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Saturday, May 29, 2010

So you want to eat clean?

Well it looks like I have inspired a person or three to eat clean or at least start introducing more clean whole foods into their diet. As a resident expert on eating clean (after all---I've been at this 40+ days!...) here are a few tips for getting started.
  1. If you can afford it---go buy Tosca Reno's Eat Clean Recharged Book
  2. Buy her cookbook next
  3. If you cant buy that right now, start here--Buy yourseld a big water bottle! A cute one that will inspire you to keep drinking from it all day long.
  4. Make a commitment, I think 30 days is great. Its one month. No fast food. No soda. No sugar (you can do it) and that does not mean fruit. You can still eat fruit.
  5. Throw out the oreo cookies and chips in your cupboard.
  6. Be prepared to eat more of the same meals, variety can come later. Its time to just train yourself to eat clean and I think its less over whelming if you just have a few core recipes that are easy and you like.
  7. Go get some quality protein powder. This really helps in getting in that protein/complex carb combination that you will need at EVERY meal and snack.
  8. Don't be scared of the bulk food section
  9. Dont drink alcohol. If you must...seriously alternate water and alcohol and try and stick to one night a week. I used to drink wine every night. If I can do it...you can.  This will help you to sleep better, get up earlier and make better food choices.
Kitchen supplies that really make this easier:
  • Minature crock pot (less then $10 at walmart)
  • Grinder ($9-$15)
  • Blender
  • Blender Ball (its a shaker with a wire ball in it---makes protein powder and water a lot easier to mix when you are in a hurry)
  • Apple Slicer/corer (I eat a lot of apples and peanut butter and this way I can slice my apple in 5 seconds)
Okay...so NOW--you are ready to begin.  Its time to go to the grocery store. I like Costco and Sprouts and Kroger and Market Street.  Of course I love Central Market and Whole Foods...but we are on a budget. 

  • I hope you like eggs. You'll be eating them a lot. Buy 24 eggs (preferably organic) and lots of egg whites. Make sure these arent egg beaters. You can buy 100% egg whites in the refrigerator section.
  • In the bulk section--steel cut oats, flax seeds--to grind before use (this maintains the flax power), Millet, brown rice, cinnamon).  This is going to be your breakfast most days with protein powder and water. I'll post the recipe later
  • Chicken Breast
  • Tilapia or Salmom. Wild caught. I buy the individually frozen ones at costco.
Okay will update more later....



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Thursday, May 27, 2010

Meals as of Late

Day 40!
And I feel great.

So I have mostly use Tosca Reno's Eat Clean Diet as my baseline for everything I am making/eating and then checking out Blogs, Magazines like Oxygen and Clean Eating and then modifying recipes I already have.

Some of my favorite recipes so far:

Turkey Tacos
1 lb. lean ground turkey breast (healthier then ground turkey)
2 cloves garlic (pressed)
1/2 onion
1 tblsp. Cumin
dash red chilli flakes
1 tblsp. chilli powder (less if you don't like spicy)
sprinkle paprika
1/4 cup water

Brown Meat, onion and garlic (you should use coconut oil, but olive oil will be fine). Add Cumin, chilli flakes, paprika and water and simmer on low for about 10 minutes.

This is where you can get creative---whatever you like on tacos (avoid cheese and sour cream)
I used:
8 leaves butter lettuce--instead of taco shells
1/4 red cabbage chopped
Diced Tomato
Green Onion
Fresh Salsa
(that is what I had)
You could use:
Corn, black olives, Zuchini, squash, avocado, the list goes on...
Ta Da! Enjoy.

Spaghetti Squash
1 Spaghetti Squash (most grocery stores have these) Cut in half- scoop out seeds

Pre-heat oven 375F. Put squash face down on cookie sheet. Bake for 45 minutes.

Sauce

I make a huge batch and then freeze it in smaller containers so I can just pull out sauce for dinner when we feel like it.

1 lb. of extra lean ground beef. You could use turkey or nothing at all.
4 cloves garlic, pressed.
1/2 onion diced.
Brown all of this, drain and set aside. I actually rinse it to get all the excess fat off.


This is where I get as many vegetables as I can into my sauce. Get a huge stock pot. Mine is HUGE!

Saute the following:
3 Zucchini (chopped small)
1 Large onion
2 cups of diced baby portabello mushrooms
2 carrots grated
1 red bell pepper diced

Now add-
2 cans Tomato Sauce
3 cans crushed tomatoes
3 cans diced tomatoes
2 jars of regular spaghetti sauce
1 package frozen chopped spinach
Fresh Basil, chopped small (1/4 cup)
Dried Basil 1 tblsp
Dried Oregano 2 tblsp.
Simmer for an hour...on very low. Stir Occasionally.

Tilapia with Black Bean Avocado Salad
...recipe coming soon

Turkey Meatballs
...recipe coming soon

Grilled Chicken Spinach Wraps
...recipe coming soon


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Friday, May 14, 2010

The end is the new beginning

Okay--so I am 27 days into my 30 day challenge and while I have not been able to stick exactly to all of the challenges every day...I have done pretty awesome. I feel lighter, more fit and healthier. The side effect of that is I feel happier. So, this has really just spurred on more challenges or rather changes as I continue on my journey. I want to get FIT. Seriously.

