Saturday, December 28, 2013

My Macro Meals


              Homemade miso soup
        
                         Miso soup 
    Carrot, avocado, brown rice sushi roll
 
Sweet potato, adzuki and red beans, and broccoli bowl with cashew cheez drizzled

Chickpea flour pancake with red pepper and green onion with cashew cheez and kalamata olives

I did not eat the meals above in one day, but over a few days last week. The rest of the days were filled with green mega smoothies, and vegan tofu and noodle soup, and the occassional pb chocolate chip cookie. 
I am posting this from my phone so I will update the links for the recipes soon. 

Be inspired and try a new recipe this week! 

Macro Meals and January Goals

The macrobiotic diet was first introduced to me when I read Alicia Silvestone's "The Kind Diet" in 2011. It is a lifestyle diet that is rooted in Japanese cuisine. Simple whole food meals that utilize the benefits of fermented foods and sea vegetables to maximize the nutritional profile of grain, tofu/bean, vegetable dishes. Miso soup is a part of most meals, fruit is an accent to dishes, and most important for me is that all the recipes I have come across are really easy to put together. 

For quite some time, I have wanted to move towards eating more sea vegetables. Think: wakame, hijika, nori, kombu seaweeds. Fermented foods such as sauerkraut, tempeh, miso paste are also staples in a macro diet. I have been a little distracted in incorporating those foods in my diet again as I have been baking cookies. Eating large quantities of cookies and candies have led to more poor eating habits. Moderation in indulgent eating is something that remains a mystery to me. 

Feeling lethargic is not something that I am used to but when I eat a lot of sugar and white flour containing foods, that is what happens to me. I have felt truely unmotivated to do even the basic of tasks. >>> I have a mountain of laundry that is not going to put itself away. <<<

So this is me creating a end of December  and January goal for myself: 

1. Get back to eating more Macro Meals! 

I need to replenish the dwindling supply of healthy gut bacteria by eating more fermented foods. 

As for eating more sea vegetables, I have a healthy supply of wakame, nori, kombu, and hijika in my cupboard so no need to buy any right now. I just have to USE IT! 

My workouts have been so-so, this past week fairly non existent but the week before I did 4 workouts. It is hard to have the desire to workout after eating 2 dozen cookies in 3 days. I know that once I COMPLETELY removed the sugar and white flour from my diet, my desire to workout will return. For now I will not make any sweeping exercise goals and just focus on eating more whole foods again. 



This is me at around 165lbs. If I was eating healthier around this weight I would not be so concerned; that is not the case. My weight has plateaued here for the past few months because of poor food choices; therefore, I am looking forward to recommitting myself to healthy eating habits again. 

Are there any dietary goals that you are looking forward to accomplishing in the near future? 

Thursday, November 14, 2013

Day 30 of Bodyrock.tv Challenge and Losing Motivation to Workout and Eat Healthy

Last week was the end of the the bodyrock.tv challenge.  I fell behind a little bit so I am really on day 24, which is not a big deal as of all the gains I have made in strength and agility since the start of the challenge.  I have re-learned that pushing myself out of my fitness-comfort zone is much more important than I make it.

Two weeks ago, I had a major hissy fit with myself fitness and dietary-wise.  During the last week if October, in terms of diet, I  purposefully ate large quantities of Halloween candy and Earth Balance slathered whole wheat toast, and lots of apples and bananas.  I am not even sure that I made a proper dinner that week. Fortunately I had the maternal instinct to feed my little guys sensible and nutritious food even it I did not for myself.  As for my workouts', and the challenge I did 20 minutes of the 1 hour 15 minute workout on that Monday and did not do another thing until Friday when I took the boys for a 40 minute walk.  I just did not want to put any effort into what I was feeding my body and strengthening my body.  This happens and it is not the end of the world, it just makes for some low energy levels and constipation. I saw this meme on Bodyrock.tv one day and saved it because it is so very true. For example: puffy belly- too much sugar and wheat in your diet.


