While this is a new blog, Kimberly Lam Wellness is not new at all! I’ve been posting over on Facebook for sometime now at facebook.com/kimberlylamwellness. And one of my weekly posts is Foodie Friday. It is my way of sharing a little piece of clean eating and the convenience of a meal plan from my home to yours! On occasion (especially busy weeks like this one) it ends up popping up on a Saturday, but such is the life and times of a busy mama. So, without further adieu, I share with you…Foodie Friday for Oct. 30th, 2015.
Another week has come and gone. Hopefully you had a fantastic week and did something to help your body be well! Here is this week’s clean eating meal plan round up!
All meals (except the falafel salad) served with a simple green salad with carrots, celery, dressed with EVOO and Balsmic Vinegar.
✨Monday’s Chicken Lettuce Wraps w/ Brown Rice and Steamed Broccoli✨
We used almond butter instead of peanut butter and cut the chili sauce down temendously. That is pretty much all we changed. Yum.
I highly recommend preparing the quinoa crust part a day or so earlier than you are going to use it. Otherwise, it can take up a good chunk of your afternoon.
For the Yams: wash, poke holes in them, pop them in the oven at 375 (mine were still in there cooking when I bumped the temp up for the chicken) for 45-60 minutes, depending on size. Cook until soft.
For the Brussels: wash, cut in half and trim stems, sautée on med-high heat in avocado oil (or butter…yum…preferably from milk of grass fed cows…Kerrygold is awesome and we get it for cheap at Costco) with garlic powder, onion powder, sea salt, & black pepper. Cook until tender, but not mush.
I used almond flour in place of whole wheat flour and couldn’t find the cilantro in my crisper (until right after I had formed and placed all the patties on the baking sheet. Bah.) so I used a tiny bit left from our garden and some dried corriander instead. I brushed the parchment with avocado oil before placing the falafels on it and brushed the tops of them with it as well and flipped them halfway through the cooking process to ensure even cooking.
We decided to crumble them over greens with tomatoes, carrots, celery, and cucumber and top them with homemade tzatziki.
For the tzatziki: I didn’t leave any piece of it to sit overnight. Didn’t remember the night before, but…still delicious! I did peep the cucumber and then squeezed it out with a towel after shredding it to remove the excessive liquid. I used whole-fat, plain yogurt instead of Greek, as that is what I had on hand. I halved the garlic and used a microplane to make sure it mixed well and wasn’t too spicy for babes. And I added a touch of fresh squeezed lemon juice. http://www.myfoodandhappiness.com/crispy-oven-baked-falafels/
Ever heard of oil pulling? I first heard of it a handful of years ago when I first started diving into the world of Real food, holistic healing and natural living. It is an ancient Ayurvedic technique that is basically swishing unrefined oil (I prefer coconut, but I’ve heard you can use sesame or other oils as well) around in your mouth a la mouthwash style for 5-20 minutes (ideally 20). It is pretty much a wonder cure all…or so the rumor goes. Hormone regulation, reducing toxins in the body, increased energy, healthier and stronger gums, whiter and remineralized teeth (cool!), reduced throat and sinus congestion, improved sleep, clearer skin, pain relief for TMJ-related jaw pain and headaches, and more are some of the health benefits that have been associated with oil pulling. Sadly, whenever I have started, I have lacked consistency. But I can tell you that my teeth felt so much cleaner and my gums felt healthier after doing it even the few times that I did. Now..flash forward to the end of October 2015 and…I have a…
Confession: My son has a dentist appointment in the morning. You know, the ol’ every-six-months-you-head-to-your-dentist-for-a-cleaning-and-a-check-up type appointment? Right. Uhm…so it made me stop to think of the last time that I made such an appointment like that for myself. Let’s see…*thinking* I had one when I was pregnant with Nolan. I had a couple when Nolan was really little. I may have had one when I was pregnant with the girls, but I am sorta thinking not. And that’s it. How old are my girls? Oh…*ahem* they are two and a half. Crap. It is possible that it has been over three years since my last trip to the dentist.
What!? I haven’t been to the dentist in three years! That is madness. It is no wonder why my gums have been super sensitive lately. I am an avid brusher and flosser, but there is just something about a deep cleaning of that pokey little metal scraper. The worst part of it all though is that now I’m cared to go. Ha. I have never feared going to the dentist because my teeth and gums have always been quite healthy. It was never painful. I rarely had a cavity. Easy peasy. But now…if I really get serious with the little plastic scraper at the end of my kids’ little flossers (because I really don’t want to risk losing a finger on a nightly basis as I keep their little gums and teeth healthy), my gums hurt…bleed even. NOOOOOOO!!!
