Day 12: Eat a Rainbow: Salad Edition

If you've been following my posts for the last 12 days, you know that I started with a post about eating a rainbow! This is the idea of getting a serving of a vegetable of every color throughout the day.
But what if you could get a little bit of the whole rainbow in one sitting?

Presenting.... Eat a Rainbow: Salad Edition!

I'm going to give you a list of items that you can incorporate into one big, delicious, juicy salad. That way, you can pick one item from each "color" heading, throw them together and get out the door fast to enjoy some of this amazing sunshine.
Convenient, huh?

So, let's be daring and start at the opposite end of the rainbow with the

Purples and Blues
I'm going to group these together because they can be a bit tricky and intimidating. Here are some easy ways to get your purples and blues!
blueberries (you can find them dried in some stores), borage, grapes, boiled or roasted wedges of purple potatoes, roasted eggplant strips, purple cabbage (cooked or raw), plums, figs, raisins, purple carrots, purple radish, blackberries, currants, prunes, purple kholrabi, purple bell pepper, purple tomatoes and escarole

Green
Well, green is pretty self-explanatory. Most things in nature are green. But here are some ideas outside the lettuce crate...
broccoli, cucumber, zucchini, peas, fresh herbs like parsley or cilantro, green grapes, artichokes, kiwis, bitter greens like mustard or collard, kale, endive, pistachios, AVOCADO (yum), soy and fava beans

Yellow
corn, crookneck or pattypan squash (the one vegetable I cannot stand!), banana chips, lemon cucumber, bell pepper, golden beets, cauliflower, apples, mangos, peaches and golden beets

Orange
cantaloupe, roasted butternut squash, carrots, orange segments, sweet potatoes, bell peppers, apricots

Red
radish slices, tomatoes, strawberries, raspberries, swiss chard, apples, dried cranberries, cherries, red lettuce, grapes, pomegranate, beets and red onions


Throw it all together and dress it! Try fresh or dried herbs, salts, peppercorns, vinegars, oils, citrus juices or your favorite dressing. Add chopped up, raw garlic or ginger for an added punch! Eat it as a chopped salad or spoon it into lettuce leaves to make amazing lettuce wraps (raw tacos). 

Today, my rainbow salad was...

...this guy. Tomatoes, carrots, golden beets, avocado, blueberries, purple cabbage and raw ginger, dressed with oil, vinegar, salt and herbs and all wrapped up in butter lettuce leaves for amazing veggie wraps! Bon appetit, you healthy foodie, you!

Day 11: Surrounding yourself with loving reminders

So, today's post isn't really about food. It's more about getting serious about self-love and making it a priority in my life- and yours if it's something you're looking to work on!

Yesterday, I sat down and made some self-love reminders and am also starting to share some of these ideas with family and friends who are struggling with self-loathing and body negativity. So now, I'm sharing them with you!

Here are some things we did:

We used dry erase markers to write positive messages on mirrors. Mirrors and scales are often a source of anxiety or pain for women (and some men) who suffer from negative body image. What are scales really good for anyway? Save the scale for your trip to the doctor, he/she can tell you if there's anything to worry about! So this is really a two-in-one item: toss your scale and reshape your experience at the mirror. You can write something as simple as "You are beautiful" or "I am beautiful" with  dry-erase marker on the glass, or stick a silly paper mustache on where your upper lip is reflected when you brush your teeth; anything to change your experience of looking in a mirror. Do this to every mirror you encounter, from the bathroom, to your compact.

We found some heart-shaped post-its and stuck them everywhere. On mirrors, on childhood photos, on the walls and on the door, above the door handle so we see them every time we open a door. These are not for the purpose of being cutesy or 'girly' (I do not like that word, what does it even mean?), they have a serious function- to act as a reminder of your constant dedication to being kind to yourself, to loving who you are, that person that no-one else in the world can be, the person you are the sole expert at being and becoming.

Feeling crafty? Make a self-love or motivational poster. I hesitate to call it a "motivational" poster because to most people, the idea of motivation is often tied to comparing oneself to other people, writing all-or-nothing, extreme sayings, making a list of goals and by which dates they should all be completed or, worst of all, "thinspiration" or photos of thin people as reminders of how your body isn't what it should be.
No, No No! None of that allowed! The poster should be something that just makes you smile. Sit down with a stack of magazines that are not full of tabloids or models. If you can, pull out some old cooking, national geographic, wedding, health, spiritual, or music magazines- something that is sure to be full of fun pictures. Cut out ones that make you grin. Cut out pictures that look aesthetically pleasing to your eye. Cut out a picture of your favorite thing to eat. (Note: if your favorite food is salad, great! Snip it and glue it! But if you really love cupcakes but feel like you "should" put a salad on your poster, please put up the cutest cupcake picture you can find! And maybe scratch out or burn that salad picture? [I dunno, sounds cathartic to me....]  There should be no judgement, no "shoulds" or "shouldn'ts" represented. This isn't a diet or fitness guide, this is to celebrate the things you love!)
Glue your pictures on a poster board and pin it up in a prominent place in a room in which you spend a lot of time.