That next Monday, I added back fruit and greens smoothies and made a homemade red lentil and butternut squash soup that is so dreamy and scrumptious that I will be making again very soon. Around Thursday as if to rebel again I bought ice cream, chocolate cookies, tortilla chips, a bag of frozen French fries, and candy bars. This is me is full food rebellion stage. I KNOW my body needs greens, fruits, legumes, seeds, and filling starches for optimal performance. the problem is I am a little afraid to give up those sweets and treats again. I was not miserable without them, I am miserable with them. This past Sunday my dietary habits began returning back to normalcy and today I am back into full fledge plant -strong vegan meals and snacks. The game plan this Friday is to make a giant soup full of vegetables, a pan of roasted vegetaes, and black bean, quinoa, sweet potato patties. Along with a fruit and vegetable smoothie and a lovely bowl of oatmeal or chia pudding I should've go off the dietary deep end.


A wonderful romaine salad I had with roasted sweet potato, broccoli, cauliflower, and almond butter Thai dressing


Indian chickpea flour and vegetable pancakes with steamed green and onions. This looks messy but was so delicious. 

Those pictures hopefully with remind me of the nourishing and energy giving power whole foods have for me. 

Here's to staying consistent with healthy eating habits and exercise! 


Wednesday, October 16, 2013

Bodyrock.tv Challenge 1/3 of the way through!

It is Day 10 of the bodyrock.tv challenge and I am still going strong. I am seeing some noticeable difference in my energy levels as I am working out, and all other times. Something else that is noticeable is that fact that I am much stronger than I previously thought and it shows. Really starting to see the muscular definition throughout my body and less cellulite on the back of my hips and bum (three loud huzzah's for that one)!

Running is still a priority for me as I have cut a couple challenge workouts short, knowing that I needed to run later on that day.  I know I could probably do both the runs and the challenge a few times a week, but since the cardio component of the bodyrock.tv HIIT challenge is so predominant I am cautious to not overuse those muscles.  My knees and ankles have always been susceptible to injuries because of overuse.  As I get older, I am highly aware of the damage I did in during my high school athletic days and do not want to worsen those injuries.  This is working so far for me.

Eating nutrient-dense meals are very important for my to maintain energy levels and produce nutritious breast milk for my little guy.  Somedays I feel that my diet is higher in fat than it might be if I was not breastfeeding. Since the fats that I eat are whole food sources like nuts and seeds, I feel that I am truly providing my baby with milk filled with essential fatty acids for healthy brain development.  Dark, leafy greens, beans, and lentils also make up a a fair portion of my daily meals.

My favorite seeds to eat currently are hemp seeds, sunflower seeds, chia seeds, and pumpkin seeds.  I am planning on making a hemp seed salad dressing once my almond butter dressing runs out in a few days.  My husband and I get all of our hard to find foods like hemp seeds and chia seeds from Vitacost, which sells those items as well as gluten free items, athletic supplements, protein powders, ect.  Check them out as some of their items are really inexpensive compared to buying it at the store.  For example chia seeds are $8.99-10.99 a pound on Vitacost; whereas at out local WinCo, chia seeds are $13.49  per pound.

That is it for now, eat healthy foods and exercise often even if it is walking around your neighborhood.



Thursday, October 10, 2013

Preparing Meals in Advance: Snack and Lunch Edition. Links to the foods that I made this past week

Back when I was commuting to school and gone from my house for 5-7 hours, 5 days a week, preparing my meals in advance always worked in my favor. Now that I am a stay-at-home parent, preparing meals in advance, although a little chaotic on the day(s) of preparation is wonderful for the next 3-6 days when food is just a few minutes away from being done and most important eaten.

This past week, I was heavily inspired by the Angela's OhSheGlows blog and made many of her recipes.  They all turned out so well as usual!

I made the following meals/snacks from the OhSheGlows blog:

PB banana bars

7 vegetable cheez soup

Chia bread

I did not take any picture of the food I made, so definitely click on the links to check out her amazing recipes!!

I also made this meal which were inspired from both Susan V's Fatfreevegan blog and Gina's Choosing Raw blog:

Chickpea salad (like a chicken/tuna salad) which I wrapped in raw collard leaves (this is the tutorial on how to use raw collard leaves as wraps.

Finally I made 3 salads in a jar which I was inspired by Kathy's Health Happy Life vegan food blog. My salads were very simple: orgainc romaine lettuce, purple cabbage shredded, edamama, homemade miso orange tahini dressing, and quinoa.

This week coming up I will make recipes from the blogs: Peas and Thank You and Heathy Happy Life and My Vegan Cookbook.

