How to Take Measurements

I also get  a lot of questions on How to measure. First let's talk about the why.

Why go you measure?
Sometimes as we work out we gain muscle. Some people have said that muscle weighs more than fat. Unfortunately a pound of muscle is equal to a pound of fat. Where the do differ is in their density. Density is mass per unit volume. This means that fat takes up more space than muscle does.

(http://www.buzzhunt.co.uk/wp-content/2011/12/muscle-v-fat.jpg)

As you can see from the picture one pound of muscle takes up a lot less space than a pound of fat.

Given this disparity in volume one may see that they lose inches but not necessarily pounds when they work out. If you have a lot of excess body fat you will probably loses inches quicker than you will lose pounds. So we measure because while the scale may not see a change in numbers your number of inches should see a change.

What do we measure?
The most common things to measure are our chest, biceps of both arms, waist, hips, and thighs of both legs. You add these up for a total number of inches.

When do we measure?
The best time to measure is when the muscle is "cold". This means that you should od it before you workout or stretch. The "warm" muscle after a workout has more blood flow. This may inflate your results making it seem like you didn't lose as many inches as you should have. It is always better to have someone help us with this as you don't want to pull the measuring tape taught.

How do we measure?
I cannot explain it better than team Beachbody does so here is their video on how to take measurements:

(https://youtube.googleapis.com/v/w3CMj3T5PBo&source=uds)

I hope this answers your many questions about measurements. Please let me know if you'd like to see something else here or if you have any other questions in the comments section.

How to Shop for Clean Eating

The first time I went to the grocery store after our pantry clean out I was wondering how I was going to shop. With three under four I was worried that I wouldn't be able to change our eating habits. B we have affectionately named out "carb" girl. Here favorite meal is mac and cheese. If we let her she would eat nothing but mac and cheese for every meal. Also on Friday nights we have family pizza night. We usually sat in the TV room and watched a movie and ate pizza. There were a few other unhealthy go to favorites too.

As I started to figure out our new menu I needed some go to meals that I could easily make that would replicate some of the unhealthy things we used to make. For example I found a wheat pizza crust that uses honey instead of sugar and only has wheat, oil, and honey as the ingredients. I wouldn't eat it every night but once in awhile it is still ok.

I also knew I needed to keep lots of fruits and veggies in the house. My three girls were already accustomed to eating a bag of oranges, a bag of apples, two big containers of grapes and a bunch of bananas every week so I knew I'd need to buy more of these items for Brian and I.

One of the things I learned was that I was not eating enough times a day so I needed some quick snack foods. I also learned that I was eating way to many carbs. This meant that I needed to purchase more protein for snacks. No more bowl of popcorn for morning snack and instead replacing it with celery sticks and PB2.

One of the keys to shopping for clean eating is shopping the parameter of the store. When I shop at our local grocery store I spend the majority of my budget in the produce section. Then I pick a few things up in the Organic section. Then I find a few more items in the dairy case. Lastly, I do go in the aisles for brown rice, quinoa, farro, and some spices. I also buy many frozen veggies.

Don't dis the frozen veggies. Most of the time they are picked when they are perfectly ripe and flash frozen for freshness. They contain many nutrients that may have leached out of their fresh counterparts due to improper handling. Usually if I am cooking them I will buy frozen. IF I am using them for a whole wheat pasta salad then I will buy fresh. Also some things like cauliflower and brussel sprouts roast better when fresh verses frozen.

Lastly make sure you price compare. We have a SAMS Club close to use. The chicken, while bigger breasts, is $.20 per pound than our grocery store. Things like frozen berries and fish are usually cheaper too. Nuts and eggs are cheaper too.

One thing I love is that our local grocery store has an ap. I can use the ap to price out my trip at that store and then when I am at SAMS I can check out the price and see if there is a difference.

Lastly, remember to use fooducate.com when trying to choose between different brands. All brands are not created equal. Also some brands that toot their horn about being organic are anything but healthy. Always check their rating.

I hope these tips help you with your first clean eating shopping trip. Please share what was the hardest meal to replace once you started clean eating?

What God Sees

Yesterday I received a devotional that talked about how mom was made in the image of God. It talked about who I am. It you want to see the original devotional. It really got me thinking about me why.

I've always struggled with my self image. My mom while she would talk like I was walking on water when we were out would always make fun of me when we were in. I was never skinny enough, popular enough, doing the correct activities, blonde enough, pretty enough, etc. She was also a single mom. She did the best she could do with the resources she had but we couldn't afford brand names. I remember being made fun of for my shoes or my clothes, but I knew she loved me in her own way.

Because she always was critical on my image I would do anything to get others to like me. I was a people pleaser. Since she was always saying there was something wrong with me and that I would never have friends because of x I started to do anything to get people to like me. The result was that by the end of college I had no clue who I was.

I would be one person to one set of friends and a completely different person to another. I walked on egg shells anytime two groups of friends had to meet.

Through this I had one friend who would show me God's love without stuffing down my throat. She would be subtle like asking me to come over in the morning and when I showed up she would be doing a devotional. When I asked her what she was doing on Wednesday evening she would say going to church with the youth group.

I never realized how many seeds she planted during the early years of our friendship. I do remember being 5 years into my PhD, newly married and wondering where the heck my life was going. I didn't want a Ph.D. The only reason I was going to get my Ph.D. was my mom wanted my to be a Doctor. I remember the day I came home and told my husband I'm quitting. He was shocked that I was finally doing something for myself.

Two years later I found myself holding my brand new baby girl. I had never loved something so completely. I picked her up and cradled her and remember thinking there is something more to this world then just chasing people.

A month later a friend invited me to MOPS. I said yes ad started a journey that I never even knew I needed. I learned who God was. I learned that he loved me no matter what I looked like or what I did. Of course you didn't want to sin, but we were all born sinners and we didn't have to be perfect. This thought was so freeing. I gave my life to Jesus and haven't looked back.

Since becoming a Christian I've still had trials in my life but now I could deal with them better. I remember the day the twins were born at 27 weeks. The old me would have panicked. The new me knew that God's got this and I just needed to have faith.

While outwardly I was saying that inwardly I was eating and eating and eating. I remember justifying it by saying I was breastfeeding twins. I was only fooling myself. After 60 days they came home from the NICU and 30 days later we moved. That winter became my downfall. I hardly left the house. A was 2. I was breastfeeding B and C. It was RSV season so we couldn't leave the house and I just became a blimp.

In 2012 I started reading a book that told me God loved me no matter what I looked like. That it wasn't about the number on the scale, but I needed to do something as my body was a temple of God. So I started this journey.

This is my why. I want others to know they are loved no matter where they are.  I want to serve others. I want others to know they are heard and understood. I would love others to see my success and see they could do it for themselves. I want others to realize as moms we can do something for ourselves and become better for our families.

I ask what this devotional asks "What does God see when he looks at you?" I hope when he looks at me he sees someone who wants to do everything for his glory. I also hope that he is happy about my temple. Please leave a comment in the comment section about what you think God sees when he looks at you. Thanks for reading.