Okay friends, everyone knows that January is all about people starting goals to lose weight, right? I have done it a GAZILLION Times, not necessarily just during the new year, but something that has been a little more effective for me, is deciding to change some of my bad habits, into more healthy ones. So, instead of failing for the 90th time on a new diet, I make changes in my diet to be in better shape, and feel better overall! I am not saying that losing weight/dieting is always bad. It just always seems to back fire on me when I try some crazy fad diet. Even if I do lose the weight, it goes right back on after because I haven’t changed my lifestyle, yah know? Anyone else been there? I wanted to share five of my favorites healthy habits with you, and maybe along with some of your goals you can adopt one or two and feel healthier and happier!

I do have to also give a special shout out to my Momma She is the healthiest lady there is, and although I gagged with a FEW of the things she made had me eat, I am so grateful for the healthy habits and lifestyle she taught me. She has taught me to love healthy food, and to love being active! She has always been in great health and very fit {and beautiful,too!} She is a great example of being healthy and not going to extremes to be healthy and fit.

So here’s my fab 5 habits

1. Try, and LEARN to love Healthy food. I have to say, sometimes I feel SO BAD for people who miss out on how GOOD some fruits and veggies are! I have heard people say… I don’t do veggies, or I don’t really LIKE fruit. Oh my gosh, really?? You are missing out my friend! I do understand in some instances, because you can make pretty much anything gross. For instance, I grew up on a farm and we had apple trees. Best apples in the entire world I am telling yah. I LOVE Apples. Then I moved and moved and moved and realized that grocery store apples kind of taste like cardboard and sometimes their consistency is just awful! So I NOW understand why some may say they don’t like apples. Find GOOD produce, and try different ways of cooking it. It’s OKAY if you hate lettuce, maybe try a few different salad recipes with new dressings and yummy cheeses and maybe a little bacon! Maybe you WILL like lettuce. Or, maybe your favorite vegetable is peas. That is okay! Find your favorites, and try preparing them different ways. I also super love frozen grapes. Try some new things! And be amazed with how wonderful your body feels after eating some “healthier” options

2. Drink Water. I have probably said this a million times in my posts. But really, it’s just awful to drink your calories. I mean it. When you go out to eat, just get water, when your home, just do water! A lot of times we fill up on soda, juice, etc. and get those calories, think we are full and then eat a bunch, too. If you hate your faucet water, you can get a pretty cheap purifier either for your fridge or for your faucet that hooks right on. Or buy bottled water, just try it for a little! And be amazed how much better you feel!

3. Learn to be active, just for fun! Let’s be honest here, some people love the gym and some don’t. Honestly, I would love the gym a whole lot more if it was just mine. Pretty selfish huh? Haha, I just don’t like being around other people when I work out! Unless they are my friends, yah know? It is OKAY If you don’t love the gym or if you don’t want to run on a treadmill for an hour. Most people don’t, it’s okay! There are other ways to be active and fit! Something I really want to teach my children that I learned from my mother (and husband)  is to make everyday an active day! GET OUTSIDE. Get away from the pantry and the food, and just play outside. Don’t think about it being a workout, just go for a walk and enjoy the sun. Ride your bike to grab groceries or to run errands. Play Soccer with your kiddos. Just get out and get moving! You will be amazed how much better you feel. Just get out an about, if you make a conscious effort, I promise your body will thank you! I love Soccer, partially because the entire time I am running, but I am not thinking about it! Find ways to be active that you love! Maybe you love reading, you could totally do an audiobook while you walk outside and enjoy the day. There are a lot of ways to be active, just get outside, and get going! It doesn’t have to be a “workout”. Just get moving! Turn on some music and dance! That counts right!? {Not that I am saying I don’t love my workouts, I do, I love running, and I love my workout videos, but it’s good to get out and about besides those too, and I am not bashing the gym, it’s great! Just hard sometimes for very many of us to spend large amounts of time there!}

4. Limit the amount of “treats” that make it INTO your home-and if necessary throw some away-I mean it! I think that you need to have treats allowed here and there. I do! {I am eating a no bake cookie right now But I also think if they are lying around in your house constantly, even if you have CRAZY AMAZING willpower, you are going to cave. Everyone is that way, I promise. Have treats, but limit them, and try hard not to buy too many at the store! If they aren’t in your house, you can’t eat them, right!? Have treats, yes, but don’t keep them around constantly. Christmas time we had SO MANY treats, and I made WAAAY to many, so you know what, I threw some away! I was the only one eating them, and I just could not have them staring at me any more! Also, I love making homemade goodies, and baking especially with my kids, but man! Why when you make cupcakes do you have to make 24!? We love to share Whenever we make cookies or any baked good, we give at least half away to friends or neighbors We usually can’t finish them all anyway, and it helps so I don’t eat a whole batch of cookies almost entirely myself!!

