Water

We live in a society that drinks everything except water. When I walk through the grocery store, I see fruit juice, vegetable juice, juice cocktail blends, juice boxes, juice pouches, flavor koolaid pouches, soda pop cans, soda pop bottles, soda pop 2 liters, soda pop 3 liters, beer, wine, wine coolers, coffee, tea, hot cocoa, iced tea, lemonade, koolaid mix, premade koolaid, etc. I could keep going. We are surrounded by water alternatives.

Also, we are told that our tap water is not good enough. Which truly, some towns that is true. But some places the water is just fine and delicious. For those who decide water is a good beverage, we have water choices too. Advertising for individual bottles, gallon jugs, 3 gallon jugs, 5 gallon jugs, mini kid-size bottles, bottles with twist off caps, bottles with sports caps, bottles with snap up lids, reusable bottles, self-filtering bottles, self-filtering pitchers, etc. Yikes! What an industry.

I even saw a kid size mini water bottle with a child proof cap. Guess what, the cap didn't come off. At all. Not a bit. They advertised that the bottle would be kid proof. Yep, it was. It was also a complete waste of money since it only held 8 oz and could not be refilled. What makes it worse, is that little bottle of water cost the same amount of money as a 2 liter bottle of soda pop. Ugh!

So, why water?

Well, there is something unique about water. It is refreshing. It is necessary to live. It replenishes our bodies. It is filling. And when not surrounded by other water alternatives, pure water can actually taste delicious.

In comparison to the water alternatives, water ends up tasting boring and bland. But even the best water alternative is found lacking on a hot summer day when you've been walking in the heat and sweating, that is when the refreshing taste of a nice cool glass of ice water is wholly satisfying.

Our bodies require water. We don't require tea or soda pop. Some of our bodies complain without our usual coffee, I understand. But all those beverages are body "wants" the only liquid "need" is water. And in my experience, if I am drinking all 8 cups of water, I find I have had enough beverage that I don't really need soda pop or lemonade, etc.

I still crave flavor. So I sometimes I try to convince myself that those other beverages contain water as an ingredient so they must be good enough or even better that just plain water. But in truth, I know I should be drinking pure water.

And I kid myself into not drinking enough water, by saying it would make me use the bathroom more. Blah, blah, blah. Well, it might make me use the bathroom. But guess what, that may be a whole lot more healthy for me. Ya know?

So, do we need water? Yes.
Can other beverages fill the need? Let's not lie to ourselves. No, not really.
How much pure water should I drink? As much as possible.

A simple tip: make it fun. Have a cool cup or fun straw. Store a pitcher in the fridge with pure water that is cool and ready to enjoy.

Another tip:
Since our bodies are made up of mostly water, and water is filling: if we start each meal with a glass of water, we can meet a basic life need and eat less food. Double bonus.

So I suggest we take a minute to get a fun glass from the cupboard, fill it with an ice cube or two and pour in some fresh water. Relax, take a breather, and enjoy the refreshing moment.

Veggies - Yum?

Can vegetables taste good?

I am finding out the answer is: Yes!

Recently, with the Spring air and cheaper produce prices, we have been buying more veggies. Two weeks now, when we are at the grocery store in the produce section, I have paused to look around and ask, "What other veggies can I buy?" Wow, what a question!

We chose baby carrots, green cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, green peppers, yellow peppers, red peppers, orange peppers, broccoli, cauliflower, onion, lettuce, etc. I also chose a healthy veggie dip/dressing. The cauliflower and broccoli will be used for broccoli and cheese soup later this week. The lettuce will be combined with other veggies in a delicious salad. And the onion will be used for sauteing and other cooking. But most of the fresh veggies were chosen for munching on raw, fresh veggies.

We got home and unloaded groceries. I then began slicing and cleaning veggies to be placed into Ziploc bags. So handy to grab and go or snack on throughout the day. They are cleaned, portioned and ready to eat. Fresh and delicious!

I also prepare fruit bags. This week I prepped grapes and apples. The grapes were taken off the stems and washed, them put in bags. The apples were washed and sliced, then put in bags along with a lemon slice (to keep the slices fresh and not brown). Surprisingly, my kids loved the idea of eating these food from a bag rather than having a whole apple or a bunch of grapes. So, YAY! again.

