Healthy Living – Page 2 – Naturally Lindsay

Food Find Friday | Thrive Market Haul

April 22, 2016 by Lindsay Ingalls 10 Comments

[This post is not sponsored – I am not working with Thrive Market just sharing the love.]

I know I have been a little absent when it comes to post but let me tell you they are coming while we wait to get back to our regularly scheduled posting why not be nosey and see what I bought on Thrive Market? I have to say one of my favorite types of post to read and YouTube videos to watch are food hauls. I love to see what people spend their money on and if there are new things I just might need to try.

This order was a bit of random one filled with a few staples and a few fun things. Let’s start with the boring things first like the aluminum foil and compost bags. I also was sent a free deodorant which is pretty cool minus the fact that it’s floral scented and that’s just not my thing. I’ll probably toss it in my gym bag as a backup.

Next it’s a few essentials that I just have to have in my kitchen at all times. While I love things like tamari and soy sauce I am over the moon about coconut aminos. It’s sweet and salty and just perfect on rice or over stir fried veggies. Ume Plum Vinegar is another staple that I use in almost every single sauce or soup that I make; it’s like magic it helps to balance all of the flavors. Lastly, nutritional yeast or nooch as I like to call it. Honestly this bottle will make last us a week but the price was right on Thrive Market so I bought it until I stock up in the bulk section at our local co-op.

Now on to the really good stuff the snacks and fun pantry items. I picked up a few different cookies from GOODBITES and some crackers as well. I’ll report back on how they are once I give them a try. Then there is some applesauce and Harvest Snaps for my littles and some Chaga for me.

Oh and then there is the pasta. I absolutely love Tolerant but a box of red lentil rotini goes for $8-9 most places so I never buy it but again the price was right and it was even better for the shells and macaroni. I also picked up a few cans of my favorited refried beans because I just can’t live without them.

I feel like I have talked about the above two items in a previous post but if I haven’t they are so delicious. Again another super expensive item, I think I saw them for almost $9 a box at Whole Foods, so I was thrilled to find them for around $6.50 on Thrive Market.

A few more snacks for my littles, these Ruby Rocket’s vegan yogurt tubes. I have no idea if they will like them but here’s hoping because I bought all three flavors. We love the Ruby Rocket’s popsicles so I am betting there are equally as good.

Lastly it’s all about the good stuff aka the chocolate! I know this seems a little excessive but Thrive Market was doing a chocolate package deal for these six chocolates so I said yes please and added it to my cart. I mean someone needs to fuel our family chocolate addiction right?

I have to say I am usually a Vitacost person but decided to give Thrive Market a try and I am super impressed with their selection. If you want to try it out for yourself just copy and paste this [affiliate] link http://thrv.me/naturallyfamily to get 15% off your first order.

Do you shop Thrive Market? What items are you loving?

Fueled By Hemp | Manitoba Harvest Hemp Heart Bars

January 29, 2016 by Lindsay Ingalls 5 Comments

You know that episode of The Office at Pam and Jim’s wedding when Michael turns to Pam’s mom and asks if she has a snack and well she does? That’s me except this has been the case for many years before having children. I have always been that person that has to have a snack in their bag where ever they go. These snacks aren’t just for myself but for anyone I’m with who might be hungry especially my husband. To keep up with supply and demand I am always keep a variety of bars in my bag.

The newest addition to my snack bar supply is Manitoba Harvest’s Hemp Heart Bar. There are three different flavours- chocolate, apple cinnamon and vanilla and these bars contain 10 grams of plant based protein and 10 grams of omegas. Basically these bars pack a nutritional punch.

Now I’ll say this about these bars they taste like you’re eating a flavored, lightly sweetened handful of hemp seeds. Their taste is nutty and they are sweet without being sugary. If you love hemp seeds you’ll be all over these bars. My favorite of the three flavors is the vanilla. What flavor do you like/would you like to try?

Instagram Contest:

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Full contest details are here: http://manitobaharvest.com/fuelledbyhemp

Eligibility: open to US and Canada residents

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Expires 3/31/2016

Disclaimer: This post is sponsored by Manitoba Harvest in partnership with Fit Approach. All opinions are my own.

Healthy Snack Ideas for the New Year | Featuring Blue Diamond Almonds

January 4, 2016 by Lindsay Ingalls 4 Comments

This post is sponsored by Blue Diamond Almonds.

Happy New Year! I don’t know about you but these past few weeks I have been eating out more, indulging in a few extra sweets and I surely haven’t had enough water. I know it might be a bit cliche but I’m ready to get back on track for the new year. We have so many exciting plans this year from a potential bigger trip, hopefully a new addition to the family (TTC #3) and living a more minimalist and conscious life. For me a big part of living a more conscious life is being more aware of the food I put in my body and eating as healthy as possible but also leaving room for some more indulgent treats and meals along the way.

