Next time I start a new way of eating I'm doing it in the winter! This is hard!!!!! It is so hard to keep this family stocked up on good things to eat, and stuff for TR to take to work when all I want to do is go outside and be in my garden. I am having to learn a whole new way of doing things and it is very overwhelming. I am forgetting everything, my brain is on overload. On top of this I started babysitting full time this week. AAHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
No grocery store to fall back on, they hardly have anything healthy. So what to do? Spend more time in the kitchen, and less time outside. I don't think it would be so bad if I already was used to this . . . but I'm not. I am trying new recipes, trying to find new recipes and trying to find time to still do everything that I like doing in the summer.
So I've been neglecting this blog.
One thing I will quickly say is this. I am re-evaluating the Rx for Woman's health diet. I just read "Maker's Diet"(same author) and I think it would be even better for TR. It starts out a lot more restricted and slowly allows more foods in. I've ordered some supplements that will hopefully arrive in a few days that should really help TR too.
But, the kitchen is calling me. More bread to bake and some sort of snack so that my husband has something to take to work tomorrow.
Until next time . . .
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Bad Day
So yesterday was a bad day. All I wanted was chocolate and junk. Luckily we don't have too many bad foods left in our house - but I think that almost everything I ate was in the 'average' category. And I couldn't seem to stop snacking.
So today is going to = more work, and less eating. It is hard to change my mindset from 'live to eat' to 'eat to live'. I don't have to give in to my cravings and desires. I don't have to justify it and say 'it's okay, it's sort of healthy anyway.' I am just trying to lie to myself. It does matter.
Now you may say that I am being too hard on myself, and perhaps I am, but I do not want to be controlled by food. I don't want to have to eat comfort foods in order to feel better. So I will forgive myself for yesterday - and move on to today! Today is a new day with no mistakes in it yet. Jesus has given me a clean slate!
So today I am going to do my best to eat because I'm hungry and my body needs nourishment. And I'm sure that in the end my mood will be better for it - because you know what? Eating all those comfort type foods didn't do a thing for me. They didn't stop the craving, they didn't improve my mood.
p.s. I'm not sure why you thought TR couldn't eat pasta. Maybe you're thinking about the Specific Carb. Diet? That is the diet I was considering before I saw this. The SCD is much much much stricter and doesn't include pasta of any kind, potatoes or rice of any kind (along with a bunch of other things)
So today is going to = more work, and less eating. It is hard to change my mindset from 'live to eat' to 'eat to live'. I don't have to give in to my cravings and desires. I don't have to justify it and say 'it's okay, it's sort of healthy anyway.' I am just trying to lie to myself. It does matter.
Now you may say that I am being too hard on myself, and perhaps I am, but I do not want to be controlled by food. I don't want to have to eat comfort foods in order to feel better. So I will forgive myself for yesterday - and move on to today! Today is a new day with no mistakes in it yet. Jesus has given me a clean slate!
So today I am going to do my best to eat because I'm hungry and my body needs nourishment. And I'm sure that in the end my mood will be better for it - because you know what? Eating all those comfort type foods didn't do a thing for me. They didn't stop the craving, they didn't improve my mood.
p.s. I'm not sure why you thought TR couldn't eat pasta. Maybe you're thinking about the Specific Carb. Diet? That is the diet I was considering before I saw this. The SCD is much much much stricter and doesn't include pasta of any kind, potatoes or rice of any kind (along with a bunch of other things)
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
What in the world am I eating??
So what am I eating these days? I told you what I am not eating. Here's a mini list of some of the foods I've been consuming:
- lots of water. Some herbal teas with honey. Juice that is NOT from concentrate. Apple juice that is 'pressed'.
- I love having an organic apple with almond butter as a snack.
- I have been eating Kettle brand regular chips. These are not super good for you, but they are made with safflower and sunflower oil which is in the 'average' category, and they contain no trans fat. So when I am needing something "junk" like, I eat some of these.
- Rice crackers. Not just any rice crackers. Watch out for the ingredients. Most products made with rice had just as many bad things added in. I can tell you the exact brand if you like, but I don't know it off the top of my head.