The produce tastes fresh, clean, and vibrant, with a natural combination of sweet and sour. I am surprised, but I am actually liking it all. The mix of colors and flavors, look good and taste gourmet. Plus the health is high and the calories are low. The produce is satisfying and doesn't cause a sour or stuffed stomach feeling. Amazingly, I love it.

The test will be, can I eat this way for a long period of time without getting tired of the flavors? Can our budget continue to afford these items? What will change as the seasons change? Etc.

I'll keep you posted. But for right now, this seems to be a Great!

Cost versus Health

For years, I have believed the lie that to eat healthy costs more money. And in some cases that is true. However, certain healthy items are extremely inexpensive. So what is the excuse? Then we say, "Oh, that tastes gross" Well, it might if we don't know how to prepare it.

Recently, I have been trying to buy healthy foods for little cost, the ideal shopping experience. Here are some meals I have been able to make healthy and cheap:

• Tacos
• Chili
• Pizza or Stromboli
  
• Japanese Curry and Rice
• Chinese Stir Fry
• Peppers and Eggs
• Poor Man's Meal
• etc. The list is growing more all the time.

Recently, I have also been focusing on healthy snacks that are cheap. Here are some of our favorites:

• apples
• oranges
• grapes
• baby carrots
• bananas
• peanuts
• popcorn (whole kernel not pre-bagged)
• yogurt
• fruit smoothies
• sorbet
• sliced cucumbers
• sliced green peppers
• etc.

I have found that when I shop the circle around the grocery store (produce, meat dept., dairy dept, fresh bakery dept.) and a few select aisles (beans, rice, frozen veggies, etc.) I can find whole, fresh foods, that are healthy and cheap.

A few things I am learning:

• break apart the favorite recipes and substitute whole foods (i.e. instead of refried beans from a can, I use whole pinto or whole black beans, ideally from a bag of dried beans.)
• Plan ahead: if I shop the sales and them plan out my meal options, I know what to look forward to making and how much to make.
• Make the most of freezer space: If I soak beans for tacos, I can make 5 taco meals in one day. Package the taco mix and freeze it.
• Whole foods not only taste better (more gourmet) but they also stay fresh longer and are more filling (I used to go up for seconds at every meal, with whole foods I am shocked how full I am after one plate)
• Rice and beans are extremely cheap and very healthy, add veggies and "voila", a balanced menu

So I am learning that cost is a variable that we must consider, but sometimes we don't have to sacrifice the health. (As far as tasting good, I hope to post some recipes that will help overcome that fear.)

Enjoy Health!

New Facebook Group

Hello, Friends,

I am writing this post to invite you to join a new Facebook group dedicated to saying "NO!" 2 Unhealthy. I have found it hard to work towards my health goals with all of the "life" going on around me. I know one person said her most important tool was accountability, and for that I need a team of friends willing to help each other succeed.

I happen to be a fan of "The Biggest Loser" TV show. I have found myself drawn to this show for many reasons, but that could be another post entirely. The reason I bring the show up now is that I have noticed one of the strategies of the show is the team element. True, they still compete team versus team. But when the contestants are truly struggling in those first weeks, the element of teamwork and support are key to success.

So, I am asking for your help and offering my own. We can help keep each other accountable, we can post success stories, we can talk about challenges, and cheer each other towards our goals. The group is private, so no one can join without permission and no one outside our group will see what we post. I am hoping for great success in our group.

I hope to see you there. (FYI- the group will not replace this blog, only augment what I am posting here.)

Best wishes,

Getting Outside

Well, Spring is starting to arrive. With it comes wonderful outside weather. I had so much fun playing in the yard yesterday with my kids. It was 63 degrees outside, the sun was shining though a bit overcast, there was a gentle breeze and I could smell someone down the street was grilling. Fabulous outside day!

So with nice weather comes a desire to exercise. And perhaps plant a garden of fresh produce.

Did you know that playing with kids can be exhausting? Thus, it must also be exercise, right? Well, maybe not quite everything exhausting is exercise. But in this case, if the exhaustion comes from physical exertion, then yes it is exercise and therefore it is good. So I need to play outside more with my kids.

And did you know that gardening can be exercise too? Yep, shoveling, hoeing, bending to weed, etc, all can be considered exercise. So there is another reason to be outside and exercise.

