[ScrappingForever]

I don't know how many of you read the Scrap Girls Digital Scrapbooking Adventures Blog. I had a post in it yesterday talking about the new life my family and I have started on. You can see that here.

What this basically is is a change in lifestyle, as you hear so often. It's eating totally differently than we usually do. Eating Clean means to eat only whole foods. Get rid of the sugar, the processed foods, the preservatives. Eating Clean means to eat 5 to 6 small meals a day, never letting yourself get hungry, thus you never binge, and your metabolism stays fired up. Eating clean means to eat meals that always contain a lean protein and complex carbohydrates such as fruits, veggies, whole grains.

We are combining this with an exercise program found at BeachBody.com. They have 90 day programs (and more!) to help a person get started and stay on track. We really need a regimented routine and have found this program to be really good.

As I said, my whole family is doing this. It will be two weeks on Monday since we started. My sons are complaining a bit that we'll no longer feed them they junk they are used to, but they aren't complaining nearly as much as we thought they would. DH and I are really loving the smaller meals. He has metabolic syndrome, and is having no problems at all with eating this way. In fact, it's keeping his blood sugar stabilized and healthy.

The exercise program consists of cardio and weight routines. We work out 6 days a week, every morning, switching back and forth between the days. We haven't missed a day yet and are highly motivated. As I said, this is a lifestyle change, which means this is what we're going to do for the rest of our lives. For us, for our children - to be healthy and live long healthy lives.

I'm very excited to see where this journey takes me. We all took before photos. I won't scare you with those just now. After 30 days, we'll take more photos to see the progress. I'll be doing a layout at that point with the before photos and the 30 day photos to document the journey.

I'm also going to try to post here every day - what I worked on and what I ate, to help with my accountability. I hope you'll wish me luck and help me keep on track! I can't wait to see what I can achieve with this new lifestyle!

[Jo Corne]

oh Jan, I think my family needs to take a feather out of your book and get going on this too.

dh got a treadmill over the weekend, suffice it to say, it's sitting in the garage under a taupe... need I say more!!

I will give you my best shot on keeping you on track and I most certainly wish you and yours luck, it's a fabulous idea and I can't wait to see the photos and layout

[satippetts]

Oh good luck Jan, I've been thinking about this lots lately now that the baby has come. Time to start getting into some healthy habits around here. I can't wait to see those 30 day progress pictures! I think it's awesome your doing this as a whole family too! Keep us up to date!

[MaryJo]

Jan this is awesome ! I think its great that the entire family is working through it together. I would love to get my DH and kids to eat better. Our family has been ill on and off for months, just that achy no motivation and all over icky feeling. my oldest DD is trying to eat healthier and exercise more and it seems to be paying off for her. I am going to read more about this program and see if maybe my DH would try it. Thanks for sharing and I'll be praying for all of you !!! Keep up the good work !

[goodqueenbee]

this is GREAT STUFF! Glad you enlisted the entire team so everyone can appreciate the efforts!
WTG

[ScrappingForever]

If you want to know more about eating clean, do a Google search on Eat Clean. There's a cookbook and diet book called Eat Clean by Tosca Reno. You can find them both on Amazon. Tosca Reno's story alone is inspiring. We bought both of these, and they've become our foundation for our eating.

It would be awesome if I could inspire some of you to start eating this way...and exercising, of course. When you start to read some of the statistics on obesity in kids in this country....it's scary. Just absolutely scary what we're doing to our kids, with all of the so-called good foods that you'll find in the center aisles of the grocery store.

One of the big motivators for us is not just our own health, but the health of our boys. Samuel, my oldest, is fine. He will probably always be good at making healthy choices and being active. If anything, we need to put more meat on his bones. It's Ben, my younger son, that I'm worried about. He has my sweet tooth, and I can relate so well to how he feels about food. But at age 9, he is started to gain a gut. He never had a problem before, but he's put on some weight this year. We do not want this trend to continue, so we are doing this program not only to help him slim down, but to ingrain in him a foundation of healthy eating. The hard part is that because his father and I have joint custody, he spends every other week at his father's. So the eating there will be just as crappy as always. But at least half of the time I know he'll be eating good things. And I pack their lunches every day, for summer camp and school, and it will only be good stuff in there.

