Dinner is Served!

For dinner this evening I wanted to make a meal similar to the Banquet Homestyle Bakes Creamy Chicken 7 Biscuits meal in a box.  I mostly followed this recipe for Easy Chicken Pot Pie.  I didn't use an egg and I added a chopped up yukon potato.  I also tried poaching chicken breasts for the first time today and they turned out very well.  Dinner took more than 2 hours to make.  I'm not sure exactly how it took that long, but I need to learn to prep in a more time-manageable way.  I learned that one should chop up potatoes before they boil them.  I also learned that if I make this recipe in the future, I should use my smaller than 9x11 baking dish or double up on the veggies and cream of chicken soup.  Also, I should find the low sodium soup.


The finished product looks very similar to a finished Homestyle Bakes.  It tasted like it too, just a little less creamy.


I wish I could compare the price of this recipe vs. the box dinner.  It usually goes for about $3.79 at Kroger.  I didn't save my last receipt to even attempt to price the cost of this meal.


I will compare nutritional value.  When I do my calculations, I record the values of each ingredient and add them together.  I wonder how off my calculations are due to items being cooked and losing nutritional value?

Serving Size 2/3 cup filling; 1/3 biscuit mix (212g)
Amount Per Serving
Calories from Fat 160 Calories 350
% Daily Values*
Total Fat 18g		28%
	Saturated Fat 4g	20%
	Trans Fat 0g
Cholesterol 15mg		5%
Sodium 1050mg		44%
Total Carbohydrate 39g		13%
	Dietary Fiber 6g	24%
	Sugars 4g
Protein 11g

The nutritional value of my meal:  Serving size 1.5 biscuits with chicken and veggies in creamy chicken sauce - 380 calories, 10g fat, 44g carbohydrates, 12g sugar, 2g dietary fiber, 50mg cholesterol, 22g protein, 660mg sodium


I'm not certain how my serving sizes measure up with the box.  But the calories and carbohydrates are very close.  Mine is better in the fat, protein and sodium department.  Holy 1050mg of sodium in one serving of the box!  The recipe I went with has 3x as much sugar and more than 3x as much cholesterol!


I guess I made some poor food choices today.  I am not even sure the amount of veggies I had on my plate would constitute one serving.  Paired with the tomato sauce I had with my bagel pizzas for lunch, I will count it as one.  No servings of fruit yet today.  I still have time for a snack before bed, so maybe I'll squeeze one in.


Servings of meats:  Maybe one?  Probably less than one.
Servings of dairy:  4
Servings of fruit:  0
Servings of vegetables:  1
Servings of grains:  2


(Red = Bad, Need to Improve!  Pink/purple = OK, Room for Improvement  Green = Good!)

Daily Consumption

Cups of Water (5 cups) :   4

Total Calorie Intake (1000-1500):  1050

Total Fat Intake (<30% of TCI):   30.5g  2.9% of total calorie intake

Total Carbohydrates (125-175mg):  139mg   Surprisingly on track!

Total Carbs from Sugars (<40g):  86g   High again today!

Total Carbs from Dietary Fiber (20-35g):  8g  Low!!!

Total Cholesterol (<300mg):  99mg

Total Protein (44-60g):  55g 

Total Sodium (<1,100mg):  1500  High!

. . .

Breakfast:  Carnation with a cup of 2% milk - 250 calories, 5.5g fat, 39g carbohydrates, 30g sugar, 4mg cholesterol, 13g protein, 210mg sodium

Lunch:  Bagel pizzas (pizza sauce, cheese on flat bagel) - 220 calories, 8g fat, 27g carbohydrates, 8g sugars, 6g dietary fiber, 20mg cholesterol, 14g protein, 630mg sodium
Snack:  Raspberry fudge chunk greek frozen yogurt - 200 calories, 7g fat, 29g carbohydrates, 36g sugars, 25mg cholesterol, 6g protein

Dinner:  2 biscuits with chicken and veggies in creamy chicken sauce - 380 calories, 10g fat, 44g carbohydrates, 12g sugar, 2g dietary fiber, 50mg cholesterol, 22g protein, 660mg sodium

Snack:

I guess I didn't feel like snacking today?