I hope that this blog post has introduced you to some of my favorite vegan food blogs and will also inspire you make some delicious vegan food!

Wednesday, October 9, 2013

Day 3 of BodyRockTv Challenge


This is Day 3 of the BodyrockTv 30 day Challenge and I am sore! Not crippling sore, but my muscles have definitely let me know that they have been working HARD these three days.  Well, really four days-I did a workout also on Sunday before the challenge started!

Recently my workout's have occurred in the AM rather than the afternoons like previously.  I am finding that working out within an hour of waking up ensures that my workout is complete and I can run errands, play with my children, clean, make lunch, dinner, snacks without worrying about when I will fit my workout in during the day. Today I was decided to do 1/3 of the workout from the challenge. This was 20 minutes of spider push-ups, squat and press, core work, step ups, clean and press (my favorite exercise currently), a lot of jumping rope, and lunges.  The workout was split into three parts 20 minute circuits and I was only able to complete the first 20 minutes before Rocket woke up from sleeping.  Once Rocket was awake I was more than sufficiently warmed up and pumped up from the HIIT workout to do a 25-30 minute run. I had a feeling that I should get my run in before the day truly began because there was a good chance that I would convince myself that I could put the run off until Thursday. My short run turned into a 55 minute run/walk. My total mileage was 4 miles--which is pretty awesome.  My average mile per hour was 13:45. I included a couple of walking breaks as I realized that once I had run 20 minutes that I wanted to run a long run.  As this run has been the farthest and longest I have run for, I knew that I should not push myself to hard so I walked .2 miles per 1 mile.

To fuel both workouts I juiced half a cucumber, 5 beet greens, 2 celery stalks, 1 apple, 1 beet, 2 carrots. I drank half before my HIIT workout and the other half before my run. Total I drank about 15 ounces. A little sweet so next time I will use half an apple. 

Below is a picture of the weights I am currently using while doing the challenge. I forgot to take a picture of one of my dinning room chairs as I also use that for step ups and tricep dips. I added a picture of Lex above since I sometimes use him as a weight as well
 ;-)


Monday, October 7, 2013

30 Day Challenge and Creating a Mindset for Success

Okay, last post I mentioned that I wanted to set goals for October and I was racking my head on what I wanted to accomplish this month. While I was on Pinterest I was looking through my HIIT (high intensity interval training) board and came across a pin from BodyRockTv that I have been eyeing to do. Once I viewed the video I was like "heck yes I will do this workout". 12 minutes later I was done and the workout was killer. 

After my workout I started looking through their current post and saw that they had a 30 day real time challenge starting October 7th. I read the instructions and thought to myself why not, this sounds like it would be really intense but I can do it

This morning after I drank a small glass of freshly pressed carrot, kale, orange, cucumber juice; set the boys up to be distracted (toys, puzzles, and some learning tv) and begun my workout. 43 minutes later I was exhilarated and pushed harder than I have been in awhile. Towards the end of my workout Lex had gotten restless so I picked him up and used him as a weight. He had fun and I continued my workout. He is nearly 25lbs now at 8 months!!!

As the day progressed, my shoulders, glutes, abs, quads began getting sore and I thought maybe I would do the 30 day challenge every other day. Finally it hit me that being pushed each day for 4 weeks WILL only get me STRONGER. Lisa the creator of the BodyRockTv 30 day challenge pointed out that their will be active rest days, yoga days so I am confident that although I will be pushed to my limits somedays, I will not injure myself. 

Likewise I remember that in basic training I was constantly being pushed beyond my limits sometimes and I was fine. The only injury I sustained was spraining my ankle which was because of rucking on uneven terrain. That will not be the case this time as my workouts will be done in my home or the gym. 

Running is still a priority for me. This months goal is to slowly get up to running 5 miles for my long run. Currently I am at 3.25. No need to rush increasing my mileage as the half marathon is not until March. Walking is completely permitted as my time on the road increases.

This week I am looking forward to doing a long walk/jog for an hour. 

Tomorrow will be an intense 50 minute HIIT workout. 

I last ran on Sunday for 25 minutes so Wednesday no matter what the challenge workout is I am running. I can already anticipate the sore body I will have. Sore muscles means stronger body. 

If there are any days that I have to miss because those things happen, I know it will be okay. 

