CATHastrophic Mediocrity

This was my first blog, born in 2007. This was my online diary, witness to all my ravings and rants from my college life. It helped me out in my down moments, when I needed someone to listen to my thoughts. 

Thank you for keeping up with all my childish musings, and now I have to move forward to a new better me at Coffee and Serendipity.

Signing out as cathchix… Ciao ciao!!!

It’s pretty hard squeezing in "healthy living" to the kind of lifestyle we have. Chasing deadlines and meeting expectations are enough to get us out of track. But it helps to push one’s self just a little step closer. "It would just take 30 minutes." "I’ll have my favorite treat after this", "Just one more rep!" - these are easy tricks to get yourself to doing something for your goal. 

This is what I tell myself now as I work on my goal of changing my sedentary lifestyle little by little. I am now following a food plan that drastically cuts back my calorie intake, and an exercise plan that increases my physical activity. I know I’m getting halfway there.

Here is a video for yoga beginners my room mate and I have been using for this week. Part 2 and Part 3 is also available. 

The ProgRunners (AWS Runners) Club joined the One Thousand Cranes Run sponsored by Three Sixty Pharmacy last May 22, 2011. The group convened by 4:30am. (Photos by Jedd Benedict Kris Mahilum) 

 The photographer Jedd, my personal medic Miel (hehe), and I (at 4:30 am… @_@)

 15K run just about to start

The ProgRunners President Marlow, Miss Vanvan, Jervis, Kuya Mark, Miel and I 

 6K and 3K start(just strolling around)

 Mr. President in the frontlines

 I and the guys waiting for the rest to reach the finish line

 The winners` pedestal

The ProgRunners Club 

The company went for a little summer fun last May 7-8 at Hidden Paradise Mountain Resort, Brgy. Ilaya, San Fernando, Cebu. 

(Photos by Andrew Barte)

Some of our friends during the Team Building 

 The Dance Club

 The batchmates

And finally, Miel and I…

Emotional eating is a problem for both men and women, especially now that we`re stuck in a fast-paced world. It is really not a problem when you do it to celebrate anniversaries, holidays, and little victories. But it also has its own side-effects when you give in to emotional eating everyday to relieve depression, anxiety, boredom and stress(I plead guilty). This is one of the reasons of obesity because we consume more calories than our body needs.

Little pleasures I was guilty of:

Here are some helpful tips I have tried myself to help curb this insatiable hunger caused by stress:

• Have a full breakfast. This will provide your mind the fuel to stay active and focused the whole morning, lessening the chances of stress. To sustain your energy, have egg whites, chicken or lean meat for protein.
• Take a deep breathe. I learned a breathing technique from one of my professors. Inhale slowly for 4 seconds, hold your breath for a few seconds and breathe out for 8 seconds. This will help your body max out/maintain the oxygen level you take. This oxygen helps you maintain your energy. The breathing technique will also help you relax your mind on breathing alone.
• Keep your back straight. Stretch your arms up. Move your shoulder blades. While seated, stretch your legs by pointing your toes, and twist your ankles.
• Drink plenty of water. Water decreases the cortisol level. Cortisol is one of our natural stress hormones. Stress also causes dehydration since we breathe more heavily and our heart rate is up so we lose more fluids.  
• If you can`t really miss your cravings, find a healthy substitute. You can trade a chocolate chip cookie for a low fat oatmeal cookie. Raisins and a few nuts instead of chips, and hot tea instead of your venti. 

Blog Update 

Hello everyone! Here I am, finishing what I have started last October 4. I just updated this blog’s layout, to be simple and laid-back, not a sore to the eye. Deleted unnecessary entries, and checked privacy settings. Blogsome doesn’t have that many layouts as WordPress or any other blog hosting sites, so I have to make my own layout. 

8.9 Japan Earthquake and Tsunami 

 I am really relieved that hubby and the rest of my friends are doing fine after an 8.9 earthquake struck North-Eastern Japan. A tsunami also engulfed Sendai Prefecture near Hokkaido, driving thousands of families away from their homes. Everyone now are on their second night of earthquake watch since aftershocks can still be felt after more than 32 hours. No major incident happened either in the Philippines after Phivolcs issued a tsunami warning on some cities and provinces in the eastern part of the country. 

Photo courtesy of mlive.com 

This blog will have a major clean-up for a month. See you then.

Ciao ciao.

I found myself guilty - guilty of consuming more than the necessary calories during my breakfast. After I prepared the usual morning pancakes, hubby took out a half-gallon of hazelnut brownie ice cream. Put a spoonful on top of the pancakes. At the end of the meal, I was already clutching the half-gallon container of that tempting treat. And yes! Needless to say, I had ice cream for breakfast.

Why do we find it hard to resist sweet temptations? Cakes, candies, chocolates, ice cream, or any high-calorie food. Simple. Because our brain tells us to. A study from University in Columbia, New York, shows that obese women have a very significant reaction when presented with sweet tempting food. Even the scent or the mere sight of those triggers certain portions of the brain - those areas involved in reward, attention, emotion, memory and motor planning, as explained by Susan Carnell, a research psychiatrist at the New York Obesity Research Center.

Another study of a neuroscientist of Yale University had a similar setup. A group of overweight and non-overweight subjects were made to eat chocolates or strawberry milkshakes. Behavior of the brain was tracked using fMRI scans. Study showed that the overweight subjects, presented with these food, had strong reactions in their amygdala - the emotional center of the brain that tells if they’re hungry or not. The non-overweight only showed response when they were hungry.

A high-calorie diet can destroy the natural mechanism of the body, of signaling that the body needs to stop eating. When we are full, messages are sent to our hypothalamus, and the brain dictates that we have to stop consuming more. This may be also one of the reasons why obese people find resistance to sweets almost impossible.

So before you munch on your bar of chocolate, or slurp your way in your milkshakes, try to listen to your body if it really needs to eat or not.  This isn’t part of any diet program. Just a healthy reminder to keep a well-balanced diet to feel and look good.

Source: Eating to Live or Living to Eat (Wall Street Journal)

Many consider it a luxury when you buy a little bit more for your baby. You can’t help it; it’s your baby anyway. When you want your babe to pimp up and reflect your own identity, you might just want to check out the latest Hyundai accessories. This will surely not compromise your safety for style, luxury and comfort.