Rollin' along...

So it seems all I have to do is focus and commit to cleaning up my food. It's really not that hard, I just needed a push in the right direction. I admit that I miss dairy. Butter, plain greek yogurt and cheese have become staples in my daily meals. I've been transitioning away from them this week, so that the April start to Whole30 will be easier.
Want to see my food yesterday? I'm sure you're holding your breathe in anticipation...no? Well, here it is anyway.
Coffee with coconut milk. Green smoothie (spinach, frozen berries, ground flaxseed, bee pollen, egg whites & hemp seed). Repeat lunch...tuna, massaged kale and to jazz it up, a couple 6 minute eggs in all their gooey glory. Mid afternoon snack was half of a sweet potato with a bit of coconut oil. Breakfast for dinner (once a week in our house). Cabbage, asparagus, mushroom & kale sautéed in olive oil and egg white/egg scramble. I did 6 egg whites & 2 whole eggs.
Simple and delicious. Food budget is tight this week so I'll have to get creative.

What's your favorite budget friendly meal? Please share.

Weigh-in and Yesterday's Wrap-up

Yesterday was a good day :)
Coffee with the homemade coconut milk got me started. After I took my son the the dentist I came home and whipped up a smoothie with some spinach, frozen berries, hemp seed, ground flax, bee pollen and coconut water. Lunchtime was a can of tuna mixed with some of my pre-prepped massaged kale.
It was a beautiful day so I took my lunch outside and soaked up some vitamin D. Mid afternoon I was hungry so made a snack of veggies and a couple 6 minute eggs (my absolute favorite).
For dinner I made chicken lettuce wraps. I did add a bit of mayo to the chicken, but otherwise it was all good stuff. Very yummy too.
I decided yesterday that I would jot down my food during the day and go into MyFitnessPal at the end of the day and log my food. I like knowing approx how many calories I'm eating and having a idea of how my macronutrients are divided. Yesterday ended up on the low side at just under 1300 calories. I wasn't hungry though and think that has more to do with the pig out I had on Tuesday night.
I finally managed to get my workout in too (the last two days I didn't get it in). I made up my strength session I missed on Tuesday and then did today's workout. I still have to do some yoga, but the big part is done.
Hope your week is going well!
P.S. Official weight today was 149. The scale had bumped up as high as 154 this week, so even though I technically have a gain from my last weigh-in, I'm good with this number :) Plus, I pulled off a couple chin-ups today. Getting stronger is the goal, not necessarily a number on the scale.

Coconut milk and other meal prep...

Yesterday I was a busy bee after grocery shopping.  I'm committed to setting myself up for success for the Whole30, so I am getting in the mode NOW.  Here are a few shots of my day yesterday....

Breakfast: Chicken breasts with curry powder and pepper, cooked in coconut oil

Prepped radishes for snacking. I saved the greens too for salads and smoothies

Dinner.  I love doing chicken this way.  Just toss it in the crockpot and let it go. 

 I picked the carcass after dinner and plan on making lettuce rolls for dinner tonight. I also threw it back in the crockpot over night and now I have a lovely chicken stock to store in the freezer to be used as needed.

My silly boy was helping me prep the kale.

He was good at tearing the leaves into bite sized pieces

Dressing for the kale.  Mustard, olive oil and juice from half a lemon + pepper

Ready to be dressed

Dump on the olive oil mixture

Massage away...about 2-3 minutes till it wilts and softens

Pure deliciousness.  I like to let the flavors "marinate" for at least an hour before eating.

Next it was coconut time.

 This step is messy.  A big heavy knife will help crack the  coconut open.  (Do a google search for "how to open a coconut").  Make sure you have a vessel ready to catch the coconut water.

I strained the water through a cheesecloth into a bowl, then it went in a cup in the fridge for later use.