- Brown rice. Yesterday we had whole wheat pasta.
- Quinoa instead of rice or pasta. This is actually really good, a little bland, but the texture is nice. It went really good with chili the other day.
Okay, so these are some of the foods that have replaced our old foods. Here's a few meals.
Breakfast: I like having omelets (fried in coconut oil) with organic old cheese, sea salt and pepper. It's good to throw some red peppers in too. I usually have water. Sometimes I will have pressed apple juice.
Lunch: One day I had a salmon salad. Sometimes we have leftovers, or eggs with fresh fruit and veggies on the side. Today we had oatmeal. Not the best of meals, but not too bad. Instead of brown sugar I put in the real brown sugar cane stuff.
Supper: Yesterday we had jack fish with a butter/cream sauce over whole wheat pasta. For dessert we had whole wheat cream puffs with a chocolate sauce.
I will try to remember to tell you more about what we're eating, but now I need to go. The thing to remember is that just because you think something is health - doesn't mean it is. And the reverse is also true - just because you think something is unhealthy - doesn't mean it is. For example: It's not that we can't eat sweet things. It's that we can't eat things made with white sugar. So I use honey and dried sugar cane. Date sugar is also really good, but I haven't been able to get that yet.
Milk is not bad, it is what kind of milk you are drinking. For example: Skim or 1% or 2% is more unhealthy than 3.25%. This is due to the fact that your body has a harder time digesting the milk without the fat in it. (according to Jordan Rubin, I am no scientist, but it makes sense to me). Goats milk is a really good alternative to pasteurized milk.
- lots of water. Some herbal teas with honey. Juice that is NOT from concentrate. Apple juice that is 'pressed'.
- I love having an organic apple with almond butter as a snack.
- I have been eating Kettle brand regular chips. These are not super good for you, but they are made with safflower and sunflower oil which is in the 'average' category, and they contain no trans fat. So when I am needing something "junk" like, I eat some of these.
- Rice crackers. Not just any rice crackers. Watch out for the ingredients. Most products made with rice had just as many bad things added in. I can tell you the exact brand if you like, but I don't know it off the top of my head.
- Brown rice. Yesterday we had whole wheat pasta.
- Quinoa instead of rice or pasta. This is actually really good, a little bland, but the texture is nice. It went really good with chili the other day.
Okay, so these are some of the foods that have replaced our old foods. Here's a few meals.
Breakfast: I like having omelets (fried in coconut oil) with organic old cheese, sea salt and pepper. It's good to throw some red peppers in too. I usually have water. Sometimes I will have pressed apple juice.
Lunch: One day I had a salmon salad. Sometimes we have leftovers, or eggs with fresh fruit and veggies on the side. Today we had oatmeal. Not the best of meals, but not too bad. Instead of brown sugar I put in the real brown sugar cane stuff.
Supper: Yesterday we had jack fish with a butter/cream sauce over whole wheat pasta. For dessert we had whole wheat cream puffs with a chocolate sauce.
I will try to remember to tell you more about what we're eating, but now I need to go. The thing to remember is that just because you think something is health - doesn't mean it is. And the reverse is also true - just because you think something is unhealthy - doesn't mean it is. For example: It's not that we can't eat sweet things. It's that we can't eat things made with white sugar. So I use honey and dried sugar cane. Date sugar is also really good, but I haven't been able to get that yet.
Milk is not bad, it is what kind of milk you are drinking. For example: Skim or 1% or 2% is more unhealthy than 3.25%. This is due to the fact that your body has a harder time digesting the milk without the fat in it. (according to Jordan Rubin, I am no scientist, but it makes sense to me). Goats milk is a really good alternative to pasteurized milk.
