NO MORE PROCESSED FOOD!!

Living in this society today, every food is processed in some form or another. It is all the matter of eating and finding foods that go through less processing and contain less obscure ingredients.

I have decided to challenge myself by reducing my amount of processed foods as much as I possibly can. That means I will be doing A LOT MORE COOKING at home and A LOT MORE PLANNING AHEAD! I want to experiment the different ways I feel after opting out all highly processed foods from my diet. I want to see if it would affect my weight at all.

First off I have created a list of standards to follow during this time:

1) Purchase items from the grocery with 5 ingredients or less, and that have ingredients you can easily pronounce.

2) When going out to eat, look up restaurant's website for ingredients in all their menu items, and don't be afraid to ask how they make their products and where they come from!

3) No fast food, sodas, alcohol, or candy.

4) Continue working out at least 3 days a week. (Report all exercise activity)

5) Keep a food journal with everything I ate, including all the ingredients, amount eaten, time of day.
6) Write down meal plans for each day ahead of time to help guide and remember my daily eating routine!  

Recipe for Whole wheat pancakes!: http://www.skinnytaste.com/2009/06/whole-wheat-pancakes.html

WEEK # 1: My meal plans to cook/make ahead for the week include: 

- Whole wheat pancakes

- Apple peanut butter snack bars

- Oatmeal breakfast cupcakes or whole wheat banana nut muffins 

- Quinoa salad

- Tacos 

- Homemade chicken BBQ wings

- Pork loin with cheesy gnocchi

- Homemade fruit juices (with my juicer) 

- Breakfast burritos or breakfast hash...

- Salmon spread and crackers( crackers with< 5 ingredients)

- Apple and peanut butter ( PB< 5 ingredients)

Items to buy from the store:  - Peanut butter, crackers, yogurt, fruit, veggies, and beans.

                          

•     Not only were these crackers on sale, but they only contain 3 ingredients: whole wheat flour, natural cheese flavor, and salt. 

Day 1 meal plan: Tuesday 1/29/2013

- 1 Apple PB granola bar
- 1 banana 
- hot tea - breakfast 

- WG pancakes w/ honey - main breakfast

- Yogurt w/ <5 ingredients

- Apple

- Snack

- Salmon salad w/ whole crackers

- Lunch

          - left overs

- dinner (taco bowl- pinto beans, brown rice, ground turkey w/ homemade taco seasoning & salsa w/ <5 ingredients)

- Dessert if sweet tooth is aching, kiwi & pear juice or fruit leather!

Day 1 food that I ACTUALLY ate! 
         - 2 homemade apple peanut butter granola bars,1 banana & hot water w/ lemon
            (5am, I nanny until 8:30am)
         - whole grain pancakes w/ PB and honey ( 9:15am) - real breakfast
         - 1 oatmeal cupcake ( around 12:30pm)
         - 4 homemade salmon spread and crackers  - 1:00pm - lunch 
         - yogurt (3pm)-snack 
         - 1 apple w/ PB (3pm) - snack 
         - homemade burrito bowl  ( 7pm) - dinner. Made w/ brown rice, ground turkey,     homemade taco seasoning, cheese, and pinto beans.
         - yogurt ( 7pm) 
         - 2 fruit leather snacks ( to satisfy my sweet tooth)
         - 1 oatmeal cupcake ( 8pm)

For the recipe click here: http://happyhealthymama.com/2012/11/apple-peanut-butter-snack-bars.html

                                                     Salmon Spread 

Salmon Spread Recipe as follows:

- About 6 ounces low fat sour cream

- About 4 ounces low fat or fat free cream cheese

- one package of honey smoked salmon 

- 1 tablespoon capers

- lemon juice to taste ( I used half a lemon)

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix until well combined! Serve with a baguette or whole wheat crackers!