Face Lift

I originally created this blog to track my goals in creating a healthier lifestyle.  After further contemplation, influenced by comments from friends and family, from reading articles, and signing up for free samples and coupons through various sites, I've decided to expand on this blog.  I will now be posting about other goals and aspirations, events that happen throughout the day, and reviews of sample products, as well as continuing with my goals of living a healthier, happier lifestyle.  Basically, I'll be blogging about anything and everything that comes to mind.

Sunday, June 3rd, was National Cancer Survivor's Day.  I am a survivor of 17 years.  I usually celebrate on my birthday, which is in two days, so I figured I would expand on the celebration and make it a week-long event.  I'm not really doing a whole lot of celebrating, but I have a heightened state of awareness about overcoming enormous odds and it gives me new motivation and appreciation for things in life.  Why this doesn't stick with me throughout the year, I'm unsure.  That is something I should work to improve upon.

For those of you who don't know, here's a little back story.  Okay, maybe it will be a lot back story.  When I was 9 years old, I was diagnosed with childhood migraines after being sent home often from school for having headaches.  At gymnastics class a few months later I felt like there was something in my right eye.  No one could see anything and flushing it out did not help.  Weeks later my eye started getting lazy and was turning grey, as if there was a haze over it.  A couple weeks after that I contracted impetigo on my right nostril.  Finally, a few weeks later I had a CAT scan and doctors found a tumor in my head.  I was sent off to Children's Hospital of Wisconsin to undergo emergency surgery the next day to remove half the tumor that was pressing up against my optic nerve.  I was told I had six months to live and underwent radiation therapy followed by intense chemotherapy (no breaks in between treatments).  I lived in the hospital for those six months.  My right eye was sewn shut for protection.  The impetigo got worse and actually ate away part of my nostril.  My heart stopped beating several times and waking up in the emergency room hooked up to a catheter is the worst feeling ever.  Thanks to pain meds, I do not remember a whole lot from those six months.  I do remember being quite the sassy kid, often yelling at nurses who wore too much perfume or woke me up.  I think without this fight in me (the sisu in me), I wouldn't have lasted beyond those six months.  But I survived and was going home cancer-free at the end of six months.  It took a while to fully recover.  I was mostly bedridden the whole time and had to get used to walking again.  I was also fed through an IV and it took several months of carrying around a backpack of IV food before I was finally weaned back on to eating regularly.  I had to adjust to the after-effects of all the treatment.  My hair never fully grew back, it's very thin and sparse.  I have daily headaches that I've learned to ignore.  I am hard of hearing and have constant ringing in my ears.  I also have excessive wax buildup that needs to be removed by seeing an ENT specialist every 3-6 months.  I have no sensation on the right side of my face, including in my eye.  Vision in that eye is also impaired but not correctable with glasses.  My eyelashes frequently grow into my eye and since I have no feeling, I often have to have them plucked by an ophthalmologist.  The right side of my nose runs constantly.  I lost most of the teeth on the right side of my head due to decay from the radiation and frequent vomiting.  Radiation also turned my jaw muscles into scar tissue so I have limited jaw mobility.  It makes the teeth I currently have at a higher risk for decay.  It also makes eating difficult.  Everything has to be broken down into small pieces.  I had jaw surgery to attempt to improve my mobility, it helped a few millimeters but it also left my lower jaw further set back and now I have a massive gap in between my front top and bottom teeth.  I cannot bite into food like apples.  I haven't grown since I was 9 and never reached puberty naturally.  I have thyroid, estrogen, and growth hormone deficiencies.  I take thyroid and estrogen medication and the estrogen has developed/matured my body a little.  I tried growth hormone but couldn't deal with having to give myself a shot every day for the rest of my life and just accepted that I would be 4'9" forever.  I have raynaud's phenomenon, which leaves my hands and sometimes my feet ice cold (the smallest breeze can set it off), where the tips change colors.  I knew since I was 16 that I had many gallstones and recently had my gallbladder removed.  I'm not sure if this is something related to my cancer experience.  I also believe I have IBS, but am again unsure if this is related to my cancer experience.  Anyhow, I'm still alive and that's my story.