Ready! Set! Success! 

(Adding links and pictures tomorrow) 

Sunday, September 29, 2013

My 5k at the Bellingham Bay Marathon

Bellingham Bay Marathon 5k race was a fun and beautiful course to run. It was relatively easy although the terrain was not flat throughout. For me that made the race fun and slightly challenging. 

Race day was drizzly but not frigid. A long sleeve shirt, my neon blue race t-shirt and capri running tights were more than enough to kept me warm after I started running. 

As for the run itself, I did smashingly. I ran the 5k in 30:54, which is much faster than my goal of running 12 minute miles. My lovely friend who lives in Bellingham watched my kiddos for me during the race. Because I had no stroller to push, my pace was naturally faster so much so that my average minutes per mile were 9:57. A very excited whoop of laughter escaped me when I read that final race results online. 

Before the race, my friend and I snapped a couple pictures with my iPhone. Here they are: 

 
And one with me and my boys :-)


That is it for now. Next time my post should be about current training plans or November goals. 

Friday, September 27, 2013

First Race of the Fall!

September 29, 2013 will mark the beginning of my race season! I am very excited because I really enjoy the thrill of running in races. My goal is to run this up coming  5k, a trail 5k on October 20th, and a 10k on November 13th. The ultimate goal of my upcoming races is that I continue running and increasing my mileage  throughout the fall and into winter so I can run the half-marathon in the spring. I am not exactly sure what to expect as far as how cold and rainy it gets her in Tacoma, but since most of my runs will be with my boys in the double jogger, I will be running as frequently as I can.

The race is called the Bellingham Bay Marathon. As the name suggest that day there will be a marathon; also there will be a half-marathon and a 5k. It is just recently that I have been able to run a 5k while pushing a double jogger. My goal is to run the whole race while pushing my two boys in our jogger.

Currently I can complete a 5k run in about 37 minutes. This impresses me because my former slow running pace without a stroller was 12 minutes per mile; which means that without a jogger I should be running closer to a 10:45-11 minute mile split. The more I run faster I will become so that in a year's time I should be back to running a 5k in 25 minutes or less. This is really exciting. 

Also in Bellingham, WA I will be visiting a dear friend of mine who is also the boys godmother so that is an added excitement! 

That is it for now, until my post-race blog update. 

Tuesday, September 24, 2013

Coconut Almond Cocoa No-Bake Bar and Smoothie Combinations


Now that fall is officially here, I think I may have been trying to drink as many summer fruit and vegetable smoothies these past two weeks. Frosty smoothies are usually not the first thing I want when I wake up in the chilly morning.

Some of the smoothies I make I add protein powder. Right now my favorite brands are Vega One Vanilla Chai and Plant Fusion protein powder both Chocolate and Vanilla. Typically I only use half a scoop which is about 10-12 grams. Soy milk is my current non-dairy milk that I drinking lately. Most soy milk brands have 8-10 grams of protein per cup, therefore between the cup of soy milk and the 1/2 scoop of protein powder gives me 20 grams total, not including the protein from the vegetables and fruits added to the smoothie. 

The smoothies I make, usually have 2-3 servings of vegetables, and 1.5-2 servings of fruit. Three fruits may be listed but I use half servings of each fruit. In contrast, I use a 2 servings of leafy greens and one serving of cucumber or celery. 

This smoothie was made with kale, cherries, mango, cucumber, soy milk, 1/2 scoop of Plant Fusion chocolate protein powder


This smoothie was made from a beet, apple, celery, cucumber, coconut water, maca powder, and sesame seeds

                                                                                    This smoothie was made with frozen broccoli, banana, peaches, strawberries, cucumber, coconut butter, 1/2 scoop of Plant Fusion vanilla protein powder, and soy milk

Now for the no-bake Coconut Almond Cocoa Bar! 

This bar came about because I WANTED candy, specifically a candy bar. We do not typically keep candy in the house because we eat it, quickly, very quickly. 

My initial intention for this bar was to whirl some cashews, almond butter, maple syrup (no dates in the house right now), perhaps some oats in the food processor to make a sweet, nutty base which I could add chocolate chips by hand. I would then, roll into balls and eat them all over the next 3-5 hours. Homemade candy bars, all the indulgence but without the HFCS, or dairy products. 

