A new week, a new column. Seems that I am doing a lot of new things lately. This year, my life has changed quite drastically. I am newly single, and living on my own for the first time in well over a decade. So I decided that I was going to make some changes in my life, to better myself. (And if I’m totally honest, make myself a bit more presentable since I was eventually going to have to try to attract someone of the opposite sex for the first time since college!)
**This is not a “Learn to eat healthy by doing what I did” column. I promise!**
One of the first things I did was start drinking more water. I get up rather early on a daily basis for the morning show, and I usually need a little energy in the morning as you’d imagine. Well, I tallied it up, and I was drinking between 5 and 8 cans of soda per day! That’s on average a half a 12 pack poured down my gullet daily, and I’m no nutritionist (duh!) but that’s not a good thing. So I started in on the bottled water, allowing myself 1, maybe 2 cans of my beloved Dr Pepper a day. I started getting compliments, and so I assume it’s working!
Another thing I have done is I’ve started eating breakfast at home more. It’s super easy to swing through a drive-thru and pick up some greasy breakfast goodness as I head in to work, but it’s again, not good for me, not to mention expensive after a while! (I’ll admit, when we got 2 fast food places that were open 24 hours, it was a moment of rejoicing for me!) So I have started making sure I have cereal, eggs, Pop Tarts, etc for mornings. Yes, I eat Pop Tarts. You do too, so don’t judge!
I have started trying to expand my palate, as well. With the help of a certain lady friend (seems like the waters paid off!) I have been exploring different foods. A little timidly to be honest, but 6 months ago if the term “Veggie-Bake” appeared on a menu somewhere, I’d either turn the page looking for chicken fried steak, or go someplace else. Now it’s another item on the “Stuff I’ll eat” list. I was never a veggie eater, much to my mothers chagrin, but I am starting to give it a whirl, and guess what? Mom was right, I tried them, and I do kinda like them! (Except green beans. Those things are vile!)
I’ve been saying yes to a lot of things that I would normally have been ambivalent to in the past, and it is paying off. I like this “new” stuff, I think I’ll keep trying it.
Ben Cox is the morning show host of “Ben Cox in the Morning” on KQBZ, 96.9 FM in Brownwood Texas. He reports from the sidelines at every Early Longhorn game, and is the new in-stadium voice of the Howard Payne Yellowjackets football team. Ben is also an event DJ for weddings, parties and the like.
The thoughts and comments reflected in this column are those of the writer alone, and do not necessarily reflect those of Wendlee Broadcasting, or its affiliates.