Re-Learning Social Eating

Yesterday I had an event with my daughter. It tested my resolve a bit. It was a mother daughter lemonade party. We planned ahead and took our own Zevia sodas, since I knew I wouldn't want the lemonade. It is always challenging eating in a social situation. So much of our social lives are centered around eating. Think of this, does a wedding feel complete if there isn't cake? How about a funeral, with no food? Or, even more regular things, like how about going to the movies? Spending family time? Netflix and chill? All of it seems to involve food. For a food addicted person this can be challenging.

Think about it, food addiction isn't like other addictions that can be stopped entirely. (I'm not saying that stopping isn't a challenge.) This is where the problem lies. Couple that with a society that glamorizes overindulging, and it is no wonder we have an obesity epidemic. I could go on and on about the ties between eating, media, body image, weight, and exercise, but what really matters is how am I dealing with those issues today?

Like any addict, it is one day at a time. Yesterday, I was victorious. I avoided the gluten filled foods, which is a challenge for me. I ate the vegetables and fruit, and indulged in a bit of fruit dip. In the end, did I feel deprived? No. It is those little victories, where I change my actions for my pursuit of health, that really are awesome. These are daily reasons to thank God as he transforms my mind, and consequently my body. I'm realizing daily, that I'm no longer a slave to my desire to eat. In fact, I am finding more pleasure in eating well than I was in just eating as my flesh willed me to.

Exhaustion, and Sleep Apnea

Back in July I was diagnosed with sleep apnea. It is a heck of a thing to realize that you may have never had good quality sleep as an adult. I remember that first night of sleeping with a bi-pap machine. I woke up and felt like I hadn't been to sleep. The amazing part was how quickly I fell asleep. I have always dealt with insomnia, and come to find out that may be because of the apnea.

When I first came home from the hospital I was pretty obsessed with the bi-pap machine. I took naps just so I could use it. (Of course, I was recovering from sepsis at the time.) Then, after a month or so I was less enchanted with the machine. Just this February, I got a new sleep mask, and my romance with the machine was revived.

All that to say, I'm not sure how much sleep factors into weight loss, but I know it does. Occasionally, I will sleep without my mask, and when I do I find that I need an afternoon nap. When I sleep with my mask I awake refreshed, and I do that with fewer hours of sleep. Without the mask I can never seem to get enough sleep.

Sleep factors into my pursuit of health because when I'm well rested I feel like I can conquer the world. I wake up ready to be productive, rather than slogging through my day from coffee cup to nap. I also seem to crave less sugar because I am rested. I'm not trying to get that sugar rush. Before getting tested for sleep apnea I would never have thought that sleep could make those differences, but then I don't think I ever really had good sleep as an adult. (Maybe even as a child.)

Facing Challenges

Lately it seems like I'm facing challenge after challenge. Food challenges have been easier to overcome. I feel like I've hit an epiphany I've been waiting a lifetime to hit. Suddenly I'm looking at foods as fuel, and calories. I've always understood this concept, but recently it is becoming a thing that helps me change the way I interact with food. I find myself weighing out how much an item will "cost" me if I indulge in it. Most the time finding I would rather go home and eat something else, that will better fuel my body. I'm feeding myself for my health more than I ever have before.

Today, could be a classic day to overindulge, it is my birthday. I'm finding myself more focused on the goal of staying healthy than classic birthday foods. I'm not going to decide that I am not having cake, but if I do have an indulgence it will be very carefully chosen. Any indulgence will have to be something I know I want enough to make it worth it.

Finally, my biggest challenge today is still my knees. I am going to the doctor today about my knees. I'm afraid I won't get immediate answers, but I'm ready to face whatever answers I get.

The Quest for "On Plan" Coffee

So, I have not always been a coffee drinker. When I was younger I liked the aroma, but not the flavor. Then in my late teens, early twenties, I went through an obsession with espresso. I think perhaps I liked the accessories, i.e. the demitasse cups, more that the beverage. After moving to Colorado, at age 23, I was still an occasional coffee drinker. Back then my caffeine of choice was Diet Pepsi. When I did drink coffee, I always wanted plenty of cream and sugar. I continued this way until my husband, oldest daughter, and I moved to Oregon.

