how to: nutritional detox

power foods. on my wish list.

let me start by saying that i am not a nutritionist. ok, that said, this is my guide on how we do a nutritional detox. sam and i have been gorging on donuts and ice cream and pizza lots of pizza. whenever we can see that we are sort of  falling off the wagon we tighten the reigns (better than tight pants i always say) and do a detox. perfect for a jump start to a healthier lifestyle, to cut a sugar addiction, or as a post-vacation rx. even if you cut out sugar and grains for a week you'll feel so much better. perfect for leading up to labor day!

i'm also going to start over on my couch to 5k plan. done.

ok, that is enough talk (said in my best jillian michaels voice). here is my detox plan for this week:

monday
breakfast- egg muffins
snacks- raw organic walnuts
lunch- baby kale salad with cherry tomatoes, balsamic vinegar dressing, and red onions
dinner- turkey tacos with raw salsa and raw cheddar cheese plus black beans

tuesday
breakfast- greek yogurt with almond butter and a little bit of homemade jam
snacks- raw nuts
lunch- leftover taco salad
dinner- organic bbq (make sure you check the bottle for NO high fructose syrup) chicken with green bean salad

wednesday
breakfast- green smoothie
snacks- celery dipped in almond butter or hummus
lunch- leftover green bean salad
dinner- grass-fed beef burgers with grilled vegetables

thursday
breakfast- baby kale and onion fritatta
snacks- small plain greek yogurt with cinnamon and a little honey
lunch- mixed greens with leftover grilled veggies and italian dressing
dinner- sweet bison chili

friday
breakfast- fried egg and turkey bacon (nitrate free)
snacks- raw nuts
lunch- leftover chili
dinner- warm endive and fennel salad

saturday
breakfast- green smoothie
snacks- celery dipped in hummus
lunch- grilled zucchini pizza
dinner- coconut chicken (season unsweetened shredded coconut, dip chicken first in egg then coat in coconut, lightly saute in coconut oil) served with with peanut sauce and broccoli

sunday
breakfast- scrambled eggs with herbs and gorgonzola cheese
snacks- raw nuts
lunch- leftover chicken and peanut sauce with broccoli
dinner- leftover zucchini pizza

other important notes:
just say no to alcohol (even red wine) for two weeks or longer...
drinks lots of water
if you need a sweet fix, eat a handful of strawberries
reheat food in oven or on stove (not in microwave)
before you make a grocery list, plan your menu. i also clean out my refrigerator before a detox.

ps if you play along, i'd love to hear from you. feel free to ask any questions in the comment section.

detox day two

 just in one day of cutting out sugars and grains my jeans aren't as skinny. i'm feeling a little less puffy and i'm craving chocolate. all in that order. i haven't kicked coffee yet but it's on the horizon. i want to be at the very least a casual coffee drinker. you know, the kind that doesn't need it. the time that i enjoy it the most is in the morning during my quiet time. is God challenging me in this area? yes. i'm working on being obedient. tear. speaking of challenges: gossiping (ugh why is it so hard not to vent) and a child that was full tilt no nap. makes not sneaking in a little cupcake/cheat meal hard. here's to small victories!

i woke up and drank a lot of water which is the best way for your body to start the day. we had a similar breakfast as yesterday and headed to the park. the weather has been rockin'.

for lunch i made this. it is a go-to and matilda loves it too. i left out the potatoes and threw in kale, peppers, etc. i also used just a tiny bit of turkey bacon and goat feta. have you tried goat feta? i suggest you do.

because i did yoga last night i wanted a light dinner so i made the green smoothie.

i also want to stress the importance of working exercise in to your daily routine. this is an area that i definitely struggle in. my mom is a great example and inspires me to do yoga. i am very proud of her, she's going to school to be a yoga instructor in the fall!

just ease in. even a ten minute walk can work wonders for your body and mind.

tips for motivation
when sam and i detoxed the first time i found it really motivating and rewarding to buy myself cute workout clothes. may sound silly but i wanted to feel cute and spending that extra cash motivated me to make sure those clothes got sweaty. my favorite splurge is lululemon but i realize it's expensive. target actually has super cute workout gear. how cute is this?

in terms of exercise, moderate walking or a slower paced yoga is great during a detox. you'll have plenty of time to kick that in to gear once you reintroduce healthy grains.

read healthy magazines and books. i love yoga journal and whole living and i'm currently reading born to run. i get inspired by watching other people live healthy lives. i also typically avoid all things food network and/or baking related for these two weeks.