Monday, July 12, 2010
One Week Down
The first week is done. And guess what?!?!? I mostly followed the diet. There were a few things I shouldn't have eaten, but overall I did good. And so did TR. There are some things that are a little frustrating - TR is having a hard time with giving up pop. I am finding it hard to find things for the kids to snack on. I am craving chocolate like crazy, but most chocolate has some bad stuff in it. For example, the semi-sweet chocolate chips I used to buy like crazy that I thought were actually healthy - contain too much sugar and actually have artificial flavour! So now I need to find something else that is not straight cocoa, but is still healthy. I am struggling with drinking enough water. I find that the days I remember to drink water are the days I feel the best. I am also finding that it's hard when things get busy. Starting on Tuesday afternoon and going right through to Saturday things were pretty busy around here. It's hard not to fall back on old habits when it comes to what I cook - and there's not enough time to make a salad. I think this week when I buy our veggies I will wash them and put them in my fridge smarts so that I am more prepared when things get crazy. I think it would also be a good idea to fill enough cups for all the water I should be drinking, in the morning so that I can see them and be reminded.
This next week includes the diet, along with adding supplements. So I will be trying to add multivitamins, calcium magnesium, omega 3 oil and alfafa. They recommend using whole food vitamins, whole food calcium magnesium, whole food supergreens, and cod liver oil. Whole food supplements are actually super expensive and since I already know of Shaklee and trust their research (their vitamins are very easily absorbed into the body) I will be using that instead, along with their Omega 3 fish oil capsules.
So, here is a list of my goals for this week:
- figure out some healthy snacks that are easy to pack for the kids (dried apricots are good, but a little variety is nice))
- drink enough water
- figure out something for TR to drink that will help him when he's craving a pop.
- plan my menu and stick it up on the fridge, and do as much pre-work as possible to make it easier when things get busy.
This next week includes the diet, along with adding supplements. So I will be trying to add multivitamins, calcium magnesium, omega 3 oil and alfafa. They recommend using whole food vitamins, whole food calcium magnesium, whole food supergreens, and cod liver oil. Whole food supplements are actually super expensive and since I already know of Shaklee and trust their research (their vitamins are very easily absorbed into the body) I will be using that instead, along with their Omega 3 fish oil capsules.
So, here is a list of my goals for this week:
- figure out some healthy snacks that are easy to pack for the kids (dried apricots are good, but a little variety is nice))
- drink enough water
- figure out something for TR to drink that will help him when he's craving a pop.
- plan my menu and stick it up on the fridge, and do as much pre-work as possible to make it easier when things get busy.
Thursday, July 8, 2010
Overwhelmed
Do you ever feel overwhelmed? The more I try to make healthier choices, the more frustrated I become when I cannot find the healthier version. My main concern right now is our dairy. There are so many chemicals and preservatives in our dairy products and try as I might I have been unable to find better sources. I know that organic milk exists - but the stores here seem to be having trouble getting it onto their shelves. The one product I was able to get here much to my surprise was non-pasteurized, non preservative old cheese. And boy is it ever good! WOW! Not sure I could go back to regular chemicalized cheese after this. And it makes me wonder, have all our taste buds been de-sensitized? So much that we don't even know what food was meant to taste like?
It fills me with saddness when I think that for hundreds of generations people had healthy food. Yes they toiled over it, but it was healthy. Now we don't really have to work hard for our food and the food we eat is very unhealthy. I wish I knew all the ways to make things myself - things that girls a hundred years ago would have learned from early on. But I have to try to teach myself these things now. At least my Mom taught me about gardening and canning. Some women don't even have that experience to draw back on. So I am also overwhelmed with wanting to learn so much, and the amount of time it's going to take before it all feels second nature.
But I'm not giving up. I am ready for this new adventure in my life. I'll just take it one step at a time. After all, that's how I got to this place of wanting to be healthier. One step at a time.
It fills me with saddness when I think that for hundreds of generations people had healthy food. Yes they toiled over it, but it was healthy. Now we don't really have to work hard for our food and the food we eat is very unhealthy. I wish I knew all the ways to make things myself - things that girls a hundred years ago would have learned from early on. But I have to try to teach myself these things now. At least my Mom taught me about gardening and canning. Some women don't even have that experience to draw back on. So I am also overwhelmed with wanting to learn so much, and the amount of time it's going to take before it all feels second nature.
