Thursday, October 28, 2010

Merry Grasshopper

This week I have been short of greens.  Not only smoothie greens but spending greens.  It has really put dash on green smoothies and juices.  My body is really craving them, of course!   This morning I thought I would flip through Victoria Boutenko's revised Green for Life and found this great recipe, Merry Grasshopper.  I just happened to have the ingredients!  Woo hoo!  

Merry Grasshopper
1 cup wheat grass
2 bananas
1 lemon, juiced
1/2 inch ginger
2 cups water
Blend until smooth.
Yields 1 quart

I used half wheat grass, half flat leaf parsley and it tastes great!


When I drank that first sip (okay it was actually more a gulping action than sipping) it was like my body heaved such a satisfied sigh.  If you don't have Victoria's book I highly recommend Green for Life. It is packed with great information, facts, testimonials, and delicious recipes.

Stay Green!

Friday, October 22, 2010

Health Food Jackpot

                              


I totally hit the yum-yum jackpot today!  Our local recover store had boxes of 12 mini Larabars for $3!  At the health food store a box of mini Larabars costs about $12.  Talk about feeling like I won the lottery!  THEN they had Doctor Krackers for $1 a box.  At the health food store they cost $4.50.  I bought two boxes of each of the three flavors they had available.  I am really hoping these are still there on payday (one more week).  I am just giddy!
Well, I have done quite well this week, if I do say so myself.  Three pounds gone so far.  Weigh in starts today at RFR but I want to wait until Sunday morning to see if I can drop at least one more pound.  I am determined to lose the rest of my weight by the end of the year.  That is 20 pounds a month.  I think it's doable, but I really will need to stay focused.
I did get my grocery shopping done.  I have the week's menu and the rest of the family can eat meat and yummy vegan food.  There is a lot of soup on the menu.  I have the bread machine going so we have fresh bread for the sandwich eaters.  I know what is in the bread and what is not.  I like knowing what is not in the food I serve the family.
Well, I'm off the enjoy some of those krackers!  

Saturday, October 16, 2010

Going Shopping

 

I am getting ready to do one of my least favorite chores:  grocery shopping.  I don't know why I dislike going to the market so much.  Maybe it's because I get frustrated with the traffic jam of carts in the aisles.  Or maybe because I spend more money to buy less and less.  Then again it could be the knowledge that this chore is never ending.  If I think about the reasons, ponder them deeply I would admit it's because of the crowds.  A store full of people all disliking the same chore doesn't always make for a pleasant experience.

I have my (long) list written out.  This one is filled with whole foods; raw foods.  Daikon Radish, curly Kale, Baby Bok Choy, fresh thyme.  The menus for this week have been chosen: Shaved Fennel Salad, Colorful Cabbage Slaw, Crispy Shallot Onion Rings, Weeknight Chili.

Oh!  Here is another reason grocery shopping may be such a pariah, buying for raw food eaters (just me) and cooked food eaters (everyone else in the house).  It's hard to balance that, at least for me.  I tend to forget to buy what my family wants to eat and sometimes end up with only healthy vegetables and fruits!  It's an honest mistake.  Really!

Anyway, staying raw lately has been very hard.  I don't know why.  Maybe the cooler weather is triggering my comfort food meter.  Fall and winter has always been "Soup Season" to me.  Soup with warm homemade bread cut thick with real butter.  Eating raw vegan during Soup Season is going to be a struggle.  

I mean, warming soups in the dehydrator is definitely doable.  It may be the only way I have warm soup.  The bread part will be impossible.  At least the thick-cut bread.  I don't think there is a thick fluffy raw bread recipe out there.  Plus it doesn't help I'm allergic to wheat.

I am determined to stay as close to 100% raw as possible.  It occurred to me today I only have 40 pounds left to lose.  So why is it so hard to eat in a way that makes me feel good, sleep well, look good, and lose weight?  No pills, no marathon exercising (though exercising will certainly speed up the weight loss).  Why can't my brain wrap itself around eating raw?

So, my list is made.  Tomorrow I'll head to the store and do my duty.  Maybe I'll treat myself to a new fruit or vegetable.  

Saturday, October 9, 2010

October - Breast Cancer Awareness Month




It's been nearly two years since my mom died from breast cancer.  I miss her.  Even though we didn't always get along she was my mom and I loved her.
The hardest part of the cancer was watching my mom's body deteriorate. The last year of her life her mind deteriorated.  That was just one ofe the hardest part.  My quick-witted mom became a six year old little girl.
This year my mom missed the high school graduations of two of her grand kids and the marriage of her oldest granddaughter.  When she first went to CTCA she told everyone there she had to beat the cancer because she had wedding bouquets to make for her four granddaughters.  It was sometimes difficult planning the wedding and knowing how much fun she would have had.


To my mom:  I miss you.  I love you.

Putting on the Pink




Last night our church put on a "Putting on the Pink" party for Breast Cancer Awareness Month (October). It was a lot of fun. Lots of information, good speakers, yoga, massages, and a bone density test. I decided to do the bone density test (I didn't opt for the massage as I'm so knotted up there wasn't enough time to work half of them out). It's a neat machine that is 99% accurate.

It looks kind of like a foot massager. They ask your age first.  You place your foot in the machine and two balloons on either side of your heel inflate. Nothing uncomfortable like a BP cuff. It sits for about 30 seconds or so and deflates. They look at a colored graph on the screen and show you where your bone density is in relation to your age.

I am 46 (next Saturday). Here are the findings of my test:

* On the graph I am above average for my age.

* My T score is 0.0 {T score indicates whether you are above or below the bone density of a healthy 30 year-old, the age when bone density reaches its peak.}

* My Z score is 1.1 {Z score indicates whether you are above or below the bone density of other people your age, sex, and race.}

So, my T score of 0 indicates the average for the healthy, 30 year-old group and my Z score of 1.1 indicates I have higher bone density than my age group.

I have the bone density of a 30-something year old! Se said a good diet, exercise, and lots of greens contribute to higher bone density. I said I green smoothie every day and she just smiled and said green smoothies are great.

I think that is awesome considering my mom lost 8 inches of height at the end of her life and that is something I definitely want to avoid.
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