Monday, November 21, 2011

fasting and education

so...I'm fasting. kind of. not from food, as those of you who know me well know that this might be detrimental to any of my relationships (not been fed recently? insert grumptasticness here.). 

no, I'm fasting from something very different. something that is definitely not inherently bad, but it can be when not used in moderation (similar to food). and maybe it's not even overuse, but the fact that it has the ability to negatively impact my mood and create inner turmoil even when it does not directly affect my life. any guesses yet?

I'm fasting from facebook. kind of.

having moved away from family and friends I've known all my life, I've used facebook a lot. I check up on friends, look at their pictures, see what's going on, and use it as a means to keep in touch.

but sometimes I think this gives me a false sense of connected-ness. or a shallow connected-ness.

have you talked to so-and-so about her new relationship? no...but I saw his post on her wall. he seems funny.

have you heard about so-and-so's trip to insert-cool-location-here? no...but I saw their pics on facebook. looked incredible.

now, I will be the first to defend facebook. it DOES help people stay in touch. and no, we cannot always skype or talk on the phone or meet up for coffee.

but facebook does not a relationship make.

and with that, and a collection of many other reasons, I am fasting. I do think I will allow myself one day a week to check messages, etc. so as to not appear rude, but my goal is to live a more full life in the now rather than online. it has also given me more time to read, journal, pray and think before bed.

I'm hoping this is a learning experience. I think it will be, since anytime we change the way we spend our time, things happen. don't you think? I hope so. I'll let you know how it goes.

and now...for a new segment in an attempt to retain some of the information I'm learning and spread healthful news...

Interesting nutrition/health tidbit for the day:

Four common factors for weight loss maintenance were reported by the National Weight Control Registry.

These include:
eating a relatively low fat diet (24% of energy)
eating breakfast daily
weighing themselves regularly (from once a day to once a week)
high levels of physical activity (60-90 minutes/day)

interesting, huh? you're welcome.

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