Then begins our Dutch Bros. stage. When we moved here we had never heard of Dutch Bros. We both agreed that Starbucks was not our thing, but a friend of ours turned us on to Dutch Bros. and we ended up pretty addicted. There have been times on and off in the 12+ years we've been in Oregon that we had Dutch Bros. daily. There have also been times that I've been totally off coffee. Somewhere, about 8 years ago I stopped drinking Diet Pepsi, and that may have been why the coffee intake raised.

My love affair with coffee was rather full blown. I started brewing coffee at home. The only problem with brewing it at home was that if I brewed a pot my husband would maybe have a cup, and I would drink the rest. (Who wants coffee that sat a day, and who wants to waste coffee?) This became a thing for a while, always with lots of soymilk and sugar, or maybe agave. Then, we decided a French Press would be better than brewed. Partly because when you brew drip coffee, it always seemed that if you brewed half a pot it wasn't strong enough. We got a couple of small French Presses, and started making our coffee that way. Still, all this time buying coffee at Dutch Bros. or other such coffee houses when we went out and could afford to.

Then, almost 4 years ago we moved to Corvallis, OR. We still drank Dutch Bros. a few times a month, and we also tried most of the coffee shops around town. We found a local coffee shop we really liked, but still tons of cream and sugar. I opened my shop and my coffee addiction really reared it's ugly head again. The shop was near Starbucks, which was and still is zero temptation for me, and Einstein Bros. Bagels. Well, the drip coffee at Einstein was good, and if I purchased it early in the day, I could have unlimited refills. This was not good for me. I got a little out of control for a while.

During all these years, and our family's attempts to get healthier, we had at some point discovered cold brew coffee. About a year and a half ago we bought a pot to cold brew coffee. If you don't already know, cold brew is much less acidic than hot brewed coffee. It also retains more of the good anti-oxidants that are in coffee. Consequently, it is naturally sweeter tasting. Still with the benefits of cold brew, my husband felt it wasn't strong enough.

Then, research led me to Turkish style coffee, and that led me deeper to using Turkish style coffee in a cold brew process. Turkish coffee is just a much finer grind of coffee. The texture of Turkish style coffee is like that of cocoa powder.  You can use any type of coffee in that grind. We like a locally roasted coffee called River Mud. To make the cold brew you mix 1 cup of ground coffee with about 1 quart of cold water, and let it sit on the counter over night for at least 24 hours. Then you strain out the grounds. We use our cold brew pot's strainer, but you could use a nut milk bag, or similar. It is really that simple.

Today, my on plan coffee is 10 oz. of cold brew, 3/4 cup of organic almond milk, and 2 teaspoons of agave. This comes in at about 55 calories. Much better than my fave Dutch Bros. drink that comes in at 440 cals for a similar size. These type of choices help me stay on plan, and not feel deprived.

Challenge Update plus Sweet Chili Chicken Salad Recipe

So, yesterday I had intense knee pain, and I won't lie, it still hurts. Today is not as bad as yesterday. I watched part of the legs workout on the SparkPeople 28 Day Home workout challenge, and decided that I was unable to do it. I substituted the sitting workout instead. So small victory, I did workout.

As for dining challenges at our friend's house. It turned out great. I took the sweet chili chicken salad, and avocado black bean brownies. They were delicious, and I stayed totally on plan. Today, I am going to include the recipe for the sweet chili chicken salad.