Buy yourself flowers. Or a present. Or a treat. I'm not saying to go overboard and eat a cake- even though that sounds fun, if you've been following my "day x" healthy-loving-foodie posts, you know that I'm focusing on self-love that includes true self-care. Too often I "treat myself" by actually treating my body pretty poorly: either by eating sugar all day or by skipping exercise. If you have a health goal and you're having a fragile day, the best advice I can give is to do something nice for yourself that you won't regret tomorrow. But please, DO do something special for you! Flowers are often only a few dollars and can really brighten up a living space and your mood. Also, because flowers are associated with love, by buying yourself a bouquet, you are re-affirming the messages of self-love; that you are lovable and most importantly, you deserve love from yourself!

Gala gives the great advice of extending the heart idea into portable reminders- jewelry, a sticker on your cell phone (my sister suggests a heart as your phone screensaver or background- so smart!) That way, you can have little things to boost your confidence even when you're not around your transformed room or office space.

Affirmation. I have tried it a few times and sometimes the results are not what you'd expect.
The simple affirmation "I am beautiful" said in a mirror is a great way to take your pulse on issues of appearance.
If you feel disingenuous  when you say it, you probably have to keep saying it more and more often and/or start working on self-love even more actively in other ways; you're just not feeling it yet.
If it makes you feel sad, or cry, you're probably on a good track. This has happened to me before. I was so overwhelmed by just saying and hearing those words because it really touched me and brought to my attention that I had been feeling less-than-beautiful that day.
If it makes you giggle cheekily and think "Psh, yes, I AM beautiful, thank-you, (insert your name here)", you're about to have an awesome day and you're obviously making some progress.
If it makes you feel angry, giddy, overwhelmed, uncomfortable, embarrassed, selfish, nauseous, stupid, whatever, then step away from the mirror, -notice it- and go on about your day. However you feel in this process is OK and you're doing something amazing and unique by getting to know yourself better and working towards having better self-esteem and self-image!

Day 10: Nibbles in the kitchen

Today was a baking day! Yay!
Creating new recipes makes me so happy. Since it's Father's Day, I made German chocolate cake truffles for my dad because that's his favorite cake and made dulce de leche shortbread for my grandpa who's really into dulce de leche icecream right now!

 Get the recipe for the German chocolate truffles here!

I nibbled today. At first it was just tasting, but I was so busy, I skipped lunch and started taking more"just one taste"s. Although, I was really pleased that I ate only a few bites of each dessert and managed to avoid a snacking craze, but I didn't really stick to my plan.

It's ok, it happens. But next time, I'm going to arm myself with a few new defensive weapons, whether I'm in my own (my parents'...) kitchen, or working/ taking a class. (When I worked at the bakery, I went way overboard eating all the free stuff; not so great for my health or weight loss goals.)

1. I'm going to start baking full already, if I can.
2. I'm going to keep a bowl of fruit or veggies and dip nearby- can't wait to try this! ( If I'm at work or in class where there are pastries, I will be sure to have a healthy snack with me as well)
3. I'm going to remember that this is not the only thing to eat and I can still stick to my 3 bite rule and not go hungry- there was a fridge next to me all afternoon, 2 feet away!


This is a learning process for me, so I hope this post is still of interest to my lovely readers, even though it's not full of advice or experience. I love food. Baking and cooking are my passions. Tasting is part of making good food, but I'm still looking to moderate my intake of the things I make while still being as creative and happy as ever!

German Chocolate Cake Truffles

For Father's Day, I decided to make my dad's favorite dessert- German chocolate cake- and put a twist on it. The result was these cute, decadent little truffles made with coconut milk instead of heavy cream! They are naturally gluten-free and can easily be made vegan by using a dairy-free semisweet chocolate.

German Chocolate Cake Truffles
makes 28 small truffles, prep time about 1 1/2- 2 hrs

6 oz semisweet chocolate (I used Scharfenberger)
3 oz coconut milk
2 tsp rum
1/3 c pecans
2/3 c unsweetened, shredded coconut
1 tsp sugar
You'll need parchment paper as well

Heat the coconut milk in a small saucepan. Chop the chocolate into small pieces. When the coconut milk starts to steam and simmer, take it off the heat and stir in the chocolate until it melts. Stir until the chocolate has completely melted and the ganache is smooth. Pour into a shallow bowl (it will cool faster this way- I actually used a pie dish) and put in the fridge to chill. It will probably take about 40 minutes to set completely.

