this is how we do it

after having lain in bed for at least a half hour this morning, i rolled over to check the time on my computer and saw that it was 7:29am. it makes me frustrated, but not surprised, that i am up this early. now it is 7:38 and i wish i were asleep. i went to bed sometime before 3am (i think), which means i got AT MOST 5 hours of sleep last night. i am sad. its saturday morning and despite drinking what can only be quantified as "quite a bit" last night, i was hoping to sleep in. but nooooo. my body does not like to sleep in after drinking alcohol. one of the perils of getting older.

but its ok. because today i start working out with my old trainer. woo hoo! i am actually kind of looking forward to it. in the next month i will spend approximately a grand to have her force me to work out, and work out well. i have been reading a lot of articles on health and nutrition and fitness lately and i am determined and motivated to be a healthier person. i don't necessarily want to live a long time, but for however long i am living, i want to be healthy. i keep reading articles, listening to podcasts, and hearing people talk about all of these issues that are becoming more and more clear. i am trying to clean up my eating for health and environmental reasons:

• after today, mostly because i am trying to stave off a hangover, i will not be drinking pop anymore (ok, fine, SODA). this article explains that soda is an environmental issue, contains high fructose corn syrup (which i am cutting out of my diet), can contain fecal matter when coming from a fountain, and other reasons why not to drink soda.
• i am also going to try to stop buying things in cans because cans contain bpa which is now being linked to alzheimers and cancers. read about it here.
• i'm going to cut out processed breads because they can contain bromides which lead to thyroid issues as explained here.
• this article backs up a lot of what the other articles are talking about. i am thinking of starting a blog on diabetes - i do not have it, nor am i pre-diabetic (i just got tested in dec), but my grandmother, aunt, and uncle on the other side of the family are all diabetic and i am known to have a sweet tooth. something like 90% of type II diabetes is completely preventable. and if you read what people with diabetes have to go through and how their life can be altered, it makes me never want to get it. it's a long article, but really worthwhile. because of their effects on blood sugar, i am going to try to eliminate refined carbs and products that contain a combination of flour and sugar.
• i will also be snacking less, if ever, because ... did you know that snacks now account for one quarter of daily calories consumed? this is not a good thing because you don't realize you are snacking and you eat the same amount at meals, so you are just eating more. check out this nutritionists info here.

i was going to have sober march, but then i wanted to share some bubbly with my family, so i ended up stopping that and then last night i had a really good time with my landlords (friends who i am staying with) and drank a bit, BUT i definitely want to spend at least a month on a bit of detox (i usually do this once a year or so), so starting today i am going to go at least a month with no alcohol. which means i have to put off my napa trips until mid-april. which is fine. BUT, i like this article because it says that drinking alcohol isn't that bad for you. wait. i just reread that. i guess it says that alcohol drinking doesn't necessarily cause weight gain. still a good thing, though. [oh yeah and about last night: the three of us went for food and had some beers - last time i'll be eating fish and chips! - and then came home and had some more drinks while we went through my itunes and youtube clips to listen to old school songs. it was really fun. that's where i got the post name from - thanks, montell jordan!]

once i do have my own apartment, i am going to make sure to keep my fridge clean because of this. having a clean fridge will also allow me to know what i have IN the fridge, and i will try to eat it all and not let it go to waste, which will also mean that i will be better for the environment - winner all around!

i am also more interested in WHERE my food comes from. this article explains the benefits/reasons why you should be interested, such as the fact that big corporations dont have you in their best interest; if you don't care, you may end up spending more on your health in the long run; and our government does not subsidize healthy food.

i'm going to try to be better at being so opinionated about what people around me eat. wait. no, i'm still going to be opinionated, i'll just try to keep those opinions to myself. this article made me realize that its probably not my place to tell people what to do (as opposed to write about what *i* am going to do and why and letting you all read it). i definitely don't like it when people tell me what to eat or comment on what i eat, so i will try to do it less, as well.

the headache i have been trying to avoid is creeping up on me (thanks a lot polish vodka!), so i shall end this soon. the main point: let's all be healthy, people! i know just about everyone who reads this and i care deeply about all of you, so i want you all to be healthy, too. i'm really excited about eating better, this will be fun!

i'm going to go watch airborne, one of my favorite movies growing up. i just discovered last night it features a young jack black. ironic! (because i was talking about jack black last night with my friend and we agreed we aren't super huge fans)