#aprilWhole30

I am always looking for ways to be healthier, feel better, and not consume as many ingredients.  I wrote a previous post about how I believe what we are consuming has a major connection with my generation being sick (feel free to go back and read).  So, when my mom starting telling me about this Whole30 challenge; a different way of thinking and looking at food, I first thought she had lost her mind. ;) But, typical of my momma she kept bringing it up, telling me how great her and her husband were feeling, their skin was glowing, and they had lost a good amount of weight in only a month. 

Needless to say, I talked the Hubby into it.  30 days.  Only eating non-processed whole foods. Fruit, veggies, and meat. (spices, oils, vinegar included also).  No dairy, no alcohol, no grains, no sugar, no soy, NO PROCESSED FOODS. If you cannot pronounce an ingredient, you can't eat it.  

It sounds more challenging than it is, I promise.

Along the way I found a few key things that saved me in my first #whole30.  

A good rule when doing any sort of challenge is to have a support team. As I mentioned before, I thankfully convinced the Hubby to join me the first time.  I would not have survived succeeded without him. I have found that I am terrible at holding myself accountable.  But, if I have given someone my word, I will stick with it until the end. Now, this time around, all of you will be my accountability partners.  :) So, thank you for going on this journey with me.  

Another saving grace is being prepared.  Biggest part is preparing what you will eat, Meal Prep.  It can either be your best friend or greatest enemy. Not even kidding, what's the saying.... If you fail to prepare then you are preparing to fail...? It is beyond true. I struggle with this; It is challenging for me.  I have no idea what I'm going to want to eat on Thursday for lunch.  But, this is a part of your "food freedom" Melissia Hartwig talks about A LOT! Food is fuel, it is not a reward.  As long as you have meals designed to fuel your body in the best way possible it doesn't necessarily matter what you "feel like eating".  Every single meal I made during #januarywhole30 was delicious!!  

I like to plan at most a week in advance, again, I do struggle with this.  Especially when I am trying new recipes and I am unsure of the amount of leftovers I will have. All I do is go and grab my go to cookbooks, sit down with a notebook or my planner, and get to looking and writing.  When I write down a recipe for each meal I immediately turn to a grocery list and write it all down.  Do not delay in writing out your grocery list.  You do not want to feel that turmoil. 

Also, make sure to have "in case of emergency" items available.  Nuts, fruit, LaraBars, RxBars. 

My favorite cookbooks are: The Whole30: The 30-Day Guide to Total Health and Food Freedom, by Melissa Hartwig and Dallas Hartwig (This book is EVERYTHING) / The Whole30 Cookbook by Melissa Hartwig / Well Fed & Well Fed by Melissa Joulwan (These aren't all Whole30 approved so watch the ingredients) / NonNonPaleo by Michelle Tam and Henry Fong
(Not all paleo recipes are whole30 recipes)

The hardest part for anyone I've talked to about this is coffee.  We all love sugar and cream in our coffee.  But, as stated above, no dairy and no sugar for 30 days.  My favorite line and probably the most quoted line Melissa has is this "It is not hard. Don’t you dare tell us this is hard. Quitting heroin is hard. Beating cancer is hard. Drinking your coffee black. Is. Not. Hard. You won’t get any coddling, and you won’t get any sympathy for your 'struggles.'" With that being said, I found my favorite way to drink my coffee is blended with a little bit of cinnamon and Califia Farms brand Coconut/Almond milk. There is creamer called Nut Pods, that you can purchase on Amazon. (personally, I like my concoction better)

Those are my few little tips.  Starting on Saturday I will be doing another round, if anyone would like to join me let me know!! :) I would love to help you make your Whole30 journey the best possible! Please please please ask me any questions, if I don't already know the answer, I will do my best to find it!! I would also love ideas, or suggestions for what you would like to learn or know more about! :)  And get ready friends, there will be a lot of pictures and my favorite recipes will be shared also. 

Food Homework is Fun Homework

I spend most nights perusing through the 1.6 million cook books Chris and I own and Pinterest. My bedside table is usually loaded down with 6 novels I'm in the middle of, 2 or 3 cookbooks and 1 or 2 foodie magazines.  In this house, with a baker and a chef, our lives basically revolve around food.