5. Learn Portion Sizes and listen to your body, it KNOWS when it’s satisfied. This is something I have been working on, a lot. My husband is great at this, and has taught me a lot. But start to learn how much your body needs. Just because the package says a serving size is a certain amount, it doesn’t know what you snacked on five minutes ago. Learn to listen to your body and when it is full. You don’t HAVE to finish you food, you don’t have to finish your meal at the restaurant. Eat until your body is satisfied {not full} and you will feel so much better! {Less, gassy!, Less Stuffed, Less Sleepy!} It’s a hard thing to learn, and something we really always need to be getting better at, but figure out your right portion sizes, only eat until satisfied, and try your hardest not to get seconds {even if it tastes so stinking good} You can have more tomorrow, am I right?

I hope these were helpful tips to someone! Just don’t be too hard on yourself, yeah? Try your best to be positive about your body and don’t compare yourself to anyone else! Bodies are all SO very different and wonderful in their own ways! Just try to be healthy and feel good, and then go out and try to help others, it’s amazing how good it feels to stop worrying so much about ourselves and trying to help someone else out. You rock! Happy Healthy New Year!

Traci

The post 5 of my Favorite Healthy Habits appeared first on A Mouse In My Kitchen.

I think that a lot of people try to “get fit,” like it’s a specific state of being that you can reach and then just be there. Once you “get fit,” in many people’s minds, you are in shape, and no more work is needed. I have been guilty of that kind of thinking many times in my life. I have often planned a 12 week work out plan (such as the 100 mile summer) and assumed that by the time I was done, I would be “in shape.” I would be “fit.” And while it’s true that by the end of the 12 weeks, if I stick to it, I am in better shape, I have come to learn that it’s more than that. Fitness is a way of life. It’s a journey. It’s not just a goal you reach and you are done. Because the second you start thinking that way, things go down hill. I used to feel like losing weight was a full time job. I realized that it only feels that way because I had to change so many of my habits in order to lose weight. When I made lifestyle changes instead of going on quick fad diets, losing weight became a natural thing. When I focused on being healthy instead of losing weight, the weight came off. Not flying off, like I would like, but it came off slowly, and healthily. 

Sorry that this post is a little ramble-y. I didn’t really have a plan when I started writing. The purpose was to motivate you. Motivate you to keep going. So what if you didn’t lose weight this week. I promise that ding dong and sixteen cookies aren’t going to make it better. Push through. Think back to how things used to be, how far you’ve come. Visualize how far you can go. Your body is amazing. It’s meant to feel amazing, to be amazing. Push yourself a little farther than you thought you could. Be a little better than you were yesterday. KEEP GOING. And remember, being fit is a journey, not a destination. It is not a place you will reach tomorrow or next week or a year from now. It is a constant, everyday decision. And just because you stray from the “fit” path once in awhile doesn’t mean you can’t hop right back on again. 

Traci created this awesome printable for you to hang on your fridge or wherever you can see it often so you can remind yourself of these things.

 BeingFitIsAJourney

The post Being Fit Is A Journey appeared first on A Mouse In My Kitchen.

We have shared the following posts:

Four tips to help you through the running challenge

The best running, walking, biking app… ever

Tips to learn to love running, even if you hate it. 

A tropical green smoothie

10 overeating habits and how to correct them

A delicious tomato, avocado, cucumber sandwich

Quinoa Stuffed Avocados 

Raspberry Lemon Muffins

Best way to cook green beans

Only this week and next week left of the challenge! I hope reviewing these posts help you to push through to the end and hit that 100 mile goal! 

The post Week 11 of the 100 mile summer appeared first on A Mouse In My Kitchen.