Roughly chop the pecans and set aside. Also set aside 1/3 c of the shredded coconut. The other half of the coconut will be for decorating your truffles.

Scrape the cold ganache into a medium mixing bowl with a spoon and beat with an egg-beater. This will aerate the ganache, smoothing out any chunks and making it light and fluffy. This will take about a minute.  Scrape down the sides of the bowl, add the rum and beat again to incorporate. Scrape down the sides again and add the pecans and the 1/3 c of the coconut. Beat until incorporated. 

Prep a cookie sheet, plate or cutting board with a sheet of parchment paper. Use a small spoon or melon-baller to make small scoops of the truffle mixture and set them on the parchment. You can make them as big or small as you want, I made mine about the size of medium grapes (if that's at all helpful :P). Once you're done, pop them in the freezer for about 15 minutes to firm up.
In the meantime, mix the tsp of sugar with the remaining 1/3 c of coconut in a small bowl. This will be for rolling your truffles.

Take the truffles out and roll between clean, dry palms to make them smooth and symmetrical. Then, roll them one at a time in the coconut mixture. It will be dry, so press the truffles gently into the mixture to help it stick.

When you're done, store the truffles in the fridge and serve them either chilled or at room temp. At room temp, they melt instantly in your mouth which is kind of fun! Enjoy with someone awesome.

Day 9: Don't mix weight loss and alcohol

I am not a heavy drinker, in fact I never drank before I was 21, even when I was in the UK and it was legal. It just never appealed to me and in all (nerdy) honesty, I'm not really into feeling fuzzy around the edges.  But, unfortunately, as with food, I get the "just a taste" complex whenever someone offers me a crazy mixed drink or new hard cider (Perry cider, anyone?). Trying a drink here and there isn't really a problem as far as alcoholism goes (or even getting tipsy for that matter), but I started to wonder how alcoholic beverages might be affecting my goals with weight loss and health.

What is the relationship between weight and alcohol consumption?

About.com Exercise supplies a few good insights:

Many alcohols are high in calories, adding to your daily intake. A lot of people don't think about this when they drink.

Many people are less likely to stick with their healthy diets when inebriated...or hung over.

Drinking alcohol can increase your appetite for a short period of time, making you even more likely to reach for those party snacks.

This article on FitDay explains that alcohol needs to be metabolized by your body right away, which puts the metabolization of everything else in your body- including fats and sugars- on hold, resulting in weight gain.

This article on AmericaNow counters the calorie theory, stating:
" Calories contribute very little in adding fat to your body. The reason why alcohol makes you fat is because the liver processes the alcohol into acetate. Your body takes that acetate and uses it as a source of fuel instead of using fat, lowering your fat metabolism by approximately 75 percent.
What happens to all that excess fat that is no longer being burned?  It gets stored in[...]your body."


These are all great reasons to consider cutting alcohol back or out of your system for a while, especially if you tend to drink heavily. I think most people are aware of the damages heavy drinking can do, so I won't go into that here. 

Of course, my own self-love-foodie-health-extravaganza is not about deprivation, but finding alternatives and most of all, enjoying food and the experience of eating!

Drinking sodas and high-sugar juices are also not great for you, especially if you drink them frequently. My favorite juice is Odwalla superfood, which I occasionally use as a meal or snack substitute if I don't feel very hungry, since it has a shake/smoothie-like texture, is sooo delicious and is full of vegetables, fruits and spirulina. A lot of grocery stores now provide 64 oz bottles too.

Another favorite drink of mine is coconut water. It makes me so happy! It is refreshing, sweet and very hydrating. It also aids digestion and is rich in potassium (avoid labels that have added sugar.) My favorite is Harmless Harvest. It is raw, so it retains all of its rich nutrients and sometimes it comes out pink! Be sure to take a sip before you leave the parking lot if you can: because it is raw, it can sometimes have a gooey, slimy texture or smell alcoholic. This is not what you're looking for. I've had to walk back in with a receipt a few times for this very reason and usually the grocers are happy to trade for a new bottle. If you're feeling tropical today, you can always go straight to the source and buy a fresh, young coconut from your local Asian foods market or grocery store. Be sure to ask an employee to open it for you, so you're not stuck at home with a drill trying to make a dent in the hard shell! As with the bottled water, if the coconut has a strange odor or the meat inside is very slimy, just ask for  a new one.

Here are my recipes for some delicious, summer mocktails.

granita goes to slush!

Flower Nectar Granita 

What you need to know: The freeze time is about 1 1/2 hrs. This recipe makes 2-4 servings depending on glass size. It has a very floral, sweet taste, but not a lot of color. Try garnishing with an edible flower or honeysuckle blossom so your guests know it's not just plain shaved ice!

