Colors of Life: Daily Eats (Gluten and Lactose Friendly)

Hello!

Today, we’re talking food. Woohoo! I get quite a few questions about what I typically eat on a daily basis and as y’all know, I have an allergy to gluten and lactose. I know there are some people out there looking for healthy alternatives or who have been diagnosed with a food allergy and need some guidance. HAVE NO FEAR, MOLLY IS HERE!

I am no nutritionist (I KNOW, SHOCKER). But this is what I’ve found that’s working for me right now. I do A LOT of research any time I can, so I just want to share it with you guys. Cooking is a hobby of mine. Finding foods that I can eat, that are healthy, and that I can create is one of my favorite things to do. So it works for me.

Some things to know:

1. You have to experiment with foods/times/etc. Finding what works best for you and your schedule is going to be key. I love to get ideas from others, hence the constant research i’m doing, but ultimately it’s about me and my body.

2. I try not to eat the same thing 2 days in a row. Not that eating the same meal 2 days in a row is bad, but I think it’s important to switch it up. Moderation is key. Besides that, i’m the queen of finding something I love, eating it for weeks straight, and then burning out on it completely and I don’t want to do that!

3. I listen to my body. If I know I should eat some fish, but i’m craving a pizza, then I go with pizza. Chances are i’ll just keep thinking about the pizza and the fish won’t satisfy me. And if i’m full, I stop eating. And if i’m not hungry, I don’t eat. I know many say to eat snacks in between meals even if you’re not hungry, but I personally disagree. I think eat when you’re hungry…

4. I eat when i’m hungry. If you read my COL on eating disorders, you saw that I didn’t eat when I was hungry. I ate when the clock told me I could. I look back to that now and wonder how I ever did that.

5. I watch what I eat. I try not to cut out any particular food groups. That’s just cruel! But if I have some carbs for lunch, I don’t load up on carbs for dinner too. I like to keep a healthy balance of what goes in my body. That said, I don’t eat many packaged foods. I just don’t like them or the way they make me feel.

6. I don’t drink my calories. I was the kid that hated soda, lucky for me. I was also the kid that hated milk though (foreshadowing of lactose allergy?). I don’t drink soda, sweet tea (anymore…which is so sad), juice, or creamers/sweeteners with coffee. I like my coffee black except when I add some almond milk or soy milk to it. AND I LOVE WATER. I always have water on me and i’m always drinking it. Just check my day in the life!

7. Stock up on the freezer foods. I only cook for myself. My family doesn’t like my food so when I cook it’s usually for me and it goes bad quickly. This is why I like freezer chicken, fish, etc. It saves a lot of money too.

Alright, those are just a few tidbits on me and my diet. So here we go…

G’Mornin’!

At 6:54, it’s go time. Time to get that coffee brewing and the ice water cup filled. If necessary, i’ll grab a little trail mix to snack on before the gym.

Breakfast

For the LONGEST time, I was not a breakfast eater. From middle school through college I didn’t eat it. But after being told approximately 395873 times how important it is for you, I’ve attempted to start making it part of my routine. Now, when 10:00 hits, it’s breakfast time.

Something you may not know is that when we wake up in the morning hungry, it’s really our body telling us that it’s needs protein, fat, and carbs. This is because we broke all of these nutrients down throughout the night and it needs the fuel. Therefore, one of the best breakfasts you can have (and my personal favorite) is…

Avo-Toast

Toast up a piece of your favorite bread, smear 1/4 of an avocado on top, and spread 1/3 cup scrambled egg whites on top. I love picante on mine.

I love a good egg-white omelet…

…and an egg-white scramble.

Protein Pancakes

1 banana
1 scoop protein powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup egg whites (or 1 egg)
milk until you reach desired consistency (I think about 1/2 tbsp…I usually just pour)

Mix together and make like a regular pancake.

Creamy Chocolate Fudge Protein Shake

If I make this, it’s usually right before I walk out the door and I sip on it while i’m at work. I like this because it lasts longer than just eating breakfast and being done 🙂

Frittata a la Veggies

Make this on a Sunday, cut it up, and store in your fridge for a quick breakfast to heat up on the go!

4 Ingredient Pancakes

1 Banana
1 Egg
1 Tbsp ground cinnamon (I like a lot, choose how much you want)
1/2 package travel size flax seeds
1 tsp vanilla extract

Mix in a bowl, and cook like a pancake. Serve it up with a side of cantaloupe for your sweetness instead of syrup!

