Mindful Eats

Planning: The Key to Being Healthier and Happier

"You have to expect things of yourself before you can do them." ~Michael Jordan

We at MindfulEats talk about planning all the time. That's because planning is the key to health. Sadly, healthy eating, exercise and sleep don't just randomly happen! If you're anything like me, then planning doesn't come naturally. If you're the other type of person (born organized), then you can skip this post!

I resisted planning for a long time because I thought of myself as spontaneous. Isn't planning the opposite of of spontaneous? Then all kinds of things would happen like I'd be on my way to a party but wouldn't be able to find my keys in my messy house so it would take 30 minutes of searching, then the car wouldn't have gas so I'd take the extra time to go get it, and by the time I ended up at the party I was so frazzled and hungry I would eat all the fatty food in sight. The results? Weight gain, lethargy, guilt, and a total lack in spontaneity. If I'd planned ahead, I would have eaten a healthy snack before I left as part of my food strategy, grabbed my keys from the designated key bowl, walked out of the house into car with gas, enjoyed a few of the hors d'oeuvres, and had spontaneous fun at the party.

As for my house, it would be in a state of total anarchy, and then I'd make a huge weekend-long effort to straighten it out. Not fun. Then one day I read an article about FlyLady, who insisted shining my sink would get my house organized. Similar to the principles of feng shui, she insisted that a cluttered mess drained a lot of mental energy and even more time. I signed up for the FlyLady program (lots of free e-mails). It was life-changing! Like she said, setting up routines to cover the everyday basics freed me up to do a lot more. My place became neater, I had more time and ability to start planning ahead, my meals became healthier and cheaper, that gave me more time and energy, I started blogging and here we are. FlyLady is amazing, and it's free. If things feel a little chaotic, or you need some help getting organized, go to FlyLady! As Flylady always says, it's all about babysteps and getting routines. Once you have the basics taken care of, you're free to enjoy all the fun opportunities that come up without spending all this time taking care of blowups!

What to Do: Plan Your Way to a Healthier and Happier Life

1. Organize your house and life with routines that take care of your basics. Sign up for FlyLady.net for help! A principle of feng shui (this is very poorly paraphrased on my part) is that a neat, uncluttered house will let you relax. Conversely, a messy house will subconsciously bother you so you will never be able to focus on the task at hand.
2. Plan your meals for the week and schedule your exercise with the Mindful Battle Plan.
3. Create your goals mindfully and go for them!  

Resources:

• FlyLady - FlyLady steps you through setting up routines and getting more organized
• Mindful Battle Plan - Want to eat healthy? You need a food strategy!
• Mindful Goals - Achieving your goals is fun. Dream them up and go for it!

 

What I ate: 2 lattes, 2 hardboiled nyeggs, quinoa, Tasty Bite Kashmir Spinach, brown rice + ground flaxseeds, steamed broccoli, baked tofu, macadamia nuts, Mariebelle hot chocolate, 2 Almond Rocas, 40 oz. water

Exercise: Ran 4 miles (still getting in shape after taking 2 weeks off)

Braised Greens

Lela Chapman of GrowNYC braises White Tuscan Kale at Hester Street Market 

I have learned to use the word impossible with the greatest caution. ~Wernher von Braun

Kale is one of the superfoods. It is au courant - full of antioxidants, vitamins and calcium. Whole Foods has started ranking food on a 1000 point nutritional scale - kale (and collard greens) both get 1000/1000 points. We provided you with a raw kale salad recipe before, but now that it's finally fall, here is a fast and easy way to cook kale. It's actually good all year round, but since our oven goes off in the summer we don't make it until fall when it becomes a staple. 

Braised Kale

Serves 3

1 bunch of kale (or collard greens or any other fresh seasonal green)
1/2 cippolini onion (though I leave this out because I hate onions)
1-2 cloves garlic
1 tablespoon butter (or 2 tablespoons olive oil)

1. Dice onions and garlic.
2. Chop up kale into thick strands, perpendicular to stem. 
3. Melt butter on medium-high heat.
4. Brown onions and garlic.
5. Add kale and saute until soft.
6. Cover with lid, turn heat down and let simmer for 5 minutes.
7. Plate and enjoy!

What I ate: (in Tunisia so Mediterranean) 2 rolls + butter + jam + cheese, cafe au lait, lamb kebob, Tunisian salad, french fries, 3 anchovies, harissa + olive oil, olive, fried zuchinni, potato briq, spaghetti + calamari + octopus + shrimp, grapes, 2 teas, 45 oz. water

 

Exercise: none

 

 

 

 

nyfoods

Dwight Martin's hens have an amazing view of a fingerlake from their pasture - they produce top recognized nyeggs

Whatever you can do, or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it. ~Goethe

I don't usually write personal posts, but I thought I'd share that I've started a new job. I've joined nyfoods! We've been working together for the last few months, and I am thrilled about the company, its mission, and its people. nyfoods provides a line of clean, sustainable dairy products from small family farms in Upstate New York to the local tri-state market. It's food the way it should be. All the animals are on grass (even the chickens), and the average herd size is 45 cows so each animal is respected. We have a Fair Wage Guarantee for all the farmers and we're also committed to fair prices -- quality food should be available to everyone, not just the affluent. However,we're not cheap since quality food is not cheap to produce, even though many people try to lower their cost of living through food (which is a little wacky since food is one of the most important factors for your health). Our prices are fair.

In an odd way I think you, this blog, and my new job are somehow connected. I started and continue this little blog for you. When I interviewed the founders of nyfoods for a dairy post I was blown away by their sense of purpose (they started the company to create a brand that would support organic farmers, and subsequently save more farms). A couple months after that, Zappos sent me their book about finding happiness at work. Coincidence? Perhaps I'm just searching for a sign? Mayhaps. Anyway, I think all those things lead me to nyfoods. For once I'm combining my passion with my professional life. It feels right. It's also fun - I feel lucky that I get to work with Dean, Johan and Dan on a daily basis. It's a group of passionate, down to earth, smart, kinda crazy people and we're all motivated by getting good food to others.

There won't be any nyfoods marketing on MindfulEats, but I may share some information I learned. Though to toot our horn just one time - nyeggs won the highest level of distinction from the Cornucopia Group and was rated exemplary .

Thanks for reading MindfulEats and accompanying my journey!

More info:

• nyfoods
• Pay up for your food
• Milk 101
• Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh on happiness
• nyeggs

What I ate: 16 oz latte, nycheese, 1 hardboiled eggs, Mindful Mix, brown rice + ground flaxseeds + seaweed, steamed tempeh + enoki mushrooms + broccoli, Siggi blueberry yogurt, small Eataly chocolate gelato, chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream, macadamia nuts, 40 oz. water

 

Exercise: 6 mile track workout