Clean Eating. Nom.

I am fairly healthy compared to the average American: I don't drink carbonated drinks, I rarely dive into a bag of Cheetos, I walk to work every day, I run at least once a week, and I don't consume an obnoxious amount of fast food (or even Starbucks drinks). My problem is I'm not quite sure what exactly I am eating. I am quite confident, however, whatever it is it includes a lot of sugar and isn't the best for my body. I'm certainly not even close to being overweight, but I would love to get away from processed and chemical-loaded foods.

I want to be extremely comfortable with my body knowing what I am putting in it are things that will help it and give it nutrients. It goes along with the simplicity I am trying to achieve; be healthy... get moving... and quit putting all that junk and unnecessary stuff in my diet. A quote that you may hear often keeps sticking in my head: If you eat garbage, your body will show it. I decided last week that it was time to get back to eating clean and trying to be a bit more active.

What is clean eating?
There are a few definitions out there. For me, eating "clean" means consuming tons of fresh veggies and fruits, eliminating all processed foods/preservatives/additives and refined sugars, eating five to six small meals a day (breakfast, lunch, dinner, and two to three snacks in between meals), and enjoying lean meats and whole grains.

Click here for a deeper explanation from The Gracious Pantry. I like her explanation :)

So... what do you eat?
Food. Sorry, had to throw in a little smarty pants comment there. Really though, here is a menu plan for what I ate this week {from what I could remember}.

Sunday

Breakfast - Steel cut oatmeal, single serving.
Snack - banana
Lunch - ??
Snack - almond butter
Dinner - Leftover Thanksgiving food... don't remember, and I feel like I shouldn't.

Monday: Finally, a day off.

Breakfast - Missed, slept in :)
Snack - banana, almond butter
Lunch - dressing, sweet potatoe casserole
Snack - N/A
Dinner - Cup of Royal Wedding tea.

Tuesday

Breakfast - skipped
Snack - SPARK
Lunch - Protein bar, banana
Snack - N/A
Dinner - Salad with spring greens, spinach, tomatoes, turkey, lemon juice, olive oil, carrots.

Wednesday

Breakfast - Banana. Rushed to work without eating breakfast. Fail.
Snack - SPARK. Go Lean cereal (dry, no milk).
Lunch - Apple slices and almond butter.
Snack - leftover dressing (1 cup), leftover mac & cheese (1 cup) - yay for cleaning out the fridge!
Dinner - green beans (seasoned with mrs. dash table blend), cubed sweet potatoes (seasoned with olive oil, nutmeg, mrs. dash italian blend, garlic power), and slice of ezekial bread.

Thursday

Breakfast -Advocare meal replacement shake (chocolate), made with almond milk
Snack - celery sticks, banana
Lunch - protein bar
Snack - gluten-free cinnamon cupcake | leftover sweet potatoes from last night.
Dinner - salad with spring greens, spinach, turkey, cherry tomatoes, carrots, orange bell pepper, cranberries, lemon juice, and olive oil. Glass of red wine.

Friday

Breakfast - Egg white omelet with spinach and tomatoes
Snack - N/A
Lunch - Turkey and mustard sandwich on ezekial bread
Snack - Protein Bar
Dinner - Tuna with some weird sauce that I don't remember, hehe.

Saturday

Breakfast - Egg white omelet with spinach and tomatoes, hot tea (white), cantaloupe
Snack - Protein Bar
Lunch - Celery sticks, cucumber slices
Snack - Uh... let's just say it was a cheat meal.
Dinner - buffalo chicken sandwich w/ tomatoes, lettuce, spicy mustard. {Best. Sandwich. Ever}

Remembering to pack food and eat it work seems to be the hardest part of sticking to clean eating. I work around carb-loaded pastries all day. Its hard to say no to those Pain au Chocolates... especially with the ten-hour shifts I have at times.

The past week was decent. I am finding that with healthy eating and clean eating it really is alright to have a little splurge every once in a while. As my boyfriend puts it, enjoying the once a week cheat meal makes the rest of the week more enjoyable.

