One really interesting thing I have learned through all of my joint and inflammation issues (among so many interesting things!!) is to gear my diet to include a lot more alkaline foods and drinks. Apparently the sweet spot is to get 80% alkaline and 20% acidic. This isn't just for those suffering from inflammation or joint pain, it's actually fascinating to learn all of the things that this type of diet can help with. If you are interested, I highly suggest doing some research of your own, as I am certainly not an expert!
I have made so many changes with my diet over the past 4 or 5 years (removing meat, dairy, gluten, & soda, reducing processed foods and sugar, increasing fresh, whole foods) but I have been feeling like I need to make more effort on this front. Switching up my diet to include more alkaline foods is likely to make a big difference in my health overall, including the dreaded inflammation I have suffered from for the past 3 years.
Now, I love a good salad. Give me a big bed of spinach, kale, lettuce and I will happily pile it high with fresh chopped vegetables (sans dressing). I am not, however, good at doing this regularly which is strange given how much I love it. It just hasn't become a habit to include a salad into my daily diet for one reason or another. Not to mention that it usually involves chopping whatever vegetables happen to be in the fridge and throwing them on top of greens. Not a whole lot of planning involved.
So I am going to do a little salad challenge (similar to my bikram yoga challenge) to jump start what I hope will result in us incorporating salads several times a week, if not daily. So I have been trolling through Pinterest to find some new salad recipes just to mix things up and keep it interesting.
Here are some that top my list...
Southwestern Chopped Salad - courtesy of The Garden Grazer
Raw Taco Salad - courtesy of Kimberly Snyder
Quinoa Salad with Spinach, Strawberries & Blueberries - courtesy of Julia's Album
Green Kale Salad - courtesy of I Food Real
Shredded Kale & Brussel Sprouts Salad - courtesy of Just A Taste
Avocado & White Bean Salad - courtesy of Forever After Blog
Chickpea & Edamame Salad - courtesy of Mother Thyme
BBQ Chickpea Chopped Salad - courtesy of The Garden Grazer I've done my own version of bbq chickpea salad a few times and it is delicious...
After having visitors for two weeks and then going on vacation ourselves for a week, I am really looking forward to enjoying all of these fresh, healthy meals out on the back deck on warm summer evenings. I will let you know which recipes pass the taste test, but I am pretty sure I will be adding many of these to my regular recipe rotation.
Also? Rather than bore you with daily posts about keeping up with this challenge, I will do my best to snap a photo and share it to Instagram (which can be found by clicking the Latest Adventures tab at the top of this page!).
Also? Rather than bore you with daily posts about keeping up with this challenge, I will do my best to snap a photo and share it to Instagram (which can be found by clicking the Latest Adventures tab at the top of this page!).
Now... who wants to join the salad challenge?
