cake – Jenna Jamieson, Author

A new year of kindness!

By Jenna Jamieson | October 31, 2016 | Comments 1 comment

I just turned 29, which matters for a few reasons, but not for the reasons you might think. It wasn’t really all about celebrating me, or eating lots of birthday cake. Instead it was about completing my first full year of my #ProjectKindnessBook goal. I have a picture of each random act of kindness for the 28 things I did to help change the lives of others throughout the previous 12 months. I didn’t post very many of them on social media, and I didn’t count the things I did for friends or family as random acts of kindness. In fact, I actually took the pictures to keep myself accountable and to serve as a reminder of the positive actions I have the ability to do for strangers and people I barely know.

Not only was it a time to wrap up my year of 28 random acts of kindness, but it also meant it was time to start my year of 29 random acts of kindness. It has helped remind me to give more, take less for granted, help strangers, and cherish what I am able to do for others. My year of 28 random acts of kindness proved to be a bit difficult at times, probably because it was my first year. My #ProjectKindnessBook initiative was a new thing for me and I wasn’t sure what type of random acts to do that would keep it anonymous. By the end I had so many different ideas of what I could do, including an overabundance of ideas to use this year. I now have many ideas on how I can give to strangers without identifying myself to get recognition or credit.

With only a few weeks into my year of 29 random acts of kindness I am farther ahead than I would have anticipated at this point. The random acts I do are almost always for individuals and families rather than donations to causes or organizations because I hope to touch the heart of everyday people in the world – people of all shapes, sizes, backgrounds, gender, and race. My year 29 random acts of kindness will have a minimum of 29 different things I do, but by the looks of it thus far I will probably far outreach my goal which is a great thing. That makes me happy because it means I am spreading more random acts of kindness out into the world. I hope others will join me on my journey of giving back and spreading kindness all around us and throughout the world – no matter where you live. Happy sprinkling random acts of kindness wherever you are! View my Project Kindness page or visit my previous post What is #ProjectKindnessBook? to learn more.

~jj

#ProjectKindnessBook

#AlwaysChooseKindness

Holidays…family, friends, and FOOD!

By Jenna Jamieson | November 19, 2015 | Comments 0 Comment

This is the weight-gaining, cookie-eating, mouth-stuffing time of the year! It’s the time of the year when people eat cookies, cupcakes, chips, dips, and other sugary and salty foods. It’s the time of the year when diets seem to be filled with more junk food than fruits and veggies. It’s the time of the year when there are parties, potlucks, and events. And, it’s the time of the year when health educators and counselors know what to expect come January when New Year’s resolutions come around!

I am getting ready to cook my “gluten free” Thanksgiving this weekend so that I can actually enjoy it! Otherwise the day of Thanksgiving I get stuck with meat and potatoes without all the other lovely sides that fill the Thanksgiving table (but are often filled with gluten)!

As a way to cut back on fat and to reduce the calories in my gluten free dishes I will be making roasted brussels sprouts and corn with a couple of slices of bacon rather than a corn casserole or corn pudding which are filled with heavy cream, cream soups, and other fattening additives. This is a great way to reduce fat and calories while still having great flavor. The bacon will provide flavor along with chili powder, but since the two bacon slices will be divided among 6 people the amount consumed is very little.

My homemade mashed potatoes will feature part cauliflower. That may sound awful to some, but I promise you won’t taste the cauliflower and it will save a ton of calories! I will also use potatoes, but I will combine them with cauliflower to reduce the calories and add some veggies. I will use reduced sodium, reduced fat cream cheese or greek yogurt to add creaminess to the potatoes.

I will not have bread since I will be making cornbread stuffing. I made cornbread with reduced fat milk and will make the stuffing using reduced sodium chicken broth. To save calories, it is great to consider how many “bready” sides or carbohydrate sides you will serve with your Thanksgiving dinner. Consider having stuffing or bread, pie or cake, with more sides filled with veggies or fruits (i.e. brussel sprouts, corn, green beans, cranberries, mixed fruit, sweet potatoes – healthier than regular potatoes).

If your family does a green bean casserole each year consider roasted green beans, grilled green beans (these are delicious!), or pan seared green beans to cut back on the creamy soups, butter, and fried onions that are all high in calories.