After prying the flesh from the shell

 I placed the flesh into my trusty Vitamix and poured hot water over it (almost boiling, but not quite).  I let it it sit while I used my vegetable peeler to clean and shave more flesh for toasting.  Then I let it whirl for a couple minutes.  It then went through the cheesecloth again (makes sure you squeeze the pulp in the cheesecloth).  

The fruits of my labor.  Gorgeous fresh coconut milk.  I think I might need to invest in a bigger carafe.

Toasted coconut flakes for snacking

After school: The kids asked to squeeze oranges from the backyard.  Why not?

Dinner: Chicken from the crockpot, asparagus and mashed cauliflower.

The cauliflower has a bit of parmesean cheese in it.  When I start the Whole30, I'll have to tweak the recipe.

While it may seem like I had an awesome day, the truth is I went a little nutso about 10 o'clock last night.  Nothing good comes from late night eating. 

So far today I've had coconut milk in my coffee and I plan on making a big green smoothie shortly.  I am still debating on whether to continue logging my foods using MyFitnessPal while on the Whole30. 

Happy Hump Day! 



   

Almond butter and more...

Guess what, 2nd post in one day....
I'm testing out the Blogger app to see if it works to blog this way. Generally I use my computer, but for some reason I hate connecting the camera or iPad to retrieve pictures. It's silly, I know. With the Whole30 coming, I want to try and post more meals and pictures of how the family is doing.

I started the day with an egg and egg white frittata with leftover broccoli and a grapefruit that I pulled off the tree in the backyard. I really need to make a trip to the grocery store, but that didn't happen today. I have my list all ready and plan on going first thing in the morning.

My son asked if we could make almond butter, so we did. I love fresh almond butter. I only had a little bit of almonds left in the cupboard, so I made what I had. Tomorrow I'm going to attempt some coconut milk....yeah, seriously. Maybe coconut butter too. Toasted coconut for sure and massaged kale. I have a feeling it's going to be a big "food prep day" tomorrow.

What's your favorite food to make from scratch?

Technical difficulties...

I don't know what happened with the formatting in the last post, and I can't seem to get it fixed.  Kinda irritates me, but not sure what to do about it.

Anyway, so of the info that is unreadable in the margins, pertains to transitioning the family to a more whole foods, less sugar and processed "food product" life.  I am going to go a more strict direction for myself in the form of the Whole30. Click the link in the previous post to read more about it. 

Sorry for the technical difficulties folk!  I have a feeling the problem stems from me starting the post on my iPad and then finishing it on the computer. 

Here's to a great week! 

Changes a brewin'

Today I watched a documentary called "Hungry for Change". If you have Netflix, it's available for instant streaming. For those of you who don't,  you can watch it at http://www.hungryforchange.tv/
It's a good doc with some important information that I think needs to be shared.

To be honest, it wasn't earth shattering information for me, but it did reinforce my current way of eating and light the spark that's been missing lately.

I've been reluctant to change things too much for my family, for fear of rocking the boat I suppose. It's time though.  They eat fairly well, but I am very concerned that they eat too much that is processed, and way to much sugar.  So the time has come to transition the family.  My husband is on board, so I'll be doing my best to help him along as well.  I will not be throwing anything out.  No big purge, or anything to that effect (except maybe the stupid bag of random jolly ranchers, lollipops and candy canes that sits up in the cupboard).  I just will not be replacing certain things as we run out. And I'll be swapping things out till we get to a healthier, more "whole food" based diet (as a family, instead of just me).
 
This may be the hardest for my oldest child, as she eats mostly carbs (like bread, Cheerios and oatmeal). The next week is going to be spent searching for alternative breakfast items for her.  The other 2 kids eat eggs, but she has a major aversion to them. Any suggestions would be appreciated!

My buddy Kristen at "Change of Pace" decided to start a 30 day challenge in April.  I have been batting around the idea of doing a strict "30 day" myself, so it kind of seemed opportune.  Check it out-

Expect my blogging presence to be much greater over the next month as I'm sure I'll have much to share....

