Crossing the 1 month border

It's been more than a month since I started my healthier lifestyle journey and I've been pretty good.

I haven't touched a cigarette for a couple of months now. I have stuck with more vegetables and healthier food (like whole grain food and less of the processed food). Soda is either eliminated or it's diet cola but not very often. No more junk food and staying away from oily food. Chicken, tofu and seafood are my source of protein. Yoga and running is now part of my daily routine.

The result, I have lost weight from 113 lbs to 104 lbs. My waistline is now 26 from 28 inches. (Yes, I had to buy a new set of jeans! Oh, I was so glad to do so!). My tummy is flatter, my arms are leaner and I feel so much lighter. I also feel more energy through out the day because of my daily exercise. Oh... and the daily excretion is regular and healthier.

It didn't come without challenges though. I noticed that I've been getting rashes and allergies from eating a lot of chicken so I cut down on my chicken intake and have been increasing on eating tofu and sea food. It's not easy since I love meat but I'm getting by. Hopefully, I'll get over these allergies so I can eat more chicken.

I'm now trying to find different ways on how I can enjoy tofu. I'm trying different recipes that will give me the same chicken flavor in tofu.

Another thing is eat around 5 times a day. Small meals and healthy snacks. Fruits, yogurt, whole wheat bread with cheese or fish.

One of the things I enjoy eating are crackers with Spianch-Artichoke dip by Bravo. It tastes good and has vegetables as the main ingredients.

Ok... I'm getting hungry now... 'til the next update!

Product of the week:
Spinach-Artichoke Dip by Bravo - It's great with Luxury Vegetable Crackers or Skyflakes. It costs P180 per bottle in Rustan's. It's great for snacks or something to munch on while watching tv.

Plastic bag less!

Have you seen lately the eco-friendly bags of Rustan's and SM Supermarket? I'm so glad that supermarkets are getting to be more and more conscious of the use of plastics.

I'm not a die hard ecologist but it does not take a genius to know that it takes more than 500 years for plastic to decompose. The world consumes 100 million tons plastic annually. Can you imagine how much plastic will be in our land fills in 20 years? Check out this article.

So, when i saw the Environment-friendly bag of Rustan's, I got one and started using it. It costs P99.00 each but they give you additional perks like doubling your Rewards Points for everything that can fit in your eco friendly bag.

It also looks nice and chic for someone who just came from a grocery. It's a shoulder bag with green straps. It really looks better than carrying 2 or 3 plastic bags.

You can also bring it with you while shopping in Organic Markets. It may lessen your plastic bag consumption by 2 or 3 bags a week, that's a dozen plastic bags in a month. Not bad! :-)

I think it's more difficult to get it from SM Supermarkets since you need to buy 1 Unilever product and 5 yellow tag products or something like that. I hope they make it easier to get so people can use this more than plastic.

Of course, the more tedious part is remembering to bring it with you everytime you go to the grocery. It's a small price to pay though for saving the world that we live in. So think about it this way, everytime you bring your eco-friendly bag, you save one fish in the ocean who can be trapped with the plastic bag floating around the sea. :-)

Smoking no more...

I haven't touched a cigarette for about 2 months now which is really a major accomplishment for me. A lot of people have told me that it would be difficult to get it out of your system. The stubborn person that I am, I always told myself that I am disciplined enough that when I know I want to quit, it would be easy to do. Well, I guess I should have listened to the more experienced ones. Yes, once you get hooked its not that easy to turn away from. :(

Bing, a friend of mine, told me that it takes 10 years after you quit smoking for your lungs to go back to its original form. TEN YEARS! YIKES! That's a long time so why not start now? Well, in my mind I was thinking, if it will take me that long, then, maybe I can quit later. But then again, I saw this article regarding the benefits of Quitting Smoking. It's great since it gives you what happens to your body almost immediately after quitting.

Things You May or May Not Know
Someone probably told you what happens when you quit smoking, but did you know that the benefits begin almost immediately?

20 minutes - Blood pressure and pulse rate return to normal.
8 hours - Nicotine and carbon monoxide levels in the blood are cut in half. Oxygen levels in the blood return to normal.
24 hours - Carbon monoxide is completely eliminated from the body. Lungs start to clear out the mucus and other debris of smoking.
48 hours - Nicotine is completely eliminated from the body. Your sense of taste and smell greatly improve.
72 hours - Breathing becomes easier. Energy levels increase. Bronchial tubes relax.
2-12 weeks - Circulation improves.
3-9 months - Lung function improves up to ten percent. Breathing problems (i.e. coughing and wheezing) are reduced.
1 year - Risk of heart attack falls by half.
10 years - Risk of lung cancer falls by half.
15 years - Risk of heart attack falls to the same level as someone who never smoked before.

Do I still crave for a stick? Of course I do! Especially when I'm out with friends who are smoking. When I feel that, I just take one full breathe and appreciate that I can actually breathe so much clearer and better. Then, I make myself choose between a cigarette or a nice full breathe and lighter feeling.