2 c water

2 Tbs honey

2 Tbs rose water

2 tsp orange flower water

1/2 lemon

Warm the water in a small saucepan. Add the honey and stir until it dissolves, not allowing it to boil. Add the flower waters and the juice of the lemon half and stir to incorporate. Pour the liquid into a glass baking dish and set in the freezer. Freeze for about 1 1/2 hours, until the ice is no longer runny underneath when jiggled.

Using a fork, gouge the ice so that it splinters into shards. The ice should not be frozen for longer than the point of being just frozen, or else it will not break with a fork. I like to think of this as a "soft-freeze" or "soft-set" state. Once all of the ice is broken up, spoon into glasses and serve!

Minty Mock-aritas

What you need to know: This drink makes 4 small servings. I do recommend making this in small servings, because it is rather potent. I love the strong, tart flavor, but if it is too much for you, try adding 1/4 c of water or apple juice and a tsp or two more of coconut sugar to mellow it out. I found the intense flavor made up for the lack of alcohol, but I know a lot of people aren't into lemons!

1 c fresh-squeezed lemon juice

2 Tbs coconut sugar*

2 sprigs mint- 10-15 leaves

1 c icecubes (I just filled a glass pyrex measuring cup to the brim)

for the rim: 1 Tbs coconut sugar mixed with 1 tsp salt

*This sugar may have a lower glycemic index than normal sugar. It is still high in calories, but has the added benefit of nutrients and fiber, whereas regular cane sugar has only "empty" calories

Stir the sugar into the lemon juice until it dissolves. It will look brown and kind of swampy- not to worry, it will be delicious! Strain into a blender to remove any seeds. If the seeds have been removed, feel free to pour any pulp back into the blender. Add the mint leaves and blend until the mint has been chopped into greenish speckles. Add the ice and blend until it is satisfactorily slushy. Rim your glass with the salt and sugar mixture and pour in a serving of your mockarita.

I had SO much fun making these mocktails, expect many more to come!

Day 8: "I feel fat"

I had a melt-down today. A genuine, tears-streaming, gut-wrenching sad-fest. Part of me feels like "Hmm, is this really appropriate to talk about on a food blog? Is this tmi^100,000,000?"
But these "Day x" posts are about my journey of balancing self-love, health and my passionate foodie feels. Would it be honest to skip the days when I feel down? Would it be helpful to others if I made it seem like this whole self-love process is natural, flawless, simple?
In my heart, I don't think so. I think if people are going to read this to help answer their questions about their own journey, I need to be honest about the whole picture, not just the parts that are fun and include sweet treats.

For the first time in a while, I thought that dreaded phrase, "I'm fat." I am slightly overweight, but not critically unwell by any means. I eat pretty well- organic most of the time, vegetarian- I have started exercising every day, which makes me feel really proud and good about myself. And yet, I felt my less-than-firm stomach and was overwhelmed with a sense of unattractiveness, lack of self-esteem and sadness. In the moment, it felt overpowering and horrible. What do you do when you feel like your body isn't what it should be?

I was lucky in that my boyfriend was there to help pull me out of that self-loathing space, but the reality is that once I'm alone again, I'm still in the company of myself, of my body; I know I can't depend on others to change how I feel about myself; that comes from within. (Not that a hug from a friend or loved one can't make a huge difference!)
I'm lucky because I've already started working on my self-love practices. I'm about 8 months in at this point, so I have a foundation to work from. Because of this, I was able to check in with myself, recognize that this was just a passing feeling and get back to acknowledging what the truth is: I'm beautiful, I'm working on my health and it's ok to feel sad sometimes.
There is a lot of work that goes into pulling yourself out of a self-loathing, negative state, whether it's about your weight, a break-up, losing a job, or anything that takes a toll on your self-esteem. But the work is rejuvenating and can completely cleanse your heart in a lasting, profound way. I'd love to share my experience with you and hopefully you'll find some of these ideas and resources helpful!

The best thing I've ever done for my self-esteem was to have a date with myself. I'm serious. I took a whole afternoon doing what I wanted to do, alone. I watched movies, I drew, I made myself a picnic on my dorm room floor. I read and watched things about self-love that made me feel happy. I laughed, hard (thank-you, Monty Python!) I even went so far as to think like I was on a date. For example, if a mean thought crept in, I'd actually think to myself, "I don't like it when you talk to me that way," or, "Please don't talk about x while you're on a date with me!" It sounds crazy and it was- it was fun and relaxing and even though it took some getting used to, I felt great afterwards.

