Category: Faith-Based Nutrition

A Faith-Based Nutrition Blog and a collection of Stories about God Moments in our lives:

A Dietitian shares stories about being mindful of God’s presence including being mindful of God’s presence when we are eating.

Mindfulness of God’s Presence while Eating:

Lacy Ngo, MS, RD, a dietitian, shares nutrition tips as well as stories about her own mindful eating weight loss journey. This website contains over 400 weight loss tips and focuses on mindful eating. The site provides over 400 weight loss tips including a step-by-step guide on how to eat mindfully.

Uplifting God Moments, God Stories, and God Experiences:

Lacy Ngo, MS, RD also shares amazing and uplifting God experiences and God moments.  Explore these uplifting God stories.

Are These Signs From God? A Call Story

Hearing and Answering God’s Call: Part 4

Are These Signs From God? A Call Story

This is an adaptation from a story in the book, Faith, Mindfulness, & Nutrition. You can get the digital copy or the paperback version of the book here.

This post contains affiliate links (See full disclosure here)

A sotry of God leading you to your purpose through little hints and signs.
Seeing God’s presence today through little signs from God.

I Noticed a Change in Me

After I prayed THAT prayer from part 3… the one when I told God I was ready to do what God wanted instead of what I wanted), I first noticed a change in me.

I truly wanted to know what God wanted me to do each day. Since that prayer, I TRY to remember to pray EVERY morning. Each morning I ask, “God, please help me see the needs of others today.” Do you know God did start giving me little opportunities to serve throughout my daily life? Check out the blog “We Ran Out of Gas” for one example.

I also started trying to pray in the car and pray before I entered any new environment. I started trying to be more mindful of God’s presence in every room I entered. Notice my blog is about Mindfulness? Do you see where all these circumstances are leading?

After Praying THAT Prayer

Because I am more mindful of God’s presence, I have noticed more “God Moments” in my life, and now I have even more “God moments” to share on this blog! If you read part 3, you will remember all of this started because I read a book called The Narrow Road: Stories of Those Who Walk This Road Together (International Adventures). This is a fantastic book about a man praying and waiting for God to lead him in almost every aspect of life. I highly recommend reading The Narrow Road: Stories of Those Who Walk This Road Together (International Adventures). Because of this book, I started incorporating prayer and listening to God in my everyday moments.  (I truly think God lead me to read this book because God knew the reaction I would have. You can see this story in Part 3)

You can read more specific “God Moment” stories by clicking on the links below:

Did that Just Happen!

We Chose the Same Picture!

I prayed and then this happened!

 We Ran Out of Gas

Why Are you So Afraid?

 God Follows Through

 Should I Share My Personal “God Moment” Stories with Others?

I was so thankful that after saying the big prayer, God seemed to be showing me small ways to serve throughout my day, but I also felt like God was leading me to do something specific (part 3). But what? Would I get any signs from God? While I waited…well, I became impatient.  I decided to actively write down a list of some of my accomplishments and talents. ‘Maybe I can use some of my talents to serve God,’ I thought. I jotted down that I enjoy writing and had written nutrition columns for the local newspaper in the past. But how in the world could I use this to serve God? Blogging wasn’t even on my radar at the time.

Still I thought, ‘well I do have several personal God stories that may encourage others. What if I could somehow share some of these personal experiences I have had with God through writing?” Could sharing these personal “God Moments” be my calling? But how would I know that this is something I should do? My goodness, I could do so many different things, how will I EVER know what God thinks I should specifically do?

Signs from God: The Answer is “Yes, Share these Stories.”

Then Sunday rolled around again, and I went to church. Guess what the sermon was about? Our pastor did a sermon on telling your personal call or God story. Well if that wasn’t an answer to my question, I don’t know what was.

In the sermon, the pastor said that a person’s personal call or God story has one of the greatest impacts when you are telling someone about God.   In fact, a person’s personal story is only 2nd to the Bible when you are trying to tell someone about your faith.  How amazing that as soon as I thought about sharing my personal stories and experiences with God, our pastor started talking about how important it is to tell YOUR personal story! So I decided I did want to write my personal stories down in one place so that I can use them somehow later.

Another God Moment: Finding the Time to Write

The next obstacle was finding the time to write. You see, I couldn’t write while the kids slept because I slept in the bed with my 3 year old  (I know I should never have started that habit, right? I was just so tired of the nightly sleeping battles, and I just gave up. My son would go to sleep easily if I was lying with him. Sigh.)

The problem was that if I got up for anything, even to go to the bathroom, he would wake up and cry, “hold mommy, hold mommy!” How was I going to get up and begin writing again? I wanted to not only write, but also, pray and read God’s word more often. Do you know that when I decided to get up to write, my son didn’t wake up! I was able to write, pray, and read about God while my son slept! Could this be yet another of the many sign’s from God?

Doubt and Fear and then More Signs from God

Now, if I was stronger I would not have needed another nudge from God, but unfortunately fears and doubt began to creep in.  I had written some of my stories, but I began to think, ‘do I really want to SHARE these stories with others?’  Just when I started backing away, God called me again.   Literally right after I started backpedaling and doubting, two of the sermons talked about answering God’s call and even emphasized telling our own personal stories.  The words and phrasing used in the sermons spoke to me so clearly that I had chills. Were all these coincidences signs from God again?

Finally Ready to Take Action

Okay, finally I was willing to take action. I still didn’t know what to do, but since our pastor had inspired the idea, I decided to send my written stories to our pastor. This was a total leap of faith. I don’t normally do things like this. These stories were personal, and I felt silly just sending them to someone. This was several years ago, and I still wasn’t familiar with blogging yet. In fact, the pastor was the one who mentioned blogging. (He is a lot younger and more tech than me 🙂 ) Turns out, the pastor had been contemplating starting a church blog, and he was even more encouraged after I sent in my stories that our church should start the blog. Maybe even the pastor was receiving signs from God?

And so a church blog was started. I became one of the admins for the blog. I didn’t know anything about blogging, but I wanted all the amazing stories from church members to get shared somehow. Church members would send their stories, and I would post. Now church members had a place to share their personal call story. After all, like the pastor said, “a person’s personal story is only 2nd to the Bible when you are trying to tell someone about God.”

More Coincidences: The Leap to Starting MY Personal Blog, “Mindfulness in Faith and Food”

This church blog was established years ago, but I still never considered starting my own blog. Then two things happened…

I was still writing down all my “God Moments” as well as any lessons I had learned over the years. I decided I wanted to organize all these stories for my children. So I started working on a little book that I would only give to my children. (See there I go, writing again!) I wanted my children to feel inspired and have hope that God is there even in the tough times.