What happen instead was 5 bars that I ate over 3 days before or after my workout. These bars besides the sweet, nutty base had maca powder, cocoa powder, shredded coconut, almond extract, and a scoop of Plant Fusion vanilla protein powder.  

I have a deep love affair with almond joy bars and this satisfies those flavors in addition to being  full of healthy fats, protein, and vitamins and minerals. 



Coconut Almond Cocoa Bar

makes 5

Ingredients: 

1/3 cup of almond butter
1/3 cup of cashews
2 tbsp of cocoa
1 tbsp of coconut shredded--plus addition tbsp for covering outside of bars
1/2-1 scoop of vegan protein powder -vanilla or chocolate
1/2 tsp of almond extract
1/4-1/3 cup of maple syrup or 6 dates soaked and a couple tbsp of water
1 tbsp of maca powder

Combine in food processor: cashews first and process until crumbly, add remaining ingredients except maple syrup. processed until well combined.  Add maple syrup slowly and when the dough starts form together, that is enough and you can stop the food processor. 

I placed my dough, which was not overly sticky at all, into a loft pan, froze it for an hour and then took it out and cut 5 bars.  Sprinkled my remaining shredded coconut and Voile all done. Keep remaining bars in air tight container in either fridge or freezer. .  

Enjoy!

Thursday, September 19, 2013

Simple and Delicious Meals

                                                    
Quinoa, carrot, avocado on romaine lettuce with cilantro, lime dressing

                                                 
Spicy mixed greens
Brown rice
Pumpkin chocolate chip muffins
Whole wheat pizza with almond-tofu cheez, roasted eggplant, mushrooms, kale

Wednesday, September 11, 2013

Weight Loss Update with Pictures!

First an Update on My Two Boys: 

Time has flown this past 7 months since Lex's birth. Lex is thriving and still so baby-lovely. Babbling and creeping: exciting baby accomplishments. Rocket is an incredible toddler who is using his words to proclaim his needs and desires.   This time last year I was worried about his speech development but now that is a thing of the past. 

Post-Partum Weight-loss:  

Not that I am proud that I gained an extraordinary amount of weight while I was pregnant with Lex: I will say that I am proud that I am losing the weight. 

Some woman struggle to lose the extra weight gained during their pregnancy, especially after having their second child. I constantly re-adjust my expectations for weight loss and adhereing to my exercising plan because having little ones is not so predictable. even the best laid plans can be foiled because of baby and toddler woos. Despite having two little ones, I still prioritize my workouts and roughly plan the my meals to give me the maximun energy. If something comes up and I have to cancel my workout plans, it is not a big deal because I get right back on schedule as soon as I can. 

Weightloss Pictures: 

This picture was taken 7 weeks post-partum. I am about 200lbs.

This picture is 7 months post-partum and I currently weigh 165lbs. 

Lets just say I am very happy where I am at the point in my weight loss journey. I am back in my size 10 jeans (size I was in high school) which means I am wearing more of MY clothes as opposed to clothes I had to buy to have something to wear. I still have 20lbs to go until I am at my end of the year goal weight. 

If anyone feels that I am too obsession of my weight and losing weight, please remember the main purpose of this blog is to chronicle my fitness and nutrition journey. Therefore, that is what the bulk of what I am blogging about. 

Day to day on average I spend 15 minutes planning my workouts; 45 minutes total executing my workouts, and 2 hours planning, prepping, and cooking my food each day. I prepare each meal from stratch. Whether it been a smoothie, casserole, salad, wrap, or soup, I use 90% whole, unprocessed ingredients. The other 10% account for non-dairy milks, tofu, tortillas, and  chocolate chips. 

This was a fun post to write up, hope to do another progress picture blog post in 3-4 months. 

Next post will be 4 smoothie recipes. 