Jenn at Roots of She is a woman who is very dedicated to self-love. Her style sometimes works for me and sometimes doesn't, but I encourage you to check her page out all the same. Her meditation on "enoughness" was perfectly timed for me; I listened to it today, when I got home and ithelped me confront some of those feelings of inadequacy head-on.

As usual, my very favorite, Gala Darling, has so much to offer. I think I got the idea to have a date with myself from her! Try her articles on 100 things to do when you're upset and How to practice mega supreme body love daily! They have gotten me through many ups and downs and everything she posts has a sparkle to it.

Try googling "body positivity". You'll find scores of other people who are looking to change the way they feel and talk about their bodies, to move away from mainstream ideas about beauty and even to overcome eating disorders.
I found this great video by Katelyn Smith today that I think sums up a lot of the basic concepts of body positivity. She does a good job of reiterating that self-confidence and self-care are not selfish!

Do something nice for you: Try writing a love letter to yourself, bake yourself a cake, take a road trip to a place you've always wanted to go, take a nap, paint your nails, build something, clean your space, dress up, see a movie, dye your hair, do that one thing that seems too silly, too crazy, too embarrassing and giggle nonstop.

Laugh. Laugh. Laugh. Laughter cures, laughter heals, laughter distracts, laughter feels good!! Explore youtube for a few hours (avoiding comment thread trolls). Some of my favorite youtube channels are TomSka, CollegeHumor, PotterPuppetPals, and SecretAgentBob. (My apologies if any of these are offensive to you, they just so happen to be my go-to pick-me-ups!) Comedy is- in my opinion- the key to getting out of any slump.

The best part about all of these ideas is that when you start making self-love a daily practice, you actually build new pathways in your brain that make it that much easier next time. Instead of your thoughts going down the "I'm so fat" track, your brain has a new, "I am beautiful", "I am awesome" pathway to explore. As you think these new thoughts, you strengthen them, making it easier to return to them when you feel self-doubt or sadness.
When I first started doing this, I felt exhausted! I could literally feel my head aching from the new thought processes as I struggled against my old patterns. This gets easier after a while. Be sure to be gentle with yourself during the process; be kind to yourself if you slip up or if a mean thought lingers for a while; remember this isn't about proving anything, you don't even have to tell anyone you're doing it,
it's just for you.

I don't think this breakdown is anything more than a part of my process. It's normal to have ups and downs. I'm still so excited to be learning more about balancing self-love and being a healthy foodie and I really appreciate all of you who are reading along with me! If you would like to read the posts preceding this one, on self-love, diet and exercise, find them under Self-love and Health.

Day 7: Exercise, my nemesis: a love story

I have never been "sporty". The very word makes me feel tired and resigned. No sport has ever intrigued me and no physical education class ever mobilized me for more than a few minutes. Now that I have been free from mandatory physical education for about 4 years, nothing has changed much. I am somewhat an expert at justifying sitting on my bed for hours at a time with a laptop, book or craft project in front of me.

There's this idea that if you don't have an exercise regime, you're lazy. I think this is true for me in part; I seldom feel driven to push myself physically. Taking your body through the stresses of getting fit doesn't feel good; why go out of your way to work so hard and feel so uncomfortable?
There's something to that word, "lazy", though that doesn't gel with the idea of self-love. Every source of media out there is telling me that I am failing in some way by not weighing x amount, not having y shape and that if I am not actively trying to change that, today has been a day wasted.
We all know that exercise is part of a healthy body, a healthy life. But from my experience, approaching exercise from a place of guilt goes something like this:

It's a really busy day, I'm driving everywhere, seeing a bunch of people, printing homework assignments, typing on my computer, sitting in class and I think "And I didn't even exercise today!" My already crazy day becomes that much more stressful and I feel bad about myself.

I'm having a fun time with friends, doing something with my family, or just relaxing alone and a sneaky voice in the back of my head tells me, "You should have been doing crunches instead, look at your belly, you'll never get fit, etc, etc." Instead of enjoying myself, I get a bummed out feeling in my stomach (and more often than not turn back for a second piece of cake just to feel better).

This is not self-love. These are self-defeating thought patterns. In the first case, your brain is playing  a mean trick on you and stressing you out when you can't possibly fit in exercise that day. In the second case, that critical little voice is making you feel guilty for doing normal, fun, human things!

How do you start an exercise regime from a place of taking care of yourself both emotionally and physically? Well, you probably need to do some work on positive body image and creating new thought patterns around your weight and your self-esteem, like I did. I'm not qualified to give advice on this, but Gala Darling is a great place to start, particularly the thread on celebrating your body and the article 10 easy ways to love yourself more today! I link to her articles so often because she has helped me so much and I know she's helped a lot of other people too.