“Hmmm, Should I Start My Own Blog?”

As I was organizing all of this for the book for my children, I thought, “hmm, some of these stories are so encouraging and give so much hope; I wish I could share them somehow. Well, I could start a personal blog? Then maybe a few more people could see all this ‘stuff’ God has done.” Just like most thoughts, at first I didn’t think much of the idea. But the next circumstance would make me think much more seriously about blogging…

Our Church Combined Faith with Nutrition

I was still working on lessons for my children’s book when one day a church staff member asked me that since I am a dietitian I would be willing to become the coordinator of a new church wellness program. The program was called “FAN: Faith, Activity, and Nutrition”. The goal of the FAN program is to promote, encourage, inspire, and provide opportunities for a healthier life within the church. The FAN program focused on helping the whole person: body and soul. I loved how FAN incorporated scripture, spiritual health, and physical health into their messages. I usually didn’t get to incorporate my professional background in dietetics with my faith in this way, and I loved it!

Again, “Hmmm, I Could Start a Blog?”

When I became the FAN coordinator, I dusted off my nutrition materials (I was currently a stay-at-home mom) to see what I could use for FAN. As I was looking through all the handouts, articles, and client books I had developed, I thought ‘this information is not helping anyone just sitting on my computer or in my desk! I need to find a way people can have access to this!’ Again, the same phrase ran through my head, “hmm, I could start some kind of nutrition blog! But if I started a blog, I would also want to talk about my faith and God experiences. Would combining faith and nutrition even work as a blog? Wait! Look at the FAN program, this program incorporates both!”

Signs from God: Everything Was Falling into Place

And this is how the idea of a faith-based nutrition blog was formed. Everything seemed to be falling into place for me to start blogging. I was already organizing nutrition and faith articles for FAN and my book for my children, and I was already incorporating faith with nutrition at church. The fact of the matter was I was already writing about faith and nutrition, why not go ahead and blog? The timing just seemed right.

My Vision for the Blog Seemed so Clear

The next part might be harder to explain, but I will do my best. My vision for my blog seemed so clear. Let me explain the opposite of clear, so that you can understand what I mean. When I was trying to decide on a name for my private nutrition counseling, I struggled with finding a name and my brand. For one, I wasn’t being true to myself. I settled for something generic, but I cringed when I said the name. The name wasn’t bad; the name just didn’t ever feel right.

When I decided to blog about God and my passions, the name almost immediately fell into my mind. I wanted to call the blog, “Mindfulness in Faith and Food.” I am still relatively new to blogging. In fact, I have only been blogging for about half a year, but this blog still just feels right.

The Creation of Mindfulness in Faith and Food

So I decided to do it! I started a blog. All my past writings- journal entries, nutrition handouts, God stories, and partial books have found a home on this blog. Who knew that I was writing for this blog for so many years and didn’t even know it!

Signs From God: The Ripple Effect

Now, looking back, I can see the ripple effect from each of these events that lead to writing a faith and nutrition blog. Each, by themselves, may not seem like much, but you put everything together from part 1-part 4 of this series, and the sheer number of signs and coincidental circumstances are impossible to ignore!

A Recap of the Ripple Effect

  1. My passion for writing since childhood (See Part 2)
  2. My weight struggles as a middle school child that initiated my interest in nutrition (See About Me)
  3. Being open to following God’s call after reading The Narrow Road: Stories of Those Who Walk This Road Together (International Adventures (Part 3)
  4. Signs from God: After I prayed THAT prayer asking God to show me my call the sermon was about hearing and answering God’s call (Part 3).
  5. Then Even more signs from God seemed to indicate I was going to hear God’s call soon (Part 3).
  6. Reading The Narrow Road: Stories of Those Who Walk This Road Together (International Adventures) further helped me become more mindful of God and God’s call throughout the day. Thus, I was able to notice more God stories or “God Moments.” Now I write about them in my blog! (Part 3).
  7. Even more signs from God? Just when I was contemplating that perhaps sharing all my personal “God Moment” stories is my call, the sermons were about sharing your personal God stories (Part 4).
  8. The church blog was started after I took a leap of faith and sent our pastor all of these God stories (Part 4).
  9. I started organizing all my God stories and lessons for a book for my children. This gave me the thought, “Maybe I should share these amazing stories in a blog?” (Part 4)
  10. Meanwhile I was introduced to the FAN program, which combined faith and nutrition. I loved this, and a concept of a faith-based nutrition blog was born. (Part 4)
  11. My faith and profession as a dietitian also collided when I started incorporating mindful eating and mindful living.  Mindful eating lead to weight loss and lead to mindfulness of the presence of God. (See “The One Thing I Did to Lose Weight AND Strengthen My Walk With God”)
  12. Throughout my life I had already written several ‘nutrition and faith’ blog posts through writing and journaling, I just didn’t know it!
  13. The Blog name and niche seemed so clear. (Part 4)

 Feeling Called to Blog? Want More Information about How to Start a Blog?

Have you noticed any signs from God or coincidences that you think are leading you to your calling?  Are you feeling God’s call to serve in some way? Maybe you are even feeling called to blog?

Do you feel called to blog, but don’t know where to begin? My next post goes through the steps to start your own blog. You can check it out by clicking on this link: “How to start a blog when you feel called to blog.”

About Mindfulness in Faith and Food, LLC

Mindfulness in Faith and Food, LLC focuses on how to live your healthiest, happiest, most meaningful life through faith-based mindfulness and evidence-based nutrition.
Several branches fall under the Mindfulness in Faith and Food, LLC umbrella. One is Mindful Vending, which is one of the few dietitian owned and operated vending companies in the nation! Ngo is also the author of several books including Faith, Mindfulness, & Nutrition, Mindfulness in Faith and Freezer Meals and The Nourishing Meal Builder. You can also find evidence-based nutrition articles, recipes, convenient healthy snack lists, inspiring faith stories, and faith-based mindfulness techniques on her blog, Mindfulness in Faith and Food.

Copyright © 2017 Mindfulness in Faith and Food.

You are free to retain any and all content here for personal use, but need permission to use it anywhere else on the internet.

This blog is hosted by Bluehost.

My Prayer Before a Meal that Stops Me From Overeating

Trying to Do Anything without God Never Works

Whenever I try to do anything in life without God, it never goes well. I need God in every aspect of my life. Trying to eat healthy all on my own doesn’t work well either. God should be the center of our life, and I am continuing to work on this. Prayer is one way I try to put my focus on God throughout the day.

