nerves and eating

i hear often how if people are sad, nervous, depressed, etc. that they have different reactions to eating. some eat a lot and others don't eat at all. what am i? i don't know. i have had a few big emotional times in my life from highs (getting married) to lows (death of my father) and i have no idea how i responded. i was too caught up in the emotions of what was happening at that time to notice my food consumption. well i am going to take notice today!
i am heading to mexico to host a yoga retreat for ten people. i am pretty amped, super nervous and so anxious. i have that buzzing energy flowing through me. to eat or not to eat? that is the question. we shall see in the next 48 hours.

commercials and dvr

i think i just had an aha moment about tv and my dvr.
i would say that 90 percent of my television viewing is from recorded shows on my dvr. that means that i don't watch many tv commercials. i bet that has had an overall positive impact on my junk food consumption. number one, i'm not getting up during commercial breaks to scavenger for snacks. number two i'm not seeing the latest ads promoting savory/sweet snacks.
aha!

what a difference a week will make

right now i lie on the couch sofa in our sun room looking out at the fog covered city. had my first cup of coffee. read several chapters of the hunger games 2nd book. relaxed. fast forward to friday...not sure what the picture will look like but something like this. mexico. beach. pool. yoga. new people.
for now i will enjoy this moment as the transition of these next four days to get to mexico i suspect will be full.
happy monday everyone.

protein

i get this question probably once in every six months..."as a vegetarian, how do you get your protein"? funny how we focus so much on what we are not getting instead of "why are you eating that...cupcake, cookie, salty chip, or any other food choice that doesn't serve us?"
there is much discussion about how much do we need. endurance athletes seem to benefit from higher amounts of protein than the regular joe. i am the regular joe and so from the people i have consulted - nutritionists and doctors - it is suggested that ten percent of my daily intake should be made up of protein.  as a vegetarian, how is this done? good question and one that i don't pay attention to. thankfully i have realized it is already a part of my daily intake with out me even trying.
here is my go to protein foods which are eating on a very regular basis!
almonds - basically they go in my yogurt in the morning, my snacks with apples and in pretty much every salad i make. this is an every day almost two out of three meal item.
avocados - love this time of year.  avocados are everywhere and i add them to a variety of meals... salads, eggs (another protein), soups
dairy - milk in my coffee, yogurt for breakfast, cottage cheese
seitan - alternative to meat and used at most vegetarian restaurants....something i need to use at home
beans - oh so many choices
tofu - an occasional substitute when dining out
vegetables - asparagus, broccoli, artichokes, cauliflower
lentils

wow, there really are so many non-meat items. yep, i think i am covered on my protein intake!

happy saturday people.

i do well with a plan

my food plan. my day plan. i seem to thrive in a structured environment. when i wake up i like to know how my day is planned out. i also like to know that i have my food consumption for the day planned out. when i stray from either of those plans well lots of nothing combined with franticness occurs.
no daily plan...i seem to get nothing accomplished and the day instantly fast forwards to 4pm. no idea what has transpired over that time period but the day is shot.
no food plan...i find myself going hours with out eating and then i hit that wall of starvation. my brain scrambles. my stomach aches. i get that overall frazzled feeling of "i must eat now or i will starve to death". it is a crazy frantic feeling.

today my plans are set. i feel calm, relaxed and optimistic about today. as they say in AA...one day at a time.

what's the difference

i am slowly learning at the ripe old age of 47 that there truly is a difference to paying attention to what you eat and thinking about it all the time. in the past i hated when people talked about food, diets, their weight, etc. all the time. no mind you i have done it as well - i have attempted the shake drink that is pre-made now. can't remember the name but in the past you added the powder to ice and had to blend it. i think milk was added. i thought it tasted awful so that didn't work. i have done the fruit in the morning diet. and then entering the yoga world - cleanses, fasts, etc. and when i was attempting one of these things food and/or the lack of food was always in the back of my head.
but when i am paying attention to what i eat - going to the grocery store, preparing meals...i feel at ease. it takes time but the pay off is always better. it is so freeing.

hello tuesday

the sun is up. i am in bed. coffee next to me. letterman is talking on the tv. pretty open agenda today. morning time is awesome...the possibilities of the day ahead are endless. smile.

it doesn't take much to see a difference

this past week i have had my friend bettine staying with us. she is a vegan and is very good about planning her meals. and because i have been with her all week, i too have been eating incredibly well. amazingly it has been only a week and i really see a difference. coincidentally at the beginning of the week john and i went to a party and our friend took pictures. then last night i had a dinner party and also took pictures. i really see a difference in my skin from the beginning of the week until now. sure this could be in my head but hey as long as i believe, who cares!

hello thursday

that's all i got.

treat yourself like you would treat a friend

lately i have been hearing about someone who basically hasn't taken care of herself. amazingly the people around her are not being honest with her and saying hey, if you want to have a better healthier life you have to take care of yourself. instead they just feed into the problem..."oh it must be so hard having all of these "x problems".  and it just reminds me of my own path. i am trying to treat myself as if i was my own friend. and for me that is eating quality healthy foods that i enjoy, taking yoga classes, spending time with john, and doing the things that matter to me. it is easy to get caught up in our daily problems and just dwell in what is wrong with our lives. but i know the only one that can make the positive changes in my life is me. no woe is me. i am making the changes i need for my life to live my best quality of life. will i make mistakes? yes. and that is part of my path. i am learning to make "me" my friend.

it's all good

lying in bed drinking coffee. watched taped show of oprah winfrey interviewing neil patrick harris and david burke. eating bananas and almonds. checking emails (good ones of people interested in coming to yoga retreat). blogging. planning to take noon yoga class. it's monday. life is good. thank you.

friday

what is it about the weekend that makes us want to just throw healthy diets out the window? i am sitting in the laundromat waiting for my clothes to dry and my mind is going to all the food groups in the surrounding area that is not on my healthy enjoyable food list. there are chocolate chip cookies at the vegan restaurant. there are fresh baked bagels across the street. of course there is the vending machine to my left. it could have to do with the fact that it is 10:20 and i have not eaten today. that certainly doesn't help. but i also think the "it's friday and sunny and the start of the weekend" that gets me to desiring the not so healthy choices. i think most of us go through choices of indulgences when we get to the weekend. it is as if we have survived the week so we feel the need to celebrate.
i am going to try and celebrate with good food choices. let's see how that turns out!