Oh Happy Day

Today is a beautiful day! I reached my goal weight this morning.

I weighed in at 124.8 lbs. This calls for a photo.

I believe the last time I weighed 125 lbs was about 1987.  I'm feeling pretty good about that.

Go me!

Don't Get Too Skinny

     When people say to me, "Don't get too skinny!" I'm not sure how I'm supposed to respond.  I don't think they're really worried about my health,  (Or is it a compliment?) but I wish I could tell them:
     I'm not trying to get skinny.  I'm not restricting or even keeping track of calories.  I'm trying to be as healthy as I can.  I'm learning that if you nourish your body and exercise, it will find the weight that it is supposed to be. 

     I eat fruits and veggies and whole grains because I know that's what my body needs.  I exercise because I enjoy it.  I love Zumba!  I love that I can run 2 or 3 miles now easily.  I love having defined biceps for the first time in my life.  I love not feeling like I need a nap all the time.  I have never felt this good in my life.

     I wanted (and needed) to lose weight at first.  I had a weight goal.  I set it at 135 pounds because I thought it was realistic and it was in the healthy range for my height (110 - 148 lbs).  I'm at 127 now - and still in that healthy range.  My new goal is 125.  I don't know if that's my ideal weight. I just thought it would be nice to weigh what my first driver's license said I weighed at 16. (I doubt I weighed 125 even then.  Maybe 128.)

     If I reach it - great.  If I don't, that's fine too because I feel great.

That's what I wish I could tell them, but I don't think that's what they want to hear.  Instead I just smile and change the subject.  
     So the next time someone says to me: "Hi Twiggy."  I'll take that as a compliment (backhanded as it may be).  At least it's not Fatty McPhatterson right?

Get Healthy with Small Changes

Thanksgiving weekend was not kind to me.  I think it was the coconut cream pie that did me in. Or maybe it was the pan of Peanut Butter Fingers that I made because my son begged.  I have the best recipe for Peanut Butter Fingers that I’ve ever seen out there. Courtesy of an ex-lunch lady.  I’ll do you a favor and not share it.  (Unless you want me to, but you’ll be sorry.)  That was probably the reason I gained 2 ½ pounds that week. 

One thing I’ve learned about sugar is that I can be doing so great, not craving sweets at all, then go overboard one day and bam! I want more and more.  Before I know it I’ve eaten half a pan of something. And it takes me a few days to get back to craving healthy foods again.  But I think I’m there. 

I’ve talked about small changes that make a big difference.  Since you need to do more than talk about changes, let's decide to actually do something!  Set a goal to make a change in the way you eat.  And then DO IT!

Here are some things I'm doing to get back on track.

  Small changes that make a big difference:

*  Soup Day.  Make soup once a week and make sure it’s one with lots of veggies.  I like soup because I can make enough for leftovers.  Plan your soup day for the day after a roast or chicken.  Just sauté some onions and chopped veggies, add broth, maybe some pasta and the leftover meat.  A little bit of meat goes a long way and makes a good soup. On soup days all I do is thaw some frozen rolls in the afternoon.  I love easy!

*  Add a smoothie.  There are all kinds of smoothie recipes on line.  Start with something safe that you know you’ll like and then experiment.  Smoothies are the best way to sneak some spinach in.  My favorite Green Smoothie is on my Healthy Recipes page.

*  Try one new salad each week.  If you make this goal, plan ahead! You’re not going to do it if all you have is lettuce in the fridge.  You can add fruit, beans, chicken, salsa, peas, seeds, berries, etc. to your salad. Maybe not all at the same time.  Then you’ll need a few different dressings.  Try something new.  There’s only so much you can do with Ranch Dressing.   Need some ideas?  Trainer Momma is the queen of salads. I think last time I looked she had 28 salads on her recipe page. You need to go there.

So there are a few ideas.  Anything you’d like to add?  I’m always open to suggestions and ideas.  What works for you?

Eat The Rainbow

Do you want to do the 5 A Day Challenge with me?  You've heard that you should eat 5-9 servings of fruits and vegetables daily, right?  Well this challenge is even better for you- to eat one fruit or veggie of each color daily.  The National Cancer Institute and the Utah Department of Health have this handy flier.  They've divided the fruits and veggies  into 5 color groups.  Each group contains different phytonutrients which of course have different health benefits.
For example:
The Red Group (think tomatoes and strawberries) contains phytonutrients like lycopene and anthocyanins.  Lycopene reduces breast and skin cancer risks, while anthocyanins reduce your risk of heart attack and Alzheimer's Disease.
The Green Group (broccoli, kiwi & spinach) supplies you with lutein for good vision and cancer fighting indoles.  Carrots and oranges contain beta-carotene and bioflavenoids, both powerful anti-oxidants.  Then there's the Blue/Purple group that can slow the effects of aging and reduce memory loss.  The White Group will boost your immunity and help lower cholesterol and blood pressure because Onions and Garlic contain Allicin. You can click here to download your own nifty copy.  I have one hanging inside my pantry door.  My kids are learning this all with me.
Click here for a pdf of the Colorful Choices Log to help you (or your kids) keep track of your food color choices each day. 

Beans are your friend

I was watching a web broadcast by Dr. Fuhrman yesterday. He's the one who wrote the book Eat to Live that really inspired me to change what I eat. I was thinking that the reason that more people don't eat like he does is because eating the nutritarian way is just too big of a change to make all at once like he suggests. The way he eats really makes sense, but eating is more than just what we put in our mouths. We have traditions that revolve around food. We eat certain things out of habit. We eat because it makes us feel good, etc. To change our diet completely would be like moving to another country and culture. In the web broadcast Dr. Fuhrman said that to be healthy, everyone should make sure the following 6 things were in their diet daily.
1/2 cup beans
3 fresh fruits
1 oz raw nuts and seeds
1 large salad
1 large serving steamed green vegetables
some mushrooms or onions every day
Even these 6 things would be a huge change for some people, so I was thinking what if you just chose one of these things to add to your diet for a week or 2 and then pick another to work on.
Just a thought. So my goal this week is to add more beans. Beans are good real food.  You just have to find some that you like. Today I chose garbanzo. I had leftover stir-fry in my fridge, so for lunch today I threw 1/2 cup of garbanzo beans in the stir-fry and heated it up. And it was yummy. I also bought that bean soup mix that I always see. You just add water and whatever else vegetable-ish that you want to throw in. Has anyone ever tried it?
Beans are fiber and nutrient packed and actually contain a wider variety of healthy nutrients than most foods. These include calcium, potassium, vitamin B6, magnesium, folate, and alpha-linolenic acid. They also have anti-cancer benefits against breast and prostate cancers.