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Healthy Eating Is a Journey

September 27, 2017 By Sara M. 17 Comments

Eating healthy seems to be a recurring theme among my family and friends recently:

My sister had a flareup of her major chronic stomach disorder. A friend of mine told me she’d heard that sugar might potentially be more damaging that fat (which I totally believe). Another friend and I were discussing the overwhelming amount of “food rules” we were hearing about: cutting down on dairy, avoiding certain nuts, going gluten-free, etc.

My mind swims with all of the healthy eating trends. I feel inundated by the constant barrage of “eat this” and “don’t eat that.” “This is good for you” and “this is terrible for you.” How do you eat that? Is _______ still a part of your diet?

I feel panicked that I need to stop everything and rethink my eating habits. But then I remember how far I’ve come. I remember how far we’ve come as a family.

Eating healthfully is about progress not perfection.

Over the past 10 years, I’ve been on a journey to improve my eating habits.

Soda & High Calorie Beverages

The first major change was cutting out soda. Between the high sugar content, calories, and the chemicals found in common sodas, I decided it had to go. I learned to substitute for seltzer when I still craved that bubbly taste. And even that evolved, when I switched from drinking seltzer with sodium and synthetic sweeteners to a brand with no sodium and natural flavoring.

Fast Food

Next to go was high calorie, super salty fast food. I realized that in order to make food as cheaply as they do, fast food chains must use pretty low quality ingredients. Plus, the very nature of fast food really encouraged me to eat on the run, which lead to unconscious eating and poor digestion. I make two exceptions, Panera Bread (although I am cutting back due to high calorie content) and a quick pre-packaged sandwich from places like Starbucks. I am also very likely to stop for a yogurt or a granola bar to tide me over until I can get home for a real meal.

Alcohol

Then we began drinking less. In addition to the useless calories, I was also turned off by the fact that alcohol turns into sugar in your body. And as I’ve aged, I have definitely become less tolerant of large quantities of alcohol. A second glass of wine has been known to give me a hangover, no matter how much water I drink.

Red Meat

Cutting back on red meat was tough, but all of the evidence was pointing to the fact that Americans eat way too much. I can go a few days without red meat, but my body really craves it if I go any longer than that. Even cutting back to 2 or 3 times a week is a huge improvement for our family. One added bonus was a reduction in our grocery bill as red meats can really add up.

Pre-Packaged Foods

We worked to reduce our consumption of pre-packaged foods. This one is hard to balance because it takes time to prepare foods from scratch. I am a SAHM now, but if I went back to work full time, we’d really need to figure out how to continue this habit. Occasional exceptions to the rule include: pre-made ravioli, baked beans, Kraft macaroni & cheese, etc.

Added Sugar

Sugar is EVERYWHERE! This was is really hard to do since it seems that most products have added sugar. And sometimes even switching to sugar free was difficult because we were so used the taste of certain things with sugar. Some of the big ones have been low sugar yogurt, sugar-free peanut butter, and sugar-free tomato sauce. If we choose a product that has sugar we opt for one that uses real sugar as opposed to high fructose corn syrup. We also avoid artificial sweeteners due to their high chemical content and questionable effects on the body.

Full Fat Dairy

I read a study review years ago that highlighted that the common recommendation of switching to low fat dairy products due to curb obesity concerns was actually having the opposite effect. The body does better consuming full fat products, because a) fat isn’t as bad as we thought, and b) consuming full fat allows us to feel fuller faster as opposed to being deceptively empty from reduced fat content. As a result, we’ve switched to full fat dairy wherever available (although some categories are difficult).

Protein Portion

We realized we were eating way too much meat and that oftentimes meat was the main focus of the meal. Instead, we are making some vegetarian meals, as well as cutting back the meat to a much smaller percentage of the whole meal.

Organic Foods

As we’ve had more expendable incomes, we have slowly been able to switch to more and more organic products, especially meats, dairy, and produce. Not yet at 100% organic, our goal is to continue to improve in this area, especially as more products become available and the cost decreases with demand.

*****

Actually writing this list helps me realize just how far we’ve come. And I know that we will continue to adjust and make improvements over time. Eating right is an important theme in our lives and we will continue to learn from new research and trends.

