Jesus. Adventure. Mental Health. Simple Living. Homesteading. Nutrition and Fitness.

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Simple & Balanced Nutrition

Nutrition has been a really hard thing for me to get consistent with over the years. This year, I have finally gotten into a good place with it!

What has made with consistency with nutrition so difficult for me over the years?

  • For years, I thought “good” nutrition meant no “processed” foods at all and everything had to be made from scratch… with grass fed/pastured meats, organic produce, whole organic (soaked or fermented) grains (OR no grains), lots of fermented veggies, and on and on. In this world, it didn’t matter how much I ate, as long as it was homemade. It didn’t matter how much protein I had, as long as it was homemade or followed these other expectations.
  • I thought “diet quality” met the above requirements, not what it actually is (will share more about this).
  • When I couldn’t live that way, I went the other direction. I was very all-or-nothing. I thought I was addicted to diet soda and “junk food.” I would either be all in or all out. If I felt like I was “messing up,” I just gave up.
  • Because of spending years with major mental health struggles, I also spent years eating emotionally. After I came out of rehab, I just ate and ate and ate. I pretty much switched from drinking alcohol all day to eating all day.
  • I went through a time period of just “loving myself as I was” (which I never did with this lifestyle) which meant eating whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted, however much I wanted. I got to almost 200lbs. Since then, I’ve learned that loving myself means taking good care of my health.
  • My ADHD has made consistency with anything very difficult. I have started treating my ADHD which has been life-changing (though not perfect). My therapist has been so helpful for me as well… teaching me how to live life in a more flexible way.

What have I learned? What has changed?

  • I have my changed my perspective and focus on nutrition: Now I focus on an overall quality diet (with balance); getting enough protein (125 grams or so per day); enough carbs, calories, and fat for fueling my active life and workouts (but not too much); and getting enough fiber into my diet (with fruits, veggies, and fiber) for digestion. All of this also contributes to the micronutrients that my body needs (vitamins, minerals, etc). I also try to get enough hydration in the form of water and electrolytes without beating myself up for having a Coke Zero and a bit of coffee with creamer (which has helped me to greatly reduce the amount of those that I drink). The above balanced plate is what I shoot for!
  • I do NOT care at this point if the meat that I eat is grass-fed/pastured, if my produce is organic, or if everything is homemade. I’m not saying that I don’t enjoy baking/making things homemade, but I’m saying that it’s not required or necessary. This has taken so much off of my plate and heaviness off my back and has allowed me to meet my needs without stress… which makes it more sustainable long term.
  • I’ve learned that “diet quality” means eating mostly whole foods: meat, eggs, some dairy, fruits and veggies, whole grains (oatmeal for the win!), etc. This is what I eat most of the time. I do NOT beat myself up if I have a fast food burger and fries once in a while, have a cookie or two, some potato chips, etc. I just make sure it’s not my entire diet. All foods fit into a healthy diet. Again, the less I avoid it and tell myself how bad I am if I have them, the less I actually have those foods. We tend to want/crave what we tell ourselves we can’t have. Which is why restriction doesn’t work long term.
  • Finding quick ways to get a meal in has been life-changing for my consistency. It doesn’t have to be fancy, complicated, or amazing. It just needs to fuel my body. I’m going to share what this looks like in my day-to-day below.

What resources have I used to learn how to eat well in a more simple way?

This has been a long journey. I have still gone back to my old ways many, many times over the years despite learning better ways over the years. I am a slow learner I guess. It has also been a process of learning how to implement new habits a little bit at a time.

