Eat to Live Update

Mike and are starting WEEK 3 of our

Eat to Live six-week plan. 

Thoughts so far. . .

It's not as hard as I expected, but at the same time it's a lot harder than I expected! The easiest thing, for me (probably not for Mike), has been giving up dairy products and meat. I've never been a big meat-eater, and most dairy products make me stuffy. The hardest thing for me has been limiting salt and ranch dressing on my salads (although he gives a vegan ranch recipe that is pretty good). 

Easy for me. . .

-Not eating meat

-Not eating dairy

-Eating lots of fruits and veggies

-Making new recipes

Hard for me. . .

-Limiting added salt

-Finding good salad dressings

-Eating 3 meals (not snacking)

-Planning meals and shopping 

Overall, both Mike and I have had great results in only 2 weeks on the plan! I have lost 4 lbs and Mike has lost 10 lbs. Both of our BMI's have lowered, as well as our % body fat. I have also had more energy, and had a greater desire to be productive. I have really enjoyed learning new ways of cooking (without oil) and it has been very rewarding to have successfully made some great, very healthy, meals. 

Our daily eating usually consists of. . .

-Breakfast: Green smoothie, fresh fruit, or oatmeal with almond milk, berries, or raisins

-Lunch: Homemade soup, and/or salad with beans, raw veggies, raw nuts, and homemade dressing

-Dinner: Same as lunch, and/or brown rice, sweet potatoes, or other ETL main dish (recipes in the book)

The following chart is the Eat to Live Life Plan. 

It is clear, simple, and definitely do-able. 

Dr. Fuhrman recommends that the *limited and *twice/once weekly foods make up 

less than 10% of your total daily calories. 

In my opinion, for those who are LDS, 

 this recommendation is 100% in line with the Word of Wisdom.

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On top of ETL I have been exercising very consistently for the past 2 weeks. I usually rotate between  cardio (jogging, biking, or elliptical) and other strength/toning exercise (pilates, yoga, ballet, or free weights). I am really interested in beginning a dedicated weight training program, but by golly it's scary! Every time I go to the gym (the Orem rec center) the weight room is full of men. I seriously only saw one woman in there once! I wish they had a separate women's weight room (like the University Golds does). 

If you have any advice on starting a strength training program PLEASE let me know! We can't afford to hire a personal trainer, and I seriously just need a written plan that I can take to the gym and follow every week. There are tons online, but they are always so different, and I have no idea which one would be best for me. 

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I am really excited about making permanent changes in my life, and for my family. The more research, praying, and reading I am doing, the more urgency I feel to implement changes. I have tons more thoughts about all this stuff, but I'll save them for other posts. :) 

Here we go WEEK 3! 

***This weekend Mike and I had a few cheats for Father's Day. By "cheats" I mean we ate what a normal person would eat in a normal day. This morning I woke up extremely tired and clogged with nasty mucous, a sore throat, nausea, AND a headache. If that's not motivation to get back on track I don't know what is!