* photo

detox day three

hello september! oh day three. you are consistently annoying. you make me want to shovel ice cream in my mouth so fast you never saw it. let me assure you that this did.not.happen. i even went to a bible study with full on birthday dessert happenings. hey gee, thanks for having a birthday during my detox, lisa. jokes jokes. kind of. happy birthday!

i think the best way to tackle the sugar cravings on day three is to make some nut butter. if you don't have a high speed blender (ask for one for your birthday) go out and get you some almond butter. spoon it up. makes you feel like your eating something sweet even though you are most assuredly not.

something i noticed on day three...
if i can't eat something sweet i thought "i'll just go shopping". i ordered four pairs of shoes (don't worry i'll only keep one. or two.) and i went to my notsosafe place... target. so, may i suggest that someone take your keys, credit card, and car on day three.

argan oil
i bought some. have you tried it? there's always so much fuss about it. i think i first heard about it from my girl, lc. i'll let you know what i think.

read why
day one
day two

*photo

what i eat part 2

this is the second installment to "eat this not that." see the first part here.

when sam started seeing a nutritionist dietician, i jumped on his bandwagon. we used the book be fat free forever as a guide. the book is very similar to south beach diet, but there isn't much focus on eating organic with lots of vegetables. there's a lot of talk about bacon and steak. there is nothing wrong with either, but they don't need to be the primary ingredients in your daily menu. therefore, i don't truly endorse either. one concept we did put in to play was gradually adding good carbohydrates back in to our diet after a 2 week detox. we started by adding 20 grams of carbs back in and then 5 more grams week by week.

good carbs are fruit (berries specifically), oatmeal, sprouted grains (ezekial bread), etc.

we also added a "free" meal to our week. i honestly think that this is the key to living a healthy lifestyle. part of being healthy is not depriving yourself. eating whatever i want once a week allows me to fulfill my cravings and usually leaves me ready to get back to eating better because you feel the effects immediately.

we also made small changes like using coconut oil to cook with and i stopped using sweetener in my coffee. we switched over to meats that are grass fed and free range. we stopped eating pork.

this is one of my favorite lunches: fried egg over mixed greens

fry egg in pan and season then place over mixed greens with goat cheese and dried cranberries with soy ginger dressing.

some homework...

update: if you have any questions please leave them for me in the comments section and i will do my best to answer them. also, would love to hear from you if you are trying the detox or implementing any of these practices in to your routine!

vacation detox

after eating things like red velvet donuts, gelato every day, best bbq nachos on earth, and stuffing my face with sushi and this beer i knew i'd have to whip my butt in shape when we got home. nothing like wearing next to nothing to also motivate!

five day plan:

tuesday-

breakfast:

sprouted grain english muffin with peanut butter and strawberry preserves

lunch:

veggie 6" sub from subway (only because we were traveling, i wouldn't normally do bread twice in one day)

dinner:

amazing salmon patties from whole foods with grilled veggie kabobs over spinach

started my couch to 5k program with this app plus abs

finished under my calorie goal thanks to my fitness pal.

wednesday-

breakfast:

plain cabot greek yogurt (there are 18g of protein per serving!) with strawberries and blackberry preserves, sprinkled with cinnamon

lunch:

leftover salmon patties and veggies over spinach with a cup of butternut squash soup (thanks katie!)

dinner:

deli meat and chesire cheese with rasberries

restorative yoga with my mama. got the schedule mixed up and we ended up at a meditation class. no yoga, great story.

