Monday, December 19, 2011
Jicama
In an effort to try new fruits and vegetables, I recently made a Mexican salad that contained jicama. Before making the salad, I had never tried the Mexican potato, jicama. I am happy to report that the salad was quite tasty and the jicama really added a nice little crunch.
Jicama, as I mentioned, is a Mexican potato found in the produce aisle of the grocery store. Unfortunately, it is quite expensive. All you have to do is peel the jicama and slice it up. There is no cooking necessary! Jicama can be used in salads for a nice, low-calorie crunch or eaten in slices (julienne) dipped in salsa. My almost-three-year-old would not try the salad that I made, but he did enjoy eating sliced jicama dipped in salsa. He called them "french fries" and has asked for them again since that night. I am pleased to spend the expensive price tag on the jicama if he will happily enjoy a vegetable!
Although jicama is not the most nutrient dense vegetable out there, it is a nice source of fiber and Vitamin C. Another reason that I like this vegetable so much is that it really is a great way to add an interesting flair to salad rather than using high-calorie toppings.
I wish that I could post the recipe that I tried; however, I'm not sure about the copyright laws. Try searching allrecipes.com for some recipes of your own!
Monday, December 12, 2011
A Few Snack or Breakfast Ideas
Although my children love fruit, yogurt, and oatmeal, they don't seem to like chunks of fruit in their yogurt or oatmeal. Recently it occurred to me that I could puree the fruit! So here are a few snack/breakfast/lunch ideas that I have tried out on my children. They seem to enjoy them! The three ideas below are healthy, have no added sugar (of course there are is natural sugar in fruit and yogurt), are filling, and great sources of fiber and nutrients.
1. Thaw frozen blueberries and strawberries. Puree the fruit and mix it in with steel cut oats. Make plenty so that you can store it in the refrigerator and heat it up when you need it. The more fruit you add, the sweeter the oatmeal will taste.
2. Use the same fruit puree and mix it into plain Greek yogurt.
3. Mix canned, pumpkin puree into plain Greek yogurt. Add cinnamon and nutmeg to taste.
1. Thaw frozen blueberries and strawberries. Puree the fruit and mix it in with steel cut oats. Make plenty so that you can store it in the refrigerator and heat it up when you need it. The more fruit you add, the sweeter the oatmeal will taste.
2. Use the same fruit puree and mix it into plain Greek yogurt.
3. Mix canned, pumpkin puree into plain Greek yogurt. Add cinnamon and nutmeg to taste.
Wednesday, November 30, 2011
Lasting Changes, Lasting Weight Loss
Some people think that it is hard to lose weight. According to the research, it really isn't out of reach. Most people, if they put a little effort into it, can lose weight just fine. The hard part is keeping the weight off. Why is it so hard? There are probably a lot of reasons, but I would say the biggest issue is that people do not make lifestyle changes. By that, I mean that most people make changes to lose weight and don't see those changes as permanent. Folks, you have to make permanent changes in order to permanently change your body.
So now you might be thinking that it is a little too daunting to make lifestyle changes that last forever. Don't get bogged down by the huge number of pounds you want to lose, the many things about your diet that need to change, and the time you will have to spend exercising. Start thinking about ONE thing you can do TODAY that you're pretty sure you can live with. Just keep working on that ONE thing until you feel ready to try another thing.
Yes, this process may be a little slow. Ask yourself this, "Do I want to lose a bunch of weight fast and then gain it all back 6 months later because I can't continue the radical diet and exercise, or do I want to take my time and be a new me forever?"
Don't wait for the New Year to make a resolution. New Year's resolutions were meant to be broken. If you're serious, just start now. You'll need to find the right thing for YOU to start with, but here are some ideas for getting started:
1. Walk for 15 minutes during my lunch break every day that I work.
2. Take the stairs every day at work.
3. Start wearing a pedometer at least 3 days per week and aim for 10,000 steps.
4. Start each day with a healthy breakfast.
5. Add more fruit to my diet.
6. Add more vegetables to my diet.
7. Every time I dine at a restaurant, box half of my meal before I start eating.
8. Reduce my sugary sodas, fruit juices, sports drinks by one, each day.
9. Switch to 100% whole grain bread.
10. Replace one fried meal each week with something grilled, baked, or broiled.
What are you going to change TODAY?