Remember to fill your plates with more veggies than “bready” items and when you go back for seconds fill up on the veggie sides rather than more stuffing, bread, pie, and other high calorie dishes. Oh, and take a quick walk before or after dinner so your food doesn’t sit in your stomach all day or all night. You will thank yourself later when your food has a chance to digest rather than sit and make you feel miserable all night! 🙂

Happy eating, enjoy spending time with your friends and family, and have fun making new memories that you will remember forever!

~jj

#ProjectKindnessBook

#AlwaysChooseKindness

Yummy, yummy to my dessert tummy!

By Jenna Jamieson | September 2, 2014 | Comments 0 Comment

We all have a sweet tooth of some kind for some type of dessert. You may not be a cake eater, but you might like pies, cookies, cupcakes, ice cream, brownies, candy, or some other type of sweet indulgence. I often hear people say they have cut sugar from their diet and my first question is why?! The most common response is to lose weight for a specific event or occasion (i.e. wedding, swimsuit season, class reunion, etc). It really doesn’t make much sense to me because you lose the weight for the event or occasion and then gain it right back so it isn’t done to maintain a healthy weight and sustain it over time. Removing sugar from your diet as a “cleanse” or way to lose weight is almost like a punishment to yourself (and possibly others) because your mood changes, you crave sugar, and once the period of time, event, or occasion ends you tend to overindulge yourself with sugar until you feel sick and sometimes even guilty.

What’s my point or better yet what’s my solution? Build dessert into your meal and calorie count for the day. For example, if you know you will be eating dessert after dinner, base your total calories and portions for that meal prior to dessert. If you usually eat 650 calories at dinner, but know that you will be eating dessert cut your calories at dinner to 400 and then allow yourself a 250 calorie dessert. This helps reduce your portions prior to dessert so that you don’t over consume by adding an additional 250 calories to your typical 650 calorie dinner. If you don’t cut calories and portion out your meal to consider dessert, think about how many calories you would eat if you have your usual 650 calorie dinner and decide to add on a 250 calorie dessert. You would have a total of 900 calories for one meal, which is almost half of what a woman’s total daily caloric intake should be!

My final point? Be cognizant of how many calories you are putting in your mouth, be well informed about how many calories you SHOULD be eating based on your gender and age, and lastly remember that portion control is just as important as what you choose to put in your mouth! So eat nutritious and eat within boundaries! Below is a general calorie count for men and women based on age and activity level. Please realize it is a little bit different for every person based on their fitness level, health and medical history, etc. Also, remember that as we age our metabolism tends to slow down decreasing the amount of success we see in burning calories when we workout. In other words, as you age it may take more effort and a longer workout to burn the number of calories you once burned at a younger age. Don’t feel discouraged though, no matter what, if you are working out you are definitely doing your mind and body a favor and making me proud (because you are helping me change the dynamics and statistics in America which will take time to do)! Oh, and just so you got the moral out of the story: Don’t cut out sugar, enjoy a dessert on occasion, key words being on occasion! You will feel better, do much better, and see more success if you maintain your diet by eating in moderation rather than cutting food groups. That saying “everything in moderation” that you are always told and hear is actually true! 😉

GENDER

CALORIES (Moderately Active)

CALORIES (Active)

FEMALES

19-30 years old

31-50 years old

51+ years old

2,000 -2,200

1,800-2,000

1,600-1,800

2,400

2,200

2,000-2,200

MALES

19-30 years old

31-50 years old

51+ years old

2,400-2,600

2,200-2,400

2,000-2,200

2,800

2,600-2,800

2,400-2,600

(Courtesy of http://www.choosemyplate.gov)

~jj

A {healthy} routine…what foods do YOU feed your family?

By Jenna Jamieson | August 14, 2014 | Comments 0 Comment

Whether your family consists of kids, you’re a newly married couple, or you are a baby boomer near or in retirement, a great way to keep up with your health is by using those around you to keep you in check. It doesn’t mean that they hold you accountable for what you put in your mouth, but it might mean that the reason you serve healthy foods such as fruits and vegetables with meals is to be a mentor to inspire and provide an example to the people in your life (kids, sisters/brothers, cousins, spouse, etc). It means YOU care enough to help show those around you that through healthy eating and regular exercise you decrease your chances for diabetes, heart disease, and obesity.

