Eating Right Guidelines

Who remembers the four food groups? It's okay, you don't have to tell, as I know that would give a clue as to your age.  Pretty easy to remember right? 
     (1) meats, poultry, fish, dry beans and peas, eggs, and nuts;
     (2) dairy products, such as milk, cheese, and yogurt;
     (3) grains; and
     (4) fruits and vegetables





Then there was the pyramid. Not so easy to remember, but the graphic explained what you needed in terms of portions in relation to the other groups. I think this graphic were everywhere. You couldn't miss it. 



            Look familiar?


Now, we have My Plate. If I'm reading it correctly, it's about enjoying your food with portion control. Makes sense. Oh, and the graphic changed again.  Expect to see this everywhere you go...





My pre-school son has even brought home art projects around this graphic.  Teaching them early, good idea. I plan on spending some time scouring through the website to learn more. www.choosemyplate.gov is a good resource.  Be sure, when you check it out for yourself, you play with the "Get a personalized plan" feature. It's very cool.

Trying Something New

I was browsing about on the internet, not really looking for anything in particular, just looking. I find myself following one link after another until I can't find my way back to where I started. I learn new things, find new recipes, discover lesson plans, activities in my area, and occasionally something I must share with others.

Today's find (other than the recipe I found this morning) is this meditation page. I'm going to give meditation a try. I'll be using this site to guide me as I learn. I'll post as to how it goes.  For today, I'm just going to check it out.

Here's the link: http://www.learningmeditation.com/

Yummy!

I've been looking for yummy, healthy recipes that are also inexpensive and relatively easy. What a task! I found this one this morning. If the heat will ever break, I am going to try it out. It looks really tasty!


Turkey with Blueberry Pan Sauce

Ingredients

Serves: 

• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 3/4 teaspoon salt, divided
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• 1 pound turkey tenderloin (see Ingredient note)
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/4 cup chopped shallots
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
• 2 cups blueberries
• 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 450°F. Whisk flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper in a shallow dish. Dredge turkey in the mixture. (Discard any leftover flour.)

2. Heat oil in a large ovenproof skillet over high heat. Add the turkey; cook until golden brown on one side, 3 to 5 minutes. Turn the turkey over and transfer the pan to the oven. Roast until the turkey is just cooked through and no longer pink in the middle, 15 to 20 minutes. Transfer the turkey to a plate and tent with foil to keep warm.

3. Place the skillet over medium heat. (Take care, the handle will still be very hot.) Add shallots and thyme and cook, stirring constantly, until the shallots begin to brown, 30 seconds to 1 minute. Add blueberries, vinegar and the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt; continue cooking, stirring occasionally and scraping up any brown bits, until the blueberries burst and release their juices and the mixture becomes thick and syrupy, 4 to 5 minutes. Slice the turkey and serve with the blueberry pan sauce.

Ingredient Note: A turkey tenderloin is an all-white piece that comes from the rib side of the breast. Tenderloins typically weigh between 7 and 14 ounces each and can be found with other turkey products in the meat section of most supermarkets.

Nutrition Facts

Per Single Serving / Serves 4 Total
Calories	215		Total Carbohydrates	15gm	5%
Calories from fat	45		Total Fat	5gm	8%
Saturated Fat	1gm	5%	Mono Unsaturated Fat	3gm
Protein	29gm		Cholesterol	45mg	15%
Fiber	2gm	2%	Sodium	273mg	11%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.

** Nutrient information is not available.

Read more: http://www.kitchendaily.com/recipe/turkey-with-blueberry-pan-sauce-507/#ixzz1Sw4pJeyq

At what point?

At what point is it okay for us to just accept what people say without questioning? Yes, there's a back story to this question.

About a year ago a "friend" ended our friendship. Now I'm sure she had her reasons, and I respect that. However, what she said to me was that she couldn't be friends with someone like me. I simply said that I understood and apologized for having put her in a position where she felt had to do this. It really hurt, but I didn't want to make things more difficult than they needed to be. She had made her decision and that was that.  Obviously, since it's been over a year, it still bothers me. What the hell does that mean? Someone like me? Like me how? What is it about me that she couldn't be friends with?

In hindsight I wish I had asked her these questions. Now I'll never know.  So now I wonder, should I have even asked her? Did I handle this situation right? I hope so. I like to think that I backed out gracefully not making things difficult for her.

This is what I ponder, sending my question out into the cosmos, not necessarily seeking an answer, just peace.

Get into the habit of it.

I've decided that some of the easiest ways to change simple things is to make a habit of it. For instance, I keep a big glass of water by my bed. I drink a bunch when I lay down and usually leave the rest for the occasions when I wake in the night thirsty.  Typically, the glass is still half full when I take it back down to the kitchen the next morning. My new habit, drink the water when I wake up. Whatever is left when I get up in the morning, I drink. I start my day off with 6-8 ounces of water replenishing what I lost throughout the night.

Making simple changes like this one will go a long way to a healthier me.

What the heck happened?

Quiet frankly, I have no idea. I fell off a whole bunch of wagons in the last couple months. Well, guess what? I'm dusting myself off and get back to it. What is "it" exactly? Healthy eating, working out, blogging, bringing the focus internal. I seem to forget that I need to do the things that are important to me and not worry so much about everyone else around me.

Now, don't get me wrong, I think of myself as a good friend to those in my life.  But, perhaps I get a little carried away. I mean, taking on things I don't really have the time or the means for... not the best idea.

Well, it's all about changing for the better. So, that's just what I'm going to do.