So now you might be thinking that it is a little too daunting to make lifestyle changes that last forever. Don't get bogged down by the huge number of pounds you want to lose, the many things about your diet that need to change, and the time you will have to spend exercising. Start thinking about ONE thing you can do TODAY that you're pretty sure you can live with. Just keep working on that ONE thing until you feel ready to try another thing.
Yes, this process may be a little slow. Ask yourself this, "Do I want to lose a bunch of weight fast and then gain it all back 6 months later because I can't continue the radical diet and exercise, or do I want to take my time and be a new me forever?"
Don't wait for the New Year to make a resolution. New Year's resolutions were meant to be broken. If you're serious, just start now. You'll need to find the right thing for YOU to start with, but here are some ideas for getting started:
1. Walk for 15 minutes during my lunch break every day that I work.
2. Take the stairs every day at work.
3. Start wearing a pedometer at least 3 days per week and aim for 10,000 steps.
4. Start each day with a healthy breakfast.
5. Add more fruit to my diet.
6. Add more vegetables to my diet.
7. Every time I dine at a restaurant, box half of my meal before I start eating.
8. Reduce my sugary sodas, fruit juices, sports drinks by one, each day.
9. Switch to 100% whole grain bread.
10. Replace one fried meal each week with something grilled, baked, or broiled.
What are you going to change TODAY?
Friday, November 25, 2011
Don't Forget your Fruits and Vegetables
If you have ever tried to lose weight but felt like you were hungry all the time and unable to eat much volume of food, this post may be for you. Eat more fruits and vegetables. Yes, it really can be that simple. Most Americans get far too few fruits and vegetables in their diet.
Because fruits and vegetables are low in calories but provide a lot of bulk in your stomach, they can really help to keep your hands out of the cookie jar. Or...at least lower the occurrences of your hand entering the cookie jar! You can really eat a large volume of fruits and vegetables before the calories start adding up to much of anything. So, before all of those holiday parties and meals this season, consider loading up on some fruits and vegetables. I think you will really be surprised at how much less high-fat, high-sugar foods you will allow to cross your lips.
A diet lacking in fruits and vegetables is really a tragedy because it puts a person at a much higher risk for heart disease, diabetes, cancer, and other chronic illnesses. Fruits and vegetables are packed with nutrients and phytochemicals that just can't be reproduced in a pill form. That's right, taking a daily vitamin may help to replenish some of the lacking nutrients in your diet, but it will never come close to replacing all of the nutrients. Vitamins also do not produce the same protective effect from chronic diseases that fruits and vegetables offer.
So go ahead and stock your refrigerator full of your favorite fruits and vegetables. Keep a bag of apples in your car, carrots on your desk, and leave yourself a note to grab fruits and vegetables first!
Because fruits and vegetables are low in calories but provide a lot of bulk in your stomach, they can really help to keep your hands out of the cookie jar. Or...at least lower the occurrences of your hand entering the cookie jar! You can really eat a large volume of fruits and vegetables before the calories start adding up to much of anything. So, before all of those holiday parties and meals this season, consider loading up on some fruits and vegetables. I think you will really be surprised at how much less high-fat, high-sugar foods you will allow to cross your lips.
A diet lacking in fruits and vegetables is really a tragedy because it puts a person at a much higher risk for heart disease, diabetes, cancer, and other chronic illnesses. Fruits and vegetables are packed with nutrients and phytochemicals that just can't be reproduced in a pill form. That's right, taking a daily vitamin may help to replenish some of the lacking nutrients in your diet, but it will never come close to replacing all of the nutrients. Vitamins also do not produce the same protective effect from chronic diseases that fruits and vegetables offer.
So go ahead and stock your refrigerator full of your favorite fruits and vegetables. Keep a bag of apples in your car, carrots on your desk, and leave yourself a note to grab fruits and vegetables first!
Sunday, October 2, 2011
My Struggle to Breastfeed My Twins
It was a Wednesday morning, the day I would meet my two new babies. I couldn't wait to hold them and snuggle. As soon as my girl and boy were born, I got to see them for just a minute before they were taken to the NICU (neonatal intensive care unit). They were born just a few days before I reached 37 weeks gestation, so I wasn't really expecting that to happen. I came prepared with signs to go in the babies' bassinets notifying nurses that they were not to receive any formula, so I asked my husband to follow the babies to the NICU and place the signs.