Recently, like the past week, I have been eating 95% paleo/whole30, healthy, however you want to put it.  Meat, eggs, veggies, small amounts of fruit, that's basically it.  (If you don't count the cookie and ice cream I had last week.)  As far as drinks go, I stick to water and coffee (which is where I am struggling to not add my flavors and milk) I can't help it, I LOVE my caramel vanilla iced americano with 2%, I'm a barista, it's going to happen.  After only one week of eating this way, I feel great.  I'm not lethargic, I'm not overly moody, and I'm enjoying cooking again <3

My favorite new found breakfast is baked eggs with lots of goodies.  Call it a fritatta, a spanish tortilla, baked eggs, whatev! Hello, easy, delicious, and filling!

Spanish Tortilla 

(play around with the ingredients)

Serves 1, 3 days

1 Small Sweet Potato, peeled and thinly sliced in rounds

1/4 Bell Pepper of your choice, thinly sliced in long strips

(I always have green and red on hand)

1/4 Walla Walla Sweet Onion, thinly sliced

1 Jalapeno, seeded and thinly sliced or diced

4 oz meat, thinly sliced or diced

(I've used ham, chicken sausage, anything you like)

5-6 eggs, beaten (preferably farm fresh, trust me, there is a difference)

2 tsp EVOO

fresh basil, salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, garlic powder, italian seasoning

Heat EVOO in skillet over medium heat

Once heated, add sweet potato, saute 10 minutes, until browned and cooked through

Add in all other ingredients minus eggs

Saute 5-7 minutes, until veggies are par-cooked

Take off burner, put all yummy goodies into a heat-safe bowl to cool

Once partially cooled add beaten eggs.

Line a small baking dish with parchment paper, (I used a 6 cup Pyrex)

Bake at 375 for about 30 minutes.

Let cool fully, pop out of pan, divide into 3 equal parts, place in tupperware of some sort

Magic, you have breakfast for 3 days!! :) 

My lunches are always leftovers from the night before.  Recently, I have only been cooking for myself.  My hubby works way too much, my daughter left for college last month, and my son is WAY to busy being a senior in high school to be home for dinner every night. ;) I have found that it works best for me to take any recipe I want to try and cut it in half.  That way I have dinner for that night and lunch for the next day.  It keeps me from getting bored, and eating whatever looks better at work, and then having to throw away perfectly good food.  

Tonight I was feeling the weather and a little nostalgic of my time in Ireland. I decided to make a "traditional fall dish" that I ate once a week during my time across the pond. Who doesn't love pork chops and applesauce? . I seared my thin cut pork chops, took them out and set them aside. Thinly sliced up new potatoes, a gala apple, purple cabbage, the other 1/4 of my walla walla sweet onion, garlic and some cauliflower.  Saute'd it all together with a good amount of salt, red pepper flakes, thyme, and cinnamon.  Added the pork back in, lowered heat to med low, and let it all cook together and the pork to come up to 160 degrees! Oh man, it was delicious, and so easy, I just love one pan meals.



It's amazing to me how a little bit of research, or homework, can change how I am looking at meals.  I have been cooking for so long that I can take bits and pieces from certain recipes and adapt them into a totally different one.  If you aren't to that point, follow a recipe.  It is simple.  Remember to try new things; I am shocked that I like certain foods now that 1 or 2 years ago made me shudder when I saw them in a dish (Main one, mushrooms, love them...now....) Another new flavor to me that I absolutely love, is curry! I don't keep any red curry in our house due to Chris' food allergy, but Yellow Curry is amazing!! Trust me. ;)

I hope my renewed love of cooking can come through your screens and help you to make healthy, easy, yummy food for you and your family.  <3

A New Way of Thinking

I don't know about you, but once I reached my late 20's (I can't believe I'm in my last full calendar year of my 20's) I started to see a lot of people my age getting sick.  I'm not talking about the common cold or the flu, more along the lines on cancer and bad food allergies.  Right now, I have 2 possibly 3 friends with cancer that I know of; and more people than I could possibly count have discovered that they allergic to real foods.  It has gotten me thinking, what are we doing wrong?  As a society we pride ourselves on being the best.  Everyone wants to be an American; This is "The Greatest Country in the World."  Why are we getting sick?

I am starting to believe that a major issue is what we are consuming; food and drink mainly.  We have become brainwashed and tricked into thinking that food is food. If it is sold in a grocery store, it is ok to eat and shouldn't make us sick.  Well, that's a bunch a bull, if you don't mind me saying so.
I dare you to go look in your cupboard, pick up any can or box of "food" and read the label.  Those words you and I cannot pronounce are not food.  They are chemicals, they are additives to make our "food" appealing to us.  To make it taste good and trick us into thinking its delicious. To make them easy to mass-produce, to make an easy dollar, or million. I have these same "foods" in my cupboard right now.  I'm trying to get away from them, but with 2 teenagers and my husband in my house, that gets a little difficult.