Anyway, I'll post tonite what we ate for today. Oh, and no exercising for us today. It's our rest day! Yaay! Although we probably will still go out for a walk or something.

I'm loving my new lifestyle!

[sunnie2004]

What a fantastic thing for your family & you Jan!! WTG!!

My hubbie & me have been walking 4 miles in 37 min & 50 min for the 5 mile walk 3-5 times a week. I do feel better physcially but that's it & its good. So wtg! please keep me posted

Caren

[Keri S]

That is wonderful, Jan! I give you credit for making a commitment to such a healthy lifestyle change.
I may just have to google eating clean as well because I can only imagine the benefits of that alone!
I wish you all the best in your journey.

[sprinklz]

Yay for you Jan! You sound so happy with this new lifestyle so I know it will be a great success. Can't wait to see where this journey takes you!

[Sherry Lynn]

Good luck Jan to you and your family! AND Congratulations on chosing a healthy lifestyle change, doing this as an entire family is both fun and exciting!

[ScrappingForever]

So, here's what we ate yesterday, in case anyone is looking to see what Eating Clean really means:

Breakfast: Whole wheat pancakes, sugar free syrup, strawberries and coffee (I still do add a little cream, my one downfall. Can't stand black coffee.)

Mid-morning snack - missed this one

Early Lunch since we missed morning snack and were heading out to run errands - Whole wheat tortilla wrapped around grilled chicken and feta cheese, (DH also had mustard on his - yuck!) canteloupe, Green tea sweetened with one packet of Splenda.

Mid-afternoon snack - Flaxseed chips and hard-boiled egg, water

2nd mid-afternoon snack - Banana protein shake

Dinner - Chicken stir-fry with cashews, onions and mushrooms, green beans, brown rice, green tea

Evening snack - Apples with natural peanut butter

And of course, lots and lots of water through the day.

On our work-out days (yesterday was our rest day, we have a protein shake after we work out, to get the fuel our bodies need after working out.

We're heading into the start of week 3, and no worries! I haven't even had a piece of dark chocolate since we started! Not that there haven't been a few times that I've thought of it, but I turned to something else. I am determined to make this work!

Have a great, healthy day everyone!

[kimmybutton]

Jan, congratulations to you and your family! It's a wonderful commitment--to a new and healthy lifestyle-- and it is great that you are starting on this journey as a family! Lots of lessons for the boys to be learned here besides the diet/lifestyle benefits...working together, supporting one another, etc. Can't wait to see the layout and hear about the results you are all having!

[MelJohnson]

Best of luck with this, Jan. Your enthusiasm is contagious. DH and I were talking about this very subject on our drive home from GA yesterday. We both need to lose a lot of weight and are also concerned that we're teaching our kids bad habits with regard to food. I'm going to check out the resources you mentioned. I do try to stay out of those center aisles at the grocery store but it's definitely more challenging to make whole foods work when there are so many other things to get done in a day and the pre-packaged stuff is so quick. It's just a matter of priorities, really, but I'd love to hear how you are managing the food organization part. Are you shopping more frequently to get fresh produce? How far out do you create your menus?

[ScrappingForever]

Oh yeah, we're going through fruit like it's going outta style! I'm finding that I need to get to the grocery store about twice a week now, to get fresh fruits and veggies. I HATE going to the store, so this is probably the worst part. But DH also doesn't mind stopping after work, so that helps.