I never liked the original name of the blog and wanted something short and sweet.  I tried a random word generator and wasn't really getting anywhere.  My great aunt had recently mentioned that it was the sisu in me that pulled me through my cancer ordeal.  The word has been sticking with me the past few days.  I've heard it used before by my aunts and other Finnish relatives, but it wasn't until recently that the meaning of the word really struck a chord.  I have the basic definition of sisu just below the title of my blog.  It is basically the essence of strength, will and determination to pull through when facing adversity.  Sisu by itself wasn't enough.  'Sisu Life' came to mind first, but it doesn't sound right.  I began to think of other words synonymous to life and came up with 'Sisu Vitality,' which sounds good to me!

No Veggies

Instead of carnation for breakfast this morning, I opted to make a smoothie instead.  It feels weird going a whole day without having chocolate milk.

Surprisingly, my husband ate the last of the spaghetti last night.  Meatballs included!  So I was able to have something else for lunch and dinner besides leftovers.  I had planned on making the whole wheat couscous with nectarines and pistachios for lunch.  The nectarines were bad already.  That's one thing I hate about buying fruit and vegetables.  A few days later and they're spoiled.  I need to look up how to store them correctly to get the most life out of them.  I hate wasting food.  In place of the nectarines, I tried apples.  Not too bad.  This isn't the tastiest meal, but it's okay.

I took out some frozen chicken breasts to thaw overnight.  I'm thinking of making the easy chicken pot pie recipe I posted a few entries back for dinner tomorrow night.  I need to cook the asparagus tomorrow for lunch before they go bad.

3 servings grains
3 servings fruit
Unless the pizza sauce and cucumbers count, I didn't consume any veggies!
3 servings dairy
Less than 1 serving nuts

I did good on fruits, but the rest is not good.  I really need to plan meals better!  Need to try to get a full spectrum of the recommended servings based on the food pyramid.  I will probably go shopping on Thursday so I need to start rounding up the next batch of recipes to try.

Daily Consumption

Cups of Water (5 cups) :   5

Total Calorie Intake (1000-1500):  1473

Total Fat Intake (<30% of TCI):   66.5g  4.5% of total calorie intake.

Total Carbohydrates (125-175mg):  212.5mg   A bit high today!

Total Carbs from Sugars (<40g):  99g   High again today!

Total Carbs from Dietary Fiber (20-35g):  24.5g  Great!

Total Cholesterol (<300mg):  38.75mg

Total Protein (44-60g):  30g  A bit low

Total Sodium (<1,100mg):  1072.5  Nice to see it within range!

. . .

Breakfast:  Smoothie (1/2 cup raspberries, 1/2 cup blueberries, 1 banana, 1/4 cup orange juice, 1 cup raspberry yogurt) - 357 calories, 2g fat, 79.5g carbohydrates, 52g sugars, 10g dietary fiber, 10mg cholesterol, 7g protein, 91.5mg sodium

Snack: 1 slice banana bread, with butter spread - 292 calories, 11g fat, 45g carbohydrates, 17g sugar, 5g dietary fiber, 5mg cholesterol, 90mg sodium

Lunch:  1 cup whole wheat couscous with pistachios and apples -422 calories, 35.5g fat, 34mg carbohydrates, 1g sugar, 2.5g dietary fiber, 7g protein, 80mg sodium

Snack:  3 pieces orange chocolate - 142 calories, 10g fat, 17g carbohydrates, 13g sugar, .75g dietary fiber, 3.75mg cholesterol, 2g protein, 11mg sodium

Dinner:  Bagel pizzas (pizza sauce, cheese on flat bagel) - 220 calories, 8g fat, 27g carbohydrates, 8g sugars, 6g dietary fiber, 20mg cholesterol, 14g protein, 630mg sodium

Snack:  Six petite sweet pickles - 40 calories, 10g carbohydrates, 8g sugar, 170mg sodium

Uh Oh Spaghettios!

