Thursday, March 7, 2013
Wednesday, March 6, 2013
Spinach Breakfast Smoothie
I have found a new Spinach Smoothie via my friend, Marie Landis! It is SSOO good. And so quick and easy!! I cut the recipe down to one pint jar and used Greek yogurt.
I use...
One handful Spinach
1 frozen (or fresh) banana
1/2 cup Pineapple
1/2 cup Greek Yogurt
1/2 cup water or ice cubes
Blend well and enjoy.
I make my own Yogurt. I didn't have fresh pineapple so I found a can my mom had given to me. The banana is frozen and the Spinach is store bought.
I stuff it all in a pint mason jar.
And I use my regular blender as a bullet.
Shiny is very seriously drinking her smoothie! :) She LOVES it!!!
She is always asking for one! LOL
This is a fast and easy breakfast for Shiny and I but my men can't seem to get past the color!!
Blessings to you all!
Blog link here! :)
These are some great recipes!! Please, go check it out!!
Monday, March 4, 2013
Our Wellness Journey #4
Saturday, my little girl was drinking water when she choked. Like really, really choked. She must have swallowed most of the mouth full of water down the wrong side! As I tried to help her I was flashed back to several yrs ago when this happened to me almost every day! The look of panic in her eyes, her inability to cry, the out pouring of water as she coughed; it was all so familiar! I found my self reflecting on the change between now and then and thanking God I more longer have that problem. Shiny was OK but had a rattling cough for a while after. Wow, it was scary!!!
I remember thinking when I choked so often, that there surely was a reason this was happening to me. So we started searching for answers and discovered that at least one of the reasons was High Fructose Corn Syrup found in most sodas, juices, and sweets; including Oreo cookies. :( HFCS became my biggest enemy! I just quit using it. Period. But then something else happened! I began feeling that I was being punished for being sick. It caused a lot of emotional issues which would cause me to binge on... homemade chocolate cake, for instance.
Since, tho I have learned quite a lot. I figured out if I have an Oreo Cookie or two (never more) along with protein (like jerky,which I also love) and a lot of water, it doesn't affect me. Portion packs work great for me too! And I no longer feel like I can't have it!
That goes for donuts, and a lot of other yummy stuff. SMALL amounts of soda, and sweet tea are also doable for me. And I no longer feel as if I don't have a choice. Which, suddenly, makes the right choice a lot easier to make and I don't feel deprived. :p
In thinking back, I believe the main part in this whole lose weight and regain my health thing, was the mental change. If done in baby steps it is easy and much quicker then one thinks! :) After my mind got on board a lot of things are falling into place.
I like setting teeny tiny goals (instead of huge, long distant goals) and then rewarding myself for those. (Not with food!!! More on rewarding later.) I only weigh myself once in a blue moon; never, ever every day. As soon as I weigh myself every day I get stressed out and lose my focus. I am not doing this lifestyle change just to lose weight but to regain my health. A healthy body that is eating the right foods in the right amounts and exercising daily will not be overweight. (I don't know if there are exceptions to the rule or not) As I go along I will be adding more and more healthy choices. This will help the weight loss. But I have to be on board or I won't do it. So, for me, slowly and consistently is the key.
I have been asked how much I have lost. 40 lbs. I've got about 40 lbs to go, yet! :) Only halfway...
As I have said, easy is what works for me... So on Monday I precook most of our breakfast and lunch meats...
I remember thinking when I choked so often, that there surely was a reason this was happening to me. So we started searching for answers and discovered that at least one of the reasons was High Fructose Corn Syrup found in most sodas, juices, and sweets; including Oreo cookies. :( HFCS became my biggest enemy! I just quit using it. Period. But then something else happened! I began feeling that I was being punished for being sick. It caused a lot of emotional issues which would cause me to binge on... homemade chocolate cake, for instance.
Since, tho I have learned quite a lot. I figured out if I have an Oreo Cookie or two (never more) along with protein (like jerky,which I also love) and a lot of water, it doesn't affect me. Portion packs work great for me too! And I no longer feel like I can't have it!
