Sometimes, You Just Have To Mix It Up

I will admit it. The holidays were not kind to my hips.

One cookie here. A heaping serving of potatoes there. Cover it all with a big plate of pasta and call it "comfort food".

After a while, I started feeling sluggish and not so healthy.

My husband altered his eating patterns last fall, and managed to lose thirty five pounds and get his cholesterol levels back in the healthy zone. One of his biggest hurdles was breaking his addiction to sugar and diet soda. Once he kicked sugar to the curb, the weight seemed to melt off.

He learned that 4 grams of sugar is the equivalent of one teaspoon. Okay, doesn't sound so bad. But then I started to read food labels, and there are enormous amounts of sugar in EVERYTHING. That Yoplait Whips yogurt? FIVE teaspoons of sugar! Skim milk? Sugar. Fiber One bars? Sugar. Pasta sauce? Sugar. Peanut Butter? Sugar. Dried fruit that you once thought was healthy? Full of sugar.

There had to be a better way. I'm a girl that loves a cookie. Surely there's a healthier cookie out there somewhere.

That's when I stumbled upon Trim Healthy Mamas. Apparently, I'm not the only one. Their cookbook and plan is heavily featured at Target and Barnes and Noble. With the motto "Keep it simple, Keep it sane", these sisters lay out a more biblical approach to food that says "all things are permissible, but all things are not beneficial". They offer a sensible approach to food that is kind to our blood sugar levels and gentle on our bodies.

I've added a lot of new products to my pantry, and given my shelves a carb and sugar makeover. New flours like coconut flour, almond flour, flax seed meal, chia seeds. New sweeteners like Stevia, xylitol, blackstrap molasses.

Now I'm making yummy snack foods like Berry Crunch Bars and Chewy Chotein Bars.

I'm hydrating with all day sippers like Good Girl Moonshine.

I'm making a lot of new dinners that my family of men are really enjoying. Cabb and Saus Skillet, Swedish Meatballs in cream sauce, Wacha Want Mexican Chicken, Tilapia Veracruz. Really easy, satisfying meals.

Two weeks of tiptoeing into this newer healthier lifestyle, and I'm already feeling better...and slimmer.

As someone who has struggled with a chronic autoimmune disorder, I am constantly looking at ways to improve my health. I think these Trim Healthy Mamas have stumbled on to a pretty good plan that I can easily add into my family's daily life.

Spring is coming! Biking season, gardening season, puppy walking season. Time to mix it up and get a little bit healthier.