Get Healthy

Today is the Get Healthy Bloghop hosted by Stephen Tremp, Alex J. Cavanaugh, L. Diane Wolfe & Michael Di Gesu.
The Objective:
Share with everyone something you have done that affected your health in a positive way. 
I don't think anyone's going to be calling upon me to write a health manual anytime soon, but I do have a couple things to share for this blogfest - simple things I do to keep a stint on Survivor from being totally out of the question should I ever get the call from Mark Burnett. 
Thing #1: Substitute: I like to eat. Sometimes I like to eat a lot. I've found that simple substitutions of healthy foods for certain unhealthy ones - most of the time - allow me to keep on eating while still feeling good. I first gave up french fries when I was pregnant and wanted to make sure the weight I gained was good weight, and I'm still perfectly happy subbing with fruit, coleslaw, or a small salad on the side of my tasty burger. Instead of chips, I use sliced cucumbers, and instead of dip, I'll usually have hummus or salsa. Whole grain bread instead of enriched, couscous instead of white rice, sweet potatoes instead of white, water instead of soda, you get the picture. Still looking for a decent substitute for red wine though...
Thing #2: Keep it doable: the most important thing about an exercise program is to keep it up, so don't over-commit yourself to an unsustainable exercise routine that will fall by the wayside once you've hit your goal weight, or worse, before you do. It's better to do shorter workouts that you'll be able to reasonably maintain going forward. I rarely let a workout go on for more than thirty minutes, but you know what? I've kept up an exercise habit of 4-6 days a week since I was seventeen years old. I know myself, and these days with being pulled in so many directions, if I knew I had to give up an hour to a workout, I'd be skipping them more often than doing them.
I'm looking forward to gaining more totally do-able tips when I visit the others on the hop. Click here for a list of participating bloggers, and thanks for hosting, Stephen, Alex, L. Diane & Michael!

And hey, if you're going to be near Twitter this Friday evening at 7pm EST, look up #Omnilicious to find me & a bunch of my Omnific Pub sisters - we're going to be talking all kinds of smack & giving out prizes.