Mindfully praying

Being Mindful of God’s Presence

I try to pray and be mindful of God’s presence when I drive, talk to my kids, clean, work, and yes, eat. If you have read some of my past post, you know that mindfulness has had a huge positive impact on my weight loss struggles. When I focus on mindfulness and particularly mindfulness of God’s presence when I eat, I do much less overeating.

When I Pray This Little Prayer Before I Eat

Now when I eat, I think about 1 Corinthians 10:31 which says, “ So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.”

Right before I eat, I try to pray, “God, thank you so much for this food. Thank you for this time that I have to sit and enjoy the food you have given me. I want to eat for the glory of You, God.”

I remind myself that if I overeat or eat without being mindful, then I am not taking care of the body that God gave me. When I am overeating, I am not really eating for the glory of God.

This little prayer has helped me so much. I enjoy my food, and I enjoy my time eating in God’s presence.

You can learn more about faith-based mindful eating in my book, 18 Weeks to a Healthier, Happier, More Purposeful Life

18 Weeks to a Healthier, Happier, More Purposeful Life takes you on an inspiring and uplifting journey with dietitian, Lacy Ngo. Thanks to faith-based mindfulness and nutrition, Ngo went from being weight obsessed to feeling healthy and happy in her own body. Ironically, during the process, Ngo ended up, not only losing weight, but also strengthening her walk with God. Now she feels healthier than ever AND she truly enjoys eating! She is able to feed her mind, body, and soul nourishing foods and feel good in her own body without weight obsessing. Get ready to get goose-bumps as you read this amazing true story.

*A Bonus Mindful Wellness Journal is Included!!!

18 weeks to a healthier, happier, more purposeful life cover

Faithful Finish Lines

Faithful Finish Lines

Disclosure: This site contains affiliate links (See full disclosure). 

So Excited to Find Faithful Finish Lines

Because I feel that God should be the center of our life including our weight loss journey, I love it when I find really GOOD faith-based weight loss programs. The dietitian in me loves finding weight loss programs that offer real and effective weight loss strategies instead of gimmicks. I have recently come across a great program that does both. The program is called Faithful Finish Lines. With this program, you won’t see unrealistic rules and strict diets. The developers of the program BOTH lost 100 pounds and now want to help others who are struggling with weight loss as well. The program provides guidance for those who just feel overwhelmed with their weight loss struggles, and the program provides much-needed online community support. If you want to learn more about Faithful Finish Lines, you can check out their website here.

Want more?

I hope some of you have found something in this post helpful. What are your weight loss struggles? Have you ever tried mindfulness and mindful eating? If you want to establish a more mindful living and mindful eating routine, you can download this free Mindful Planner here. Please share your weight loss struggles and successes with me here at Mindfulness in Faith and Food.

Copyright © 2017 Mindfulness in Faith and Food.

You are free to retain any and all content here for personal use, but need permission to use it anywhere else on the internet.

This blog is hosted by Bluehost.

Best Promotional Products for your Health and Fitness Business

 

This site contains affiliate links (Please see full Disclosures here). 

When I am looking for promotional products for my blog, “Mindfulness in Faith and Food,” I go to Positive Promotions.  These are some of the best promotional products I have seen for a health and fitness or medical business. You can personalize your products with your business name and the more you buy the better the deals. So buying in bulk is a great idea! You can add your business name to anything from a pen, notebook, and t-shirts to something unique like a calorie counter jump rope.

Here are my current TOP favorite products from Positive Promotions.

  • Promotional Products for Dietitians

Food Containers

Are these food containers not perfect for a dietitian’s business? As a dietitian, I love the idea of having my blog name, “Mindfulness in Faith and Food” on portion plates.  I can handout these plates at different events. Any of these plates would be a hit at a promotional event!

Totes and Bags

These little tote and fitness bags can be used anywhere. Positive Promotions has soon many duffle bags, totes, grocery bags, yoga bags, and travel bags to choose from. You can find the perfect one for your business. Since my family is avid amusement park visitors, I really like the clear stadium bag for taking into amusement parks.

String-A-Sling Back Pack – Personalization Available

  • Price: $1.98
Positive Promotions has tons of fitness accessory options. From personalized earbuds containers or running belts to personalized yoga mats, they have so many options. I love the walk-n-wallet. You can attach this wallet to your shoe while you run.

Journals and Nutrition Guides

If you have read any of my blogs, you know that I love journals. Again, the journal options are endless on this site. I just listed a few examples. They also have several nutrition and fitness specific journals, guides, and tear-off sheets. These are great for passing out at big events.

There you have it. Just a few of my favorite Health and Fitness Positive Promotions promotional products. Which are your favorites?
If you like this “my favorite products post” you may also like “The Ultimate Health and Fitness Product Guide, “The Quiet Time Basket,” and the “My Favorite Family Time with God Products.”

Copyright © 2017 Mindfulness in Faith and Food.

You are free to retain any and all content here for personal use, but need permission to use it anywhere else on the internet.

This blog is hosted by Bluehost.

Grocery Shopping Tips for Weight Loss and Saving Money

Streamline your Grocery Shopping Routine to Finally Get Healthy  and Save Money

Get your kitchen organized with these grocery shopping tips for healthy eating, saving money, and weight loss
Get your kitchen organized with these grocery shopping tips for healthy eating, saving money, and weight loss

One of the first steps to eating healthy is having the healthy and delicious option in your house. Deciding what to buy and figuring out how to eat healthy on a budget can feel overwhelming. Here are 21 grocery shopping tips to get your home and kitchen ready for a healthier lifestyle!

Disclosure: This site contains affiliate links (See full disclosure). 

shopping list photo

Before Grocery Shopping Tips

To have the healthiest kitchen and save the most money, you may want to do a few things before you shop. A plan, a grocery list, and a phone full of discounts goes a long way. Getting a little organized before you go can relieve stress and help you feel less overwhelmed. Here are a few grocery shopping tips to try before you grocery shop.