I certainly hope we have a beautiful spring and many opportunities to get outside!

Journey Twists and Turns

Well, I haven't posted in a while, sorry to say. My journey has taken another turn in the road. My family has decided to switch to a gluten free lifestyle. I had no idea how many food products contain gluten.

If you are not aware of what gluten is: it is a part of most grains. Wheat, Oats, some Barley, etc. Therefore it is in flour. Most every kind of flour. So any product containing flour has gluten. Or it is made with a gluten free flour like rice flour or corn flour and it just doesn't taste quite the same.

A loaf of white bread in my local grocery store is $1.19. A Loaf of gluten free white bread which is half the size of the regular loaf costs $6.00. So at the same time as going gluten free we are also switching to low carb.

Plus, as I struggle with all the dieting options I have realized there are certain things all diets agree with:

• drink lots of water
• eat lots of fresh fruits and vegetables
• raw produce is better than canned or frozen
• monitor how many carbs and how many proteins are consumed each day
• have a food log/journal
• eat a variety of colors of produce (i.e. green lettuce, orange carrots, red tomatoes, etc.)
  
• get some form of exercise
• get regular and restful sleep
• be cautious of portion size
• don't eat lots of oils, salts, and sugars
• etc.

Therefore, while switching to a gluten free lifestyle, I am also focusing on following these other rules, too.

How is your journey going?

Strength Training

Strength training is such an important step to health. I am told that by improving a person's muscle mass and toning, a person can achieve a higher metabolism, better health into old age, and avoid the body flab sagging that can occur while losing weight. Personally that sounds wonderful.

So I went through that bag I have of all the fitness stuff I have bought over the years and rarely ever used. I found a set of two lbs and a set of three lbs dumbbell weights. I found four stretch resistance bands. And I had recently purchased 2 sets of wrap around ankle/wrist weights.

I held up each weight individually and thought, "Oh yeah, like that is really gonna help me lose weight." Then I held up the whole bag with all the weights inside, "wow" that was about 14 lbs. So I started my workout with the wrap around weights around my ankles and the 2 lbs dumbbell weights in my hands. It wasn't too long and I felt a serious burn throughout my arms and legs.

Of course, only time and effort will tell what effect regular strength training will produce. It is recommended by the professionals. So I am guessing the effect will be positive. YAY!

Exercise

I think we can all admit that exercise is important for every healthy person. The struggle is finding the right form of exercise that works for you.

It must:

• be something I can do often
• be something I consider fairly fun
• be something that considers my family's needs (expense, child care, time invested, etc.)
• fit my personality (social or loner, talker or music lover, etc.)
• be an effective physical challenge

Possible forms of exercise include:

• Fitness club class (Spinning, Zumba, Weightlifting, etc.)
• Team Sport (Volleyball, Basketball, Soccer, Softball, etc.)
• Fitness Video (Aerobic, Pilates, Yoga, Dancing, Muscle Toning, etc.)
• At Home Fitness Equipment (Treadmill, Weight machine, NordicTrack, etc)
• Neighborhood Sidewalks (Bicycling, Walking, Running, etc.)

Personally, I have tried many of these forms of exercise. I have ceased most of them for various reasons. Most recently, my chosen form of exercise is using fitness videos at my home with a friend coming over to exercise with me. We are able to meet regularly, keep each other accountable, supervise the kids, workout and have friend time too. YAY!

Accountability

One of the healthiest times in my life was when I was in college living with an apartment full of girls. It is true that this environment can have its downfalls. But in my case, there was one girl named Sara who wanted to be healthy along with me. She and I would get up every morning and exercise together. We encouraged each other. And for me, knowing I had someone else counting on me, made a huge impact in my willingness to follow through with my plan.

For some reason, I am able to make a plan and set expectations for myself and then not do them. An excuse always comes up, or I postpone/procrastinate to the point that I loose momentum and give up. I love when someone is expecting me to show up. If for some reason I am unable to attend the appointment, I love if they ask what happened.

This does not mean, I like receiving advice. In the journey to shed unhealthiness and become healthy, advice is totally different than accountability.

Accountability is the choice to be responsible to fulfill an agreed upon goal and willingness to account/explain the situation to another person. And in matters of health, I love having a friend to encourage, support, and keep me accountable.