30 day REAL food challenge Week 2

Week 2:

I didn't think eating real food for a full month would be this difficult, but week 2 has proven to be quite a challenge. I caught myself wanting to cheat more often, pushing my 80/20 rule. My husband and I were traveling this past week, which made it much more difficult. I hear this complaint from my clients regularly, that often their healthy eating habits go out the window when the regular routine is broken. Last week was my reality check. We left town for three days to see family that live about five hours away. Every time I leave San Diego, I'm reminded about how lucky we are to have the selection of great healthy food at our fingertips all year round. I'm also reminded that eating on the road and trying to find 'real food' is nearly impossible. 

After being pregnant (and hungry all of the time) I got into a good habit of always packing healthy snacks or meals for when I was traveling. Normally, my favorites for traveling are fresh fruit, nuts or a trail mix and a protein bar. For my real food challenge, I couldn't eat the protein bar so instead I packed some homemade wraps. I used grass fed beef in a brown rice tortilla (which I have to admit was from a package) and topped off my wrap with healthy veggies and a drizzle of olive oil. I was grateful to have the wraps as we passed through central Cali and the very sad selection of fast food restaurants.

Right before we left on the trip a girlfriend shared with me a fabulous new 'app'. It's called 'food tripping' and it highlights all of the healthy restaurants, grocery stores and and farmer's markets within your area. I was delighted to discover this app, but sadly, the sprinkling of healthy restaurants on the app were few and far between as we drove north from San Diego.

Upon arriving at our destination, our friends informed us that they had promised their children Chuck E. Cheese's for lunch that afternoon. It would be a first for me, and I assumed the menu was not compatible with my 30 day real food challenge. I thought of skipping lunch all together, or making up an excuse for not eating. Keep in mind, I'm a nursing mom, which means that I'm always hungry! Much to my surprise, there was a very decent salad bar. Thank goodness, real food for lunch. 

I'm still having some sugar cravings, so I find something that is naturally sweet, like fruit or my delicious 'milkshakes.' Acai bowls are a brilliant way to curb a sweet craving, and I make them at home (with the unsweetened acai puree). When the chocolate cravings hit, I have been reaching for the raw cacao powder to make a homemade hot chocolate drink or raw cacao nibs to sprinkle on a smoothie. 

I certainly wasn't perfect this week with my food challenge, but I find my awareness of what is real food continues to grow. When I'm dining out, I notice I'm asking more about questions about the ingredients, and where the food actually comes from. Not only has the awareness been good for me, but those who I'm dining with or sharing in my experience are also starting to stop and think about how much 'real food' they are eating in a given day. What a crazy question we have to ask ourselves.

Serotonin Boosting Hot Coco

Add the following ingredients to 1 cup of hot water:

1 T raw cacao powder

1-2 T So delicious Coconut Creamer
1 t vanilla extract
1/2 t cinnamon

1/2 t nutmeg
sprinkle powdered stevia to taste, OR

1 T raw honey

Sambazon's Acai Bowl

2 packets frozen Acai (unsweetened)

1 banana

¼ cAlmond milk (unsweetened)

½ cup frozen berries (optional)

Blend above ingredients until smooth. Top with optional toppings

Optional Toppings: (1 T of each)

Raw cacao nibs

Raw almonds, slivered

Hemp seeds

Raw organic local honey

Organic blueberries