I would love to know the rates of cancer and food allergies in other 1st world countries.  Is it such an epidemic in Germany? Or France? What about Ireland? I know that they are not allowed to put a good majority of the chemicals in their foods as we do.  They do not process meat in a warehouse the way we do.  A lot of things have made me really take a step back, not always reach for the easiest item to indulge in, and really start taking the time and effort to put only real food items into my body.


Let me step off my soap box. :) With this new way of looking at our foods, and knowing that what I put into my body is what will either make me run at full capacity or just barely scrape by, I have really started to make myself prep my meals again.  I am re-learning what foods I really do enjoy, new foods to try, new spices and herbs.  I absolutely love to cook and bake.  It is one of my biggest passions in life besides being the best wife and mom I can be.  But, with that being said, some days I want nothing to do with being a kitchen, or doing dishes, blech!!!


I am learning to take an hour or 2 every couple of days and prep out breakfasts, snacks, and lunches for a couple days, it saves me a ton of time and irritation.  I am definitely one of those people who when I am hungry, I am starving and need to eat 10 minutes ago.  If it isn't easy or already made, I'm not going to make it.

I am also learning, that I do not like to eat the same meal more than 2 (maybe 3) days in a row.  I'm bored of it by then.  So, my plan on here is to share at least once, maybe twice a week what I'm cooking and eating.  My hope is that I might inspire just a few people, hopefully more, to take the time and learn to enjoy the time spent to take care of our bodies.  We only get one, and I personally would like to live as long as possible.  For goodness sake, my mom is saying she's going to live to 112, so I at least have to make it to 93.  ;)

Hello Portion Control, Nice to Meet You

I've been under the illusion that if I'm making my own food, and it's mainly lean and green, with some "healthy" carbs, that I am doing the right thing.  Hah! Wrong.  Wrong, wrong, wrong.  Part of it is right, but portion control is SO IMPORTANT and so not something we Americans are good at.  In any part of our lives, we love to over indulge. I love to over indulge.  But, I am learning that indulgence (by definition: to yield to an inclination or desire) is a treat, not a way of life. So, in turn, I am learning how to control portions; the size and amount of food I eat in a day impacts me beyond what I ever thought it could.  

It did take a couple weeks to actually feel full/not starving on the portions my meal plan was allowing.  At first I doubled the veg/lean protein, or added in a whole wheat bread of some sort.  Now, I'm doing much better, eating much less, and eating properly.  (Finger up when I take a sip and all. ;-) )

I have definitely decided that I am a breakfast eater, or just an eater... But without breakfast my day is hard.  According to Chris, I am always hungry.  Which, if I do not eat, I get hangry, very very hangry! It's easy to avoid, if I eat a good breakfast.  When I'm home I like to make healthy veggie scrambles with farm fresh eggs from my awesome cousin! But, when I have to be to work super early, that isn't much of an option... My favorite thing for work days are Overnight Oats.  So easy to prep 3 or 4 days in a row and just grab one in the morning and you are SET!

Overnight Oats, before Almond or Coconut Milk

OVERNIGHT OATS

1/4 cup Old Fashioned Oats

1/2 cup Unsweetened Almond Milk 

(I like Vanilla Unsweetened, and you can use Coconut Milk also)

1 scoop Protein Powder 

(My new fav is Fit Miss in Vanilla Chai)

1 Tbsp Chia Seeds

1/2 Tbsp Cacao Nibs

1/2 Tbsp Peanut Butter (or any nut butter)

1/4 cup berries 

(blackberries or strawberries(sliced) are my favorite)

2 tsp honey

Put all ingredients in a mason jar, and let sit overnight.  I usually make up to 3 days in advance.  

Today I also tried a new recipe that is going to stick around for quite a while, I even think Chris will like it! I love a good crockpot recipe, I love getting everything ready, puting my crockpot on low to cook and blend flavors for hours without me having to do much at all.  I also am really excited that I now have lunch and dinner for at least the weekend, if not a while after that!  Makes meal prep a breeze, since I have breakfast for all weekend prepped from last night.  Go me! 

