Kids and the Zone

As a new year begins and "better eating" is at the top of the to-do list, I am convicted of my task to do the same with my poor kids. They are a product of what I allow them to eat, and when I am not eating well, they get to enjoy way more junk than the occasional treat. Today, in the car, after I bought them a nasty chocolate donut from the gas station (or the "hot stop" as my husband to cutely refers to it!) as a "treat" for being good during our shopping earlier (yes, roll your eyes, be disappointed, because I do my fair share of unhealthy bribery, it is terrible, I know), I told them to eat up and enjoy because healthier eating days are on their way! This allowed me to ask the question, "Why should we eat better?". And here is what they (and I, with a little spurning) came up with:
1.Be stronger!
2.Feel better!
3.Run faster!
4.Be in a good mood!

This seemed to be convincing enough for Jack and Sophie. Little do they understand that they will be more attentive in school as well, not to mention the internal health benefits! In my effort to get our kids excited about good foods, I am going to make a chart with the above reasons listed and let them keep track of their progress this week. Charts are good in Kindergarten and 1st grade! Post any ideas or methods you have used or heard of to inspire healthy eating in kids! I'll be ready for new ideas soon!

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Dr. Sears says that children should have 15 grams of protein per meal. After puberty, they should have as much as an adult. String cheese is usually an easy option that kids will eat. My 5 year old daughter enjoys boiled eggs.

Go to this link for great breakfast ideas for kids that will get them through the school day, as well as 2 block lunches (7 grams of protein = 1 block, so the 15 recommended is basically a 2 block lunch if you are ever referring to a Zone block chart).

Tomorrow's lunch back to school will be:
all natural applesauce (no sugar added),
7 cheese cubes (I love that each one is 1 gram of protein!),
a peanut butter and honey sandwich on whole wheat, (sad to admit that I spared the piggy bank on the Ezekial bread and bought the buy one get one deal on Pepperidge Farm. It is healthier than a lot, but still doesn't compare to Ezekial).
and a Roarin' Waters drink (has 8g of sugar).

I treat the flavored drink as a sort of fun thing in their lunch because often I will give them water or let them buy milk. Roarin' Waters is not juice, but flavored water. On a related note, Sugar Busters for Kids states that kids should have only 24g (6 tsp) of added sugar per day. I am afraid to know what it has been lately for my kids! Sugar Busters for Kids also recommends a ratio of 50% carbs, 30% fats, and 20% protein, in short, because they are growing up and need energy, rather than growing out and building muscle. I haven't done a detailed comparison, but Sugar Busters is seemingly the Zone because it shares many of the same ideals and recommendations (such as the adult ratio of 40% protein, 30% fat, 30% carbs). The two go hand in hand as far as I am concerned. You could even use the Sugar Busters books as precursers to starting the Zone. Get the sugar under control, then focus on portion control.

Slow Cooking in January

If you haven't already, check out Dr. Sears Zone website. I plan on making these soon- you can't go wrong with these ingredients. Here are a couple of great sounding slow cooker recipes:

Minestrone Stew with Pear, Rasberry, Walnut, and Feta Salad
Lentil Walnut and Chicken Chili with Salad and Guacamole

Report what you think if you make it.

The Pantry Plunge

You've heard of the Polar Bear Plunge, right? Jump right into that cold water, all for a good cause! Well, I am doing the New Year's Pantry Plunge: Eat everything up that is bad and then don't replace it with more! This is not as good of an idea as making a clean sweep of your pantry. But, the holidays are over and I can't bring myself to throw out the badness that I love so much, so I will let it deplete. If this does not work, then I will have to go cold turkey on the sugar for a while to readjust! This new year is not going to be a countdown to healthy eating for me, rather a practice in daily decision making. My first goal has come straight from Missy's comment on the last blog entry- preparing ahead. I will not buy anymore processed foods (graham crackers, cereal, enriched flour products). I probably will not even weigh and measure my food, but I WILL make attempts at discipline and self control when it comes to choosing the right foods.

Concerning my sweet tooth, I am going to experiment. Missy allowed herself icecream somewhat frequently and still saw results and felt great, so I may also allow myself dark chocolate (Ghirardelli's bittersweet chocolate chips or squares, to be precise). Some of you may be remembering that this was my past downfall and that I vowed to stop keeping chocolate chips on hand to bake with, so it may be that I allow myself to go get some when the cravings well up, but just not keep them around all the time.