I got word that the babies were doing well, but I waited for about 4 hours post-delivery before someone could take me to the NICU to see, hold, and nurse my little bundles. When I finally arrived, I planned to feed baby boy (18 in and 5 pounds 5 ounces) first, simply because he came out first and that was my way of deciding who got the first drop of colostrum. I was wheeled into my boy's room because, unfortunately, the only twin room was being occupied. There, I was met with several nurses and a neonatologist who updated me on both of the babies. The neonatologist informed me that both babies' blood sugar levels were low, but baby girl's (18 in and 5 pounds) was the lowest. She asked me to feed her first, which of course made the most sense. Before I was even wheeled out of baby boy's room she then began to go on about how if the breastfeeding didn't go well, they would just use formula to get the blood sugar up.
This was the beginning of a series struggles I met throughout much of my babies' infancy. Very frustrated, I let the doctor know that I didn't see any need to introduce formula. I successfully breastfed my first son for 13 months and had enough stock-pile of frozen breast milk to last him until 15 months. I felt pretty confident that there really was no reason to even discuss formula. Further, if latching-on was a problem, I could just use a breast pump to retrieve the colostrum. The neonatologist insisted that she was very pro-breastfeeding, but I would beg to differ when she quickly jumped to the idea of using formula before even giving me a chance to breastfeed. Anyone who has ever breastfed also knows that stress doesn't exactly help the process either. After feeding baby girl, I moved on to baby boy. The bonding time was wonderful, but I regret that I was met with discouragement instead of a supportive environment. Before leaving the NICU, I was told that both babies' blood sugar levels were well within normal. I breathed a sigh of relief and said "take that" to the neonatologist....in my head, of course.
The babies only stayed in the NICU until that evening, but I was again met with resistance when I tried to get in a wheel chair and go back to the NICU to feed three hours later. The nurses were uneasy about letting me go. I was really kind of appalled that they would even think I wouldn't try to go back so I could breastfeed. The nurse paged my doctor who, of course, told them it would be fine for me to go.
One of the on-staff lactation consultants later visited me and set me up with a breast pump in case I had any problems with latching-on. I was discharged after about 48 hours and went home with my two beautiful babies. My husband and I were happy to see that our older son was enjoying his baby brother and sister already.
Although our house was in constant chaos with three children under the age of two, feedings were smooth and the babies seemed to eat well. The first few visits to the pediatrician's office showed good weight gain and two healthy babies.
When we took the babies for their four month well-visit at the pediatrician's office, we were in total shock that the babies didn't even weight 10 pounds. Baby girl weighed in at just over 9 pounds. When baby boy got on the scale, we were blown away even more that he was only 8 pounds 15 ounces. He had gained only 3 ounces over the previous two months.
I was really devastated and felt like a total failure. I was exclusively breastfeeding, and obviously failing my babies. I wasn't sure what was happening, but I knew I would do whatever it took to get them back on the right track. To make a very long story short, we tried several different things to get the babies to gain weight; however, nothing was really working. The pediatrician wanted us to try rice cereal but I didn't want to do that because that would only take up space in their bellies that needed to be filled with the protein and fat-rich breast milk.
I began calling on friends in my profession and was finally set-up with a local lactation consultant who I worked with closely. We tried several techniques including pumping after one or two feedings and supplementing a half ounce of breast milk after a few feedings each day. When we returned to the pediatrician's office for a weight check, we were horrified that even with the supplementing, baby girl had gained absolutely nothing and baby boy had gained only a small amount.
The next step was to weigh the babies before and after each breastfeed to find out exactly how much they were drinking. The results revealed that they were all over the map drinking up to 7 ounces in the morning and sometimes only 0.7 ounces later in the day. I was to pump after each feed and supplement whatever they drank while nursing to equal a total of 4.5 ounces per feed. This was finally a success! Both babies gained more than their goal weight for the week.
Unfortunately, the babies did not ever drink more during their nursing sessions, so I ended up pumping after every feed. We were never able to determine what the cause of them not drinking sufficient amounts was. I supplemented baby boy with 1.5 ounces of breast milk after each feed and baby girl with 1 ounce. At first, I thought that I would never be able to manage breastfeeding two babies, then pumping, then bottle feeding two babies for each and every feed (every two hours) while also taking care of a 2 year old. When I first began the new "feeding system", the whole process took me an entire hour. It was pretty tough, but I eventually streamlined the system and had a lot of tricks that allowed me to complete the tasks successfully.
