The lie of “low-fat”….if you are watching what you eat–trying to lose weight–don’t you always think, “I should get the “low-fat” version–it’s better”?  I used to.   Well, no more.   I never even stopped to wonder how they make it lower fat.  Sure, most of the fat is removed (fat isn’t as evil as we make it out to be either) but in order for the food to still be palatable, the fat is replaced with fillers–mostly carbohydrate based, so you really aren’t doing yourself any favors.  And more importantly, the “low-fat” diet is/was a lie/scientific bumble that I grew up on!  The market, in an effort to “Help” the general public be healthier (I’m sure!) then began spitting out  truck loads of low-fat versions of everything imaginable!  Gee thanks, Nabisco.  and Kraft.  and Hostess.  You really care about me that much??  ha!  Ironically, when the low-fat craze became accepted as truth (around the 1980′s) is when the rate of obesity grew to an epidemic.  Here’s a link to an article if you want more insight.

I’ll get down off my soapbox now.

Wait…did you know that the use of the word “natural” isn’t regulated by the FDA?  Any marketing dude can slap that word on a box and we (myself included) fall for it!  ”Oh, I want that brand, because it’s better…it’s “natural”!”

Ok, I’m done.

LIES!

Ok, now I’m done.

Cari’s Oatmeal

1/4 cup oats

2 Tblsp flaxseed meal

1/2 cup water

1/4 cup frozen blueberries (fresh are better when in season, but then add them after you cook it)

1/2 cooked quinoa–I’d like to figure out if I can put it in without cooking it first…I’ll try that soon

splash of milk (or water when I’m fasting)

Put the oats, flax, water and frozen blueberries in a microwave safe bowl and cook on high for 2 minutes.  It will look like this. Appetizing, huh?

Stir in previously cooked quinoa.

Add milk and a sliced banana if you want.

Total Calories for this amazing bowl of goodness? 356! Which is a good breakfast number, btw.  Sugar free can taste delicious!

Total fat 8g

Sodium 8g

Total carbs 69g

fiber 13g

protein 11g

Iron 24%

I follow EatThis, NotThat on Twitter and have had my eyes opened to a plethora of grocery store “secrets”, restaurant crimes, and must-eat lists for a flatter belly.  Wow, the more you know…the less you want to eat at all.  anywhere.  ever.  They also sell books and such.

Researching the way the body works has been game-changing, too.  For example, being aware of the strain I put on my pancreas when I eat a piece of fudge.   It’s just not fair to my pancreas…what did it ever do to me?  The pancreas spends quite a lot of its time regulating the sugar/insulin levels in your blood.  I have a very weak grasp on the process–just enough, though, to know that a gallon of sugar makes it work really hard. and I love my pancreas and want to show it some appreciation for all it’s done these 40+ years.

At any rate, education, in whatever form, is critical to making healthy choices.  Btw, corn chips do NOT count as a vegetable.

In the last couple of years, I’ve discovered that sweet potatoes are not only really really good for you, but also really really good all year round!  and super easy to make!

Wrap a sweet potato in foil.  Make sure its sealed well.  I use the heavy duty foil because if it gets a hole and drips in your oven, your smoke detector will go off when the drips start to burn.  grrr.

Bake that tuber for 1 hour at 400 degrees–depending on how big it is, it may need a lil bit more time.   You’ll know its done when you squeeze it (with a gloved hand, of course) and it gives.   Don’t rush it or it will be still a lil hard in the middle.  I like mine nice and soft.  I’m not sure if you can tell in the picture below, but it makes its own glaze!!  So yummy.  I eat the peel and all–it’s like candy. All natural with no added sugars!

TRY it!  and do NOT put butter or brown sugar on it, till you’ve tried it without!  Even people who said they don’t really care for sweet potatoes, tried these and LOVED ‘em!

Someone asked me “How will you deal with temptation?” The answer…hmmm…lots of ways probably.  Pray. Resolve. God. Knowing that its for a higher purpose. Go to bed early.  Eat lots of fruit.  It’s a different feeling than a diet–a different level of commitment.  A different person I’ve committed to, so the temptation is easier to handle.

I know that I want a breakthrough and if I continue to sacrifice the immediate desire for food, I will get the longer lasting, farther reaching benefits that God has to offer me.

The bonus is that it happens to be really healthy for my body too.  Other than eating about 1/2 the protein I normally would, I’m eating nothing BUT healthy. and maybe a little TOO much fiber.

But again, you crave what you consume. This concept applies to much more than just food, although it certainly applies to food.  The more of God I consume, the more I crave.  The more time in God’s word, the more I realize it really is better than life. Psalm 63:3

In Lysa TerKeurst’s book, Made to Crave, she says that we CRAVE WHAT WE CONSUME.   Read that again and meditate on those words for a minute.  We CRAVE WHAT WE CONSUME.  (This impacts me on SO many levels–not just food!) It’s so true. Whatever we eat, is what we continue to crave.  I began “forcing” myself to eat beans (which I’ve NEVER liked), veggies (which I only tolerate), and my favorite dip substitute, hummus.  The more I ate these things, the more I wanted to eat them (I’m stopping just short of using the word “crave”–although sometimes I do crave a good baked sweet potato!)

