Skip to main content

Healthier Eating Update: 3 Weeks In

Hi guys!  Well, it's been a little more than three weeks since I decided to make some changes in how I eat so I can (hopefully) lower my cholesterol.
I tried to convince myself that these chocolate crinkles were "healthy" since they are made with canola oil instead of butter.
Here's a little update of how it's been going and what I've been doing.  I'm definitely not on a "diet" and I'm still eating some foods with cholesterol in them.  I'm just trying to eat better overall.  I've definitely had some good days and some bad days.

Here's the GOOD:

  • I eat oatmeal almost every day for breakfast.  I had been doing this couple of years and lost a bit of weight last year (but that might have been because we were working feverishly on finishing the remodeling project on our house).  I make 1/2 c. of quick oats with 1/2 c. water, 1/2 c. milk and top it with a little brown sugar, cranberries, raisins, and diced apple.  I had oatmeal at McDonald's when we were in Seattle recently and loved that it had cruncy apple in it.  
  • I've been trying to drink more water.  I've found that when I'm thirsty, I misinterpret it for a need to munch on something.
  • I've been brushing my teeth more and chewing gum to stop the snacking craving.  
  • I try to eat pretty cholesterol free for lunch.  My favorites are the quinoa and sweet potato salad that I posted yesterday.  I've seriously eaten it almost every day for three weeks.  Other favorites are egg while omelets made with lots of peppers, mushrooms and spinach.  I love natural peanut butter smeared on celery (I posted about this a few weeks ago). 
  • I've been eating less meat.  I've still been making pretty normal dinners for my family, but I've been eating less meat.
  • I've been eating less carbs.  I haven't had a piece of bread for three weeks.  I have had rolls and tortillas for sandwiches and tacos, but I've been eating less than normal.  We've been eating a lot of things in rolls and buns lately because we've had some kind of sport almost every night, and of course it's always at dinner time.
  • I've been eating a lot more fruit, especially blueberries (my favorite) for a snack.  We had some really yummy grapes the last week or so too.
  • I've been really trying to limit my butter intake.  I've had good days and bad days.  We always make a treat on Sunday and I have one, but I've been trying to only eat one instead of 4.  :)  
  • I've been eating less dairy and if I do eat dairy I try to eat options that have less than 10 mg per serving.  I'm still drinking skim milk, but sometimes I'll have water at dinner instead.  
  • I made salmon for the first time ever last week and my kids were surprised that it wasn't as bad as they thought it would be!  I grilled it and glazed it with teryaki sauce.   Looking forward to trying more recipes.  
  • When I do eat buttery sweets, the sugar and butter are almost too much for me.  I don't enjoy the buttery taste like I used to...probably because it tastes like guilt.  Ha!
  • My kids have been trying to eat better off and on.  They've all been asking me about calories and noticing serving sizes on snack foods and chip bags.  Plus, like I said...they ate salmon and didn't die or get sick like they thought they might.
Here's the BAD:
  • I lost a few pounds (when I used my calorie counter on my fitbit) and I gained a few pounds and lost them and gained them, etc..  I haven't been very careful with portion sizes and still stress snacked more than I should have.  Improvements to be made there for sure!
  • I love nuts and ate more than I should have.  Oops.
  • I stress eat a little bit more when I'm stressed (that was redundant, ha!) and when I have a lot to get done and not much time at home, which has been pretty much every day lately.  Weekends have been the hardest with everyone home and more people that need attention.  I've got to get things organized and figured out for summertime so I don't hide in the pantry and eat chocolate chips.  (They're "cholesterol free", ha!) 
  • I've found that a lot of unhealthy food don't have cholesterol in them, like chips for example.  But that doesn't mean that I should eat them.  I need to remember to look at the saturated and trans fat content too, not just cholesterol.
Anyway....so, for now, I'm working on a few things:
1.  Portion sizes.
2.  Having healthy snacks prepped.
3.  Limited sugar. I think I'm going to start making myself Crystal Light lemonade popsicles in my Zoku popsicle maker instead of going for a fudge bar out of the freezer on those hot days.  (It's supposed to be 98 on Sunday.  Help me.  I'm going to melt.)

Thanks friends for your support!  Your emails and comments have been so sweet.  And to my friends that I get to see and talk to in person, I appreciate you asking how it's going.  

Photobucket
Labels:

Popular posts from this blog

One Hour Rolls

These rolls are amazing!  I've been making these rolls since 2001 when I was a newlywed and my sister-in-law shared the recipe with me.  The rolls are light, fluffy, easy to make and they only take one hour!  And delicious too!   I've made these rolls more times than I can count, so I've perfected the art of making them.  Here are some step-by-step instructions with pictures for you. Here's what you'll need.  I buy pretty much all of the ingredients in this recipe at Sam's club, thus the huge containers.  You need warm water, yeast, oil, sugar, salt, egg and flour. In the mixer bowl, add warm water (not hot), oil, sugar and yeast.  Mix together. After ten or fifteen minutes the yeast mixture should be puffed up like this.  Time to add the salt and beaten egg. Then mix in the flour.  (I've used a mixture of half wheat and half white flour successfully.) Keep adding flour until the dough is manageable.  It will be a little sticky, b
Read more

Havreflarn (Swedish Oat Crisp Cookies)

We had some teenagers over for a Swedish themed dinner last night.  They were participating in a "missionary for a day" activity.  They were paired up into companionships, like the official missionaries for our church and were assigned to a family for dinner.  They ate with us and then taught us a lesson about Heavenly Father's plan for us.   My husband served a mission in Sweden.  He lived there for two years and loved it.  Swedish meatballs are a staple at our house.  (They're super easy to make and my pickiest eater's favorite!).  When we visit IKEA we usually stock up on the cream gravy packets and jars of Lingonberries.  We were out of lingonberry, but after a few phone calls, I found some at one of our local grocery stores. We ate meatballs, gravy, lingonberry, mashed potatoes (I ran out of time, other wise I would have steamed little red potatoes from our garden) and green beans (though my husband doesn't remember eating them in Sweden
Read more

The Best French Bread I've Ever Made

This is the best french bread I've ever made.  I got this recipe from my friend, Nikki, who gave us some of this bread as a thank you for my hubby helping them move a piano.  I remember it being delicious and we gobbled it up fast.  I was intimidated for some reason by the recipe and waited a few years before I made it. We needed some bread for to make some turkey, provolone, avocado sandwiches, so I made some of this bread and it was perfect!  We sliced one loaf like they do at Subway.  Then later I made normal shaped sandwiches with the rest of the bread.  Delicious... light and fluffy and yummy! Update 2/22/12: This is still my favorite bread after making it for a year! It turns out perfect every time and it's gone in a flash! printable recipe French Bread recipe from my friend, Nikki Yield: 2 loaves   Ingredients 2 c. warm water 1 pkg (or 1 heaping Tbsp.) yeast 1/4 c. granulated sugar 1 T. olive oil
Read more