Sunday Food Prep

One of the best ways to ensure I don't stray off the health food path during the week is if I pre-prep my foods during the weekend.  DH and I will go grocery shopping once a week or once every two weeks, and I start washing and cutting the veggies immediately after we get home. If I decide to sit on the couch or check my email, the window closes, I get too lazy to prep, and end up avoiding the veggies during the week since it's not easily accessible. 

Photo courtesy of Jamie Oliver

I've been trying hard to bring my lunch to work and not eat out, but I've been really busy the past few weekends and unable to pre-prep anything.  Luckily I have many healthy options around me at work, but it really pains me to pay $$ for a salad that would cost next to nothing to make.  I wanted chopped salad for lunch this week, so we went to a local Korean market on Sunday and stocked up on veggies and fruits.  If you're not familiar with Korean markets, they have ridiculously low prices on produce, and the biggest sales are usually
Thurs-Sun.  Their produce is fresh and the prices ensure a large crowd, so it's best to go earlier in the weekend.  We were busy all weekend and were restless at home on Sunday night, so we actually went at 11pm (the market closes at 12am everyday!).  Luckily, they must have restocked everything from the weekend because there was an abundance of yummy veggies for great prices.  Here's what we bought for around $20:

New Detox and Cleanse Program

Photo courtesy of Healthline

I was walking by the kitchen at work yesterday when I overheard a coworker talking about a 21-day cleanse she signed up for on the recommendation of her friend, who had just completed the program and loved it.  She mentioned it was also loved by various celebrities, including Gwyneth Paltrow.  Then this afternoon, one of the blogs I follow posted a link to a caramelized brussels sprouts recipe (posted below), so of course I clicked on the link and it turns out the blogger is on a modified version of the 21-day cleanse, also mentioning that Gwyneth was a fan of the program.  Hearing about a 21-day cleanse endorsed by Gwyneth twice in one week, I did some research this afternoon.

The cleanse is called the "Clean Program," which you prepare for with what's called the "Elimination Diet," all of which is designed by a cardiologist and cleanse specialist (Dr. Alejandro Junger MD), and is the supporting cleanse to the book "Clean," which is apparently a New York times best seller.  There's endless information on the website, but from I gathered, the program consists of a shake for breakfast, supplements throughout the day, lunch (there's a list of specific foods you can and cannot eat), and then a shake for dinner.  My coworker mentioned a stricter program where you don't eat lunch (I'm assuming you drink another shake?) that's more expensive, but I didn't see it when I went on the website.  The program that I saw will run you about $425, which in the grand scheme of things is not horribly expensive, but if you

Resolution Update

Chocolate berry cake ~ YUMMM! (Personal photo)

Maybe it's just me, but whenever I resolve to make a positive change to my life, my mind and body, "they" do everything in their power to make the change that much harder.  I hardly ever crave cookies and chocolate, but I've been snacking on exactly that for the past 7 days.  And I normally do not snack!  Since the 1st, I've eaten brownie bites, Nutella, maple syrup cookies (it was a gift...), chocolate chip cookies, dark chocolate bars, and chocolate-covered almonds.  OK, so I took maybe a bite or two of each, but that still puts me further away from my weight loss and healthy eating goals.

Also challenging have been my trips to the gym (or lack thereof).  On my way home from work I'm super motivated and excitedly planning my workout regimen for the evening, then flash forward a few hours and I'm being woken up from a peaceful nap by my DH, after having fallen asleep while thoughtfully waiting for him to come home from work (aka watching TV on our couch) so we can go to the gym together.  And we never end up going.  le sigh.  I have, however, been really good about shopping recently, so at the least, I've been burning calories on my power walks in the mall.

Gym memberships increase quite a bit in January, with high attendance in the early months and a slow decline throughout the year.  I'm glad I didn't exercise insanely last week (or at all, actually) only to burn out and demotivate myself for the rest of the year. See? I was doing myself a favor.  Haha!  Kidding.  I had an L.A. Fitness membership for 7 years but canceled 2 years ago after moving to an area where it wasn't convenient for me to drive there anymore.  While, coincidentally, I stopped working out almost completely after canceling my membership, I don't think it's the membership that keeps me accountable.  I still have access to a gym - it's small but has ellipticals, treadmills and weight equipment, as well as a sauna and individual TV's on each machine, just a few steps away from my house.  But getting there feels so much harder than stopping by L.A. Fitness everyday after work like I used to.  I swear, the closer you are in distance, the harder it is to get there.

On a positive note, I was able to accomplish one goal this week: