Body Image

September 8, 2014 / ktbuchs87

Body image. I’ve written about it before and I will probably write about it again. It is something that I know many people out there struggle with. It is something that I struggle with daily. If my own struggles and experience can help even one person, then I count that worth it. That being said, if you don’t feel like reading another post about this topic that is totally fine. Check back Wednesday and Friday for more healthy recipes and tips. Otherwise, read on.

I had done it. I had made the decision to get healthier and I had stuck with it this time. Things just clicked and I ate better, found exercise that I loved, and I lost weight. Clothes started to fit better, I felt healthier and had more energy than I had before. It was like a Cinderella story, if Cinderella was overweight and ate junk food and then magically changed. I thought that because all of these things were happening, I would be happy. I would finally feel like I looked like I should. I would be self confident, I wouldn’t talk negatively about my body, and I would finally have a good body image. I was wrong. The magic Cinderella story didn’t happen like I thought it would.

I was shocked to realize that even though I had lost weight, I still had problems with my body image. At the beginning, I had trouble matching the image in the mirror with what I saw in my head. I was still the bigger girl in my mind and I just couldn’t see the new girl who had finally lost the weight. Over time, I was able to finally see what was really there. Through the help and support of friends and family, I realized that I looked different than I thought I did. It also helped that I could wear smaller sizes and do things physically that I couldn’t before, like run a 5k race. I started to feel better about the way I looked, and I was relieved that it felt like my body image issues were starting to get better.

Imagine my surprise now where I find myself struggling again. It’s been about three years since I dealt with those first weight loss body image issues, but those challenges are starting to creep back into my life. This time though it isn’t problems with matching my mirror image to my mental image. I find myself playing the comparison game and I really hate that I’m doing that. I tell others never to compare themselves to anyone else because they are their own unique selves. No one is like you or can ever be like you so you should celebrate your awesome self. And all the while I can say those things to others, I can’t seem to get myself to believe those sentiments.

The thoughts and questions that run through my mind are so hypocritical of what I want others to think. Shouldn’t I have six-pack abs with all the core exercises I do? Why can that person eat more than me and still have muscles? Am I eating too much? Am I eating too little? Am I not eating the right things? Why can’t I do a full push-up without struggling the whole time? Shouldn’t 5 miles feel like a breeze to me by now? And on and on and on…. I feel like that insecure, high school girl, worried that everyone is staring at me and judging me, all over again. Why am I doing this to myself? Why do I have to go through this AGAIN?

Rather than sit here and wallow in my returning body image issues, I’m going to tackle them head on. There are things that I can do to stop the comparing game and start being proud of myself. I need to stop looking at all the Pinterest images and health magazine models with bodies that aren’t attainable to the majority of the population. Nothing good ever comes from trying to compare myself to them and wonder why I can’t look like them. I’m not them, I’m me and that is just fine. I don’t have a six pack, but I can hold a plank for seven minutes and I know that my core is strong. That’s good enough. I can stop worrying about all the things I might not be doing perfectly for my health. I am a human being and I will never be perfect. That is good enough. I won’t compare the way I eat or how much I eat to other people’s diets. My body needs to be nourished in it’s own way and as long as I feel healthy and am getting adequate nutrition, I shouldn’t worry. That is good enough. I should be proud of all that I can do physically. So what if I can’t clean and jerk an 85 pound barbell or run a marathon in 3 hours? I can do a whole heck of a lot. I should be grateful that I have a body that can do so much. That is good enough.

My overall message for this post is that I, and you, are good enough. Yes, it’s tiring and a little frustrating that I still have to deal with body image issues. I wish that I didn’t have to deal with them and that like the weight I lost, they would just go away. But that’s not the reality of the situation. The reality is I will continue to work on my self image and I will continue to try and help others do the same. One day I know that I can get to the place of feeling totally comfortable in my beautiful skin. Until I reach that point, I will continue being positive and working hard. And that is good enough.