  • Balance 365. Right after I got out of rehab in late November 2016, I somehow found a group on Facebook called Healthy Habits, Happy Moms. This Facebook group was the “free group” for a paid program called Balance 365. Around the same time, I found a blogger called Mama Lion Strong (I believe that was the name of her blog at the time… it doesn’t exist anymore). She was co-founder of this program. I ended up joining the paid program (thanks to someone who paid for it for me because I couldn’t afford it!). I was in the program for years. I didn’t make a ton of change at the time (because I was still working through a lot), but the seeds that were planted have stayed with me until this day. I actually ended up becoming friends with one of the founders of the program (Jen from Mama Lion Strong), and she has been a huge reason for the change that I have made in my life over time. Now, they do small group coaching and have an amazing podcast. They have been a part of so much life-change for women trying to learn how to live life while also taking care of our health.
  • The book: Atomic Habits by James Clear. I have also listened to many podcast episodes that he has been on. So many things that I learned from him include: just grow by 1% every day; when starting a new habit, start VERY slow and small; how you view yourself (your identity) changes whether or not you’re able to have consistent habit change; how to build habits; environment matters more than motivation; habit stacking; and so much more. I highly suggest it!
  • The Podcast: The Consistency Project. EC Synkowski does this podcast, and she has so much education in science and nutrition- BS in biochemical engineering, a first MS in environmental sciences (with a focus in genetics), second MS in Nutrition & Functional Medicine, and is a Certified Nutrition Specialist® and Licensed Dietitian Nutritionist. She has some amazing programs such as the 800g Challenge (first focusing on eating 800g of fruits and veggies per day), Lazy Macros (adding 0.7g of protein per pound of body weight to those fruits and veggies), and the Three Pillars Master Class (which I wouldn’t be able to afford, but I love what it’s about). She has something called the 10 Principles of Nutrition. You can read it by clicking that link. A LOT of the changes that I have made in my life have been from what I’ve learned through her! She has simplified nutrition so much for me and helped me realize that it doesn’t have to be organic, grass-fed, homemade, or complicated!
  • The book: Flexible Dieting by Alan Argon. This is an awesome resource. It is sort of written like a text book, so I haven’t finished reading it, but EC Synkowski talks about him alllll the time. His work is also research/evidence-based. In this book, he discusses science as a whole, the science of each macronutrient, exercise performance, dietary programming (setting calories, macros, etc), and dietary adherence/weaning off tracking. It’s written more for a nutrition professional, but I will say that it’s helpful for me as well!
  • Street Parking nutrition. I will say that I have tried their “template” many times, and for me, it’s too complicated. But. Overall, their main focus on nutrition involves very similar recommendations to what EC Synkowski shares. They have even joined together recently to promote the 800g challenge! They share a lot about having a balanced plate, using the palm method for serving sizes (which Balance 365 does that as well), etc. They focus on “more than nothing” in movement and in nutrition and to optimize as you go. A little at a time.
  • The NASM Nutrition Coaching program. I am working through it slowly, and I love it because it is focused on evidence-based nutrition. It’s science-based but also teaches you how to help people learn how to live their lives in a healthier way. I haven’t looked at it in a while, but I might pull it back out soon!

I’ve learned that living a healthy life means being able to eat quality foods with the right amount of macros, get enough fiber, and eat the “right” amount of calories for my activity level. It also means being balanced and not cutting anything out. It also means being active in my day-to-day life doing Street Parking, running, hiking, and being active in my job. Everyone has different ways that they enjoy moving their bodies, and that’s totally great. Just moving your body is important. I do believe that resistance training is super important for my lean body mass, bone density, etc. But also doing movement that you enjoy is better than no movement! Starting slow is also super important for consistency in the long term and just habit change in general.

What does this look like in my real life?

With my ADHD, some days I want to cook and bake all day, but more times than not, it’s the opposite these days! Partly because I don’t feel it’s necessary anymore, and partly because I’m just so busy living life.

I have learned to buy pre-made foods and use them daily. I try to pre-prep foods when I can, but I don’t always have the time to do that.

Some of my favorite foods/meals (definitely not everything, but some regulars):

From Costco:

  • Fresh Additions fully cooked chicken breast bites. They come in individual packs, are delicious, have a good amount of lean protein, and are easy to eat as is or throw into a meal. I especially like to have them with a bagged salad.
  • Bagged chopped salad. They come with everything you need except protein.
  • Fairlife protein drinks. I can’t drink whey protein (it causes major issues to my digestion), but I can drink these. They are delicious, low calorie, and an easy protein.
  • Precooked brown rice and brown rice/quinoa packets.
  • Individual cups of hummus. These are great to have with raw veggies.
  • Individual packs of beef jerky. A great snack on the go- lean protein.
  • Pre-cut frozen chicken breast bites. These are easy to use in meals.
  • Smoothie veggies and fruits. I prefer to make my own smoothie bags, but it’s nice to have these around for when I’m not able to make them for whatever reason. I have a smoothie almost every day! It’s a great way to get in a lot of fruits/veggies and protein!
  • Greek yogurt. Great way to get protein in.
  • Amylu brand chicken breakfast sausage links
  • Rotisserie chicken. They are $5 and can be used for SO many things!
  • Sauerkraut. They have a large container. We love to make sausage and sauerkraut with egg noodles often!
  • Deli turkey. A quick and easy protein.
  • Perfect Bars. These are great when I’m in a pinch. They are delicious but have a little more fat than I would like regularly.
  • For the kids- the lightly breaded chicken breast chunks are their fave! They throw them in the air fryer.

