Nutritional Thoughts... :)

As I've grown more in the field of nutrition, many people have asked me many questions concerning food, exercise, and anything you can think that is health related.  In the past, I have been quick to reply to these questions with what I assumed was the best answer.  As I've learned more and become more knowledgeable, there is one thing that I've learned about nutrition and that I think you as an informed citizen should know too:  NO ONE HAS ALL THE ANSWERS. 

Nutrition is constantly evolving which is what makes it so unique and fun to learn about.  One day we think carbohydrates are a sinful delight sent to us from the devil himself, the next we learn that we need carbs in order to maintain some bodily balance and to keep us from ketosis.  Science is constantly changing!  Nutrition is science. When you realize this you will learn to look at health and nutrition in a different way, one that is more flexible and less demanding. 

I am mainly writing this post to reassure you that if I do not have the answer, I will find it- and it will always be looked up in SCIENCE databases first!  If there is no science to back up any claims, I will look for the best information I can find, or just tell you my personal opinion.  When I am unable to find the science behind something, I will TELL YOU!  and If I simply don't know something, I will tell you I don't know. I think that all nutritionists, dieticians, athletic trainers, everyone in any field should be equipped and humble enough to state that they do not know something instead of talking out of their butt (I know, I'm so professional).  When you find someone who can be this honest, I think you've found a reliable person.

I'm not a perfect human being.  No one is.  But what I do know is this:  My main goal in life is to help other people get their life on track. To inform.  To build others up and keep them motivated and give them reliable information they can count on...

-Ashley

What to do when you fall off your "bandwagon"

Whoever is striving for the perfectly clean, flawless, eat nothing but healthy food for the rest of your God-given days has to realize something: your life isn't perfect and you will sometimes fail in the healthy eating world.  Some of us won't, some of us are perfect human beings and flaws don't happen often.  But for 99% of us that are trying to make our lifestyles greater, there are bumps you will hit and you will fly off of that bandwagon.  I'm talking about flying so far your wings get tired and you hit your head against a concrete wall.  There are things you can do, however, to cope with the "gluttonous piece of crap" feeling that you will receive soon after eating that piece of cake (or 3).  I'd like to share a few things that help me the times I'm not so perfect... 

1.  Bundle up your sense of guilt and throw it in the trash

You have to realize this:  IT'S OKAY.  If we don't have indulgences, then what is the point of living?  Everyone has their weakness.  Mine is pizza.  Also, potatoes in any shape or form.  And caramel. Mmm.  Caramel.  Take the time to enjoy these things (not everyday but you know... "Treat yo-self Tuesday" or whatever you need to do) (And not ALL DAY Tuesday, I'm talking about one snack.. don't take this info and run with it and give yourself the excuse that a slightly informed college student said it was okay to eat a box of truffles and pizza all day) but really ENJOY it.  Then forget about it and move on with your broccoli and strawberries.  "But what if this is an every day thing, and I indulge and fly off the healthy bandwagon every day"  you ask?  Start over.  KEEP GOING.  Don't just give up because you suck at not eating things.  Sorry, to be so harsh but... it's real life..  TRY AGAIN AND AGAIN UNTIL YOU SUCCEED!

2.  Get rid of the crap that is holding you hostage

Out of sight, out of mind, and it's so true.  When I'm at my parents, and my dad has a delicious pantry full of amazing candy and junk food, I'm not going to lie, it looks pretty sexy sitting there staring back at me.  BUT when it's not in the house, I don't even think about it!  I never crave anything that I don't see.  GET RID OF IT.  And if you don't want to throw away food, go give it to your neighbor or your sister or mom.  Or have a fat burning ritual (always fun) and BURN THOSE SUCKERS DOWN.  It is easier to just indulge once when you have to get out of your house and buy it.  That way, when you do, you can just go to the ice cream store and get ONE SCOOP of high class probably better made whatever than if you went to the store and bought a WHOLE CONTAINER of off brand bunch of crap containing whatever.  GET RID OF THE SNACK DEVILS.  

3.  Stop stressing over the small stuff

Why are we living life worrying about every single little thing?  I guess because now since the food industry has screwed us over, we kind of have to.  BUT deciding whether to buy organic or not organic, or gluten free or not gluten free should not be a stress factor.  So what, you bought non-organic strawberries,  I mean a few extra chemicals in there but what's it going to do to you?  Maybe if you buy them a lot, and eat them every single day it can have an effect on you, but for now just do what you can with what you got. We should not stress over simple things, it worries us for no reason and makes life that much more difficult.  Food should be something that fuels our bodies, and helps us live!  And it is!  That's all it is.  The foods we eat should NOT be an added stress factor to our lives.  Yes, it does need to be healthy so you can be healthy, but the stress will make your life and healthy eating a lot worse.  So when you go into that produce aisle put your GAME FACE on.  Get through those aisles, get what you can afford to get, and GET OUT.  When you eat that Snickers?  Eat the darn thing, remember the good times you had together, and forget about it.  