  1. Clean out your kitchen of foods that you feel are having a negative impact on your health.
  2. Make your grocery list. There are many ways to go about this. One idea is to  plan your meals ahead of time and make a grocery list according to your planned meals and planned snacks. If you follow a list, you’re less likely to make an less nourishing last-minute food choice. Another idea is to make a general grocery list using The Meal Builder Cards found in The Nourishing Meal Builder. The Nourishing Meal Builder shows you how to make nourishing, delicious meal on the fly without meal planning.
  3. Not sure how to meal plan and grocery shop? Try a healthy meal plan app.  For help preparing a HEALTHY meal plan and grocery list, you can visit several websites or apps like Mealime.com. The Mealime site and app helps you plan meals and  include a grocery list. You can find a healthy grocery list developed by a dietitian at http://dietitiandeanna.com/grocery-lists/
  4. Take it a step further, after planning your meals once a week and following your grocery list; then pre-cook, pre-portion, and freeze food for the week. Then you will be ready to go the whole week and won’t worry about what you are going to eat all week long. Even better, you can even plan frozen meals, make all the meals in one day and freeze them for the rest of the month! I show you how to efficiently do this in the ebook, Mindfulness in Faith and Freezer Meals.
  5. The next step after planning your grocery list, is to find ways to save money. The best strategy I have found is using coupon and rebate apps. These apps are completely FREE!!!! By using these apps,  I was able to keep healthy foods in the house AND still save money. I don’t make it too complicated either. So I don’t get overwhelmed, I focus on only four discount apps. I just check these four apps before I shop for anything, not just groceries.

My Four Favorite Money Saving Apps

Ibotta App

The first is Ibottta. You can shop online by clicking on the store selections and shopping at your favorite stores right from the app. You can shop in a brick and mortar store as well, and you can even add your grocery store rewards card to the app! Before you shop, you just pick the coupons in the app that you think you might use. These coupons are added to your rewards card, and your discount will be added to Ibotta when you swipe your card at checkout. If you don’t have a card, no worries. You still pick out your coupons on the app before shopping. Then you scan your receipt in the app to receive the rebate. It is so simple. To sign up for Ibotta with my referral code click the link below:

ibotta.com

Coupons.com

The second app I use is coupons.com. This works much like Ibotta. I simply select the coupons I want to use before I shop, and then I shop. When I swipe my Food Lion card, for example, the coupons are used automatically! Check it out at Coupons.com

Swagbucks

I also use an app called swagbucks. For this app you get points for shopping at certain stores. These store selection is huge. I can buy groceries on amazon or a birthday present for my daughter at The American Girl store and earn points. You can also earn points by answering daily questions and taking surveys through the swagbucks app. You can use the points to get gift cards!!! And these are legit great gift cards. You can get $25 gift cards to Amazon, “Bath & Body Works”, Walmart and so much more! It is pretty amazing. Start getting swagbucks as my referral by clicking on the link below:

Swagbucks.com.

Ebates

The final app I use doesn’t really have many grocery coupons, but I like to mention it when I mention my other apps. This is ebates. You can buy all kinds of products and save. Again, this app gives you discounts to a huge number of popular stores like Kohl’s, “Bed, Bath, and Beyond”, and of course, Amazon. The list goes on and on. Whenever I am about to buy somehting online, I check this app along with the other three apps to see if a coupon or rebate is available. You can download this app through my referral link by clicking on the Ebates button below.

Ebates Coupons and Cash Back

I can not emphasize enough how huge these saving have been for my family. My friends are amazed at how many groceries I am able to buy for the amount of money spent. When I get that rebate, I feel like I am bringing in money for my family!

By using these apps, you can shop healthy and save money.

5. Okay, so you planned your week or month, you made a grocery list, and you have found all your discounts. Now you are ready to grocery shop. Hold on! Are you hungry? Don’t go grocery shopping when you are hungry. If you are hungry, eat a healthy snack before grocery shopping.

Now you are ready to shop healthy and save money!

 Grocery Shopping Tips: At the Store

6. Stick to the Grocery List.  Or stick to the general grocery list found in The Nourishing Meal Builder. The Nourishing Meal Builder is more fluid and open to your mood and what is available in the grocery store.

7.  Get your children involved by letting them pick a different fruit or vegetable to try each week at dinner. Have them pick a variety of colors.

8. Buy packaged products that have whole foods listed at the first ingredient on a simple ingredients list. Check the labels and look for foods that are more nutrient dense vs. sugar and calorie dense. 

9. Make sure the majority of your grocery items are lean meats, fish, vegetables, fruit, nuts, seeds, and whole grains.

10. Stock up on frozen and canned fruits and vegetables like canned peaches and pears so that a healthy option is always on hand.

12. Save time and money during the week by buying foods in bulk like lean protein (chicken breast and ground turkey), pasta, rice, beans, pretzels and cooking a week’s worth on Sunday night. Then, pre-portion the chicken or other meat into deck of card sized portions and store in freezer. Divide other foods into portions after getting back from the grocery store. (Example: make zip lock bags of pretzels.)

13. Don’t buy food just because you have a coupon. Use a coupon only for foods you actually want and use.

14. Avoid buying sugary desserts. Eating sugar causes us to want to eat more so limit sugary foods. In other words, the sweeter the food, the more we want sweeter food. The less sweet the food, the less we desire sweets. For example, if you go a long time without sweets, then a piece of fruit will taste plenty sweet to you and a piece of chocolate cake may taste too sweet to you. But if you continue to eat sweet foods, a piece of fruit will not taste sweet enough and a piece of chocolate cake will be needed to feed your sweet tooth.

Grocery Shopping tips for saving money, healthy eating, and weight loss
Grocery shopping tips for saving money, healthy eating, and weight loss

After Grocery Shopping Tips

Once you are home from your grocery trip, you can unpack in a  way that can help you eat healthier throughout the day.

15. While you are unloading the groceries, wash fruits, and pre-portion healthy snacks in small ziplock bags as part of your unloading routine. I keep pre-portions snacks in a lower side shelf of the fridge. I wash grapes, strawberries, blueberries, etc and put a small amount in little ziplock bags. Then I store these individual bags in this lower refrigerator shelf. This is the “kids grab and go” snack shelf. My children know that if they are hungry they can always grab anything from this shelf. I also include cheese squares and yogurt on this healthy snack shelf as well.

16. You can also have a similar healthy snack spot in your pantry.  I bought a new shoe rack like the 24 Pockets – SimpleHouseware Crystal Clear Over the Door Hanging Shoe Organizer, Gray (64” x 19”)and hung the rack over the pantry door. I like the clear shoe racks so that my children can easily see what is inside. I keep healthy snacks like popcorn, cups of mandarin oranges, and whole-wheat crackers on the lower shoe compartments. These are snacks my children (and I) can easily grab anytime. I keep a small portion of their favorite not-so-healthy snacks in the higher shoe compartments. My children can’t reach these compartments and have to ask me if they can have these snacks.

Healthy Snack Door Shoe Rack
Healthy Snack Fridge compartment

17. Store foods out of site. If snacks are sitting on the counter, you are more likely to munch on them throughout the day. When you see them you will constantly crave them.

