get healthy – Page 2 – Mary's Kitchen

January 21, 2018January 21, 2018

DANETTE MAY’S 30 DAY CHALLENGE – DAY 14 – HAVE I FALLEN OFF THE WAGON YET??

The answer to that, is a big fat NO! Two weeks now clocked up on the 30 day challenge, 14 days of clean eating and how do I feel? Fantastic. The release in weight is not as much as I would like, but the older you get, it does get more difficult. I am pleased however, with the results so far.

My skin is shiny and more vibrant, hair is gleaming and my jeans fit with no muffin top! Speaking of muffins, I would like to share the Fat-Burning Blueberry Muffin recipe with you. This recipe is a great breakfast treat or enjoy with a cup of dandelion tea which I have become to love the taste of.

Fat Burning Blueberry Muffins (Muffins that won’t give you the muffin top)

Preheat oven to 350F 180C or Gas Mark 4 Makes 12

3 eggs, 1 cup almond butter, 1 cup group almonds, 1/2 cup honey, 3/4 cup blueberries, 1/3 cup melted coconut oil, 1/3 cup shredded organic unsweetened coconut, 1/2 tsp. baking powder, 1/2 tsp. baking soda, 1/4 tsp. sea salt and cinnamon (optional)

Whisk eggs in a large bowl until colour of butter, add ground almonds, blend, add all the remaining ingredients and mix well.

Use muffin liners inside your muffin tin – fill 12 cases top with some more shredded coconut and/or chai seeds. Then bake for 15/20 minutes.

Cool then enjoy with a cup of dandelion or green tea.

During Day 8 through to 11, if you have been weighing yourself regularly, you will be sorely disappointed. During this period my weight did not alter much on the scales, that is why it is important to discard them. At this stage discouragement does set in and that large glass of wine seems to be looming in my vision. Don’t go getting negative. This plan works but don’t fall astray at this point. Good things are about to happen. My advice at this point is, STAY POSITIVE, and let any negative feelings dissipate.

My clothes started to feel more comfortable, any bloating I had was alleviated, I have more energy and accomplish much more throughout the day.

I walked with my dogs this week 107,188 steps which equates to 81.89 kilometres. An improvement on last weeks by about 10KM.

I’m moving into the third week in a very positive frame of mind. There is only one thing I have found difficult and I know others do to, is drinking 3.7 litres of water everyday. You have to plan your day around that one for the obvious reasons.

Other than that, I’m on track and welcome the forthcoming week.

TODAY’S BLOOD PRESSURE WEIGHT

137/82 PULSE 76 (resting) RELEASED 9-1/4LBS.

Looking forward to the next 7 days.

If you are enjoying my blogs and following me on this clean eating challenge, please subscribe after reading this blog my entering your email address in the subscribe area. You will them receive notification when I have posted.

Thank you for stopping by.

Mary Joan Calder

January 14, 2018January 14, 2018

DANETTE MAY’S 30 DAY CHALLENGE – YES, I HAVE REACHED DAY 7

Je suis arrive – DAY 7 of the Danette May clean eating challenge !!

What can I say, except the second time around has been much easier for me. I have reached Day 7 with no real dramas. The 3 day detox I embraced and welcomed this time. After abusing my body during the festive season with copious amounts of alcoholic refreshments, it was time to stop the train and change stations. So instead of running of into the woods like a frightened rabbit I opened my mind and said, bring it on. I’m pleased to report that I did not suffer headaches, or nausea, or food pangs this time, and all in all, a pretty easy 3 days of it.

During this 7 Day period I included in my detox and clean eating plan, my daily mediations and pleasant stretching pilates. A workout does not have to be strenuous to be effective. I’m pleased to report during this week I have also covered over 90,000 steps which equates to 70km. Thats a lot of ground to cover in one week on foot. Having 3 dogs does assist this figure as I do take them for long morning walks most mornings.

It was wonderful to taste a little food on Day 2 when Quinoa (pronounced KeenWah) was introduced with Kale. The Apple Cider Vinegar and Cumin drizzle made it very tasty. I admit to adding some fresh red chilli, mango and organic shredded coconut to the dish, if nothing else, to make it look it bit more attractive to eat – it was delicious.

I’ve become a bit of a dab hand at making smoothies – Fired Up Metabolism, Wake Me Up & Shrink Me Down, Detox Pina Colada, Green Goddess, to name but a few, each having a different purpose. The only one I didn’t care for too much, but drank it anyway with my eyes tightly clenched while holding my breath, was the Fired Up Metabolism smoothie. Oh my, give me liver and onions before I would like to taste this again. Perhaps it was the cacoa, but I just had to force this one down kicking and screaming.

Moving into Day 4 is always exciting because the menus open up into a new food world you perhaps didn’t know existed. Hummus Beet Wraps, Turkey Bacon & Bok Choy Salad, Egg Omelettes, Oatmeal (or Porridge as we call it here in Scotland), Lemon infused Salmon, Ginger Chicken and more smoothies of course, all of which were delicious and awakened your palate.