Day 2: Wednesday 1/30/2013

- Apple PB granola bar or oatmeal cupcake, banana w/ tea (5am)

          - Oatmeal w/ brown sugar or honey & walnuts

          - Quinoa salad & Lara bar

          - Apple & PB & yogurt - snack

          - Nonfat (green tea) latte unsweetened- Starbucks

- left overs 

Day 2: what I ACTUALLY ATE 

  - Brief explanation: THIS day was a bit hectic for me. My whole day would have been just fine if it weren't for me getting a flat tire  driving home from my nanny job at 8:30am! It COMEPLETELY threw off my groove for the rest of the day! However, I thought to myself,  this is a PERFECT example of what happens in our everyday lives right? Things pop up and happen, and there is no time to plan ahead or grab a homemade lunch or snack. SO with that said, I actually had to think quickly on my feet on how to prioritize my food choices and still be able to stick with this diet. I may have over stressed a little more about it than I should have, but I am still pleased with the choices I made, including the food item I got from.... if I dare say, the vending machine!!! Here is what I ate today :) 

      - 2 oatmeal cupcakes (5am)

      - 1 banana (5am) 

      - hot water w/ lemon - (5am) - early breakfast

      - tall soy unsweetened green tea latte from Starbucks (sweetened it myself w/ 2 packages of natural raw sugar, which I prob could have been fine without...) - 9am

     - 1 package of simply nuts & fruit pack, from Starbucks - (12:15pm)

     - 1 package of lightly salted peanuts - (12:30) VENDING MACHINE OPTION

     - 1 large fruit cup from Eisenstein Bagels - ( 1pm)
     - apple w/ PB - (4:30)

     - 1 oatmeal cupcake - (4:30)

     - yogurt - 8pm 

      

 

This is what I grabbed from the vending machine. I opted out on the pretzels because they unfortunately had way more than 5 ingredients. I ended up playing the guessing game with foods in the vending machine on which ones looked like they would have the smallest ingredient list. Peanuts won! However, the whole package was 340 calories! But it did keep me full until I got home... 

                     

  Calcium ascorbate ( vitamin c, calcium, salt)  is the only other ingredient added to the fruit... which I don't know why... shouldn't fruit, just be fruit??

Day 3: Thursday 1/31/2013

          - Apple PB granola bar or oatmeal cupcake, banana w/ tea (5am)

          -left over pancakes w/ honey (9am)

          - Salmon spread w/ crackers, yogurt - lunch (12:30pm)

          - Apple w/ PB - snack (3pm)

          - BBQ wings w/ homemade BBQ sauce; carrots and brown rice (7pm)

          - Dessert if need be- chocolate milk w/ homemade choc. Syrup

Day 3: What I ACTUALLY ATE
          - hot tea (5am)
          - 2 oatmeal cupcakes (5:30am) 
          - banana ( 5:30am) 
          - 2 whole grain pancake w/ peanut butter and honey (10:30) 
          - apple ( 3:30pm)
          - peanut butter larabar ( 3:30pm)
          - strawberry greek yogurt ( 5pm) 
          - 4 salmon spread cracker sandwichs ( 6pm)
          - 2 homemade apple peanut butter granola bars (6:30pm) 
          - quinoa salad w/ kiwi ( 7pm)
          - 1 cup fresh orange juice to satisfy the sweet tooth of mine! (8:30pm) 
          
Physical Activity: Running 6.5- 1 hour

*Day 4: Friday 2/1/2013

          - Oatmeal cupcake tea 

          - Oatmeal

          - Lara bar and apple- snack

          - PB crackers, yogurt

 - Pasta w/ marinara sauce w/ <5 homemade ingredients

Day 4: What I ACTUALLY ATE:
  - 3 oatmeal cupcakes (6:30am) 
  - hot water w/ lemon (5am) 
  - tall soy unsweetened green tea latte from starbucks (9:30am) 
      ~ Side note: just realized I should have gotten the latte w/ skim milk, since some soy milks contain several other processed ingredients... oops! I'll get it right next time!
 - banana ( 9:45) 
 - apple w/ peanut butter ( 2:45) 
 - peach greek yogurt ( 2:45) 
 - homemade fruit juice- made w/ 2 apples, 1 orange, and 1 lemon; a perfect perky upper for the middle of the afternoon!

