The Hockey Pucks of Healthier Eating

Here I am, home late from a particularly prickly day at work.  Still colder than a witch's.....heart outside.  Bah.  Every molecule is leading me to settling in for what's left of this day with a bowl of sugary or salty goodness.  But I didn't.  I put together my healthy lunch for the next day.  I'm writing.  No big whoop;  I haven't made striking life changes, just changing up some eating habits as this year's healthier kickoff.  And part of my arsenal are the Hockey Pucks of Healthier Eating.

I'd mentioned before that we have been investigating some cleaner eating options.  One of the choices we have adopted came from Pinterest, the other on the suggestion of friends who have found success with cleaner eating.  The "Hockey Pucks" referenced in the title are indicative of the size of both.

Keith and I have been making smoothies for our breakfast since we lived on St. Simon's Island more than 10 years ago.  We have by and large followed Dr. Oz's guidelines for this smoothie.  The base is a banana and frozen fruit, primarily blueberries for the antioxidants.  Other ingredients have included psyllium fiber husk powder, protein powder, flaxseed and almond milk.  My coworker Jenai, whose cleaner eating initiatives have helped her lose mega-weight, suggested throwing a handful of spinach in, so we did this.  My longtime friend Christina also has had great success with clean eating and she told me she buys several bags of spinach at a time, blends them down and essentially has a bag of spinach per smoothie.  Keith then took this idea one step further: he would pack a food processor with spinach, add a little bit of water and chop it all up and then pack a muffin pan with the shredded spinach and freeze them.

The spinach lasts much longer and each frozen "puck" used in a smoothie packs a powerful punch of good health.

The other puck has far better texture and is tastier too.  Found on Pinterest, it's an oatmeal muffin called Baked Oatmeal To Go (pictured at top) found on the Sugar-Free Mom blog.  This is indeed baked oatmeal to go that as the Mom says, "you know exactly what goes in it".  This is a little wonder of a treat and it's gluten-free and diabetic-friendly.  You can also freeze and reheat these little tasties and they make for a perfect work snack.


I will also disclose we are trying one other item as well.  It doesn't really qualify as a puck (although the size of the item could almost qualify).  Now, K and I don't typically subscribe to the latest diet fad.  In fact, the last one I attempted was the South Beach diet over 10 years ago and let's just say several weeks of going cold turkey on carbs made me meaner than quitting smoking ever did.  That said, this latest "wonder drug" called Garcinia Cambogia has peaked our interest.  The marketing, of which we are being saturated with, targets Men Of A Certain Age.  The health benefits, which purport to be myriad, are hard to argue with.  It is being championed by both the aforementioned Dr. Oz and Men's Health magazine.  Too good to be true?  Possibly, even probably, but we're giving it a whirl.

 Garcinia Cambogia is derived from a small pumpkin-shaped fruit and is supposed to suppress the appetite and be particularly effective for emotional eaters and that is me to a tee.  So, we'll see, and I'll keep you apprised of the progress.....

Go here to see the link on the Dr. Oz site on Garcinia Cambogia.