Sports bring out the worst in ME, but I love eating well!! We can't win them all!!

Hope you had a great weekend!  I spent it at a basketball tournament, alot of sitting, concession stand food and alot of crazy parents screaming (I know, I am one of those crazy parents!!)

We had a Mom come out of the stands across the court and tell the time keepers they were not doing it right....I HAVE SEEN IT ALL!   

I do not eat at the concesssion stands, I pack:  shelled peanuts, bagged carrots, water, fruit, nutritional bars, hershey dark chocolate kisses and even a small bag of pretzels.  Anything to keep my mouth occupied (remember I am one of those crazy screaming parents).

I would not trade a minute of it but I do not a seat cushion!

We are going to talk about Grocery Shopping:

 ~  I want to share some Tips from my niece, Jennifer who has successfully transformed her daily food intake to Natural, Organic and eliminated processed foods from her families diet.(I shared these as a side note, but they are worth center stage!)  She herself gives you tip #1 as not to discourage you from doing something.  Pick a tip and try to make some changes.  This week I am giving up white flour...it really is not that hard to do and it is fun to see what You can do to eat a diet rich in nutrients and vitamins and minerals that will improve your quality of life!

Thanks Jennifer for sharing...Jennifer a mom of twins... an  adorable boy and girl!

1. Don't try to do everything@once. This will most likely be overwhelming and unsuccessful.

2. Always read labels on what you buy. If you can't pronounce it, or identify it, it's probably not good for you.

3. Go for whole grains, BUT WATCH OUT! They are the current fad in the food industry and they will often add whole grains to HIGHLY PROCESSED items to get you to buy them. Remember Step 2

4.GET RID of Hydrogenated Oils! This is #4 instead of #2 because it is so difficult. I believe this is the most important step to being HEALTHY ! Again, make sure you read the label and don't just look for zero grams of trans fat in the nutritional facts. IF there are hydrogenated (or interesterified or fractionated, or possibly modified) oils in the ingredients, there are trans fats. And they are really bad for your body.

NOTICE THIS IS THE ONLY STEP I SAY TO GET RID of SOMETHING AND NOT JUST AVOID IT!

5.Buy Organic as much as possible, especially animal products (butter, milk and meats) and Fruits & Vegetables you eat the outside of.

6.Avoid REFINED SUGARS AND BLEACHED FLOUR. Refined Sugars ~ white sugar, corn syrup, high fructose corn syrup. Substitute honey

Substitute for Bleached Flour ~ Unbleached flour and Whole Wheat Flour

7. Watch out for things labeled lite (artificial sweeteners used) or healthy (if they have to tell it, it's probably not) .  Lite can mean just lite in color!  No strict laws on labeling in this area.

8. Try making your favorite processed foods yourself. You'll be surprised what you can do and you'll know what you are eating. Look for recipes online

* Almond Butter ~ simply put raw almonds in the food processor, add alittle salt to taste and oil for texture. You can add walnuts or pecans instead of the oil because they are more oily, so you may not need much or any oil.

9. Have fun trying new things!

10.  Read Nutrition Facts on the back of the jar or container and do not just go by claims on the front!

Spaghetti Sauce is the perfect example because there so many to chose from and different price points.

  Pay alittle more for better quality. 

*Lowest Sodium ~  Sodium ranges from 380 to over 1000 mg (Classico has 380)

*Read the INGREDIENTS ~  Follow the tips above and Make sure the lst Ingredient is the food you are buying and not water or fillers.   

*Most expensive is not always better ~  compare ingredients and order of ingredients.  1st ingredients is the most and the last being the least in a recipe  THIS IS ESPECIALY IMPORTANT when  BUYING BABY FOOD!  ALOT OF FILLERS GO INTO BABY FOOD, SO READING LABELS IS CRUCIAL.  Look for foods you want to feed your Baby, not ingredients you can't pronounce or is not the food you think you are buying.  Ex:  Peas...should have peas as the #1 ingredient and should not have much else added to it.  Watch for salt, perservatives and water.  Get what you pay for!!

ALSO:
Serving Size ~ Pay attention to Serving Size on a package:  Nutritional information is based on one serving ...  a package or jar may have multiple servings.  If it has 4 servings, you have to multiple the calories by 4....WOW, take a close look!

Serving Size on a Nutrition Label

Image © Emily Dolson

Serving size is a very important element of the label. In the first place, a "serving size" according to a package may bear little resemblance to the amount of the food which most people eat at a time. If a package says a serving size is ¼ cup, it's best to actually measure some out to get a clear idea of how much that is, as it's very easy to underestimate the amount we're actually eating. When it comes to snack foods, you might want to separate a larger package into smaller bags that are the amount of food you want to eat. Sometimes, as in this label, the serving size is by weight. If you don't have a scale handy, pay special attention to the number of servings in the package.