This is the greek yogurt that I am currently addicted to... the ingredient list goes over the 5 rule by just a couple, so this has been the one food item I've been indulging the most with. It contains: grade A pasteurized nonfat milk, fruit juice concentrate,peaches, tapioca, pectin, natural flavors, annatto for color, active cultures. 

I found it hard to find any actual convenient sized yogurts with less than 5 ingredients! Can you believe that! I got this yogurt at whole foods, and they didn't even seem to have any, unless you got the plain kind... Which is what I may have to do from now on and make a bulk size of pureed fruit then mix it all in!  

On another note, I honestly didn't know what annatto was that was used for color in this product. However according to a couple websites, it is a natural food coloring component derived from achiote trees. 
   "Annatto is the seed or extract from the achiote tree, which is indigenous to Latin and South America. Annatto is used heavily in Central and South America as a dye, medicine, and as an ingredient in many foods." - about.com

                                              


*Day 5: Saturday 2/2/2013 – Av’s game (1:00), (note to self)PLAN AHEAD AND BRING SNACKS!

- Over easy eggs w/ left over pancakes?

- bring Apple, Lara bars, and make a trail mix for game... (Almonds, dried fruit, and fiber one corn flakes or something

- Dinner- figure out if we're going out to eat and PLAN AHEAD to LOOK UP MENU ITEMS! ** PLAN AHEAD AND LOOK UP RESTARAUNT MENU/ NUTRITION INFO & BRING ALL HEALTHY SNACKS TO AVES GAME!!

            -What I ACTUALLY ATE:
            - 2 whole grain pancake w/ peanut butter and honey8:30am
            - 1 banana 8:30am
            - fresh orange juice made from juicer ( 1 orabge, 1 lemon & 2 apples) - 8:30am
            - burrito bowl from Chipotle - 11:45
                  ( brown rice, pinto beans, pico de galo, little cheese & lettuce)
            - 2 apple peanut butter granola bars - 5pm
            - strawberry greek yogurt- 5 pm
            - 1 oatmeal cupcake - 5pm
             - tall non-fat green tea latte, unsweetened from Starbucks - 6:30pm
            - margarita grilled chicken entree from Chile's- 8:00pm
                   ( grilled chicken over a bed of seasoned white rice and black bleans)

Unfortunately Chilis did't have a full ingredient list of all their menu items... so I went on a limb with that one...

Day 6: Super Bowl Sunday! 2/3/2013

- Make banana muffins or pancakes

- Apple w/ PB, yogurt - Lunch or snack

- Mexican quinoa salad?

- Pork loin w/ cheesy gnocchi and green beans

     What I ACTUALLY ATE:
            - 3 oatmeal cuocakes ( 7am)
            -1 Banana (7am)
            - hot tea ( 7:30am)
           - 1 apple larabar ( 11am)
           - 1 strawberry greek yogurt ( 12pm)
           - 1 apple w/ peanut butter ( 1pm)
           - 2 fruit leathers (1pm)
           -  about 6 homemade BBQ wings ( recipe below for BBQ sauce) - ( 6pm)
           - about 20 Kettle chips ( 6pm)
           - 10 carrots, ( 6pm)
           - 3 celery sticks ( 6pm)
           - about 1/4 cup of tomato pesto sour cream dip ( 6pm)
           -  8 oz. mixed drink ( orange juice & vodka ) ...had to have some kind of drink for the game! ( 8pm)

Physical Activity: An intense boot camp at Red Rocks Amphitheater!  - 3 hours (9-11am)  http://www.itburnsjoefitness.com/

Homemade BBQ Sauce!

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups ketchup

3/4 cup spicy brown mustard

1 onion finely grated

1/4 c. lemon juice

2 tbsp. Apple Cider Vinegar

1 tbsp. Worcestershire
1 tbsp. brown sugar
1/2 c. water
2 TBSP Grilling Seasoning

- Combine all ingredients together in a sauce pot. Cook over medium-low heat for about 10 minutes whisking occasionally. Use over chicken, shredded beef or pork.




