Keeping it real

Source: rcm619 on Etsy

I've had a history of blogging healthy recipes and dancing around the fact that I struggle with getting into shape and being healthy, that is not secret. But I've never had the guts to blog about how I really feel regarding my own personal fitness. A few weeks ago when I saw The Nearsighted Owl start the "I am proud of my size" link ups, I thought to myself 'that is so great for her and them...but not me." And honestly, it made me feel even worse about myself that I couldn't even feel slightly proud of how I look. 

Then my blogging soulmate Beca wrote this amazing post that put into words exactly how I feel. If you haven't read it yet, please take the time to go read it here: 'A Truth I am Terrified to Tell You.'

In the spirit of keeping it real, I am 5'7" and as of yesterday I weigh 156lbs. This puts me wavering somewhere around a size 12. Last summer I was down to 144lbs and about a size 10. And I was happy there, floating only 10-15lbs above my goal weight. I was closer than I ever had been in my adult life. Then we bought the house and life got in the way of my fitness goals. Our kitchen was out of commission for weeks, so I started eating junk food with M out of convenience, and it just snowballed out of control. Once the house started to get in order, it was holiday sales time for my Etsy shop and I frankly did not have a spare minute to even THINK about exercising. So I got lazy. And now that I've gained back 12lbs, I'm not happy with how I'm looking. Which is crazy. I should be happy. 

There was a point in my life not so long ago that I weighed 30lbs more than I do now. 

I've just started to get a handle on all of this and start working back toward my goals, but it really is a daily struggle. And it's hard to put something on in the morning and be so disappointed that it doesn't look as good as it did 12lbs ago when I wore it last summer. 

You shouldn't feel pressured either way to be proud of or ashamed of your body. 

In solidarity with Beca, and every other girl out there who should be proud of their body, but just doesn't quite feel it yet, this post is for you.

chili lime kale chips

 We're trying to be super healthy in 2012, so I decided to try making some kale chips.

The first step: rip the leaves off of the stems in bite size pieces and pre- heat over to 300 degrees.

 Step 2: Gather the ingredients you would like to use to season your chips. I decided to use chili powder, lime, and sea salt.

 Step 3: Toss your kale with a little bit of olive oil, squeeze a whole lime over the kale, and sprinkle liberally with the chili powder. Then toss again to be sure all of the kale gets some of that yummy seasoning.

 Step 5: Lay the kale out on cookies sheets lined with parchment paper and sprinkle with sea salt. The over should now be pre heated, so pop these in for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, rotate the sheets and bake for 10 more minutes.

You will get a crunchy, crispy, flavorful, HEALTHY snack for when you're craving something salty!

the green monster

Ever since the New Year, I've been reading all over the blogosphere about this awesome energy boosting shake called The Green Monster. Everyone has been raving about how much energy it gives them, some have even claimed they've given up coffee and switched over to this. Since we're trying to be more healthy I decided to give it a whirl myself, and here's what happened:

 Step 1: put 2 tablespoons of Flax Seed in your blender

 Step 2: Add one cup of Almond Milk to your blender.

Step 3: Slice up one banana and add it to your blender.

 Step 4: Fill the rest of the empty space in your blender with baby spinach. Yup, SPINACH!

 This is what your blender should look like, put the top on and begin to liquefy.

 I start by pulsing my blender until all of the spinach is blended in, then I set it to liquefy for about a minute to make sure it grinds up the spinach and flax seeds fairly well.

 This recipe makes enough to fill a pint glass.

And it was delicious! You can't taste the spinach, you get a nutty taste from the almond milk and flax seed, but the main flavor that comes through is the banana. Not full on strong banana, but a mellowed more subtle banana flavor. It was delicious!

M tasted it and suggested I make it with some sugar....which would pretty much defeat the purpose ;)

I'm a fan! Next I'm going to try making it with a frozen banana for more of a smoothie texture instead of the shake texture a raw banana gives you.

Have you tried the Green Monster?

What did you think of it?

If not, will you?