4. Do something active

If you are anything like me, reading this whole thing would do absolutely nothing to make the guilt I feel go away.  That is when you buckle your butt down and GET ACTIVE.  I'm a gym rat, but even a WALK will make you feel a lot better.  Do SOMETHING.  Go outside, play with the dog, walk to check the mail, dance in the living room to Pitbull and Christina Aguilera's new song, anything that will get you moving.  Not only will you feel better about eating food, but it will make you rethink your life and where it's going and how much you want to improve from now on...  Or at least I think it will.  Some people have told me on their walks and runs that they think about the creepiest stuff.  DON'T BE THAT GUY.  Think about cute things, like you on the beach in your bikini eating a strawberry seductively when the muscly foreign tan dude walks by..

5.  Think about future goals

Sure, you feel better now about eating that bowl of ice cream with whipped cream and caramel and also chocolate syrup and you had seconds of the syrup with no ice cream involved.  Why do you feel like this will happen again and soon?  After burning the sin out of your fridge, maybe it's time you sit yourself down and make some goals.  Why do you want to even be on the healthy bandwagon?  Is it just because everyone else is doing it?  Maybe you need to remember why you are stressing about eating that chocolate syrup in the first place.  I'm assuming, for most of us, the reason to be healthy is to FEEL better and LOOK better.  Just remember why you are doing this, and remember you are doing this for yourself and not anyone else.  Who cares what you just ate?  Start over, and try harder than the last time.  You can do it!  It just takes a little discipline and motivation...

Well these are a few things I hope you keep in mind next time you fly off the healthy bandwagon.  It's a fun and joyous bandwagon, but sometimes the other side (the darker side with candy and stuff) looks a little more appealing.  Enjoy the dark side, but come back to the light as quickly as you can before it consumes you!  Seriously though, enjoy your life, and enjoy your food.

Eat-on!

-Ashley

Fruits + a little portion control

Growing up I never really liked any sort of melons or berries.  I actually detest the texture of berries (excluding strawberries) because of the seeds.  Melons just tasted worse than anything to me (watermelon, honeydew, you name it) because they were not tart or sour and since I just love sour or tart things, I never found a reason to eat them.  Now as I've grown older and come to understand that there are health benefits to every single fruit and vegetable, I wanted to figure out how to get the benefits of eating these foods without spitting them out and making a huge scene in front of myself or those around me (I can be a bit dramatic).  SO. Today I realized the power of the LEMON.  To add a different taste to the melons, I squeezed some lemon onto the bits of melons (melon and lemon are cool to say together and sort of annoying to say together at the same time).  It was very tasty and I thought I would share this different way to approach these fruits. As for the berries... well I found out that frozen berries are amazing and the texture is completely different.  I now have a bag of frozen berries in my fridge (half empty, might I add) that I am just obsessed with eating and love and may perhaps ask to marry me before they die off.

Another thing I'd like to talk about is HOW to add fruits as a healthy snack to your day with minimal hassle.  I've compiled a list of ways to make things easier on your daily fruit eating, because we live in America and if things aren't easy we freak out.  This is an odd topic, but I feel like it has helped me with my daily fruit intake. 

