Day 2 Clean Eating Challenge

Bonjour à tous!
Non, on ne parle pas Francais? D'accord....
Bienvenue a Day 3 of the Clean Eating Challenge.



Before I even start, let me just put this out there, I did not succeed today. I got super hungry today and didn't have anything besides ritz and peanut butter....I gorged man. It happened but it's okay, at least I didn't eat it just to eat it but because I was hungry and there was nothing else.


Everything else I stuck to, it was nice.

Breakfast? It was the overnight oats and I was kind of hesitant but it was delicious!!!
I prepared it the night before (aka I finally learned to follow directions)
I made it in the container, it looked like this 

I put it in the bowl and added at tad bit more honey.


Then lunch was the salad, sadly, I didn't have fennel so I just had the chickpeas, kale, quinoa, I added a tad bit of chicken to compensate :) and mint with the orange vinaigrette. It was delicious!!!!



My snack was amazing, again no feta so I just had tomatoes, balsamic and basil.
Pro-Tip 1: Buy in bulk at Whole Foods. It's much cheaper and better quality.
I spent 12 bucks at whole foods and bought all my grains/seeds/nuts (quinoa, lentils, flax, almonds, pistachios, chia seeds etc.) and my honey and vinegars.

Did you know whole foods sells balsamic vinegar, I only bought what I need and it was like $.50 
you fill up the jar with what you need and buy it!
But yes, that was my lunch, the balsamic was 12 years old and viscous and amazing.




Dinner was the napa cabbage wraps, super fresh and amazing. I used the frozen mango that was supposed to be for breakfast because when BF gave prep directions, they left 1/4 of the mango unaccounted for, so I ate it.....not knowing it should have been used for this meal. So I'll head to the grocery and pick myself another mango before Saturday!
Again, I had all the ingredients, the dish was super fresh and amazing.

I will say that I did use a previous pro-tip. I put the lime dressing ingredients in the mason jar and shook, I also did not use 1/4 of a cup of oil, I used maybe 2 tablespoons.


and it was yummy in my tummy like this



I didn't have my 2 clementines, this is when I had the ritz and peanut butter. I was out and I have a ton of excuses but it is what it was.

See you tomorrow. (Also, I just uploaded a youtube video about a cool thing, check it out here)



Thanks for keeping up with Shamoya

Buzzfeed Clean Eating Challenge-Day 1

SUCCESS?

-I made it through day 1, no struggles?.........it was super easy and affordable.
Buzzfeed made it so that the challenge (not diet) starts on a sunday, not a monday but I started on a monday, so for every day, I will be one day behind or ahead, you know what I mean.

Day 1: Buzzfeed Post Here
   this includes all the recipes I followed and steps that I took. Make sure you read through the original blogpost and do the prep first. Then move on to day 1!

This morning I had to go to work, so I woke up at 6:30 and prepared my breakfast and lunch (you won't have to do this, if you start on a sunday, trust me, starting on a sunday makes it that much more easier) it took me a total of 30 minutes.

First thing to prepare was lunch!

Just putting this out there, I didn't have feta (forgot to buy it) or a vegetable peeler. So I skipped on the feta (obviously) and for my asparagus, I bought really thin ones, so I just split them in half and they were really thin. I do recommend using a peeler if you have one. (I later found out that I have a vegetable peeler and I should probably check my drawers for equipment before I make assumptions)

Pro-Tip 1: Double check for a vegetable peeler, it will save you some time but
Pro-Tip 2: if you don't have one, buy one or opt for the skinnier asparagus when shopping and split them in half or thirds, you'll pretty much get them same result. (thicker ones if you have a peeler)
Pro-Tip 3: This doesn't really travel well, so start this on a sunday, therefore, you won't have to travel with a salad and eggs.
Pro-Tip 4: Use olive oil! I used coconut oil thinking it would be a better choice, nope. Follow their instructions, they work and create yum yumms.

Here are some photos of my prep.

Okay breakfast. I made this second so I could have it on the way out. However, forgetful me forgot to buy almond milk and almond butter, so again, I had to skip on those.
Pro-Tip 1: check your grocery lists before you leave the grocery store :P

So I used regular milk, the kale, and the banana...it was not pleasant. I did not consume, instead, I had a big bottle of water and a banana (same thing right?)

*when I got home, I made the smoothie properly and it was f***** delicious!*

Snack was the carrots and hummus, simple enough and yummy! Didn't take photos of that.


Then I made dinner! THE BEST PART!
I had all the ingredients for once and made everything to the tee, it was perfect!




I loved this. The kale was amazing and mildly addictive, the quinoa was perfect and the chicken was juicy, seasoned, and flavorful. This is big for me because as an island girl, I love adobo and seasoning, so seasoning something with just salt and pepper, I was hesitant but it turned out amazing!!!!