It is important to consider that trends aren’t always right (as in the trend to eat sugar as opposed to fats) and that many people (and companies!) have an agenda when it comes to espousing food rules. They are trying to profit in some way by encouraging changes in your eating habits.

So, before I give up cheese (gasp!) or bread (gluten) or anything else, or allow myself to get stressed over the endless rules being tossed about, I will stop and remember how much progress I’ve made from the girl who used to live on Ramen noodles and the McDonald’s dollar menu.

It’s a journey, like most health related habits. It’s impractical, (virtually impossible) to expect to change everything at once.

Why Our Coffee Habit Needed an Overhaul

August 2, 2017 By Sara M. 5 Comments

This is not a sponsored post.

We used to be very typical coffee consumers. With both my husband and I working from home, we easily consumed a 10-12 cup pot each day.

But my husband’s intense stomach pain put an end to that. He was having episodes of stomach spasms that were so bad he would throw up or not be able to eat. We finally sought help from a gastroenterologist, and it was determined that he’d need a scope so the doctor could see what was going on in my husband’s stomach.

And that’s when he found some serious damage in both the stomach and the esophagus caused by high acidity (and stress). And it was a major wake-up call for us.

Along with a dose of super strength Prilosec, we began to get an education on the types of foods and beverages that were contributing to an acidic diet. And coffee was high on the list.

We began looking into coffees with lower acidity and stumbled upon the concept of shade grown coffee. Coffee was typically a plant that flourished in the shade of other trees until the commercial coffee industry created strains that were able to withstand the heat of direct sunlight. This allowed for coffee to be grown at higher rates in order to keep up with increased consumption. But shade grown coffee has about half the acid compared with conventional coffee.

This led us to Camano Island Coffee Roasters. In addition to being shade grown and therefore having lower acidity, their coffee is also organic, fair-trade, and high quality (top 1%). I am willing to pay a little extra for beans that are fair-trade, putting the focus on sustainable farming and fair wages for growers.

Here is a referral link for this coffee – $20 off your first coffee club order!

We recently made another change, and that was switching to half-caffeinated coffee. While we had already limited our coffee consumption to 2 cups each per day, we realized that we could lower our acid intake yet again by limiting the caffeine. I realize this is not for everyone, but I was also trying to remove the crutch of relying on caffeine to get me moving. I get much more out of a quick power nap that the rush and crash of drinking too much caffeine. I also want to be much more aware of my body’s needs than relying on a coffee to keep me stimulated.

You might ask ‘why not just give up coffee completely?’ Truth be told, we just aren’t ready yet. Coffee, for us, represents a chance to relax in the morning, collecting our thoughts and planning our days. So, maybe, one day we’ll give it up for good, but for now it’s still a really pleasant morning ritual.

Because we work from home, we like to grind and brew fresh coffee every morning. I love our coffee pot because it brews directly into a stainless steel carafe that keeps the coffee hot all day. For a special treat, I use a milk frother to make my favorite coffee drinks.

Coffee consumption is increasingly popular in our culture these days, demonstrated by the regularity of posts on the topic. I am curious to know if you are considering making changes to your coffee habit?

5 Ideas for Sneaking Vegetables into Common Meals

November 15, 2016 By Sara M. 9 Comments

We have a small vegetable crisis in our house. It’s actually not the supply of fresh vegetables, but the lack of consumption of such a nutritious food group.

And honestly, I am so sick of the three vegetables I am “allowed” to serve: green beans, broccoli, and salad with minimal toppings.

So, I devised a plan: to sneak as many vegetables into their favorite meals without destroying the meal itself.

Here is what’s worked so far (“worked” being loosely defined as in it was eaten despite grotesque faces being made):