I hope you found some grocery shopping tips you can use in your home. Which grocery shopping tips did you find most helpful? What grocery shopping tips and tricks do you use when shopping?

The Nourishing Meal Builder

Find out how to make grocery shopping and cooking less stressful in The Nourishing Meal Builder! I don’t even spend time making grocery lists or meal planning now that I follow The Nourishing Meal Builder, and I am making an endless variety of fantastic meals!

The Nourishing Meal Builder
Create anti-anxiety, anti-inflammatory, mood boosting, immune supportive meals that reduce the risk of chronic disease and promote cognitive function, focus, attention, and memory.

Find More Grocery Shopping and Kitchen Organization Tips in  “Mindfulness in Faith and Freezer Meals”

The “Mindfulness in Faith and Freezer Meals” ebook not only includes a detailed freezer meal plan and grocery list, but also includes mindful eating strategies and techniques and a weight loss guide.

The “Mindfulness in Faith and Freezer Meals” eBook has 22 Chapters full of helpful information and tips including:

  • The “What is Preventing You From Living a Healthier Life?” interactive quiz
  • The Mindful Eating Guide
  • The Importance of Faith
  • A Complete Healthy Freezer Meal Plan: You will learn how to cook all of your breakfasts, lunches, and dinners for a whole month in ONE day. Don’t worry, I don’t just give you a bunch of recipes and tell you to cook them in one day. The ebook includes strategies and “Pro Tips” on HOW to efficiently cook your meals in one day.

    The goals of cooking all of your meals in ONE Day are:

  • More daily free time,
  • A decreased grocery bill,
  • Healthier meals for the whole family,
  • Less daily stress, and
  • Weight Loss/Weight Maintenance

Learn more about the “Mindfulness in Faith and Freezer Meals” eBook here.

What Others are Saying about the “Mindfulness in Faith and Freezer Meal” ebook

“I have lost 17 pounds since I started eating these freezer meals. They are healthy AND taste great!!! We are now eating at home more, which has made a huge difference!” Chad, South Carolina

“As I read this book, I kept thinking, ‘this is so much more than a freezer meal cookbook! Lacy needs to be a life coach! She has such a positive outlook on life!’ “The Mindfulness in Faith and Freezer Meals” ebook is so uplifing and encouraging!” Wendy, South Carolina

“I can actually see a decrease in my grocery bill since I started eating these freezer meals, and my kids love them! We are eating healthier now. Plus, we are eating more meals together as a family!” Nicole, South Carolina

Click here to learn more about the “Mindfulness in Faith and Freezer Meals” ebook

Get your kitchen organized with these grocery shopping for weight loss tips
Get your kitchen organized with these grocery shopping for weight loss tips

About Lacy Ngo, MS, RDN

Developed by a registered dietitian, Lacy Ngo, MS, RDN, Mindfulness in Faith and Food, LLC focuses on how to live your healthiest, happiest, most meaningful life through faith-based mindfulness and evidence-based nutrition.

Ngo is currently the owner of Mindfulness in Faith and Food, LLC. Several branches fall under the Mindfulness in Faith and Food, LLC umbrella. One is Mindful Vending, which is one of the few dietitian owned and operated vending companies in the nation! She is also the author of two books, Mindfulness in Faith and Freezer Meals and The Nourishing Meal Builder. You can also find evidence-based nutrition articles, recipes, convenient healthy snack lists, and faith-based mindfulness techniques on her blog, Mindfulness in Faith and Food.

Copyright © 2017 Mindfulness in Faith and Food.

You are free to retain any and all content here for personal use, but need permission to use it anywhere else on the internet.

Blogger Recognition Award

Blogger Recognition Award!

Being a new blogger is a little intimidating! When I started blogging, I delved into a world of unknowns. I had so many doubts and fears; this is why being nominated for the “Blogger Recognition Award” is so exciting! This community of bloggers has been so encouraging and have shown such support. Thank you so much for the nomination!

I want to start out by saying a huge THANK YOU to Lauren Najar from Laugh Always for giving me the nomination!  Her blog https://laughalways.net/home/.  She had started a blog three times and finally felt like it was the right time. She was right because she has received two blogger awards! Congrats to her for getting nominated as well!

So what is blogger recognition award?

Blogger Recognition Award is given to bloggers by bloggers to encourage and acknowledge the hard work and effort that goes into creating posts.  It’s an opportunity for bloggers to recognize one another for each of our contributions to their blog and the blogging community!

How did you start your blog?

I have always had a desire to write, and I have been writing stories since I was a little girl. I also have a passion for nutrition. Throughout my career as a dietitian, I kept going back to writing. I have been a freelance writer, written a nutrition column for our local paper, and written for our church blog. Over the years I have written so much on nutrition and about my faith that I thought that instead of letting the information just sit in my office at home, I should share all of it with others. I hope that my blog can provide inspiration and usable tips to others.

Two pieces of advice for newbies:

  • Support other Blogger – The established blogger have been such a help to me. They have been ready to answer my questions and give encouragement. I hope to be able to do the same for other new bloggers.
  • Be Patient- I had to overcome a learning curve when I began blogging. Little by little, I have learned more and more. I know I have much more to learn. I know knowledge will come over time.
My nominees:

When you are nominated, there are few simple steps that you need to take to accept the award nomination and the guidelines are as follows:

  • Write a post to show your award.
  • Thank the blogger who nominated you and provide a link to their blog.
  • Give a brief story of how your blog started.
  • Give two pieces of advice to new bloggers.
  • Select 15 other bloggers to nominate.
  • Comment on each blog and let them know you have nominated them and provide the link to the post you created.

Congrats to these nominees – all of these blog sites are beautiful!  I can’t wait to see your posts!

 

“So What Does a Dietitian’s Diet Look Like?”

Ahh lazy summer days…. Summer is the time for relaxing in the sun, exploring magical and exciting places and dining on delicious cuisine while on vacation. This summer has been full of all kinds of wonderful deliciousness. Yet half way through the summer I began to notice a few little changes. I was getting a little softer and my stomach was beginning to hang over my shorts a little more. Don’t get me wrong. I don’t think we should stress over every imperfection, and we shouldn’t panick over every little weight fluctuation. But we should practice awareness and notice when we need to tweak our lifestyle a little before we go down an unhealthy hill. If we get to the bottom of that hill, the climb is going to be much harder than if we make the changes quickly.

I have often told my clients that when they notice they are begining to have unhealthy habits then it might be time to re-take the diet assessment and come up with solutions to our weight control weight loss barriers. And I have found re-assessing my own diet helpful as well. So I decided it was time to do just that. People often ask me “as a dietitian, what does your diet actually look like, and can you please explain in detail?” So here it is, my plan as well as how I developed my plan.  I took my own assessment to develop my plan.