I have spent the past few weeks evaluating what I eat and how it makes me feel as well as things I could improve upon. I have noticed that I have been doing a lot less snacking which might work for some people but I just end up ravenous come meal time and end up eating a lot larger meals which in the end makes me feel full and a bit tired. To keep my energy levels up so I can chase two little ones I am working on incorporating more snacks and smaller meals into my day.

When it comes to snacking you won’t find me eating a rice cake and three carrot sticks. My requirements for snacks are that they must be satisfying, quick, easy and taste good. One snack I have been really into these days are apple rounds with a spread of nut butter and toppings such as nuts, seeds, dried fruit, coconut flakes and chocolate chips. My favorite combo right now is Blue Diamond Honey Roasted Almonds, tart dried cherries and maple vanilla almond butter.

When I am on the go I need quick and easy snacks that I can just toss in a bag and eat while out at a playdate, running errands or on a hike. For me this is often an apple, banana or orange and some nuts. Because I like to have a little chocolate everyday I enjoy incorporating it into a daily snack. Since mandarins are in season right now I have been enjoying a few of those, a handful of lightly salted Blue Diamond Almonds and a square of chocolate. There is something about orange and chocolate that I just absolutely love; reminds me of the chocolate oranges I used to get as a child. I also love a big bowl of berries and almonds during berry season, add a piece of dark chocolate and you’ve got the perfect snack.

Having easy to go to snacks like these have been great lately. I know we are only a few days into the new year but I am already feeling like I am on a healthier path and that 2016 is going to be an amazing year. I am still working on my goals for the new year but plan to share them with you soon. Until then share some of your goals and/or your favorite healthy snacks in the comments below. Would love some additional inspiration!

Upgrade Your Everyday Salad | organicgirl

November 2, 2015 by Lindsay Ingalls 10 Comments

I feel like for me I’m either all about the salads or all I want is pasta. When I fall into a salad rut it is often due to the fact that I just get bored with my normal greens. I mean I love a bit of crunchy romaine, sweet mache or nice peppery arugula but then I run the rotation and get bored. That’s until my favorite greens, organicgirl, came out with their new PEPPERGREENS and Sweet Pea. I have never found a mix of greens that are as inventive as these two.

If I’m feeling a bit sweet I’ll go with the Sweet Pea which (depending on the season) have a pea shoots and a nice mix of tender leafy greens such as baby romaine and even baby bok choy. I love to add a small handful to my avocado toast or as a nice simple salad. It’s also great when combined with crunchy romaine hearts. Bonus if you’re looking to get a little protein, Sweet Pea provides you with 5 grams per serving!

When I’m feeling a like I want to turn up the heat a bit I go with the PEPPERGREENS. This mix of tender-leaf greens includes a mix of my favorite peppery arugula as well as a few different mustard greens and a new to me herb called cress. Cress is from the watercress and mustard family. These greens are my favorite on a sandwich or tossed with marinated tofu, cherry tomatoes, crispy croutons andorganicgirl‘s vegan Lemon Agave dressing. The dressing is made with real ingredients and you aren’t going to find it on the shelf but right next to the greens in the produce section of your grocery store. Bonus the PEPPERGREENS are an excellent source of vitamins A, C and K.

Now I want to share a few tips to turn your boring salad into something fun, fresh and delicious.

Step 1. Greens. Get yourself some amazing greens that make you excited to enjoy your salad. Pick ones with features that appeal to you whether that is crunchy, sweet, or peppery. Choose high quality greens because they really do taste better and will make your salad munching experience more enjoyable.

Step 2. Toppings. The topping options are really endless but I thought I’d share a few of my favorites:

Walnuts + Roasted Sweet Potato + Lemon Agave Dressing (pair with organicgirl Sweet Pea)

Peppered Tofurky + Avocado + Tomato (Pair with organicgirl Sweet Pea)

Crispy Chickpeas + Pepperoncini + Tomatoes + Zaatar (Pair with organicgirl PEPPERGREENS)

Roasted Potatoes + Red Onion + Orange Bell Pepper (Pair with organicgirl PEPPERGREENS or Sweet Pea)

Tempeh Bacon + Avocado + Jicama + Tomatoes (Pair with organicgirl PEPPERGREENS)

Roasted Beets + Hemp Seeds + Dried Figs + Lemon Agave Dressing (pair with organicgirl Sweet Pea)

Step 3. Dressing. Whether you prefer a creamy dressing, a vinaigrette or maybe you just like a simple drizzle of lemon juice make sure you are once again choosing something of quality. When looking for a vinaigrette or dressing avoid bottled dressings that are filled with sugar and preservatives and especially ones with ingredients you don’t recognize. Go for something simple, made from really great fresh ingredients and ideally something that you’ll find in the cooler or produce section such as organicgirl salad love dressings.