Hope you're having a great weekend!!

Groundhog's Day & Blahs

I have a serious case of "Groundhog Day" syndrome.  You know, same thing, day after day.  Don't get me wrong, I LOVE being a stay-at-home mom.  Sometimes though it just feels like I'm on a hamster wheel.  I love routine....until I hate it.  Right now I just feel so *SIGH*. 
Some of you may be shaking your heads at me right now.  That's okay.  I just know how I'm feeling.  Nothing in particular I can pinpoint that set this off, I just know I'm in a funk.
Yesterday I kinda just sat around.  I did a few things around the house, but again, same things I normally do.  Make beds, clean the kitchen, straighten the house (which all need to be done again, today).  I had a plan for dinner, but didn't follow through so we ended up ordering pizza.  Nice right?? NOT!
So what's the solution?  Change things up I suppose.  Today I'm going to bust through the chores as quickly as possible and then sit down and redo my workout routine (and chore list). I've been slacking in the workout dept. so it's time to get out of the rut.  I also need to make a bigger effort to engage my husband in conversation.  Yesterday was pathetic. It was his day off and we hardly spoke.  What is that? Normal ebb and flow in a marriage, I know, but I gotta change that because by last night I was really upset by our lack of interaction.
Sorry to be such a downer.  Hope your week is going well. Gonna kick this funk to the curb and check back soon... 

What do you do when you're in a funk??

Cake, Color and Goals...

Things have been busy for me.  Hope everyone is doing well. 

The past few days have been a bit disjointed in the eating dept.  Friday was my husband's uncles' funeral.  He passed suddenly at the young age of 54.  Besides the emotional aspect of the situation, it was just overall a very busy day and I didn't truly get a chance to stop and eat until about 4:30 p.m.  I was doing pretty well until the cake came out.  I ate some.  Not the end of the world, considering, but emotionally food is still a crutch that I turn to in times of stress.  Not awesome.

On a happier note, Saturday I ran a "Color Run" with my oldest kiddo and some other family.  We had a good time.  I walked a lot, but I had anticipated walking a good portion.  It gave me some time to chat with my sister-in-law and enjoy the sunshine. It was a great "memory making" experience for my daughter and I. 

My last official weigh-in on Thursday was 148.0. I screwed that up some by eating cake on Friday and drinking a couple beers with my corn beef yesterday, but I'm intent on pulling it back together today. One "off" meal and a piece of cake is not the end of the world.

Last week I sat down and crunched numbers trying to figure out if my "ultimate goal weight" of 134-136 was reasonable.  Turns out, if I want to maintain my current lean body mass of 115, a more reasonable goal is 140-143.  That puts me at about 18-20% body fat without compromising my lbm.  With my birthday coming up in 7 weeks, my plan is to buckle down, eat clean, and strength train like a beast. Wherever I am on my birthday is where I will focus on maintaining.

Now, I must go plan my menu for the week....

Do you have any new goals? What about a favorite healthy meal to feed the family? 

Weigh-in 3/7

Previous weight: 150.6
Current weight: 149.2
Change: -1.4lbs

To be honest, I wasn't expecting any loss this week.  TOM is close and it's pretty normal for me not to lose right before I start.  Besides one "iffy" day of eating this week, things have been on point. The iffy day was indulging in ribs on Sunday. I felt very blah after over eating. I decided to go for a walk post meal....which morphed into a 5mi run. Yeah, seriously. I was feeling very ambitious (and guilty for eating so much).  Turns out that running 5 mi when your body has been trying to fight off a cold isn't the best idea lol.
I've spent this week in an endless circuit of feeling good/feeling like crap. Pure awesomeness.
My mom is coming into town to visit for a couple days and I have to register my son for kindergarten today. Hopefully I'll find time to strength train somewhere in my day.
I hope your week is going well. I promise to try and get another post written soon with more info than just my weigh-in blurb.....