Cholesterol {still not giving up hope}

I'm not sure how many of your know why I start this Eating Clean journey, but the main push was to lower my cholesterol. In August 2010, I was frustrated that I had incorporated working out, limited my food intake (not the thing to do at all, now I know this), and hadn't lost any weight! My doctor ordered blood work. The results were in...My cholesterol was high. It wasn't super high, but it wasn't normal.

My doctor immediately wanted me to start on a statin drug. I pushed back. I went on a mission to change my overall health.  A mission to lose the weight for good and get active. I got my cholesterol tested every 4 months and it never got to the perfect "normal" range. My triglycerides dropped drastically but that was about it. I did, however, feel great, lost the weight and got educated on cholesterol and overall heart health.

I have to admit it really does sting when you lose the weight and get healthy and the numbers still don't budge, but I am trying to remember the overall bigger picture. I focus my life on heart healthy foods, staying active, and staying on top of my health.

After nearly 3 years of working hard to get my numbers where they need to be...they still aren't perfect.  BUT, I will say for the first time my HDL (good) cholesterol has finally come one point from being normal (10 pts higher than it was in 2010).  I will take that as a huge deal.  For anyone that checks their cholesterol they know there is an ideal ratio you are aiming for: <4.45

I like to be open and honest with you guys in hopes my journey helps you.  I won't bore you with all my individual numbers, but I will say that my ratio has went from 6.14 to 4.98 in the past 3 years with no medications. Yay! 

I have since switched doctors (I was very frustrated my past one kept wanting to push medications) and love my new doctor. I highly suggest you LOVE your doctor. Look for one that isn't quick to write a RX for the latest medication. My new doctor wants to treat me, not a number or test result. After reviewing my overall health and eating commitments he doesn't think I should be on statin drugs now and possibly never (time will tell). He is looking at all my health considerations and seeing how they are linked together. He wants to commit to making me the best I can be for my future and my family.  He builds me up. He gives me hope. He listens. He is a GOOD doctor. He was worth the 6 month wait to get my initial visit.

This may help you find the "perfect" doctor for you...How to Find a Doctor

If you haven't had your cholesterol checked lately you need to schedule an appointment ASAP. It's very important to know your numbers.

Disneyland/California Adventure

Amusement parks can be a hard to place to eat clean, especially if you aren't in the habit of packing a cooler bag.  Recently my family and I went to Disneyland and California Adventure and made it out without going broke or feeling the fast food bloat.

First up was...

 Disneyland:

Breakfast (7 am-10 am):

I stated the day off with a banana, slice of Ezekiel raisin bread and roasted almonds. (All of this I brought into the park). It's great to use Ezekiel bread because it's frozen and thaws by the time you eat it. I also made coffee at the condo and took it with me along with water. Lots of water. 

Kids had banana, yogurt stick, cheese stick, and they split a cinnamon roll (purchased there). My daughter wasn't impressed and said the icing tasted weird, but there wasn't much open at this point.

Then on to lunch (around 11:00 am):

The kids split a small pepperoni pizza in Toon Town and later had some Dole Pineapple whip. (my son couldn't finish his, I think it was too sweet)

Then we headed to Bengal Barbecue so my husband and I could get lunch (I had already researched where I wanted to go in a sea of deep fried foods). I ordered 2 chicken kabobs, one veggie kabob, and one bacon wrapped asparagus for us to share. This place is really considered a "snack" place, but we made a meal out of it! I also ordered a bread stick type thing called Tiger Tails for later and NO ONE ate it because it was gross. Dry and flavorless. There went $3.79 in the trash. 

My daughter bought herself cotton candy with her own money. She ate some and saved some for later. WOW! It's no wonder kids "act a fool" at these parks if they are pumped up on cotton candy, candy, sugary drinks, etc and then crash! I tried some cotton candy that evening...I didn't like. It was strange and super fake tasting. It had been years since I had tried any. Holy sugar!

Around noon:

We got in line to wait for the Beauty and the Beast show and it was HOT and the kids had been drinking plenty of water. I decided to get a couple cute souvenir cups with a frozen apple juice concoction in them for the wait and the show. I like surprising them from time to time with something I would never buy on a normal day. They were shocked and excited. They were decent but super sweet. Hubby and I had a few sips of theirs and they had the rest.  My husband and I split a strawberry pastry stick "thingy" from the same stand. It was good and did the trick for a snack.

I'm sure I snacked on almonds if I got hungry. We left the park and had dinner at a local place in Dana Point.

We left the park around 4:30 pm.

California Adventure:

We had some of the same things packed as Disneyland. Bananas, yogurts, cheese sticks, etc. and 4 huge bottles of water. Two of the bottles were frozen solid to serve as a freezer pack until the food was eaten and to provide  super cold water later in the day. It worked great. I chose water bottles with the sports lids that stayed on. They seemed to work better with the kids (and adults!) Make sure prior to freezing a water bottle you removed a small amount of the water so it doesn't burst the container. 