I had leftover spaghetti for lunch and dinner today.  There is still quite a bit left.  I thought I would have to eat the last of it for lunch and dinner again tomorrow because my husband won't eat the meatballs.  Apparently he won't eat any ground meat.  Before I even bought groceries and committed to cooking real food, I asked him if there was anything he wouldn't eat and he said he would eat anything.  He had a can of beans for lunch but now I see he just heated up the bowl of spaghetti.  Hopefully he'll eat most of it so I can cook something else tomorrow.

I saw on Pinterest someone pinned something about freezer cooking.  Where you prepare/cook a months worth of food in one day and freeze the rest for easy meals later.  It's an idea I should consider.  Since my husband seems to want the easy and quick meals he is used to (canned beans and junk food) and not the meals I cook, I could freezer cook single servings of foods for me.  I will have to look into it more.  Seems it would take a lot of planning, but it'd be worth it.  I hate wasting food and most of the time you can only purchase things in certain sizes or bundles that are too large for just one person who only eats a single serving per meal.

I've been having carnation instant breakfast for breakfast every day for many years now...probably going on something like 10 years, so this will be a hard habit for me to break.  I realize I could easily replace carnation with a smoothie and actually get some of my servings of fruit in, instead of going days without the much needed vitamins we get from fruit.


I found this great meal schedule that I should try.  I would more likely work out before lunch, so it would need a little tweaking.  I found a different gym on a different (closer) base that offers zumba classes at 11:30am on Thursdays.  I should definitely get my butt in gear and try it out this week!
So to tweak this a bit, I would have to do the pre-workout snack before going to the gym.  Since I would get done with zumba around lunch time, perhaps have a post-workout smoothie with lunch afterwards.  Here's what my schedule would look like:

Breakfast 6:00am
Snack 8:30am
Pre-workout 10:30am
Post workout smoothie with Lunch about 1:00pm
Snack 3:30pm
Dinner 6:30pm
Late Snack no later than 9:00pm

Some things I need to work on in my diet

My diet needs to be more balanced - I usually have no problems consuming enough servings of dairies!

EAT FRUIT!  If I don't eat it, I should at least drink it!  A smoothie a day!

Eat more veggies!

Watch my carbohydrates

Consume less sodium and sugars - been going waay overboard on sodium!

More fiber...maybe actually use the Bene-fiber I have sitting in my hallway closet!

(BTW, Red means I need to work on it or I'm over the RDA.  Orange means I'm slightly over.  Pink/purple means I did good!)

Daily Consumption

Cups of Water (5 cups), :  4.5

Total Calorie Intake (1000-1500):  1530   I guess this is just slightly high considering I was pretty sedentary today.

Total Fat Intake (<30% of TCI):  43g   2-3% of TCI, good!

Total Carbohydrates (125-175mg):  236.5mg   That's 61.5 over.  Probably due to having to eat spaghetti for both lunch and dinner! 

Total Carbs from Sugars (<40g):  87.5g  High again!

Total Carbs from Dietary Fiber (20-35g):  12.75g  A little low again...Bene-fiber!

Total Cholesterol (<300mg):  57mg

Total Protein (44-60g):  48g

Total Sodium (<1,100mg):  2011mg!  WAAAY over again!

. . .

Breakfast:  1 cup of 2% milk with carnation - 250 calories, 5.5g fat, 39g carbohydrates, 30g sugar, 4mg cholesterol, 13g protein, 210mg sodium

Snack: 1 slice banana bread, with butter spread - 292 calories, 11g fat, 45g carbohydrates, 17g sugar, 5g dietary fiber, 5mg cholesterol, 90mg sodium

Lunch:  Spaghetti (angel hair pasta, one meatball, parmesan cheese in tomato sauce) - 373 calories, 6.5g fat,  60.5g carbohydrates, 7.5g sugar, 3.5g dietary fiber, 16mg cholesterol, 15g protein, 850mg sodium

Snack:  Raspberry fudge chunk greek frozen yogurt - 100 calories, 3.5g fat, 14.5g carbohydrates, 12.5g sugars, 12.5mg cholesterol, 3g protein

Dinner:  Spaghetti - 373 calories, 6.5g fat,  60.5g carbohydrates, 7.5g sugar, 3.5g dietary fiber, 16mg cholesterol, 15g protein, 850mg sodium

Snack:  3 pieces orange chocolate - 142 calories, 10g fat, 17g carbohydrates, 13g sugar, .75g dietary fiber, 3.75mg cholesterol, 2g protein, 11mg sodium

All Kale!

