NuGo Bar Review

I love nutrition bars. I was very happy to be able to get a few NuGo Nutrition to Go bars in the mail!!

**Our mission at NuGo is pretty simple: To help people make better snack choices without compromising on flavor. We never use hydrogenated oils or trans fats in our products and, unlike our competitors, we never use waxy vegetable fat compounds in place of real, delicious chocolate. At NuGo, we’re different. We care about you and your family, and we believe in the benefits of real, delicious, chocolate. That’s why we use only all natural, top quality ingredients like real milk chocolate and antioxidant-rich real dark chocolate to make our bars the best tasting, healthiest options available.**

I was able to sample 5 different NuGo bars:

Vanilla Yogurt--my 2 kids loved this one!

Chocolate--11g protein

Peanut Butter Chocolate--only 3g fat and 100% natural

Chocolate Chocolate Chip (dark chocolate)--my favorite and dairy free

Chocolate Banana-- my least fave of the bunch- my guess is because I don't like bananas! 17g protein and low fat! My 2 year old was a BIG fan.

With so many varieties to choose from there is something for everyone!

There are a lot of types/categories of NuGo bars too:

NuGo Family-- Low Glycemic

NuGo Organic--USDA Certified Organic

NuGo Dark--Real Delicious Dark Chocolate

Gluten Free--Soy, Wheat and Dairy Free

KeriBar--Fruit and Fiber

Smarte Carb--Sugar Free

I highly recommend these bars. They offer great variety with all natural ingredients that are sure to fit in your lifestyle. You can pop on over to the website to find out where you can purchase these bars or place an online order anytime of the day or night!

Operation Potty Train!

OK, so this is more of a question then advice( advice for me) entry.
My son just turned 2 in October. A lot of people think that it's too soon to start. I am not convinced though. I know every ones experience is different. I just don't want to start and then stop and then start again! I urged my good friend to potty train her son this early and it was done in a weekend. He was the same age as Miles is now.
I wanted to start almost 3 weeks ago,but Miles had a fever and a cold so I figured I would wait until he was better. Now he has been having pooping issues-so I figured why start now when going #2 can sometimes be the most difficult part of training?? It would be like setting him up to fail!
The strategy I told my friend to use was full immersion potty training! She used no training pants ( Pull-Ups), just under ware. He understood that the diapers were GONE and were not coming back. He had lots of accidents of course, but then something clicked and he was using the potty like a pro by Sunday night! I wanted want to do this, but with my work schedule it seems almost impossible if I want to start it on a Friday. I wonder if I can think up anymore excuses??? Probably, just give me a few more minutes.....
Amara was potty trained by 27 months of age. I know the rumor is that girls are easier, but I want him on the potty NOW! He seems very interested in the Diego underpants, the Cars potty seat, the "potty prize" he picked out ( a truck of course), and the reward stickers as well.
I am still wanting to go ahead with this as soon as this pack of diapers is gone and hoping that it will be on a weekend.
Any advice or tips would be much appreciated!! I have read and reread loads of info and am still not sure what to do!

You're in Charge ( Finally--a TRUTH!)

Being in charge for some is easier said than done. You still question yourself, your motives and actions everyday. You might fall into all the MYTHS of this series on occasion as well. It's OK to make mistakes, fall off the wagon and have minor lapses in judgement. Just do your best to get back at what you know is the correct path for yourself as soon as you can. No body's perfect.

It's time to give yourself a wider path of flexibility that you can stay on forever. Allow yourself the flexibility to make any decision as long as you consider the advantages and disadvantages of your choices and always keep self-care in mind.

You are in charge of your body. You only have one. Please take care of it!

Carbs are BAD ( oh, and so is fat)

The whole " good food-bad food" thinking makes certain foods special. As a result you might feel deprived and think about then all.the.time. Not such a good thing if you ask me! Worse yet, healthy foods could even become a 4 letter word for you now.
The truth is all foods can fit into a healthy lifestyle. Since different foods have various nutritional qualities and calorie content you can use the principals of balance ( what, the what?), variety and moderation ( what a concept) to guide you without trying to restrict an entire food group.

I agree with this. I also know my body well and know what it reacts to well and what it does not. Dairy for instance. When I did the 10 day cleanse ( which I will be doing again starting Monday), it took out all dairy for those 10 days. What a difference! Less bloat and puffiness. I am sure it was the culprit too. I was eating cottage cheese up to 3 times a day and low fat cheese almost everyday. I still eat these things, but only a few times a week now. I get my calcium in other forms of food (broccoli, nuts, spinach, soy milk, and various beans).

Eat a Target Amount of Calories Every Day

Does it make sense that you would need the exact same amount of fuel every day?? (nope)
Aren't there days when you are hungrier than others due to hormones, activity levels or just because?? (yep)
Rather then setting yourself up to "cheat" on those hungry days and forcing yourself to eat more food than you want on your less hungry days, allow yourself the flexibility to adjust food intake base on your actual needs, rather then an arbitrary number!

Exercise More When You "Cheat"

I think we are all guilty of this MYTH! How many times have you "cheated" on your lifestyle ( ie: diet. I just hate that word) and in return tacked on an extra 10, 15, 30 minutes or more of exercise to "offset" the damage?

This myth causes many of us ( yes YOU) to equate physical activity with punishment for eating. This is why many people hate to exercise in the first place. They see it as a negative and not a positive thing. They might use exercise to earn the right to eat as well. This is not a very good mind set to have.