Not only was this time difficult for me because of the demand on my time, but it was draining emotionally. I really couldn't leave the house for more than an hour because it was really difficult to think about toting the pump along, in addition to bottles. Then there is the fact that you have to keep unused milk cold, heat up bottles, etc etc. I couldn't even make it to my grandfather's funeral because keeping up with this routine would have been next to impossible while traveling half-way across the country. I felt isolated, not only because I didn't get out of the house much, but also because not many people could relate to what I was going through. It was tough feeling like I was barely keeping up with my babies' basic needs. Some people who didn't know the situation would comment on how skinny and small the babies looked. It really stung because I was already feeling like a failure and was doing everything I could to turn things around. Lastly, I really loathed cleaning all of those bottles and the pumping supplies.
At the nine month well-visit (this actually took place when they were 9.5 months old) we had quite a victory. Both babies were now hitting their own curves on the growth chart. Although they are still below the 3rd percentile for weight, they are making their own curves, which previously was a plateau for baby boy. This was a victory I just can't describe. It was better than any test aced, any race won, any degree earned, or basically anything I ever succeeded in. Now, my beautiful, healthy babies are almost eleven months old and thriving. I am down to pumping only three times each day, baby boy is getting just one 1.5 oz supplement at night, and they are both eating baby food and some table food. Surprisingly, I have about eight gallon-sized freezer bags full of breast milk in the freezer.
Through this whole ordeal, there were many good things. 1. My babies had a problem that I was able to fix. We are so fortunate that they are so healthy and thriving. 2. I have a very supportive husband and family who were there for me. 3. My babies are so wonderful and loving that I would do anything for them! 4. I knew God was watching over us.
So why did I write this really long blog post? It really just felt kind of good to get it off of my mind. I hope that if there are other moms out there struggling with this that this will let them know that they're not alone! Call a lactation consultant and get the support you need. Support from knowledgeable professionals and loving family REALLY helps.
I got word that the babies were doing well, but I waited for about 4 hours post-delivery before someone could take me to the NICU to see, hold, and nurse my little bundles. When I finally arrived, I planned to feed baby boy (18 in and 5 pounds 5 ounces) first, simply because he came out first and that was my way of deciding who got the first drop of colostrum. I was wheeled into my boy's room because, unfortunately, the only twin room was being occupied. There, I was met with several nurses and a neonatologist who updated me on both of the babies. The neonatologist informed me that both babies' blood sugar levels were low, but baby girl's (18 in and 5 pounds) was the lowest. She asked me to feed her first, which of course made the most sense. Before I was even wheeled out of baby boy's room she then began to go on about how if the breastfeeding didn't go well, they would just use formula to get the blood sugar up.
This was the beginning of a series struggles I met throughout much of my babies' infancy. Very frustrated, I let the doctor know that I didn't see any need to introduce formula. I successfully breastfed my first son for 13 months and had enough stock-pile of frozen breast milk to last him until 15 months. I felt pretty confident that there really was no reason to even discuss formula. Further, if latching-on was a problem, I could just use a breast pump to retrieve the colostrum. The neonatologist insisted that she was very pro-breastfeeding, but I would beg to differ when she quickly jumped to the idea of using formula before even giving me a chance to breastfeed. Anyone who has ever breastfed also knows that stress doesn't exactly help the process either. After feeding baby girl, I moved on to baby boy. The bonding time was wonderful, but I regret that I was met with discouragement instead of a supportive environment. Before leaving the NICU, I was told that both babies' blood sugar levels were well within normal. I breathed a sigh of relief and said "take that" to the neonatologist....in my head, of course.
The babies only stayed in the NICU until that evening, but I was again met with resistance when I tried to get in a wheel chair and go back to the NICU to feed three hours later. The nurses were uneasy about letting me go. I was really kind of appalled that they would even think I wouldn't try to go back so I could breastfeed. The nurse paged my doctor who, of course, told them it would be fine for me to go.