So what is a busy momma to do? Obviously I need to get to the dentist, but first, I’m going to take a month (what is one more at this point, right?) and oil pull daily and see if it makes a difference in the comfort and health of my gums before heading to the doc to be reprimanded.
I have read that the ideal oil pulling situation is first thing in the morning as you sit with your feet on the ground and just sort of chill out. Ha. Right. THAT isn’t going to happen. My son is up by 6:15am pretty much every day and that is when I need to get up and start cooking breakfast and getting us ready for the day. As soon as I get out of bed, the girls follow soon after. I can see it now, three newly up for the day little people, bursting with energy, hungry for breakfast, running around like crazy people (by the way, how in the heck do they do that? don’t they know there is a vital slow-to-start wake-up process?) while I sit on the couch, with my feet on the ground, resting peacefully, in complete silence (as I have a mouthful of coconut oil and definitely can’t speak), swishing…for 20 minutes. Ha! I think they would combust!
So…I will do what mommas do. We improvise. We try our best to take care of ourselves here and there and in the in-betweens. This Monday that meant pulling on my drive to the market and as I sat finishing an email in the parking lot before spitting said oil into a mason jar to take home and dispose of later. On Tuesday that meant forgetting about this plan completely. Today that means…well…it means I should be doing it right now as I type, but I’m sitting outside my girls’ room on the floor in the dark hallway encouraging them over and again to lay down, relax, be quite, close their eyes and go to sleep, which again doesn’t work all that well with a mouthful of oil. So instead, today it means I will do it later, after I finish this, after I workout, after I shower (hmmmm…maybe while I shower? that is a relaxing environment…but not for 20 mintues…eh…anyway), when I’m hanging out, replying to messages, and at some point finishing three panda bear costumes for the Halloween carnival at school that happens in two nights. Yup. It isn’t perfect. But that is how life is. I try to fit my oxygen mask first when I can, but it is so much easier said than done, right?
Today is day three (and already one slacker day) of my thirty day self-challenge to oil pull daily and try to heal my mouth a bit prior to my next appointment. I’m excited to see if I feel some of the above mentioned healthy benefits of oil pulling over the next month. And then hopefully I’ll avoid the side-eyed look, shaking head, and waggling finger of the dentist when I get there. Ha! I’ll be sure to keep you posted as I go along. I’d love to have some company on this oily journey, if you are up for it! Comment and let me know. We can swish, spit, smile and share together. 🙂
Here are a couple of articles about it for more scientific information. 😉
A couple of Saturdays ago, I had a super-weird day. I wasn’t feeling all that well – my body was trying hard to beat a cold before it really got me (my body won, by the way. 😉 ). I had felt sort of overwhelmed on Friday afternoon and evening so I checked out, disconnected and cancelled Saturday morning plans. I woke up with the kids and decided to try and make our one family day (man…this 5 days a week of school stuff is seriously putting a damper on our fun family time) start off right with some yummy clean eating-style pancakes.
The kids wanted to help and that always makes my heart happy, so there we were…four people around the island, measuring, scooping, pouring and stirring. All cool right? Well…except that in addition to the measuring, scooping, pouring and stirring, there was also whining, screaming, hitting, finger sticking in batter-ing, more whining…you get the picture. The crabby that I went to bed with, woke up with, and that I was trying desperately to push away came back with a fury. My patience was thin. My voice raised. Helpers were fired (haha). Grouchy won. Boo.
I decided to bail on family day and take a solo trip to the market, work on a special craft (that is over a year behind schedule) for Anthony, start the kids’ Halloween costumes and take a nap with the girls. The girls decided not to nap. Haha. But, thankfully Anthony was home and I took a momma day off. I was “blue” and weapy for really no apparent reason. And then I was frustrated with myself for it. It was a mess.
The goodness that came out of it all though? It reminded me of how far I have come in the last two years. You see, after the girls were born (and basically for their first year of life…awe…boo), I fell into a really dark place.
We moved to a new state. N potty trained and started school all within two months of our move. Then another month in, we moved again (just around the corner).
N’s school transition was than ideal…uhm…like I went with him every day (two days a week) and wore both baby girls the whole time on the majority of those days. Even when we weren’t at N’s school, I pretty much wore the girls 24/7 or they screamed.
I basically never slept and when I did, I was sitting up, holding them both and nursing at least 65% of the time.
