Exercise

Its hard to walk and stuff a cheeseburger in your mouth at the same time.

Find activities that keep your hands busy and your blood pumping, you’ll find that thoughts of food are nowhere in sight.

Reduce Stress

What i love about this one is people throw this suggestion out like you are intentionally bringing stress into your life. Do your best to find ways to reduce the stress factors. I know some things are not in your control but you do have the power to control how you handle it.

Get more sleep

Tired and fatigued equals the desire to fuel up. If you are rested you won’t feel the extra need to gain energy.

Look into Medication

Semaglutide medications tend to activate certain receptors, which promote the release of the hormone GLP-1 which basically quiets your food noise.

Talk to your doctor if you consider this direction, it is important to make sure you understand all side effects and results of using this method to quiet your food noise.

I will tell you this. My food noise started when I was a child. It’s lived with me for decades and honestly, it’s like a family member in my head. Since beginning my journey and making changes in my lifestyle, this family member has become noticeably quieter. There are days, admittedly, when Food Noise roars and is nearly deafening. On those days, I have my arsenal of weapons to fight it. An always available full water bottle, a portioned out healthy snack, and a “Before” and “After” photo nearby to show me what determination and perseverance looks like.

The Cult of 10,000 Steps a Day

Posted on January 14, 2025January 14, 2025 by HeatherLynn

Walking 10,000 steps a day is the goal; this is more a guideline than a cold, hard fact.

An average American will walk 3,000 – 4,000 steps a day. Personally, I average around 4,300 steps per workday. I stopped using my fitness tracker for a time and recently have put it back in play. In my mind I’ve set a soft goal of 8,000 steps per day, but I accept it will most likely not reach that level without extra effort on my part. This got me wondering where the idea of 10,000 steps came from. Why not 7,000 steps or 9,000 steps?

It was a marketing campaign, of all things, that started this trend and over time it became a sort of mantra for anyone tracking their movement. Around the time of the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, Japan introduced the modern pedometer into their marketplace. They called it “Manpo-kei”, which translates to “10,000 steps”. It quickly gained popularity as Japanese walking clubs formed and the Manpo-kei was the minimum the members were expected to walk. It didn’t take long for concept to start spreading beyond the Japanese to the rest of the health-conscious walkers around the world.

There have been some studies done in which suggest the benefit in terms of mortality risk, levels off in the area of 6,000 steps to 8.000 steps for older adults and 8,000 steps to 10,000 steps for the younger generations. The takeaway is there’s evidence to suggest that moving even a little more is beneficial.

Walking has great side effects on mental health, creativity and the well-being. The very act of the activity gets everything going. Brain power, endorphins, emotions. Sitting on your couch, you don’t feel motivated to do much, but get up and start moving and suddenly, you are getting inspired.

During the cold months, its much more difficult to get outside and go for a walk, so I stick to the treadmill in the house and get my steps in trudging back and forth taking care of my chickens. In the summer, its easier to get out and walk ( albeit when the humidity isn’t trying to kill me ), but the bottom line is, I have to make the effort. No one is going to walk for me and since this is my journey, i have to push myself.

Some interesting ways to get your steps in :

Make the extra trips back and forth to carry groceries into the house.

Park in the furthest reaches of the parking lot and huff it in. Your car is actually less prone to getting dinged and scratched. ( I do not recommend this after dark, be safe of course! )

Return your cart to a cart corral that is a little further away.

Pace when you are waiting for your car to fill with fuel

Do two or three full laps , up and down every aisle, of the stores you visit. Not to purchase or browse, just simply to walk.

Take a nice day and go on a photography walk in the city. I’ve done this and found some very interesting pieces of architecture I normally would miss just driving by.

Find a safe walking trail and walk it. There are maps available online of all sorts of walking trails across the country.

Stairs, not elevator

Bike if you can. Its not much of an option for my situation as a rural dweller, there is quite a distance to cover to get to town and no public transportation.

Plan your weekends to involve things that include movement. Like museum tours, walking tours and such.

Three great reasons you can start today :

Walking is FREE. It will certainly fit in your budget.

Weather can be a hindrance but you can walk inside as well as outside.

You do not need special equipment or clothing to take a walk.

If you hit 10,000 steps, that’s awesome! Set your own goal, adjust it as you progress. Its not about the numbers, its about moving.

Tag: wellness