The battle of the Cupcake......

Today I am on day # 1 of a 2 day nutritional cleanse.  Had a great day.  Followed my program to the letter.  Was feeling great about riding my body of toxins and filling my body with great nutrition.  Until I had to bake a batch of Cupcakes for my Son's Birthday tomorrow.  So I baked them.  And I will note that I baked a batch of one dozen and dumped the rest of the batter.  I figure what is the difference if I dump it or if me or my family consumes it.  I would rather none of us consume it so that was that.  I was really going to mess up my whole day of cleansing to have a cupcake.  Really what was the difference??  No one was around to judge me.  Who would know??  No one would know unless I told them.  So as they were cooling so I could go out and frost them, I was reading some posts on a Facebook Group that I am on for Isagenix.  And this person was talking about the different nutritional cleansing options that there are and what they do for your body.  I suddenly realized that I was going to mess up my whole day and even the next day.  I was so glad that I read that post at just the right time.  I am loving my Isagenix journey and loving the wonderful support system that I have in place.

I realize that those challenges are always going to be there!!  It is how I deal with them that will get me healthy and keep me that way.  It is so easy to slip back into my old ways.

www.onemealatatime.isagenix.com  

Cowboy Caviar

This recipe is always a crowd pleaser.  So many have asked me for this I thought everyone else may like it.  So healthy quick and easy.  Win-Win.  Enjoy.

Cowboy Caviar

1 can each of shoe peg corn, black eyed peas and black beans
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
4 chopped scallions
1/4 cup sugar (I use Organic Agave Nectar)
1/4 cup cider vinegar
1/3 cup olive oil
3 cloves crushed garlic
Few drops hot sauce
Salt and pepper to taste

Mix Dressing, add cilantro and scallions then add rinsed beans.  .

               

I sometimes add a jar of diced pimentos for a touch more flavor and a nice pop of color.

This recipe is so flexible.  I seriously use whatever beans I have on hand.  Oh, and I like to make it the night before and let it marinate overnight.

Celebrating the Small Victories (no pun intended)

I sometimes have trouble celebrating my victories.  And just feeling like it is no big deal.  So I am going to take a moment to share and celebrate my victories.  My first victory is WOW, since I started my journey on Feb 25th I have lost 38 lbs.  Ok, seriously this is just how much I don't pay attention to that stuff I just had to get on the scale and do the math twice because I didn't think it was right.  To me it really is not at all about what I weigh.  It is how I feel.  And I feel GREAT!!  Can I just say that this is the best I have ever done with any kind of lifestyle change in all of my years of dieting.  And now that I have added Isagenix to my new lifestyle I am seeing even greater results. 

I have also been seeing other great victories in the form of wearing my wedding band for the first time in 4 years.  Just the other day I had to pull my seat closer in my car.  And just today I sat in  a white plastic lawn chair without being uncomfortable.  The funny thing is when I went to sit in the chair I was thinking to myself why even sit there you know it is going to cut into your legs and be painful.  I was sitting for a few minutes when I suddenly realized WOW I really fit here.  I almost wanted to cry. 

www.onemealatatime.isagenix.com

Another Great new twist in my already Amazing Journey

So since March we have been changing over to a plant based diet in our house.  We have been doing so great with it.  Loving exploring new recipes and foods.  Finding what works for us and what does not.  In the mean time I have lost 20 lbs and my Husband (Don) has lost over 30 lbs, my kids have also had such great health improvements.  The changes for my kids have come in the form of no more itchy back, normal bowl movements, and no more complaints of acid reflux, just amazing.

So my great friends Ann and Sue contact me and want me to check something out.  So of course I do!!  And WOW!!!!  I started with a company called Isagenix.  I am so loving where this new venture is taking me.  Isagenix is a company that offers vitamins, protein shakes and nutritional cleanse.  I have been using the products for one week and I have already lost 5 lbs in just one week.  Loving how this is just going to further my weight-loss goals.  Plus the added bonus of more energy.  You can use the products in so many ways, if you are looking for a cleanse, to loose weight or for the vitamins.

Check out my new web-site:  www.onemealatatime.isagenix.com

So excited to further be able to help others achieve all they want to achieve.  

Knowing where your food comes from??

Ever since our Food for Life Class, watching Forks Over Knives and reading the book Veganist I have been buying Organic and Local as much as possible.  Now just tonight I watched another documentary called Fresh.  Wow, I am still always shocked and amazed at how little people know about where their food comes from.  Until I started educating myself I didn't know either.  But once you know I feel like you have to act.  Yea, yea all well and good so here are some tips on what I have done with my family.  First of all I choose to say NO to these big corporate farms with my debit card.  If I choose not to buy meat and dairy and only purchase Organic and Local.  I am sending a huge message.  And I would much rather know that my greens were not shipped 1/2 way across the country.  Visit those Farmer's Markets.  Ask questions, educate yourself.  No one is going to do it for you.  God help's those who help themselves.

That documentary (Fresh) really moved me.  I was in tears at parts.  And believe me I am no animal lover.  But I can not stand to see animals and our great land treated in such a way.  What are we thinking as a nation? 

So I challenge you to read books, read labels, read whatever you can get your hands on and ask yourself......

BPO

Today was not a normal day.  Busy, busy, busy.  So my day started with my monthly Pampered Chef meeting, where we normally do a recipe.  I was planning on just adapting to whatever was there.  Well the featured recipe was a Cold Stone Creamery show.  Hum, now what am I going to do?  I was looking for the BPO (Best Possible Option).  My choice was to just say the heck with it and just eat everything that was there or make my choices fit with my new lifestyle.  So I had a banana that I had brought with me and my nut and seed mix that I had also brought with me and just supplemented so that I didn't feel left out with the strawberries and blueberries. 

After my meeting Nevin (age 5) and I  stopped off for lunch.  We decided to try a new pizza place.  So we ordered a salad and veggie pizza.  As I was ordering the Chef heard me ask for no dairy and said he had a non-dairy cheese (Diya) would I like for him to use that?  So you really just need to ask.  If you don't ask you don't know.  I have had some of the best meals since switching to a plant based diet.  I really just do one meal at a time.  That is really all I can control and look at.  Otherwise I was finding this all way to overwhelming. 

So my next opportunity to make the BPO work for me was after my Niece's dance recital.  I was not expecting to eat out so much today.  But sometimes that is just how life works out.  So the next restaurant we ended up at had no vegetarian selections at all.  But after asking a few questions I went with a veggie burger.  And yes it did come with fries.  I do not do this all the time.  Even though they are considered vegan, just really not the healthiest choice.

After I thought back on the day I was really happy that even with all of this going on I was able to stay plant strong and on track all day.

The difference is in the past I would have just said forget it and gone with a burger or something.  Then I would have felt guilty.

Hope this helps you stay on point with what ever it is you are trying to accomplish by using the Best Possible Option.

Another great Weigh-in

Another great weigh in!!!! Down another 6.2 lbs..... I am now at a total of 20 lbs total.... With no weighing, measuring, or counting calories.... I hope if you are out there you can gain inspiration from this. I have carried this weight around for 18 long years... Feels so great to see it go.