Enjoying The Healthy Life

Fitness

This is my second day working toward running. I am doing good and feeling good. The hardest part is starting. All you have to do it wake up one morning and start! You don't have to go hard core on something for it to count. Doing something is better than doing nothing. I will be working toward this 4 days a week and doing other exercises the other three days of the week. Since I have small little ones I am limited but that won't be my excuse. 

What I Consumed Today

Breakfast: A toasted 100% whole wheat English muffin with peanut butter and strawberries.

Lunch: This is probably the best salad I have ever eaten. It's romaine lettuce, spinach, almonds, walnuts, strawberries, raisins and avocado. For dressing I used 1 Tbs of ranch that I made from plain low-fat greek yogurt. Mouth watering delicious!!

Dinner: Quinoa, chicken and garlic sautéed spinach. 

in the quinoa I cooked it with a small onion, bell pepper, garlic and onion powder, and Mrs Dash salt free chicken seasoning. 

Snack: Vanilla bean low fat greek yogurt with almonds, organic cherry and vanilla granola, and raisins. 

Snack: 1/2 banana cut into slices with peanut butter on top. 

Note: I am a nursing mom and require 300-500 more calories a day than a non nursing mom. 

Tips

While surfing the internet (something I do everyday) I ran across a web sit that breaks down food groups to help you with your shopping list for healthy foods. Figuring out what to get can be a challenge. Check out the link below. 

Make a Healthy Grocery List in Minutes

Working on Getting Fit

Today marks a week I have been eating a well balanced diet and since I fit that in my schedule I am now working on fitting exercise in. I have been practically pregnant the last two years so I am in major need of getting fit. I have been dying to get moving. My goal is to become a runner. This app will be helping me. 

This is what I completed today. As you can see in the picture managing these two sweet angels keep me busy, along with work. 

What I consumed today! 

Breakfast: 100% whole wheat English muffin, turkey sausage, egg and spinach. Cantaloupe on the side. 

Lunch: A smoothie, veggies and homemade hummus. The smoothie included a banana, peanut butter, spinach, vanilla bean low fat Greek yogurt and cocoa. While I was drinking my amazing smoothie I was thinking the whole time it would be amazing on some pancakes. I will he trying it. 

Dinner: chicken and vegetable lo mein. Underneath all that goodness is 1/2 cup of 100% whole wheat pasta cooked al dente. I used very little teriyaki and oyster sauce. Since you don't need much anyway it tasted amazing. 

Snack: For a snack I had a small portion of low fat vanilla bean low fat Greek yogurt with raisins, cherry and vanilla granola, and almonds.

Motivation

This is the number one thing you should keep on mind while working on a life style change. You don't have to go all in to start. Little, gradual changes tend to stick. Change is not easy, especially when food is involved. It takes practice. Try to do a little better than you did the day before and before you know it, you will be there! 

If you eat the right foods, you can eat more than you did before, while you were unhealthy. 

6 Days Going Strong!

Today will mark the 6th day I have been eating a clean well balanced diet. I forgot how much I loved eating well and how good it makes me feel. Just in 6 short days I feel like a new person. I have more energy, I feel hungry less, I feel lighter, and each day that goes by I am more motivated because of how amazing I feel. I am not going to lie it is a challenge to try and prepare my meals and make sure I eat enough but with practice I am hoping it will get easier. 

WHAT I HAVE BEEN UP TO

Baked chicken with garlic powder, onion powder and lemon pepper. Steamed asparagus and cabbage on the side.

What I have most days before I go into work because I get extremely hungry at work. haha  

Oatmeal with vanilla bean low fat Greek yogurt, cranberries, raisins, almonds and cinnamon.

Baked chicken, steamed broccoli, cauliflower, and carrots with onion and garlic powder.

spaghetti squash filled with spaghetti sauce made from tomatoes, a can of organic tomato paste, onion, a little sugar and salt, oregano, Italian season, garlic powder, onion powder and ground turkey. 

Snack!!

Quinoa with a sprinkle of shredded cheddar cheese, garlic powder and onion powder topped with broccoli, cauliflower, and asparagus.

Baked chicken and a spinach salad. The salad has balsamic vinaigrette, strawberries, cranberries and almonds.

scrambled eggs and a spinach, strawberry, and oats smoothie.

100% whole wheat bead with oven roasted turkey and avocado.

 Filet beef tips again with broccoli and asparagus. No oil or butter included.

A smoothie with blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, pineapple, oats, spinach and enough fat free milk to mix the ingredients up. On the side is carrots with homemade hummus.

Low fat vanilla bean Greek yogurt with raisins, cranberries, oats, and almonds.

Seared tuna with broccoli, squash, zucchini, and onions. 

Chicken, romaine lettuce, spinach, broccoli, cauliflower, almonds, raisins, and tomatoes. I topped it off with a low fat Italian dressing. The raisins were really good in this. I'll be adding more next time.

Scrambled eggs with spinach, bell pepper, onion and some garlic powder with cantaloupe on the side.

TIPS

1. When eating out there are healthy options. Two meals above I choose at work. Lean meat, chicken or fish accompanied by vegetables are always good choices. I always ask for no butter or oil.

2. Get moving! There are simple things you can do to try and fit in to burn extra calories. I always park in the pack of the parking lot and take the stairs. Check out this link below for a few examples. 