                             

Oatmeal  Cupcakes Recipes: http://chocolatecoveredkatie.com/2013/01/08/breakfast-oatmeal-cupcakes-to-go/

Day 7: Monday 2/4/2013

- Muffin, banana, & tea - oatmeal

- Quinoa salad – lunch

- Apples and granola or Lara bar

- Homemade sesame chicken w/ brown rice...

What I ACTUALLY ATE:
 - oatmeal w/ brown sugar, honey & dried mixed fruit ( blueberries, cranberries &       cherries) - 8am
 - freshly juiced orange juice - 8am
 - quinoa salad w/ kiwi - 12:30pm
 - homemade PB & apples granola bar - 12:30pm
 - tall nonfat, unsweetened green tea latte from Starbucks 2pm
 - apples chips 6pm 
 - banana w/ PB - 7:15pm
 - 4 cracker sandwiches w/ homemade salmon spread 7:45pm
 - 1 fruit leather 8:15pm
 - 1 oatmeal cupcake 8:45pm

***Day 8: LAST DAYYY!!! YOU CAN DO IT!!!! Tuesday 2/5/2013

- Muffin & tea

- Eggs

- Apple & PB, yogurt- snack

- Sweet potato -lunch

- Left overs - dinner

What I ACTUALLY ATE:
            - Hot water w/ lemon ( 5am)
            - 3 oatmeal cupcakes ( 6:30am)
            - Banana ( 6:45am)
            - taell nonfat green tea latte, unsweetened from Starbucks- ( 9am)
            - homemade burrito bowl - lunch ( 1pm)
                ( made w/ pinto beans, brown rice, ground turkey, homemade taco seasoning, cheese and salsa)
            - Chicken Cesar Salad from Tom's Urban 24 Restaraunt in Denver - ( 6:30pm)

      This is the salsa that I used to dress my homemade burrito bowl with. Simply delicious! It technically has 7 ingredients but I thought they were all so simple and I could recognize all of them as well as  pronounce them just fine! Therefore, I thought it qualified for my diet! :D 

Homemade Taco Seasoning:

1/2 cup chili powder
1/4 cup onion powder
1/8 cup ground cumin
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon paprika
1 tablespoon sea salt

Put ingredients into a jar and shake. :)

:D YAY YAY YAY!!! YOU DID IT!!! WOOO!!!!

OVERVIEW


  (# 24) Overall, I found this a fun diet to experiment with! There were definitely a few obstacles and mental challenges that came my way, but I hope to continue challenging myself with keeping a low processed food diet as much as I can handle! A few things that I would like to improve on are changing my yogurts to plain and adding my own fruit mix-ins instead of buying the overpriced Greek fruit flavored yogurts. I would also like to be more studious about restaurants and find the exact ingredients they use in a few of their products!  ( especially Chilis, Chipotle and Starbucks...)

How I felt after my diet: I honestly felt the same. Maybe it's because I never ate fast food or drank soda before my diet, or maybe I just didn't challenge myself enough. However, I still love the idea of living a homemade lifestyle where more than half of the food I eat is made at home with clean and healthy ingredients!

What will be my next adventure diet you ask?? ... The vegetarian diet! My husband may not approve, but I would love to experiment with it! ;) 

My Seven Elements: ( # 25) 

1) My normal healthy menu eating pattern each day consists of peanut butter, an apple, a banana, cereal and yogurt. I feel like I ALWAYS have to have at least one of these kinds of foods everyday, otherwise I get cranky! Especially living without the bananas, apples and peanut butter! In order to keep my daily eating patterns more nutrient dense, than calorie dense I rarely ever eat fast food, fried foods ( except fries and tortilla chips now and then), soda, high sugared beverages, and high calorie candy bars. I hate the thought of eating "empty calories" because they never really do anything for me except make me even more cranky about putting junk in my body!