Traci has written an awesome post about overeating and how to correct bad eating habits. Be sure to check out her awesome printable at the end, too!

This post is going to get a bit personal, and I have thought a lot about writing it, so before I say anything, I want to point out that I am not an expert, and I am not perfect at this either. I am still trying to correct bad habits, it is a gradual process. I just want to share a few ideas with you that have helped me and things I have learned throughout life about portion sizes, overeating, binging, dieting, and overall just learning to handle food and not let it control my life. That being said, I am excited to share with you somethings I have learned.

Here is a bit of my background. I felt like growing up I was always fairly healthy. I had a good amount of baby fat in my cheeks, but overall I was healthy and active and happy. I remember that baby fat got me into a bit of trouble and specifically remember being called fat a few times in grade school. That shouldn’t stay with you, but for me it did and carried on later as I got into high school. I remember a friend of mine in 7th grade and I talking about how we couldn’t figure out how anyone could be anorexic or bulimic. We both just loved food way too much to go that direction, plus it is so bad for you. Turns out, by our freshman year, she was anorexic and I was bulimic. Luckily, my mother watched me like a hawk and I was able through some life changing events, overcome my bulimia, but that will have to be another post But the binging and overeating stayed with me, and I know for many people, bad habits you start when you are young, are hard to change, but it is possible, and I would like to share a few thoughts with you and maybe give you some hope of change and feeling healthier, without doing any crazy diet, or quick fix. I want to share with you tips that you can use the rest of your life, to feel better, and not have to constantly worry and think about food, and battle it daily {I know the feeling, it’s awful} So here goes, my top 10 reason for overeating and how to correct them.

1. Eating Out of Emotion- This is HUGE. For me, when I am angry, or sad, or grumpy, any negative emotion, I eat. And eat, and eat. It is such a bad habit, and something I am still struggling to stop doing. I don’t know why but strong negative emotion would make me want to eat. Like when girls get dumped by their boyfriend, they eat a whole thing of Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream, you with me? Not helpful, I know, but, here is what I do when I feel that urge when I am angry or sad.

I read something uplifting. I read my scriptures {bible, Book of Mormon}. Something uplifting that helps you to realize everything is going to be okay.

I go running or exercise. This isn’t always an option if I have my kids, but even just getting outside and taking them to the park and focusing on something active, gets my mind away from food.

I try to figure out a way to serve someone else. Getting away from your own problems, and finding a way to help someone else with their problems is sooo therapeutic, and definitely gets your mind away from food {unless you are baking someone cookies, then maybe not

2. Thinking you need to finish your food all the time, even if you are super full. Does anyone else have this problem? I grew up thinking, if you are served something {including at a restaurant} You eat it all gone. ALL gone. Even if you are stuffed and can’t button your pants, you finish your food. You do NOT waste food. EVER. I think that is a good concept, and makes sense so that you don’t take too much food, but at the same time, if your body is screaming at you to stop eating, you really should. You don’t HAVE to finish your food. Ever. To fix that habit…

I look for good examples and follow their lead. My husband is amazing. He never eats to much, I don’t think he has overeaten any day of his life. He listens to his body and when it tells him he is full, he doesn’t finish his dinner, or ice cream, or cake. He stops, and pays attention to the cues his body is giving him. I also have a sister in law that is great at this too. She eats as much as she needs but not too much. Surround yourself with those people, and learn from them.

Start being aware of your portions. I grew up thinking I needed to eat a ton of food, or I was starving myself, when in reality, I am 5’2 and haven’t grown since 7th grade. I don’t need to eat as much as a lot of people do. Eat to live and be healthy, but don’t live to eat. Realize and start gauging how much YOUR body needs. How much you need to be satisfied, but not stuffed.

Try to only have firsts. Meaning, don’t do seconds, or thirds, ever. It’s amazing how much this has helped me. You really only need one serving of everything on your plate, I make exceptions for fruits I love me some fruit! I do seconds on that sometimes.

3. Eating because you are stressed. Can anyone else relate? Everyone is stressed at one time or another. Everyone. Changing our habits and not using food as our go to when we are feeling stressed is hard! As a mother, it’s one thing I can grab for two seconds and get that instant sugar rush, yah know? Bad bad bad! But I do it. All. The. Time. I have found a few things that help, maybe you can find one that helps you, too!