So--I am going to start Cooler Plan 1 of Tosca Reno's Eat Clean Diet Recharged. Its strict. I am going to committ to a week of this rigid eating plan and then go from there. I will be stocking up on lean protein, tons of veggies, steal cut oats and water water water. Wish me luck...and I promise, if I hit my goal, I will post pictures. :)

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Wednesday, May 05, 2010

Half Way Update.

"No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it." James 12:11

Well it’s a little more than halfway through my challenge --17 days in to be exact and I have good news to report! First and foremost, I have more energy. Getting up at the crack (I mean the serious crack) is getting easier. It also only takes me 1.5 cups of coffee to come alive rather than my usual 3. AND I can now drink that first cup with my eyes open. So something interesting happened last week, my mom go admitted to the hospital late Sunday night. As the only child in Texas with a valid driver’s license not to mention over the age of 18, I became a regular visitor of Harris Methodist. In all honesty, it would have been completely easy and not unlike me to just say...you know what this is too hard, I'll start my challenge after she gets out and my life gets back to normal. Then proceed to eat mac and cheese from the cafeteria and stop by Target to pick up some red wine to eat with spaghetti. But in my ever increasing wisdom slash maturity I have realized that life never gets back to normal. There will always be something that comes up unexpectedly that gives us the excuse to stray from our way. That line of thinking is essentially what got me to wear I am. So I made a decision, I'm not going back; I don’t want to go back. I choose to move forward in my plan and stick to it. It's hard sometimes and a little painful honestly, but I know that remaining disciplined will produce that peace and results that I so badly want. Today, on day 17 I can say I made it. My mom is out of the hospital and I am ok. So--the results so far besides drinking coffee with my eyes open. I have lost 10 pounds! I can’t stress enough how much I love this Eat Clean Diet Recharged by Tosca Reno. I feel like it is the answer I have been searching for all of my life. Now I know this whole challenge isn’t just about eating, but that is a really big part of it for me. I will admit that I didn’t stick to the running--I barely had time to sleep, but last night I had a great run, 4 miles in 50 minutes (which is good for me) and it’s the weirdest thing, my favorite place to run is the cemetery behind our house. It’s so peaceful and it always causes me to reflect on life and the inevitability of death on this earth and how truly my only hope is in eternity with Christ. I know... that sounds crazy...I also think of my dad every time I run through there. He is not buried there, but I guess it’s just that quiet place among the trees and the graves that I can think of my dad in heaven and his life on this earth and all of the good memories I have of him. This post went to a random place that I wasn’t expecting, but there you have it. Things are well. Stay tuned for progress updates and picture posts about Wyatt…I promise!



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Wednesday, April 21, 2010

Eat Clean

I don't consider myself an "unhealthy" person...but I definitely make some unhealthy choices. I will admit my weight has fluctuated over the years and at various, how do you say...desperate times, I have tried almost every diet out there (South Beach, Weight Watchers, Cabbage Soup and the like). I actually do have a good foundation when it comes to nutrition and understand the importance of putting the right foods into your body, but I always seem to be missing the tools necessary to maintain a healthy eating plan! Especially working full time and constantly on the go.
As I continue to make my changes, I have finally come across a food plan that not only makes sense to me--but it’s realistic! Finally I can incorporate the nutrition I firmly believe in to a framework and guideline that’s relatively simple to follow. The Eat Clean Diet is the next change I am making. I actually discovered this book on day 1 of my 30 days of change and have been following it for the last three days. If my recollection serves me well, I have heard of this before but I guess I wasn't in the right mind-set to look at it as a viable option for me. It is key that you be ready to put in the required effort in to make the change! So, I feel so much better and it’s exciting to try new healthy recipes with food I didn’t know I could eat! Who knew you could have slow cooked Steal Cut Oats with Millet? ( I still want to know what that is....Zach said they used to grow it on the ranch and then turned into hay for wintering cows)? and ground Flax (which I put in smoothies and muffins), brown rice (that sounds like my dinner) and bee pollen (yes-I went there) for breakfast?
Every time I go into the bulk section at a store like Sprouts or Central Market, there are so many bins of food that I have no idea what to do with. They look healthy, but I felt so intimidated to buy them. I mean after all, I didn't name my child Moonbeam, I don't own Birkenstocks and we live in a neighborhood not a colony! Now I finally feel like I have a cookbook that is easy to follow with simple but delicious recipes that incorporate the so called mystery foods of the uber health conscious-- NO PhD in Nutrition necessary.

Highly recommend this book and the Eat Clean Diet Recharged for anyone looking to incorporate more nutrition and whole foods into their diet!





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Tuesday, April 20, 2010

This is the way walk in it.

I tend not to be an out there "super spiritual" person...especially when it comes to sharing my revelations or intimate prayers with the world. But today, I am putting myself out there and writing this. Maybe it will encourage or maybe you can relate in some way.

