Little Changes Add Up

So me and my booty crawled out of a perfectly warm bed at 5:10am.  I always question my sanity when I wake up with a '5' on the clock.  I'm more like and '7' kinda gal.  If you had asked me even 6 months ago if I'd be willing to get up at 5:10 on my own free will once a week, I would have laughed in your face.  Laughed hard.  Early is just not me.

It's funny how things change.  I still like my sleep, but I like my family a whole lot more.  I also like feeling good about my appearance.  Therefore, I find myself getting up earlier throughout the week to get my workout in without missing out on family time.  It was a big little change I was willing to make.

This getting up early stuff also makes me think about the way Steven and I used to eat.  We've been married for almost 10 years now.  I've been feeding that man for quite some time.  Looking at the way I used to cook compared to how I cook now is very different.  Different in a good way.  Used to Steven and I would hit the gym for a couple of hours and then come home and heat up chicken nuggets and fries, or pick up Taco Bueno or something fast on the way home.

Then I became pregnant with Little Man.  It took us almost a year to get pregnant so I wanted to make sure I did everything possible for this little baby.  I looked at my diet.  Goodness, it was bad.  I was skinny.  I had muscle definition, but I ate junk!  I started making little changes.  First thing to go was the frozen foods. Our dinner meals no longer consisted of things you could heat up.  I wouldn't say we were eating well then, but I did begin to focus on my servings of fruits and vegetables.  One fruit, one veggie per meal plus no freezer meals. It was a fairly easy change.

While making changes to my diet, I began taking a Power Yoga class.  I was about 7 months preggo and had done well with the little changes, but chips were still on my plate with every lunch (I love chips).  As we were striking the child's pose and getting ready to Namaste, the instructor who just had a baby herself began to share how she got her body back after baby.  She mentioned my beloved chips.  Her comment was something like this...

I had to cut out the chips.  Now if I need a crunch I grab a few slices of bell pepper.

And that my friends is when I looked at that lady like she had done lost her ever loving mind.  Chips, bell pepper.  Not the same thing.  Good for her, but I was still gonna munch on my BBQ and Sour Cream and Onion.

That was 6 years ago, and guess what?  I now munch on my bell peppers and have chips maybe once a week as an after meal treat.  I fill my plate with 2/3 veggies and fruit, 1/3 protein, 1/3 carb (whole grain).  If I still have a craving for chips after lunch, then I don't deny myself.  I'll have a few, but usually I'm not hungry after lunch so there's no need for the junk.  

I try really hard not to look at what I'm not eating, but what I am eating.  I focus on filling up on fruits and veggies first, then filling my plate with other items.  For me, it takes away the stress of 'eating right'.  And, when I want a good old fashion comfort meal (chock full of calories), I don't beat myself up about it because I know I didn't eat that way the whole day.  Just one meal out of a big, long week.

1. 

   Lunch Today...crackers aren't whole grain though...oops

I'm not even sure if this helps you, but I want you to know that I wasn't always the crazy bell pepper lady.  I simply began making little changes to the way I prepared food and ended up here.  Holy cow!  I wonder where I'll be in 10 more years. Maybe I'll be one of those people who live solely off the land...NAH!!!!