My family has a history of getting diabetes and recently, I've been more fast food than usual and becoming less active and now I'm realizing I'm getting a little bigger around the waist. I like running, but lately i hurt my ankle and sprained my wrist. That's how I became less active. I recently began to stop eating fruits and drinking more soda instead of water. I feel less motivated to do anything about it. I think "this again " when I feel think I should run today. I'm worried I'll get fatter and I wouldn't care about it and end up getting diabetes like my grandparents and my mother. Is there a way to start out small and work my way up again without feeling demotivated about it?
Maybe try something else besides running. If your ankle doesn't hurt that much, what about walking or bike riding? If you go to a gym then use an elliptical or stationary bike instead of treadmill. I recently messed my ankle up running a couple weeks ago since I was doing it almost everyday for the past couple months, so I know exactly what you're talking about. It sucks not being able to do something you enjoy, but if hurts quite a bit, then I'd try to minimize the exercise until it's healed up a bit, which is what I'm doing. Also try to continue eating healthy so you won't be putting on the weight from all the bad food and lack of exercise. Also I've had diabetes since I was 10 years old. I'd recommend you do all you can to prevent it if it runs in your family. That should be a bit of motivation to keep living a healthier lifestyle.
A good place to start is to trade out the soda for water or tea. That's huge. I also drink water in a normal-sized bottle with two tablespoons of lemon juice and one of honey per bottle. It makes it taste appetizing, but isn't full of preservatives and sugar and other crap. DON'T drink diet soda--studies have proven that it actually causes more weight gain over the long run than sugar-loaded stuff. Then work on eating better. Cut out deep fried and high-fat stuff and lower your carb intake- even minimize things like whole grain bread. Carbs are one of the big causes of high blood sugar, and one that is often forgotten about. Start eating fruits and veggies again. Frozen peas or green beans in a cup are a great munchy food. Make sure you always have good food available that you can just grab even when you're running late, so that you don't have to buy crap when you're out places. I try to avoid buying lots of things that I have to make, because I'm lazy and I'll just end up eating out- if you eat a lot of whole-ingredient type things, you don't have to make them. Try going for walks instead of running. If you eat better, go walking, and get enough sleep, you'll find that you start to feel motivated to go running, if that's what you want to be doing for exercise. You can also look into more interesting interactive forms of exercise, like martial arts, dance classes, or yoga. I find those are a lot more fun and motivating than just working out on my own. Sorry. That was a bit long.
Talk to your doctor. Tell him/her what you're worried about and get advice on what the best course of action is.
You're on the right track- it's not just about diet and it's not just about exercise- it's about both. Making healthy choices about eating is a good start. But exercise and weight control are going to be the key. Running is not the only option- there's bicycling, stair-climbing, spin/aerobic classes, swimming, walking- basically anything that get your heart rate up and generates some sweat. And even simple solutions like taking the stairs instead of the elevator, walking instead of driving, etc are helpful.
