How I Regained My Energy as a Mom of 4

I’m a mom of 4 and have totally been living my life for my kids for 12 YEARS. I found I had lost myself, didn’t make healthy choices (yeah hi leftover happy meals and crackers), and had zero energy to just keep up with anything.

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Can you relate?

Our whole society has become so focused on our kids’ needs and having that expectation, that us moms are literally stressing ourselves out and developing horrible habits to deal with stress just to make sure our kids never feel one second of discomfort. My worst one was stress eating. Stressing eating feels good at the time but has the worst ripple effect on health and energy, but I had no idea how to break the cycle. Today let’s chat about kicking those unhealthy eating habits and regaining our natural energy.

Energy Boosters For Moms

Let’s first talk about habits. Habits are created by consistently doing the same thing for 30 days. I personally did a 30-day clean eating challenge that was structured to developing healthy eating habits and learning to eat intuitively. Committing to 30 days taught me SO much about myself:

1. I have willpower.
2. My bouts of stress eating actually stemmed from being addicted to sugar.
3. You may have more energy when you cut out the junk and learn to eat and choose foods that are nutrient-dense.
4. Making yourself a priority is NOT something to feel guilty about, because self-care is a HUGE stress reliever. As moms, we need to take the analogy of being told to put your oxygen mask on BEFORE the person next to us on the plane, as the biggest piece of advice of our mom lives.

This 30 day clean eating challenge, at first, scared the crap out of me. Here’s a list called the “Avoid List” in black and white. Everything you should eliminate are huge culprits to bogging down our digestive system, creating inflammation in our bodies, and overall not adding to our bodies well being.

Health Breakfast Ideas For Moms

I’m an everyday cheese and sour cream on everything girl. I loved my bread and pasta. And eating a quick bowl of cereal was the best I could do most mornings to get in a meal before heading out the door to chauffeur the kids to their destinations. Enter the ease of a breakfast protein shake. So, during that 30-day challenge, you do not magically acquire the knowledge of making healthy choices. That happens day by day, by learning what you like and how to substitute new healthy alternatives. Which is why a protein shake is a Godsend when you’re relearning new choices. They’re quick, easy, and perfect for morning on the go. They’re also completely balanced nutritionally. For my breakfast shake, I use a vegan plant-based protein mix (whey and soy are on that avoid list). Seriously, there are hundreds of recipes out there to make your shake personal to what you like (thank you Pinterest).

For me I keep it simple:

Healthy Shakes For Moms

I add these to my fave blender mix and hit the road. Protein shakes have literally become my go-to. I also add in some essential supplements to support gut health. Did you know serotonin is produced in the gut? Who would have known? To support my digestion, I add a Pre/Probiotic with an added digestive enzyme to my shake. The digestive enzyme helps break down food and make nutrients more readily absorbed during digestion, helping your body produce energy. Plus, good bacteria can reduce abdominal bloat (bye-bye mom pooch). Before my health overhaul, I did not know the important role fiber plays in the support of our digestion, toxin removal, and a healthy cardiovascular system. Beans, beans are the magical fruit.

Not only are protein breakfast shakes quick, easy, and nutritionally balanced; but I would stay FULL until my next meal or snack. This was huge in learning to tune into my body’s messages, learning to eat when hungry – and stop when full. Cutting out those higher allergenic and inflammatory foods allowed my body to rest, reset, and feel how awful and inflamed my system and body was feeling – which motivated me to relearn life without them. After you cut out the junk and eat nutritionally dense, your energy levels skyrocket. Finally the cycle was broken and it was as simple as establishing healthier habits and nutrient dense foods, all thanks to my breakfast protein shake.

Meal Ideas For Busy Moms

If you can swing it – I used a meal delivery service where I received fresh ingredients via the mail and made the meals myself. There was a bit of a learning curve and when I first started I was a bit LOST! I was introduced to ingredients I’d never heard of, would NOT have known how to use, and was able to manage to bring those same recipes to life on my own – and make enough for a family of 6!