Sweet Chili Chicken Salad

Cabbage, shredded 3/4 cup

Carrot 1 small, shredded

Radish, 1-2 small, chopped

Zucchini, shredded 1/2 cup

Fresh mint and/or Cilantro about a total of 2 Tbsp. chopped

Red bell pepper, chopped 1/4 cup

2-3 ounces of shredded cooked chicken breast*

1 Tablespoon of Sweet Chili Sauce (I like Mae Ploy, or Grama's)

Zest and juice of 1/2 a lemon

1 Tablespoon sliced dry roasted almonds (I like Trader Joe's)

Mix the chicken and chili sauce, and set aside. Layer the rest of the veggies, zest the half lemon over veggies, and squeeze the juice over the salad. Top with the chicken and toasted almonds. The macros below are with 3 ounces of chicken.

Nutritional Info

• Servings Per Recipe: 1
• Amount Per Serving
• Calories: 264.6

• Total Fat: 6.8 g
• Cholesterol: 52.7 mg
• Sodium: 442.0 mg
• Total Carbs: 26.1 g
• Dietary Fiber: 4.7 g
• Protein: 23.1 g

There are of course lots of possible variations. The veggies can vary depending upon what you have on hand. Instead of almonds you could used toasted sesame seeds, or cashews. Let me know if you try this salad, and what you think of it. Let me know if you want more salad ideas. Please subscribe.

*I get large packages of chicken and cook a big batch of breasts at one time with salt and pepper on it, then I shred and store for later use.

Farmer's Market from Sparkpeople Blog 5/2/17

Tomorrow is a Farmer's Market day here in Corvallis, OR. I can hardly wait. If you don't shop your market I want to encourage you to do so. There are incredible finds there. I've always been adventurous when it comes to produce. When I was a little girl my grandparents always had a huge garden and I always had a row in that garden. My row was always Swiss Chard. I still adore Swiss Chard. My grandparents would plant certain things, like carrots, and cucumbers, and we had a lovely strawberry patch, but they also experimented. I remember the year they first tried bok choy and my grandma couldn't seem to find ways to use it all. 

Anyway, all this to say that most Americans eat a very narrow range of fruits and vegetables, but there are sooooo many out there that are delicious and overlooked. I made a beautiful egg white omelet this morning with shiitake mushrooms, green garlic, and arugula, all from the market. I wish I had taken a picture, but I devoured it too fast. (No picture could honestly have done it credit.) The buttery flavor of the mushrooms complemented by the deep flavor of the arugula, the mild garlic and a little Romano cheese was an intense sensation. 

The Farmer's Market gives us all an opportunity to eat gourmet meals. The ingredients are premium, and the flavors varied. If you are ever unsure about an item, just ask the grower. They can tell you what it is, some ideas on how to use it, and what it tastes like. They often will offer a taste if it is something that can be eaten raw. If you have grown bored with your vegetable routine, I encourage you to explore your market. 

Knee Pain and other challenges from Sparkpeople Blog 5/1/17

I'm having a hard time focusing today due to knee pain. I believe I need to make a doctor's appointment. I'm trying to do the 28 day Home Workout Challenge, but I'm not sure if I can do it today. I am going to attempt since it is only 10 minutes today, but my concern, without having watched the video, is that today is a leg workout. I'm not going to let it discourage me. 

Also challenging today, spring allergies. My hubby is mowing the lawn and cut grass kills me. My daughter is making me doTERRA tri-blend shots with lavender, peppermint, and lemon. It helps. Also running doTERRA Breathe in the diffuser. On top of all that it is that time of month. Wowser! I'm going to make it through this day victorious. 

The final challenge of the day is family fellowship at a friend's house tonight. It is always potluck. Last week I took frittata and salad, and the host had barbeque chicken legs and stuffing, both things I cannot eat. This week she plans on doing roast and peach cobbler. Thankfully, she doesn't make things overly sweet, so the cobbler won't be a huge problem. I'm not sure what I'm taking. I think black bean brownies, salad, and some sort of casserole. I need to assess what I have in the fridge. I know I have some shredded chicken I should use up. Maybe I'll just make the brownies and a sweet chili chicken salad. That sounds good, and filling. (Plus easy since I have most of it made already.) Challenge accepted!