 {VIA PINTEREST}

Grocery List
Sunday morning I went grocery shopping. Here is what $75 got me:

Oatmeal, old fashioned rolled oats
Stalk of celery
Almond milk
Almond butter
garlic powder
bell peppers - three pack of red, yellow, and orange
carrots
cherry tomatoes
spring greens 1/2 spinach 1/2
tuna
tilapia
mustard
lemon juice
detergent, 2
egg white blend
green beans
cucumbers
Kashi Go Lean
bananas
apples
sweet potatoes
onion
cantaloupe
bag of frozen mixed berries

Mostly all of the above was organic. I feel like I could have spent much less if I didn't get organic, but in trying to avoid the chemicals I just picked up the 'ganic. The above list should be able to last me at least two weeks. Over the next few weeks its my goal to be able to spend less than $30 to buy groceries for a single week.

And there are my thoughts for the night. Now go eat some oatmeal.

{PS - Will expand upon my work out schedule and running plan later this week!}

{VIA POSTHEROES}

Childhood Obesity

I went swimming at a local city pool this afternoon and had a very eye-opening experience concerning obesity. The number of people I saw today who clearly do not care about their body, nor the shape that it is in, was quite disturbing. It is one thing to be slightly overweight, or curvy (after all, curvy is much more healthy than being stick-thin in my opinion), or have low metabolism that makes staying fit harder, or to have health problems that prevent you from being in shape. However, it is another if you simple do not take care of the one body you have been given, as was clearly seen today. Do most people not understand that you are given ONE body your whole life? You never get a chance to have another one... not even through plastic surgery (which, in my opinion does more damage).

Anyhow, it was not mainly the number of obese people that confounded me, but more specifically the number of obese children. What has gotten into parents heads that its okay to allow your twelve year old daughter to look like she is pregnant, and in a bikini strutting it no less (I saw this several times this afternoon in a matter of minutes)? What parent in their right mind would allow this? Every time I looked up I saw yet another child who was very much so overweight or obese. Georgia (my state) has one of the highest rates for childhood obesity... that fact is terrible. American families need to work together to get rid of the high statistics of childhood obesity and obesity in general.

During a pageant interview a few months ago I was asked, "who's fault is the high obesity rates in children: schools or parents?" My answer? The parents, hands down. It is the parents job to raise their children. It is the parents job to make sure their children are making good choices, or at least train them to make the right choices and when they are old enough pray they do just that. It is the parents duty to make sure their children eat healthy - and not snack on junk food, soda drinks, carb-loaded, high-sugar foods 24/7, or better yet, to not have fast food for breakfast, lunch and dinner. It is the parents job to make sure their child is having a lifestyle that promotes being active to stay healthy. It is the parents job, not the government. Sure, school needs to help out by not putting vending machines packed with junk food and sodas in the cafeteria or teaching them of ways to stay healthy, but ultimately mom and dad need to show Tommy and Suzy how to make and live out healthy choices. Unfortunately, Americans have not done a good job with this at all. I love my state, but I am ashamed that it is completely acceptable to be obese... actually, that it is perfectly normal to be obese.

Please keep in mind that I am not seeking to offend anyone by saying all this, although someone will always be offended no matter what I say. I am merely speaking my thoughts (or rather, venting) on a topic that needs to be addressed. It is okay to occasionally enjoy a coke, or to occasionally enjoy a yummy food. While I love eating healthy and trying to stay fit, I will on occasion indulge in dessert or one of those awesome foods you see on Culinary Porn. The key words to the two statements above is occasion. And it is combined with having an active lifestyle. Try walking every day at least. Try taking the stairs instead of the elevator. Park just a little further away from the entrance. You've heard all these simple things for a while.... so put them into action. There is SO much more I could say about this topic but I guess I will end my venting on that note.

xoxo, SLR

Miss America 2011

Miss America 2011... wow. My adrenaline was going out the roof last night. In case those of you that follow me do not know, I am very involved with pageants, specifically the Miss America Organization. I completely adore the organization and what it does for women/America, as well as how it has made incredible differences in my life.

I am in love with the newly crowned Miss America, Teresa Scanlan. Watching her last night, I didn't have her picked out as the winner. Sure, she had an awesome talent (she won talent preliminary earlier in the week - go pianist!), her SS was good, OSQ was outstanding, EG was great, and she was gorgeous. Compared to the other top 5 competitors, however, I had her as 3rd runner up (course, what do I know?!). Yet after reading her blog this afternoon I found out why she was clearly the next Miss America... She has a heart of gold. And the judges did see this.