Pro-Tip 1: Follow the instructions, it will make for a yummy dish.
I roasted my chicken breasts and it looked like this:

I made the vinaigrette and the tip
Pro-Tip 2: Put the ingredients into a mason jar and shake, emulsifies really quickly without breaking and when you're done, air tight storage.
Pro-Tip 3: Put the vinigrette on the hot quinoa, it will absorb it and have amazing flavor

I didn't have any other storage, so I'm storing everything in mason jars. Here are the leftovers for tomorrow

Finished Plate. Delicious

That;s it for now. I will be having my snack later, I don't have almond butter, so I'll just have a pear and some water, maybe a grapefruit but I hope you enjoyed this and that this tips are helpful!

I know I didn't stick to every detail but I worked with what I had, I didn't go hungry and I didn't opt out for a chicken biscuit (which crossed my mind multiple times). In my head, this is a success!
Now excuse me, I have 7 more episodes of OITNB to finish and 2 seasons of GoT to catch up on.



See ya tomorrow for Day 2!


If you don't know what this post is, refer to this post, take the challenge with me.

Eating Clean Challenge

Hey All!
-Long time no blog right? Well, I've been a tad bit busy (check my youtube channel for an update video) but I'm dedicating myself to you for the next 14 days.

One of my favourite websites, a site I hold near and dear, BuzzFeed has put out an eating clean challenge. A 14 day, realistic (YUMMY) challenge where they plan your meals for the next 14 days. It's tag lined as "This is a two-week detox plan that’s actually realistic. You’ll learn to eat healthy, feel awesome, and stay that way." Clean Eating Challenge Post

They stupidly planned out every detail for you/me/whomever and even made grocery lists separated by the week. It's perfect and the best part is that it's really realistic. It's not one of those plans that has you cooking something different for every meal (which gets expensive and time consuming) but rather understands that people have real lives and are busy.

Anyway, with all that said, I'm doing it and everyday at the end of the day, I will create a quick blog post letting you know how the day went, how successful it was, as well as, tips that Buzzfeed might not have included that makes everything easier.

I embark on this challenge as I sign my name and I encourage you to join me, if you'd like to, comment down below and let me know! p.s. If you're already doing this, feel free to leave tips/comments or nice things that can help me and your other fellow humans successfully finish this challenge.

I, ShamoyaKelly pledge myself for the next 14 days to complete this challenge to the best of my ability.

ShamoyaKelly

I encourage you to join me and check back daily for tips and tricks to making a better you. Check out Day 1 Here

Woah! BEST SMOOTHIE EVER

well, that I've made so far!
It's 9:46 and I literally had to come right from the kitchen and share this with you guys!
I mean this is heaven. I woke up this morning and I didn't feel as hungry as I normally do/did. So I stayed in bed for about the next 20-25 minutes checking emails and responding to social media
(I have those, you should check em out ;)
But then I was like okay, food...hmmm what do I want. Something yummy, lets go.

I started with a
Base of
 about a half to 3 quarters of a cup of coconut water.
Then I added a splash of kombucha

Flavors:
The other half of the mango (from yesterday)
I put all my pineapples, blackberries and raspberries in a bag together in the freezer and I grabbed a huge chunk of that
about 6 or 7 pieces of strawberry.
Then I blended that up and it was really thick, so I added bits of kombucha to loosen it up a bit

I then added my greens, I added kombucha on top because the smoothie was so thick, then I topped the blender off with swiss chard

I liquified that thing and

HEAVEN

I'm drinking it now and it's almost done, like I am full but I'm trying to figure out ways to fit more of it in my tummy.

Until later! Shamoya

youtube.com/shamoyabailey

Detox Day 1: Part 2 UH OH

Hey!
So I almost made it through day one but.....I ate some chicken....and rice. I am human uh oh
I have reasons though, remember, how in my last post I told you I wasn't feeling well because of "mother nature" well I threw up as a result of that and trust me, it didn't have anything to do with the smoothies this just always happens on the first day of my cycle. So I was kind of expecting it but not hoping for it. Then I got really hungry so I ate just a small plate of food, turned out I got full really fast but anyways, I can already see changes in my skin and lips. Normally, when I and most other females start their cycles our bodies react in lots of ways. For example, breaking out, this normally happens to me but for some reason my face is really clear and it has to be due to this because these smoothies are the only thing that changed in my diet. Also, I'm not really bloated and I feel really energized!
So I almost made it through day 1 but I want to get through day 2 NO EXCUSES!

In making smoothies, I've realized that it's an art. You have to start with a base (something with high water content or a liquid) to liquify it, then a couple of main flavors, and some type of leafy green to give you some vitamins and make it much more healthier and filling.

After my first smoothie I had two more. One for dinner and one just for a snack, I'm sipping on it now and both of these were DELICIOUS!

Have any of you ever had strawberry fennel ice cream? Well, it's f*king delicious and I tried and succeeded in recreating it as a smoothie.
Here's the recipe (I did everything by taste -which you should too- so bear with me)

My Base:
Kefir

Flavors:
handful of chopped frozen strawberries (around half a cup)
about 2 times that amount of fennel

Texture:
about 9 or 10 frozen banana slices or chunks (I wanted it to be creamy like the ice cream)

Leafy Green:
couple handfuls of spinach

Then hit the liquify button till smooth or your desired texture, this was so good! You have to try it, it sounds funky but it's good. If you don't believe me make it or go try strawberry fennel ice cream

This is it before I started blending

It blending! Look how good that looks, so creamy!