I got the worst bought of the flu I think I have ever had…and then had an accompanying (and totally wicked) sinus infection. I cracked a rib coughing and baby wearing.
It was ugly. I felt overwhelmed. I felt alone. I felt lost. I felt like I was drowning in this life that I had built – a life that I had so desperately wanted. My heart was still raw and ached for my angel, Sofia. I was bitter and angry. I was negative. Ugly.
And then…a few things happened. First, my ugly was brought to my attention (haha…that was uncomfortable. Haha). It is amazing how deep you can fall without even realizing it. Next, I decided to make some changes with the girls’ sleep that seriously sucked, but in the end, totally saved (at least a piece) of my sanity. Third, I let my body rest and heal from illness and injury. And then…I dove head first into my workouts and into the world of Beachbody…and their focus on community, service, love, personal development and positivity.
It is true, Beachbody has an incredible library of workout programs (life changing for me). They have supplements and skin care. They have Shakeology (also…totally changed my life). But..that isn’t all they are about. The best thing though is the heart of Team Beachbody! It has yet to cease to amaze me. The focus the company puts on building yourself up to be the best you that you can be, on giving, on serving, on remaining positive and going after your goals, on believing in your dreams and helping you to reach them…and then on sharing that with others so they can do the same…it just is so refreshing.
I have incrementally cut out the resources (depressing news), experiences and things (crap TV, etc) that were surrounding me that brought me down, that filled my life with negatives. In their place, I worked (and still work) to build a community of amazing people (mostly mommas like myself) who have had their own struggles and are working to come out stronger on the other side.
I had never really heard of personal development before I was a Challenger and a Health and Fitness Coach. Now…I live for it. The last three books I’ve read? “The Compound Effect” by Daren Hardy (about little changes adding up overtime to be big, huge changes), “You Are A Badass” by Jen Sincero (about…well…how freaking amazing you are and how to live the life of your dreams through trust, confidence, and being awesome) and now “The Motivation Manifesto” by Brendon Burchard (the name says it all). What do I listen to as I cook or as I run? YouTube videos, podcasts, trainings on how to be confident, how to believe in yourself, how to believe in all the amazing serendipities in the Universe, and how to stay inspired, stay authentic to you, and how to build your dream life.
They are always watching. What are you teaching?
I actively reach out to meet new people to fill my life (and hopefully theirs) with joy. We connect through life, motherhood, and due to the nature of the business, through fitness and nutrition. We connect through mutual goals of positive mindsets, empowerment, the desire to love and help others, and because of all that, I am slowly, but surely, becoming the person, wife, mother, friend, daughter that I truly want to be. Pretty cool, huh?
Don’t get me wrong. I slip up. I have really crappy days when I go back to that negative, sad, scared, dark, overwhelmed momma. That is what last Saturday was about. BUT now I know…it is temporary. A rough day. I feel it. I take time for me. I breathe. I meditate. I workout. I reach out and give love to someone. I sleep. I fuel my body with clean food (still a work on progress on that stress eating thing… 😉 ). Sometimes I flip my lid. I check in with my community. They help build me back up…just as I do for them on rough days. And then…I move forward.
Because of the community that I am building. Because of fitness. Because of clean nutrition. Because of accountability groups. Because of personal development and actively working to master my mindset, change focus, stay positive and be grateful. Because of the heart of Team Beachbody…well…I actually am stronger. I am healthier. I am happier. And I am more ME!
Does any of this sound like you? Know…you are not alone. You are in a season. You are awesome. You can get out. But…you need to act. You need to consciously decide to be better…to be healthier…to be happier.
You need to do it for those that surround you – your family and friends.
But most of all…you need to do it for YOU.
You deserve to feel awesome. You deserve to believe in yourself, in your dreams, your goals and your future. You deserve to be surround by people who lift you up, who celebrate with you, who learn from you and who teach you. So…what is it for you? What is going to be your biggest challenge, but the challenge that when you have achieved it, you will feel immeasurably proud of yourself?
Do you think community could help? Do you think moving your body, getting stronger, healthier, etc. could help you? Do you think that recipes, nutritional information and added community support and accountability could help you?Are you ready to commit to change, to work hard, and change your life?
If you answered “yes” to any (or all…I know that is where I was)…then you should consider hitting me up for some details about my next Online Fitness & Nutrition Accountability Group . You will likely feel better about your body and feel better in your body…but… never know. It may just change your entire world. And what would that be worth to you? ❤
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