It used to be (for us) that when we went on vacation, we left everything behind, including whatever diet we may be on. I mean, really,it’s our vacation… We should be able to enjoy ourselves. We work too hard to deprive ourselves from what we like on one of our rare moments of freedom!!!!!!
Well I sit in my balcony overlooking the ocean realizing that as I approach my 1 year anniversary of the day I began my journey to get healthy (July 19)… for the first time in my life… I actually brought my lifestyle on this trip! What a concept.
Biggest factor: I am on a beach vacation and I can do groceries. I think that’s pretty huge. But on my previous beach trips, our shopping list would be filled with chips, dip, cereal, cookies, sodas, and “easy” stuff. This time around, we split our groceries with ouR dear friends and we bought things like fruits, salad, quinoa, natural peanut butter, real jelly, Ezekiel bread, and vegetables. We made sandwiches for the beach but used Ezekiel bread and good quality deli meat. We took fruits such as mangoes, grapes, berries, and mandarin oranges. We have cabbage soup and lentil soup and eggplant lasagna on the menu for dinners.
I just came up to my apartment to put my kids down for nap and I made myself this delicious salad:
I used organic girlgreens,mandarins, carrots, tomatoes, almonds, craisins, a little leftover chicken that we had for dinner last night, avocados, balsamic vinegar, olive oil, and my vacation treat: manchego cheese!!!!! Yummy.
I devoured my salad and it was delicious.
That being said, this morning my hubby made chocolate chip pancakes for the kids and us. We love pancakes and Orlando thinks its a nice tradition to make pancakes in the mornings on weekends or vacations. We used dark chocolate chips,but other than that they weren’t particularly healthy. And that’s ok with us!!! Because it’s a worthwhile treat for us and we are not dieting. I think it’s beautiful and significant that we don’t have to give up every guilty pleasure that we enjoy. But we exercise discretion and moderation and it makes us happier, healthier people and teaches our kids to have positive feelings towards food. They can enjoy a pancake in the morning and have delicious fruits and veggies for lunch. It’s all about balance. Ishould note that Orlando made the delicious pancakes but did not eat them. He doesn’t really likebreakfast foods and pancakes just aren’t worth it to him. So he doesn’t put food in his mouth thats not worth it to him. Instead he will treat himself to some wine while he plays dominoes on the beach because that is something he enjoys. We all have to pick and choose the things we really enjoy instead of indulging on anything just because it’s in front of our face. That is a valuable lesson he has taught me.
As for tomorrow morning, we have our bullet ready for some delicious smoothies and we’ll continue to enjoy our vacation healthily and happily. We’ll keep you posted!
Thanks for helping me on my grocery list. I will try my best to do the same. What is quinoa?
Quinoa is a gluten free- whole grain. I discovered it when my first son was born. I had a Venezuelan neighbor who told me one day that I should feed it to my son. She told me it was much better than rice and gave me some recipes. I did a search online and found this nutrition information:
Among the Top Quinoa Nutritional Facts Worth Knowing Are The Following:
1. Quinoa has a high level of protein. Compared with other grains, it provides a wider and more properly balanced variety of amino acids (which are the building blocks of protein).
2. It is also a great source of magnesium and manganese. Magnesium is a mineral that aids in relaxing the blood vessels. It is proven effective for people who have migraines because it prevents constriction and rebound dilation in blood vessels that often triggers migraine attacks. Since Quinoa has magnesium, it dramatically reduces, if not totally eliminates, headaches and migraines.
Manganese along with copper work together to produce superoxide dismutase enzyme that keep mitochondria from oxidative damage that is produced when energy is created. It also guards other cells like red blood cells from harmful free radicals.
3. It provides adequate amounts of Vitamins E and B2, as well as dietary fibers. Vitamin B2, otherwise known as Riboflavin, is necessary in reducing migraine attacks by helping improve brain and muscle cell metabolism.
4. It is rich in minerals like iron, phosphorus, copper and zinc.
5. Quinoa is gluten free. Since it has a one-of-a-kind consistency and texture, chefs or even health buffs formulate their own recipes with quinoa. They use it in recipes the same way as couscous rice. Moreover, today’s diet-conscious consumers prefer gluten free quinoa bread over the usual bread with flour, egg and butter, which shows only how widespread the market for Quinoa is.
Of course, there are a lot of other nutritional benefits from Quinoa aside from the ones previously mentioned. It is not only a great alternative to rice and other grains but it is also rich in Calcium. This provides for and promotes stronger and healthier bones.