Tidying my Temple

1 Corinthians 6:19-20 ~ 

Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.

I'm finishing up the third week of this new way of eating and it's been going well. I got on the scale this morning and it frustratingly has not budged. But I'm not going to let that discourage me as I lost 8 lbs. the first two weeks and there is bound to be a leveling off. Ideally you should lose 1-2 lbs. per week in order to see permanent results. 

I also had to navigate a few social situations which are always a trigger for eating the wrong things. We have refreshments after church each week. I'm thankful for the couple who signed up last week and brought a veggie and fruit tray. 

Once a month on Wednesdays we have a cooking class at the church for those women who want to learn some life skills. This week they made pizza and that's a challenge for me. So I brought my own food to heat up so I would have something to eat. 

Last night I had women from our church over and instead of the normal cookies and sweets and other goodies, I made a huge veggie and fruit platter with homemade oil-free hummus for the veggies. I did have cheese and crackers for those who wanted something more substantial. I discovered cheese and crackers were a major temptation but I abstained. Whew!! Once I start on those there would be no stopping.

Overall, I have done very well. I have not had sugar in 3 weeks nor do I want it. I haven't had any processed or snack foods. I discovered the joys of having an afternoon smoothie with unsweetened almond milk, a banana and some sort of unsweetened frozen fruit. The tropical blend is still my favorite. 

I also discovered the joy of nutritional yeast which I've never had in my life. Some of the dishes I make I sprinkle with parmesan cheese. Nutritional yeast has a cheesy flavor and makes a perfect substitute without the fat of cheese. I made an Italian-style lentil and veggie soup and sprinkled some of the nutritional yeast on top.

I also had fun making some of our favorites, but made a healthy version of them.

We had spring rolls one day with a Thai peanut dipping sauce. 

We did Middle Eastern another night with falafel, Tabbouleh salad and oil-free hummus. I had mine in a lettuce wrap.

I did some stir-fries and discovered miso paste which I really like. It gives the stir fry a good flavor without all the salt in soy sauce.

There were some experiments that I just didn't like. One was red lentil wraps. I didn't like the texture and they had no flavor.

I've been making lots of salads and eating a lot of fresh foods so I'm enjoying that. 

This morning I did have 2 eggs fried in 1/2 tsp. of olive oil. I had that over 1 slice of Ezekiel bread with some fresh fruit on the side. 

 Some take away thoughts from this past week are:

• If you aren't going to have meat or dairy than make sure you are taking a really good B-complex vitamin. Because B12 only comes from animal products you need to take a supplement. Deficiencies in B12 can cause serious deficiencies and long-term permanent dangerous problems.
• I need to up my intake of protein. I'm finding that beans and legumes alone are not doing it. I like meat and I'm not a vegan so I'm going to add in some healthier protein such as fish and chicken at least 2-3 times a week. I don't like the shaky sick feeling I get when I haven't had enough protein. When I feel like that I'm very tempted to start cramming things in that aren't good for me.
• This hasn't been difficult and other than a few moments of temptation this week I've done well. 
• I do use very sparingly and I use Redman Real Salt which has minerals in it. But my salt consumption is miniscule compared to what it was. 
• When possible I try to just saute with a bit of water or I use a tiny (1/2 tsp.) of olive oil to saute. I used to pour a hefty dollop into the pan which probably equaled about 2 tablespoons full.

I've been getting out and walking though I do need to do that more. I get busy working and then get lazy about taking the time to build exercise in so that needs to happen more. But overall, I'm pleased with the results. Even though I didn't lose any more weight this week my clothes are fitting better and things are toning up. 

I'm seeing a difference and that's what matters!