Sweet Potato and Cranberry Hash 3 sweet potatoes, about 2 lb. total 3 Tbps. non-dairy butter such as Smart Balance (can be found easily at most stores.) 1 Fuji apple, peeled, cored and cut into 1/2-inch cubes 1/2 C. sliced green onion 1 C. cranberries, Sweet Potato and Cranberry Hash
Source: Sweet Potato and Cranberry Hash | Sweet Sugar & Spice
youll never believe it! clothes i couldnt get into a few weeks ago, im getting into them now. It means I’m getting smaller, yay!
I have a few new dress tops, and a new coat that my aunt gave me! she gave me this coat before she died, and it didnt tie up properly on me, so i couldnt wear it. but now i can!
im thrilled! it really makes all the hard work of losing weight so worth it!
I am on a high right now! I have been motivated and this spurs me on to continue on the journey!
carol anne
This week, we continue re-visiting the For The Love Of Food posts….
For the last couple of weeks we’ve started taking a look at some foods that may be helpful for fibromyalgia. If you missed the first two posts, you can find them here and here. I’m highlighting some foods because of the specific nutrients they contain that may help with fibromyalgia, but these are definitely just some of the foods we may want to include in our diets (and whenever I reference diet, I’m just talking about what we eat, not a specific diet). A healthy diet should include a variety of foods. As I mentioned in For the Love of Food, we don’t yet understand how food works synergistically in our bodies to give us all the nutrition we need, and our best bet for getting those nutrients is to eat an array of real foods, foods…
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January is the time of year when folks think and do something about their fitness and exercise regimens.
It is very easy to give up on attempts at exercise when the weather is freezing cold or you and everyone around you are dealing with illnesses and colds. Even I have to force myself to get that gym workout in every other day, and yes, my dogs always need walking.
I am thankful I have my Fitbit to gently nag me to get my 10,000 steps in every day. Do I get them all in? Not every day, but that external motivation does push me a little but further.
With my school schedule set up differently this semester, I can take my favorite Friday morning yoga class again. Boy do I need it!
I end up parking far away on campus from my office so that I have to walk a…
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If You Want Change, You Must Focus On New Experiences…
I had an phone conversation with someone many moons ago who spent the entire conversation lamenting how she could not lose weight. Science tells us that humans who consume the right amount of calories of the right types of food will eventually shed pounds. It may take some longer than others, but the body will eventually respond. And some people will have to adhere to a strict eating regimen as well.
This person spent the entire conversation telling me this simply is not true; her experience, as she stated, was that she had tried everything and nothing worked. So I asked her if she ate vegetables….”no, I don’t eat vegetables.” Then I asked if she consumed healthy fruits and nuts…”no, I don’t like nuts and I only eat apples.” Next I asked her if she ate lean proteins…”I only like beef.” Then during the rest of the conversation she revealed that she ate a lot of processed boxed “food”, fast food, pasta, ice cream, candy and many other junk-type foods; including sodas.
Keep in mind that she also explained to me that she believed she ate healthy and that she had tried everything to be healthier, but nothing worked. But she wouldn’t eat veggies, fruits or lean proteins and ate tons of junk food.
She said many times she would love to lose some weight and be healthier, but then backed that statement up every time with “but I’m not willing to change XXX.”
Better results will never come from the same actions that produced bad results.
I don’t like fish, but I’m adding a lot of fish to my current eating regimen. I don’t prefer spinach, but I’m adding it to my recipe book. I don’t prefer salads, but I am adding green leafy plants to my eating habits. Why? Because if I don’t do something different then I will not experience change.
The truth about my friend is she didn’t really want to change. People who make up their mind to change say something like “I know I need to change therefore I am willing to do whatever it takes to change.” I have heard every excuse in the book and I simply refuse to listen to those types of people.
“I eat mostly healthy” usually means I don’t eat healthy at all.
Let me hop down off my soap box for a minute and get back to me.
Back in February I decided to get some weight off as I was getting a little pudgy. Since then I’ve lost weight, especially around my waistline and I’ve done so by cutting out a lot of sugar and making better food choices. Living with MS restricts my physical activities so it is imperative that I choose my foods wisely. When I choose better quality foods my body burns fat. When I choose low-quality foods my body stores fat. And as the title of this post states I am committed to eating new things so that I get new results. I simply cannot expect to get great results by committing to poor habits.
It is 100% about the choices I make. If I really want to be healthier I’ll make better choices. Period.
Danny
Is the Time Change a Chance For a Fresh Start?
In the United States we have this thing called Daylight Savings. Each year clocks are set forward 1 hour in the spring and set back one hour in the fall. Many reasons are given for the “why” of doing it, but the main result is every fall it suddenly is dark at 5:30 pm leaving no time during the week for non-work related daylight. So people are left counting the days until the spring jump forward so they can enjoy some daylight following the conclusion of their work day.
But I have a different perspective this year. I am going to take full advantage of the daylight and I’m using the jump forward as a prompt to get a lot more active. I am going to push my body to the max and see what I get. Now, for those who know I live with MS so “pushing” my body takes on a much different meaning than the average healthy person. My feet cannot take the pounding of running nor can I walk for long distances. But it is the walking that I am going to tackle in hopes that I can eventually build up to running.
I believe that being fit is the single most important thing anyone can do to get anything they want in life. I believe that making incredibly healthy food choices is the most important thing someone must do in order to be fit. Therefore, if you want more from your life, then you must begin to make incredibly healthy food choices.
Some might disagree with statement and that is okay. It doesn’t make it any less true.
I must begin making strict food choices, especially when eating out. I will be loading my body with tons of vegetables and fruits, with low-fat proteins like fish. I am not much of a fish fan so I am going to search out the types of fish that I will like, but I’m making the transition off of beef, chicken and turkey. My eating will be primarily veggies.
A strong mind begins with a strong body. If the body is fat, like mine is now, then the mind gets weak. But if the body is incredibly strong, then the mind will be stronger. Your Discipline will strengthen. Your Will will strengthen. Your Motivation will get stronger. Your Inspiration will get stronger. Your Resolve will get stronger.
And all of this happens when you have a strong body.
Conversely when the body is weak, layered in fat cells and receives foods loaded with low nutrients, then the mind is weaker. This leads to low resolve, low energy and lower results.
I think this time change is a great opportunity for all of us to get outdoors and get fit.
It is time for a fresh start.
Danny
Read my post on Time Change and then…Let me ask you a question:
Does the time change inspire and/or excite you?
I recently hit 2000 followers here at The Purple Almond. I’m so excited that I decided to share the joy.
As my way of saying thank you for helping me reach this goal, I will, once again be having a give-away. When I reached 1000 followers, I gave away one cookbook. This time, since I’ve reached 2000 followers,
I am giving away 2 packages. Each package (Retail value approximately $45) contains one RACHEL RAY cookbook and one set of cooking DVD’s. Both cookbooks are hard cover and each DVD set contains 3 discs. I chose Rachel Ray because she cooks great meals, made with whole food ingredients in 30 minutes. (Plus I’m a huge fan!) The 2 winners will be randomly…
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