When I named this blog "the art of being healthy" I did so with the idea that an art of something, of anything, is mastering a skill. Perhaps a good way to think about this upcoming social season is to think of mastering the skill of beverage choices and consumption.
Here are some questions for you to consider: Do your drink choices change as the seasons change? How many calories are you adding to your diet with beverages? Is there a healthier alternative to your favorite drink? How much alcohol are you consuming? Is your alcohol consumption causing you to make unhealthy food choices (that night or the next day - the hangover effect!) ? These are all questions that will help you when making a plan to master the skill of beverage consumption.
Here is an example of what a person on vacation may drink - a glass of orange juice for breakfast (100 calories), a soda with lunch (140 calories), a margarita for happy hour (250 calories) and two glasses of wine with dinner (200 calories). That is a conservative 690 calories just in beverages and most of us also drink more and larger portions than we think we do.
Here is another example using non-alcoholic beverages - cup of coffee with cream for breakfast (100 calories), a soda with lunch (140 calories), lemonade for happy hour (200 calories) and a non-alcoholic pina colada in the evening (240 calories). This person drank 680 calories.
The following are some suggestions and reminders that you may find helpful:
-Consider the questions above.
-Write it out, how much, how often, what, where...this will help you find patterns so that you can make healthy changes!
-Cut out sodas and sweetened drinks. Consider alternatives such as vanilla soy milk in your coffee, 1/2 iced tea 1/2 lemonade, 1/2 lemonade 1/2 sparkling water, buy cans of sparkling water instead of cans of soda, try young coconut water instead of sports drinks, drink less alcohol and stay away from the tropical drinks, be careful with beer - it goes down quickly and the calories add up quickly.
-Decide how much alcohol you are going to drink before having your first drink and count your drinks! -Drink slowly and enjoy!
-Drink water, add lemon for flavor.
-Consider the big picture - how many social engagements do you have coming up, dinners out, lunch dates? Go into each week with a conscious, mindful plan of what you want want to achieve for your health.
-Remember that being healthy all week and binge drinking and eating on the weekends is taking 2 steps forward and 3 steps back. Moderation and mindfulness are key!
Beverages can be as challenging for us as food, and they are equally as important to our health. As you keep working toward your "art of being healthy" remember that we should enjoy ourselves daily and that as we learn to balance our healthy lifestyles it is possible to have our cake and eat it too! Keep up the good work and you will find your balance - I promise!
~One Body, One Life~
Jennifer
