Just a general diet chat thread...I have a little cutie attached to my boobie and finding more time online. I have about 30lb to lose, currently at 175lb...just started planning/tracking my meals. I am 4 weeks pos partum and have a few weeks before i am cleared to workout...food is 90% for losing anyways, so hoping to stay accountable and make good choices!
I made a huge batch of different salads on Sunday for the week. And my dad is here Mon-Fri and helping out.! What i didnt expect is us eating through it all by today...time to get more veggies!
I'm not a veggie eater they dont like me and unless they are in soup I find it very hard to eat them. I must try harder. I did grow some this year carrots & broccoli but I gave most of them away.
I will try harder!
I'm not a veggie eater they dont like me and unless they are in soup I find it very hard to eat them. I must try harder. I did grow some this year carrots & broccoli but I gave most of them away.
I will try harder!
I totally hear you! I was not a big veggie eater, but had to get creative when I lost weight the first time, part of Ideal Protein is 2 cups of select veggies a day. That fell by the wayside the past 10 months with food aversions! Trying to get back on it though...
Liz, how are you able to keep the greens for your salad fresh throughout the week? I would love to do the same, as most mornings I find myself rushing to get ready through my first trimester fatigue, and not leaving any time for me to prepare my lunch before I go.
When I buy produce for us for the week, I will go ahead and chop/dice peppers, green onions, carrots, etc for different dishes I make for dinner for us as well as for salads. But how are you able to keep your lettuce fresh by doing it all in a big batch on Sundays?
Liz, how are you able to keep the greens for your salad fresh throughout the week? I would love to do the same, as most mornings I find myself rushing to get ready through my first trimester fatigue, and not leaving any time for me to prepare my lunch before I go.
When I buy produce for us for the week, I will go ahead and chop/dice peppers, green onions, carrots, etc for different dishes I make for dinner for us as well as for salads. But how are you able to keep your lettuce fresh by doing it all in a big batch on Sundays?
I dont really eat "lettuce", as i hate traditional salads. I stick with kale, which is a "heartier green", and dressing it in the vinegar/OJ helps preserve the apple from turning brown. And as for spinach, i buy a big box of triple washed, but i only use that in smoothies (again, not a "salad" eater). I use the term salad loosely as a mix of different veggies & fruits. I try to incorporate celery & cucumbers as much as I can since they are low -cal and filling.
This weeks veggie prep:
1. Mashed "fauxtatoes": Roasted Cauliflower, Celery, &Garlic puree
2. Waldorf Salad: red grapes, celery, green apple w/light mayo &lemon juice
3. Jicama, cucumber, & mint w/lime juice & agave syrup
4. Kale, green apple, cranberry & pepitas w/OJ & apple cider vinegar
Btw, i commend you for keeping up with the veggies during pregnancy. I totally let that fall by the wayside, it was such a big part of my diet beforehand. Sadly i let cravings and food aversions take over. Thats a hard hole to dig yourself out of.
I saw a pinterest post using old jars (like big spaghetti sauce jars) in layers pouring dressing first on the bottom; then additions like nuts, cranberries, fruit, veggies, etc; then protein like chicken, tquna, steak, tofu, etc; finally adding lettuce on top. There was an assembly line of 5 salad jars so all she had to do was shake it up for her daily salad. Good idea to seperate your greens from the dressing, and its good to grab & go.
OH GLORIOUS DAY!!!!! Baby Girl let me sleep FIVE HOURS last night from 12-5am! I accept her 5-week birthday gift, that's almost like a normal person! She did wake up 2 hours after that, but wow, I think I actually got some REM. If this pattern keeps up I will start back up with my 5am workouts! Crossing my fingers!
Liz, how are you able to keep the greens for your salad fresh throughout the week?
I hope you don't mind me popping my head in here. I prepare a salad just about every week and use baby spinach and other leafy greens for the base. The key to making any lettuce last is to dry it (a salad spinner works great for this) before storing it in an airtight container (I picked up a cheap set of plastic bowls with lids from Walmart that work perfectly). Also make sure you don't add your dressing until you're ready to eat it. The batches I make are typically good for at least a week and sometimes longer, and it's so convenient to be able to scoop out some for a meal or to transfer some to smaller container when I'm on the go!