I made a kale salad for lunch today.  I've never had kale before and read an excellent tip online about massaging the kale before eating to help smooth or soften it.  Works great, and tastes great too!  I mixed in some trail mix (almonds, dried cranberries and cherries, and a few pieces of granola), cheese, and croutons.

I'm about to eat a late dinner.  Going to have spaghetti leftovers.  I made up the rest of the angel hair pasta so my husband could have some spaghetti, but he opted for canned baked beans while the noodles cooked. Looks like I'm going to have to eat leftover spaghetti for a while now.  Maybe lunch and dinner tomorrow?  We'll see.

I consumed about 2 servings of meats

about 2 servings of dairy

2-3 servings vegetables

 less than one serving fruit

3 servings grains

I could do much better!

. . .

Cups of Water: 5

Today's Total Calorie Intake:  1403  I'm surprised I've been able to reach my goal calorie intake. I think my past stomach issues were the culprit of my problem.  I can eat full portions now.  Need to work on eating healthier yet.

Today's Total Fat Intake:  51g  About 3-4% of total calories for the day

Today's Total Carbohydrates Intake:  196.5g  A little high again today  

• 78g from sugars  Pretty high again today :/
• 15.5g from dietary fibers   A little low

Today's Total Protein Intake: 43.5g  Just shy, not bad!

Today's Total Cholesterol Intake:  77.5mg  Great!

Today's Total Sodium Intake:  2097mg  Holy hell, Batman!  Horrible!  Nearly 1000 more than I should be getting!

. . .

Daily Food Consumption

Cups of water:  2
1 cup 2% Kroger milk - 120 Calories, 5g Fat, 20mg Cholesterol, 120mg Sodium, 12g Carbohydrates, 11g Sugar, 8g Protein
packet rich milk chocolate carnation instant breakfast - 130 Calories, 0.5g Total Fat, 90mg Sodium, 19g Sugar, 5g Protein, 230mg Potassium, 27g Carbohydrates, <1g dietary fiber, <5mg Cholesterol
1 slice banana bread - 242 Calories, 6g Fat, 45g Carbohydrates, 17g sugar, 5g dietary fiber, <1g Protein, <1g Sodium
1 tbsp butter spread - 50 Calories, 5g fat, 5mg cholesterol, 90mg sodium
2 cups kale - 33 Calories, 29mg sodium, 7g carbohydrates, 1g dietary fiber, 2g protein
2 servings croutons - 60 Calories, 2g fat, 150mg sodium, 10g Carbohydrates, 1g sugar, 1g protein
1 serving trail mix - 150 calories, 8g fat, 40mg sodium, 18g carbohydrates, 5g dietary fiber, 9g sugar, 4g protein
1 serving colby cheese - 100 calories, 8g fat, 30mg cholesterol, 170mg sodium, <1g carbohydrates, 7g protein
1 serving raspberry vinaigrette - 50 calories, 3.5g fat, 240mg sodium, 5g carbohydrates, 5g sugar
2 pieces orange chocolate -  95 Calories, 6.5g Fat, 2.5mg Cholesterol, 7.5mg Sodium, 11.5g Carbohydrates, <1g dietary fiber, 8.5g Sugar, 1.5g protein

Tomato Sauce - 20 calories, 310mg Sodium, 5g Carbohydrates, 1g dietary fiber, 3g sugar, <1g Protein

1 serving angel hair pasta - 200 calories, 1g fat, 42g carbohydrates, 2g dietary fiber, 2g sugar, 7g protein

Parmesan cheese to top - 45 calories, 1.5g fat, 480mg sodium, 3g Carbohydrates, 3g protein

One meatball - 108 calories, 4g fat, 370mg sodium, 10.5g Carbohydrates, 2.5g sugar, 0.5g dietary fibers, 4g protein, 16mg cholesterol
. . .
Recommended Daily Amounts of (based on 1000-1500 calorie diet):
Carbohydrates (starches, not sugar) is 125-175g 
Fat is less than 30% of total calorie intake
Protein is 44-60g.
Cholesterol is less than 300mg a day.
Dietary Fiber is 20-35g 
Sugar is less than 40g a day
Sodium is 1,100mg

Hello June!