Crockpot Black Bean Chili

(With lots of extra yumminess)

2 Tbsp EVOO (Extra Virgin Olive Oil)

1 White Onion

1 lb ground chicken/turkey or 1 package Tofu

2 tsp Cumin

1 1/2 Tbsp Chili Powder (to your liking) 

1 Tbsp Cayenne Powder

2 tsp coriander

2 tsp-1 Tbsp Salt

1 tsp Black Pepper

dash/pinch of cinnamon

(Split spices in half)

1/4 cup minced Garlic

1 can Black Beans

1 can Kidney Beans

2 cups sliced Mushrooms (I like Crimini)

1 cup Bell Pepper, diced

1 cup Sweet Potato, cubed

1 cup Butternut Squash, cubed

2 cups Quinoa (I use a quinoa/ancient grain mix)

1 can Fire Roasted Tomatoes + 1 can water

1 small can Spicy V8

Heat oil in pan over Medium heat, add onion, cook until soft

Add meat/tofu and 1/2 of spices, cook until browned

Add all ingredients to slow cooker

High for 5-6 hours, depending on you slowcooker 

I think I'm getting the hang of this food photography! 

Enough about food, even though it basically runs my life right now.  I have not been able to workout in a week and it's killing me! I slipped and fell on the ice last weekend and went from feeling 28 and wonderful to feeling 88 and in pain in a matter of seconds! Haven't been able to do much, getting through work decently enough the last couple days and really trying to mend my body.  Went to see my lovely Chiropractor today and he told me that I messed my lower back up real well.  Had one of the highest adjustments I've ever had, including after my car accidents.  EEK! I honestly never in my life thought that I would miss working out, but I do.  I can't wait to get back into it, I'm going to start on Sunday with my Yoga Camp again and see how I do!  

Thanks for following along with me on the this crazy journey! Hope you enjoy these recipes, there will be lots more to come!! Comment with things you would like to read about, or if you have any questions! :) I'm off to ice my lower back.... after I put on a sweatshirt. 

Meal Prep has taken over, in a good way!

Woah! Somehow we are already half way through the first month of the beautiful new year! Not sure how that happened, but it did.  I have been slacking in my blogging duties, but really, I haven't had much to share.  I have been following my TIU meal plan, for the most part, and working out daily, for the most part.  In these 3 1/2 weeks, I have realized a lot about myself.  Mainly, I am not going to EVER give up a few things in life (foodwise).  In no particular order, those things are: *iced 12oz caramel americanos with milk. *WINE (although I am going to not drink on worknights... for a bit) *Egg yolks.  because the whites gross me out! *salt *cheese (OMYum) *Gluten.  I do not have to live a gluten free lifestyle, there for, I will not.  (Trust me, I'm nicer when I can have bread)

Me today.  Its my Monday. :/

I have struggled with the working out part more than I have the food part.  Which, if you know me, is not a big shocker.  Like I've told you, I really have never worked out before.  Especially not for an extended period of time, and definitely not while hungover! But, watch out world, this new Alex might just take over! I have decided to take it easy on the days that I have to wake up at 4am for work.  I am just so exhausted on those days, it is hard for me to do much of anything.  Maybe eventually, or even tomorrow, I will be able to do my TIU workout.  For now, my goal tomorrow is to complete my Yoga Camp.

But enough about tomorrow, today I really felt the turning point, I powered through a section in the workout that was crunches with alternating left and right punches without a break! (woo) and then I jumped back into plank, held plank, and powered through that section too! :) I am so proud of myself, and in seeing the changes there is no turning back.  I am on the right track to health and loving my body! All of these things are full on non-scale victories! I haven't actually lost any weight, YET!

Veg all prepped out!! :) Simple Life!

Along with my Weekly Workouts from TIU, I am also doing Yoga Camp with Adriene.  I follow a bunch of fellow TIUGirls on Instagram and saw so many doing this, that I joined in also!  She is so relaxing, and funny, and I am moving in ways I was unaware I could, already.  (Joined late, finished day 3 today)

Constantly meal planning, but loving every minute of it. 

My meal planning has taken over the kitchen/fridge/ottoman/house. lol  I've never been this much of a meal planner, but man, it takes all the thought out of it.  I am eating more veggies than ever! Lean proteins, and finding new foods to love!  I am also learning how to cook on a healthier side, less salt, less fats, and foods that fill me up and leave me feeling healthy!!  Extra Bonus: Chris is loving the foods too! :)

I think I've caught you all up, shared some fun photos, eaten my dinner while blogging, and now it's time to go.  To continue to meal prep!! ;) Hope you all have a great night, thanks for following along!

Tomorrow is the day.

