Meet my friend Kelly. She's about as sweet as they come... and so is her darling family. She called me a few weeks ago ready to make a change with her diet and looking for some help along the way. She had decided she was ready to change her eating habits, and those of her husband, 2 boys and thought she could use a little direction along the way. So I set up a week long meal plan for her, including breakfasts, lunches, dinner, snacks and desserts. Here's a little snip-it of her journey... I thought you guys might enjoy reading about it. And if you are feeling like you relate with Kelly and want a change in your diet, or you are looking for a meal plan or a change up from the normal, than check out the meal plan at the bottom of her story.
1. What made you want to change the way you eat?
I enjoy eating healthy and trying new foods, but my husband is picky and does not like very many vegetables. Also, I am not the most experienced cook. :) My mom, who is truly the most fantastic mom, did not teach me how to cook. She did very little cooking when I was growing up; she just did not like to cook. This combination of not having a lot of experience and having a picky eating husband discouraged me from trying new recipes. When I tried to cook healthy, the meals were boring, simple meals. Then we had kids and life was even more crazy and trying to cook new foods was far off my reality radar. Truly, I wanted to learn some better options for my family and I love trying new foods, but it seemed like too big of a mountain to climb with 3 little kids ages three years old and younger. Then a few weeks ago I was reading an article about processed sugar and how it is broken down in the body. That same week my husband and I had a conversation with some of our close friends about a food documentary they had watched about American diets. This further confirmed in my mind it was time to make a change. A light went on inside me and I decided I wanted to cut out a lot of the process foods we were eating, but I needed help. I needed a mentor. I consulted one of my dearest friends, Andrea the author of this blog, and we got started on our healthy eating week long boot camp...cutting out the processed foods and sugars. Andrea made me a one-week meal plan complete with breakfast, lunch, dinner, snack, and dessert. She also met me at the store and we picked out good snacks and also foods that we could take on the go so that if we were stuck in the car during a meal time we would have options until we made it home.
2. What was the hardest part about changing?
Since the kitchen often overwhelms me and I did not have many other ideas besides what I was already doing, I needed a plan. I needed to know what I could snack on and cook if I was not going to be able to eat my normal snacks and foods. Now, it was not like we were eating fast food or mac and cheese every night, but we did have our share of cookies and crackers in the pantry. So I needed replacements, but I did not know where to start. I already fed my family fruits and (some) vegetables, but what about more interesting ideas. I had none. I also needed to get my husband on board. He totally stepped up and supported me. Love him!
3. What was the best thing about your new meal plan?
The best part was that it was complete and stress free because I did not have to come up with the foods we were going to eat...it was all mapped out. The meals were chosen at a cooking level in which I felt comfortable. I also had Andrea who I could call and ask questions if I needed help with the cooking. :)
4. Did you feel different?
I did feel different. My body processed the food a lot more, uh-hem, efficiently. :) Mentally, it was awesome to know that I had not put junk in my body all day and that my family was eating healthy. It also was a victory to actually eat a whole week cutting out the processed junk and still really enjoy what I was eating.
5. And do you think you will continue? why or why not.
Yes we will continue. It is going to be slowly. I am slowly going to build up more foods that we all like that fit into this new category of healthy and tasty meals. My husband was really impressed with the fact that the food was healthy and flavorful. I am excited to keep going on this journey. I do admit though that I will sometimes break my own rules...ice cream sometimes sneaks its way into our freezer. :)Kelly*s New Meal Plan!
Sunday | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Saturday |
B: Rice Cakes/ Apples w/ PB (or granola w/ milk) | B: Smoothies & Eggs | B: Oatmeal & Fresh Fruit | B: Smoothies & Rice Cakes (or apples) w/PB | B: Oatmeal & Fresh Fruit | B: Smoothies & Eggs | B: Breakfast Burritos |
L : Grilled Cheese, Tuna or PB & Honey Sandwiches w/ carrots, bells & cucumbers dipped in hummus | L: Hummus Sandwiches in Pitas with cucumbers, sprouts, bells, basil, etc. with nuts and fruit | L: Leftover Taco Salad | Left over Pesto Pasta w/ apple & baby carrots | L: Leftover Greek Salad Stuffed Pitas | L: Leftover Mexican Lasagna & Baby Carrots | L: Leftover Santa Fe Salad |
D: BBQ chicken, Sweet Potato Fries & Salad or Corn on the Cob | D: Taco Salad | D: Pesto Pasta or Spaghetti w/ broccoli, squash or asparagus | D: Greek Salad Stuffed Pitas | D: Mexican Lasagna & Green Salad | D: Santa Fe Salad | D: OUT! (Chipolte or Coconut Joe’s) |
Snacks/Dessert: * Fruit/Veggies * Mango Ice Cream | Snacks/Dessert: * Apples & PB * Dried Apricots & Choc. Chips | Snacks/Dessert: * Lara Bar * popcorn | Snacks/ Dessert: * pistachios * Banana Whips | Snacks/Dessert: * Trail Mix * Popcorn | Snacks/Dessert: * Rice Crackers * Banana whips | Snacks/Dessert: * Granola Bars *TREAT! IceCream |
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