Small Changes

I'm trying to ease into my new lifestyle. This way I can figure out what works for me and what doesn't. Today I tried a few things and it seemed to go well.  For starters, I passed on the coffee for a glass of orange juice. I know orange juice is loaded with calories, but they aren't empty calories. I had a small breakfast, which I usually skip.  At lunch time, I didn't put any mayo on my sandwich. I was offered jellybeans this afternoon, and I passed them up. And finally,  I made potatoes for the kids with dinner tonight, I had a second veggie instead of the potatoes.  I'm feeling pretty happy with my choices.  The next step is to make these little changes permanent.  I can do that.

Eating Clean

I've been doing some online research about what it means to eat clean.  I'm thinking I may try to change my eating to be closer to this type of eating pattern.  Here's the basics of what I found:

A person that eats clean generally practices the following:

• Eliminates refined sugar (This change may take time, but I'll try.)
• Cooks healthy meals (with easy to follow online recipes, this should be easy)
• Packs healthy meals (I already do this for my lunch.)
• Makes healthy choices when dining out (I don't eat out much, but I can certainly make better choices.)
• Drinks a lot of water (I can increase my water intake.)
• Eats 5-6 small meals per day (This could be a tricky thing for me. We'll see.)
• Eliminates alcoholic beverages or significantly limits it (I already don't drink much.)
• Always eats breakfast (This would be a big change for me, but I can do it.)

So tonight, with chicken breasts in the fridge, I'm trying to find an easy recipe. I'm thinking simple BBQ chicken and grilled veggies.  Sounds perfect to me, we'll see if the kids agree. 

Doesn't look great in the picture, but it tasted really yummy. The bonus, the kids ate it too! 

Parenting: the dreaded room cleaning

Along my journey to make changes, I'll be looking to to many resources for advice and tips on how to be better at certain things. Today, with my kids playroom a disaster, I went looking for a better way to get them to pick up after themselves. I found a useful article on webmd.com.

I'm formulating a plan to help the kids get their playroom clean.  We'll start with the basics. Let's get all the toys up off the floor and into their containers. I'm going to try to make a game out of it. Perhaps a race, a counting game, or a game of tossing. Next, let's get the trash. I think this'll be a race to see who can pick up the most. Hopefully there isn't that much, but you never know with my boys.  Then, it's broom time. I think that'll have to be my job, but I'm okay with that. The boys love to use those anti-bacterial wipes, so that'll help in getting the surfaces clean. Oh, there's one thing I didn't mention; music. I'll let them pick it and we'll crank it, dancing along as we go.

A cleaner playroom equals less time being unhappy with my children and more time doing positive things together. I'll let you know how it goes.

LATER:
The room is clean AND we went through all the toys and got rid of the broken ones. Now the boys are playing and coloring, and waiting for dinner. Imagine, they aren't screaming and fighting and we had a good time cleaning. Go figure, the experts actually knew what they were talking about. Who knew?

Starting Workouts

Today I discovered, through a mutual friend, a page on Facebook that I found inspiring. A fellow Beachbody coach, Barbie has posted pictures and blogs of her amazing transformation. She has lost weight, toned her body, and changed her life.  As you already know, I have been thinking a lot about making serious changes in my life and Barbie's Facebook page and website/blog came just at the right time.  I can see the skinny bitch in me again. She is there and she wants out.

I am walking the Avon Walk next weekend with my daughter and therefore need to postpone the workouts for a little over a week. I don't want to be workout sore while trying to walk 26 miles.

In addition to adding a workout routine to my daily life,  I will look to make better choices about what I put in my body. I'll be starting with a cleanse to kick start my healthy eating.  Check back on May 17th for more details.

Feel free to check it out here: http://www.shakenutrition.com/shakeology-cleanse/

Intro

Well, I guess this is it. Time for the cold hard truth about who I am and why I'm writing this blog. Now I just need to figure out where to begin.

Back in 2006 I had breast cancer, but let's not focus on that right now. They say after you survive cancer you make serious changes to how you live your life. I suppose to some extent that was true for me. I started living a happier and to some extent healthier life. But the truth is, I really have no idea whether or not I'm living any happier a life, in fact, things feel worse, not better. Let me explain.

I am the mother of three kids. A 16-year-old girl, and two boys, 5 and 7. They love me a lot, they hate me a lot.  Lately, I feel like I spend more time punishing them for misbehaving than I do sharing in fun times.  I have an almost permanent scowl on my face. Sad, but true. I have the wrinkles to prove it. I'll post a picture some time.  Anyway, this is unacceptable to me. I want to spend more positive time with my kids. How? Who the heck knows? Guess we'll be finding out together.

I have been with my husband for 14 years, married for eight of those years. Things haven't always been easy, not by any means. We somehow always manage to get through it, whatever "it" may happen to be.  Don't get me wrong, my husband is my best friend. He is the one I think to call when I want to share something, good or bad.  I suppose you could say I want more out of my marriage and I figure if I put more into it, I'll get more out of it. I just don't know how to go about that...yet.

There have been issues with friendships as well, but I'll save the details another day. For today, let me just simply say, I've lost people who I once felt close to.  People whose parting words, "I can't be friends with someone like you." have left me reeling. Someone like me how? What is it about me? So, here I am, soul searching trying to figure it all out.

That's the character part I want to improve upon. Be a better mother, wife, and friend. Basically, find that happiness. Stay with me and we'll see how it goes.

Then, there's the physical me.  I am 38-years-old and no where near in the shape I want to be. Currently I'm 190 pounds. This fluctuates from 188 to 192 depending on the day. My goal weight is 140. I want to be able to run after my kids and dog without wanting to die after 20 minutes.

I was in a much better place almost two years ago. I had gotten down to 178, was working out six times a week, and had motivation. As it turns out, I was motivated by an external source and when it went away, so did my motivation.  No more. Now, I'm doing this for me.

My ultimate goal: Be the Me I was always meant to be!