Tomorrow is the day.  The day I begin my journey to re-find myself.  Not that I've lost myself, I've just put myself to the side for the past few years.  I've been focusing on my job, my family, my appetite.  Appetite for life, for love, for food, for WINE! In that pursuit, I've lost track of me.  I turned 28 a couple months ago, and I'm ready to really focus on my health, on fitness and food.  A different kind of food though, not the kind that makes my feelings happy, but the kind that makes my body healthy and happy.  

I've found that the best way to focus on anything in life, is to be fully prepared.  I'm very good at preparing, at least for the things I can control.  So after work today I meal-prepped quite a bit.  I got all of my lettuce chopped, kale cut, bell peppers and mushrooms chopped and stored safely! I will be cooking my chicken either that day or the night before to get meals ready for workdays.  This way I can make sure to set aside time to check-in with myself and the TIU community. 

As I've told you before, I'm following the TIU 8 week challenge and with that I'm finding a few hurdles I wasn't fully prepared for.  For starters, I'm not big on spending anywhere over $30 for protein powder let alone $50 + shipping.  I'm sure their Perfect Fit Protein Powder is awesome, but I just can't spend that much.  So, I have the protein powder I really do love in my shakes, and I needed some for a baked item (donuts!).  Oh man, bad bad bad! Like, bad bad bad! Now I'm on the hunt for a new protein powder, that I can get in the small town I live in and that isn't too expensive... :/ Wish me luck, I think I'm going to need it.

I'm not letting that discourage me though, neither am I letting the fact that I haven't worked out since Thursday discourage me.  I worked a super long day yesterday, 12 hrs starting at 4am, and was asleep on the couch by 6pm last night. And today, well, today I just didn't... :/ Not that I still couldn't, but I've had a horrible neckpain/headache all day and today is not yet tomorrow. ;) (hello, queen of excuses) So again, tomorrow is the day! 

Another thing that bothered me, but I have already overcome, is that the meal-plan isn't quite as planned as I would hope.  The grocery list isn't quite accurate, and neither are the planning days.  Thankfully tho, I am quite the planner.  I had already gone over Week 1 multiple times, therefore I think I bought all that I could from one grocery store and will be hitting up a specialty store in the morning.  

Well, I think that's all for today.  Sorry for not having any pictures, I was so in the zone while prepping and cleaning that I did not get any taken.  Isn't it so nice to not be attached to our phones every once in a while?! :) Thanks for listening! 

Do The Work To Get To The Wine.

Hey blog friends! Remember me?! Almost 3 years ago I decided to join Medifast, my plan in doing so was to lose weight, fall back in love with my own body and learn to eat healthy proportions and not rely on "comfort foods" as every day foods.  Well, here I am 3 years later, heavier than I was then, and still just as clueless.  I want to learn to workout, learn what foods are going to feed my body the nutrients I need to live a long and healthy life.

Chris and I @ his xmas party

It feels so weird to admit that I am 28 years old, and I have absolutely NO idea how to workout.  Sure, sure, I know how to go on a walk, I do know how to jog (doesn't mean you're likely to see me doing it), I do know how to do a pushup, and a situp even.  But what I do not know, is how to use those to my advantage.  How many pushups/situps/wallsits etc should I be doing? What order? Do I push myself so hard that I don't ever want to do those again? I've struggled with these questions for most of my life, and I've also struggled with finding answers that will actually motivate me to do the work.  I also, am totally clueless as to what a healthy portion is, and why is it that I even if I am making all of my own foods, are they not healthy?!  Being a baker is a HUGE problem for my waistline.

I think I've found the answer.  Actually, I've had the answer, I've just been to stubborn and lazy to actually do the work. Before I stopped writting, eating right, working out last time (2 1/2 years ago!!!!) I had found a program called Tone It Up (TIU).  It was created by 2 amazing women who want to share their knowledge and love for being healthy with other women.  I have followed them online and through emails and have been a member for almost 3 years now.  What I have not done is actually FOLLOWED the information, tips, recipies etc from them.

So, starting on January 3rd I will be partaking in their newest 8 week challenge.  This was MADE for me! Oh man, it is all planned; all I have to do is follow along.  If you want to follow along on my journey of learning how to workout, eat right and live a healthier lifestyle, please do! :) I'm sure there will be lots of pictures, laughs, tears, and complaints.  Oh, and wine.  There will be wine.  :)

On Sunday, I will be taking all new measurements, making my handsome fiance take pictures of me (which I will not be sharing with the world) and grocery shopping from my awesome new meal plan! But first, I have already started with the Weekly Workouts from my TIU team, and I can not WAIT to see the progress from steady and hard work.

Here we go friends! I am excited to share this journey with you, and if you would love to come along with me, please let me know!

--alex