This is what this dietitian’s diet looks like.

So Step-by-Step here is what I did:

Step 1:

I took the “DIY Diet Assessment” located here. In other words, I answered the questions.

Step 2:

 After taking the assessment, I discovered my major barriers.

(Below is a picure of a portion of my own assessment. I went through the assessment and circled all my issues. I jotted down my answer with a pencil. Excuse my sloppy handwriting.)

I noticed that my meals and routine varies from day to day. For some meals, I eat by myself. For some meals, I cook for others. Also, we have been known to frequent restaurants on busy nights.  With such a varying routine, I needed some tips that would work in every scenario. Eating too much can be an issue in all of these situations so I looked at the “Portion Control” post, the “Calorie Counting” post, and the “Mindful Eating: Step by Step Guide” for possible solutions.

I also noticed that I nibble on my children’s uneaten food, especially in the evening. According to the assessment, if this is an issue, I should look at the “Snacking for Weight Loss” post.

Since I do cook at home, I wanted to find a few ideas on the “Grocery Shopping for Weight Loss,” the “Reducing Calories in the Foods I Already Eat” and the “Reducing the Calories AND FAT in the Foods I Already Eat” posts.

I also eat out regularly, so I clicked on the “Eating Out” link as well as the already selected “Portion Control,” “Calorie Counting,” and “Mindful Eating” posts.

I go to social events often so I needed to check out the “Social Gatherings Weight Loss Tips” post.

Finally, I noticed that emotional eating is not so much of an issue (except for being tired) BUT I could use a little motivation. So I planned on picking up a few tips from the “Motivating Weight Loss” post.

Step 3:

After I picked which articles would work best for my issues, I needed to narrow down the tips I was going to implement from each blog. This blog contains over 400 tips, tricks, or diets so I should be able to develop a detailed plan that specifically works for me.

(Below is a picture of the printed Portion Control post. After printing the posts which were most benficial for me according to the assessment, I circled the specific tips I wanted to implement).

And here it is…

Disclosure: This site may provide affiliate links. Since this is a post about my actual diet, the affiliate links I share are for products I actually use. (See full disclosure)

 My Final Detailed Plan:

  1. First and formost, focus on mindful eating. If I use the Mindful eating techniques, I can easily be satisfied without seconds even if I eat on a smaller plate. When I use Mindful Eating techniques, my 1600-1800 calorie range (which is my individual recommended calorie range) will feel like plenty of food. When I am eating out, mindful eating will also help me feel satisfied and full even after putting much of my food in a box (another tip I decided to implement). When I mindfully eat, I pause before eating to notice my food. I  pray and thank God before taking my first sip and bite. When I pause I remind myself to be mindful of God’s presence. Eating becomes an act of worship for me. I remind myself I am taking care of God’s creation (me). I want to glorify God by eating slowly and nourishing the body God made. I remind myself of 1 Corinthians 10:31 which says, “so whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” Wow! What a great reminder!  1 Corinthians 6: 19-20 reminds me that my body is a temple of the Holy Spirit and that I should glorify God in my body. When I mindLESSly eat, I miss the opportunity to be in awareness of God’s presence. Finally, I take my first sip of drink and only then begin eating. I eat slowly and notice each bite. I put my fork down and completely chew BEFORE even reaching for my drink. I take a sip of drink, then pick up my fork and prepare my next bite. *Note that when you are use to larger portions, eating a healthier portion may seem small to you; however, take the time to pause before eating and look at your food. As you look, think about how long you are able to enjoy your food when you mindfully eat.When you do this, suddenly the portion looks plentiful. 
  2. I keep up with my calorie intake using my Fitbit app. My goal is 1600-1800 calories per day. I use the Fitbit Charge 2 Heart Rate + Fitness Wristband, Teal, Small (US Version).
  3. I eat breakfast AFTER getting my kids off to school. So first thing in the morning, I drink a shake to give me the energy to get the kids ready for school. I sit down and mindfully eat a healthy breakfast after taking the kids to school. Several healthy nutritious shakes are currently on the market. I am currently drinking Beachbody shakes called “Shakeology”. I get my shakes through the the official Beachbody coaching site of Heather Wilson. If you want more information click here. I am so tired in the morning that I just want to grab something nutritous and energizing before I can start my day. These shakes do this for me. They have even helped me cut down on my little vice, diet cokes. I usually don’t use shakes as a meal replacement. Many feel that they need to chew to feel satisfied; therefore, shakes as a replacement meal may not be ideal. This is true for me as well. I mostly drink a shake to get added nutrients and to hold me over until I can sit down and eat breakfast after my children are in school. The only time I drink a shake for a meal is when I have zero time eat. Drinking a nutrient-filled shake is better than skipping a meal.
  4. Like many families, we tend to stick with around 20 of the of the same recipes and only occasionally eat something new. I made a list of these recipes as well as a list of the lunch and snack foods we tend to eat. Then, I made a master grocery list based on this. Following this grocery list when grocery shopping helps me avoid impulse buys.
  5. When grocery shopping and cooking at home, I look for the lower calorie and whole-wheat version of foods.
  6. I also try to purchase mostly healthy snack foods and avoid keeping unhealthy snacks in the house, especially our most tempting unhealthy snacks.
  7. When cooking, I prepare no more than four food items. If you cook too many options, you often eat too much.
  8. I keep gum in front of the snack foods in my pantry. When I feel the urge to mindlessy snack, I grab a low calorie piece of gum instead. This is such a small thing that has had a big impact for me.
  9. I also often spend one day a month cooking and freezing dinners for the whole month. This helps prevent impulse eating out.
  10. I try to drink water before my first bite at every meal. In fact, I will grab a glass of water before I put anything in my mouth to make sure I’m not thirsty instead of hungry. Pausing to drink water before eating also helps us eat mindfully.
  11. I portion control at home by eating on a small plate. I avoid filling my plate with seconds unless I am physically (VS. emotionally) hungry. However, when I mindfully eat, I usually am satisfied without seconds.
  12. When dining out, I usually ask for a box before I finish eating, and put enough food in the box to make the portions left on my plate appropriate. If we pause and truly look at our meals, we can usually tell if our plate looks overfilled or appropriate.
  13. When eating a sandwich at home or out, I will remove one piece of bread, and eat an open face sandwich. This is just one way to reduce calories.
  14. I do a 25-30 minute “Beachbody on Demand” exercise every morning, 6 days a week. Sometimes I will do extra classes at the gym when I can. This was a solution to one of my newer barriers. I love taking classes at my gyms, LA Fitness and B-Fit Studio; however, consistency was becoming an issue. With fitness classes, you have to be available at the exact time the class is scheduled. If I have a doctors appointment, kids camp, a meeting, or anything at the time of the class, then I can’t go. Or if the instructor occasionally has to cancel because, you know, life happens, then I miss my scheduled workout. To combat with this problem, I knew I needed something I could do anytime, but I also knew I am the type of person who needed someone to motivate me and push me. The instructors on beachbody do this for me. I still workout at the gym, but I don’t worry if I can’t get to the class. I count my beachbody video as my workout. The group classes at the gym is just extra and for fun. As I mentioned earlier, I order my Beachbody products through an official Beachbody coach, Heather Wilson. With Beachbody on Demand, I have access to all of those amazing Beachbody exercise programs that you see advertised on TV like P90X, Insanity, 21 Day Fix, Hip Hop Abs, Cize, and more. I have always wanted everyone of them! With Beachbody  on Demand, I can get all of them for a year.
  15.  Group boards, forums, or challenge groups, are great sources of motivation. In groups, you can support and encourage each other. Health and Fitness Groups give you a place to cheer each other on, share your success stories and weaknesses. We also discuss ideas and recipes. For motivation, I regularly share my successes and challenges with a Beachbody coach and team. A Beachbody coach is really someone who facilitates the conversations and starts the challenge groups. You can also purchase Beachbody products through an official Beachbody coach. Click here for more information.
  16. Remember I also get motivation and insiration  by pausing before I eat to remember those awesome Bible verses from 1 Corinthians that I discussed earlier
  17. Social gatherings, I drink a glass of water before eating or drinking anything else and I try to eat mindfully.