The next thing I had to do was be clear about my goals and what I can manage right now. Are you really busy? Can you fit in a stroll after dinner? Is there a yoga studio down the street that offers morning sessions? I learned after a few semesters that I have a hard time taking PE classes because they are in the mornings and I value sleeping in more than going to those classes (especially swimming, which was always sooo cold in the morning!!) Is your goal to work off a lot of weight right now or just to start getting in the habit of moving your body every day? Be really clear about what you want and what you can accomplish right now, so you don't start wildly accusing yourself of not having run a marathon yet when you are having a bad day. When you know what you want, it's easy to tell your brain, "Nope, I haven't run a marathon like my super fit neighbors. My goal is to go swimming in my pool every afternoon!"

That's another important thing I'm working on: quit comparing yourself to other people! Comparing your fitness to that of some crazy-buff person on tv does nothing for your self-esteem. There's a fine line between being inspired by someone and telling yourself you're a failure for not looking, exercising, being just like someone else. You can only be your wonderful self and you are at your own unique place in your health journey. Forget about everyone else for  a bit.

Get help when you need it. Ask the right people the right questions. By this, I mean ask your health care advisor, doctor, natural healing expert, chiropractor, coach, yoga teacher, friend- whoever you trust to give you sound, professional health advice- what you need to work on. This can take a huge load of stress and guilt off your chest. Sometimes that amorphous sense of knowing you should be exercising, doing something, anything, everything!! can make starting a new health practice seem daunting. I felt that way for a long time. I finally asked my doctor at my last check-up, "Ok, so what should I be doing at my age to be healthy?" She printed out a sheet that included diet and exercise routines within minutes. Having it spelled out on paper both held me accountable and relieved that sense of overwhelming panic.

My best advice from my own experience is try a bunch of ways of getting fit! Don't marry yourself to "bicycling every day" because you think that's what you should be doing. Give yourself a few weeks, maybe months even to try a variety of activities. If you want to bicycle every day and that's something you can manage, go for it! (Bicycles really are my nemesis, so none for me, thanks!) But if the thought of exercising every day makes you break out in a lethargic sweat like it did for me, leaving your options open can really make exercising less intimidating.

Try a new activity every day if you can! Here are some of the ones I've tried:

swimming- low impact, refreshing, relaxing

take a walk- easy to fit into a busy schedule, not as scary as "running", get a glimpse of the countryside, easily accessorized with an iPod or walkman, which really makes the time fly! Or invite your sweetie or friend and make it a date!

hulu hooping- just plain silly and fantastic. I still have to get to the drug store and buy one!

take a dance class- tap is my favorite! you can call your local studio and see if you can try a lesson before signing up for a class

yoga- most studios offer beginners a trial lesson or week's access at a reduced rate so you can see if you would like to continue. "Flow" yoga is usually a  good level for beginners. Move at your own pace.

audition for a musical- the most working out I've ever done has been onstage, particularly in the ensemble for a production of Wizard of Oz !

use down-time- look up stretches and exercises that can be done while sitting at your desk or while driving your car that can tone your abs or improve your posture if you want to fit in some fitness when you're stuck sitting still.

Check out Leo Babauta's 48 Fun Ways to Exercise for more ideas!

Lastly, I'm trying to hold myself accountable. This might mean writing down the exercise you accomplish every day in a journal, joining a site like 411fit or exercising with a friend so you can keep each-other on track! As I mentioned in my post a few days ago, I use journaling as a way to give myself credit, stay on track and stay positive. I have also used 411fit to great success in the past, which allows you record your meals and exercise achievements and make goals for yourself.
And just as with my post yesterday on resisting temptation, if you miss a day, there's no need for the third degree! Tomorrow's a new day!

Day 6: Are you eating in the shower?! the lemon cake spa day

Looking at self-love from the outside in today: it's spa time. This is not for the purpose of analyzing your appearance or improving it. This is about relaxation and fun. If you enjoy this kind of thing, read on!
My friend Melody and I have been bridging the gap between food and makeovers for years. Along with painting our fingernails or trying out her mom's makeup, we would mash bananas into our hair to moisturize it and smear honey onto our faces for its humectant properties. I think my family is now used to me carrying random fruits and bowls of yogurt into the shower with me and emerging with strange masks obscuring the majority of my face.

Here's my formula for a lemon cake spa day!

Wash with lemons.
Adding a few tablespoons of lemon juice to your daily dose of shampoo can help with oily hair. It makes a great lather and really cleans your scalp.

Moisturize with coconut milk.
Instead of your usual conditioner, try a coconut milk hair mask. Pour about 1/4 cup of canned coconut milk over your hair and run your fingers through your hair to incorporate it throughout. Wrap a towel around your head and leave it on while you wash, shave, tweeze, or try my lemon cake scrub. After 10-15 minutes,rinse with warm water. Your hair will be shiny and soft!

