Product Review: Amazing Grass

The Amazing Grass company has sent me some products to review!! I was very excited to get my package the other day, filled with all sorts of Amazing Meal, Wheat Grass, Green and Berry Superfood and Energy Bars. It was hard to decide what to try first!

As of today, Bob and I have tried the following:

Pomegranate Mango Infusion Amazing Meal
Chocolate Amazing Meal
Original Blend Amazing Meal
Organic Green Superfood Original Energy Bar
Organic Green Superfood Chocolate Energy Bar
Organic Green Superfood Berry Energy Bar
Organic Green Superfood Chocolate Peanut Butter Protein Bar

The first product we tried was the Pomegranate Mango Infusion Amazing Meal, which is, according to the website, “A blend of greens, protein, fruits & vegetables infused with goji and acai berries”.

I love that these products contain natural, plant based protein. Since starting back at the gym in January, we’re both always on the lookout for ways to incorporate protein. We’ve been having Designer Whey immediately following our workouts, but I would love to be able to stop doing that, because while they taste good, they do contain sucralose (Splenda). Amazing Meal contains 10 grams of complete, natural protein per serving.

We each brought a packet to work with us, and tried it separately. We each simply mixed our packet with water.

When I first saw what it looked like mixed with water, my first though was “oh dear…this does not look appetizing”. But I dove right in! I found it kinda delightful! It was a bit gritty, but it tasted clean and fresh, if that makes any sense. I did find that I needed to keep stirring it, as it settled to the bottom. But it wasn’t offensive at all, and I did taste mango. When I checked in with Bob, I found that he basically had the same experience.

So, I decided that I would try to blend it into a smoothie, like Kath does. After our next workout, I threw the Chocolate Amazing Meal into a blender along with a cup of frozen mango, a cup of fresh strawberries, a frozen banana, a cup of water and about a cup of baby spinach. It made two good size servings, and the result was much better and easier to drink. We both felt great afterwards, too!

On to the protein and energy bars….

We both very much enjoyed them! Bob sampled the Organic Green Superfood Chocolate Peanut Butter Protein Bar and the Organic Green Superfood Original Energy Bar. I sampled the Organic Green Superfood Berry Energy Bar and the Organic Green Superfood Chocolate Energy Bar. Personally, I can do without the chocolate coating on the Chocolate and Chocolate Peanut Butter bars, and prefer the Berry and Original.

Although a bit higher in calories (about 210-230) than I typically like for a snack, the nutritional value is definitely there, and there’s no need to pair it with anything. These bars were perfect for an afternoon pick-me-up… they left us feeling full and definitely boosted energy!

Check out the ingredients list on the Original:

Organic Dates, Organic Agave Nectar, Amazing Grass Green SuperFood (Organic Wheat Grass, Organic Barley Grass, Organic Alfalfa, Organic Spirulina, Organic Spinach, Organic Chlorella, Organic Broccoli, Organic Acai, Organic Maca, Organic Carrot, Organic Beet, Raspberry, Organic Rose Hips, Pineapple, Green Tea, Organic Flax Lignans, L. Adidophilus, Alpha and Beta Amylase, Protease, Lipase, Lactase, Cellulase, Organic Peppermint), Organic Cashews, Organic Almond Butter, Organic Almonds, Organic Sunflower Seeds, Organic Dried Cranberries, Organic Pumpkin Seeds, Organic Dried Coconut and Organic Vanilla Extract. Allergy Information: Contains Almonds and Cashews

Amazing Meal and the Organic Green Superfood Energy Bars are definitely products that we intend to continue using. I was very happy to see that our local Whole Foods carries both!

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3 Months In

My husband is pissing me off.

Yes, I love him deeply… yes, he’s the love of my life. Yes, he’s my partner, the keeper of my heart, my audience, my motivator, my cheerleader and my biggest fan.

But he’s lost 44 lbs in 3 months. And right now, that’s a good reason to be pissed off.

Listen, honestly… most of me is very excited, proud of him and happy for him… he’s been working really hard and he totally deserves this. He’s proud of himself, and he feels great. But a little tiny part of me (like, the tip of my pinkie toe) is jealous.

What are we doing differently? For the most part, we’ve been doing the same things… eating the same foods (whole foods, low in fat, with no chemicals), counting our calories, working out faithfully. I’ll be honest, there have been a few (maybe 3?) occasions where he went to the gym without me…. but in general, we are at the gym at least 5 days a week. 45 minutes to an hour of cardio - depending on how much time we have - and 4 out of those days, we lift weights. Also, he doesn’t drink, and I’ve had about an average of 1-2 glasses of wine per week.

I’m only weighing myself once a month so I don’t see results as often as he does. But right now, it looks like he’s lost twice as much as me in the same amount of time. So yeah, it’s frustrating.

