Scales Are Over-Rated + Vega Health Optimizer Review

Happy Thursday The Chic Life readers!!!

Thursday Eats

I woke up early enough to repay hubby for all his thoughtfulness yesterday by whipping up a quick breakfast – one of his faves – fried (cage-free) eggs!

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I toasted up a piece of spelt bread to go with the egg for hubby.

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As for moi, I still had one remnant from hubby’s treats yesterday – a Great Harvest muffin!!! I’ve been CRAVING one ever since having that delicious berry muffin awhile back. *drool*

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Fresh Market Spring Blend. So nice to wake up to this in the morning.

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This muffin was chocolate chip banana almond. It wasn’t quite as good as that berry one, but it was still fantastically delicious!

Work eats:

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Over the day: 2 mugs yerba mate tea, GIANT romaine salad with cucumber, orange bell pepper, sunflower seeds, and hemp seeds plus Drew’s rosemary balsamic, and leftover spaghetti.

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Hubby and I got Mexican after work – chips and salsas…

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Cheeeeeeezzzzzeeeee dip. Yep, with a ‘z’.

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We split chicken fajitas.

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I only managed one chicken fajita…must have had too many chips! 😆

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For dessert, I made a healthy “shake” and had the last two of my Nicobella organic vegan truffle samples (*) – Pumpkin Chai and Sunflower Banana Butter. SO tasty! I can’t wait to write up my full review for you guys!

Vega Health Optimizer Review

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After work today, I was so excited to pick up my Vega Complete Whole Food Health Optimizer in Vanilla Chai. They ran out of this at the seminar last week (yes, I still owe notes on that, sorry!), so I had to wait till a new shipment came in. They had 3 other flavors – natural, chocolate and berry ,but I really think the Vanilla Chai will be the most versatile.

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I like how Vega is Green.

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Note servings. 7! Eek!

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Look at all those goodies!

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Product and nutrition info.

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I know him! Ok, not really, but I did meet him and get his autograph. 😉

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Nice, detailed suggested use info.

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More packaging info.

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Look how much space is in there!

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Giant scoop

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Since my eats were semi-decent today but not as nutritious as I think they could be, I decided to up my nutrition with a mini Vega shake using 3/4 a scoop of Vega powder…

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…plus Almond Breeze vanilla almond milk.

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Delicious! I loved it! A little sweet because of the sweetened almond milk, but I enjoyed it. Especially since it was sort of like dessert.

For my review, let’s start with my dislikes:

  • Only 7 servings in a giant-looking tub. Granted, the servings are quite large (did you see the size of that scoop!?), but still. Not to mention at roughly $42 for the jug, that’s $6 a pop…or $3 per scoop.
  • Larger container than contents – there were like 3 inches of vertical space in the jug. There may be some packaging reason behind this that I’m just not familiar with, but it seems like the container could be smaller (or more full).

Ok, so we know this stuff isn’t cheap, but if you believe you get what you pay for, then you may see why it’s a little on the pricey side…

My likes:

  • The product is made exclusively with natural, plant-based whole foods (great for people who read ingredient labels like me).
  • Great flavor.
  • Great protein – 26 g and from great sources – hemp, yellow pea, brown rice, flax and chlorella (not just any old proteins – carefully selected ones).
  • 100% recommended daily intake of vitamins and minerals.
  • Dairy-free probiotics.
  • Green.
  • No artificial colors, flavors, preservatives or sweeteners.
  • No GMO.
  • No pesticides.
  • Supports small and local farms.
  • Gluten-free.

I’m a quality of quantity kind of girl, so though this stuff is expensive, I think it’s worth the money. Also, I like to stretch my dollar a bit, and when I took vitamins, I was supposed to take 4 a day and only did one. I think I can apply the same idea here by using smaller portions of the mix and trying to get the rest of my nourishment from fruits, vegetables, and food sources.

Overall, I’ve been working harder and harder to move towards eating food closer to the source, and in a sea of sports / protein shakes, supplements, and mixins made with all kinds of crazy, fake sweeteners and quasi-food ingredients, it’s nice to see something made with real food.

Go Vega and go Brendan!

Thrive in 30
Speaking of Brendan, have you seen the Thrive in 30 program available online? The Vega team tweeted the link to me a couple days ago and I think I’m going to sign up for it…probably this weekend. I wanted to first extend an invitation out to you guys to see if any one was interested in joining me.

I figured if anyone else signed up with me, we could chat about the experience on my Facebook page, share tips, lessons learned…all that fun stuff! 🙂

New Faves in my OpenSky

UPDATE: My OpenSky shop is now closed.

I’m SO EXCITED to tell you guys that TWO more of my product requests have been filled in my OpenSky shop!!! Squeeee!