Thursday, September 5, 2013

Foods I am Loving Lately and an Excellent Smoothie Recipe


Vegan chocolate cake with peanut butter vegan icing


Creamy roasted tomato soup
Quesadillas with cashew cheez, black beans, zucchini, baby spinach and kale



              Green Power Smoothie: 

1.5 cups of frozen broccoli
1/2 large cucumber 
2 celery stalks with leaves
small peach 
small red pear

Blended in my Vitamix blender with 1/2 cup of coconut water and 1/2 cup of water.
(Optional add ins- vegan protein powder, 1 tbsp chia seeds, 1 tbsp of coconut butter or oil, 1 tsp of maca powder)


Collard leaves burritos with quinoa, avocado, and black bean salad with cilantro, lime, and sweet potato


I have not been eating as many leafy green salads as I have been in the past, so that is something I am working on. Yet again I am also juicing and blending more leafy greens, so all in all I am getting a lot of macro and micro-nutrients. I usually have a post-workout juice that I juice in my Breville, today though I just had lunch, which was the quesadillas and soup. 

This is not everything that I eat in a day, just some of want I have eaten today :) I forgot to mention the bowl of frosted shredded wheat with soy milk. 

I also have drank 7 glasses of water, two cups of green and peppermint tea, and an hour before bed I will have a cup of chamomile tea. 

I have made a quinoa/bean salad that will tomorrows lunch with more of the roasted tomato soup.  

Finding Balance

Recently I completed a 21-day meditation challenge that was sponsored by Deepak Chopra and Oprah. I recommend anyone to try the next challenge, especially if you are interested in meditating and are not sure how to do it without losing focus. I especially loved repeating the mantras during the prescribed meditation period. That allowed me to focus on one thing, which in turns allows all the other dozens of things running through my head to not be prominent. 

It is rather easy for me to get caught up planing and then completely the little tasks that need to get done each day.  Exercising and especially practicing yoga  has helped correct my imbalances and also helps link my breath to the flow of my body. What I have been missing from my practice was meditating, which I now know helps me silence my mind from all the planning that I do. 


This picture was taken at Whatcom Falls in Bellingham, WA. During my meditation, I picture this and the ocean. Water flowing relaxes me. 

Now that I am no longer doing the challenge I have created my own meditation rituals. I find a mantra that resonates with me, I play music by Peter Davidison, from his cd titled Adiago: Music for Meditating. Once the music begins I lay in corpse pose in my bed, take several slow and deep breaths and then I begin to repeat my mantra in my head. After completed this I turn off the music and go to bed, falling into a deep sleep effortless. This is heavenly because I frequently find it difficult to fall asleep even when I am tired. The cause is that my mind is still busy, busy;from planning the next day. Meditating at night as helped that tremendously. I don't need to plan as much, just as long as I have a general idea of what needs to get done or made than I am good to go. 


Me in tree pose. Namaste! 


Monday, August 26, 2013

Training Plans- Getting Stronger and Running Farther

Overview of July/August Workout and Fitness Goals for the Future: 

For the past 6 weeks I have been doing using Bodybuilding.com's Jamie Eason's LiveFit program as a guide while working out. This has resulted in me growing stronger anabolically and faster anaerobically.  But now it is time for to switch my program around again.  The Livefit Trainer is awesome and I recommending that you do the whole program. My current training goals are to begin training for a half marathon. Therefore, I would like to still lift weights but just not everyday for an hour and that is what the rest of the program would have had me doing.  The half marathon that I have my sights on it not until the spring, so for the coming months I want to slowly increase my running mileage from about 2.5 miles per run to maximum 8 miles per run, so when the spring comes around I am not attempting to increase my mileage from 3 miles to 13 miles which I am pretty positive would result in an injury. 

Overview of September's Workout Plan

Weights: I am still going to lift 4 days a week, circuit-style for 25 minutes each session. Two days a week I hit my upper body and 2 days a week I am working my lower body out.  I have added three 10 minute abdominal workouts that will be done with one upper body and one lower body workouts and a non-lifting day.  

Yoga is still a must and will be done as needed which is nearly daily some times. Usually my yoga routines are between 15-25 minutes. 

Running: For the next 4 weeks, all I am concentrating on is running 3 times a week with a long walk/slow jog for 50+ minutes once a week. I would like one of my runs to be 3 miles by week two of September while the others can range from 2-2.5 miles. At the very least I will run one interval run, although two is ideal. 

I am doing two a day workouts, either in the AM or PM I will run or walk with the boys in the double jogging stroller. We bought the BabyTrend double jogger and I am a fan of it thus far. 
I will do my circuit training twice at week at a gym on post that has hourly daycare and the other two days I will use my dumbbells at home during the boys afternoon nap.  Below is the training plan I am using; the training plan is from Muscle and Fitness Hers September/October 2011 issue.