Consider making health a daily family event or routine. For example, make dinner an occasion where you make a protein, carb, and vegetable side. You can help your kids learn about their food choices by placing foods in categories that are easy to understand such as “Go”, “Slow”, and “Whoa” which is used in school heath curriculum. For example, fruits and vegetables in their raw form are usually “Go” foods (eat most often, almost always) while canned fruits in light syrup or frozen vegetables would fall under “Slow” foods (eat less often, sometimes) because a lot of the nutritional value in these foods lessens once they are altered. Examples of “Whoa” foods (eat least often, once in awhile) might include donuts, cake, cookies, chips, and other foods that are high in sugar and sodium. Help teach those around you how to categorize their foods. Make this a fun activity for kids (or adults) by cutting out foods they love and asking them to place each picture under the correct category. This helps them learn while providing a great chart to hang on the refrigerator as a reminder. We all need a reminder every now and then and what better place than on the front of the refrigerator so you are constantly reminded every time you open it?! 😉 Once you understand the idea of categorizing individual foods such as breads, cheese, meats, pasta, etc. into “Go”, “Slow”, and “Whoa” you can take it a step further by combining food groups (as we often see when we make meals). For example, a bagel pizza or English muffin pizza made with low fat cheese or vegetable lasagna/pasta made with a red sauce would be considered “Go” meals while macaroni and cheese or pizza would fall into the “Slow” meals group and deep dish sausage pizza or fried chicken with gravy would fall into the “Slow” meals group.

Remember that your attitude toward food, nutrition, exercise, and fitness impacts your children, your spouse, and those around you so make sure you are the positive influence that helps them stay healthy! For example, take a 30 minute walk in the evenings with your spouse or take a family bike ride. Think of fun activities that allow you to make memories and are fun so that your children, spouse, and family have a positive experience as it relates to exercise. Making a positive association with exercise and healthy foods is very important, if not vital. This helps you, your children, your spouse, and family recognize the benefits of healthy eating and regular exercise while also making them feel like it is easy, fun, and stress-free. After all, remember that health starts with family and friends because children, friends, and family often echo the behavior of people they are surrounded by. Be the difference in your family and group of friends to show those around you how to make health a priority through regular exercise and healthy eating.

~jj

Replace + Reduce > Rationalizing

By Jenna Jamieson | July 29, 2014 | Comments 0 Comment

All too often I hear people say, “I worked out earlier, so it means I can eat this cake and cookies now” or “I ate fruit at breakfast and a side of vegetables at lunch so I can cheat at dinner” or the best one is “I ate clean all week, so it means I can eat whatever I want this weekend” but rationalizing your choices when it comes to your health is not a good compromise or balance. Try replacing rather than rationalizing to reduce your calories and your chances for heart disease (which I will add is the number one killer of Americans yet can be reduced by the choices we make).

I am not suggesting that you don’t allow yourself to eat sweets or desserts, but getting into the habit of rationalizing your choices is a sure way to lose track of your fitness goals and see a decrease in your progress. Instead, eat in moderation and remember that replacing with fruits and veggies rather than rationalizing with junk food will boost your energy level and make you feel much better. Consider replacing at least one food item at each meal to reduce the fat content, sodium, and carb load that is almost always higher than it should be. Replace unhealthy sides such as mashed potatoes for a baked potato or make mashed potatoes that are 1/2 cauliflower and 1/2 potato and use Greek yogurt, low fat milk, and unsalted butter to get the creamy consistency you want. Replace onion rings or french fries for healthy veggies such as grilled onions or roasted potatoes. Further, at breakfast, replace potatoes and bacon in an omelette for veggies such as spinach (leafy greens are great for you!) and mushrooms. At lunch, replace BBQ potato chips for plain tortilla chips or unsalted almonds and a BLT or chicken quesadilla for a turkey, spinach, and cheese wrap. Small healthy choices at each meal may not seem that important, but small steps can help make a big difference in the overall progress you see. Three small healthy choices (one at each meal) is a great way to work on making progress over time.

Remember that when you eat like crap, you often feel like crap so don’t use your weekend as an excuse to give up on your goals. Instead eat for success because no diet does what healthy eating will do for your life. It will change your mood, stress, and energy level! Eating healthy doesn’t mean you have to eat less, just eat right! 🙂

~jj