A Life Less Complicated: What I've Learned So Far... Part 2

It's Part 2 of my "What I've Learned So Far" post! When I started writing this post I thought I'd just list 5 or 6 things, but as I started writing, I realized I had learned a lot more than that! And really, it's only fair to share... so on to Part 2!

I found that if I add a salad, I eat less of the other stuff. Pizza is a good example. In the past, we'd order a pizza and eat just pizza... and usually all of it. Now, if we get pizza, we make sure we get a salad - a good size one, with dressing that's not creamy or sugary - and definitely without cheese (you're getting cheese on your pizza, remember?). That way you're getting your veggies and filling up on fiber. You'll be less inclined to eat more pizza.

Portion sizes are no joke. This post from WebMD is an eye opener. Take note particularly of the correct portion sizes for pasta and meat. And, did you know that a serving size of ice cream or frozen yogurt is 1/2 a cup? We used a kitchen scale a lot in the beginning so that we could get a real understanding of what ounces looked like.

Oatmeal. I mention Kath's blog here a lot because she's been such an inspiration in terms of healthy balance. She loves food and loves exercise just as much. But the thing that's made the biggest impression? Her love of oatmeal. And you know... I get it now. Bob and I have been eating oatmeal for breakfast during the week every day since we started. It does a great job of filling us up and giving us energy. The key to keeping it interesting is the toppings. We always top it with some sort of nut butter. Lately, we're grooving on dark chocolate! Then something crunchy (nuts, granola, cereal). But keep your portion sizes in mind... we only do a Tbsp of nut butter, maybe a Tbsp of nuts and a Tbsp of an interesting jam.

Real, organic food tastes better. I'm much more motivated to eat fruits and veggies when they taste delicious. And honestly, I notice a huge difference when I buy my fruits and veg at Whole Foods. It's something I don't mind spending extra money on.

Bread, for me, is not the enemy. For a lot of people, it can cause pain and misery. Me, not so much. I've done the low carb thing in the past and definitely lost weight that way... and I definitely gained it back. The thing, for me, is moderation. It's not easy when you're sugar addicted or carb addicted (those are real things). But I happen to be fortunate enough not to be those. What works for me is respecting my portion sizes and realizing that if I'm having a sandwich for lunch, bread at dinner is probably not a great idea.

Food and fitness websites and blogs have been SO helpful and inspirational for me! I mentioned Kath's blog earlier, but there are so many others worth visiting: Carrots 'N' Cake, Oh She Glows, The Fitnessista, 101 Cookbooks and Making Good Choices are all places I find inspiration.

Water. This article from WebMD in 2004 talks about how water consumption can increase your metabolic rate. I don't know about you, but I could always use some metabolic rate revving. I also know that it helps me feel less bloat-ey.

Frozen bananas. Oh, you're going to thank me for this one. So I saw a couple of posts around the blogosphere about frozen bananas as dessert so of course I had to try. Changed. My. Life. This is like eating ice cream, and I'm not even kidding. All you do is 1) freeze some ripe bananas (I take mine out of the peel before freezing); 2) cut them up and put them in a food processor; 3)throw in a little bit of milk (we use unsweetened almond milk) and nut butter (a Tbsp) ; 4) give it a whir until it looks like soft serve ice cream; 5) eat; 6) thank me!

Try something new. Listen, it's just like anything... exercise, relationships, jobs... you have to keep it interesting. So I'm always on the lookout for new and interesting ingredients, healthy products, exercises and recipes. If you're bored, you will abandon it... whatever it is.