From Cravings to Contagious Behavior: Update on Health Habits for February 2012

We bought new bottles to fill with water for the kids.

My hubby was on a semi-vacation last week.

This past week was a tough one.  My hubby was home for part of the week.  He took off work so he could fix our Ford Taurus and do some home repairs.  I gotta say that whenever he is around, I get lazy so that affected what we ate.

Here is an update on my health habits:

1. Had too much takeout and junk food.  We are definitely out of the No Takeout Challenge.

2. Suffered with sciatica and feeling of bloating. Stretching has helped my lower back.

3. Didn't meet my goal of walking 3,000 steps per day, but I still jotted down how much I walked.

4. Never did catch up on my Bible reading plan, but I still read my Bible everyday.

5. Here's one positive thing--I've been soda free for at least a week!

These are my new tennis shoes and pedometer.

I am concerned about my children's water intake.

Trying to get healthy is not just for me.  It's for all of us.  I want my children to develop positive habits.  This means that I have to devise methods for them to change negative behavior.  I've noticed that my oldest son drinks (craves) too much apple juice.

I bought each child a jug.  They now have a water challenge.  They must drink at least 2 cups or 16 ounces of water per day.  My youngest ones exceeded the challenge by at least 4 cups.   

Goals for the upcoming week:

1. Continue to be soda free.

2. Try to walk 2,500 steps per day.  This might be more doable.

3. Continue reading my Bible and try to keep up with the plan starting in March.

4. Continue to do my stretching.  This should keep injuries at bay.

5. Continue to make dinners with veggies and smoothies with fruit.  

6. I'm hoping to take supplements to stave off cravings for junk food.

7. Try to eat a few spinach salads with balsamic vinegar.  I've been craving something sour, but I have to be careful with my salt intake.

Sciatica reared its ugly head last week.  

I tried to move around last week, but I felt stuck.  I researched and found a great article on sciatica that helped me immensely.  I hope it can help someone who suffers with it.  I also read on Facebook about the idea of taking Vitamin D3; I have some so I will try that out, as well.  Keeping hydrated should help.

I pray that my health habits become contagious behavior for my children.

Now that I have my tennis shoes, I feel more confident.  I hope these shoes help steady my feet while I walk.  My pedometer came with a nifty booklet.  In it, there was a worksheet to fill in how many steps I did for any given day.  It also came with tips to walk efficiently, and I hope to institute some of those ideas so my kids can watch and be encouraged to take part.

Well, thanks for reading about our cravings turning to new, contagious behaviors as part of my health goals for 2012.  I hope this blog entry encourages you, my beloved readers, to develop your own health goals.

How about you, my readers?  Are you keeping up with any health goals for February going into March, related to your New Year's resolutions?  How do you plan to improve your health at this point?  I encourage you to assess your current health.  It's a great opportunity to adjust your habits to improve your life.   

If you need to improve your health, in any form, please ask God to help you; He will, if you pray for His guidance.

This is an entry for Medical Mondays.  For past entries, click here.

Disclaimer: The viewpoints that I discussed here are just my opinions.  Please consult your physician before altering anything relating to your health.  I am only suggesting here to take charge of your health.  Don't just leave your health in the hands of your doctors; become your own advocate.  You know best how your body is doing.