Momma’s French Toast

And sometimes you just need some good ol’ carbs on a weekend morning. If you can’t already tell…I LOVE egg whites for breakfast. They’re light, they’re nutritious, and they’re easy to make. You’ll soon learn about my love of vegetables as well!

Snack

Usually by 12:30/1:00, it’s time for a snack.

I like almonds. Scratch that, I love almonds. Almonds, cashews, pistachios, peanuts. I’m not picky. Just make sure you watch your portion size with nuts because although they’re healthy fats, they can be high cal if you’re not paying attention.

Other times, it’s just an iced coffee.

I get an iced doppio espresso in a grande cup. Then I fill it with my own milk and sprinkle some cinnamon on top. You  have to like your coffee black if you order this!

If i’m wanting a little bit of a heavier snack, I go with some tuna and cucumbers. And I make my own dressing on top.

Apple cider vinegar, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, lemon juice. Yum and refreshing.

Lunch

Around 2:30/3:00 I have lunch. I eat a lighter breakfast and a small snack so when I get home for lunch i’m usually pretty hungry. Therefore I want something delicious and satisfying.

Chicken, fish, and tofu are my go-to for lunch. I love proteins and these are my favorite sources.

I like to make chicken breasts at the beginning of the week and keep them in the fridge to put in recipes throughout the week. But when I don’t have chicken breasts we buy John Soules’ freezer grilled chicken breast strips and just keep them in the freezer. All you do is put them in a pan to heat up and then you can eat them. Sometimes i’ll sauté some peppers and make chicken fajitas.

Speaking of that chicken, I like to make it with roasted sweet potato fries and broccoli as a side. I love to make my plate colorful!

Speaking of sweet potato fries, they are the best!!! It’s simple really. Cut up a sweet potato, heat the oven to 425, drizzle some avocado oil and salt and pepper on top, and then bake them until they turn brown and roasted. It’s about 25-30 minutes.

That bowl is holding my tofu noodles and they’ve become a staple in my diet recently.

This is what they look like at the store and I get them all the time.

You can do so much with them! But I usually make them like the package says, add some chicken, some pesto, some herbs and enjoy!

Speaking of tofu…

I usually have a large block sitting in my fridge. This is great for all you meatless folks out there. This day I made Tofu Cauli Fried Rice. Deeeeelish. Right now my mom is gagging. She likes pizza for lunch every day.

In the freezer we always have a big bag of Costco’s individually wrapped cod, tilapia, salmon, mahi mahi. I love to grill some fish and serve it with some guacamole, avocado, mango, etc. It’s fun to get creative with fish! You can easily make fish tacos too.

Dinner

Unless my mom is making a new recipe for dinner, this is the least exciting meal in my opinion. I usually have commitments during the dinner hour so I eat at random times, but I still try to make it healthy and protein packed. This is when prepping, planning, and pre-cooking comes in handy for easy heat up. I’ve learned that if you have a decent sized, protein filled dinner, the less likely you are to snack late at night. So somewhere around 7:00, it’s dinnertime.

I sometimes make a burrito bowl…lettuce, beans, tomato, cheese, beef, and guac. It’s the cheaper version of Chipotle 😉

But more often than not, it’s leftovers. Whatever we have that sounds good and can be re-heated. The crockpot is my best friend when it comes time for dinner. I like to make different crockpot recipes/soups to keep in the fridge. Bison quinoa chili was delicious this night.

Vegetable soup is good for the soul.

Shay’s sweet corn chili is never a bad idea.

And I love a good salmon burger or a turkey burger. With some greens on the side of course! Check out my recipe for basil mayo.

On the nights i’m not as hungry, I just like to saute some vegetables and drizzle balsamic vinegar on top.

Now i’m not going to pretend that I don’t ever eat pizza or anything like that…because I totally do when I get the craving. Sometimes I can’t decide, so I do 1/2 BBQ chicken, 1/4 Hawaiian, and 1/4 Canadian Bacon and Sauerkraut. Yup.

Dessert/Snack

I usually either have a snack between lunch and dinner or after dinner…depending on what the day holds.

I enjoy snacking on fruits. Ever since I’ve been cutting down on the amounts of sugar I eat (blog post to come), I crave fruit. Grapes are one of my absolute favorite snacks.

Other times, I need something more substantial…so i’ll toast up some bread, spread some kind of nut butter on top of that, and then slice banana on top. Sprinkle with cinnamon and it’s divine!