How To Use The Whole Thing

September 3, 2014 / ktbuchs87

We throw away a lot of stuff. It’s such a simple thing, if we don’t want then just throw it in the garbage and it magically goes away. Except that it’s really not magic at all. That garbage has to go somewhere and the outlook isn’t so good. I’m not here to lecture you on landfills and dumps and saving the environment, but I do think we can all do our part to help. One of the larger components of our trash is food. We throw away a ton of food and some of it is still edible. No, this post isn’t about eating trash. I just want to offer a few tips on how to use all of your food so that you get the most bang for your buck AND lower the amount of waste you throw away.

Make Stock

This is a really easy way to use up leftover scraps of vegetables and bones. Things like vegetables peels from carrots, potatoes, cabbage, or turnips can be turned into a homemade vegetable stock. After you’re done prepping your vegetables for dinner or whatever meal you’re making, gather all the scraps. Place all the scraps into a large stockpot, add in water, a little salt and pepper, and bring to a boil. Once it’s boiling, simmer for at least an hour, longer for a stronger flavor. Turn off the heat and let the stock cool. Using a strainer, pour the stock over a container and strain out the vegetable pieces and voila, you have homemade stock. You can also make your own chicken or meat stock using the leftover bones. Follow the same process, just add in whatever bones you have on hand. Make sure to strain well so there are no leftover bones in your stock. Now you have your own healthy stock on hand whenever you need it! You can also freeze your stock and make it in big batches.

Use Up Your Greens

Many vegetables come with leafy greens attached to them. I like to think of this as a two for one deal because you can use the vegetables AND the greens. Turnips, beets, and carrots have greens that can be used for salads or added to soups and stews. You can also use them for juices and smoothies. Or you can dry out the greens and use them as seasonings for any dish that you can think of. Just make sure to wash your leafy greens really well to get rid of dirt or bugs that might be hiding.

Eat the Stalk

Most of us don’t think twice about throwing away the stalks of vegetables like broccoli or cauliflower, but those parts are edible too. You can chop them up and eat them prepared the same way you use the flowered parts. My favorite way is to eat them is to cut up the broccoli florets and stems, saute them with olive oil and season them with garlic, turmeric, pepper, and a little bit of my “Parmesan” topping. You can also grate the stalks and use them as a salad topping or as a way to add extra vegetables to soups, stews, and sauces.

Keep the Pulp

http://www.glutenfreecat.com/2012/04/raw-sun-dried-tomato-crackers/

If you like to make your own fruit and vegetable juices, you might be left with a bunch of pulp afterwards. Don’t throw that pulp away! You can use it to make crackers or add it into baked goods, such as bread or muffins, or add it into sauces. The pulp from homemade juice contains a lot of the fiber and nutrients from the fruit or vegetable and is super good for you. If you make your own nut milk, like almond milk, you can save the pulp from the nuts and use as nut meal in baked recipes. Just make sure you dry it out well first before you bake with it.

Help Your Garden Grow

Peels from fruits or vegetables that you don’t want to eat, like banana peels, orange peels, or potato peels, can be used as compost for your garden. Rather than just throwing those peels away, put them to good use helping your own fruits and vegetables grow strong and delicious.

These are just a few easy ways that you can use to help lower the amount of food that you throw away each week. It’s also a great way to stretch your dollar and get the most use out of your food. So before you toss that piece of food away, see if there is another use you can get out of it!

It’s Ok To Change

September 1, 2014 / ktbuchs87

I would say that one of my mantras is that each person has a different definition of healthy. What you deem to be healthy for you and your body might not be what I deem healthy for me and my body. That’s what makes health so great and unique. It’s not just a cookie cutter diet or lifestyle where everyone eats or does the same thing. That would be boring! For some reason though, the idea that one persons healthy might not be anothers causes a lot of problems among the health world. There are some people who believe that the way they choose to live is the ONLY way to be healthy and everyone else is doing it wrong. This of course sparks sometimes vicious debates and causes some disrespect between people with different lifestyles when there is really no need. It’s ok to be different and have different goals and want different things health wise. It’s also ok for those goals and ideas to evolve and change over time, which is something I struggled with a bit.

