Lessons learned from my mommy!

I have been reading everyone's blogs lately and I am noticing a common theme: how to eat healthy.
This has never been an issue for me, sure...I might not choose to eat healthy, but I do know how to! Let me tell you a little bit about my childhood.

My mom was a stay at home for...seven kids. Yes, SEVEN! So my mom knew how to cook...and to cook on a budget. She is also one of the most health conscience people I know. I didn't appreciate it when I was little, but I do now. I know how to eat healthy. So....here are some lessons learned form my mom:

1. Drink lots of water. We sometimes got juice. Rarely got Kool-aid. Absolutely NEVER soda. If we were thirsty we got water. PERIOD.

2. Fruits and Veggies. We had at least one at EVERY meal. We also had to eat it all...this was never a problem for me since I was never picky.

3. Meat. Really, you only need 1-2 portions a day. One at lunch, one at dinner...but watch the portions. You don't need any more than what will fit in the palm of your hand. You can actually replace meat with beans or legumes. Once, back in 8th grade my mom went "almost" vegetarian for a few months. We only got meat one day a week and she even replaced some cheeses and dairy with tofu and soy...it actually wasn't that bad.

4. Fast Food. HAHA! I remember in 7th grade I was in track and we traveled for a meet to some other school. The team stopped at McDonald's and....I was embarassed when I realized....I had no idea how to order! We never had fast food....and when I say NEVER...I mean...less than 3 or 4 times a YEAR!

5. Snacks. You know what my mom said when we wanted a snack? "Have an apple, orange, banana or some crackers or a slice of bread. Yep. No oreo's or chips for us...but imagine what a treat it was when we went over to a friends house! HOLY COW! My mom did make the most wonderful cookies...but we only got one...maybe two a day.

6. Replacements. Skim milk instead of Whole milk. Frozen Yogurt instead of Ice Cream. Wheat Bread instead of White Bread. Chicken over beef. Veggies and Fruits should ALWAYS be a bigger portion than meats and carbs.

7. SALT. Most canned/packaged foods have salt...so you really shouldn't add more. Learn to enjoy the other flavors.

8. Television. Yep, we got to watch two hours on Friday, two hours on Saturday...that is all. So...we spent the rest of the time outside playing or reading....really anything we wanted to do...non-tv related.

So...that is what I learned from my mom, among other things. Like....do you know you should NEVER eat Trans fat? They are removing it from most stuff...but companies are allowed to round down to half a gram...Which means that if your crackers have half a gram of trans fat...they can record it as zero! AND...did you know you should never go over 2 grams of trans fat a day? It's horrible for you...and think of all those hidden 1/2 grams you could be eating? It adds up...so it's better to not eat ANY!