I hope you find a bit of inspiration and new ways to make your salad fun and delicious. If you try out these new organicgirl salad mixes let me know what you think! Last night I enjoyed the Sweet Pea on a special vegan sausage waffle sandwich with apricot jam and it was so good and maybe, just maybe I’ll have a recipe soon…

So tell me what are your favorite salad combos? What kinds of greens do you prefer spicy or sweet? Crunchy or tender?

Where to find organicgirl: Available nationwide, including Whole Foods, Fred Meyer, New Seasons and many neighborhood markets in Portland.

Disclosure: This post was created in collaboration with organicgirl. I am thrilled to be working on a three part series with organicgirl because frankly I have been obsessed with organicgirl for years. I was provided compensation for this post but since I should already have stock in orgaicgirl most of this money is going to go towards buying more of their delicious greens.

About organicgirl: organicgirl is all about making great products people love. Created with premium quality, superior taste and a lot of love, organicgirl greens and salad love dressings are our answer to making a great salad with unmatched taste and freshness. A lot of attention to detail makes the difference; picky seed selection, diverse growing practices, tight specifications, triple washing, a cold, fast delivery system and the commitment of all our people. In addition to organicgirl greens, organicgirl salad love dressings are so great you will love them too! Premium quality organic vinaigrettes are made with fresh ingredients including whole produce to be delicious, fresh and tasty.

12-Weeks to a Happier and Healthier Life | Weeks 3 & 4

September 28, 2015 by Lindsay Ingalls 14 Comments

I feel like it’s been longer than two weeks since we had a check-in but it hasn’t and here I am with a big one. I have so much to share with you about my diet, goals and where I am now. Keep reading!
Goals In Review:

(Dietary Goal) Diligently follow my 28 week transformation program. I wish I could say that I did but I had a few off days but overall I found that I was pretty successful and that the program helped me to focus on eating more intuitively (more about this in my review below)
(Physical Goal) Do 10+ minutes of barre3 online each day. Huge fail. I don’t know why but I just didn’t. This is going back on my goals again for weeks 5 & 6.
(Mental Goal) Spend 15 minutes per day reading a book. Okay so I didn’t read a book for 15 minutes everyday but I did read The Starch Solution by Dr. John McDougall.

Goals for Weeks 5 & 6:

(Dietary Goal) Drink 64oz of water everyday. I had been drinking close to a gallon of water everyday for a few weeks but in the past two weeks I haven’t been filing my water jar as frequently as I should. So cheers to drinking more water.
(Physical Goal) Do 10+ minutes of barre3 online each day. Let’s try this again. Anyone want to be my accountability partner?
(Mental Goal) Read and start The Orange Rhino Challenge. Being a stay-at-home mom of two little ones can be rewarding and fun but also exhausting and frustrating (usually all in the same day). If you know me you know I have a bit of a fiery personality and while my goals is be a gentle and warm parent I have my moments where I can be short and lose my patience. The thing is I don’t want to be short or lose my patience. I want to be calm, warm and in control of my emotions. You can read more about the challenge here.

Review of The Past Two Weeks:

I had a bit of a break through in the past two weeks regarding my diet. I had been following my 28 Day Transformation plan which called for five meals with certain portioned out components to each meal. Following the plan I found myself craving a lot of sweets and other junk foods but overall I just wanted more starches (brown rice, sweet potato, white potatoes, beans). I left many meals feeling full but not satisfied which would cause me to seek out other foods. This isn’t to say that the meal plan design for this program doesn’t work it just didn’t work for me. Besides not feeling satisfied with meals I also had a hard time fitting in the two snack meals because life just gets busy and for me three meals works best most of the time.

Finally after about 18 days of following the plan 80% of the time I decided to give into my craving and I had a huge bowl of rice at lunch. After that meal I felt super satisfied and more energetic. So I ended up increasing my starches by adding in more brown rice, whole grain pasta, potatoes and sweet potatoes. I did stick with keeping things low fat; the 28 Day Transformation program allowed for 2-3 servings of fat per day. Once I started listening to my body I found that within a few days my cravings decreased, my energy increased and my digestion improved.

So for now I am focusing on eating a bit more of starch based, low fat vegan diet because it is working for me. I haven’t given up oils and such but I plan to keep my diet mostly starches(oats, brown rice, sweet potato, winter squash, white potatoes, beans, legumes and occasionally whole grain pasta), fruits and veggies with a little bit of fat. If you’d like me to discuss this further in a separate post let me know!

Workouts as you saw above just haven’t been going well. I have been getting out most days with the kids for a walk or two during the day but as for focused workouts they just haven’t been happening. I have been spending more time focusing my diet and now that I am in a good spot I feel ready and excited to take on regular non-walking workouts such as barre3, running (!!) and hopefully try out some new classes in Portland.