I have always believed that it is ok to have a different idea of health from other people, but I haven’t always been as receptive to having my own personal ideals change or evolve. I thought that I had to do the exact same thing and eat the exact same way as I had when I first made the decision to be healthier. Why would I change? This is what had worked for me in the beginning, and if it ain’t broke don’t fix it right? Well, yes and no. To a certain extent you need to keep things the same. It isn’t good or healthy to constantly be changing things week to week or day to day. Your body needs a certain amount of time to adjust to things before you start to see results. That’s one of the problems people have today. If they don’t see immediate results from an exercise routine or a diet change, then obviously it isn’t working and they have to do something different. No, you just need to give yourself a fair amount of time to see the change. But on the other hand, what has worked for you in the past might not always work for you in the future.

Your body is a magnificent machine. I don’t mean that we’re all robots, but that there are so many complex processes and functions that your body has to go through to do certain tasks, that it really is an amazing machine. From the tiniest thing, like blinking, to the largest thing, like digesting a whole meal, your body is a wonderful system, and it likes to be efficient. Your body wants to accomplish its tasks with the least amount of energy spent, it’s kind of lazy that way. So in terms of exercise, beginners will experience a higher amount of energy expenditure running a mile than a seasoned marathoner. As you run more and more, your body will adapt and become more efficient. This isn’t a bad thing, becoming more efficient is what makes running, or whatever exercise you’re doing, seem easier. But that also means that you will need to find new ways to challenge your body. Crosstraining (doing different types of exercise different days) is one way to do this, as is HIIT or high intensity interval training.

This idea also goes for food. If you have been consuming a certain amount of calories for years and suddenly cut that number down, you are going to experience weight loss. Your body essentially will be shocked by this sudden change, but not for long. It will start to adapt to that new calorie intake and adjust accordingly. Again, this isn’t a bad thing. It’s good that your body responds to things like dietary intake, but you need to be aware of this and be able to change with it. Meaning, what has worked in the past might not always work in the future. Varying your diet and the way you eat is a good practice anyway. You want to make sure you consume a variety of foods to make sure that you are getting all the vitamins, minerals, and nutrients that you need to function. That’s another reason that I support a whole foods diet rather than fad diets. You can’t go wrong with real foods like fruits, vegetables, and whole grains in their simplest forms.

When I first realized I would have to adapt and change with my body as it got more efficient, I resisted. I tend to not like change and love a routine. It helps me feel organized and in control. I also worried that people would think I was being wishy-washy with my health. I thought they would think I was just jumping on another health band wagon and going with the flow. But being resistant to change wasn’t doing any favors for my health and worrying about what others think never does any good. If I wanted to keep with the progress I was making, I would have to change. Not huge major changes, but little tweaks and adjustments as I went along. Once I stopped fighting it, I realized having those little adjustments made things more fun. I could start to experiment with different recipes and branch out and see what I could come up with. I could challenge my body and see how strong it was and try new exercises. And I surprised myself, I could do more than I thought I was capable of. Seeing how far along I was helped spur me along even more.

Don’t be too resistant to change. When you start to see a stall in your health or you’re feeling stuck in a rut, don’t be afraid to try something new. Don’t worry about what others might think. They aren’t you and they don’t know what your body needs. Be confident in your decisions and do what you need to do to be the healthiest you!

Avocado Chicken Salad

August 29, 2014 / ktbuchs87

A few weekends ago, Adam and I went to a cookout for his grandpa’s birthday. It was great, full of family, friends, and food. Oh was there food. Now let me say that Adam has quite a large family. Nine aunts and uncles, plus their spouses/significant others, plus all their children so there needs to be a lot of food. Along with all the appetizers and side dishes, there was a mountain of chicken. I am not exaggerating. There were three different kinds of wings, grilled chicken, marinaded chicken, smoked chicken, chicken chicken… You get the idea. Long story short, we were sent home with a bag of chicken. After adding chicken to stir frys and frittatas, I wanted to come up with a simple and tasty chicken dish. Because it was uber hot, I went with a chicken salad. It came together quickly and hit the spot on a hot summer night, plus it’s healthy! So if you are loaded down with chicken, give this recipe a try!

Avocado Chicken Salad

2 to 3 cups cooked chicken, shredded
1 large avocado, diced
1 tbsp mustard (I used spicy brown mustard)
1 tbsp tahini (sunflower seed butter would work well too)
1 tbsp lemon juice
1/2 tbsp almond milk
1/2 tsp basil
1/2 tsp coriander
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp parsley
salt and pepper, to taste
corn kernels/celery, optional (but they add a nice crunch!)

