Health Experiment Day Nineteen

It is kinda hard to believe that we are almost done with this 30 days. With just 11 days left I am starting to think about the reintroduction of the foods we eliminated and how best to see what has a negative effect.

While I was reading up on the process I kept coming across the same phrase in all the forums: I am afraid to.  How many times have we felt fear stop us from doing something? I am definitely the first one to raise my hand. Fear of heights, fear of water, fear of snakes, fear of spiders.

We all have fears that we deal with on a constant basis, but the question is how are you going to deal with that fear? Are you gonna let it paralyze and cripple you? Are you gonna just not try new things because hey you never know I might be afraid of it.

I know in my life I have had a fear of driving more than 15  or 20 minutes away from my house. I know that sounds crazy but when you have had IBS for years you really have to plan a trip with all the bathrooms routed out. The Bible says that fear has torment. Man ain’t that the truth.

Fear has a way of slowly taking control of different areas and before you even realize it has gotten it’s hooks in a few more. It is really like a slow growing cancer. You have a choice to make; are you gonna sit back and let fear keep gaining more ground in your life or are you going to draw a line in the sand?

We really need to start taking the control in our lives back. Stop giving it away to something that is only going to strengthen the cage around us! The Bible also says, ”God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, love, and a sound  mind." Look at all those tools you get back in your life: Power, love, a sound mind. I can’t tell you how to stand up to fear. I think every individual person has to find their own way on that one but I can tell you that it’s something you’ve gotta start doing! Start pushing on the cage a little bit. You might just be surprised by how flimsy and loose it really is!

Breakfast

Spinach omelet

strawberries

Lunch

leftover tandoori chicken

roasted acorn squash

½ avocado

raw sugar snap peas

salad

Dinner

Sweet potato stew

For more information, check out my introduction here!

Health Experiment Day Eighteen

Have you ever thought about why certain foods only grow at certain times of the year? Have you ever tried a tomato or a strawberry in December? How about getting a nice crisp apple in June?

Oh you can find these products in your grocery store any time of year but let’s get real. They taste terrible. The tomato has a mealy mushy taste and the strawberry? Well that usually has no taste at all. It really is all about the freshness! Buying in season is great for your wallet and actually has health benefits as well.

In the spring everything is starting to wake up. Plants are turning green and new life is all around us! A few of the foods in season are things like greens and spinach. Foods that are high in iron, which is good for the blood, which feed our cells and tissue new life.

Summer foods would be peppers, herbs, cucumbers, and melons.These are foods that are high in water content which is great at cooling the body during the hot times.

Fall foods are apples, broccoli, cabbage which are high in fiber and help the sustain hunger for awhile.

Winter foods pretty much are the same as fall except we add in the citrus which is great for the immune system, which really does slow down and semi-hibernate in the winter.

Is it any coincidence that during each time and season the earth brings forth exactly what we need to stay healthy? I think not. It sounds like the plan of a wonderful loving Creator who always makes sure we have what we need. Eating seasonal is what I have been trying to do a lot more of. Since it is fall, we are eating a lot of squash, sweet potato, and cruciferous foods (i.e. cauliflower, brussel sprouts, cabbage, and broccoli). I have to admit to really enjoying the sweetness of roasted root veggies and different squashes. They are fresh and they are what is cheap right now which is great for helping me stick to my budget. Eat seasonal! it is good for you and your body will thank you by running and maintaining properly.

Breakfast

eggs

sausage

blueberries

Lunch

turkey burger

Roasted acorn squash

Salad loaded with sunflower seeds, squash seeds, balsamic vinegar

Dinner

chicken spiced with tandoori

Roasted potato with rosemary

Roasted root veggies

For more information on this experiment, check out my introduction here!

Health Experiment Day Seventeen

Today was back to normal--very nice to get back to after a few days of craziness. As I was looking back at these past few days and wondering how we managed to stay on plan, the one thing I noticed was that I had a plan! I was not going to allow a lack of plan to throw me off track.

I had several different veggie choices already prepped in the fridge and, since my oldest son is becoming a good cook, he was able to make the fill in parts of the meals while we tended to other things.

When you know that you're not going to be home for several hours and don’t have a easy-to-finish meal laid out you will convince yourself that just this once it is ok to get something not so healthy. After all, you have stuck to your challenge religiously up to this point so what harm can one meal do?

The answer is very simple. A lot. You have gotten your body to the place where it is healing itself! Your are getting all the toxic buildup out of your fat cells and starting to restore your organs and tissue. Your body is finally working the way God designed and created it to work!

Then your lack of planning becomes a hunger emergency and you add chemical-laden food to this clean body. Your body now has to stop all the rejuvenating and healing it has been doing and deal with all the crap you just put in it.