1. Buy Frozen for snacking at home
   Frozen fruits are easy to store and easy to grab in between meals if you are at home.  They are also versatile because you can throw a mixture of fruits into a blender with some yogurt or orange juice and make a smoothie, mix some into your water or tea, or put them in a Ziploc bag as a snack. Coming soon: In my next blog I will put a recipe (a creation by me for me so that's kinda cool) of a smoothie that I enjoy taking in the morning for breakfast!
2. Wash or cut up fruits the night before work/school/your day out and store in fridge
   I normally would not take fruits to school because I would have to cut them or peel them or slice them and they were a hassle when water wasn't around to wash them at school.  And in the morning, doing all of this would take up too much of my precious time (time in which I needed to look at myself vainly in the mirror, talk to no one angrily about how rushed I felt, and check social media in which nothing exciting was going on).  So now the night before, I wash the fruits I want, cut them (if they wouldn't brown), and put them in a Ziploc bag so that they were ready to roll the next morning.  Also, If I am planning on making a smoothie the next day, I set my alarm for a leeeeeetle bit earlier.  Just so I have that extra time to enjoy.
3. Ever heard of Peanut Butter?  How about Nutella?
   I've heard that some fruits are unbearable to some people. Someone actually told me that they hated strawberries before.  Really?  Strawberries?  I thought that was like a universal party in your mouth.  But alas, I was wrong.  SO.  Maybe try these fruits with peanut butter. OR Nutella (for the chocolate fans).  I like the organic peanut butter without sugar so it fits just right with the really sweet fruits.  Even if you don't hate the fruit but want a little variety, peanut butter is a healthy option to add a different taste to your fruits and makes a healthy snack (in moderation). 
4. Dried Fruits... without the added sugar
   This is dangerous advice if not advised correctly.  Dried fruits are a very good option if you want something easy and quick.  HOWEVER, many companies that make dried fruits tend to add a lot of sugar.  Here is a news flash: fruits already contain sugar.  So, when trying this option, be sure to go for the dried fruits that don't contain any added sugar.
5. Add fruits to normal food!
   Pancakes for breakfast?  Great!  Try some sautèed strawberries or blueberries over that.  How about cereal?  GREAT add a sliced banana to that!  Having some chicken salad for lunch?  Awesome!  Add a few sliced grapes to it, it will make the taste that much better.

Okay list over.  I'm really bad at transitioning sometimes so I will just say .. transitioning transitioning transitioning. (I'm imagining the beeping noise a work truck makes when it backs up.  Not sure why).

Lastly, I'd like to talk about portion control.  This will be a really short paragraph because these are just a few tricks I've learned because portion control is probably the hardest thing for most of the people I know  (primarily myself). Here's another list.

1. Use smaller plates and/or bowls- When getting dinner, if you use a smaller plate, you have less room for food.  When eating cereal, use a cup instead of a bowl!  I've switched to cups for my cereal in the morning because when I have a bigger bowl, I wanna fill 'er up!  Now I can fill up a serving (1 cup) and be completely satisfied with myself and my meal.

2.  Fill up yo' plate wit yo' veggies-  Simple and easy.  Side dishes are probably the best part of the meal, especially when it's vegetables.  Fill your plate with vegetables/fruits and the rest with the other food.  This should take up about half of your plate.  Picture below.  

3.  ZIPLOC'S WILL SAVE YOUR LIFE.  AND YOUR GUT.-  At home?  Snacking?  Awesome.  Just look at the suggested serving size, and put THAT SUGGESTED AMOUNT OR LESS in a Ziploc baggie. Then, never return to the pantry to refill again.  Which you probably won't if you are anything like me.  Too lazy to deal with it again.  This also works REALLY WELL when you are going to pack lunch.  You don't need to take the whole bag with you.  Just fill up some Ziploc's and you're good to go!

4.  Fill up with water.  Seriously.-  Drink water and lots of it, especially before a meal.  This is very good for you but also makes you feel more full before eating a large meal.  I like to do this before I'm about to eat at a restaurant.

5.  Throw some nasty sauce on dat-  If I'm full and I know it but the food is just so dang good (or I'm just eating it because it's in front of me),  I like to do a little trick called the NASTY SAWCE.  Just grab the nearest condiment and DROWN YOUR FOOD IN IT.  It can be anything, pepper, salt, Sriracha sauce, ranch, or just mixing the foods on the plate together.  That way, you will not be tempted to eat any further.  This is another trick I use at restaurants... they are just so good at making you want to eat a lot...

Anyways.  Okay enough banter.  I hope this helps any one in any way!!  My next blog shouullllddd be full of my favorite recipes but we'll see how long it takes to put that one up.  

Happy & healthy eating!

-ASH

This is food pASHon.

Well ladies and gents,  I've done it.  This is my blog dedicated to food, nutrition and things along that line.  I'm a nutrition student and have a strong passion for nutrition and food.  I really just love food.  I'm not kidding.  I SERIOUSLY LOVE FOOD.  Now, I understand that there are about a hundred trillion other food blogs... but this one will be different!  I will mix how-to videos, with recent food finds, with nutrition info that I come across.  I'm so excited to finally start this little food journey journal.  hehe.  Anyways. I'm so passionate about this and I feel like this will be an exciting way for me to share information or just fun stuff with whoever comes across this!  I hope you find some good stuff on here in the future that can help you or that interests you.

Until next time my fellow blog readers,

-Ashley