I loved starting each morning and ending the evening with a cup of warm lemon water (one freshly squeezed lemon into a cup of warm water) and add 1 tbsp of Apple Cider Vinegar (try Braggs which has “The Mother”). ACV with Mother is unrefined ACV that contains beneficial bacteria and acetic acid, making it good for digestion and has a number of other benefits. I also now enjoy a cup of Dandelion Tea, which contains vitamins A, C and D, and significant amounts of zinc, iron, magnesium and potassium. It helps alleviate bloating, diabetes and liver dysfunction.

TODAY’S BLOOD PRESSURE WEIGHT

135/89 PULSE 63 (resting) RELEASED 8 LBS.

Looking forward to the next 7 days.

Thank you for stopping by.

Mary Joan Calder

March 10, 2017January 7, 2018

I LOST 20LBS IN 30 DAYS WITH DANETTE MAY’S 30 DAY CHALLENGE.

MY VERY FIRST BLOG!
If I could tell you how I lost 20 lbs. in 30 days, you would be interested wouldn’t you?

At 61 years young, things start to go AWOL so you need to watch your health and fitness. I had been drinking what I would deem to be far too much for the past couple of years and at the start of 2017 I made a conscious decision to get back on track and get fit. My blood pressure was through the roof – BP 169/102 and my liver count was 111. The doctor said you need to make some lifestyle changes – you have warning signs going on here.

I was accustomed to going to the gym but to be honest it was making no difference to the 24 pounds I had gained over the last two years. So a different approach was needed. While scrolling through Facebook at the beginning of the year I came across a woman called Danette May and her 30 Day Clean Eating Challenge. I thought, oh yeah, here we go, more money paid out for nil result. However, as I read on I felt compelled to join this 30 Day Challenge and this is just where I get started.

This was not only the most successful way to lose excess weight and learn to eat properly but included daily meditations and exercise. Skeptical as I was I started the challenge on January 9, 2017. This involved 3 laborious days of detoxing. Cleaning your engines out, getting them ready to become a fat burning machine. Can I just tell you, 3 days detox might sound easy, it is very difficult – you get headaches, disoriented and wonder very quickly is it all worth while. During these 3 days, I drank the hot lemon water, Braggs Apple Cider Vinegar and a dash of Cayenne Pepper along with the other smoothies that were laid out in the challenge menu sheets. I did cheat once, I ate a banana which at the time was heavenly. I continued to follow the challenge, obviously refraining from NO alcohol during this period. I learned to Clean Eat excluding all trans fats and sticking to Coconut, Olive and Grapeseed oil to cook with. At the end of the day, you are what you eat and I soon realised this was the rut I was in. You think you are eating healthy, which of course I thought I was, but I soon found out that I was over indulging with incorrect food groups. During this challenge I did not eat any Bread (you can eat the occasional piece of Ezekiel Bread which is a gluten free) but I could not find this so did not eat it.

When I got into some of the recipes it started to become fun. I was learning about foods and super seeds I had never even heard. I was drinking smoothies made of kale, cucumber and kiwis topped off with Chia Seeds. Chia, Flax and Hemp seeds became my new best friends. I had them with everything and still do. I made my own Almond Butter and Tahini paste and began making videos to show others on the challenge who were not kitchen goddesses how easy it was to prepare these thing and put these on my first You Tube channel – Mary PremierCru. The first week my weight altered by a few pounds which encouraged me to carry on. The support group was amazing and I jumped in with both feet, videoing my transformation, the new food I was eating and just in general loving the support from a magnificent group of woman.

As the weeks went on and I still never even sniffed a drop of alcohol, I could really see the change in my body. At the end of the 30 days I had lost exactly 20lbs, which for those of you are reading this and understand menopause, weight loss becomes nigh impossible.

I am happy to say I have continued down this road of clean eating, oh yes, I have enjoyed the odd glass of wine which tasted like pure nectar on the first sip after 30 days. I can also report to an almost perfect blood pressure reading 122/80 and a liver count of 54. The liver count is still a little high but it’s all going in the right direction. I am pleased and my doctor was mightly impressed .

Having completed this challenge with what I believe to be an enormous success, I have joined another support group called Forever Fit which is the continuation of the 30 day challengers.

This opened my eyes to whole new and exciting way of eating. My skin became radiant, I fit into a long lost wardrobe of clothes that I had long since forgotten existed and I had a renewed confidence.

This new found confidence encouraged me along with the amazing support of the woman in the group to not only start YouTubing but to create my very own blog www.marypremiercru.com. Being technically challenged at the tender age of 61, this was some achievement and a true triumph.

It is a struggle to keep healthy at 50 plus, but I can tell you hand on heart, it is possible by making a few changes in your lifestyle.