One of the on-staff lactation consultants later visited me and set me up with a breast pump in case I had any problems with latching-on. I was discharged after about 48 hours and went home with my two beautiful babies. My husband and I were happy to see that our older son was enjoying his baby brother and sister already.
Although our house was in constant chaos with three children under the age of two, feedings were smooth and the babies seemed to eat well. The first few visits to the pediatrician's office showed good weight gain and two healthy babies.
When we took the babies for their four month well-visit at the pediatrician's office, we were in total shock that the babies didn't even weight 10 pounds. Baby girl weighed in at just over 9 pounds. When baby boy got on the scale, we were blown away even more that he was only 8 pounds 15 ounces. He had gained only 3 ounces over the previous two months.
I was really devastated and felt like a total failure. I was exclusively breastfeeding, and obviously failing my babies. I wasn't sure what was happening, but I knew I would do whatever it took to get them back on the right track. To make a very long story short, we tried several different things to get the babies to gain weight; however, nothing was really working. The pediatrician wanted us to try rice cereal but I didn't want to do that because that would only take up space in their bellies that needed to be filled with the protein and fat-rich breast milk.
I began calling on friends in my profession and was finally set-up with a local lactation consultant who I worked with closely. We tried several techniques including pumping after one or two feedings and supplementing a half ounce of breast milk after a few feedings each day. When we returned to the pediatrician's office for a weight check, we were horrified that even with the supplementing, baby girl had gained absolutely nothing and baby boy had gained only a small amount.
The next step was to weigh the babies before and after each breastfeed to find out exactly how much they were drinking. The results revealed that they were all over the map drinking up to 7 ounces in the morning and sometimes only 0.7 ounces later in the day. I was to pump after each feed and supplement whatever they drank while nursing to equal a total of 4.5 ounces per feed. This was finally a success! Both babies gained more than their goal weight for the week.
Unfortunately, the babies did not ever drink more during their nursing sessions, so I ended up pumping after every feed. We were never able to determine what the cause of them not drinking sufficient amounts was. I supplemented baby boy with 1.5 ounces of breast milk after each feed and baby girl with 1 ounce. At first, I thought that I would never be able to manage breastfeeding two babies, then pumping, then bottle feeding two babies for each and every feed (every two hours) while also taking care of a 2 year old. When I first began the new "feeding system", the whole process took me an entire hour. It was pretty tough, but I eventually streamlined the system and had a lot of tricks that allowed me to complete the tasks successfully.
Not only was this time difficult for me because of the demand on my time, but it was draining emotionally. I really couldn't leave the house for more than an hour because it was really difficult to think about toting the pump along, in addition to bottles. Then there is the fact that you have to keep unused milk cold, heat up bottles, etc etc. I couldn't even make it to my grandfather's funeral because keeping up with this routine would have been next to impossible while traveling half-way across the country. I felt isolated, not only because I didn't get out of the house much, but also because not many people could relate to what I was going through. It was tough feeling like I was barely keeping up with my babies' basic needs. Some people who didn't know the situation would comment on how skinny and small the babies looked. It really stung because I was already feeling like a failure and was doing everything I could to turn things around. Lastly, I really loathed cleaning all of those bottles and the pumping supplies.
At the nine month well-visit (this actually took place when they were 9.5 months old) we had quite a victory. Both babies were now hitting their own curves on the growth chart. Although they are still below the 3rd percentile for weight, they are making their own curves, which previously was a plateau for baby boy. This was a victory I just can't describe. It was better than any test aced, any race won, any degree earned, or basically anything I ever succeeded in. Now, my beautiful, healthy babies are almost eleven months old and thriving. I am down to pumping only three times each day, baby boy is getting just one 1.5 oz supplement at night, and they are both eating baby food and some table food. Surprisingly, I have about eight gallon-sized freezer bags full of breast milk in the freezer.
Through this whole ordeal, there were many good things. 1. My babies had a problem that I was able to fix. We are so fortunate that they are so healthy and thriving. 2. I have a very supportive husband and family who were there for me. 3. My babies are so wonderful and loving that I would do anything for them! 4. I knew God was watching over us.
So why did I write this really long blog post? It really just felt kind of good to get it off of my mind. I hope that if there are other moms out there struggling with this that this will let them know that they're not alone! Call a lactation consultant and get the support you need. Support from knowledgeable professionals and loving family REALLY helps.
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