It’s not an overnight change, that’s for sure…more of process that can take months.  But if you consider your LIFETIME of (hopefully) years, those few months would be months well spent to gain YEARS of feeling better, looking better, being healthier.

Forgo the immediate pleasure for the lasting gain.

In the past, the thought process has always been “I want that, BUT I’m trying to lose weight so I won’t have it-boo hoo hoo, poor me”.  Suddenly, I looked at the brownies and thought “nah, I’m just not hungry for that”.  (Who am I kidding–it did not happen “suddenly”, I just suddenly noticed that my thought process had changed)

How and exactly when I crossed over into the realm of freedom, I do not know.  But freedom is exactly what it feels like.  Freedom from resisting urges and painful sacrifices.  Freedom from the NEED for sugary goodness.

Now don’t get me wrong, those chains that bound me for so long are still here, laying on the counter next to me. (metaphorically speaking, of course) There is always the chance I could slip back into bondage in this area.  It could be next year or it could be tomorrow. I know I’m still vulnerable.

I will continue to meditate on exactly how I got here.  I think that will help with the future battles I will surely face. and hopefully it could help others to experience that same freedom.

Food, health, and feelings…which one of these things is harder to manage?

Perusing the “diet” section of the bookstore you will get dozens of ideas on how to eat “the right way”, “Secrets” to permanent weight loss, how to eat to get rid of belly fat, how to detox diet, how to diet sexy, etc.

Unfortunately, our weight problems are so much more complicated than just what we eat. I would argue that our attitudes about food play a bigger part on our state of health than the actual food we eat. Even the way I remember how to spell dessert is indicative of my feelings about food. (2 S’s and not just 1 because I always want MORE dessert than desert)!

Since I haven’t blogged in a coon’s age, I’m going to write an indeterminate number of posts about food, attitudes, and health. I know that there is no shortage of writings on the subject. So what I will be sharing is a lot of my personal experience. Unless, of course, I get bored, or distracted, then the blog posts will taper off or come to a complete and sudden halt.

Here’s to hoping that doesn’t happen before the end of January.

I was laying in bed trying to sleep (on my back) and I started wondering about change.  You see, I was a Stomach Sleeper and a few years ago I realized that sleeping on my stomach was BAD.   Someone told me.  It gives you wrinkles on your face.   Flattens your breasts.   Hurts your back.   Whatever, I heard lots of stories, lots of reasons.   My chiropractor confirmed it.   So, I decided to change.   I would become a Back Sleeper.  I just made up my mind and that was that.  Right?  Ha.

Turns out, it’s very very hard to change the way you sleep.  I would toss and turn, and flip and turn, until I finally went to sleep on my back.  and then I would wake up on my stomach…with a lower back ache.   Finally, after months and months, I finally got used to it and proudly called myself a Back Sleeper!  That is until about a week ago.  Once again, I find myself turning and flipping again….fighting the back sleeping, waking up with a sore lower back.

I know, this seems all very mundane…not the tragic tale I think it is when I’m struggling to sleep in the middle of the night–fighting the urge to flip over.  But, it’s made me think about change.  Am I a Stomach Sleeper who sleeps on my back?  or can I one day call myself a Back Sleeper?

It’s been a long time since I’ve written a blog post.   So can I be a regular blogger, and then just stop? If I only write things occasionally, am I not a regular blogger?  That’s not who I am anymore?  I used to be angry a lot.  Angry.  Now it takes a lot to get me angry.  Oh sure, I still get mad sometimes, but that’s not who I am anymore.

I know 2 Corinthians 5:17 says that once we go from depending on ourselves, to depending on Christ, we become a new creation or a new person.  At this hour of the night, I’m really not sure what that has to do with how I sleep…

You see, this is why I don’t write much anymore…I have thoughts, but no way to wrap them up neatly.  So, I’m going back to bed now…to sleep on my back….peacefully.   I suppose it would be a good idea to depend on Christ to help me with that.

Night.

This year started with a 21 day fast , go here for a summary of how that went.  Turns out that was a really good way to start a year out.    No doubt, I’ll be doing that again in 2011. (I’m actually 16 days into it right now!)

• Sold fireworks for the 4th of July in Louisiana (great time with family and precious friends!)
• went to the beach in Florida for a fantastic family vacation (paid cash)
• paid off a car (that’s the last time we’ll ever NOT pay cash for a car–car pymts suck!)
• my firstborn started driving–this is exciting, nerve-racking, and time-saving all at the same time
• bought a car with cash for the first time ever (well, we matched Cory’s contribution and he bought a car with cash)
• ran my first 5K.  and my 2nd. and my 3rd. and my 4th.  I’m officially addicted to running now.
• started learning how to play the guitar–something I always wanted to do, and now I can
• lost a beloved member of our family, Lucky dog
• got 2 new puppies–it remains to be seen if this was a positive or negative move.  on the one hand, we’re missing Lucky less, on the other, training starts all over and lasts longer than I care to think about
• started a new job–same place, new position

It was a busy and productive year and I’m already making goals for 2011.  Blogging more is one goal.  jeesh, last year was pitiful in the blogging department.  How else am I supposed to keep track of what I do?!?

Other goals:

Get my own guitar–Cory’s generously loaning me one of his right now

Learn how to make movies in iMovie–I’ve started this, but my first one was incredibly lame

My marriage is going to be the best it’s been in 20 years!