When reading all of these items below realize that we were there for almost 12 hours that day!!! In HOT weather. It's amazing we lasted that long but we stayed hydrated and went in and out of the sun watching shows.

I had already researched where I wanted to eat based on reviews. I am not usually a corn dog person but if it's a GREAT corn dog I will indulge. We went to the Corn Dog Castle around 11 am (and yes, a line forms quickly prior to open). The corn dog came with a bag of plain chips or apple slice. We all got a corn dog and 2 bags of chips and 2 apple slices. I had also packed grapes and we had some of those too. The corn dog was really GOOD! And filling. It was a perfect choice. Kids had a frozen yogurt (thawed by then) shortly after lunch.

 Not a bad list of ingredients for a potato chip at Disneyland. I typically would avoid these oils listed.

 I was shocked...A) that my husband was the one that read the labels on these and pointed out that B) there was no HFCS or artificial coloring in these packets. WIN!

Around 4pm:

Later in the day my daughter picked to go to Flo's V8 dinner in Carsland. It was one on my list anyway so I was up for giving it a try. You can easily go broke eating at a Disney park so we are always looking for ways to NOT waste any food.  We decided to split a kids meal and an adult meal. Oh, and my son wanted a huge pickle ($2.99) so we picked up one of them on the way to the restaurant.  He ended up sharing it with his sister.

Minus the mac and cheese

 (you can see the small bowl it came in at the back of the image.)

 Enjoying his pickle! Or attempting too with two really loose teeth. :)

The kids meal was a SMALL bowl of mac and cheese, grapes, apples, peas and carrots (and your choice of drink, we got a small bottle of water). My husband selected the barbecue pork (it had a Cola sauce poured over it-gasp!) .It wasn't bad and wasn't drenched in sauce so that was good). I should have said "sauce on the side". I used to make mine marinated with Coke prior to going clean.  We selected pasta salad and peas/carrots for our sides. It came with a (dry) roll.  We ate all of the food. Down to the last pea! It wasn't 5 star or even 4. BUT it was decent considering I could tell the carrots and peas weren't drenched in butter or a butter impostor. I forgot to take a picture of the adult meal.  

My daughter was dead set on having ice cream at the park. I figured I would risk it and have some too. (I am lactose intolerant so often I end up in pain and bloated so it's usually not worth it.) We went to Ghirardelli and ordered single scoop sundaes (not found on the menu, but you can get if you ask). Mine had caramel, hot fudge, whipped cream and small amount of almonds. That was PLENTY and I was NOT impressed. Luckily my stomach didn't act up. I do find it helpful to try things I used to like and realize how far off my taste buds were...it was hard ice cream, I felt the sauces were lacking in flavor. My daughter complained I didn't get her a huge sundae (I learned from letting her indulge and WASTE gelato a couple of days prior). I wasn't willing to waste more food and money because I knew she couldn't eat it all. She gets sick before she can down a huge sundae.  She thanked me towards the end of her sundae and said "You were right, I wouldn't have been able to finish the large one!" (My husband and son were elsewhere getting a beer and blue cotton candy-his first time trying it and he wanted to try it for himself!)

It was HOT that day and my daughter agreed to have an artificially color and flavored ICEE twice a year as a special treat (It's so rewarding when your own kids recognize how crappy some foods are and that you shouldn't really have them much, if at all!). We came across a stand serving ICEES. She ordered cherry and my son got a frozen apple juice (he hates cherry and the blue (his favorite color) was broken so that was his only choice). She said a few times, "this really is an ICEE!". I am not sure if that was a good thing or not. I couldn't tell from her tone of voice as she drank it. At that point, in that heat, I am sure anything ice cold would be refreshing. HA! I really wanted a frozen lemonade but the stand was broken that served them. 

That was it for the day until we got back to the condo. I had chips and homemade salsa that evening. Kids had boxed Annie's mac and cheese and fruit. That's about all I can remember.

There were many fruit stands to grab a healthy snack. We saved money by bring in our own fruit, but i was tempting to buy a bunch of fruit precut, washed, and ready to eat!

Mango, Berry Bowl, and Hummus/Pretzels

If you are planning a trip to Disneyland or Disney World in your near future I highly suggest you plan ahead. I also want to give a shout out to O'hana at the Polynesian Resort at Disney World. It is hands down the best food I've had at a Disney property yet. YUM! Book your reservations early for it!

Strawberry Chia Syrup

I am telling you for the 3,456th time to buy a Vitamix machine. It's the best thing that ever happened to my eating clean lifestyle. Plus, it comes with a 7 year warranty! Oh, and basically self cleans itself. 

Chia seeds are packed full of fiber, protein, antioxidants and Omega-3s. The Vitamix does a fantastic job at making them disappear so there is no trace of them. Read more about Chia Seeds here: Chia Seeds {Nature's Tiny Powerhouse} 

I made this with strawberries we picked this past weekend with the kids! Teaching your child that food doesn't just magically show up on a store shelf is a very valuable life lesson!