Both of these products are locally made in my town and I’m so happy to extend them to you:

  • Some of my fave doggie treats, baked by a local baker that are healthy and natural. If I’m eating more healthy, Bailey should, too. Check out this package for a great birthday party purchase for your pooch.
  • My fave whipped body butter (made with organic ingredients) – omg, the Sundress scent is divine! If you want a body moisturizer that will nourish without overdoing it, check this stuff out!

My shop is looking better and better and I can’t wait to do my grand opening. I have some fun promotion ideas in the works, so I hope they work out!

Are Scales Over-Rated?

So, I realized today that I haven’t weighed myself on a scale in…well, I can’t remember the last time I weighed myself. I think this is pretty fabulous. Scales are so over-rated! Right?

I learned a long time ago that scales aren’t always the best way to gauge your health.

When I was in middle school, we had to get weighed in PE class. I remember people were really shocked by how much I weighed and they kept saying that I didn’t look like I weighed that much. I didn’t know how much was “a lot” or “a little.” Was my weight above average? I was so clueless. The explanation I was given – “muscle weighs more than fat.” I had pretty big figure skater’s leg muscles, so they must have made me weigh more than I looked…or something.

Who knows…but…

Thanks to that experience, I never paid much attention to scales. (My issues with weight/size have been measured in other ways, but more on that another day). In general, I don’t think scales give you a good picture of health since they don’t take into account muscle, body fat, and other factors. I see that scales have a purpose, but I don’t pay much attention to mine. Instead, I try to focus on how my clothes fit and how I feel.

I found a couple supplementary articles here and here and here and here that have some more info.

Weigh in: What do you think? Are scales over-rated or essential?

18 thoughts on “Scales Are Over-Rated + Vega Health Optimizer Review”

  1. THANKS for the review on Vega. I have been reading reviews for the past two days and they were good. I’ve just been so undecisive bc of the price! so, I am leaning towards it. Can you post how Vega affects your day enery levels in the future?

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  2. That muffins looks good! 🙂 That whole breakfast actually.

    Well, scales are definitely overrated overall. I don’t really weigh myself. When I gain weight I feel it in the way my clothes fit and make an effort to eat better and exercise more. That’s it. No obsessing with the number or anything like that.
    With that said, when I was still losing those 60 pounds the scale was very important in keeping me motivated and aware of my progress. 🙂

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  3. I have not looked at my weight on a scale in years! I have a history of disordered eating, so I know better than to go down that road. But I totally agree that scales really are not the best judge of health or fitness. Like you, I use my clothes to gauge if my weight is up or down. While scales may work for some people, I feel like many of us (particularly us women) have a tendency to get a little obsessed with the number it reads.

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  4. What’s your opinion on Agave? I recently read that Agave was found to be worse than high fructose corn syrup which disappoints me because I often use agave (in place of honey) for tea, oatmeal, etc. Someone sent me a link to that Mercola website that said it there. Don’t know if its a hoax or not but what’s your take on it?

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  5. I grew up in a house with no scales. The only time I was ever weighed was once a year at my annual physical check-up. My mom always said that you don’t need a scale; if your pants are too tight, go for a run. This logic has really helped me, especially in college. I have noticed girls obsessing over scales, weighing themselves multiple times/day. I have no idea how much I weigh, and even if I did, I’m not sure I would really know what that number meant! Thanks to my wonderful mama, I am and always will be scale-free!!

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  6. I think that scales can be useful to some people and destructive to others. I used to have an obsessive nature toward the scale. I’ve tried to go off weighing myself completely but curiosity always gets the best of me! I have to say, I am a lot better than in the past though. I wish I could stop weighing myself completely… It’s a work in progress 🙂

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  7. i’m going to be in the total minority with this one, but i am actually okay with scales. i see the # as an objective measure that usually puts feelings of panic (re: eating badly for a little while, or not working out, etc) into perspective.

    that said, i realize they are not for everyone!! i think it’s only useful if it can be used as a ‘scientific’ tool rather than an emotional gauge.

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  8. Regarding scales – I’m having to put mine away for a while. I’m working through a diet/binge cycle eating disorder. I ‘ve fought it for about 2 years and am ready to heal. I’m done letting the scale affect my daily mood. I’m ready to let go of my desire to be thin and to start living life. I have been tempted in the last few weeks but have remained strong by staying away from the scale.

    I agree it is a useful tool for many people, but at this stage in my life it does me NO good!!!

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  9. I’m gonna sign up for the thrive program, but I think I’m going to wait until I get back to the US on the 26th. Won’t be able to apply a lot of his advice when travelling.

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  10. I feel the opposite of most of the commenters. I think weighing yourself is a good thing if you use it the right way. For me, personally, weighing myself holds me accountable and keeps me in check with my eating. We are all different and should do what’s best for yourself! 🙂

    Reply

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