Beautify Your Body From The Inside

Beautify Your Body

From The Inside

by M.K. Allison

It has always been important to me to look cute, but I took my health for granted.  Though I knew better, I always ate whatever I wanted.  Because of my busy lifestyle, I rarely ate a good home-cooked meal, and I’m convinced that I was personally responsible for the increase in sales at all the junk food counters in my neighborhood, and I never ever exercised.

Then all of a sudden, two years ago, I lost my energy level and in a matter of days, I couldn’t walk from my bedroom to my bathroom without being out of breath. Two days later, I was admitted to the hospital and discovered that my body had just given out because I wasn’t taking good care of it.  My blood was so low that I needed two transfusions.  The doctor called it “Nutritional Failure.”

However, I have since learned that we can all be healthy if we apply ourselves and the formula is simple.  Daily exercise, good eating practices and “junk food” indulgences in moderation only, will give your body everything it needs to be healthier and keep everything working well on the inside.  The funny thing is that I was always super concerned with my outside appearance, but I never gave any thought to what was going on inside my body.  Here’s what my experience taught me.

You Must Exercise: If you can’t join a health club, you need to fit exercise into your day.  Ten minutes a day will help keep the doctor away.  If you’re too busy or too lazy for a health club or gym environment, it is important to understand the need for cardiovascular stimulation.  Your body must have a physical workout.  Example:  50-100 jumping jacks (the ones you used to do in gymnastics) can get you off to a great start…buy yourself a jump rope and jump 500 times in your living room.  Not only will you give your body a great workout, but your energy level will take on new heights.  This exercise followed by a warm sudsy shower will put you in an energetic state that is guaranteed to last all day and way into the night.

You Must Eat Healthier: Cholesterol is one of the primary causes of heart disease, especially among women.  These foods are designed to keep your cholesterol intake down and your digestive system in good working order.

Choose lean meats only (chicken, turkey, veal, and non-fatty cuts of beef with excess fat trimmed.)  Fresh or frozen fish, canned fish packaged in water, and limit the use of one serving of lobster, crab, shrimp, or oysters to one of these per week.  All meats and fish should be broiled, pan-fried, or oven-baked.  One dark green vegetable or one deep yellow vegetable is recommended daily.  Broccoli, green beans, squash, etc.  Cauliflower, celery, and potato skins are recommended for their fiber content.

Cut down on the bread and meat and your body will reward you with a new energy level.

If you like nuts, almonds and walnuts are better for you.  Peanuts are high in fat content.  Include high fiber grain cereals in your diet.  Oat, wheat, and bran are also high in fiber content.

Don’t eat rice or pasta and bread on the same day.  That would put too much starch in your diet.  Use sugar substitutes and skim milk instead of whole milk and sugar.  Use extra virgin olive oil in place of margarine.  No need to say anything about butter.  It’s well known for its high-fat content.

Desserts and snacks should include fruit, sugar-free low-calorie sherbet, and un-buttered popcorn.

Beverages. Fresh fruit juices, herbal teas, soft drinks with sugar substitutes, and lots and lots of water.

If you follow this diet and exercise plan and don’t over-indulge in the foods to limit column, you can enjoy yourself once a week with your favorite tasty treat and be healthier than ever before.

Foods to Limit To Once A Week:  Candy, chocolate, cookies, and sugar.

Special Note:  If you eat a bag of potato chips on Tuesday, wait until the next week to eat a candy bar or a slice of cake. Remember, your strongest desire should be to look just as good on the inside as you do on the outside because the condition on the inside of your body is eventually reflected on the outside.