That goes for donuts, and a lot of other yummy stuff. SMALL amounts of soda, and sweet tea are also doable for me. And I no longer feel as if I don't have a choice. Which, suddenly, makes the right choice a lot easier to make and I don't feel deprived. :p
In thinking back, I believe the main part in this whole lose weight and regain my health thing, was the mental change. If done in baby steps it is easy and much quicker then one thinks! :) After my mind got on board a lot of things are falling into place.
I like setting teeny tiny goals (instead of huge, long distant goals) and then rewarding myself for those. (Not with food!!! More on rewarding later.) I only weigh myself once in a blue moon; never, ever every day. As soon as I weigh myself every day I get stressed out and lose my focus. I am not doing this lifestyle change just to lose weight but to regain my health. A healthy body that is eating the right foods in the right amounts and exercising daily will not be overweight. (I don't know if there are exceptions to the rule or not) As I go along I will be adding more and more healthy choices. This will help the weight loss. But I have to be on board or I won't do it. So, for me, slowly and consistently is the key.
I have been asked how much I have lost. 40 lbs. I've got about 40 lbs to go, yet! :) Only halfway...
As I have said, easy is what works for me... So on Monday I precook most of our breakfast and lunch meats...
Sausage links about to go in the oven. I love this method because I can put it in the oven and do something else for 30 minutes. Then get it out and bingo!! Cooked links!
I put these in an old Folgers Coffee container and put them in the freezer.
I pile the bacon in little patties so they can be handled quickly and easily without breaking. Fast, fast!! :)
After they are baked 30 minutes they are ready to drain and freeze right along with the sausage.
Sausage patties. Since these are all I did, I cooked them via stove top.
I flash freeze my smoothie bananas before putting them into a bag. That way they don't stick together. When I am ready for them I get them out, let them rest a little and then peel and use like normal. The flesh stays nice and white but the skin turns black!! I found a new smoothie recipe via a friend of mine that I will be sharing soon.
It is so cold here right now! Crazy Missouri weather. So I am all bundled up for my walk!! This coat was a gift from my mother in law. When she gave it to me I could not zip it up. It's zipped now and I even got some 'wiggle' in there! :)
Blessings!
Link up here! :)
Friday, March 1, 2013
Our Wellness Journey #3
I wanted to start out with thanking everyone who has given me ideas and recommended books, etc!!! Thank you, thank you, thank you and please keep them coming! :)
That being said; a huge thing for our family on this wellness journey is the need to be able to 'live healthy' in a 'normal' world! I have heard of and even tried lots of lifestyles but knew that we could never stay consistent. We believe that staying consistent is the key to a lifestyle change. With sugar being our first and greatest challenge, at this point, we have decided to start there and move on as we feel lead. So, my friends, thank you again. I will read and listen and learn and we will adapt changes into our lifestyle as we move along!
We are eating a lot less bread but are definitely NOT on a gluten free diet, (yet)! :) That may come but right now it is enough for us to just cut back.
I do bake goodies but my self control trick while baking is; for every 'lick', I drink 4 oz of water. And before I start with the baking/licking I eat a protein. That is the protein that will help keep my blood sugar from soaring. The water keeps me from 'licking' very often since licking involves a lot more now then it used to! After the cookies, bars, cakes, breads (yes, breads! They are carbs, you know), etc, are cooled, I portion them into baggies or containers and freeze them! RIGHT AWAY! It's a lot more of a pain to eat frozen stuff!! Putting frozen portions out for lunches etc, is ultra easy tho and can be done while fixing breakfast. Planning ahead is important and sure doesn't hurt me! :)
I have also learned to precook bacon, sausage, hamburgers in the right portions and freeze them, as well. Its pretty easy to throw them in the skillet or microwave to thaw and reheat as you prepare the remaining meal and the food is all portioned. It's awesome!! :)
We do keep bacon at a minimum since it is relatively high in calories and is loaded with fat! The same with sausage! Plus, both are pork and isn't really all that good for you in the first place....