light yoga plus abs

thursday-

breakfast:

yogurt breakfast again

lunch:

romaine hearts filled with deli meat, sliced raw cheese, spicy mustard

snack:

raw cashews

dinner:

taco salad

2nd day c25k

friday-

breakfast:

fried egg and turkey bacon

lunch:

one romaine+turkey "sandwich" and mixed greens with mushrooms and cherry tomatoes (i like soy ginger dressing)

dinner:

bbq chicken with broccoli and mixed greens

yoga after dark

saturday-

breakfast:

scrambled eggs with turkey bacon and english muffin with raw butter

lunch:

leftover grilled chicken over greens

dinner:

veggie plate

3rd day c25k

snacks usually consist of nuts (raw) with the occasional cacao bar broken into quarters.

after eating well for the past 10 months, with detox my body is now able to re-rev its metabolism. pretty dang cool.

breakfast recipes

{1/2/3/4/5}

i think that majority of questions that i got from this post were pleas for healthy recipes! to make the posts a little less crazy, i'll be spreading them out meal by meal. let's start with my favorite meal of the day: breakfast. i think that breakfast is also the hardest meal of the day to make healthfully. it is much easier to pour a bowl of cereal than to cook, or to grab a donut on the way to work. i get it, BUT these meals above are all super easy to make and quick. every recipe above can be enjoyed during detox except for the oatmeal and sans fruit. after the first two weeks feel free to add oats and berries in, just watch your portion sizes.*

1. for christmas my darling husband surprised me with one of these beauties so i am super in to smoothies right now. this green smoothie is chock full of good things.

2. these egg muffins are a great make-ahead.

3. if you are in detox mode greek yogurt will be your best friend. so rich and creamy, seems wrong but it's so right. sheena who took that beautiful photo shows you here how to make your own. i love sheena's blog and she posts great, healthy recipes all the time.

4. i love frittatas because you can throw whatever you want in. i also make these for dinner and eat the leftovers for breakfast (sam is not a fan). my favorite recipe is ina garten's omelet for 2 (er 1) minus the potatoes.

5. my beloved oatmeal. good for the soul i tell you. i love mixing in a little bit of dried fruit and a scoop of almond butter. turkey bacon doesn't hurt either.

sam and i make turkey bacon and scrambled eggs more than anything. it's fast and so delicious. we season with redmond's real salt and some cracked pepper. i also wanted to mention that i try to wait 12 hours between dinner and breakfast. here's why:

" For approximately the first 6-8 hours after eating our evening meal, the body is burning up the calories from that day. The most effective fat burning time (i.e. stored fat in our thighs, bums and tums) is between approximately 8 and 12 hours after eating. If we have a little snack before bedtime, or have our evening meal too late, the leptin tells the brain that no energy is required, and no fat burning will occur in the latter part of the night. So that little snack, however healthy it may have been, puts paid to any fat-burning that night." -source.

*note: if you're having oatmeal, you don't want to have fruit at the same time in the beginning. after several weeks you can have them together.

friday senses// 2

seeing - little cuties at the fourth annual lovebugs shoot with our labor of love this weekend. this photo is from the shoot a year and a half ago. matilda has changed so much!
hearing - the new bon iver. dreamy.
tasting - leftovers from these two recipes from oh she glows: detox salad and creamy roasted tomato, onion, and garlic coconut soup. amazing.
touching - new fabric. i adore screen printed fabric!
smelling - spicy tea and roasted vegetables (my new favorite cooking technique - roasted garlic).
reading - this book by n.t. wright.

see other friday senses here.

would love to hear yours...
have a particularly fabulous weekend.

detox day one

my new roots tarragon green bean salad for whole living

people always ask me how it feels to cut out grains and sugar. i thought i'd give you a play by play. keep in mind that i've been eating mostly this way for a year but have been off the wagon for a few weeks so your experience may be slightly different.