Next post will be about what I am eating to fuel me though all this exercise and breastfeeding my little one who is now almost 7 months old. 

Sunday, August 25, 2013

Back to Blogging :-)

The Lewis family has moved from the East Coast to the West Coast and we are settling in very nicely. We decided to drive rather than fly and I am glad we did because we took it slowed  and had fun along the way.

If I was more awesome I would do a full recap  of our cross country trip but instead I will just bypass all of that and let pictures speak louder than words.

We have been in Washington state now for nearly 8 weeks and we are stationed at Joint Base Lewis McCord, which in case you were unaware of is sandwiched between Seattle/Tacoma and Olympia. 

On a clear day, I can see Mt. Rainer which always leaves me in awe. I want to climb/hike the majestic volcano. That trike will be something I aspire to do when my little guys are older. 

I am happy to report that I am still losing weight and now am 18lbs from mypre pregnancy  weight of 140lbs. A lot of my food issues; i.e. over-eating on sweets is becoming less and less as I harness the awesome power of nutrient dense vegetables in my smoothies, juices, soups, casseroles, and of course my mega salads. 

For the past 5 weeks, I have been consistently making meals that are really delicious and nutritious. I have often during this time resisted being too 'perfect' while eating because I don't    
want to make less nutrient dense foods into bad foods, which may make me over-eat later on. Once in an attempt to stop eating bread, I cut out bread and by the 10th day all I wanted was bread and than for nearly half the week ate nothing but toast and beans and pbj. So I am learning what works for me and restriction does not work. 

Most importantly my weight loss journey and the food choices I make are not a means to an end, but rather just a leg on a longer journey of eating nutritiously for life. I am not eating this way to diet, I eat nutrient dense foods to fuel so that it can operate at its full capacity. Any treats I have along the way are part of that as well :-) 

Next post I will update you on my current training plan, which I am loving by the way.

Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Slow and Steady Weight Loss and I am Winning

Update on my two boys:

Baby Lex is going to be 4 months in two weeks and he is a cutie pie! He smiles all the time and his smiles are pure and beautiful just as all infant smiles are.

Rocket is still being amazing to Baby Lex, helping him by bringing him his baby toys and diapers. I love all the kisses and hugs Rocket gives Baby Lex.

Now for weight loss updates:

Since April 1st, I am down 16lbs. I am losing 1-2.5lbs each week and that is exactly the range I want to lose each week. My body fat percentage has dropped 6%, which is truly motivating. Also, I am out of all my maternity clothes because they are too big!

Preparing components of my meals before hand has been really instrumental for me to keep on top of eating nutrient dense salads and soups, and snacks.  For the past two weeks I have only made vegan desserts for the playgroup I am in so that I am not over eating them on my own.  This is a BIG help.

And now I am going to leave you with pictures of my two boys :)

Lex 14 weeks old taken by Shelly Pray Photography

 
Rocket at Easter

 

Saturday, April 13, 2013

10lbs Down and Fitness Update

I am down a total of 10lbs since I began working out 5 weeks ago. I have had a couple of hiccups eating-wise but I am glad to still see progress.

Eating to satiety and getting all my nutrients in daily is becoming easy again. I have made some excellent meals these past days. A breakfast salad with a pears, grapefruit, hemp seeds, a drizzle of honey with a splash of coconut milk. This was so delicious that I will have it again very soon.
Tonight I made quinoa/brown rice/black bean/spinach stuffed red peppers. I made a thick cashew-nutritional yeast that had spread on top. This was a wonderful vegan dish I will be so happy to make again and again. I have done this dish before but tonight I perfected it.

My juice combinations have been fun too. Beet, kale, celery, apple, and carrot yesterday. Yum.

I bought a pound of chia seeds do I could begin making my chia seed puddings again. Tomorrow will be a banana-peach cinnamon chia pudding

Recipe:
1/2 cup of peaches, chopped
1/2 banana, mashed
3 tbsp of chia seeds
1 cup of almond milk
1/2 tsp of cinnamon

Stir ingredients together the night before and enjoy the next morning.

I will update again in two weeks with measurement differences. I took my arm, waist, hip, thigh measurements on April 1st and so I will do them again May 1st.

