Hello friends! We're in Arizona this week for spring break, but since I missed the last couple of Friday Favorites (see Nala's story here), I wanted to jump in and share a few things we've been loving!
For one, I'm loving my every other month calorie deficit. Consciously bringing my calories up to maintenance two months ago was the best thing I ever did. Metabolism gets down-regulated when you're in a calorie deficit, and I'd been on and off one for two years postpartum. I had a lot of signs. It was time to make sure I wasn't eating enough. I was still having a cycle, but my labs weren't looking pretty from a hormone standpoint. Anyway, after a month in maintenance, I did another month with a slight calorie deficit for the last month, which went well. It was pretty easy, and I dropped two more pounds. At this point, my goal is moving away from a number on the scale and to body composition, though, so now the goal is muscle building, which means eating enough calories, carbs, and protein is important. I've got the slides done for my metabolism course. I just need to do the recording! One piece at a time.
In the meantime, I uploaded a new meal plan to the library of resources!
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- Mr. Hungry's Video Debue
- Slow Cooker Carnitas
- 3 Foods You Should Eat More Of
- Healthy Breakfast Casserole
- Seafood recipes for lent
- 5 Foods From Costco That Helped Me Lose 55lbs (Part 2)
- The Most Offensive Thing I've Done On The Internet
What You Might Have Missed On the Blog:
- Beef Kofta
- Nala Bear You Will Be Missed
- Reuben Skillet and Reuben Bowls Meal Prep
- High Protein Chicken Alfredo Bake
- Air Fryer Salmon Bites
Snack Container
I ordered this snack container for baby girl on the plane. She loved the container but didn't like any of the snacks I put in it. So, while the snacks were a fail, the container doubling as a toy was a win.
Velvet Tacos
I didn't get a chance to tell you guys about the awesome little taco place Mr. Hungry and I tried on our last date! Apparently, they are in like 10 different states, so if you happen to be near one and haven't tried it, I highly recommend it! Soooooo gooooooodddddd
That third taco from the left was a chimichurri steak taco, and you know I had to make my own version at home, which I will publish tomorrow morning!
Mother Son Dance (Cowboy Theme)
We had a great time at the mother-son dance at KJ's school. The school did a great job of wrangling the boys and teaching them some basic dance moves. The boys also played a lot of tag, haha. It was a fun night out with the moms and boys in his class! His school has a really strong community, and we've been really blessed to make friends relatively quickly through the school.
Kind Of Spring
I always thought Arizona weather was erratic in the springtime, but it's got nothing on Texas. The Texas weather forecast is really more of a guide, and it can often get colder throughout the day instead of warmer like, I don't know, most places.
But that being said, living somewhere with seasons has been really fun, and now we get to see the trees in full bloom.
And, of course, we're back to exploring local parks.
And baby girl is rocking her spring wardrobe!
Food Favorites
I love grabbing this high-protein snack from Costco whenever they have it, which definitely is not all the time!
We tried this garlic butter shrimp from Costco as well. It would be delicious with pasta, but we just had ours with steamed broccoli.
We got a pack of Goodles at Costco. I have mixed feelings about products that include vital wheat protein, gluten, or wheat protein in the ingredient list. I don't think there is anything "wrong" with them, but it's a lot of concentrated gluten in one sitting. Kodiak waffles use vital wheat gluten as a way to boost protein in their pancakes and products as well.
The quickest and simplest way to explain why it's not my favorite ingredient is because there is some evidence that gluten contributes to a leaky gut. This is variable, but if you have a family history of autoimmunity (which Mr. Hungry does on BOTH sides of the family), celiac disease, or gluten sensitivity, I would want to be careful about large consumption of concentrated gluten. I think I could eat it with less risk since I don't have any autoimmunity that runs in the family, but with Mr. Hungry and the kids, I'm a little more cautious.
That being said, 99% of KK's protein consumption comes from dairy, and he does not like the Banza mac and cheese, but he DOES like Goodles. So, it's something I'm buying for him occasionally to get more protein (it also has chickpea flour in it) and fiber vs. Annies.
Fitness
I was working out here, but I saw my Arizona chiro on Thursday for some lingering SI joint issue, and he threw a bunch of cups on my back and sidelined me for the weekend. So, no more workouts till I'm back in Dallas.
- Friday - Upper Body Workout
- Saturday - REST DAY- travel day
- Sunday - Lower Body Workout
- Monday - Upper Workout
- Tuesday - REST
- Wednesday - Long Walk
- Thursday - Chiro - REST - sidelined till Monday
Friday Flashback
Sarah says
Spring in North Texas is my favorite season! I love watching all of the domant trees come back alive and the soft green colors of the new leaves is lovely. Plus the tulips, azaleas, hydrangeas, etc. are beautiful. I like the first time I smell freshly cut grass in the spring.
But the weather is completely crazy, as it can be in the fall. I really think that summer is our only season with really predictable weather - it's gonna be hot and get hotter and then get less hot. The rest of the year can be a rollercoaster. But at least the winter isn't months of cold!