The crock pot saved dinner for me again last night. When planning meals for the week I didn’t intend to have two crock pot meals back to back. Then, I two very long days and I became very thankful for crock pot options. Who cares if that meant potato, bean, and veggie dinners two nights in a row?

Monday, we had the golden potato, veggie, white bean, and pesto mix…

[recipe from Monday night’s post]

…and last night we had sweet potato, veggie, black bean, and salsa as a chili.

[recipe from Gina]

As I was enjoying dinner last night a thought struck me. A couple years ago I would have never had such a mix for dinner. Then, here I am happily enjoying meatless meals two nights in a row. I wouldn’t have avoided such meals in the past because I loved meat that much. No. I would have avoided such meals because they didn’t have what I would have considered a protein source back then.

With my old food rules, protein only came in the form of lean meats – a source that would provide almost purely protein with limited added fat or carbs. Tofu? No. It has extra fat. Beans? They have more carbs! That just isn’t possible. Plus, I thought the only way I could get enough protein would be with such meat sources.

When I was at my most restrictive I tried to severely limit carbohydrates in my diet. I remember calculating out my macronutrient splits (% of carbs/fat/protein in my diet) and having only about 35% of my calories coming from carbohydrate sources…most of that in the form of veggies, not oats. 50% of my calories came from protein like chicken. How sad considering I don’t even really like chicken!

Then, after becoming pregnant with Makenzie I wizened up and began eating more intuitively. I certainly ate more carbohydrates, but still strived for more protein. I couldn’t give up the notion that I needed at least 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight. I honestly believed my body needed it to function normally. Then, somehow I stumbled across the fact that the recommended amount of protein for a woman of my size and activity level is only around 60-70 grams per day. Say what?!

Over the past year I have grown even more in tune with my body and the things I prefer to eat. Intuitive eating is a continuous growth process, after all. I discovered that while I do still enjoy meat, I love meatless meals too and enjoy eating them numerous times out of the week. Now, I get most of my protein from sources like beans, tofu, eggs, nuts/nutbutters, Greek yogurt, and maybe 3-4 servings of meat a week. I actually inputted my meals for yesterday into Sparkpeople just to see how my eating balances out these days.

Yesterday, I ate 2184 calories. 54% of that came from carbohydrates, 25% came from protein, and 21% came from fat. I don’t normally track (and proved to myself I have no desire after taking the effort for that little experiment), but I believe these stats are standard for me these days. You know what? I feel better. I feel like I have more energy for workouts. I have steadily been making what I consider great progress in my “Body After Baby” goals and likely even better progress than I did after Makenzie. I feel more satisfied and less hungry than when I ate more meat. Even without meat, I still exceeded my recommended protein amount. I enjoy all my food and no longer eat anything because I “should”. Listening to your body works. Food rules don’t. Each body functions differently and you have to fuel it a way that suits you best. I truly believe my body functions best with more carbs and I’m not afraid of that anymore. Bring on the beans! <—I think I just scared my husband with that statement. 😉

Question of the Day – What type of eating do you think your body thrives on? More carbs? Higher fat? Lots of protein? A very equal split?

Thanks to studios being too expensive and the gym’s class schedule, I currently have no yoga in my life. I have also tried doing yogadownload.com workouts, which I love, but that too presents a problem. I won’t mention any names *cough cough Makenzie* but yoga doesn’t work too well when you’re used as a mountain to climb mid downward facing dog.

I miss the feeling of a great stretch that comes with every class. I hate having tight muscles and that happens so easily for me. That is why I have made a strong effort to keep up with stretching despite yoga not currently fitting in my workout routine. I don’t see any reason to have excuses for not stretching and caring for my muscles, especially as I get more involved with running.

I make a point to stretch for 5 solid minutes after every workout. During this time, I usually stick to the standard stretches.

I also sporadically stretch throughout the day. I will do my favorite yoga poses that I feel give me a good stretch in all the right places while chilling on the floor with the kiddos.

I can downward dog over Braedon and make silly faces at him…until M decides to use me as a mountain, of course.

I will go into a kneeling crescent lunge or pigeon pose…

Makenzie thinks its funny when I foam roll and we take turns together.

It’s only an extra minute here or there, but I think it adds up. Every little bit counts, right?

Question of the Evening – How do you fit in stretching?