After your interest yesterday on my Facebook page, I decided to share all about that elusive term - “happy weight”. Happy weight. It sure sounds nice, doesn’t it? But…what in the world does it even mean?!?!? Many of us would love to define our weight simply as happy, but don’t even know what that place physically looks or feels like. I can relate.

It took me years of my weight playing the yo-yo game before even remotely understanding where my body functions best. But, with time, I did eventually find my “happy weight”. I  discovered that place about 9 months after the birth of Makenzie and have found it again now.

I knew I had achieved it and it felt amazing. But how? How did I know when I reached that place? How did I know the steps to take to get there?

What IS Your Happy Weight?
In my opinion, three factors play into the definition of a person’s happy weight:

• a weight your body naturally inclines to when living a balanced lifestyle
• a weight that you can maintain relatively easily once reached
• a weight where your body functions optimally and has energy

Four Ways to Achieve Your Happy Weight 
1. Overcome Eating Issues. I truly believe you cannot manage to reach a comfortable place for your body if you constantly battle food. I spent years in a vicious binge and restrict cycle. As I discussed yesterday, I could limit myself to 1200 calories a day for days on end without ever achieving a healthy, fit body. Yet, my emotional struggles with food kept me from ever truly achieving a healthy size for myself. I did not reach my happy weight until after my personal journey to overcome binge eating.

2. Learn through trial and error what foods fuel your body best. For years, I consumed myself with food rules and could rattle off what foods someone “should” or “shouldn’t” consume when trying to lose weight. I could tell you the number of grams of protein, carbs, or fat for an “optimal” meal. I could spew off data on a variety of eating plans. Yet somehow I still had no clue how my body worked best.

It turns out eating low-carb, which I believed to be the Holy Grail of dieting, actually caused my body to revolt and hold onto weight. Through trial and error - and relieving myself of all the “cans”, “cannots”, “should eats”, and “mustn’t eats” – I finally began honoring my body and it showed its appreciation by feeling better and better. And also losing stubborn weight without a sense of deprivation.

3. Discover workouts that keep you energized. Similar to finding a method of eating that suits you, we also must search out ways to stay active that fulfill us. Not every person will love running. Not every person wants to shake it in Zumba. Choose a way to move your body that you will enjoy so you can reap the health rewards of activity without wanting to shoot yourself in the foot. It will keep you motivated to continue and your level of fitness will naturally continue to improve.

4. Don’t kill yourself. Be able to experience life and the fun things that come with it. Healthy living does not have to be difficult. There really are no top-secret files on how to make it work. Simply consume quality foods, stay reasonably active, and enjoy life. When I found a balance of 80% wholesome, nutritious foods and 20% not-as-nutritionally-sound foods, I could easily keep up with healthy choices. I didn’t have to turn down things I enjoyed and could really live life. Taking the stress off myself improved my happiness and my desire to pursue a healthy lifestyle.

The Number One Way to Stay There 
Lose the number! Many of us have a weight in our mind we believe will make us happy. It may be a weight we compare to others or one of our previous sizes. This is not a true happy weight. You can fight your body to reach the number on the scale you think you should be and I can guarantee you that you won’t really be happier. Don’t view your happy weight as a particular number. View it as a feeling. A really, really good feeling.

If you are having to workout hours a day or want to eat your arm off 24/7 to maintain the weight you are at, it likely isn’t your body’s happy weight. Your body craves balance. It is a smart machine and will fight being in an unhealthy place. If you don’t feel strong, healthy, energized, fit, and able to LIVE then you need to adjust what you think is your happy weight. Our bodies know what is best. We don’t need a scale to tell us that. Focus on how you feel and remember - strong, energetic, and healthy looks good on everyone.

• How would YOU define “happy weight”?
• What is your go-to food for great energy?

Ever since my peanut butter and jelly combo during my snack in yesterday’s 2147 calories (loving reading all your comments by the way!), I have had PBJ on the brain. it even inspired me to dollop some jelly on my regular bowl of oats alongside my big blob of peanut butter this morning.

If I felt like channeling Rachel Ray, I would say Yum-O! But, I don’t. She kind of annoys me. Then again, all Food Network chefs have something that annoys me slightly. Ironically, I miss Food Network most of all since giving up cable. I miss the EVOO/Yum-O comments, pounds of butter (Paula Dean), orgasming while food-tasting (Giada), crazy hair (Guy Fieri and “female Guy” Anne Burrelli), Mr. I’m-All-That (Bobby Flay), and I’m-a-Barbie-robot (Sandra Lee). And I really miss Chopped and Next Food Network Star!

Okay, that was a tangent. Where was I going with this post again? Oh, that’s right. Part two of WIAW – Baby' B’s version!

Monday afternoon we had Braedon’s six month check up at the doctor office. Our doctor showed a little concern about Braedon’s weight because the kiddo ranked in the 44th percentile for height/length and only the 4th percentile for weight. She drilled me on his eating habits, to which I assured her the kid eats. He eats until his belly looks like it would pop with a pin and I can hear the food sloshing around inside of him. He is my child after all and we all know I don’t fear food.

I know full well the kid eats plenty. I’m the one in the kitchen blending and mashing up food like its my job for the hungry little mouth. I don’t mind, though. Blending and mashing up food like its my job helps us save money and I like being able to feed him some of the same things we eat, just blended. Mmmmm….blended green beans…

It’s really not bad to do! All I do is simply cook whatever foods his body can process at this stage until soft and blend with my trusty immersion blender. Right now that involves green beans and sweet potato mostly. Coming soon = corn, peas, carrots, zucchini, peaches, and more! I add a little extra breast milk or distilled water, if needed, to get the right consistency and voila! Homemade baby food! Some things don’t even require cooking, but just mashing up with a fork – like banana and avocado.

That’s not to say I don’t buy anything pre-made. We do like to have a few baby food containers on hand for quick emergency options. I buy natural applesauce because its much cheaper than trying to make my own with a dozen apples. Canned pumpkin is another good option. If you’re ever looking into making your own baby food, I cannot recommend the site Wholesome Baby Food enough! It has tons of info!

I really believe in putting in the effort to make my children’s food. I want them to get used to eating the things we regularly eat as a family. To see that food comes from a kitchen with real ingredients and not from a package all the time. I believe the tastes a child prefers starts early and I want to expose my children to nutritious foods as much as possible.

Makenzie has grown up loving oatmeal, fruit, non-kiddy-super-sweetened yogurts and cereals, broccoli, zucchini, green smoothies, beans, and so much more. I will always allow my children to enjoy “kid food” like cupcakes or Goldfish, but I want them to appreciate food revolving around wholesome choices for the body. And you can never start too young! So I mash and immersion blend away. Now time to prep B’s half a banana, 1/3 cup mashed sweet potato, and eight ounces of mommy milk. And she says the kid doesn’t eat. HA!

• What were some of the foods and eating habits you remember from your childhood? Do you think what we expose children to at a young age has a big impact on their future eating habits?