Post-Juice Cleanse Wisdom

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The Three-Day Cleanse I just did has really increased my awareness of my body and its needs. I didn't realize it during the cleanse, itself, but it became readily apparent on my first day without it. Here's the story.


I'm not hungry for as much at once.

• How I learned: For breakfast, I started with one banana and two tablespoons of PB2 Powdered Peanut Butter. I had read that you shouldn't add nuts back in immediately, but my body really wanted it, so I listened. I had roasted a bunch of veggies the night before and was pumped to eat them, but once I finished my banana, I realized I was no longer hungry, so I packed up my veggies and some fruit and brought it all to work. 

Coffee isn't that great.

• My first attempt: I tried to have some coffee with breakfast. I'm trying to stay away from dairy (very hard for a cheese lover), so I just added a few drops of Vanilla Stevia to black coffee. I tried a sip and "icked" out loud. Not for me. I just didn't like the flavor all of a sudden, so I didn't drink it.
• My second attempt: A few hours later, I wanted to try again. I decided to try a Tall Soy Latte from Starbucks. It was definitely delicious and easy to get down... But, a few hours later, I found myself craving my juices from the past few days, and I realized I wished I had done a juice instead of coffee. Maybe I need to start juicing in the morning and bringing it to work as a pick me up?
• What my body told me: I took my juice cravings as an indicator that my body wanted the nutrients it had gotten used to receiving on such a regular basis. This was actually really encouraging to me, because it made me realize how seriously my body takes everything I put into it. Apparently soy milk and caffeine do not count as a quality snack (though it did wake me up). Big surprise there... not.

My body is talking to me... about sodium.

• How I used to feel about sodium: I generally try to stay away from high sodium soups and such, and try not to add salt to my cooking, but other than that, I haven't had a history of looking up sodium counts. 
• What my body's saying about sodium: I had been planning on a quinoa bowl from Protein Bar for lunch, but for some reason the thought of it was making me uneasy. I figured there was something about it that my body knew was wrong for me, so I looked up the stats. Turns out, their menu is fairly high in Sodium (like 40% of the recommended sodium intake for someone on a 2,000 calorie diet... which means even more than 40% for a tiny person).

The moral of the story?

MY BODY WANTS HEALTHY THINGS IN APPROPRIATE PORTION SIZES! It's like the cleanse was a functional "re-set" button on my nutritional habits and now all I crave are healthy items. Let's see how long I can ride this baby out...

Nuts and Seeds Part Seven: Pistachios

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To catch up on what the big deal is and read tips for nut use, take a look at this post. If you missed it, here's the brief version: Protein, Omega-3 Fatty Acids, Fibers, and Lignans. All good things and ALL found in nuts and seeds!


The Nuts And Seeds Gang:
Over the next few weeks, stop by for eight posts about nuts and seeds, how to incorporate them into your diet, which ones are best, and recipes for use...

1. Flax Seeds
2. Chia Seeds
3. Pumpkin Seeds
4. Sesame Seeds
5. Sunflower Seeds
6. Walnuts
7. Pistachios
8. Almonds

Pistachios

• WHAT'S GOOD:
  Delicious. High protein. Healthy Fat. And even some fiber.
• THE SUMMARY:On top of being utterly amazing tasting, Pistachios are one of the lowest fat nuts you can find! With the recent creative commercials, Pistachios are popping up in more variety in stores. Both sweet and savory, Pistachio is good in trail mix, salads, and even desserts!
• CAUTION:
  Pistachios, like most nuts, are fairly high in calories and fat. 1/4 of a cup is sufficient for a snack or sprinkling over other foods. Be careful not to sit down with a huge bag of these and eat too many. It's easy to do!
• HOW TO EAT IT:
  Shuck the shell! 
• Add to salads (combine with cranberry and feta!)
• Sprinkle over homemade protein bars
• Sprinkle over pistachio pudding made with skim milk
• Add Pistachios to These Recipes: Trail Mix / Healthy Breakfast "Coffee" Cake
• Try this recipe: Pear & Pistachio Feta Salad

CREDITSL
Image Pistachio

91 Calorie Berry Protein Muffins

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These muffins are crazy good for you. Like fiber-filled, cancer-fighting, protein-packed kind of good.  It's also yet another no-milk, no-egg, no-oil recipe. It is becoming a staple in my recipes, I dare say...

These muffins ALSO have raspberries and blueberries. As in double the berry. Double the pleasure. Double the fun. That's the statement of the great-ness? of protein muff-funs. <--How was that? Did you enjoy it?

For the record, I popped in a bit of Lingonberry jam to make some of these three-berry and they were delicious. Why actually, yes, "Yum" is my middle name! If you're digging the lingonberry idea, add a tablespoon. And you really should consider it, given how fun it is to say the word "Lingonberry."