Obligatory Meal Out - Meals for 2/3/2017

This day is the last day of my daughter's ski lessons. She's gone up to Park City with her dad and brother every Saturday for 6 weeks now for private, locals-only ski lessons. She LOVES to ski. It's adorable to see her so passionate about something at age 5. With today being her last day we have a fun breakfast planned. To be honest though, my husband plans special breakfasts at least once a week. It's hard to resist his steaming heaps of gourmet pancakes, so I make sure to make my breakfast first thing before I get too hungry and he finishes cooking. Today I will join the family to celebrate my daughter's completed goal - we are big into celebratory meals in this house!

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Meals for 2/3/2017

BREAKFAST: Joy of Cooking Buttermilk Pancake (32g) with toppings (6.5g)

One Joy of Cooking Buttermilk Pancake (32g)
Syrup (1g see below)
1/4c fresh blackberries (3.5g)
2 slices of bacon (2g)

Today I'm going to enjoy ONE amazing waffle and try my hand at a "maple syrup" made with stevia and Mapeline. It will be very thin! I hope its good. If it is I'll post it here. If it fails maybe I'll go with some peanut butter and homemade raspberry jam. FYI, I just discovered that Sprouts has nitrate free bacon. 

LUNCH: Yogurt (14g) and Goldfish (11g) Fiesta Salad (11g)

One container of Chobani berry Yogurt (14g)
1/3c Whole Grain Fish Crackers (11g)

Yogurt and goldfish is one of my favorite childhood meals. My grown up version is with greek yogurt and whole grain goldfish, but still. It's one of my comfort foods!

Fiesta Salad (11g)

1 handful of red leaf lettuce (1g)
hefty sprinkling of cilantro (1g)
1T black beans (3g)
1/4 avocado (5g)
1T basic salsa (1g)
juice of 1/8 lime (0g)

This is one of my favorite salads to make with left overs. You can sub the beans for halved kidney beans and/or cashews too. The more cilantro the better! It's also the base for my fajita salads which top this with some fabulously marinated meat.

DINNER: OUT (51g best guess)

For this meal my husband and I will be eating at a banquet. I was able to choose my meal from a couple options (standard, vegan or gluten free). This meal will be at BYU and for their vegetarian dishes their food staff usually sub the meat in a dish with more carbs, so I chose standard instead of vegetarian. Boo. I selected the following meal and have done my best to guess the carb count of each dish: pot roast (3g) smashed potatoes (16g) kale (2g) dessert (30g if I stick to a small portion. Those BYU brownies can getchya). This of course doesn't include any juice drinks or appetizer rolls. I'm not a huge fan of BYU's food so I doubt it will be tempting to really binge here. I'll eat my Fiesta Salad a bit later in the day just incase dinner is served late. 
This is a unique situation - its a meal out that I have no control over, similar to eating at a friend's home. I'm not choosing the restaurant or dish and I don't have a way to ask how the meal was prepared or whats in dressings or marinades. I also usually eat dinner at 5:00 but this even doesn't even begin till 7:30pm. And that's okay. That's life. I'll do my best and try to stay in my carb budget and blow it all on the watered down drinks just because they are there.

EXTRA: None today. If I'm accurate in my assumptions I am actually 5g over. With my awesome meal planning I can see this coming and choose to not eat any snacks today. 

Officially Strawberry and Season! - Meals for 2/1/2017

YAYAYAYAY! Strawberries! You'd never know that they actually give me migraines they way I down them so fast. WORTH IT. I saw some dark melting chocolates at Target and had to really refrain from taking them home. My detox would have ended that night if I had! Hah. Anyway, my leftover Strawberry Shortcake will be legit tonight. 

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Meals for 2/1/17

BREAKFAST: Breakfast Apple Oatmeal (32g) and Green Girl Smoothie (6g)

Same as Monday but I'm adding a green smoothie to the mix.

Green Girl Smoothie (6g)

1 handful spinach (1g)

1/4c mixed berries (4g)

⅓ lemon (.5g round to 1g)

Shot of stevia (0g)

You can add an entire extra bunch of spinach to this smoothie if you want it thicker. I had no idea before my detox how many greens my basic blender could handle!

LUNCH: Chicken soup (10g) and one toasted, buttered slice bread (15g)

Leftovers from yesterday plus my favorite organic bread. Breads can really kill a low carb diet. When I DO go for a slice or sandwich I find myself always coming back to Dave's Killer Bread. The Sprouted Whole Grain loaves only have 15g carbs a piece as well as 4g of protein, 3g of fiber, 70 mg of omega-3, and 19g whole wheat. Plus they are always moist and fluffy, unlike the many other brands I've tested. All of Dave's breads are organic and are great though. Just make sure you check the carb count as they vary widely. Dave's also has thin sliced loaves with fewer carbs but I have yet to taste them.

DINNER: BBQ Chicken and fixin's (29g) and Basic Ranch Salad (9g)

Chicken (1g)

2T Sweet Baby Ray’s BBQ sauce (18g)

1/4c Corn (10g)

Even 2 years into this diet I am still shocked at the carb count of some common condiments. 18g of carbs in 2T bbq sauce?! YIKES. But yum. I work around it. We turnup the BBQ and baste those bad boys with each flip. I like to get organic thigh meat when I can. The fats of non-organic meats hold all the icky antibiotics and hormones given to the animal, as well as the pesticides the animal ate with its food. So when using non-organic meat I always cut off the fats. With organic meats you can afford to enjoy some of that juiciness! Organic chicken thighs are the bomb for BBQing. They don't dry out and they require less sauce to make them delicious. And what BBQ would be complete with out corn? Add a salad and enjoy life. Leftover chicken on top of a salad is always a good leftover meal too.

