Moms, Get A Hobby

The other day my mom was like, “Riding has been good for you,” which is her way of saying, “You’re less of a B lately.”

She’s right. I’m 36, and since quitting gymnastics at age sixteen, I’ve pursued various joyless forms of wellness. I muddled through my 20s with hobbies like facials, shopping, wine, bad decisions, bartending, worse decisions, every fitness trend in the book, and even more mind-bogglingly bad decisions. Somehow, I never turned into a better person.

Until I had my daughter.

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7 Superfoods You Can Find At Any Grocery Store

Acai, Goji, Maca, Spirulina, Moringa, Camu Camu…the list keeps growing of foods we’ve never heard of that we’re told we must eat to be healthy. Where did these come from? Are these foods actually super? Do they have superpowers to reduce my crow’s feet, because I’ll Amazon subscription that shit. right. now.

These superfoods are trending big time and not just on Twitter. Every juice bar and froyo joint has acai plastered all over its menu. But what makes superfoods worthy of the SUPER title? Health experts define superfoods as a food that is highly nutrient dense. Meaning, these food provides a substantial amount of nutrients in very few calories. Example, you’d have to eat like ten oranges to get the amount of vitamin C in one teaspoon of camu camu powder. So, it’s superpowered, sure.

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Non-Scale Victories: Health Metrics To Focus On OTHER Than Weight

The scale sucks. It’s triggering. It’s uncooperative. No matter how much I eat right and exercise the scale stares back at me with the same shitty number. I do everything I’m supposed to be doing. I eat zoodles for god’s sake. But the ultimate judge-y metric - the bathroom scale - continues to represent my failure.

The ultimate goal is not to imbue the scale with any special powers. I’m not there yet. The scale still messes with my head and can prompt me into unhealthy behaviors out of spite.

I realized I needed a break from the scale when all we did was fight. I needed a few health wins that didn’t depend on weight. So, I went to my doctor, Dr. Kristen Bodine-Zeller, for advice. I point blank asked her, what numbers I could focus on instead? 

She gave me a boatload.

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