9 Sneaky Ways to Burn Calories 

Buffalo oven roasted chickpeas

I got both of the babies to nap at the same time so I got to try something I have been wanting to. Oven roasted chickpeas. I altered the recipe it was inspired by because I wanted something a little different. They are crunchy with a little kick. 

Recipe

-1 can of chickpeas 

-2 tbs Franks buffalo sauce (or your sauce of choice and you could even use seasoning instead but add another table spoon of olive oil if using seasoning. 

-1 Tbs olive oil

Directions 

1) preheat oven to 400 

2) drain, wash and dry well

(It's important for them to be dry)

3) toss the chickpeas in the ingredients above

4) spread them out on a pan

5) bake on 400 for 30 min until crispy. While baking shake them around a couple of times. 

Feeling good!

Since I have two small children I am very busy and the last three Months I have eaten the worse I have eatin since 2010 (when I decided I needed a life style change). Every since I brought my youngest home from the hospital three Months ago it has been quite a challenge to eat healthy. I am guilty for grabbing a handful of cookies instead of actually eating. I would eat the easiest and closest thing. We all know anything convient is far from healthy. Not only have I been eating bad I have been feeling bad. I made the decision to make time for myself and eat the way I enjoy eating. It is going to be a challenge but I can do it. How can I take care of my children if I don't take care of myself? I am on day two of eating clean and I feel amazing. It literally doesn't take long to feel better. I feel lighter, more energy and I don't feel like I am going to have a heart attack. Just so you know, that's what I feel like when I feel unhealthy. Haha To me feeling healthy is priceless. If you feel healthy then here comes the perks! What are the perks? Well, becoming thinner of course! It's a win win game. You live longer and look better. ;) 

Food choices

Salmon with lemon pepper seasoning and steamed broccoli. 

Romain lettuce, baby spinach, almonds, cranberries, tomatoes, and a boiled egg with balsamic vinaigrette. I had a yellow apple for desert. They are my favorite because they are the sweetest. 

100% whole wheat English muffin with egg, spinach, onion and bell pepper. Watermelon on the side. 

100% whole wheat bread filled with deli oven roasted turkey breast, spinach, avocado, and tomato. On the side is the left over avocado and strawberries. It was delicious. 

Do's, Dont's, and Tips Overview

DO NOT EAT OR DRINK

   1. Fried foods WHAT SO EVER!!!

   2.  White foods (try to replace everything with whole wheat) EX. Bread, pasta, bagels, English muffins, rice, tortillas ect. (Good for keeping blood sugar level, Aids digestion, keeps you fuller longer, and people who eat whole grains tend to be thinner.)

   3. Drinks WHAT SO EVER: Soda, Sweet tea, anything that contains calories. Drinking water strictly and a lot of it not only cuts your calories but is proven to aid weight loss.Wouldn’t you rather eat your calories? I know sure would!

   4. Beer and wine: If you want to drink you are going to have to go to low calorie liquor drinks. If you don’t want to give up your drinks you will have to learn to like them. There are actually really good drinks that will not pile on the pounds.

   5. Limit your sweets to once a week. One a day is not a treat it is a habit. (My problem!!! Haha)

   6. Try to switch your beef to ground turkey and stick to lean meats. Chicken and fish should be your best friend and a lean steak once or twice a week.

   7. Try and shop the out skirts of the grocery store. If you can’t kill or plant your food then it is probably not a good choice.

   8. Stay away from processed foods as much as possible, which includes: pre made meals, if it is not fresh and you did not cook it, it is mostly likely not a good choice. You can NOT get fat by eating unprocessed foods. Examples: Fruit, veggies, and meat.

   *This is just a start that can help you loose weight and guess what? If you stick to the healthy alternatives/eliminations from your “new diet” it does not stay a diet it is a life style change and you will never have to worry about weight gain again. Whoo hoo! :) 

TIPS

   1. There are healthy alternatives to the food that you love.

   2.  If you mess up that is not a pass to do bad the rest of the day or give up completely. We are human so we make mistakes. I promise when you mess up you will feel like you failed but you only fail by giving up. Doing bad once a day is better than doing bad all day every day.

   3. Do not give up. Every time you give up you are that much farther away from your goal. You will reach it BUT it does not happen over night.

   4. Don’t eye the scale. Focus on healthy changes and exercise and the weight will take care of its self. One day you will wake up and you will be able to wear your skinny jeans. Seriously!

   5. If you want to be thin it does not take a genius to know you can’t eat fried chicken, mashed potatoes, donuts, beer, gravy, high calorie drinks, pizza, French fries. You get the point.

   6. Weight loss is a very easy concept. YOU HAVE TO BURN MORE CALORIES THAN YOU TAKE IN!!! 

   7. On the weight watchers program Fruit and veggies are ZERO points SO this should be the bulk of your diet. Most of them are also negative calorie foods which means it takes more calories to digest them than what is in them.

   9. You eat for survival not for pleasure. Get this through your head. Do you want that donut or do you want to feel good in your skin? That donut is not going to pleasure you but only for a split second but being thin will last a lifetime.

  10. DO NOT STARVE YOURSELF! Yes, you will loose weight but it is very unhealthy and will only last while you are starving yourself. YOU HAVE NO METOBALOSIM WHEN YOU STARVE YOURSELF!!!!!!!!!!

  *Note: It is a good idea to take baby steps when trying to change your life style. Slow and steady changes tend to stick.