The interview portion of pageants is the hardest. This is where you make it or you break it. While in the MAO, talent scores higher than interview, the interview is where you make your impression on the judges. If they don't like you in there, you can pretty much guess that they will not look at you very much the rest of the night. Only the judges and the contest know what goes on in the interview. You, as a contestant, want to try your best to share your passion and platform during interview. You want to show the judges why you should be the next Miss so-and-so, leading up to being the next Miss America. You want to let them know why and how you are different than the rest of the girls, and why you would be the best at the job you are interviewing for (keep in mind that Miss America, Miss state, Miss local are all first and foremost a JOB). After ending the night with a crown on her head, sash on her chest, and the title of Miss America 2011 now next to her name, Teresa showed the judges that she was indeed different than the other 52 contestants, and she did have what it take to become the next MA.

After reading her blog, as I said above, I am in love with this young lady. Teresa Scanlan is loving life. She has integrity, passion, and passion. Her platform is incredible; being in the pageant world myself, I know it is an issue that needs to be addressed. She is a wonderful example of what a role model really is. She is an amazing definition of what the MAO is all about.

Anyways, with all that being said, my best wishes, prayers, and blessings are with Teresa. I am excited for her year as MA2011. I am excited about the many lives she will be impacting for the good. She has some amazingggg opportunities and experiences ahead of her :-) Check her blog out.... it is certainly worth looking at! http://teresastravelsandtidbits.blogspot.com

xoxo, SLR

101 small pleasures you can enjoy every day

Yes, so I "stole" this list off Yahoo's front page... however, it was way too good to not share. I agree with just about every single thing on this list. These are some things that put smiles on my face. God is number one on the list though... He never fails to put a smile on my face. 

1. coloring (yes, grown-ups can do it, too)
2. crisp cotton sheets
3. soft skin
4. old family recipes
5. the first daffodils of spring
6. sleeping in
7. an exercise endorphin high
8. window boxes
9. a perfect cup of coffee
10. a genuine compliment (giving or receiving)
11. the way babies smell
12. a handwritten letter
13. waking up in a good mood...for no real reason
14. singing in the shower
15. finding a couple forgotten dollars in your pocket
16. doing something nice for your neighbor
17. a home cooked meal
18. laughing
19. movie theater popcorn
20. playing hookey
21. a bubble bath
22. swimming
23. an afternoon nap
24. street musicians
25. your favorite song
26. saying thank you
27. helping someone in need
28. old fashioned photo booths
29. fresh whipped cream
30. inspiring blogs
31. a glass of wine
32. rainy afternoons
33. the funny things kids say
34. a novel you can get lost in
35. finding the perfect piece of clothing...on sale
36. clean laundry
37. the wind in your hair
38. treating the person behind you at the drive-thru
39. sharing an umbrella
40. the smell of lavender
41. a long walk that clears your head
42. a bear hug
43. The Beatles
44. smiling at a stranger
45. eating with chopsticks (Chinese food optional)
46. butterflies
47. staying in your pj's all day
48. singing along to the radio and knowing all the words
49. fresh herbs
50. ordering in pizza
51. happy endings...even if they're fictional
52. flying a kite
53. puppies
54. root beer floats
55. holding open the door...
56. ...or having someone hold the door for you
57. fountain soda
58. white, fluffy towels
59. sunshine
60. spending an afternoon at a museum
61. really great advice
62. green lights all the way home
63. the sound of rain hitting the windows
64. sitting in a booth
65. holding hands
66. a great hair day with no effort
67. building a fort with your kids
68. when someone falls asleep with their head on your shoulder
69. fireflies
70. the perfect taco
71. geraniums on a windowsill
72. slow dancing
73. the smell of fresh-baked bread
74. cheesy, uplifting musicals
75. great stories
76. the smell of gasoline
77. the cold side of the pillow
78. love letters
79. old friends...
80. ...new friends
81. a pull-through parking space
82. a baguette -- crisp on the outside, airy on the inside
83. when a dog licks your hand
84. sitting at the counter at an old-fashioned diner
85. using your favorite dishes
86. reading your child a bedtime story
87. Girl Scout Cookies
88. flossing
89. kissing someone you love
90. the smell of onions and garlic cooking
91. hot chocolate
92. jumping in puddles
93. old photographs
94. birds hopping on the sidewalk
95. Ella Fitzgerald
96. a spoonful of peanut butter straight from the jar
97. your softest t-shirt
98. a new magazine in the mail
99. fireplaces
100. having exact change
101. bacon and pancakes cooking on Saturday morning