DESSERT: Strawberry Shortcake (14g)

Leftovers! Because life is better with dessert.

EXTRAS: 5g leftover Maybe some carrots and hummus today? Before you run out and buy "baby" carrots, please please please try buying a whole large carrot and slicing it up. It will change your carrot out look on the world. If its organic you don't even have to peel it, just scrub the dirt off and enjoy. Also, explore your local farmers market for some hummus. My favorite so far was a homemade cilantro and avocado blend. Oh but then there was a black bean and jalapeño one I also loved...hmm. I think I need to go back and do a taste my taste comparison...

*ACTUAL* Low Carbohydrate Meals - Meals for 1/30/2017

Spring 2017 will mark the second year I have been striving to eat a low carb diet. I was diagnosed with PCOS in 2015 which means I am automatically pre-diabetic. My endocrinologist, with whom I work closely, has instructed me to eat no more that 120 grams of carbohydrates per day and lean more on proteins and healthy fats to make up for the calories I loose in skipping the sugars and starches. This has kept me fit and energetic all through my third pregnancy as well as kept my thyroid in check with no thyroid medication in a year and a half! 

I've searched all over online for ideas and most "low-carb" recipes have laughably HUGE servings of carbs. Here I will present 3-4 meals per day that can fit into my 120 allotment; most meals will equate to 30-40 grams of carbs. If you need an even lower carb idea, you can always cut the meal in half and add a salad or green smoothie. I usually make 2-3 meals worth for my entire family of the lunch and dinner dishes, although occasionally I eat something different than the family for lunch.
I make most all my meals from home and try to eat only whole foods. You'll see that I am not perfect in this (mother of 3, hello!) but I'm doing my best. I'm finally getting tired of counting out my carbs at every meal and/or eating the same things over and over again, so I'm making my now little go-to low-carb meal list for my own benefit.These are meals I *actually* eat. I meal plan out every week and shop accordingly, ensuring I make room for any treats I feel are worthy of my belly. One of my main issues is that I do NOT like eggs. Major issue when going low-carb! I also am not a huge fan of raw tomatoes, cheddar cheese, fish, or mushrooms as will be reflected in my meal planning. Maybe you're like me and need ideas. Maybe this can help someone who was like me 2 years ago. I hope so! Enjoy.

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Meals for 1/30/17 

BREAKFAST: Breakfast Apple Oatmeal (32g)<----carbs counts ;)

1/2c dry oatmeal (25g)

1/8c golden raisins (10g)

⅕ medium apple (6.4oz) (5g)

Dash of cinnamon (0g)

Teaspoon of Apple Cider Vinegar (0g)

⅛ avocado (1oz) (2g)

Cook oatmeal (or do overnight oats) and add the rest in! The avocado is a great creamer and adds wonderfully healthy fats that will keep you full for a long time! The apple cider vinegar and apples make for wonderful flavor, as well as the pops of raisins. I really don’t desire this meal any more sweet, but if you do add a few drops of stevia and enjoy!

LUNCH: Roast beef sandwich (43g)

2 slices Dave’s killer bread, Sprouted Whole Grain (30g total)

½ large avocado (10g)

Lettuce (1g)

Roast beef deli meat (2g)

1T Mayo (0g)

DINNER: Chuck Roast with fixins (27.5g) and Basic Ranch Salad (9g)

Chuck Roast with fixing (27.5g)

Chuck roast (1g)

1/4c gravy (2.5)

1/8c onions (2)

1c carrots (6)

1/2c mashed potatoes (16g)

Cook roast, onions, carrots, and cup of water in a crock pot on low till cooked thoroughly. Salt as desired. Make gravy with dripping and flour. Add beef bouillon to taste if desired. Mash potatoes with a dash of whole milk and butter to taste.

Basic Ranch Salad (9g)

1 handful Lettuce (1g)

2T Ranch (2g)

¼ avocado (5g)

⅛ bell peppers (1g)

I'm currently using Hidden Valley Ranch in the bottle because I'm too lazy to make it from scratch this week. Making it from scratch with buttermilk is the best though!

EXTRA: Theres an extra 8.5g of carbs leftover for this day. Maybe use it towards a snack midday? Or a nice piece of dark chocolate after dinner? I have been purposefully cultivating a taste for dark dark chocolate over the past two years. The higher the cocoa ration the fewer the carbs (usually) :)

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Oh man, I'm looking forward to next Monday! I will have just completed my 26 day Green Smoothie Girl Detox. I am looking forward to some MEAT! Pot Roast is my favorite.

By the way, I recommend this detox. Its well thought out and in a total different camp than the crappy "detox" diets you find in magazines. Its a vegan, mostly-raw, organic plant based diet with easy modifications for those with blood sugar issues. I made this work for me easily and it showed me how to fit more veggies into every meal. And my doctor approved it! I ended up loosing 10 pounds, but that wasn't my goal. As I say, I've been eating right and didn't need to loose weight. But, if you do, its supposed to lower your body natural weight equilibrium. We'll see!