 

Copyright © 2017 Mindfulness in Faith and Food.

You are free to retain any and all content here for personal use, but need permission to use it anywhere else on the internet.

This blog is hosted by Bluehost.

 

 

God Moments: Did That Just Happen!

Seeing God’s Presence Today

Signs, Miracles, and "Winks" from God; An Amazing story about God's Presence today
Signs, Miracles, and “Winks” from God; An Amazing story about God’s Presence today

Mindfulness can help us stop to notice God’s presence in our lives, but sometimes God does something so cool that we notice even when we are not being particularly mindful. This is one of those experiences. Read until the end because the end is the best part!

Disclosure: This site may provide affiliate links (See full disclosure)

This article has been updated and is an adaptation from a story in 18 Weeks to a Healthier, Happier, More Purposeful Life. This unique book was written by Lacy Ngo, a dietitian nationally recognized as a top expert in faith-based mindfulness and evidence-based nutrition. She shares the exact steps that, based on science, produce the most dramatic health and weight loss success in her book, 18 Weeks to a Healthier, Happier, More Purposeful Life. This book is like nothing you have ever seen before. It combines faith and science. Both are crucial when it comes to producing real change because real change involves the mind, body, and spirit. This is an adaption from a story in the book, 18 Weeks to a Healthier, Happier, More Purposeful Life.

18 weeks to a healthier, happier, more purposeful life cover

How It All Started

About a year and a half ago, my then six year-old son took an ambulance ride from urgent care to the hospital. Before that ride, he had been on antibiotics but just kept getting sicker. When we arrived at the ER, the doctors diagnosed him with Pneumonia and admitted him to the hospital for five days. After being released, he just couldn’t get rid of that cough and kept getting fevers about every two to three weeks. An X-ray showed that he had a collapsed lung from all these lung issues. They released my son from the hospital in December. It was now June, and he was still coughing, struggling to breathe when he ran, getting tired easily, and getting frequent fevers. He had taken so many antibiotics that I had lost count. He had been put to sleep twice for minor lung procedures.

In June, the doctors decided to get a CT scan to see if he had a condition called Bronchiectasis. The CT scan confirmed he had this condition, which is defined as abnormal widening of the bronchi or their branches, causing a risk of infection. I had never heard of it so, of course, I looked it up online. The things I read terrified me. I was not handling the diagnosis well. I was walking around constantly on the verge of crying, but trying to seem cheerful for my children. Many nights I would pray and let out all of my pent up tears. I was scared of what this meant for my son. I can’t even bring myself to type all of the worries I was feeling. If you are a parent you can probably imagine the fears going through my head.

I Wanted to Cancel

The very same week that I learned of the diagnosis, I wanted to shut myself off from everyone, but our church book club was suppose to meet at MY HOUSE! I came inches from canceling. Most of the book club regulars were not able to come, so I started thinking no one is going to show up anyway. But then a new girl sent me an emailed saying that she would like to come and bring two of her friends. I didn’t want to cancel when new people had expressed interest, so I decided to push through. The funny thing is the new girl who had originally expressed interest was unable to attend, but the two friends she had mentioned in her email did come. These two girls, who only attended this one time, probably didn’t know what they were walking into. I was unorganized and monopolized the whole conversation. I ended up pouring all my emotions out to these brand new people. They were such patient listeners, and although I don’t know if they got much out of book club, I felt much better after that night.

Life Went On…

After that night, life went on. The doctors were trying all kinds of treatments. My son was now on continuous antibiotics three times a week and doing 30-minute treatments twice a day.

Below is a picture of the breathing treatments my son was doing twice a day.

My son was now going to doctors in Rock Hill, Charlotte, and Chapel Hill. Before I knew it, a year had gone by since receiving that initial diagnosis and pouring my heart out to those random new girls at book club.

Can I Ask You A Weird Question?

The doctors decided it was time to talk about having a surgery to remove the damaged lobe of his lung. The doctor gave us a list of surgeons, so I began to go down the list, making calls. I called the first office on the list to set up a consultation with a surgeon in Charlotte, NC. I started talking to the receptionist. She started asking basic questions like, “What is the appointment for?,” and “What is your home address?.” Then she paused and says, “Can I ask you a weird question?” I’m thinking, ‘What in the world is she going to ask me’, but all I said was “Okay.”  She then says, “Do you happen to have a book club with St. John’s?” Shocked and confused, I replied, “Yes!” She then exclaimed, “I think I have been to your house!” When I was answering her questions over the phone, she remembered hearing a similar story a year earlier at this book club she had attended once. She then realized she recognized the address I had just given her. She figured out that she and her friend, who also works in the same office, (you know, that other new girl) had been to my house the week my son had been diagnosed a year ago!

Knowing that people at the surgeon’s office knew our story and had known our story since the diagnosis was such a comfort to me.