But I'm not giving up. I am ready for this new adventure in my life. I'll just take it one step at a time. After all, that's how I got to this place of wanting to be healthier. One step at a time.
The Dirty Dozen
So what exactly are TR and I eating? Well I will tell you what we are NOT eating in this blog entry. What we are trying to avoid at all costs. Jordan Rubin calls them the Dirty Dozen.
1. Pork Products
2. Shellfish, and fish without fins and scales such as catfish, shark and eel, lobsters, crabs and clams
3. Hydrogenated oils
4. Artificial sweeteners (aspartame, splenda etc)
5. White flour
6. White sugar
7. Soft drinks
8. Pasteurized, homogenized skim milk
9. Corn syrup
10. Hydrolyzed soy protein (found in imitation meat, and I think it's in most soy sauces too)
11. Artificial flavours and colours (this is probably the hardest one. It is in EVERYTHING packaged!)
12. Excessive alcohol
There are more foods that he recommends you eat very sparingly, but this is the avoid-at-all-costs list.
1. Pork Products
2. Shellfish, and fish without fins and scales such as catfish, shark and eel, lobsters, crabs and clams
3. Hydrogenated oils
4. Artificial sweeteners (aspartame, splenda etc)
5. White flour
6. White sugar
7. Soft drinks
8. Pasteurized, homogenized skim milk
9. Corn syrup
10. Hydrolyzed soy protein (found in imitation meat, and I think it's in most soy sauces too)
11. Artificial flavours and colours (this is probably the hardest one. It is in EVERYTHING packaged!)
12. Excessive alcohol
There are more foods that he recommends you eat very sparingly, but this is the avoid-at-all-costs list.
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
1st Supper
Yesterday was Day 1. The only thing they recommend that you change is supper. I tried to eat healthier all day, but I admit, I failed a few times. I guess it is good that it starts out slowly!
We started the meal with a green salad - lettuce, red peppers, cucumbers, bean sprouts, celery (TR had mushrooms too) with oil based dressings. I need to get a better dressing, but these were the best I could do for yesterday. (greek feta and orgegano and italian)
After the salad we had the main course which turned out awesome! The meat dish was one I've done before, but this time I made some healthy adjustments and WOW! It was even better. Here's what we ate:
Anne's Fabulous Grilled Chicken (recipe originally calls for Salmon)
Brown Basmati Rice (bought at our drug store)
Lightly steamed broccoli
Instead of soy sauce on the rice I just made extra sauce that the chicken was in, instead of margarine on the broccoli we used butter. Instead of regular salt, we used sea salt.
So here is the recipe for the chicken. I found it on www.allrecipes.com
1 tbsp vegetable oil (I used butter)
1 tbsp soy sauce (I used organic REAL soy sauce from our drug store)
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce (I omitted this)
1 lemon, juiced.
1/2 tsp grated fresh ginger root (so much better than powder!)
2 tbsp honey
1/3 cup fresh basil leaves (straight from my garden :)
1 tbsp finely chopped shallots (I used fresh onions and their greens from my garden)
1 (3 pound) salmon fillet, with skin (I used pieces of chicken)
And then for dessert we had organic blueberries I got from the grocery store with whipped cream sweetened with real vanilla extract and real maple syrup (just a tad of this)
It was amazing. And I actually had some energy when supper was over. I really liked the three course thing. Didn't plan it that way, the supper just took longer than I had anticipated (the brown rice took longer to cook than the stuff I usually used) so we had the salad first, and we don't usually have dessert, but it was nice. It was a good incentive for Chloe to finish her meal, and it was a good way to end a good meal.
Now I have to go, my stomach is growling and I'm anxious to try my organic apple with my almond butter :)
We started the meal with a green salad - lettuce, red peppers, cucumbers, bean sprouts, celery (TR had mushrooms too) with oil based dressings. I need to get a better dressing, but these were the best I could do for yesterday. (greek feta and orgegano and italian)
After the salad we had the main course which turned out awesome! The meat dish was one I've done before, but this time I made some healthy adjustments and WOW! It was even better. Here's what we ate:
Anne's Fabulous Grilled Chicken (recipe originally calls for Salmon)
Brown Basmati Rice (bought at our drug store)
Lightly steamed broccoli
Instead of soy sauce on the rice I just made extra sauce that the chicken was in, instead of margarine on the broccoli we used butter. Instead of regular salt, we used sea salt.
