Nutritional Bingo Wrap Up

Quick note from Nate:

Nutrition Bingo Is OVER! How did we all do? I personally really enjoyed this challenge. It got me to think a little bit more of some of my nutrition and lifestyle habits. It was also not so hard where I felt like a failure if I didn't get to something.

These challenges are great for showing up where we can start to make steps to improve our tendancies. Eve a small change can have an impact. My favorite was the one where you had to have a meal without any screens and taking a walk after a meal.

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These two had nothing to do with what you actually ate, but were just small changes to make you more concious about what you are doing.

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I missed two of the challenges, but I will get all 25 next year!!

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Now Erika....

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Day 15: Drink half your body weight in ounces of water

This time doing this challenge was a little bit easier because I started early. I drank a glass of water as soon as I got up before I ate anything. I also set a couple reminders throughout the day in case I forgot to pick up my water bottle for a long period of time. Setting little reminders can be helpful when we have a busy schedule and sometimes the day and our priorities get away from us. 

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Day 16: Mindful eating

I decided to eat my lunch outside for this meal. I left my phone inside and just watched/listened to what was going on outside. This was so peaceful that I sat out there for about 20 minutes after I finished my food. We are constantly stimulated by technology and it’s important to step away from that instant gratification we get from it. I got to take the time to fully enjoy my food and my surroundings. 

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Day 17: Eat a fruit or vegetable with every meal

For breakfast I had a yogurt bowl with granola, blueberries and banana. For lunch I had tuna on crackers and a cheese stick with a side of pomegranate seeds. For dinner I made grilled cheese with a side of green beans. Fruits and vegetables are so important to get throughout the day because they are loaded with vitamins, minerals and fiber. 

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Day 18: Eat a balanced breakfast

A balanced meal consists of carbohydrates, protein, fat, and fiber (fruits or vegetables). My breakfast was a bagel with cream cheese, eggs, and apple slices. Carbs are the brain and the body’s main source of energy but when eaten alone can cause a sudden blood sugar spike and drop. Protein and fiber help balance out the blood sugar by slowing down the digestion of carbs. Protein and fat help keep you full and satiated. 

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Day 19: Swap one non-water drink for a glass of water

This was kind of a free space for me. I rarely drink anything other than water on a regular basis. There is nothing wrong with having something other than water every once in a while but your body needs water and most of us aren’t drinking enough of it. I spent this day making sure I was getting enough water throughout the day.

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Day 20: Get 25-30g of protein in one meal

For dinner, I had chicken, roasted potatoes, and broccoli (as we do at least once a week because it’s so simple). 100g of chicken breast (around 3.5oz) is about 30g of protein just by itself. The potatoes also have a little bit of protein (like 2g for the serving I had) This brought my whole meal to around 32g of protein. If you are struggling to hit your protein goal, try to up the amount of your protein source by just a little bit for each meal. Just add one or two more bites of chicken or one more scoop of Greek yogurt. Those few extra grams add up at the end of the day. 

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Day 21: Incorporate whole grains into a meal 

For breakfast, I made oatmeal and added in diced up apples, protein powder, peanut butter, chocolate chips and cinnamon. The oats were my whole grain. I added protein (protein powder), fat (peanut butter) and fiber (apples) to keep me full and satiated until my next meal. Whole grains are grains that have not been refined (still in their whole form). Whole grains have more fiber which is good for digestion and keeps you full longer. 

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Day 22: Cook a balanced meal you’ve been wanting to try

For this meal, I made General Tso’s tofu over rice with broccoli. I used to make this recipe a lot a couple years ago and I’ve been wanting to make it for a while now. It has tofu as the protein, rice as the carb, broccoli as the fiber and oil as the fat. This recipe is pretty simple and doesn’t take too long and it’s really delicious. 

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Day 23: meal prep for the next day

On this day, I prepared breakfast for the next couple days. I made a couple servings of pancakes and a couple containers of overnight oats. Since I have to wake up so early, breakfast is hard to whip up pretty fast in the morning so I like to have it prepared in advance. It makes the mornings go a lot smoother.

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I have to be honest and say that I did not complete nutrition bingo. I did not try a new protein or a new vegetable. I did try Kiefer, which is similar to yogurt. It is a higher protein food, but I wouldn’t consider it a protein source. I also did not get around to finding a new vegetable, but I would really like to go to the store and find something that I haven’t tried before even though the challenge is over.

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I hope you all enjoyed playing bingo and trying out some of these new challenges and I hope you got to try something new or something that you’ve been wanting to try for a while. If you completed the bingo card please let us know! I would love to hear about your experience!

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