Overall I am feeling like I am in a good place. I learned a lot over the past few weeks and I am feeling more positive, more energetic, and excited for the next 8 weeks and beyond.

How are you doing with your goals?

12-Weeks to a Happier and Healthier Life | Weeks 1 & 2

September 14, 2015 by Lindsay Ingalls 12 Comments

I really don’t want to start this post with a bunch of excuses so I’ll just say the first two weeks were not as successful as I had hoped. I am the only one that can be held responsible for this and while I’d like to add a but into this intro I’m going to leave it at that.

Goals in Review:

(Dietary Goal) Drink half my weight in water everyday. Well I can’t say I did this everyday but I did a good 9 out of 14 days.
(Physical Goal) Go for a walk everyday – rain or shine. I didn’t go for a walk everyday but I did 10 out of 14 days and I also have reincorporated barre3 online workouts into my routine (I completed 3 last week).
(Mental Goal) Spend 15 minutes per day reading a book. This one was a big fail. I didn’t read anything except blogs and children’s books.

Goals for Weeks 3 & 4:

(Dietary Goal) Diligently follow my 28 week transformation program. I signed up for a 28 day program with fellow health coach Brittany Mullins and there is a meal plan that I haven’t been following so closely. After talking with my husband he reminded me that when I decided to sign up for the program I told him and myself that I was going to trust the program and take it on 100%. Well I have only followed the plan about 50% so I am re-committing myself to the program and following it completely.
(Physical Goal) Do 10+ minutes of barre3 online each day. I love barre3 and I really need to focus back on myself and my body. I love the energy barre3 gives me and how strong and sweaty I feel after a workout.
(Mental Goal) Spend 15 minutes per day reading a book. Since I didn’t complete this goal I am putting it back on the list because sometimes we just need a do-over.

Review of the past two weeks:

While I was way more active the past two weeks than I have been in months my diet was not on point. I ended up eating a lot of salads and veggie packed meals but I also had beers, fries, veggie burger, movie theater popcorn, onion rings, a pastry (or 2) and coconut ice cream. While I am not abstaining from having any of those items my goal is to focus on eating healthier options and leaving those for more of an occasional treat/meal. What it comes down to is that I chose the food over my health goals and didn’t practice self-control or really think about what I was eating. When I looked at the progress photos of myself and didn’t see any but rather found myself looking more bloated it was a real wake-up call that if I don’t make good food choices that I am not going to see any real changes. So here is to a new week, new goals and to coming back here in two weeks with a more successful check-in.

How are you doing with your goals?

Let’s Get Started | 12-Weeks to a Happier and Healthier Life

August 31, 2015 by Lindsay Ingalls 1 Comment

Hello! This post is getting up a lot later than I had planned but we moved last Thursday and life has been a bit chaotic. Today marks the start of my 12 week journey to a healthier and happier life. I’m happy to report that day one was a great start and I am looking forward to the next 12 weeks. Before we get into the goals and some news I have to share I will first show you my day 1 photos.

Okay so most of these are pretty cringe worthy to me but this is me showing you reality. A reality that I am not happy with but I am striving to make healthy changes to get myself back on track. To help me get back on track I am working with health coach and blogger Brittany Mullins aka Eating Bird Food. Fun fact she is also an IIN grad.

But wait aren’t you a health coach? Yes I am a health coach who after two children finding myself in need of a little help and guidance. Yes, health coaches sometimes need a coach of their own. I mean practice what you preach, am I right?

Anyways I signed up for Brittany’s 28 Day Challenge program and I am so excited to see what sort of transformation takes place over the next 28 days. Side note (disclaimer) I am not sponsored to talk about Brittany’s program and I paid for it myself. The program has a meal guide and sample plan, a workout plan, lots of information and tips on how to live a healthy life, a Facebook support group and weekly e-mail support from Brittany.

In addition to the 28 Day Challenge and the guide/goals it sets out I also have three of my own goals for the next two weeks.

(Dietary Goal) Drink half my weight in water everyday. I used to be so good at drinking water and then I don’t know what happened but my goal is to get back at it. Drinking water makes me feel more awake, more alive, more energetic and just happier.
(Physical Goal) Go for a walk everyday – rain or shine. We just moved back into our favorite Portland neighborhood and it is the perfect spot to get out and go for a walk. I want to move my body more everyday and I also want to take the time to go for a walk with my littles so that we can talk, explore and spend quality time together.
(Mental Goal) Spend 15 minutes per day reading a book. I read lots of books to my littles and blogs but I really don’t spend a lot of time reading for pleasure. I have a ‘to read’ list a mile long so now is the time to take a break from TV, the computer, social media and just take a few minutes for myself with a good book.

So that’s it for this week’s post. I’ll be back with progress photos and to tell you how things are going in two weeks. Until then you can follow me on social media where I’ll be giving lots of updates!

What are your three goals for the next two weeks?

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