Tuesday, September 15, 2009

Writer, Love Thyself

If you’ve read earlier blogs of mine you’ll know I’m somewhat of a hippie. I must confess I’m kind of a blog whore too. I do not remember where I read this tidbit of advice, but I’m sending the author, whoever you are, a secret thank you today.

A key point of the article was avoiding self-destructive rewards. For instance, finishing that 50 page goal ahead of time does not mean you should reward yourself with ten pounds of chocolate. It’ll add an inch to your waistline and give you a sugar high that you’ll end up crashing from in thirty minutes. =Self Destructive Reward.

I guess the blog stands as an example of great writing, because even though I cannot remember the name of the brilliant author who penned it, her message stuck with me. I was famous for skipping out for an afternoon break of Starbucks green tea frappuccino. With whipped cream, of course. A Snickers bar from the nearest vending machine. Or one of my favorites, 38 grams of sugar in the form of a sweet, fizzy, caffeinated soda.

My pants stopped wanting to button. And I felt like crap. So I took that author’s message and slapped myself upside the head with it. I stopped stuffing five cookies into my face when I got home because I was so hungry, and started making my own trail mix with my favorite ingredients. Now I’m consuming good fats and healthy oils in homemade snacks and not feeling hungry. My pants no longer hurt.

A lot of stressful stuff has been happening to me lately, and today I took that author’s message again. Instead of the bagel and cream cheese I wanted to have for lunch, I had a salad with apples, walnuts and cranberries. Yeah, I’m a little hungry now, but I know when I get in the car later today, I’ll munch on Crystal’s Trail Mix. : ) So I’m good. And no carbohydrate crash this afternoon for me.

Here’s my recipe for Crystal’s Trail Mix. I want to make special note about Flax seed. Just Google it and you’ll see how healthy for you this little seed is. I went to my local health food store to try it thinking “This is probably one of my good intentions that will make my tongue want to curl back into my throat,” but it turns out this crunchy little seed tastes delicious, and makes a perfect, delicate compliment to Crystal’s Trail mix.
1. Walnuts
2. Almonds
3. Raisins
4. Flax seed
5. Pumkin seed (raw)
6. Sunflower seed
7. Peanuts
8. Dried pineapple









If you have a favorite non-self-destructive reward, please share. I'd love to try it.

4 comments:

Paris said...

Crystal,
What a great post! I always used chocolate as a reward until a couple of years ago when my pants stopped buttoning!

My favorite reward these days is time. I never seem to take time for myself these days so when a project is finished I'll reward myself by having lunch with the girls and/or going to a movie or bookstore. If I can't get away, I'll rent a movie and just sit back and not think about that project that needs to be started;-)

The trail mix sounds yummy!I'm going to give it a try!

Crystal Kauffman said...

Paris, that is an awesome reward. So many people don't think of themselves these days. Sometimes you have to be selfish because not rewarding yourself with a few minutes of peace is just as unhealthy as stuffing down a bag of chips and a soda in place of a healthy lunch.

Savanna Kougar said...

Crystal, good trail mix. Love all those ingredients. I can't use flax seeds, though. But, I do use flax oil and lots of coconut oil, which is also very good for you.
I've never noticed that eating chocolate, or not, improved my waistline, so I don't deprive myself. Course, if I could afford the good organic kinds all the time, that's what I'd eat.
Let's see, right now, my healthy reward is getting enough sleep.

Serena Shay said...

Great post, Crystal! Reading is my reward. I always have books on the TBR pile, and I'm always more apt to get stuff done if I know I can squeeze in some quality reading time! LOL Trail mix looks yummy, I'll have to give it a whirl.