At this point, we're planning menus for the week. Gotta do that today. The Eat Clean Diet book has a grocery list in it of the staples you want to have on hand. We started by going through our cupboards and pantry and tossing out the bad stuff. Still have more of that to do, too. Then, we went to stores where we know they stock the kinds of staples we need. We have both a Whole Foods and Trader Joe's in our area, so those are the two we hit. Now, when we sit down to plan out the menus, we'll only have to get the fresh stuff. We are planning on working our way through the Eat Clean cookbook, trying different recipes to see what we like. Then we can build a longer term meal plan based on what worked and what didn't. We aren't getting real fancy with our meals, because the boys will really rebel.

I think, once you get used to eating this way, you'll find that you'll recognize on your own what recipes fit this plan and what don't. For example, we have the big Cooking Light cookbook. I haven't looked at that yet, but I'm sure there are a ton of recipes in there that will work.

I'm also trying hard to be sure we have some kind of treat in the evenings for the boys. For instance, one of the Eat Clean books has a recipe for Oatmeal cookies. They were a big hit. It's just enough to keep the boys...and me....and our sweet tooths happy.

HTH a bit. Let me know if you have more questions. I'm ready to sell everyone on the idea of eating this way.

[Peppi]

I missed this thread until now. Good luck on your journey Jan. Great decision for you and your family! You deserve my respect!!! Can't wait to read more about your progress!

[Julie - scrapaholic]

WTG Jan. You will feel the difference as well as see the difference in no time at all. I have been eating healthy now for 4 or 5 months and have dropped 24 pounds, and am now at a very healthy weight. I have more energy, am less moody, and am actually more alert during the day. Healthy is the way to go. Keep it up.

[ArizonaAngel]

Jan, It is always such a great thing to improve one's life & health. It's the starting that is so difficult but it sounds like you are getting past those first tough weeks. Best of luck - you are inspiring us! Thanks!

[ScrappingForever]

So here we are starting our third week of the P90 program and eating clean. I love how I feel, although it's hard to see what progress I may be making so early in the game. I have weighed myself, but scales aren't the best measurement device at this stage since I'm converting fat to muscle and muscle weighs more.

But we are exercising every morning - haven't missed a day yet, and doing great with our eating clean. I can't wait till the first 30 days are up to take the next set of photos so I can really see the results!

Thanks for all of the encouragement!

[Burnsie]

You go Jan! I started this type of program after my second son was born..just to motivate you, in my first month, I lost 6lbs. of FAT and gained 6 lbs. of muscle! My weight was the same, but I looked different! And I felt so much better! Keep us posted on your progress!

[needadietcoke]

Congratulations on making a major life change! I feel so much better than I did before I started WW, but I'm realizing that we need to have a family crackdown. Yesterday I was working with 5 boys on the physical requirements for the Personal Fitness merit badge. They have to run, do pushups, situps, pull ups, flexibility tests, and be weighed and measured. I was a little dismayed by my son's performance- and he won the Presidential Fitness Award at school! He is my worst eater, so I guess we have some "junk in, junk out" issues. There's always room for improvement!

[ScrappingForever]

Can I just say, I feel so good about me, myself and I right now! I'm not the type of person that really gets down on herself anyway...very much an optimist. But I knew I could do better for myself. And I am. And it feels soooo good! I told DH that at dinner tonite, that I felt so good about what we were doing...not just physically, but mentally, emotionally. I know this is the right thing, and something that is so important for us to do. I'd like to encourage any of you who are thinking of changing your eating habits to just do it. Take that step, commit, and watch your life change.

This is what I ate today:

After morning work-out - Banana protein shake
Breakfast: Oatmeal with cranberries, natural peanut butter and more in it
Mid-morning snack - flaxseed chips, salsa and hard-boiled egg white
Lunch - left-over chicken and couscous
Mid-afternoon snack - homemade granola bar made with mashed banana, natural peanut butter and granola
Dinner - Turkey burgers with onions and feta cheese in them, small baked potato and broccoli.

Feeling great!