Gained 5 lbs in one night.

Going on this fitness journey has really opened my eyes to some of my poor eating habits. As aforementioned, I never really eat 'unhealthy' foods. I'm not in fast food restaurants every day, and when I am it is for something seemingly healthy. I suppose I never much paid attention to the nutrition facts of things beyond the calorie count, but boy, I tell ya - it makes a word of difference to peruse the macro and micro nutrients. The amount of sodium and carbohydrates matter! This is especially so since the recommended daily amount of sodium for African American is 1,500 mg and the average American can eat 5x that a day. My mother has suffered from hypertension all of her life and I suspect it is what lead to her kidney failure (amongst other factors). This will not be me.
       Most of the sodium we eat is found in processed foods. As a broke college student, I used to survive off of processed food because I am in school for 20 hours a week and I work 20 hours a week+ as well as study 20 hours a week. I don't really have much time to get my chef Boyar-Tee on. However, this meant that I was taking in a lot of salt an other food processing additives. It didn't really become apparent until I ate some chicken and broccoli from the local Chinese restaurant, which was a healthy choice compared to the chicken wings and fries I could've gotten. However, I used two packs of soy sauce, completely oblivious that 1 tbsp has 1000 mg of sodium. Not to mention the sauce that comes n the chicken n broccoli itself.  My stomach gurgled and groaned and I could literally feel myself bloating. Next day, I got up to weigh myself and lo and behold I was up 5 pounds! To add insult to injury - I proceeded to get a migraine (probably because my BP skyrocketed) that knocked me out all day. I trudged to the supermarket and got some bananas (for the potassium), chomped on some garlic, as well as drank almost my body weight in water. The next day I was down 2 pounds. I really think I am sodium sensitive. With that being said, I have restricted my sodium intake to 1000mg a day.

     I am learning to pay attention to my body and what it likes and dislikes. I have learned, like 60% of adults that I am lactose intolerant. I should've known since milk makes me hella gassy, but I guess I was in denial for the love of ice cream. I enjoy almond milk, however the fact that its almost 5 dollars per container is disconcerting. I must find it somewhere cheaper.

Quote for the day: "Weightloss and fitness is a journey - not a race."