Measure, measure, measure is my goal! And I make it easy by having measuring cups on hand just for that! One is often surprised at how much we really are overeating!
We use the slow cooker a lot!! Almost everyday, certainly several times a week! It's SO easy to throw everything into the pot and forget about it till Dinner!
Mondays is our 'cook for the week' day because that is what fits into our schedule. It doesn't usually take long and since we are doing bulk in everything there are less dishes, etc, to contend with. I just start dinner an hour or so earlier by doing the precooking and baking for the week right along with the evening meal!
Monday is also our clean the children's bedroom day. Cleaning, washing and vacuuming are all done, bed sheets changed, bookshelves straightened and toys put away. Fly lady taught me that! :) I divide the rooms of my house into the days of the week (Mon - Fri) and clean whatever I need to, so Friday isn't overwhelming for me. When one has low energy, one has to get rather creative! Lol
Oh, and BTW, Steve has lost 15 lbs since we began this lifestyle change in Jan!! I am so happy for him since he is very excited about it!
That being said; a huge thing for our family on this wellness journey is the need to be able to 'live healthy' in a 'normal' world! I have heard of and even tried lots of lifestyles but knew that we could never stay consistent. We believe that staying consistent is the key to a lifestyle change. With sugar being our first and greatest challenge, at this point, we have decided to start there and move on as we feel lead. So, my friends, thank you again. I will read and listen and learn and we will adapt changes into our lifestyle as we move along!
We are eating a lot less bread but are definitely NOT on a gluten free diet, (yet)! :) That may come but right now it is enough for us to just cut back.
I do bake goodies but my self control trick while baking is; for every 'lick', I drink 4 oz of water. And before I start with the baking/licking I eat a protein. That is the protein that will help keep my blood sugar from soaring. The water keeps me from 'licking' very often since licking involves a lot more now then it used to! After the cookies, bars, cakes, breads (yes, breads! They are carbs, you know), etc, are cooled, I portion them into baggies or containers and freeze them! RIGHT AWAY! It's a lot more of a pain to eat frozen stuff!! Putting frozen portions out for lunches etc, is ultra easy tho and can be done while fixing breakfast. Planning ahead is important and sure doesn't hurt me! :)
This pan of bars has about 6,180 calories!
I cut them into 60 bars. This makes them about the size of a 'fun size' candy bar and about 100 to 105 calories per bar.
That way I can eat a cheese stick, a bar, and some almonds and it's about 250 calories.
Usually I put them in snack baggies to freeze them but this time I was out. So I used an ice cream bucket with waxed paper between the layers. No excuses!! These buddies are going in the freezer!!
Yay! No 'picking' at the bars for me now!! :)
(Steve was very sad to discover they were already in the freezer! LOL)
With frozen things in the freezer, I have something on hand when I need it most (think unannounced visitors).
We do keep bacon at a minimum since it is relatively high in calories and is loaded with fat! The same with sausage! Plus, both are pork and isn't really all that good for you in the first place....
Measure, measure, measure is my goal! And I make it easy by having measuring cups on hand just for that! One is often surprised at how much we really are overeating!
We use the slow cooker a lot!! Almost everyday, certainly several times a week! It's SO easy to throw everything into the pot and forget about it till Dinner!
Mondays is our 'cook for the week' day because that is what fits into our schedule. It doesn't usually take long and since we are doing bulk in everything there are less dishes, etc, to contend with. I just start dinner an hour or so earlier by doing the precooking and baking for the week right along with the evening meal!
Monday is also our clean the children's bedroom day. Cleaning, washing and vacuuming are all done, bed sheets changed, bookshelves straightened and toys put away. Fly lady taught me that! :) I divide the rooms of my house into the days of the week (Mon - Fri) and clean whatever I need to, so Friday isn't overwhelming for me. When one has low energy, one has to get rather creative! Lol
Oh, and BTW, Steve has lost 15 lbs since we began this lifestyle change in Jan!! I am so happy for him since he is very excited about it!
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