Happy Lifting and Eating Healthy.

Monday, April 1, 2013

What I ate today- Before Dinner

For the past three days I have started my day by cuddling with baby Lex and drinking water with freshly squeezed lemon. After I drink one to two glasses of water, I make fresh pressed juice.

I bought a Breville Juicer about a year in a half ago with the intention of doing a 3 day juice fast and then juice semi regularly after that. I have not completed any of the fasts I have tried and then I only used my juicer once or twice a month. How foolish I was because now I am in love with my morning juice.

This morning I juiced beet greens and kale, celery, cucumber, fresh pineapple cores, ginger, and an orange. I

Recipe:
12 leaves of kale, beet greens
2 celery stalks
2 inches of fresh ginger root
1/2 large cucumber
1 Cara orange
1 core of pineapple

This juice is slightly sweet despite the pineapple and orange I used. I am not overly fond of sweet juices so when juiced a lot of greens.

Starting my day with fresh juice I am finding has helped me continue making healthy food choices throughout the day. So far so good. I have also stopped eating foods containing wheat these past three days. I made muffins and pancakes and was able to eat one or two during the entire day as opposed to eating six, or seven during the day. The mouthfeel of gluten free and mostly grain free (still using oatmeal) is different and not so addicting for me. I will keep this two habits up after these three days. If i do eat wheat containing foods or not start my day with fresh press juice I notice differences if I feel differently or eat differently afterwards.

After my fresh juice I made 8 coconut-pumpkin pancakes using shredded coconut, pumpkin, almond milk, oatmeal. At this moment I am not going to give you the recipe because it is not my own but I will update the link soon.

For lunch I made a black bean soup that tasted like Paneras- google "panera black bean soup recipe" and you will find it! i made a corn, avocado, cilantro-lime, and tomato salsa. I didn't really measure it, but it turned out as a perfect compliment to the black bean soup. To add some crunch , I added gluten-free multigrain seed crackers.

Post workout- I guzzled down my plant protein powder with soy milk and water. Plant Fusion is the brand and chocolate is the flavor. Like chocolate milk but better!

Dinner will be broccoli, asparagus, and tofu sautéed in a little grapeseed oil and Braggs Amino Acids- like soy sauce, over a bed of lettuce. And two fresh spring rolls made with jicama, carrot, and red pepper. I will do another post with that recipe soon.

Okay that is about it. If I am hungry after dinner I will made a chia pudding and eat!

Eating like this feels much better than my previous over eating.

Next post will be a post-partum weight loss update and maybe a cute picture of Baby Lex and Rocket :-)







Friday, March 22, 2013

Best Non-Dairy Ricotta Substitute that I have ever made

As I am writing this post I am eating a ricotta and sweet potato sandwich (pictures to follow). The ricotta is vegan and easy easy to make. The only unusual ingredient that turns ho-him extra firm tofu and raw cashews into a wonderful ricotta substitute is Nutritional Yeast. I included pictures and its nutritional facts below.

Now for the recipe:

1 tube of extra firm tofu-16oz (make sure soybeans are non-GMO!)
1/2 a cup of raw cashews soaked for 1 hour in hot water, drain water
3 cloves of garlic minced
2 tsp of italian seasoning or dried herbs of choice
1/3 curly leaf parsley bunch stems removed and minced
1 tbsp of grapeseed or olive oil
2 tbsp of water
1/2 tsp of salt
1/8-1/4 cup of nutritional yeast (add more or less depending on your preference)
Freshly ground pepper
Juice of 1 lemon

Combine ingredients in food processor until resembling picture below of blended cashew-tofu ricotta.
** If no food processor smash cashews in a plastic bag until finely crumbled, stir with hand crumbled tofu, and other ingredients. Marinate in refrigerator for 1 hour to overnight, this should keep for 3-5 days. I
I use this for lasagne, on toast as a sandwich spread, and if I ever made stuffed shells I would also use this.
**For a soy free alternative use 1 1/2- 2 cups of raw cashews instead. And you will probably need a food processor to combine all ingredients.

Check out the nutritional facts for nutritional yeast which are quite impressive. I really hope you will make this as an dairy free alternative to cow's milk ricotta cheese.

***this recipe is inspired by one recipe I tried at OhSheGlows and Fatfreevegan. Both blogs I follow and love.