Happy Monday! I am finally back to blogging after taking a few weeks off. We went to St. Augustine a few weeks ago with Alec’s side of the family which we really enjoyed! I had never been to that part of Florida before so it was fun to see/explore.
I especially enjoyed all the fresh seafood, running on the beach in the morning (more like run/walking since it was extremely hot/humid), exploring downtown St. Augustine, and spending time with family.
Hello friends! I hope you are having a nice week! We are getting ready to head to Florida with Alec’s side of the family on Saturday and will be there for all of next week, and then will be heading back to Michigan to go to my grandparents’ for the 4th (also will have lots of cousins/extended family there). Looking forward to the time away and all of the family time! On to some delicious eats from the past couple of weeks!
This is part of an ongoing series I am starting called “Understanding Anorexia.” These posts (which I will continue to do every now and then going forward) will focus on different physiological, nutritional, and psychological aspects of anorexia nervosa (AN). Today we will be talking about zinc deficiency! This is a major topic to be aware of you are experiencing AN, have a history of AN, or work with people with AN.
Zinc deficiency is one of the most common micronutrient deficiencies in those with AN. Given that zinc is involved in so many key physiological processes, it is vital for eating disorder treatment and recovery to ensure that your zinc levels are in a good place. In this post, we are going to cover several topics related to zinc including:
Let’s dive in!
This deliciously creamy blueberry cacao breakfast smoothie is sure to keep you feeling satisfied and energized for hours. Customize with your favorite add-ins and toppings!
Hello and happy Tuesday! Anyone else feeling tired of the abnormally hot weather for spring? Thankfully I have the perfect smoothie to the rescue. If I want to make a smoothie in the morning or even afternoon, this is my go-to smoothie of choice. I usually have all of the ingredients on hand, it is full of nutrition, and it tastes delicious! What more could one want in a smoothie? On to the details!
Happy Memorial Day! I hope you have been enjoying the weekend and have been able to spend some time relaxing with family and friends. I am grateful for all the Americans who have sacrificed so much for our country in the fight for freedom here and around the world. We are hoping to spend the weekend going on a hike and are planning to make some burgers topped with caramelized onions (the best burger topping!) and this potato salad. On to some delicious eats from the past couple weeks!
More overnight steel-cut oatmeal – hidden underneath all the berries is some creamy almond butter, honey, and flax seeds! I am so happy that fresh berries are back in season!
I’ve had several people ask me recently some version of the question, “After learning all that you’ve learned in your program, what can you just not eat now??” I think they are expecting me to share something along the lines of the “horrors” of McDonald’s, added sugar, or processed foods. My attempts to answer this question got me thinking about how going through a master’s program in nutrition has actually increased my flexibility with eating and confidence that a healthy diet can incorporate all foods – hence, there is nothing that I, as a nutrition professional and enthusiast, “can’t eat now!”
So, I thought I’d share a few key takeaways of what I learned from my time in school. I’d love to hear what resonates with you!
Chewy, sweet coconut apricot energy bites – the perfect on-the-go or at-home snack. Packed with juicy apricots, salted cashews, coconut, and chia seeds for extra texture/nutrition, these easy-to-make energy bites are sure to become something you will want to make on repeat!
We love our chocolate-flavored energy bites over here, but recently I decided to switch it up and add a new flavor into the mix – thus, these tasty coconut apricot energy bites were born! Using only 5 ingredients and a food processor, these bites can be whipped up in mere minutes! If I’m going to take the time to prep a snack beforehand, I want it to be simple ingredient-wise and clean-up-wise. These perfectly fit the bill!
Today I’m going to talk about a concept I think of as “self-prescribed rigid box thinking,” – rule-bound, all-or-nothing, black-and-white thinking we can impose on ourselves. This is something I used to struggle with a LOT when I had an eating disorder and this way of thinking can still impact me regularly (but thankfully usually in much lesser degrees).
About a week ago I decided not to do a marathon that I had been training for the past few months. The marathon is only a month out, but I was at the height of my training plan and my knee was starting to flare up a bit. I felt like I could have pushed through it and done the marathon, but I really did not want to risk any injury, especially since the last (and only) time I did a marathon I was out for 5 months after the race recovering from a knee injury in the same knee that was flaring up last week. (The marathon was totally worth it at the time, but I would not recommend running a marathon on a semi-good knee!) I also felt like my motivation for doing this marathon wasn’t in the best spot. For the first marathon, I had a lot of fun training, and completing the marathon was my only goal – and it ended up being one of the best/most exhilarating days of my life! Running a marathon was something I had always wanted to do, and I didn’t know for a long time if it would be possible for me to run a marathon healthfully due to my history of anorexia nervosa and 6 years of restrictive eating/overexercising-induced hypothalamic amenorrhea.
Hello! I hope you are having a nice week and enjoying the spring weather! I love this time of year with the longer amount of daylight and milder temps here in Michigan. I’ve been enjoying getting out on runs/walks and waking up earlier with it being bright out earlier. I’ve got some delicious eats to share today to hopefully inspire you in the kitchen! Also some life updates!
BREAKFAST:
Usual breakfast of oatmeal topped with nut butter (almond butter) and fruit. However, I finally switched up my oatmeal game the past couple weeks! (BIG breakfast change for me, haha). I have been making a big batch of steel-cut oatmeal once a week and reheating that throughout the week. Once a week before I go to bed, I add 2 cups of steel-cut oats, 4 cups of almond milk, 4 cups of water, and a dash of salt to my Dutch oven (any large pot will work). I then bring the mixture to a boil, let it boil for a minute or two, turn off the stove, and let it sit overnight. In the morning I give it a brief stir and it is good to go! Store leftovers in the fridge and eat cold or reheat in the microwave.
Hi friends! I have a delicious dessert recipe here for you today. I came up with this black rice pudding recipe for an assignment in one of my classes. We needed to use a gluten-free grain that we had never cooked with before to incorporate into a recipe that we came up with. I chose black rice and this black rice pudding turned out fabulous!
Black rice is of Asian origin and is also commonly known as “forbidden rice” – as the story goes, historically only those of the Ancient Chinese upper class could afford to eat it. It has a nutty, sweet flavor and is often used in rice-based desserts. A fun fact is that black rice exudes a vibrant purple color while cooking! This is due to its high anythocyanin content (anthocyanin is a pigment with antioxidant properties, also found in other purple-ish foods such as blueberries and cranberries). Now on to the recipe!
