Healthy Midday Snack

While I have been at college I have had a roommate who has very healthy eating habits. She inspired me to try and eat healthier with her. One thing I have found enjoyable is what I like to call "The adult lunchable Stacker". This consists of crackers, canned chicken and slices of zucchini/cucumber.
How you make it is very simple. Take your canned chicken( you could also use tuna), mix it with mayo/miracle whip, the place a little bit on a cracker and add a slice of cucumber/zucchini on top and eat. It's satisfying, and doesn't sit in your stomach like a brick. I have found it to be a good way to have a little snack if i am hungry, without snacking on chips or other unhealthy snacks.
Try it, and enjoy.

You Are Not Hungry.

Let me begin by saying that I am an advocate for food. I love eating. I especially love eating treats.

However, since this is a health blog, I feel like eating healthy is supposed to be good.

We, as Americans, have this nasty habit of eating food ALL THE TIME. Eat when we watch TV, eat when we do homework, eat when we do laundry... basically, we can't just do one thing at a time. We always have to do something and also eat. A party isn't a party without the food, right?

Like I said, I love food. I'll just reiterate that.

However, I saw something today that really made me laugh.

Whenever I don't have anything to do, my first instinct is always to eat. Always. I go look in my pantry for snacks, or my freezer for treats, or my fridge for milk. But most of the time, I'm not actually hungry. Eating excessively is a big part of the reason why we, as Americans, have a reputation for being obese.

I propose a solution. You don't have to cut out your snacking habits--you just have to buy more healthy snacks. Obviously, not too healthy, or you might go insane. But instead of a candybar after class (or work), eat a bowl of lightly salted popcorn or some grapes. Don't buy a lot of the candy, or you will eat it. (That's something I had to learn the hard way.)

As an added bonus, you probably won't get sighs from your dentist anymore. Two reputations saved with one simple lifestyle change.

Healthy Habits: Breakfast

So, I will be honest here. Since I started going back to work about a month ago, 

I have been struggling with my first healthy habit goal.  

But this week is a new week, 

and I've decided to start trying to develop my morning habits once again. 

In addition in my goal to do some "wake-up" exercises, 

I am adding another healthy habit to the mix.

Eating breakfast.

While this might sound like a silly goal to those people 

who can't imagine starting their day without eating breakfast, 

this is something I've struggled with my whole life.

I don't usually have much of an appetite in the morning,

and a few extra minutes of sleep are almost always worth more to me than eating something. 

But there is a lot of research and information about there about why breakfast is important. 

(Just google "why eat breakfast?")

So I've been trying to eat something in the morning, even if it is something small:

green smoothies, yogurt, a banana, or even the traditional bowl of cereal. 

 Just like doing a little bit of exercising,

I have found that eating something gives me a little extra energy boost.

And as a Kindergarten teacher,

that is something I could use every single day.

Mini Bell Peppers

This summer I discovered that mini bell peppers are actually a really yummy healthy snack. In college I have been craving them and thought I would share my experience with them.

They are sweeter than carrots. I usually like to eat them with ranch but any vegetable dip tastes good too. It sounds really weird but they taste really good. If you try it sometime I hope you're not disappointed, but try it with an open mind. 

Green Smoothies

I am a fan of green smoothies. 

I love how natural and wholesome they taste.

No sugar. No grease. They just feel good.

Click the link for this picture to see a video that helped me to get started 

when I first wanted to try making green smoothies.

Source: KSL.com

I have experimented with different ingredients to find tastes that work for me. 

The key is to add fruits that sweeten up the taste naturally.

I especially love to use spinach with bananas, apples, grapes, or pears.

Go green!

Avocado Pasta

We had this for dinner last night- an Avocado based "Alfredo" sauce with pasta.

Definitely a healthier alternative to a heavy, cream-based alfredo. 

It was really good. A fun, new flavor to add to our pasta repertoire.
It was also super easy. We will definitely be trying it again.

Helpful Hint: This recipe uses 2 cloves of garlic. The 2 cloves I used were pretty big, and the garlic flavor was a bit overpowering for our taste, so next time I might only use 1 clove.
You might want to adjust the amount of garlic according to your taste preferences. :)

Dieting.

Dieting.  I believe this word to be evil.  (my opinion)  It seems the world is always coming up with some way to lose weight.  Don't eat this, do eat a lot of that, take this pill, give yourself this shot, and so on and so forth.  And yet who has really found the key to a successful maintained healthy body from all that dieting?!

A healthy body is a lifestyle.  Not a temporary pill.  Not starvation.  Not eating only 3 kinds of food.
It is proven that women who eat breakfast compared to women who skip it are able to lose more weight faster or maintain their healthy weight easier.

Moderation in all things.  There are so many healthy foods out there.  It would be a shame to only eat egg whites and salad all day everyday.  Things like Carbs are good for you.  It gives you energy.  Eat it.  Then exercise to keep it balanced.  It's all about a variety of healthy foods, portions, and yes enjoying that piece of cake every once in a while.  The more you limit yourself the harder it is to keep that lifestyle and the faster your body will revert back to being unhealthy and overweight when you give up that lifestyle. So why not enjoy your lifestyle, enjoy the food you eat, and maintain a healthy weight at the same time.

Small changes I have found to make for a healthier lifestyle:
-Don't add extra salt when cooking things.  Often times the natural flavor of the food is plenty and you won't even need to add any salt.
-Eat breakfast.
-Carry a water bottle everywhere you go.  This will make you drink water.  The more water you drink the better.
-Don't eat within 2 hours of going to bed.
-Exercise daily. (This is a bigger one)  It is important to be physically active.  Even if all you have time for is a few push ups and sit ups before bed time, do it.  It will keep you going longer.

Remember.  You can train your body to be healthy.  Instead of dieting, make a happy habit.  You don't have to punish yourself for the rest of your life to stay healthy.  God didn't intend it to be that way.