Going Natural, Part 4

In case you are new to this series, check out my previous posts:
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3

As you can see from above, I'm buying more and more veggies (and fruits to some extent) that are pre-cut and pre-packaged. It's a little more expensive, but it's worth the extra cost right now until I get all this down pat and into a routine. If I try to do everything myself, I find myself way too overwhelmed with all these changes. So whenever I can now, I shortcut. I'm glad my dietician recommended it because I needed some extra sanity during all these changes!

I love that my dietician actually wants me to eat healthy fats... like mayo with olive oil, fat free reddi whip, butter with no hydrogenated or palm oils, etc. It's just about eating the right types of those things in the right amounts. 

Okay, so my clothes are freakishly starting to fall off me. I guess it really is time to invest in some belts, no matter the discomfort. And yet, still no change on the scale. What the...? I just don't get it. But obviously this is making some kind of a difference. I still have a long way to go, but hopefully I'll get there soon.

Going Natural, Part 3

I never thought I'd like hummus. Now I love it. I had no idea what I was eating was "cheese product" not actual cheese!!! DOH! I had no idea all-natural peanut butter had to be refrigerated. Now it tastes 100% better than the last time I tried it. I'm amazed at how much I like the whole wheat breads, pitas, and bagels now that I'm getting used to them. The only thing I can't get used to is whole wheat hot dog & hamburger buns, but I'm working to get there. The cereals I can eat are not very exciting. I'm trying, but it's rough. I haven't tried the organic jelly yet, and it's been ages since I've actually eaten tuna, but I'll try to get to those soon.

After today's earlier post, I was in the mood for spaghetti. I was nervous about trying the Dreamfields spaghetti my dietician had recommended to me, because all whole wheat pastas are gross to me. This spaghetti was just as good as the bad-for-you white stuff!! I was amazed. Now I can still eat my spaghetti and love it. Yay! :)

Love.

Going Natural, Part 2

I learned all kinds of things last Thursday in my grocery store tour with my dietician. She's just quite simply amazing. I was delighted, overwhelmed, enthusiastic, and exhausted by the end of the evening. And I'd gotten myself some pretty good grub to try out. Yay! :)

Low-carb/healthier breads, lean meats (in ways I didn't even look for!), and organic salad dressings. It's an array of spectacular tastes I just zoomed past previously. For example, I didn't really pay attention to the labels that come on the meats, I just tried to look them over to see if they looked thin and not fatty. But now I know you can't always trust those meat labels, and you need to look closely at the fat content not just on the outer part of the meat, but also the inner part of the meat! Who knew?!

Wait, don't answer that.

I loved the Natural Ovens whole grain bagel I had this morning for breakfast with 2 Tbsp of natural Trader Joe's peanut butter (along with strawberries and a no sugar added Carnation Instant breakfast), yummm! These bagels have 8g fiber, 320mg omega 3's, 46g whole grains, and NO weird preservatives, oils, or fake stuff! Yay!

Wow, even two months ago I cannot imagine myself having said any of that! I am learning so much!


And I've been amazed at how much my dietician wants me to eat. I am not deprived. Just eating healthier stuff that will keep me fuller longer!

Going Natural, Part 1

It's taking me quite a bit of time to adjust to the nutrition changes that my dietician recommends. I had no idea going into it that the changes would be so drastic. I thought it was just the typical: eat fewer carbs, watch your calories and fat, keep track of what you're eating, watch the sweets & soda, drink oodles of water, exercise regularly, etc.

Was I way off!

My dietician believes firmly in eating all-natural, lean, organic when possible, whole wheat, nitride-free, pesticide-free, preservative-free, no hydrogenated or palm oils, no high fructose corn syrup, no trans fats, etc. She does want me to still enjoy food and still eat things I want to on occasion, but to making healthier choices overall.

She especially believes all this stuff for me... someone with Fibro. I've been amazed to learn from her the sorts of things that can contribute to Fibro pain. {More about that in a later post.} I've been amazed at how dramatically I've been changing what I eat. I still have a longgg way to go, but I've made huge strides. My biggest thing is still the soda. I've come off it 2 or 3 times in the past 9 months, but every time I just go back to it out of boredom.

Hello, my name is Rochelle, and I'm a soda-aholic. 

My dietician was really helpful the other night when she reminded me that I WILL get there. I think I've just spent so much time beating myself up over it that I'm not allowing myself to actually get there. So, enough of that. I'm going to concentrate on some other things right now, and as I change these other things, I'm sure the soda will go away too.

Below are some of my latest changes:

And this is a change I still haven't attempted yet. I bought it. It's waiting for me. We'll see.

*No, I didn't receive any money or free items for showing you any of these brands.*