So here is the recipe for the chicken. I found it on www.allrecipes.com
1 tbsp vegetable oil (I used butter)
1 tbsp soy sauce (I used organic REAL soy sauce from our drug store)
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce (I omitted this)
1 lemon, juiced.
1/2 tsp grated fresh ginger root (so much better than powder!)
2 tbsp honey
1/3 cup fresh basil leaves (straight from my garden :)
1 tbsp finely chopped shallots (I used fresh onions and their greens from my garden)
1 (3 pound) salmon fillet, with skin (I used pieces of chicken)
And then for dessert we had organic blueberries I got from the grocery store with whipped cream sweetened with real vanilla extract and real maple syrup (just a tad of this)
It was amazing. And I actually had some energy when supper was over. I really liked the three course thing. Didn't plan it that way, the supper just took longer than I had anticipated (the brown rice took longer to cook than the stuff I usually used) so we had the salad first, and we don't usually have dessert, but it was nice. It was a good incentive for Chloe to finish her meal, and it was a good way to end a good meal.
Now I have to go, my stomach is growling and I'm anxious to try my organic apple with my almond butter :)
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
Everything is about to change . . .
Many things have been happening in my life in the last year and a half. Good things I think, but so many changes. Lately I just think 'Who am I? How did I get to this place?"
Well, it's been changes, little tiny baby steps in some places, and huge big jumps in others. The latest change is our diet. As some of you are aware, TR was diagnosed with Ulcerative Colitis about 7 months ago. Recently I came across a big entitled "The Great Physician's Rx for Woman's Health" What I read in there sent shock waves throughout my brain. The author of this book (Jordan Rubin) challenges his readers to live their life in a Godly manner that is pleasing to God. And that involves health. I thought I was healthy - until I read that nearly everything has sugar in it, and preservatives. And then I checked my cupboards and fridge and discovered he was right. The really great part is that he suffered from Crohns when he was 19 years old. The doctors wanted to remove most of his intestines. After changing his lifestyle and his diet he is now in perfect health with a very healthy intestine! For those of you who don't know, Crohns and Colitis are similar diseases. So, we are giving it a go. He has designed the diet for 7 weeks. So for now our goal is to eat and live how he outlines in his book and after the 7 weeks to re-evaluate.
I love talking about this. It is quickly becoming my passion. I can get quite long winded. So, in an effort to save my relationships with those people whom I love dearly, but who are not as excited about this as I am :) I will be sharing with you on this blog how our journey is going.
Well, it's been changes, little tiny baby steps in some places, and huge big jumps in others. The latest change is our diet. As some of you are aware, TR was diagnosed with Ulcerative Colitis about 7 months ago. Recently I came across a big entitled "The Great Physician's Rx for Woman's Health" What I read in there sent shock waves throughout my brain. The author of this book (Jordan Rubin) challenges his readers to live their life in a Godly manner that is pleasing to God. And that involves health. I thought I was healthy - until I read that nearly everything has sugar in it, and preservatives. And then I checked my cupboards and fridge and discovered he was right. The really great part is that he suffered from Crohns when he was 19 years old. The doctors wanted to remove most of his intestines. After changing his lifestyle and his diet he is now in perfect health with a very healthy intestine! For those of you who don't know, Crohns and Colitis are similar diseases. So, we are giving it a go. He has designed the diet for 7 weeks. So for now our goal is to eat and live how he outlines in his book and after the 7 weeks to re-evaluate.
I love talking about this. It is quickly becoming my passion. I can get quite long winded. So, in an effort to save my relationships with those people whom I love dearly, but who are not as excited about this as I am :) I will be sharing with you on this blog how our journey is going.
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