Pitiful…time for some weight training…or I need to start using my left arm to play.

Now THAT would be funny!

After doing some reading of my own I actually started to think that maybe… just maybe… I could make a turn towards a healthy life by trying these green smoothie concoctions. I’m usually complaining about lunch because I get so sick of sandwiches, so why not try a healthier alternative.

I must say that my first smoothie concoction was pretty good! I blended up 2 plums, 1 large peach, and 1 handful of spinach and voila! Yes, it was a pretty strange green color but I figured if it still smelled like fruit, how bad could it taste?

There’s part of me that is still skeptical. I drank this only 30 minutes ago and already my stomach is growling but I guess I could make another smoothie, or at least eat some fruit. Anything other than opening up that deadly pantry where all the snack foods are kept.

Of course, the key is to add the smoothies into your diet while keeping the bad foods out. I’ll just take it one day at a time and hope I don’t go broke buying so much produce!

Here are some resources if you find yourself curious about these green smoothies or healthy eating:

Green Smoothie Girl

The Green Smoothie Queen

The Cravings Coach podcast about Raw Food

Goddess of the Garden

That said, I have to respect Jennifer Love Hewitt for sticking up for herself after nasty comments were made about some unflattering bikini pictures that were made public. She is an actress that I have never once paid attention to but I guess she has a good publicist because other than the old Party of Five series and her Ghost Whisperer series, I have no idea what else she has appeared in.

But that isn’t even important. I am proud and grateful that a Hollywood-type has opened her mouth about something that matters…body image among America’s youth. We put such a price on beauty and thinness in this country that it’s absurd. How many tabloids have splashed pictures of celebs with the question, “Fat or Baby Bump?” on their covers? Men fall at the knees of Victoria Secret cover models, praising their thin bodies and big boobs. Women who wear size 0 jeans are often overheard making complaints about how bad their jeans look.

It’s no wonder that teens and young adults have such a bad body image of themselves. Even 21 years ago as I was preparing to graduate from high school, I thought I was heavy, weighing in at 125 pounds and a size 7. And I had that attitude even with having very limited television and movie access. It seems like teens rule the roost these days, watching very suggestive television and rated-R adult movies, so it’s no wonder why young girls emulate these underfed, overpaid actresses.

These actresses are paid millions of dollars to show off their bodies. They must be beautiful.

That is the mindset of many of today’s teenagers.

Jennifer, speak up as loud as you can! There are parents and other people hearing you. Rather than spouting off political views like some of your Hollywood cohorts, keep defending the “real women” who have real curves and are still beautiful for the person they are within.

Some women are afraid of hearing devestating results that will change their lives and still others are afraid that it will hurt. Oprah jokes every year about getting her boobs squished and that’s honestly all it is…your boobs get squished for a couple of seconds.

I’m at that lucky age where my doctor recommended a baseline mammogram, which is taken in your late 30s to provide the doctors a general picture of the healthy breast tissue which they will use to compare future results. My appointment was on Tuesday and I survived it! Honestly, it’s not bad!

After arriving at the imaging center and filling out new patient paperwork, I was escorted by a very nice female technician to the exam room. I was literally done within 20 minutes. You put on a gown, the technician puts the film into the machine, and then she positions the breast onto the screen and you get squished. Truly, it didn’t hurt. You’re squished for only 5-10 seconds on each side, just long enough for the tech to go behind the protective screen and push the button.

For each breast they took 2 xrays, trying to fully get all the tissue around the breast. It may sound awful to be “squished” but there’s no pain, just some pressure which is relieved the second the machine releases its grip. If you’ve been through childbirth, this is nothing in comparison. And what’s a few seconds of discomfort if you can detect a problem early and improve your chances of fighting off cancer?

October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Please take your good health into your own hands and schedule your own mammogram. It could very well save your life.