here is how my first day went:

for breakfast i had greek yogurt with my montana huckleberry jam (from my brother jake) and almond butter. i used a tiny amount of jam. i work on mondays and usually don't have a chance to eat until later in the day so i tend to grab a handful of nuts which tides me over. i definitely don't hold back when it comes to nuts. i eat a lot.

sunday night we made the green bean salad and bbq chicken because my beans were going bad. it rocked! seriously. loved it and it made for fabulous leftovers the next day. it was perfect to take to work. i ate it cold and it was heavenly. after lunch i wanted a little pick-me-up. i had a cup of english breakfast tea and it was perfect (albeit i was craving this).

after work i was feeling pretty beat and my dogs were barking not to mention that i got a friendly little visitor (if you know what i mean) leaving me feeling more exhausted than normal. i decided to skip my run and prop my feet up instead.

for dinner we made our favorite tacos which i put over baby kale and it was awesome! the black beans and guacamole were so satisfying. seriously great.

did i want a glass of wine? yes. did i have one? no.

ps this is a great recipe website i found via lovely morning. please feel free to share any great healthy recipes that you have and/or non-orthopedic comfortable cute shoe recommendations. thanks! i would love to create a support system here for anyone else attempting a lifestyle change.

detox day 4/ the weekend!

eating junk makes me sleeeeepy.
pin

so i thought about keeping this dirty little secret from you but i think honesty is the best policy. last night at the end of a long day... i caved. i wanted comfort food. we made it almost four days and i wanted to treat myself. sometimes you just need to stuff your face. going in to this week i wasn't feeling very "in it to win it" so that could be it, not to mention "the visitor." not helpful, but now that i've put myself in to a food coma, i feel confident that i'm going to hop right on the wagon of being healthy. i think it's been much harder this time around because i have already done the hard part of changing the way we eat (with the flexibility of a cheat night) and it was tough to start over cold turkey...

 sam was really cute and got me a carrot cake cupcake with the new martha stewart halloween issue!! isn't that cute? it made me really happy. so, i hesitated to share this secret in fear that i would cause anyone to stumble. you can do it! i can too! the truth is, no one is perfect. we all give in to our cravings. it's eating great 90% of the time that's really important.

 could you all do me a favor and tell me if i look nerdy in these? they are so comfortable! i'm going to make it my mission to make them cool. just look at this chick. workin' em.

have a great weekend and let's talk about things after the holiday. deal?

sugar challenge

image found here.

in honor of breast cancer awareness month and my dear friends who are fighting cancer, i will be giving up sugar for the month of october. in case you didn't know, the over fermentation of sugar in the body is the largest known cause of cancer. read more here and here. it's not an easy thing for me to give up treats (fruit will still be on the menu) for a whole month, but making a stand against a cancer is well worth my small sacrifice. instead of picking up pink m&ms for the cause, ditch the culprit and help make a real difference. show others the importance of what we eat and how it affects our bodies. would you like to join me? if so, leave a comment and we can encourage each other. i promise not to post anything sweet + delicious until the challenge is over. the fun part is the challenge ends on halloween, so you can reward yourself with some dark chocolate!

*randomly, i had two people this week tell me that they had tried the detox plan. i didn't even know they read my blog so that was really cool.

easter

see more of our easter here.

did you have a great easter?! we spent ours over at my mama's house with the most delicious brunch. we ate entirely too much (can someone say detox next week) and then watched matilda hunt for eggs. it was her first egg hunt and she LOVED it. pure unadulterated excitement. it was hilarious. i will say i missed not going to church. we should have. i also struggled with explaining the true reason for easter to matilda. any advice on that sort of thing? the whole easter bunny bit is a little crazy, huh?

we also got to go over to my grammy and lynndaddy's to shortly celebrate lynndaddy's birthday. pretty darn lucky to still have all of my grandparents in my life. so thankful.

kate and andy stopped by too with some vintage goodness for the studio. speaking of, i'll be showing off our new lastfiveweeksofourlife room tomorrow! so excited to share it with you guys...