My First Attempt at a Meal

I got a lot more calories in yesterday than I thought I would, especially with not eating very much!  So far today I've been pretty lazy, just sitting at my computer.  I should do some laundry, but the husband is sleeping on the linens I want to wash.  Didn't end up doing any laundry, spent a lot of time on the computer today.


I attempted to make spaghetti with turkey meatballs.  Easy, right?  Umm...I should have found a recipe and stuck to it.  Instead, I improvised a bit, from what I remember my mom doing when she makes meatballs and briefly glancing at a recipe.  Aside from 6 huge somewhat burnt meatballs, I wasted most of 1lb of ground turkey.  I also had a difficult time with the garlic...need to practice chopping.  The meatballs didn't turn out too bad.  Will definitely try a recipe next time!  This was my dinner.

So based on the food pyramid, I got about 2-3 servings of dairy.  Less than one serving meats/fish/eggs/nuts.  Counting the tomato sauce a vegetable, I got less than one serving vegetables, less than one serving fruit, and maybe 3 servings of grains.  Need to work on eating a more balanced diet!

. . .


Cups of Water:  4

Today's Total Calorie Intake:  1215   A decent amount!

Today's Total Fat Intake:  35.5g   (About 3% of total calorie intake)

Today's Total Carbohydrates Intake:  193g  Just slightly over

• 94g from sugars  A bit much!

• 10.5g from dietary fibers  A little low

Today's Total Protein Intake:  44.5g

Today's Total Cholesterol Intake:  69mg

Today's Total Sodium Intake:  1228mg   Kind of high!


. . .

Daily Food Consumption

Cups of water: 5
2 cups 2% Kroger milk - 120 Calories, 5g Fat, 20mg Cholesterol, 120mg Sodium, 12g Carbohydrates, 11g Sugar, 8g Protein, Vitamin A 10%, Vitamin C 4%, Calcium 30%, Iron 0%, Vitamin D 25%
packet rich milk chocolate carnation instant breakfast - 130 Calories, 0.5g Total Fat, 90mg Sodium, 19g Sugar, 5g Protein, 230mg Potassium, 27g Carbohydrates, <1g dietary fiber, <5mg Cholesterol, 15% Vitamin A, 140% Vitamin C, and 25% calcium, iron, vitamin D, vitamin E, vitamin K 
1 slice banana bread - 242 Calories, 6g Fat, 45g Carbohydrates, 17g sugar, 5g dietary fiber, <1g Protein, <1g Potassium, 1.6mg calcium, <1g Sodium, <1mg iron, 5% Vitamin C
1 tbsp butter spread - 50 Calories, 5g fat, 5mg cholesterol, 90mg sodium, 4% vitamin A
2 pieces Lindt Intense Dark chocolate - 95 Calories, 6.5g Fat, 2.5mg Cholesterol, 7.5mg Sodium, 11.5g Carbohydrates, <1g dietary fiber, 8.5g Sugar, 1.5g protein
Tomato Sauce - 20 calories, 310mg Sodium, 5g Carbohydrates, 1g dietary fiber, 3g sugar, <1g Protein
1 serving angel hair pasta - 200 calories, 1g fat, 42g carbohydrates, 2g dietary fiber, 2g sugar, 7g protein
Parmesan cheese to top - 45 calories, 1.5g fat, 480mg sodium, 3g Carbohydrates, 3g protein
I only had one meatball so this is just a guess - 108 calories, 4g fat, 370mg sodium, 10.5g Carbohydrates, 2.5g sugar, 0.5g dietary fibers, 4g protein, 16mg cholesterol
Off-brand carnation - 130 calories, 1g fat, 5mg Cholesterol, 210g sodium, 300mg potassium, 25g total carbs, 1g dietary fiber, 20g sugar, 7g protein, 30% vit. A, 60% vit. C, 80% calcium, 30% iron and vitamin D, 25% vitamin E and K.

