Showing posts with label primal foods. Show all posts
Showing posts with label primal foods. Show all posts

Tuesday, November 8, 2011

Making Lunch While Juggling

So, when you are really on the go and have no time, how do you live primally?  Some of the best things would be simply raw fruits, vegetables, and nuts.  They take very little preparation, but let's face it... most days are like this and you can only eat like that for so long before you begin to crave texture and temperature differences. 

My crockpot is my best friend.  It cooks the food perfectly with no attention at all.  When getting ready for the week I count on having to have at least four "emergent meals" to cover a shortened lunch break, extra work, unexpected errands, etc.  Because I know to expect these interuptions, I have found it perfect to take frozen meat out of the fridge in accurate portions sizes for the family, put them in a crockpot bowl, put seasoning on them, place a wonder KeepEez top on and pop them in the refridgerator.  KeepEez is BPA free, and provides a nice vaccum seal.  Now, when I am done I have already got all of the "emergency meal" meats prepared.  We need only to place them into the crockpot and turn it on.

Some of the favorite seasonings to add to the chicken:
  Mint.
  Thyme.
  Lemon pepper.
  Chili powder.
  Onion.
  Garlic.
  Cayenne.
  Lime.
  Olive oil or Coconut oil.

To add a little bit of substance as a side we may add yams or white rice on occassion.  We may steam a Member's Mark broccoli bag or top it off with a smoothie. 

What really great about this is, if there is by some chance a little extra, it saves and reheats very well! 

Monday, November 7, 2011

Fitting In My Jeans By Following My Genes Demands

Fitting into my jeans by following my genes... what an interesting concept it is to follow what our bodies want us to follow! 

After embarking on this adventure there was a little bit of a burnout (especially since I felt like I had been completely limited down to chicken, broccoli, and H20 after my allergy testing results), but that just inspired a new desire to explore foods and ideas we had never thought of like avocado chili, spaghetti squash, and our version of Mexican food.  The children frequently are a part of this endeavor and really enjoy expressing their creativity.  Just tonight Sis came in and said she was wondering if we could try a new idea that she had for chips to have with a Mexican inspired meal, using avocados to make chips.  A new spin on some healthy foods is always welcomed here; and as we are homeschooling food sciences is a favorite course for all! 

Teaching our children about health is really important to us; however, shortly after talking very in depth with the children about what foods that suit our genes do for our bodies and the nutrients they provide as well as their health benefits, I believed I had to have talked way above their ability to focus and their interests; however, I have found since we began discussing these things my children will often start these conversations.  They will ask about what a certain food will do for their body or to their body and the will discuss what the benefits of exercise are.  I hear Sis reminding my husband to keep our meals balanced, and Buddy regularly will remind him that the nutrients are in the peels.  They are very interested in what food is going to make them feel like or grow like.  They desire to be healthy and want to learn about how to be healthy.  I have never seen children so interested in health or how their bodies function, and I feel great knowing I am giving them the tools to maintain a healthful family for a lifetime. 

... and because teaching the children begins with showing them, I have started to squeeze in healthy amounts of exercise all throughout the week.  I know my body is meant to move, I try to keep moving whenever I can, but once I feel tired I quit, and because I know my body does not tolerate whole grains and several other foods, we have eliminated them.  Now, I have squeezed myself into a pair of jeans I had not worn in about nine years!

Anyone can read a book, anyone can "start a diet," and anyone CAN make a permanent lifestyle change if they marry into it.  It can look and sound overwhelming when you have not embarked on the transformation fully; but it is like a ball, once you get it rolling it does not want to stop.

The Primal Mom