I go into more detail about the salad I make in my blog here.
* * *
I'm all about prepping and portioning in advance these days, and I think it'll be a wise habit to stick with once the baby's here. I typically have a smoothie for breakfast and it just dawned on me that the process is faster if I portion out the frozen parts in ziploc baggies ahead of time! For this week I prepped burritos, pizza crusts, salad, and smoothie mix (all healthy and on-plan!) so I've got some easy, lazy meals ahead of me.
I prepare a salad just about every week and use baby spinach and other leafy greens for the base. The batches I make are typically good for at least a week and sometimes longer, and it's so convenient to be able to scoop out some for a meal or to transfer some to smaller container when I'm on the go!
I commend you on the salad eating...and while pregnant! I totally went off the charts eating, especially first trimester eating through the nausea...then that slippery slope is hard to get out of. The kale salad is the closest I get to traditional "salad", i always have to get creative with my greens!
I got another 5-hour stretch last night, but we had an overnight guest so I didn't get to take full advantage of the sleep...But.... I did have a glass of red wine with my girlfriend (in town 1 night for work & stayed with us)! My first drink since I got preggers...4 hours later I figured I was safe to nurse again. We used to be partners in crime, we moved 5 years ago, so it was great to catch up.
HOLY COW!!! She slept for 5.5 hours last night!!!! I got a full 5 hours of sleep - that's almost as much as a normal person! She woke up again 2.5 hours later, but I much prefer the 5 hour + 2 hour shift for myself than the broken 2-3 hours. Hopefully if she keeps this up I can start hitting the gym early mornings. My plan post-partum was always to go back to working out at ~5am around 6 weeks, happy that little girl seems to be working towards it!
Congrats on getting some sleep! It can make you feel like a new woman, I know.
I'm about 14 weeks pp (give or take... I always lose count around 10 weeks and then just kinda guess). My weight loss has been stalled for quite a few weeks, but truthfully I haven't been working at it. No exercise. No focus on a healthy diet. I've just been eating what I want and lounging around as much as I want. It's time to change that, I know, which is why I'm back here at 3FC.
I recently commited to at least exercise. That is the easier half of the equation for me. I squeeze in 30 mins (sometimes less like 20 depending on baby's nap length) on the treadmill almost daily. Its better than nothing, but its not making me feel on top of my weightloss. Liz I'm like you. I like to start my day with a 5am workout. That's what I was doing before this pregnancy, 5am run, usually about an hour.
But life isn't set up for that yet. Baby goes to sleep around 7-8pm in his crib, then is up anywhere from 11pm to 1am. At that point I bring him in bed and BF him, and he goes right back, and usually gets up one more time like 2a tp 4am to BF again, then we are up at the lastest 7am b/c I have to get my older son ready for school.
Once baby starts to sleep through the night AND can wake in the crib and not cry to be tended to immediately upon waking, then I can start doing early workouts. Sneaking out of bed is not an option, I've tried lol.
Eating has been another struggle. Oddly as it sounds, not starting my day with a good long workout, makes sticking to good eating harder. I can usually manage to stay on track till after noon then its a fight not to overeat or make poor choices. If I do make it through the day ok, at night I snack on sweets to unwind...Today I decided that on DH next day off (wednesday) I'm going to go to the book store and get a book. In the past, when I get into a good book I will enjoy that at night without needed to snack.
I jogged 3.5-miles yesterday @ 11:30 pace and am super sore today! Gotta restart somewhere! I was a pretty avid runner before, and am hoping to join my group again in ~2 weeks. I quit my group at 16-weeks and totally quit running at 28-weeks, so it's been over 4 months. I plan on running tomorrow morning as well, she wakes me up early anyways...and I find it's best to go early, No mommy guilt for "me time" since everyone else is out anyways and it gets done and out of the way!
Made beef liver tonight, my first time having liver and I really liked it! I think it gets a bad rap, I admit to being reluctant to try it because of its "reputation". Hubby liked it too, adding it to the weekly menu rotation. It's super good for you and CHEAP! Found a good grassfed ranch here that we buy from.