If you are ready to be super precise about what you eat, then don't let me talk you out of it. There is a time and place for measuring and weighing- I would encourage anyone to do this in order to gain a realistic idea of what your body needs versus what you tend to want.

I hope you figure out your goals and then work towards them, experimenting. The road to health is a journey. I hope you will share your successes and failures with me (us!).

Preparing,
Angela

Whatever happened to 10 weeks of Zone?

So, back in September, I started this blog to record my full 10 weeks of zoning ( i.e. weighing and measuring...). Did I do it? Obviously I let some of you down by not continuing to blog about it. But here is what really happened:

August 31, started the Zone and went strict for almost two weeks. I was at my cousins wedding and gave into the wedding cake (thinking I could handle a cheat)! I was off the Zone for a week and a half and then started back on Wednesday the 23rd. At that point, I stayed strong for 4 weeks! Then off 5 days. Guilt kicked in sooner and I was back at it, but only for one day. So, 8 weeks of shocking my body and then I decided that I was developing an eating disorder (but not truly) and quit focusing on food. I wanted to be normal,...but not really. I mean, I want to eat without thinking about it so much, but I don't want to eat like everyone else. The norm these days is not good. I still desire to be "healthy", but I still love foods that are not good for me. So, I am striving for more of a mental balance. I would like to be at a place of total self control, but this may never happen (just being realistic). I don't mean that I want to be in control, but that I consider the food I eat with knowledge of how it will travel through and effect my body and my mind. I am grasping this frame of mind and love learning about the digestive tract, but sometimes i just throw it all to the wind! The heck with "eating right"! But I truly do desire to treat my body well and take care of it for the future years when it will matter more, and I do love to feel good. So, I will continue to give updates on my success and failures only as long as it may be helpful to anyone who reads this blog. I am imperfect, striving for perfection. Two steps forward, one step back. Little by little, I mold myself into better health and work with what I've been given!

Christmas bingeing: It's finally over...almost

Ok, Christmas is finally past. It was great fun to not think about the effects of food on my body. So, I ate and enjoyed! And now, the side effects begin. Hey self, I told you so- I told you that bad mood and bloating would follow. And I am here to say that I was right! Here is the delimma: I want to feel better, so I want to eat better, but I have successfully trained my body to want sugar! So now, I am slave to my desires. I keep giving in and continue to feel worse. Am I complaining? No! Just stating the facts. So, new year here I come! Cold turkey it will have to be, for me, anyway. To all of you who can relate- good luck! We're in this together! To all of you who can't- good for you!

The "Good" Stuff

Being Christmas time and all, I thought I would just address the "good stuff" from my quote at the top of the page from Ratatouille. In my opinion, the good stuff also includes sweets. There are sweets worth the splurge and then there are snickers bars. There is plenty of junk to eat, but there is nothing like homemade "badness". I'm sure we will all have our fair share of sugary sweets over the holidays, (unless you are Matt Hughey and you are tough as nails!) and so I declare that we should enjoy those things that we deem special and say no to the junk that is available every day of the year! Yes, sluggishness will occur and bad moods may arise. But remember! We are all in charge of what we put into our bodies! So eat, drink, and be merry! And just don't complain if you make yourself miserable! Remember- you can always start a new day and a new WOD! Merry Christmas!

P.S. Many thanks to Stacy Beam and wife, Amanda, for the homemade marshmallows! :)

See you at the new box!

Comfort Food the Zone Way

Today I made a recipe that was suggested by Gillian on the "BIggest Looser" (one of my favorite shows, by the way). She says to replace mashed potatoes with cauliflower. It's true! I put about 2 cups of steamed cauliflower in my food processor and added butter, salt and pepper, and 1/4 cup of shredded cheddar cheese- enough to equal 1 block of everything. Sure you have to make a mental change, but I think it is actually good and very similar to a southern favorite!

By the way, our home internet service is not very reliable these days. Until we get it changed, my posts will be very hit or miss as they have been. I apologize, but know that I am still following the plan! It has been 5 1/2 weeks now, and 1 1/2 of those I got off track. All in all, I have lost 5 pounds so far! For two weeks, kids were sick and I only went to Crossfit twice during that time, so I am here to say that even if you cannot work out, keeping up with the diet will still give you results. In my experience, working out speeds up the rate of weightloss, if this is one of your goals. :)