Tag: diet

Tone It Up Nutrition

For me, this year is the year of the anti-diet. I tried so many different diets last year and while I learned a lot, I also found my head spinning constantly. There were many times over the last year where I found myself sitting, completely unsure of what I could or should eat. At one point, I was afraid to eat anything but raw fruits and vegetables. I was miserable. I’ve started the re-building process and as you may know, this year is about small, meaningful changes.

I’ve followed the ladies of Tone It Up for quite some time now. I like the movement and I like the inspiration they are giving to so many women. Recently, something called out to me and I decided to jump on their website. By the end, I was ordering their nutrition plan kit and I was ready to go all in. There are many things I like about them, including the fitness portion, but I want to focus on the nutrition aspect today. The reason I hit that order button was because I was purchasing guidelines. How to eat to fuel my body with no major restrictions. I started with the Love Your Body Series because it includes meal plans to follow and I wasn’t at a place where I wanted to try to put together my own meals yet. 

Yesterday was day one. The biggest thing I learned yesterday was that along the way, I forgot how to read hunger cues. I was eating when I wasn’t really hungry half the time and waiting far too long at other times. (You know, that shaky, desperate, I’ll eat anything that comes near me, type of feeling.) The layout and timing of the meals suits me perfectly and when I was bored throughout the day, I realized that I would normally grab something to eat even though I wasn’t hungry.

Knowing what to eat had become a big struggle as well. I was desperately scanning Pinterest and buying new cookbooks to try to put together meal plans. It was time consuming, expensive and still wasn’t working. I needed the guesswork taken out. If someday I decide to move toward Paleo or Vegetarianism, they have plans to support those diets plus more. For now, I’m on the regular plan with no major restrictions other than added sugar and fried foods.

One of my goals this year was to also eliminate the processed foods from my diet and my family’s as well as reduce waste. I can see this plan helping with both of these efforts. With the meal plan to follow and shopping lists provided for each week, I’m buying exactly what I need and I’m using it as long as I continue to follow the meal plan, which I will. 🙂

A big bonus that really had me excited last night was that it won’t be a huge adjustment for my husband. He went through the roller coaster with me last year which meant a lot of “weird” recipes and despite my best efforts to accommodate everyone, he ended up having those diets forced upon him come dinner time as well. Last night, I made the Chicken Cacciatore and he LOVED it. Tone It Up ladies, you have my attention. 🙂

KISS (Keep it Simple Stupid)

In reading the title, you are reading my mantra for the coming year. I am focused on simplifying every area of my life. I have realized that I let life and the circumstances surrounding life control me. My family and I had gotten so busy, that I didn’t have the control I wanted. I simply kept my head above water. Consider this, if my life was simpler, would it be such a struggle to manage? If I have fewer things in my house, I have less to clean, less clutter to pick up and less to eventually throw away. If I spend time meal planning, I spend less time grocery shopping, figuring out what to eat last minute, and throwing away unused and wasted groceries.

Keep thinking about these two examples. There are other goals embedded within these examples as well. When I looked at my goals for 2018, I quickly realized that simplifying my life would be the first and biggest step toward achieving my goals.

  • Reduce waste
  • Increase amount of $ in savings account
  • Eliminate processed foods
  • Embrace minimalism

In addition, while simplifying my life, I will have more time for the goals I care about most such as training for a marathon, spending more focused time with my family, strengthening my marriage, and exploring new hobbies.

The biggest drive for simplifying my life is in regaining my sanity. I’m studying at the Institute of Integrative Nutrition and my nutrition was the cornerstone of my focus and activities in 2017. You know what happened? I was far too strict. I learned some things along the way but the biggest thing I learned is that I have to be very careful when trying new diets. Losing weight would not be healthy for me, but it was happening. After doing Whole30, I was so afraid of eating anything that wasn’t a raw fruit or vegetable that I was miserable. I was weak. I was always hungry. I had no energy. It took me months to climb back out and start eating like a normal human being again. While I do see the merits and benefits, it wasn’t for me in the end.

This year will be different. I will continue to make improvements in my health, fitness, nutrition and overall wellness but I will be doing it slowly and I’ll be doing it my way. Baby steps. Right now, I’m removing coffee from my diet and limiting my alcohol to one glass per night on Friday and Saturday nights only. These are simple changes that I can make that will improve my health over time. Once I have these under control (and have made it through the withdrawal phase of reducing caffeine intake), I’ll add a new item to focus on in improving my health.

The big takeaway here… if a diet is not working and you aren’t feeling well, stop. It’s not for you. Move on. The creators of these diets make it seem like you just need to push through because it should be working for you since it worked for them and many others. You are not the creator and you are not the person next to you. Listen to your body. Listen to what it is trying to tell you. I promise it’s not your fault. It’s the diet not you. One thing I will urge you to do is use it as a learning experience. Look at the aspects of the diet that you struggle with the most. Learn something new about yourself and now the diet is a success! 🙂