And in the glass ready to slurp!

My snack smoothie (sipping on it now)

My Base:
Frozen Cucumbers
Frozen Apples

Flavors:
Mint Leaves

That's it, it's so good! and it's just a snack smoothie. So cooling and refreshing.

No makeup or edit! Look at how pink my lips are and how clear my skin is!

I feel so good and now it's time for a warm shower and a goodnight!

Dormez bien mes amours!

Youtube.com/shamoyakelly

Smoothie Detox: Day 1

Hey all!
Okay, so I decided I need to make a change and I was speaking with my sister's friend whom I get along with really well and we were thinking about starting the juice diet or smoothie diet because we both don't have juicers haha and we talked about it on Monday, then just kind of went back to our worlds. But yesterday (tuesday) I was thinking to myself that I really should do it because I want to get all the gook out of my system and obviously lose some weight.
So, I spent a couple hours last night researching it and figuring out how to start it and how to be successful, I got tired of reading and went to bed  but I woke up this morning with some clarity and I just thought to myself ''if I'm going to do it, I just got to start and start now''.

So I got out of bed around 8:45 and walked to my sister's room and asked her if she wanted to join me and she was caught so off guard because it was so random but you know, whatever haha and she said I don't know, I'm tired leave me alone haha.

So I did my morning things (still hungry as a mofo because by this point I'm determined to start today) then I left for the grocery store and got these things:

I don't think you can read that so I'll just list everything here (I tried to by everything whole and fresh because it'll save money and I can prep. everything myself)

Frozen Foods:

Frozen Tropical Fruit:A bag of frozen papaya, kewi, mango, and pineapple mix (it sounded yummy)

General:

Milkshake Straws (I love straws so I bought the big thick ones because I knew the smoothies would be thick and ps. who likes to drink smoothies without straws? Satan, yeah that's what I thought)

Okay now for everything else:

Plain Kefir

A bottle of original Kombucha

3 Lemons

4 Navel Oranges

A bag of baby peeled carrots (they're on sale and were cheaper than the regular carrots)

1 lb strawberries

1 Fennel Bulb

3 Gala Apples

A Bunch of Bananas

Bunch of Beets (4)

Blackberries

2 Coconut Waters

6 Kirby Cucumbers

Ginger

2 Grapefruits

2 Small Honeydews

2 Bunches of Kale

3 Large Mangoes

4 Limes

Baby Watermelon

Bag of Micro Spinach

Mint Package

3 Peaches

Rasberries

Red Swiss Chard

A Pineapple

3 Romaine Hearts

1 Tomato (not for juicing)

Package of Almonds

This is most of it (I got what I could in the photo)

So after this taking these photos my stomach is now growling (it's around 12:30) and I took down all my plastic containers that I saved from takeout and my zip top bags and started prepping. Now everything is put away and looks like this. (I put stuff in the freezer so when I blend them, the smoothie will be cool and nice...I hate warm smoothies, they make me cringe a lot

In terms of prepping everything,

I first blended the carrots with a cup of water then set them aside to drain, then I blended the beets to a pulp and put them away in a container in the freezer. Everything else I washed, peeled, and chopped. Well everything except the mangoes, apples, oranges, limes, and grapefruits. Those I have divided into 2 of the paper shopping bags in the bottom of the fridge. But ya, I'm done prepping now and I feel good

One thing I forgot to mention is that I was super hungry so while I was chopping things I was throwing things into the blender. So, I had some left over beet from when I pulverized it earlier, some kale, spinach, apples, a lime, watermelon, honeydew, and mango. I'll post the exact measurements at the bottom of the post and it's kind of a hodge podge smoothie because I was so hungry and I just threw things in, it's definitely not the best smoothie so far but it's manageable and I know now that I can't just throw things in and press liquify. I have to think about the flavors and stuff.

So stick around for more posts and updates about this detox and "diet" this week. I am challenging myself to do it for a minimum of 5 days because your body takes 72 hours to clean itself out and I'm giving it 2 more days to adjust but if I feel good and want to keep going, I won't hold myself back.

The smoothie I made looks like this, I'm almost done with it haha and this recipe is underneath the photo.

Looks bad right, whatever haha

Recipe: 

7 inch chunk of watermelon, another of honeydew

a bit of beet puree that didn't pour out of the blender

half an apple

half of a mango

juice of 1 lime

1 little chunk of ginger

small handful of spinach and

a larger handful of kale

then liquify until it's as smooth as it's going to get

*definitely not the best but I will post better recipes to come, this is just what I'm drinking now.

Feelings: Right now, I feel good, I feel energized but I'm also on my period (oops tmi) so I have cramps but I'm also worried about staying true to this and not giving into pms and ordering Chinese and binging on chocolate but keep checking for more posts and you'll see if I make it or not

Until my next post cheries, and check out my youtube channel youtube.com/shamoyakelly