Exfoliate with lemon cake!
Try the recipe below for a sumptuous lemon cake face and body scrub (it really does smell just like a lemon layer cake!) The dried peel acts as a gentle exfoliant, while the mild acids in the Greek yogurt help cleanse and tone your skin. Rub it on wet skin in the shower, then rinse. Be sure to wash out the tub completely so no yogurt or peel gets left behind!

Finish showering, then moisturize with your favorite lotion. I found this amazing lemon body oil in our bathroom from Burt's Bees which makes a great post-shower moisturizer for a lemon cake spa day. Be sure to sunblock up before heading out! Or maybe use the rest of your spa day to snuggle up indoors with a good book or your beckoning Netflix queue!

Lemon Cake Face and Body Scrub
Greek yogurt
dried lemon peel
dried orange peel
honey (optional)

Put a few dollops of yogurt in a small bowl (see amounts for face mask and full body mask.)Add the lemon and orange peel. Add a bit of honey if you like and if you are not allergic to pollen. Stir and apply to moist skin.
face mask: 2 Tbs yogurt,1 tsp orange peel,1 tsp lemon peel, optional 1 tsp honey
full face and body mask: 1/4 c yogurt, 1 Tbs orange peel, 1 Tbs lemon peel, optional 1 Tbs honey

Day 5: Resisting temptation, the frosting-eyed monster

I am not an expert on ascetism, moderation or resisting delicious temptation by any means. I'm in the you-only-live-once, just-this-one-soufflé, I'll-restart-my-diet-tomorrow camp...or should I say "party"?
But, of course, resisting the temptation of frosted treats on occasion is paramount to health, at least that's something I'm working on during my healthy-living journey.
So, how do I do it? The only thing that has worked is sheer force of will aka determination.
Which means sometimes I don't do it. Sometimes I'm not determined. Sometimes I compromise or convince myself to make exceptions. That has been my pattern in the past, but this 28 day adventure calls for sterner stuff, so I'm reinforcing my cupcake barriers and saying no to cream puffs of all varieties.

Things that help me get through:

Keeping full of good foods: bring your healthy habits on the road.
The summer class I am taking lasts 2.5 hours and it happens right at dinnertime 6-8:30 pm. The professor and the students bring snacks and there is always something sweet or cheesy and definitely tempting. The only way I survive is bringing healthy snacks with me as well as a water bottle. If I am hungry, I will eat those toffee-butter cookies like it's going out of style, just to fill my belly.

Compromise: oops, someone forgot the snacks and the lesser of two evils.
Last night, my friend and I did a presentation for our Vampires class (ethnic studies on race and gender in horror: cool) and we brought V8 juice, red velvet cupcakes and dark chocolate as a fun, vampiric snack. I had been so busy writing up our lesson plan and getting ready, I actually did manage to bring some veggie sushi with me for dinner, but those were gone an hour before class. I tried drinking water, but I was just plain hungry, was getting worried that I had no energy to drive home safely and was having a hard time focusing in class. I passed on the tempting cupcakes, had a couple squares of dark chocolate and made it through class. Sometimes you just have to compromise.

Feeling hungry sometimes: don't panic.
Don't panic, I am not advocating skipping meals. Be healthy,take care of yourself, please don't starve yourself. However, what if you have that healthy meal waiting for you after your shopping trip and your friend stops for an icecream on the way out of the mall. Well, DO you want one too? Yeah, probably, icecream is delicious. But you'll be home in half an hour....this is where the determination comes in. I have to tell myself all the time, it's ok to feel hungry, I don't have to immediately eat the nearest thing once the rumbles begin. If you use food as a comforting tool or your family is big on keeping people happy and full (like mine), this can take some hard work to not feel panicky or agitated when there isn't the food you need immediately available.
Tip: You've probably heard this a billion times, but sometimes when you think you're hungry, you're actually thirsty. Make sure you're staying hydrated!

But I don't know what it tastes like, I don't want to miss out, I LOVE FOOD.
Take 3 bites. I am trying so hard to implement this, so far with moderate success, but I think it's an important habit for me as a foodie. There's a salted caramel doughnut being offered to you. You've seen pictures on Pinterest, but never dreamed you'd encounter such a creation in real life (well, ok, you've dreamed about it a few times. *ahem*). You take the first bite to say "Woah, this is amazing! Just like I always imagined!" and then you have two more to savor it. Well maybe a doughnut isn't a great example, cuz it's small, but you get the idea.
I am one of those people who panics about wasting food, being impolite, but more importantly, not tasting every single bite of that delicious something and going back for seconds. This is a practice in moderation and I'm still working on it!