. . .

RDA of (1000-1500 calorie diet):
Carbohydrates (starches, not sugar) is 125-175g 
Fat is less than 30% of total calorie intake
Protein is 44-60g.
Cholesterol is less than 300mg a day.
Dietary Fiber is 20-35g 
Sugar is less than 40g a day
Calcium is 1,200mg
Potassium 4.7g
Sodium is 1,100mg
Iron is 10-15mg
Vitamin C is 60mg
B (complex, varies) <1-7mg
Vitamin A is 1mg
Vitamin D is .01mg
Vitamin E is 10mg
Vitamin K is .08mg

Long Time

It's been a year and a half since I've posted on here!
A lot has changed.  I've been married for 15 months.  I moved to Virginia in July of 2011.  I had my gallbladder removed a few weeks ago.  It's absolutely wonderful to not have daily stomach pains!  I am supposed to eat low-fat foods as I no longer have a gallbladder to store bile.  The purpose of creating this blog was to develop a healthier lifestyle, so I'm going to get back into it!  I've been slacking, but I was keeping track of what I was eating in an excel spreadsheet, just not exactly calorie counting.  

I visited my friend this past weekend and liked how she planned out her meals every week.  I want to do this.  I want to plan meals, and start cooking again.  I'm sick of eating frozen/prepackaged meals.  I'm still not getting the recommended dosage of fruits and vegetables and not reaching my daily caloric needs.  I think planning meals will be helpful towards my path of developing a healthy lifestyle.  

I'm going grocery shopping later today and have compiled a list of what I'll need for recipes this week.  I figure I can make 3 dinners and two small lunches throughout the week.  Tuesdays, Fridays and Sundays I will cook dinner.  Thursdays and Saturdays I will cook lunch.  Mondays and Wednesday I can eat leftovers.  I can always switch that up too.  I just figured it'd work best this way as my husband is usually working/eating on his ship during the week and has every other weekend off.

The meals I plan on cooking this week:

• Easy chicken pot pie - http://www.bettycrocker.com/recipes/easy-chicken-pot-pie-cooking-for-2/871248d5-e169-4781-bf5b-f2e92cdddcdc?sc=Chicken%20Pot%20Pie%20Recipes&term=Chicken%20Pot%20Pie&itemId=2a460a33-278e-48b9-9bf2-e0d08f54c26f

• Oven crisp chicken with canned beans and another veggie side - http://www.bettycrocker.com/recipes/oven-crisp-chicken/213bc260-385b-44e4-97fc-7c107099d4ba?sc=Chicken%20Dinner%20Recipes&term=Chicken%20Dinner%20&itemId=8e98b86d-10fa-45aa-bb6f-995138588695

• Spaghetti with turkey meatballs and a veggie side

• Whole wheat couscous with nectarines and pistachios - http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/recipes/3065

Sides:

• Roasted asparagus - http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/roasted_asparagus/
• Potato salad - http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/potato_salad/
• Garlic mashed potatoes - http://simplyrecipes.com/recipes/garlic_mashed_potatoes/

I'm also going to get fresh and frozen fruit and other greens to eat as snacks and for breakfast smoothies.  I really need to force myself to eat these so they don't go bad!

. . .

I have to run a few other errands today and I'm hoping I'll have enough time to swing by the gym at the JEB to pick up a schedule of the classes they offer for free.  Once my husband is done cranking next week, it will be easier to share the car.  I need exercise!  Still not getting very good sleep and I believe exercise would help.  I want to start doing specific exercises to strengthen my arms and abs so I can knock off a kip from my bucket list (working on setting up a second blog called Bucket Kase to blog about progress on doing things that are on my bucket list). 

. . .