I couldn’t link these, but these are some pictures of some of this!

Trader Joe’s:

  • All kinds of pre-prepared fruits and veggies: coleslaw mix (to throw into meals), a variety of bagged salads, pre-cut fruits and veggies, etc.
  • Frozen chicken breakfast sausage patties
  • Frozen pre-prepped/pre-cut fruits and veggies
  • Frozen salmon burger patties
  • Egg whites, eggs, and boiled eggs
  • Crushed and frozen ginger and garlic cubes
  • Greek yogurt
  • Snacks: Cassava chips, plantain chips, peanut puffs, trail mix individual bags of many kinds, nut mixes of many kinds, black bean and quinoa chips, Barebell protein bars, and the boys love their dried fruit (they will ask me to go there randomly when we are near it).
  • Granola (when I don’t make my own). This goes great with Greek yogurt when I need some energy.

Walmart:

This is actually where we shop the most. Costco and Trader Joe’s are about once or twice monthly shopping trips. I tried to link to the products when possible!

How do I put a meal together?

I start with protein. I try to make sure I have about 25-35g of protein. Then I add fruits, veggies, quality carbs, and a bit of fat! I have been logging my food on Cronometer, but I haven’t been as consistent lately because I seem to have a pretty good handle on the amount that I’m eating.

Some ideas:

  • I love protein oats + a cooked egg or two with spinach (or some chicken breakfast sausage). I’ve been putting berries and banana on it lately!
  • Eggs, sausage, toast with peanut butter, fruit, grape tomatoes
  • Breakfast bowl: sausage, egg, potatoes, and some sort of other veggie (Brussels sprouts, green beans, etc)
  • I love a good chopped salad with some chicken on top.
  • Tacos of all kinds- beef, chicken, pork with lots of toppings (sometimes coleslaw, guacamole or avocado, tomato, lettuce) + beans + rice
  • “Finger foods” or “Snack plate” (whatever you want to call it!). Some examples: deli meat, boiled eggs, raw veggies and hummus, fruit; Greek yogurt and boiled eggs, raw veggies and hummus, fruit; Cottage cheese and deli meat, raw veggies, and fruit. You can change up the veggies and fruit that you have as well as the protein.
  • Sandwich with deli meat and veggies, raw veggies and hummus, fruit, and even a few chips!
  • The pre-cooked chicken, veggies and hummus, and fruit
  • Stir fry with pan-cooked pork chops or chicken and add stir fry veggies and sauce packet. Serve with rice.
  • Bowls and sheet pan meals of all kinds: Chicken sausage with veggies (squash, asparagus, and potatoes); chicken breast with veggies and potatoes, salmon with veggies;
  • Egg-roll-in-a-bowl
  • Most of our dinners consist of a meat, veggie, and carb. The carb is usually potatoes, rice, or even my homemade sourdough.
  • Burrito bowls: Taco beef, pinto beans, cilantro lime rice, with toppings (guacamole, tomatoes, etc); chicken fajita meat, black beans, cilantro lime rice, with toppings.
  • Meat sauce with protein pasta and sauteed zucchini or broccoli
  • All kinds of soups, chili, etc
  • Chicken salad, Triscuits, veggies and hummus, fruit
  • Avocado toast with egg and tomato
  • Sausage, sauerkraut, and buttered egg noodles
  • Chicken fried rice with veggies
  • Tostadas with baked corn tortillas, taco beef, refried beans, a bit of cheese, guacamole, tomatoes, and lettuce
  • Bagged chopped salad and chicken apple sausage
  • Flavored tuna packet, veggies and hummus, apples and peanut butter
  • Stew
  • Roast and veggies
  • For snacks: boiled eggs and veggies with hummus; beef jerky, a few almonds, a few tortilla chips, some grape tomatoes; a smoothie; Greek yogurt and fruits/veggies; trail mix with some veggies and hummus; protein bar and apple; Greek yogurt and granola;

Some Simple Food Prep to Do for the Week

  • Roast some potatoes. My faves are yellow potatoes and sweet potatoes.
  • Make some smoothie bags (mix some frozen fruit and mild tasting veggies, add some spinach, and throw into freezer bags)
  • Make a raw veggies tray or even just cut some to have in the fridge.
  • Cut your veggies for your dinners ahead of time if possible.
  • Cook some proteins that will be easy to throw with some veggies.

I will continue to add to this post as I think of new things! What ideas would you add?

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