2) What a "most days" physical activity routine looks like in my daily life is sitting, walking running, cleaning, cooking, and playing with my puppy. I feel like I sit on my butt for at least 4/5 hours a day, doing homework, watching tv, or on the computer. I always walk to and from the light rail stations as well as to and from classes on campus, so about 1 hour a day ( including walking around the house). I make sure to go out for my weekly run at least two times a weeks, about six miles each time. I tend to find myself cleaning dishes, sweeping the kitchen floors, and picking things up around the house everyday. Cooking is another physical activity I love doing everyday, and I like to challenge myself to make sure I cook at least one meal a day, and make my husband help when he wants to! Having a puppy around the house that is always thriving for attention and wanting to be played with, is another physical activity that is hard to avoid for me each day! I

3) I incorporate some individual factors in my life such as always keeping a positive attitude, being a strong believer in life and all it has to offer, and God. As far as coping strategies go, when I'm sad and in need of a little enlightenment, I allow myself a few Hersey chocolate kisses or homemade ice cream! When it comes to stress I like to calm myself by consuming anything with mint or just focus on my breathing and rest up. I normally don't handle certain conflicts very well, and want to run away from them so I like to continue saying positive things to myself as much as I can and read some inspirational bible versus or famous quotes from the wise inspiration leaders. I do keep a weight scale in my bathroom and measure myself everyday to see how much and when my weight tends to drop or raise. I may be a little too obsessed with it than I should be, but I like to see where I'm at each day. Being a regular human being, I still look at myself and see things I like and dislike about my body, but I tell myself that I am healthy and happy. I also like to give myself a goal to aim for to improve my confidence, such as do more abe work or train for a half marathon! One thing I would like to add is sticky notes on the mirror with positive quotations and comments!

4) I have a couple friends who have inspired me to become a more of a competitive runner with them. I have done several races and recently ran my first half marathon last summer. My next goal is to complete the rugged maniac and try out a triathlon!  We enjoy working out together and suffering during a hardcore boot camp together! My dad was the first person to inspire me and get into running in the first place because he ran through out his college career and has always had a passion for it.

5) I incorporate a healthy physical environment by making sure I always have fruit in the fruit basket on the counter. I personally go crazy without, so fruit is always present. I also keep my weights and workout materialsby the couch to use whenever my husband and I decide to workout to a couple P90X videos, it is also a good reminder that we can lift some weights and exercise while watching tv or instead of watching tv. On all the days that I have school, I make sure to plan ahead the night before to pack my lunch and a couple snacks depending on how long I intend to be gone. On the weekends whenever we go out, I always bring a granola bar and an apple to help last me until the next meal. Unlike my husband, who can go on without eating food for long periods of time, I have to eat a little something every three hours or so!

6) The skills and tools I like to use for coping include weekly menu planning every Sunday, and cooking/ preping food every Sunday!  I am a list person and write down meals, snacks, desserts, or anything else I want to cook that week. I then write down a grocery list of all the items I need. I try to make sure to always have a back up plan when something pops up or I'm not in the mood to cook, which is where the amount of prepping comes in handy! My main goal is to keep out freezer full with all homemade meals that we can easily throw in the oven or lay out and warm up within ten minutes. I even wrote down a list of freezer meals that I would like to make in bulk to save up and freeze for later uses!

7) I try to include a broader environment to support the fight of obesity by running and demonstrating how important exercise is to incorporate in our lifestyles. I feel like I have been more focused on supporting prevention more so than weight bias, and I think that is the one component I need to work on the most. Especially when it come to taking care and supporting my own family without bagging on them all the time about eating right and exercising! I demonstrating a healthy role model, but sometimes feel like its not doing enough, and is out of my control. The whole idea of weight bias is accepting everyone for who they are and what they look like. I try to judge a little less and move more toward the idea of feeling sympathy and wanting to help anyone who wants to make a change in their lifestyles!