Daily food consumption:

3 cups water

1 cup 2% Kroger milk - 120 Calories, 5g Fat, 20mg Cholesterol, 120mg Sodium, 12g Carbohydrates, 11g Sugar, 8g Protein, Vitamin A 10%, Vitamin C 4%, Calcium 30%, Iron 0%, Vitamin D 25%
One packet rich milk chocolate carnation instant breakfast - 130 Calories, 0.5g Total Fat, 90mg Sodium, 19g Sugar, 5g Protein, 230mg Potassium, 27g Carbohydrates, <1g dietary fiber, <5mg Cholesterol, 15% Vitamin A, 140% Vitamin C, and 25% calcium, iron, vitamin D, vitamin E, vitamin K
2 pieces of homemade eggless banana bread (based on the ingredients I used, this is my best guess for nutritional information of one piece) - 242 Calories, 6g Fat, 45g Carbohydrates, 17g sugar, 5g dietary fiber, <1g Protein, <1g Potassium, 1.6mg calcium, <1g Sodium, <1mg iron, 5% Vitamin C
Dark chocolate ensure - 350 calories, 11g total fat, 10mg cholesterol, 230mg sodium, 49g total carb, 1g dietary fiber, 18g sugar, 13g protein, 25% Vit. A, K, iron and B12, 60% Vit. C, 40% Vitamin D, 30% calcium and vitamin E
About 5 reduced fat ritz crackers - 70 calories, 2g total fat, no cholesterol, 150mg sodium, 15mg potassium, 11g total carbohydrate, 2g sugars, 1g protein, 2% calcium, 4% iron
with roasted garlic hummus, about 2 tbsp. - 50 calories, 3g fat, No Cholesterol, 170mg sodium, 5g total carb, <1g fiber and sugars, 1g protein, 2% vitamin A, C, Iron
Off-brand carnation - 130 calories, 1g fat, 5mg Cholesterol, 210g sodium, 300mg potassium, 25g total carbs, 1g dietary fiber, 20g sugar, 7g protein, 30% vit. A, 60% vit. C, 80% calcium, 30% iron and vitamin D, 25% vitamin E and K.
1 cup 2% Kroger milk - 120 Calories, 5g Fat, 20mg Cholesterol, 120mg Sodium, 12g Carbohydrates, 11g Sugar, 8g Protein, Vitamin A 10%, Vitamin C 4%, Calcium 30%, Iron 0%, Vitamin D 25%

. . . 

Today was a busy day.  After the DMV, I drove to the JEB gym to find that they will not be having zumba classes at all during the month of June.  I was really looking forward to starting that.  They don't have a June calendar yet, so no idea what else they're offering.  Mailed off some bills and stopped by the NEX but didn't find what I was looking for.  Went to Walmart next to get a skillet and a few other things.  Stopped by Kroger to do my shopping for the above meals.  The goal was to spend $100.  I spent $120 at the grocery store (about $150 total including the skillet).  Not too bad.  Healthy food is pretty expensive.  I need to find a better place to buy fresh produce.  I only needed a lit bit of certain things but they came in bundles.  Had I bought the whole bundles, I'm sure a lot of food would be wasted, so I may have to modify the recipes a bit.  I wasn't home much, and when I was, I was too busy to really sit down and eat (dishes, laundry, picking up the hubby).  I had planned on cooking dinner this evening but I just lost the time.  Will start tomorrow!  I consumed a lot of chocolate milk today.  Pfft!  I can do better than that!  Will update tomorrow with the nutritional values.

. . .

Today's Total Calorie Intake: 1454 *surprisingly more than I usually get!

Today's Total Fat Intake: 43.5g (about 3% of total calorie intake) *very good!

Today's Total Carbohydrates Intake: 231g *oops, about 56g's over!

• 115.5g from sugars *yikes, about 75.5g's over!
• 13g from dietary fibers *a little low

Today's Total Protein Intake: 44g

Today's Total Cholesterol Intake: 59.5mg

Today's Total Sodium Intake:  760mg



RDA of:
Carbohydrates (starches, not sugar) is 125-175g
Fat is less than 30% of total calorie intake
Protein is 44-60g.
Cholesterol is less than 300mg a day.
Dietary Fiber is 20-35g
Sugar is less than 40g a day
Calcium is 1,200mg
Potassium 4.7g
Sodium is 1,100mg
Iron is 10-15mg
Vitamin C is 60mg
B (complex, varies) <1-7mg
Vitamin A is 1mg
Vitamin D is .01mg
Vitamin E is 10mg
Vitamin K is .08mg