After all we know that a hamburger is not just a hamburger; it needs fries. And fries are salty so you need a cold drink to wash it down; why not a cold soda? Well geeze I already blew it by having this fast food so I might as well just add a dessert now and then get back on track tomorrow.

Well, yes you can get back on track, but if you’d already had a meal ready to go, you would have never had to go that route in the first place. Your little food emergency has set your body back a few days so it can clean out all the chemicals you added to it during that moment of hunger. Was it worth it? Only you can decide that. Life is always full of unexpected things so why not plan ahead for that  and have a meal on standby for when that moment does hit?

Breakfast

Spinach omelet

triple berries

Lunch

leftover chicken stir fry

salad

Dinner

Sweet Potato Stew

Salad

For more information on this experiment, check out my introduction here!

Health Experiment Day Sixteen

We have hit a mile stone. We have made it to the halfway point of this experiment. What changes do I see??? Well I still feel less bloated and have more energy. Definitely sleeping much better.

I'm noticing that in my youngest he is so much more focused when we do school. He is blowing my mind with how fast he is grasping all the new stuff and just flying through his school day. That is such a great change for this mom.

I am noticing that the skin for everybody in this house is definitely getting clearer. All around this has been a good experiment and I can’t wait to see what the next 15 days bring.

Breakfast

Veggie omelet

strawberries

Lunch

Roasted spaghetti squash

meatballs

marinara sauce

green beans

salad

Dinner

Mashed cauliflower

leftover smoked chicken

broccoli, carrots, celery, onion, pepper, and green beans stir-fried

For more information on this experiment, check out my introduction here!

Health Experiment Days Fourteen and Fifteen

The craziness is just continuing between post-surgery care and getting through the weekend shopping. This will pass and hopefully things will slow down by time the week starts. In the meantime we are still on track and still eating some great food. This was a tough week to stay in budget on groceries with no good sales to work with, so I went over by $20. For the record, when I post my grocery list I don’t include everything I buy such as water and other necessities. I just list all the stuff I buy for all the actual meals.

Breakfast for both days

sausage

eggs

kale medley

triple berry blend

Lunch for day 14

Salisbury Steak w/ mushroom sage gravy

mashed potato

roasted brussel sprouts

Dinner for day 14

Veggie stew

Lunch for day 15

chicken and veggie quiche

salad

Dinner for day 15

Salmon

roasted acorn squash

mashed cauliflower

salad

For more information on this experiment, check out my introduction here!
Week Three Grocery List

Health Experiment Day Thirteen

Today has been a very busy day. My daughter had a minor surgery which, due to all kinds of delays, turned into a most of the day event. Everything went well but I really had no time to prepare a good looking meal, let alone take pictures. We still managed to eat according to plan though!

Breakfast

eggs

sausage

kale medley

blueberries

Lunch

mini meatloaves

broccoli

sugar snap peas

salad

Dinner

veggie omelet

avocado

For more information on this experiment, check out my intro here!

Health Experiment Day Twelve

Today was another good day. It is a good feeling to know that I am on the right path and to realize that I am doing it. I am fulfilling my daily goals and getting a little bit healthier every day!

Goals are such an important thing to have but you need to realize that they will either help you sink or swim. It is great to have a big end goal whether it be a certain size in clothes or a number on a scale. Goals are what make your dream attainable!

But like anything else worth having, a goal needs to have clear steps laid out to reach it. If it doesn’t take sacrifice and hard work on your end, then you probably didn't set a high enough goal. On the flip side if you set a goal that causes you distress and heartache then you might have over shot or mislabeled your goal. Your end goal needs to be something you can actually do!

You need to have baby steps in place. I have found that setting daily and weekly goals are a good way to stay on track. For example one of my goals is to get my yoga and a walk in at least 5 times a week. Definitely something doable and will eventually get me to my end goal.

Completing this 30 days is another goal. That may not sound like a long time but let’s be real, after week 1 you start to think can I really do this 3 more weeks? The answer is, yes, I can do this! I can’t focus on the goal of 30 days I instead need to take it 1 day at a time. Plan my 3 meals for the day and stick to that plan. Is this easy? Heck no! But sometimes some of the best things in life take time, dedication, and hard work to complete. In the end I will be that sexy confident woman I want to be. In the meantime I am a work in progress completing one goal at a time.

Breakfast

veggie omelet

kale medley

raspberries

Lunch

salad with avocado, blueberries, sunflower seeds, balsamic vinegar, and s/p

Dinner

salsa chicken (chicken with salsa on top)

fried potato

green beans

For more on this experiment, go to my intro here!