The surgery that started it all...

So, I had an emergency appendectomy almost two weeks ago now...because of that...I spent some time quietly sitting around without much to do...something I haven't done in over twenty months since I had my twin boys.  I had "started my diet" again that Monday...something I'd been doing about every 3 months since the boys came along...hoping to lose that baby weight....3 months of bed rest had really helped pack it on!!  I had been quite successful at losing and maintaining my weight, using a low calorie diet, for several years so it was natural to resort back to that diet when I was trying to lose the baby weight.  Unfortunately, that diet didn't seem to work as well...whether it be lack of sleep, stress, breastfeeding...I'm not sure, but for whatever reason it's just been sticking around.  I've lost a total of 60 pounds since the boys were born...more than most people have to lose, but for me it was only about half of what I need to lose.  I have 30 pounds I put on before during my attempts to get pregnant...so I started out even further behind than most. 

So back to my recovery...I was quietly sitting in my living room one afternoon and I got thinking to myself.  "If I won't allow my kids to eat all this "diet food", then why do I feel it's what's best for me??"  Diet this, and sugar free that...I wouldn't let my kids touch it...they didn't need all those "toxins" that are found in those foods...so why is it my "go to" for my own health improvement??  Why did I spend 6 years gaining and losing that last 10 pounds when I never really varied from my "healthy diet".  So I did what I always do when I'm searching for answers...I started reading.....googling...researching....getting ahold of books...filling my mind....figuring it out.  My mom calls me the family "researcher"...and she's right...I crave information, facts...I like to make things add up, figure things out. 

So after several days (only equaling a few hours of actual reading...the boys don't like to let me have a lot of "me time") I had my facts...all the sudden it made sense to me...I need to feed myself how I feed my children.  I need to give myself the freshest, least processed, most balanced food I can find throughout the day.  I need to eat when I'm hungry and stop when I'm full.  I need to get rid of chemicals and processed foods and go back to eating how my great grand parents did.  Now...I'm not going to be out, planting and picking 100 acres of corn by hand, so everything in moderation, of course!  I also vowed to be an "I can" eater...to try things that I have always stayed away from.  Buy new things at the grocery store and make eating fun and interesting.  Enjoying my food and really tasting it is my goal, eating when I'm hungry, stopping when I'm not....and it seems to be working, I lost 7 pounds in the first week...more than I lost in one month the last time I started my "low fat" diet. 

So that leads me to this...I decided to take pictures of my food...talk about it and share recipes that are successful.

So I'm starting with my lunch today...I tried two new things, the first is quinoa.  If you don't know what quinoa is, it's a beautiful, creamy colored seed that is packed full of protein, it's actually considered a "complete protein" because it has all nine essential amino acids.  Although it's referred to as a grain, it's actually a relative to a swiss chard or spinach.  Nutritionally, it's a powerhouse...something I've heard about, but never tried...but I thought it would be pretty easy to make it one of my "new things" I tried this week. 

Quinoa Salad
1 c prepared quinoa
1/4 c diced cucumber
1/4 c black olives, chopped
1/4 c diced tomatoes
2 green onions, diced
olive oil
lemon juice
salt and pepper to seasoning

Cook the quinoa to your preferred doneness, cool.  Add remaining ingredients and chill. 
Just a note, you need to rinse the quinoa before you cook it or it will have a bitter taste.  I rinsed it three times (as suggested in a different recipe) by putting it in a bowl of water, stirring, draining in a metal strainer, and repeating three times.  Quinoa has a waxy, bitter coating on the outside of the seed...I suppose to keep animals from eating it...nature is an amazing thing.


The second is beet greens.  I bought beets to prepare for a lunch with my mom, and after I put the beets into water, I asked her "Have you ever cooked beet greens".  After our conversation, I decided that I'd attempt to cook the beet greens like I would a sauteed spinach. 

Sauteed beet greens with onions and garlic

2 bunches of beet greens

1 medium onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, chopped

1/2 lemon, zest and juice

salt and pepper to taste

olive oil

Heat olive oil in a large saucepan.  Add chopped onion, cook for 3-5 minutes, until onion becomes tender.  Roughly chop beet greens and rinse completely.  Add greens to onion and toss with tongs.  Add garlic, lemon zest and juice and salt and pepper to taste.  Cook til greens begin to wilt, serve immediately. 

I rounded the meal out with a sirloin burger, topped with an herb salad and blue cheese...delicious!!

What a beautiful and filling lunch....dinner tonight is homemade pizza with a whole wheat crust...we'll see how that one goes!!