1. Shred your chicken and set aside. In a large bowl, mash up your avocado pieces. You want this to be fairly smooth, so make sure there are no large chunks. Add in the rest of the ingredients, except corn/celery and chicken. Mix together well.

2. Add in chicken and corn/celery and stir to coat everything with the avocado. Taste and add salt and pepper if needed. You can serve this right away or let it cool in the fridge.

Pretty easy, right? This goes well over lettuce, in tortilla shells, or on your favorite type of bun. Don’t like chicken? Try it with canned tuna or salmon. Don’t eat meat? Make it with chickpeas or your favorite kind of bean. It’s a pretty easy recipe to adapt to your tastes. It is also a good one to make a big batch of and share at a party or gathering. Enjoy!

How To Make Your Own Snacks

August 27, 2014 / ktbuchs87

Snacks can be a very important part of a lot of people’s daily diets. They tide you over to the next meal, fuel you for your workout, or give you extra energy when you hit that late afternoon slump. While I don’t snack much myself, I am a big supporter of snacks as part of a healthy lifestyle. I’m not a supporter though of most of the snacks that we normally reach for. I’m talking about the ones you find in a vending machine or on store shelves. The pre-packaged, processed snacks that we often eat are not doing your health any good. Believe me, I get the appeal of these snacks. They’re easy, most of the time portable, and they taste good. They are just so convenient, but they are also taking a toll on our health. The good news is that it is really easy to make your own versions of most of the snacks out there, except these will be good for you, provide nutrition, cost less, and taste just as good if not better!

DIY Snacks

Trail Mix- This is a tricky snack item in stores. They seem like they are good for you with all their claims of organic and natural, but most of the time they are filled with sugar and other not so healthy ingredients. It is much better to make your own, plus the DIY version will cost you a lot less. Buy things like nuts (peanuts, almonds, pistachios, walnuts), seeds (sunflower or pumpkin), dried fruits with no extra sugar (cranberries, raisins, cherries), and dark chocolate chips. Then just dup everything into a big bowl, mix it together, and portion it out into snack sizes. Now you have a quick and healthy snack that you can grab and go! If you can, buy all your components in bulk and that help keep the cost down.

Granola Bars- These are another one of those sneaky snacks that can seem healthy but in the end are not much better than candy bars. Luckily, it is really easy to make your own and there are a ton of recipes out there on the internet. You can make your own Nutragrain bars, Larabars, or chewy granola bars. Make them in big batches and freeze them so that you have a bunch ready to go
Chips & Dip- Chips are a popular snack because no one can resist the crunchy and salty taste! But those chips can quickly add up and soon you’re downing a whole bag along with dip. You can make your own simple potato chips using my recipe here. You can also make your own tortilla chips. Just buy some corn tortillas (I like the El Milagro brand because of the price and short ingredient list), cut them into triangles, lay them in a single layer on a baking sheet, spray with a little olive oil and salt, then bake at 375 for 12 to 15 minutes. Dips are also really easy and much healthier to make on your own. Try my avocado cream, some salsa, or another one of my favorites, hummus!
Roasted Chickpeas- I have seen a few versions of these in stores, and while some of them aren’t too bad, I’ve always found it easier to just make my own. It is a lot cheaper and you can choose whatever flavors you want! You can find my recipe here.

Don’t forget about things like fruit or vegetables as a snack too! It is really easy to buy things like celery, carrots, cucumbers, and cherry tomatoes, then cut them up and portion them out at home for a quick snack. Fruits like bananas, oranges, or clementines are really easy to transport because of their skins. And who can resist one of my favorite snacks, sliced apples and peanut or almond butter. Hard boiled eggs are also a great snack that travels well.

There are a ton of simple and healthy snack ideas that you can make yourself. You don’t have to rely on store bought snacks to get you through the day. Take a little bit of time to plan and make your snacks for the week and when it come time to rush out the door in the morning, you can feel good that your snack will help you stick to your healthy eating plan!