Lasagna – I added ½ of a yellow squash and ½ of a zucchini to a traditional lasagna recipe. My family has a major opposition to squash because of the mushy texture when cooked. To fix this, I put it in the food processor then sautéed it in onions before adding it to the meat. I was hoping the food processing and sautéing would disguise it completely, but the teen busted me because she could see the tiny bits of green skin. However, she did say that while she could taste the vegetables, it was “edible.” Note for next time: I think I am going to try to hide it in a chunky tomato sauce instead and worst case scenario I will remove the skin.
Tacos – I added a can of black beans to the ground beef. My littlest ones love beans and will eat them cold out of the can, but my husband and the teen aren’t crazy about the texture. Something about the way they squish when you bite into them. For the first round, I actually roughly chopped the beans to help cut down on the squish factor. Second time around I just left them whole and was surprised when no one complained. I think with tacos they are more prepared for all of the different textures because of all the additional toppings.
Veggie rich packaged foods – I am experimenting with packaged items that have been made with a partial serving of vegetables. Two examples of this are quite common, vegetable pasta and vegetable wraps. It does change the flavor and consistency a little but it is easily disguised by other ingredients such as tomato sauce or meat. This helps me feel a little better about serving such carb laden foods. I’ve been using Barilla pasta, but there are several major brands that now carry a veggie line.
Quiche – The trick with quiche is to add a bland vegetable such as spinach or peppers and sauté it with onions. Also, I started with tiny bits at first and then I’ve been slowly raising the proportion of vegetable to egg/meat/cheese.
Tomato sauce – I typically buy chunky tomato sauce, so it is very easy to add sautéed vegetables or chopped kale into it. The trick is to cut it small and keep the ratio of vegetable to sauce low. And you can raise the ratio as your family gets more accustomed to the new textures and flavors. Adding browned ground beef or sausage can mask most flavors.

So, short and sweet. I will definitely keep you in the loop as I continue my experiment.

Have you had any luck hiding vegetables or beans into your family’s regular meals?

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Setting Up My Exercise Routine

October 27, 2016 By Sara M. 9 Comments

I haven’t gotten to the goal setting part of the Sanity Plan, but I just wanted to write a quick note about one of my goals. If you’ve been reading, you may have heard me say how much I hate exercise. In fact, I often refer to exercise as an allergy of mine (along with cleaning).

But recently, it has come to a point where I simply have to address my sedentary nature. For my health, both physical and mental.

Ever since my son was born almost two years ago, I have been in significant back pain. I had a strange stabbing pain in my hip for the better part of a year from misalignment. And my upper neck and shoulders are rock hard from stress, on top of a long term injury.

I’ve done all the passive treatments I can do including chiropractic and massage, both with a therapeutic bent. This works for a short period, a couple weeks at best, before the symptoms recur.

The truth is that I am not doing any of the work needed to physical maintain any of the repairs they make.

As for my sanity, I am being constantly reminded by my reading or my therapist about the benefits of physical activity. How good it is for your brain. How good it is for being present. How good it is for balancing your hormones. Add those benefits to the fact that if regular exercise keeps me out of physical pain, it will be a winning combination.

I am not getting any younger, and I am finally ready to make a commitment to exercise. This was partially prompted by my brilliant therapist who suggested that I not enroll in a coveted writing class until I had accomplished this.

So, I’ve laid some groundwork. I have chosen two low impact activities based on what I’ve described above: yoga and swimming. I’ve decided to take classes because, knowing myself, I will be much more likely to stay committed if there is accountability.

I picked out a yoga studio very close by, reviewed the schedule, and spoke with a manager about my skill level and potential classes to take. As for swimming, my timing couldn’t be better as registration is open this week for a series that begins next week.

So there it is, my goal is out there in the world. I am going to exercise two times per week. Monday mornings for swim, and Tuesday nights for yoga.

Now I can go sign up for that writing class.

Do you incorporate exercise into your Sanity Plan? What is the biggest benefit you see?

5 Sweet Treats for Grown Up Cravings

October 10, 2016 By Sara M. Leave a Comment

This post is inspired by the lovely twin mamas over at KLINWIN.

When I am on the healthy lifestyle bandwagon (ahem, trying to slim down wagon), I need every trick I can to satisfy those cravings for sweets and junky foods. Here are my current go to snacks:

Kit’s Organic Fruit & Nut Bar (180 calories)

This is my number one favorite thing to snack on. Why? It has zero sugar added. The bar is date based so it is plenty sweet without adding any sugar. In my opinion, the unsweetened chocolate is actually the strongest flavor and you might not even realize there are dates in it. And, it has nuts for protein.

Santa Cruz Cinnamon Apple Sauce Cups (60 calories)

I love to eat one of these after dinner when I am craving a desert. Again, no added sugar and the cinnamon adds a little extra flavor. I alternate this version with the apricot version if I need something to help me stay regular (if you know what I mean). I buy these on Amazon subscribe & save to get 15% off.