I am really trying to focus on getting to healthy habits and find my focus on eating gets sharpened when I work out. I had a carb binge fiasco 2 days ago, but it did guilt me into finally hitting the gym, which I had been putting off for over a week.
Liz - Do you go to a gym with child care? Where is baby during your runs? I saw you mention on another thread that your dad is there during the week to help, is he still there? I see your running/menu with food prep, I just wonder how you are finding time for all this? Especially w/ a 5 week old! My little guy is 2 1/2 months and things are just starting to settle in, barely, where I can usually get a short workout in while he naps, and he will sit in his bouncer for 15 minutes or so before he starts to fuss, just long enough that I'm slowly moving away from frozen meals, and throwing together some real foods.
This is my 3rd baby, so I've done this before, and I never had time to workout regularly or cook those first few months and really I dont get back to a routine until about 6 months. Actually with all my kids, the first 2 months at least they cry whenever I put them down, so I just hold them 24/7, even while they sleep, so there was no cooking, no weekly meal prep, no working out, just baby holding/ wearing (though I did take som walks while wearing baby . My little guy just started letting me put him down for a bit and is finally napping in the crib.
Liz - Do you go to a gym with child care? Where is baby during your runs? I saw you mention on another thread that your dad is there during the week to help, is he still there? I see your running/menu with food prep, I just wonder how you are finding time for all this? Especially w/ a 5 week old! My little guy is 2 1/2 months and things are just starting to settle in, barely, where I can usually get a short workout in while he naps, and he will sit in his bouncer for 15 minutes or so before he starts to fuss, just long enough that I'm slowly moving away from frozen meals, and throwing together some real foods.
This is my 3rd baby, so I've done this before, and I never had time to workout regularly or cook those first few months and really I dont get back to a routine until about 6 months. Actually with all my kids, the first 2 months at least they cry whenever I put them down, so I just hold them 24/7, even while they sleep, so there was no cooking, no weekly meal prep, no working out, just baby holding/ wearing (though I did take som walks while wearing baby . My little guy just started letting me put him down for a bit and is finally napping in the crib.
My dad was here for a week from San Antonio for his grand baby fix (we live 5 hours away in Dallas). I leave hubby & the kids sleeping in the morning, baby girl wakes up ~4/5am-ish, I nurse her back to sleep, pump, leave the monitor with hubby (he sleeps in the guest room, baby in cosleeper next to me),then hit the gym, come home & shower by the time everyone wakes up ~7:30am (my son is our alarm clock). Both of my kids have been good sleepers, so far Payton is like big brother, sleeping a solid chunk at night in her cosleeper ~5-6-hours followed by a ~3-hour nap after(which is when I fit in the workout & shower).
As for food, i take ~1-2 hours on Sunday to do mass salad prep/veggie chop either when she is napping, hubby holds her (although she cries when it's not ME holding her, so that doesn't last long), or I baby wear, I have ~3-4 healthy sides ready to eat during the week. Lunch & breakfast I whip up during her short naps in the bouncer and for dinner, I put a video on for my 3yo son & baby wear my daughter while I prep, pull ingredients, pans, etc...everything needed for meals. When hubby gets home I put things on the stove/oven while he plays with the kids for ~15 minutes. Hubs does the dishes.
My gym does have daycare starting @ 6mo, but I didn't start bringing my son until he was 2yo...and he LOVES it, they have a nicer play area than places i pay for (2-story climbing tube w/trampoline, etc)! Will probably do the same with this one. During the week I workout early, hubby goes late and during the weekend we do split shifts staying home with the baby & he takes my son with him.
Pregnant-Nursing October Monthly Chat
I prepare a salad just about every week and use baby spinach and other leafy greens for the base. The key to making any lettuce last is to dry it (a salad spinner works great for this) before storing it in an airtight container (I picked up a cheap set of plastic bowls with lids from Walmart that work perfectly). Also make sure you don't add your dressing until you're ready to eat it. The batches I make are typically good for at least a week and sometimes longer, and it's so convenient to be able to scoop out some for a meal or to transfer some to smaller container when I'm on the go! 
I go into more detail about the salad I make in my blog 