Exercise. Whatever type of exercise you like. Running, Soccer, Walking, Stretching, Golf, Exercise Video, Yoga, etc. Exercise is such a great way to relieve stress. This one is my favorite, but not always something I can do anytime of the day.

Dropping whatever you are doing that is stressing you out, and do something you LOVE. {not including eating!} for instance, I love to craft, and create things. And I love to just PLAY with my kids. When I get stressed, I throw the laundry on the bed, and just hang out with my kids, or after they are in bed, instead of working on the things I should be doing, I take  a break and do something I enjoy.

Find your stress reviler, replace a bad habit, with a good- this is pretty broad, I just tend to have a super low stressful life, and I kind of make it that way. But I know other people can’t exercise or stop doing what is stressing them out. So find something that you can do when you are super stressed and do it. Count to 100, stretch, drink a glass of water. Take deep breaths, whatever, find YOUR stress reviler that fits your life, and do it, find a new habit it replace your stress eating.

 4. Eating because you are bored. This sounds funny,but really, it happens a lot. You are watching a not so interesting show, home alone, whatever, you are bored, so you eat. I think curing this is more mental than anything, the cure for this for sure, is just finding things to do! And training your mind to not automatically revert to food when you are bored! It takes a bit of work, but is soo worth it!

Pay attention when you are eating, stop and think about it. Ask yourself, am I really hungry? Or do I just need to find something to do. This one is purely mental I feel, I am not asking you to think about food constantly, but in between meals, pay attention, is your tummy asking for food, or is your mind just telling you to get food because you can’t think of anything else?

5. Eating because the food is so incredibly good you can’t stop. Don’t laugh! This is true! Ever had something at a restaurant where you just have to finish because it’s so good? I love food. I am not going to lie. I love. love . love food!

I have found that if you eat slower, you will enjoy it just as much and have more time to pay attention to how full you are and stop. I also have found that if I mentally talk myself into the idea, that if I don’t eat it all now, I get more tomorrow, that is also helpful. For instance, remembering, I can eat half now and then have it for lunch tomorrow and enjoy it more because I am not stuffed!

Another thing that helps me, is to pay attention to how I feel when I overeat. It is such a yucky feeling to be too full, you feel like a slug, and sometimes you just want to nap, or lay on the couch. Like, Thanksgiving. I have also mentally tried to remember how it feels to only eat until I am satisfied. REMEMBER how both of those feel when you want to finish that giant chocolate chunk brownie milkshake. Mentally remember how you felt when you finished the Extra Large one last time, maybe order the size down or two, or save half of it for later in your freezer.

6. Using your tummy as a trash can. Does this make sense to anyone else? My kids spill food, all over. Which is fine, they are kids, but when they don’t finish their breakfast/lunch or dinner sometimes, I eat it. Uhg! Not good, random calories I just don’t need, I just feel guilty throwing it away, so I eat it. Our tummies should not be trash cans!

I mentally have to tell myself all day not to eat random things, toss them in the trash as fast as you can, and enlist your kids help! Have them clear their plates, and make a rule to yourself that you don’t eat off the floor

I also throw my bowls from making cookies or frosting or cake into the sink as fast as I can and throw some soap in. Then there is no possible way I can lick the bowl clean {I know you do it too!} Make it, and bake it, and toss that bowl into the sink as fast as you can and fill it with water and make it inedible!

7. Eating because it is “time” to eat. {Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner} I have a problem with this. Sometimes I wake up in the morning, having eaten a large dinner, and I am just not ready to eat. But I eat Breakfast because I am “supposed” to. When really, I should wait until my stomach tells me I am hungry. Or, I eat a late and more filling breakfast, and at noon, I am not hungry but it’s lunch time, so I eat anyway.

Listen to your body. If it is not ready for lunch, wait an hour or so until your body tells you you are hungry, yeah? Or same with dinner, if you are not hungry when dinner time comes around, wait until you are. You don’t have to eat at a specific time. Just because it is “time” to.

8. Eating because you are tired. When I am tired, I eat more than when I am rested. It’s amazing, but when you don’t get enough sleep, your body thinks it is hungry because it is tired, and my mind mentally thinks so too, anyone else do this? When I get good rest, I have a way easier time controlling my appetite.