Nature’s Bakery Fig Bars (220 calories)

A healthy version “Fig Newton.” There are tons of different flavors available. They are Vegan, Kosher, and Non-GMO verified. They are nut free for the school snack that can’t have nuts. They also have a gluten-free version (although we prefer the original).

Siggi’s 4% Milkfat Yogurt (120 calories)

This yogurt is low in sugar so if you are used to sweet yogurts, you will likely need to add fresh fruit or a small amount of sugar to sweeten until you get used to it. Great dessert alternative.

Chocolove Peppermint Dark Chocolate (27 calories per square)

Who doesn’t like chocolate? This version is great because it is dark, and contains essential peppermint oils which are very calming for me at the end of the night. I can eat no less than 3, so I have to take that into consideration! They do also have mini bars which would help for those days when self-control is low.

Do you have snacks that help satisfy your sweet tooth? I’d love to hear what works for you!

Our Teen’s Friends Labeled Us “The Healthy House”

September 19, 2016 By Sara M. Leave a Comment

It’s true, we eat healthy. But I never really understood how other people see us until I had a house full of bubbly girls over for our teen’s 13^th birthday party. As they gathered around the center island munching chips and salsa and veggies and dip, I heard the commentary about how we’d been designated as “The Healthy House.” It wasn’t particularly snarky, just a statement of fact with a slight bit of teasing for good measure. But there were a lot of raised eyebrows when I pulled out the Cheetos and cookies. It was a birthday party…

Healthy Habits

Honestly, I have never really considered how other people see our eating habits. We have been on a mission for the past decade to improve our eating. We try to be more conscious about what we consume. It started with eliminating fast food chains. I will make an exception for Panera, but recently I’ve been pulling back on that because of the high calorie meals and sweet temptations. We do eat a decent local pizza about once per week. What teen (or adult) could live without pizza every now and then?

I try not to buy too many snack foods either. Don’t get me wrong. I LOVE Fritos, Cheezits, Cheetos, Mac’N’Cheese, Captain Crunch, Lucky Charms, etc. But if I buy anything of this nature, every single person in the house will rummage past all the fresh fruit and vegetables and eat that first (including me!).

What do we eat instead? Grilled meats, steamed veggies, fresh fruits, whole grain breads and bars, low sugar cereal, nuts, full fat milk and yogurt, etc. Plenty of butter and unprocessed salt. And dark chocolate. I always sprinkle in a little junk here and there so we don’t feel too deprived. You can read more of our food rules here.

How Other People See Us

It never occurred to me that my teen would be identified as a healthy eater. What she packs for lunch is normal to us, but apparently her classmates find it odd. She brings PBJ’s on whole wheat bread with water, sliced cucumbers or carrots, and no sugar applesauce. Or, she’ll make herself a salad.

When I talked to her about it, she laughed. She listed off the things her friends bring to school: several packages of Tastykakes, sandwiches on white bread, and sugary fruit drinks to name a few. And yes, I was shocked. Horrified actually! How can these girls study and concentrate if they don’t have real food to feed their brains?

But I am very aware of making sure my daughter is not singled out for our crazy habits. It’s hard enough being at a new school with new friends in a new area without being labeled as different, or worse, weird. I remember what that was like as my parents had plenty of different ideas about life.

So, I offered to buy her some junk food.

Was she feeling deprived?

Does it bother her that we eat so healthily?

To my surprise, it didn’t bother her at all. She likes the way we eat and doesn’t mind being different. After all, to a teen girl, being “The Healthy House” isn’t the worst label we could have. For now, that is.

Healthy Eating Is a Journey

Soda & High Calorie Beverages

Fast Food

Alcohol

Red Meat

Pre-Packaged Foods

Added Sugar

Full Fat Dairy

Protein Portion

Organic Foods

Why Our Coffee Habit Needed an Overhaul

5 Ideas for Sneaking Vegetables into Common Meals

Setting Up My Exercise Routine

5 Sweet Treats for Grown Up Cravings

Our Teen’s Friends Labeled Us “The Healthy House”

Healthy Habits

How Other People See Us

Categories

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Soda & High Calorie Beverages

Fast Food

Alcohol

Red Meat

Pre-Packaged Foods

Added Sugar

Full Fat Dairy

Protein Portion

Organic Foods

Healthy Habits

How Other People See Us

Categories

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