Peanut Butter Cup Protein Pie

A protein packed chocolatey dessert? You got it dude. I made this when my sister was home from college this winter and I only had one piece…because she ate it in 3 days. “It’s healthy right?” is what she kept asking me.

Another one of my favorites is a quest bar. Heat it in the microwave for 23 seconds, then spread some nut butter on top. Ohhhhh it melts in your mouth and hits the spot without you feeling guilty!

I could go on and on about Larabars. I always keep them in my backpack for my night class.

And then at 8:00 i’m in bed. Just kidding…but I wish. It’s usually more like 11:00.

Well. That’s a day on my plate. If you have any questions, leave them in the comments!!!

For my gluten and lactose sensitive friends, later this week or next week i’m planning a blog post about all my favorite food allergy products that you can buy at the store. Seriously, after trying SO many different products, wasting a lot of money and time, I think you all will want to read that post 🙂

You can check out my most recent Day In The Life post to see how closely this correlates.

And how I stay healthy in college as a commuter.

Happy Eating!

Fitness Goals: Month 2 Complete

You might have seen my 2016 bucket list in my introduction post on Tuesday. Well, at the end of that post I broke my 2016 bucket list up into what I think are the 4 most important categories…Physical, Mental, Spiritual, Social.

(And apparently someone else agrees!)

You also probably know that in 2015 I kept up with monthly goals, but i’m not doing that this year. This year, i’m continuing my fitness goals in place of monthly goals.

Because like I said in my 2016 bucket list, this year i’m focusing on fitness. In 12 months, when my phone is showing January 1, 2017…I want to be able to check these 4 fitness-related goals off my list.

*Be able to look at myself in the mirror and be proud of what I see.
*Get my group exercise certification. I’m still contemplating this one to be honest, it’s been on my mind a lot lately, but i’m not sure if i’m wanting to put in the time and work for it yet.
*Work out 5 times/week no matter what is going on. I think this goal and healthy eating will help my fitness goals and i’ll be able to take progress pictures. Hopefully, then i’ll achieve physical goal #1 above.
*Finally get a gym membership. For the past couple months i’ve been testing out gyms across our area to see which one fits me the best. I think I have found one, so I need to sign up!

Month 2 Fitness Goals:

These were my fitness goals for 12.6.15-1.6.16.

• No eating within an hour of a meal. I cut down on this A LOT, but I feel like there’s still room for improvement.
• No QuestBars or Larabars more than 2 days in a row. At the beginning of this month, this goal was very hard. But now…I think I burned myself out on them. I don’t crave them as much as I used to, in fact I almost feel sick when I look at Larabars now. I’m still into QuestBars, but usually as dessert at night….heat them up for about 12 seconds and they get gooey. Next to a class of milk or water and YUM!
• Continue working out 5 days a week. Around the Holidays, when the gym was closing there was about 3 days in a row I didn’t go. Other than that, i’ve been very proud of how often i’ve been hitting the gym.
• Be in bed by 11:00. Nope, I always make getting to bed early a goal and it’s so hard for me. It’s on my bucket list this year so maybe i’ll be able to at some point.

Month 3 Fitness Goals:

Month 3 will be my goals from 1.7.16 – 2.7.16. I cannot believe it will be February by the time these goals are done. So crazy!

• Follow the physical goals on my 2016 bucket list. Just look above, I want to work towards those goals so this month I want to do things that will help that. 🙂
• Stay under macros 5 days a week. I’ve been using the My Fitness Pal app to track for the most part what i’m eating. It shows the macros of everything i’m eating when I log it and my goal is to stay under in the Fat, Carbohydrates, and Sugar (yes I know that’s a carb but the app measures it and I still don’t want to go over) categories. I never go over on protein haha so I don’t have to worry about that one!
• Research/find out what’s causing me to be bloated. I thought I had this figured out for a while but lately it’s been a problem again so this month I want to research what could be causing that!
• Cut sweets out 1 day a week. Listen, I have something sweet every single day of the week…whatever it is. I wonder what would happen if just one day of the seven days in a week I didn’t have a piece of chocolate, or ice-cream, or whatever??

I truly do feel as though how i’m feeling physically affects the rest of my life. I don’t know if that’s good or bad but the only way to fix that…is to do something about it. I’m hoping with my fitness goals this year it will make things a little easier on me/for me and in turn make me a happier person.