Strawberry Chia Syrup

Ingredients:

• 2-3 cups fresh strawberries
• 1 cup all natural Maple Syrup
• 1/2 cup water
• 3 Tbps chia seeds

Directions:

1) Blend all ingredients in a high speed blender until smooth.

NOTE: Store leftovers in the fridge for up to a week. Serve hot or cold.

{clean} Applesauce Pancakes

This recipe can be made into larger batches depending on how many you can go through in a week. I don't like to dirty pans more than once if it can be avoided. I plan to make a gluten free option to this recipe soon.

My kids loved these pancakes!

{clean} Applesauce Pancakes

Ingredients:

Dry:

2 cups White Whole Wheat flour (I use Bronze Chief from Wal-mart)

1/2 cup oat flour (I made in my Vitamix) or use whole oats

2 Tbps Baking Powder

1 Tbps Baking Soda

2 tsp Cinnamon

1/2 tsp Sea Salt

Wet:

3 eggs (Pasteurized is best)

2 cups unsweetened applesauce

1 cup unsweetened almond milk

2 tsp lemon juice

1 Tbps coconut oil (melted)

1/2 tsp vanilla

Directions:

1) Mix the dry ingredients in a bowl.

2) Add wet to the dry and stir well with a whisk or handheld mixer.

3) Cook pancakes as your normally would. Griddle, Pan, etc

NOTE: I am sure you can add chia seeds or flaxseed to up the fiber and protein in these. We served these with Strawberry Chia Syrup. Yum!

{clean} Frozen {dairy-free} Chocolate Covered Banana Pops

I've been wanting to make these for some time now, but I just keep forgetting...until now! It was so simple and the good news (for me) is that I always have these ingredients on hand in my kitchen.  

{clean} Frozen {dairy-free} Chocolate Covered Banana Pops

Ingredients:

(adapted from spoonful.com)

• 3 bananas
• 1/3 cup creamy nut butter (I used Parkers Farm brand peanut butter from Costco)
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/3 cup dark chocolate (I like dairy free Enjoy Life brand)
• 1 Tablespoon coconut oil (I highly recommend Barlean's brand)
• 6 wooden craft sticks

Directions:

1)  Mix nut butter and cinnamon together.

2)  Cut each banana in half and then slice each half lengthwise.
3)  On one side of each half, spread the nut butter mixture and press a stick flat onto it, about halfway up. 
4)  Add other half of the banana and press together. Freeze for about 45 minutes.
5)  In a small microwavable bowl, melt coconut oil and chocolate chips together, stirring until smooth. (30 seconds at a time) With a spatula or table knife, spread a thin layer of the chocolate over the outside of the banana. (Mine was so runny that I poured the chocolate over each side with a spoon) Freeze for another five minutes, until the chocolate is frozen.
6)  Serve frozen. Store in an airtight container in the freezer for up to three days.

NOTE: Make sure to use parchment paper or your banana pops will stick to the tray (or whatever you are using).  Feel free to add unsweetened coconut or chopped nuts to the outside.  Make them "super" pops by mixing in some ground flax with the butter. Or, if you love chia seeds and their crunch you can sprinkly chia seeds on the outside too! So many options with this recipe.

{clean} Chocolate Chia Pops

These are a big hit from kids to adults. They are simple to make and are packed with superfoods (Chia seeds and Cacao Nibs). Chia seeds are a great source of Omega 3's and high in antioxidants (much higher than flaxseeds even). They are also high in fiber and protein.  Cacoa Nibs are an excellent source of antioxidants as well.  They are also known to be one of the highest dietary sources of magnesium. 

I will have these on hand often through the Spring - Fall months. 

{clean} Chocolate Chia Pops

Ingredients:

• 1 cup unsweetened almond milk (or filtered water if you don't have almond milk on hand)
• 1 ripe banana
• 2-3 Tbps Chia seeds
• 1 1/2 Tbps Unsweetened Cocoa Powder (I use Ghirardelli brand often)
• 1-2 Tbps Cacao Nibs (optional)
• 2 Tbps honey (local is best)
• 1/4 tsp vanilla extract

Directions:

1) Add all ingredients to a high speed blender (like the Vitamix) and blend on high until smooth.

2) Add to Popsicle molds.

3) Freeze overnight.

NOTE: The higher quality of these ingredients you go the better they will taste. I use my own homemade almond milk recipe. Sometimes with just almonds and filtered water (as in this case). 

Also, I use Barlean's Chocolate Powdered Greens for half the cocoa powder when I have it on hand to give them a boost of greens. 

Cilantro Pineapple Green Juice

I love green juices and this one is awesome with the mix of cilantro and pineapple. Give it a try.

Cilantro Pineapple Green Juice

• one bunch of Kale (approx 10 leaves)
• one large cucumber
• half of a pineapple (skin removed)
• one bunch of cilantro