Over the last 3 months, Bob has been the same supportive guy he’s always been. “Babe, your clothes are falling off!”, “Babe, you can totally tell”. Believe me when I say I know how lucky I am…he gets my ass out of bed in the morning for our 5:30 workouts, he is a full partner in getting breakfast made, snacks ready for the day, and dinner made, he cheers me on at the gym – noticing when I increase my resistance or weight lifted. Also, his success really is an inspiration. And he’s a good sport when I tell people (and the blogosphere) how annoyed I am with him.

So what can I do? Maybe step up my cardio, cut down on wine even more, but most importantly… just stay on the path. I actually feel pretty great too! I don’t feel like I’m depriving myself because I’ve been pretty good about creating a varied menu, trying new recipes, and having a piece of birthday cake when I want it (Bob’s bday was the 13th!). I’m sleeping and moving better. I really don’t see this as a “diet” that at some point I will go “off”. I’m enjoying this… and I can’t wait to see what I look like by the end of the year!

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Wow, 2010... Really?

Dear 2010 - You kind of suck right now. And you're anything but "less complicated".

You started off well enough... full of hope and promise. But you've turned out to be The Year of Worry. And I don't appreciate it.

I will not go into the long list of stuff (people) I'm currently worrying about. The one that's on my mind at this moment - and lots of moments throughout the day - is my friend Jone.

Jone is the mother of my longtime friend, Wendie. Wendie and I go way back to elementary school. We had very similar responsibilities growing up - our parents worked outside the home and we babysat our younger brothers every day after school. As you can imagine, this was quite a bonding experience. We talked on the phone for hours most days after school (or during the summer) while we were at our respective homes.

After high school, as often happens, we lost touch. We reconnected in 2003, when we found each other on Classmates.com. She was the same Wendie I remembered - hilarious, adorable, smart as hell. I vaguely remembered her mom from when we were kids... I got to know her better after 2003.

I will try to describe Jone in a paragraph, but I will not be doing her justice. She's got many layers and it's impossible to capture it all here, in words.

Jone is an intuitive, centered, smart, creative, strong, witty woman. She doesn't eat meat. She eats organic. She's intensely spiritual and open minded. She's very wise. She's wildly in love with (and proud of) her kids (including her son-in-law and daughter-in-law) and her beautiful grandchildren, who call her "Kukla". She's one of the most supportive people I know. She is a wonderful human being.

A quick story about the kind of person Jone is:
When Wendie was pregnant with her daughter, Grace, she was living in North Carolina. She was very happy in her marriage, but not in NC, and was missing her mother and friends. Jone asked me to come with her to visit Wendie. There was no way I could afford it at the time. Somehow, without making me feel like an ass, she convinced me that her buying my plane ticket was her gift to Wendie. So off we went to North Carolina, just the two of us, to visit Wendie. It's one of my favorite memories.

Fast forward.

For the last 5 months, literally every single time I talked to Wendie, she'd tell me how worried she is about her mom. "Melissa, she's just sick... she's been sick for months and I'm really worried... I think it's pneumonia." We talked last Saturday and again, she told me how worried she is, but that Jone is now saying she thinks it's time for a doctor. Wendie was very relieved to hear it and was just waiting for the go ahead to take her. The very next day I got a text: "They think my mother has ovarian cancer. Large mass. On way to Boston". She was in an ambulance on the way to Brigham and Women's hospital. Two hours later, another text: "It's cancer".

It's been 9 days since that exchange, and there have been countless phone calls, texts, emails since.... delivering information, crying, asking questions, telling stories. As I write this, we are still waiting to hear the results from her biopsy to determine what type of cancer it is, since they haven't been able to determine whether it's ovarian or colon cancer. As soon as the results are in, they will formulate a plan and begin treatment.

I don't understand this... how this woman, who gives so much thought to what she puts into her body, and what (and who) she surrounds herself with.... could have cancer. It does not make sense to me. I cannot wrap my mind around it. And it's not like 2009 was a cake walk for her either... she and her family have had far too many challenges to face recently. It's not fair. It's just not.

The good news: Jone has an amazing support system. Her kids have been with her through every minute of this. Wendie was able to spend several nights in the hospital with her. They just dropped everything to be by her side. They've had tough conversations but feel fortunate to be able to have them. They've cried together and separately. They've made each other laugh when they should have been crying. They love each other intensely and it's quite something to see.

As their friend, it's been tough... I wait for word... I call, email or text just to say "xo" or "thinking of you"... not wanting to be intrusive, demanding answers. I want to be there, but obviously respect Jone's wishes with regard to visitors right now. I want to be there for Wendie, just to deliver gluten free snacks or slipper socks... there just isn't anything for me to do right now but wait. So, wait I do.

As I write, Jone is ready to kick some ass... in Wendie's words "You'll be happy to hear that my mom is in total fight mode and has vowed to beat this thing to the ground." Yes, Wendie... I'm very happy to hear that.

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