This answer is pretty simple…Get good rest! Meaning, go to bed early, get up early. Getting too much sleep can making you tired too! Have a good schedule and stick to it! I understand you are going to be off sometimes. But, as a general rule, have a bed time and a wake up time, and your body will thank you, including, helping you control your appetite.

9.Eating because you are dehydrated. This happens to me all. the. time! I think that I am hungry because my body needs water. I try hard before meals and in between to just continually drink water. Your body is easily confused.

Maybe try drinking more water, and see if your appetite goes down. I am not saying to use water instead of meals, I am just suggesting staying hydrated, and seeing if that helps control your constant hunger.

I also suggest water. I know a lot of people love their coffee, love their pepsi, looove their coke. I understand that, but at the same time, Your body needs WATER. Try to drink that instead of other beverages, it helps your body stay more hydrated, and saves you some calories, too.

10. Eating to punish yourself. I wasn’t sure if I should mention this, just because it is a pretty serious issue, but know deep down probably quite a few people do it. Maybe not on as large a scale as some. But I specifically remember eating more than I needed to because I was so frustrated with myself. I am sure you have heard of the people that cut themselves, partially to hurt themselves on purpose. I think that overeating because you are frustrated with yourself, is very similar. I also feel like if you are doing this often enough accompanied by other eating disorders, you should seek some professional help.

For me, I had to conquer this along with the bulimia and get help. If you feel like this is a serious problem, I would get professional help. {Yes, I did say that twice

If it’s not a huge thing and happens just periodically, something that helps me is to find a way to change my mood, and realize I am a worthwhile person. For me, I read from my book of mormon or bible. I read, and I pray.

I also try to spend time with someone who builds me up and who I feel good about myself around {my husband}. Find a friend, a relative, someone you can be yourself, and feel like a worthwhile person around. Sometimes, this occurs when you are alone and when that happens, I have also emailed, called on the phone or even just texted someone to get my mind off of how I am feeling.

Lastly, write, create, pray, do something that helps you remember why you think you are worthwhile as a person. I love to write in my journal and express how I am feeling there, it often helps me reflect and realize what is really bothering me and address the issue. Find a way to release your frustrations and figure out what is wrong and go to that!

I hope these suggestions help! These are not quick fixes, and not something you will be able to master in a week. But they are suggestions that you can work on, maybe choose one or two you like, and start implementing and starting better habits. I want you to know that I still do all of these on a daily basis. I still struggle, but really just want to get to the point where I don’t worry so much about food and calories, and appreciate always having food on my table. I have been working on a few of them, and since highschool, feel like I have come a long way. I hope they help you, too! Let me know if you have anything that you do to help you, I would love some additional tips!!

Traci

I have also included a free printable for your fridge or pantry, you can download it here.

The post 10 Overeating Habits & How to Correct Them {Plus a free printable for your fridge!} appeared first on A Mouse In My Kitchen.

I have to admit I’ve had a rough time these last few weeks! If it wasn’t for this challenge, I probably wouldn’t have kept running. I’m very grateful for the support system those completing this challenge have given me! If you are trying to get your 100 miles this summer, be sure to use the hash code #100milesummer when you talk about it so we can all keep up with each other. 

Each week I try to share some kind of fitness tip or recipe with you guys. This week, I am sharing a smoothie recipe. I love green smoothies. I feel like they are a great way to get lots of vitamins in my day. I used to juice a lot (until my juicer broke) and I’ve debated whether or not I should go back to juicing, but I feel like smoothies are probably better for you because you get the WHOLE fruit & vegetable, not just the juice. 

Anyway, this smoothie recipe is pretty simple. Start with about 2 cups of greens. I get a bag of mixed greens at the grocery store. You can just use spinach if you want. Add just a little bit of water and blend it up. It’s much easier to blend the spinach up before you add anything else. 

Add some fresh fruit. For this particular recipe, I added an avocado and a mango.

Add some frozen fruit. I got a tropical blend of mangos, strawberries, and pineapples. I added about 2 cups.

That’s it! No dairy or sugar necessary. If it’s not sweet enough for you, add a banana. Sometimes green smoothies take a little getting used to, but once you do, you’ll love em’. Chances are your kids will love them to! (Sneaky way to get them to eat healthy foods!)  

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