Lifestyle check – May 30, 2024 – the heart as it is

In the beginning of the month, I shared some recommendations from a Taipei in hospital and then said I would try to keep some level of accountability here on my blog. This is the first of my self-check-ins to see if I am keeping up with my goals, as well as some other things I’m learning about health & my body !

7,000 to 8,000 steps a day. I have definitely not been reaching 7-8k steps a day, however, my step count has varied from at least 4k to 14k. According to my app, though, my average step count is 7,410, which is pretty good. I would like to raise it more though !
Aerobic exercise three times a week for 30 minutes each time until you break a sweat – I definitely have not been doing this, although I have started jogging slowly and doing some strength training again. I would like to continue to do this, and, I also signed up for a local climbing gym ! I got only a summer membership though. I’ll see how that goes to decide if I want to continue after the summer. My strength training definitely does not last that long, but maybe I can jog lightly for 30 minutes, 3 times a week. I have been doing a lot of walking though, as I temporarily have my 1-hour lunch breaks back.
A diet that emphasizes fruits, vegetables, fish and olive oil and less meat can help prevent heart disease and cancer. – I don’t eat much fruit, maybe mandarins and blueberries at the most. I’ve definitely tried to incorporate more vegetables and I already cook with olive oil. However, within the last couple of months, I’ve actually added meat (organic and pasture raised though) – ground beef and turkey. I also still eat eggs. I think something that I will try to be intentional about getting during my next grocery run is wild-caught salmon and instead of frying my eggs for breakfast, preparing them hard-boiled ahead of time (which is something I used to do but stopped for some reason).
Eat protein and fat foods for breakfast, which can keep us full of energy for the day; Cut back on these foods at dinner to avoid weight gain. Mainly Tuesday nights, taco nights, I will have ground beef. Other nights I might eat tofu. Carbs are just more filling… but I suppose for dinner I can try to find a way to focus on more vegetables.
If you currently only eat 1 or 2 vegetables a day, please add 1 more to lunch and dinner. So I bought too many vegetables and they have been rotting quicker. I think what I will do is have kimchi available, plus some kind of other fresh vegetable. This way I can make sure I have 2 throughout the day.
Eat as much brown rice as possible to get more nutrients like fiber, minerals, and more. Brown rice makes me bloated, so I recently bought some purple rice, as it is also fibrous and even has antioxidants. However, to lessen the possibility of me being getting bloated, I actually mix it with white rice when it’s being cooked. I plan to continue this.
Switch to skim milk or low-fat milk, and reduce carbonated soda or other sweet drinks. I have switched to fat-free lactose-free milk ! I also have bought sugar free soymilk, which doesn’t taste as good, but is still refreshing. The only sugary thing I’ll really drink is the little bit of added creamer in my coffee.
When buying food, pay attention to nutritional content labels and choose foods with the least amount of sodium or salt. I haven’t really been paying attention to sodium content, mainly just sugar content, and I feel confident that I haven’t been having a lot of sugar. Beginning the habit of watching my salt content will be difficult but I will try !
Have dinner before 8 o’clock, and do not go to bed later than 11 o’clock at the latest. I’ve been doing pretty good at having dinner before 8:00 ! My issue with sleep, however, is that even if I’m in bed before 11, my body doesn’t fall asleep until afterwards. Sleep continues to be a struggle for me, I continue not to get enough of it and have bad quality sleep (i.e., waking up tossing and turning and such). However, one improvement in my sleep lately is that I’ve stopped going to the bathroom in the middle of the night so much for the time being.

With regards to sleep, I’ve also learned that Sleepnumber also gives advice on sleep ! Jacob and I have a Sleepnumber mattress and so it actually tracks our sleep behaviors. These are the suggestions that Sleepnumber has for me to improve my sleep:

Ideal wake time: 6:00 – 7:00 am
Workout: 7:45 – 8:45 am (not really going to happen, as that is when I start work)
Most alert: 9:45 – 10:45 am
Dinner: 5:00 – 6:00 pm
Wind down: 7:00 – 9:00 pm
Ideal bedtime: 9:00 – 10:00 pm

I’ve screenshotted this reference to help me better remember.
One final thing I’ve been trying to look into and incorporate is wisdom from Traditional Chinese Medicine. I’ve known that out of the 9 body types, I have a Qi deficiency. If you want to learn more about it, you can read this. The lifestyle suggestions for those with Qi deficiencies include:

Getting better rest (more sleep, naps) … surprise surprise
Doing relaxing activities
Eat fermented foods (e.g., kimchi)
Eat healthful, energizing fats (e.g., olive oil, avocado, salmon)
Eat a wide variety of lightly cooked fruits, vegetables, and nuts
Eating more of the following: lentils, quinoa, oats, malted grain beverages, root vegetables, pumpkin, miso soup, orange peels
NOT eating these kinds of food: refined sugar, refined grains, fried or salty foods, iced or refrigerated foods or drinks, dairy products, citrus fruits, pork, yeasty foods, banana