You take the cake.
It's true, there are moments when you eat a slice of cake...or the whole cake. You're living life to the very fullest and nothing is going to keep you from one crumb of that strawberry shortcake goodness!
Don't let it derail you. You can still eat healthily tomorrow. You haven't failed, you don't need to give in to every craving from this point on. There's no trick to staying on-track after taking a detour from "the plan", unfortunately, but removing any guilt trips can help. The attitude I'm trying to embrace is. "Yum, that was just what I needed, tomorrow's a new day."
Although, of course, you don't have to wait for tomorrow. Some days, I have pancakes in the morning and think "Well, this day is shot, I'll start over tomorrow" and go crazy the rest of the day. You know your health goals the best and remember the passion and desire to take care of your body that made you aware of your eating habits in the first place.

Day 4: A dose of reality and (very impolitely) shushing the inner critic

When I sat down to write for day 4, I thought "Ugh, what will I write about today? I missed a day exercising, I didn't make any new, cool recipes, I don't have anything interesting to share about today."

Oh, there was that moment when I made a life-changing decision about cooking, blogging and my career as a writer. Um...WHY didn't this occur to me as something worth sharing??

Well, as you know from being a human (I'm assuming here that my readership is all human, my deepest apologies to any antelope reading this) sometimes it can be scary to share one's doubts, failings, falterings, qualms, questions and changes of heart. I am pretty sure this is why it didn't even occur to me to mention the revelatory conversations both within myself and with others than happened today. 

Also, there were a lot of feelings of inadequacy and embarrassment that came along with these revelations, which is exactly why I am sharing this in the self-love section.

lemon shortbread hummingbirds

Here's how it went down:

"Hey, I love blogging, I want to do this all the time," says my brain. 

"But brain, you're supposed to be working on the next great American novel, remember? Food blogging isn't really writing. There's no depth, there's no emotional content, it's just...things you want to put in your belly!"

Have you ever had a conversation like this with yourself? There's that thing you want to do, but you think it's not important enough, it's not impressive enough, it doesn't make enough money or it wouldn't please your parents/lovers/friends/coworkers if you pursued it? 

Earl grey creme brulée with persimmon compote and a spun sugar balloon

I have had this conversation with myself about cooking many times.

"I want to change the world. Playing around with cooking won't change the world."

"I need an education, I can't just cook stuff."

"I won't be as good as these other people who have food blogs, restaurants, cookbooks, etc."

"I'm being selfish, there are better things I could do that would be more helpful, that have grander scope and vision than this. This is too small."

"I should have to work harder than just doing something I like to do."

Ew. It's hard to see these ugly things all written out! But these are the thoughts that hold me back and shape my choices and I'll bet a lot of other people have similar thoughts about their radical, off-the-beaten-track wishes and desires.

I talked to my boyfriend and my mom and they both were supportive when I confided my fears of inadequacy and guilt, which I really appreciate. The most surprising thought that came up for me was "You're a writing major. THIS ISN"T REAL WRITING."

Southern decadence cupcakes

I recognized that something about food blogging gets me excited to wake up in the morning. It's something I can spend hours researching. The thought of spending days testing recipes makes my heart race. I have learned a lot of great things at Mills in my creative writing classes and they help me write on this blog. However, I had an image of myself as an acclaimed, published author who moved people with my fiction and poetry. And the fact that I was spending my days wanting to work on my food blog and neglecting my "real writing" made me feel ashamed and like I was being lazy.

So I decided this: 

I will work on my food blog while I feel passionate about it. I will put my all into it. I will do whatever it takes to see where it will go. I will release my ego about my other writing, because this may be my true path and I don't want to miss out on it out of fear. I remember the idea that I have a place in the world and it's my job to figure out what it is; that's my life's adventure!

stuffed squash blossoms

So I did that and it felt kind of...uncomfortable, I'll admit. But I was going to be serious about it. 

But guess what happened? Once I took the pressure and guilt off, my appetite for my other writing projects came right back, within hours! I was pretty amazed and more than a little smug! 

I realized I can maintain both practices and I don't have to compare them and qualify them at every turn. I'm proud of my food writing, my cooking and my work as a fiction writer. I am more than certain that these doubts and fears will resurface, maybe daily, hourly, who knows? But this was an exciting moment for me and the future of this blog!

Questions I asked myself that you might want to consider:

What is your passion? Are you living it? What thoughts trip you up on your path to realizing it?

Is this an either/or situation or can you pursue more than one passion? What are you proud of?*

* (If you can't think of anything you're proud of, please don't leave this page thinking there's nothing you've done worth noting- you might not be in the practice of giving yourself credit. Please check out Gala Darling's website and her work on Radical Self-Love)