Although your weight is determined by your overall calories in versus your calories out, exercise is only part of that equation. Exercise has many faces of benefits. Try to sees exercise for good and not evil. Put the focus on how great you feel, upped energy levels, more restful sleep and how much healthier overall you are becoming. Wouldn't you rather do something good for your body because of how it makes you feel (GREAT) instead of because you feel forced to do it?!?

I would and I do!!

Eat Small Meals Every Three Hours

I am guilty as charged with doing this when I am "on track". This MYTH is based on the fact that there are many thin people that eat frequent, small meals. However, most of the thin people probably aren't looking at their watch all the time-they in fact wait for their body to tell them when to eat. They eat when their body tells them to and not rely on the clock. They eat when they are hungry and stop when they are satisfied ( not stuffed!) Since that tends to be a small meal; naturally they are hungry in about 3 hours after that meal.

The whole 3 hour rule is not always convenient for me. If I know it will be near impossible for me to eat in that time frame I might either bring a small snack or eat a bigger meal! In all honesty the 3 hour rule usually works well for me. And when I am doing that on a regular basis my body does tell me when it's time to eat and it's usually in the 3 hour range. While I don't disagree with this myth, I do know what works for me. I better, it has taken me years to finally figure it out!

Don't Let Yourself Get Hungry

This myth is based on the assumption that overweight people are not capable of controlling themselves when they are hungry. It's not so much about control as it is knowing the difference between physical hunger and head hunger. There is a big difference. The explanations are easy, but for some figuring out which one they are experiencing can sometimes be difficult. Physical hunger is when your body really needs sustenance. It's ready to be fed. You might get light headed, your belly might rumble or your blood sugar might even drop. You physically are ready to eat. Head hunger is not the same. You might see/smell something delicious that you think you need to eat RIGHT NOW! Or you put yourself on a time table of when you have to eat ( this myth will be discussed tomorrow). It's all in your head. Something might trigger your body to make it want to eat--not need to eat. Triggers were talked about in yesterdays myth.

When you really listen to your body and are in fact hungry-food is more satisfying and tastes better. If you're not hungry when you start eating, what's going to tell you to stop? You do need to recognize hunger and make sure you make time to eat before you are too hungry though. We all know the bad choices that can be made when we are starving!

Don't eat after 7 PM

Have you ever heard someone say that before?? As if it's OK to stuff your face all day long, but if you stop after 7 PM the too many calories you inhaled from 7 AM until 6:59 PM don't count!

MYTH!

For the next 6 days I will highlight a long standing myth a lot of us have heard and a lot more of us have actually fallen for when it comes to dieting. I will admit that many years ago I was told not to eat anything after a certain time of day. I lasted probably 3 days!

The above myth is exactly that. A lie! It's based on the observation ( not fact) that people that struggle with their weight overeat in the evening. Your metabolism does not automatically turn off at 7:01 PM. That would be cool though. Dinner is usually over and done with before 7 PM, so the majority of us are not eating because we are truly hungry. It's done mostly because of the main triggers- boredom, loneliness and its TV watching time--mindless eating.

It's probably a better idea to ask yourself "Am I hungry?" whenever you feel like eating in the evening. If you are then EAT! Just keep in mind that your day is coming to an end and you most likely don't need another full or heavy meal to satisfy your hunger.

If you ask yourself that question and the answer is no try to consider why you feel like eating ( IE: the triggers) and do your best to come up with an alternative activity.

Some suggestions:

Go for a walk

Chew sugar-free gum

Do a cross word

Call a friend

Organize something

Let me know if you have fallen for the Don't eat after 7 PM myth.

Resolutions.............what are yours?

As always, I am fashionably late to the party this year! I still have not made any resolutions to speak of. I usually don't, but I at least usually have a goal or 5 I would like to accomplish by year's end. They are normally always sports related- ie: race times, mile times, distance etc.

I think I will keep those to myself and then just share what my goal is at the time nears.

Soooooo, there are a lot of things I would like to do this year, but I am not sure I would consider them a resolution. I want to be more organized. I want to give the house the best cleaning ever and then maintain it (ha!). I want to get both kids started on a foreign language. I want , I want I want!!! As you can see I am all over the place as usual. I will narrow things down at some point. It might not even be this month, but it will happen.

I am curious as to what YOUR resolutions/goals are this time around. Are they realistic? Did you come up with a game plan to make them happen and have you fallen off the bumpy resolution wagon yet?? Please share!

Thanks and HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Happy New Year!!

So I am a tad late on this. I was never one to follow the crowd!! Actually, I have just been busy trying to get back into the swing of life. Amara was off of school for a whole week! I am just not used to having her home all day anymore. I know, her being gone 3 ish hours a day is not a big deal, but I had my routine down and it was pleasantly disrupted. We had a good time too. Lots of longer trips to the gym where were both could play. We made a cake on the last day of her vacation ( Santa got her a Girl Gourmet oven--pretty much an Easy Bake Oven-but endorsed by the dude on Ace of Cakes from the Food Network). She asked at least 6 times a day to make that cake. It actually has fondant. It was nice, but the finished product could fit in her hand. She's 5. It was tiny. She gave it to my husband as a late Christmas present. She is so sweet, but let me know that the next cake will be hers. I think her little brother enjoyed having her home all day as well. Yes, they fight, but he loves her a lot and likes to do everything she does. He says everything she says etc. It's hilarious.