Five weeks ago, without much thought beforehand, I decided to overhaul my eating habits.
After a couple of false starts earlier in the year, the coincidence of a Monday falling on the 1st of the month was enough to kickstart me into being more resolved than in a long time to make meaningful changes to my diet and lifestyle.
For a long time now I’ve felt unenthusiastic about baking cakes and actually if you follow my instagram feed, you’ll have more of an idea what I eat day to day such as these unblogged soups and salads shown above. My husband and son are somewhat phobic of pulses and seeds but they’re exactly the type of thing I love to eat. The biggest challenge over the past five weeks has not been sticking to what I’m eating, it’s been preparing different things for Nick and Ted who each have their limits when it comes to green and crunchy stuff.
I’ve never been tested for gluten intolerance but I do find I’m more energetic if I eat less bread, flour and pasta. Hence since December 1st, I have only eaten these things occasionally, generally when out of the house and there’s no alternative. Where the boys have eaten pasta, I’ve had rice instead.
I have avoided eating processed sugars and discovered that the less sugar I eat, the less I crave sweet things. Initially I satisfied my sweet tooth with a couple of pitted dates but lately I’ve not even hunted in the cupboard for these.
Christmas came and went. I was disinterested in mince pies and the pudding went unopened. I did have some of the Chocolate Christmas Cake Hack at New Year but otherwise my excesses were focussed on nuts, a little cheese and Prosecco.
So the truth is that there’s very little baking been going on in my house for a while and little likely to start. I know myself well enough to know these things are too irresistible if available, hence out of sight is out of mind.
I’m not saying I’ll never bake from now on but what there is will more likely be gluten free or lower sugar. (Unless the desire to decorate cookies takes over!)
Two years ago I was going to the gym regularly and felt fantastic. I think if I’d been publishing the type of food I was eating rather than feeling I should still stick within the confines of a baking blog, I might not have faltered.
There’s been a mass baking binge exacerbated by TV shows and books and actually now thank goodness the spotlight is moving to more lower sugar, more nutritionally sound food. I’ve long felt the baking bubble had moved from genuine desire to craft and gain skills to a mass market explosion in making money.
I realise this sounds contradictory coming from someone with “cupcake” in their blog title but regular readers will already know I often go 12 months never publishing cupcakes and my site has long only still been called Maison Cupcake because I never thought of anything I felt was an improvement.
You will not see self loathing proclamations of “clean eating” here, I am still not quite sure what “paleo” is and I’m yet to be convinced by 5:2. Rather I intend to blog more of the food I am wanting to eat to look after myself and it would appear I’m not alone.
What is Jumpstart 2015?
Jumpstart 2015 is a collective of bloggers using the fresh start of January to increase the ratio of healthier food in their diets.
Most of us will be publishing more soups and smoothies as part of our new habits.
We’ve all got a slightly different spin on it, everyone has different reasons so take a visit to some of the sites below to find out more.
Which blogs are taking part in Jumpstart 2015?
Tinned Tomatoes – Slim Down with Jumpstart January
Smarter Fitter – An Easy 3-Day Juice Feast to Jumpstart 2015
Utterly Scrummy Food For Families – Jumpstart January for Smoothies and Soups
Kellies Food To Glow – Eat Smart Feel Great
Veggie Desserts – Squashing Vegetables & Feeling Healthier
Franglais Kitchen – Jumpstart 2015 with Healthy Eating Tips
London Unattached (mainly soups)
Elizabeth’s Kitchen Diary – Jumpstart 2015, Juices, Smoothies and Soups
Look for the hashtag #Jumpstart2015 on social media, bookmark our sites or use Bloglovin to track what everyone is up to!
Do you need a Jumpstart in 2015?
I do write a baking blog, but it gives a very misguided look into my every day eating habits! I love salads and cous cous and raw vegatables and this is what I generally eat everyday for lunch, dinner is healthy family meals and we don’t have dessert every night, dessert is a treat. I look forward to reading more on your new approach to food for more inspiration in my daily life!
I’m sure it won’t be long before I blog some baking again but I am going to make much more effort to be lower sugar and/or gluten free.
Good for you Sarah and what a brave move to do it before Christmas! I am on a health kick too but I do find it so hard to cut out sugar. It does make me feel better to have more fruit and veg and think more carefully about alternatives to the bad stuff that I eat! Thank goodness we have Pinterest and fab food blogs like your to find inspiration and motivation.