I got inspired to start eating just a little healthier and planning my meals just a little better when I read Amy's post on planning healthy eating. I eat a lot of fruit and smoothies, so I decided to try out a couple of the recipes she included for "Green Monster" smoothies.
Now, I have always looked sideways at overly "healthy" people. You know, the people who buy large gallons of protein powder and vitamin supplements...who are ridiculously skinny and do liquid cleanse diets twice a year just to "flush out the toxins"...who run ten miles with a smile on their face, only lightly perspiring on their pastel Lululemon sports bras. Those people.
However, I am learning that not boasting the above mentioned qualities does not preclude one from having a healthy lifestyle. Perhaps, dare I say it, one might actually have the right to bodily health without owning a single item of clothing purchased at Lululemon. Just because I sweat buckets when I work out and will never feel comfortable in the crane pose, it does not mean that putting a handful of spinach and a scoop of protein powder in my smoothies is a wasted effort. Sure, I like sci-fi and photography; I'd rather sleep in than get up to go to yoga. But, these personal preferences have nothing to do with my physical health.
It seems that only certain "types" of people are expected to go to great trouble for their bodily well-being. If a person isn't sporty or naturally inclined to participate in more physical activities, it becomes acceptable, sometimes even encouraged for them to forgo any sort of exertion in the name of health. Many of my friends are of this type. Eyes roll when I order a salad or decline beers and cigarettes. Would the same actions illicit the same reaction if I were more into sports than sci-fi? If I preferred kale to Kit-Kats?
(Which leads me to another thought - are these attitudes reactions to stereotypes or simply effects of the Great American Instant Gratification Syndrome? If people expect to get what the want when they want it, do they expect others to have the same priorities? Is it somehow un-American to exercise impulse control?)
Acting contrary to people's expectations isn't easy. Peer pressure exists at any age, and being different isn't always flattering. Changing habits and lifestyles may be hard without having a huge support system, but it's important to me, and I feel that I have a right to feel good about myself.
All this, just to show you guys a picture of my gross-looking (but delicious) morning beverage. :)