God’s Plan to Bring Comfort and Guidance was Put into Action a Year Earlier

You know what else? I thought to myself, ‘wow, when I was walking around terrified and wishing I would feel God’s presence, God was right there’. I felt like God was giving me comfort on that book club night. Little did I know, that same book club social would give me comfort not only that very night but also a year later. Did God somehow help me cross paths with these ladies right when my son was diagnosed? Did God know this journey would lead to a big surgery way back then? (Of course God did!) Many of us have learned that God knows all, our past and our future, but to truly witness this was humbling. This experience made me feel like God was  giving me a warm hug. I could feel God’s Presence and realized just how present God had been the whole time. As, I processed this, the tears began running down my face and chills began running up my arm.

Today my son is doing well. The surgery was a success! We continue to praise God for warm hugs, comfort, and guidance.

Do you have any stories about experiencing God’s presence, comfort, or guidance?

Please share any of your stories in the comments below. I love these stories!

If you are looking for good books about people experiencing God’s presence in their lives, two of my favorites are  The Narrow Road: Stories of Those Who Walk This Road Together (International Adventures) and Love Does: Discover a Secretly Incredible Life in an Ordinary World:


Want More God Moment Stories? Check these Out

God Moments: We Prayed and Then This Happened!

God Follows Through

 We Chose the Same Picture

I Was So Afraid

God Moments: We Ran Out of Gas

About Mindfulness in Faith and Food, LLC & Lacy Ngo MS, RDN

About Lacy Ngo, MS, RDN and Mindfulness in Faith and Food, LLC

Mindfulness in Faith and Food, LLC focuses on how to live your healthiest, happiest, most meaningful life through faith-based mindfulness and evidence-based nutrition.
Several branches fall under the Mindfulness in Faith and Food, LLC umbrella. One is Mindful Vending, which is one of the few dietitian owned and operated vending companies in the nation!

Ngo is also a top expert in faith-based mindfulness and nutrition and is the author of several books including Faith, Mindfulness, & Nutrition, Mindfulness in Faith and Freezer Meals and The Nourishing Meal Builder. You can also find evidence-based nutrition articles, recipes, convenient healthy snack lists, inspiring faith stories, and faith-based mindfulness techniques on her blog, Mindfulness in Faith and Food.

Copyright © 2017 Mindfulness in Faith and Food.

You are free to retain any and all content here for personal use, but need permission to use it anywhere else on the internet.

The ONE Thing I Did to Lose Weight AND Strengthen My Walk with God

The ONE Thing I Did to Lose weight AND Strengthen My Walk with God:

The Weight Loss Journey

Middle school is tough, especially when you are on the heavier side. Fortunately, by 8th grade, I had lost all of my excess weight. In fact, my weight struggle is what inspired me to major in nutrition in college. I managed to keep off all the weight all way through high school, college, and grad school; and learned the best practices for weight loss and nutrition in college and grad school. When I practiced what I preached, I was able to keep the weight off, and I kept the weight off until I got married….

After I was happily married, the weight began to creep back on. For the first time since middle school, I was overweight again. Using my training and dietetic counseling skills on myself, I was able to muster enough willpower to lose weight again. (You can read more about my weight journey and training here). Four years later, I had a baby and managed to muster up the motivation and willpower to lose the baby weight again.

break room photo

Mindfulness was Life Changing

As I began getting older, the weight was harder and harder to keep off. I noticed “cheat days” had much more of an impact. When I became pregnant again, I didn’t want to gain as much weight as I did with my first child. However, I didn’t want to diet while pregnant. In fact, I was tired of weight obsessing. So I decided to STOP weight obsessing and simply mindfully eat. For the first time, I did not need willpower. After the birth of my daughter, I continued with the mindful eating, and the weight just dropped off. The. Easiest. Weight. Loss. Ever!

yoga outside photo
Photo by StevenSimWorld

I didn’t deprive myself and didn’t even feel the need to have cheat days. I discovered the most important component of mindfully eating, for me, was to PAUSE before eating. That pause or lack of the pause was the determining factor in whether I would mindfully eat or not at that particular meal. So why is this pause so crucial?

When I pause, I remind myself to take my time, notice my food, notice if I am eating an appropriate amount, and most importantly, I thank God for the food. During this pause, I remind myself to eat God’s gift of food for enjoyment and nourishment. I remind myself to take the time to pay attention to my food instead of over consuming without even noticing that I am eating.

Disclosure: This site may provide affiliate links (See full disclosure)

Mindfulness Did so Much More than Help with Weight Loss

This one pause before the meal was crucial for my nutritional health, but I also began to notice how crucial the pause was in every aspect of my life. The Bible talks about praying continuously. In a way, the pause in life helps me pray more continuously.

prayer photo

I began to notice the impact of pausing and praying before entering any new environment whether the new environment is a park, a friend’s home, or the grocery store. Pausing and praying, was life changing. I began to notice the importance of pausing and praying when I felt angry, or before saying something difficult, or before even talking with my children. I noticed the importance of not only pausing and praying before meals and snacks, but also before bed and before getting up in the morning.

When I forget to do this, I notice the difference in MY actions and my strength to endure life. On the days that I do a better job of pausing, I notice God’s presence and God’s guidance more. When I pause more, I feel like I am truly letting God lead me, and I am reminded that no matter what happens, God is right there. I can feel God’s presence in the very room with me, and I feel I have the strength to focus on God’s will instead of my emotions. We don’t have to rush into every situation, and we don’t have to rush to speak. We can and should PAUSE and take our time in life.

Want to Learn More About Mindfulness?

You can find out more about my faith-based mindfulness and nutrition journey in 18 Weeks to a Healthier, Happier, More Purposeful Life. This book takes you on an inspiring and uplifting journey with dietitian, Lacy Ngo. Thanks to faith-based mindfulness and nutrition, Ngo went from being weight obsessed to feeling healthy and happy in her own body. Ironically, during the process, Ngo ended up, not only losing weight but also strengthening her walk with God. Now she feels healthier than ever AND she truly enjoys eating! She is able to feed her mind, body, and soul nourishing foods and feel good in her own body without weight obsessing. Get ready to get goose-bumps as you read this amazing true story.

18 weeks to a healthier, happier, more purposeful life cover

Mindful Eating: The One thing I did to lose weight and strengthen my walk with
Mindful Eating: The One thing I did to lose weight and strengthen my walk with God

Copyright © 2017 Mindfulness in Faith and Food.

You are free to retain any and all content here for personal use, but need permission to use it anywhere else on the internet.

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