Over the last year or so, I have had such a difficult time disciplining myself to have daily prayer and meditation. I want it to be a part of my life and I know it should be a part of my life, yet I will allow pretty much anything to disrupt that time. We hear about being a friend of Jesus and I truly have experienced the love of God in my life...but I am so easily sidetracked by the worries and anxieties of life that I just don’t take the time to pursue Him. There is also a part of me that is afraid of what I will find... A reprimand or maybe a call to be a missionary (please Lord no) I am not really sure sometimes what God would ask of me. But as I grow older and wiser, I am more assured in the fact that he created me to be me and my purpose and destiny will not be turning into someone I am not.

So with that said part of the goal in my 30 days of change is to sanctify a time to pursue that friendship with Jesus and learn to live better. I want to become the best version of myself in all areas physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually. So this morning, I got out my journal and my bible. Before opening my bible, I just decided to write. For me, when I write, things are more real. I feel like I have a tangible record of my prayers, my thoughts and my growth as a person. Embarrassingly, sometimes my non-growth. It can be frustrating that I am still lamenting some of the same things that I was 10 years ago. But that’s another thought for another time.

In my prayer, I just asked that God would have something for me something for this day and I happened across Isaiah 30, particularly this verse just stood out for me,
"How gracious he will be when you cry for help! As soon as he hears, he will answer you. Although the Lord gives you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, your teachers will be hidden no more; with your own eyes you will see them. Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, "This is the way; walk in it." Isaiah 30:19-21 partial
I feel like a part of this prayer has already been answered. He is answering my prayers as soon as I ask. I have had to hit a place of finally giving in. Turning to him and saying--I don’t know how to do it. I dont have the strength on my own. I am confident that the things he has shown me even in the last two days are the voice of the Lord, saying "This is the way; walk in it"





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Monday, April 19, 2010

30 days of change

I have just been unhappy with some things lately. Feeling unrested, unhealthy and unmotivated. Hoping to change those feelings with a 30 plan. 1. Run every day (even if its a mile). 2. No alcohol (yep--30 days and no wine for me). 3. Drink Green Tea every day. 4. Take my vitamins Every day (a huge challenge for me). and 5. Organic/Whole Food Challenge (see where I can incorporate more whole foods and less pre-packaged).
In addition...making a commitment to not shop at Target for 30 days.I am hoping for other side effects as well (I will journal, pray and meditate more)...Just be more content with me.

I am not someone who can just choose to be healthier. I need a plan. I need an outlined plan. So today is day one and so far I got up at 5:30---had my coffee (need to insert prayer, meditation in there soon). Laced up my shoes and out the door at 6:15 and proceeded to run 2 miles. Its a start. Its not training for a half marathon, its not running 6 miles, its 2 miles an attainable, realistic run that I could reasonable do everymorning. Right now 2 miles takes me about 25 minutes, so I plan to either add mileage or speed up my pace. Ideally I would like a 40 minute run each morning.

I took all of my products/vitamins this morning and have been drinking a ton of water. I had a protein shake for breakfast and plan to have a chargrilled chicken salad )chik fil a) for lunch (I'll do my green tea this afternoon). Its just time to slow down, focus and get healthy. I have alot of things going on this year and have hopes of making some other changes. But for now, this is where I am starting.

The reason for not going to Target is we have started a new family budget and for me...Target is a budget buster. If I go in fo groceries, I come out with two new shirts for me, a new dish for the kitchen, a toy for Wyatt and about 15 other items that I would have never bought had I just gone to Sprouts or Kroger. So, its just a commitment that for 30 days I wont go there. Anyway...I feel good. I feel excited for the changes that will occur over the next 30 days. Anyone want to join me on my journey? What are 5 small changes you could make for 30 days?


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Friday, April 16, 2010

Introduction to Wyattisms

A three year old can say some pretty hilarious if not amusing things. I was keeping a log of all the little "Wyattisms" in a word document and then sadly the computer which housed said document was stolen...SO in order to avoid another catostrophic loss of valuable history, I am going to document these phrases here. The blog that keeps on giving...when you least expect.

Just yesterday on our way home from school, Wyatt says, "Mawm- sometimes you are a bery (sic) good mawm..." I respond, "Awww...thanks Buddy!" Wyatt, "and sometimes your not a bery good mawm"

!!

As I dig a little deeper into the statement that can only be described as any mothers worst fear--I come to discover the following: I am a good mom when I put good things in his lunch and not a very good mom when I don't put the the best things in his lunch. He went on to tell me that sometimes other mawms are the best, and sometimes I am the best.

I guess I'll have to carefully consider what goes into his lunch box next week.

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Thursday, April 15, 2010

Making some changes around here

I am redecorating! ...my blog. Also reformating a little. I've been inspired to write a little more and try and keep this updated. I'll still mostly be documenting Wyatt but maybe a little more about me. Stay tuned for a new and improved blog--starting with a name change - Journey into Motherhood is now Growing Still. Which can be taken as ...I am still growing (thankfully) or I am growing still, learning to be me, learning to be quiet, learning to be reflective. So who knows where this will go? I guess you will have to come back to find out.