Skydreamer Eats: A Healthier Lifestyle with Salads

Just recently, I've had several health issues like minor back pains and occasional headaches. I've also been diagnosed as pre-hypertensive because of my sedentary lifestyle and unhealthy eating habits. I'm really scared about being sick and unhealthy so I took it upon myself to be more active and eat healthier.

The first thing I did was walk more often. Currently, I make it a point to walk at least 20 minutes total in a day. If I need to go up/down a floor in a building, I use the stairs instead of taking the elevator. Instead of riding a cab from the front of our apartment's gate, I walk to the corner of the block where I live (and it's a fairly big block) and wait for a cab there. I try to stretch every now and then, and I also make it a point to play outdoors on weekends with my son and husband.

Aside from being more active, I've also started to incorporate eating more healthy food in my diet. That means less white rice (which is full of carbohydrates with little to no amount of nutrients) and more fruits and vegetables (and desserts too, I admit - lots of sweets!). I always try to do the 80/20 rule which means that I eat healthy food 80% of the time, and all the naughty food 20% of the time. To know more about it, check Rose's blog (click HERE) for inspiration and ideas.She calls it the Anti-Diet, and I usually follow her tips about maintaining an 80/20 balance on food and activities to be healthy. I don't actually follow everything to a T, but I do my best in keeping up.

With that said, I'm going to share a couple of salads that I have created over the weekend (again, this is to make sure I'm eating more greens and less grains).

First:
Mediterranean Salad
I call my first one, the Mediterranean salad mainly because a lot of European Instagrammers inspired me to come up with the mix.
For my greens, I used kale, baby arugula, lettuce and alugbati (a type of vine spinach).
I added a tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil, and a dash of salt and pepper.
I tossed it with homegrown tomatoes.
I added a few slices of prosciutto di parma and gruyere.



Skydreamer's Mediterranean Salad


Greens - Pre-packed, purchased from Rustan's Fresh, Ayala Center Cebu
Prosciutto Di Parma (Parma Ham) - Purchased from the Deli Section of Rustan's Fresh (I only bought 100g and this is just 1/3 of the ham I purchased)
Gruyere - Purchased from Rustan's Fresh, 100g for about P100 - I only used 1/6 of the cheese I purchased


What I Think: I loved this salad! It's savory, and the parma ham complemented the earthy taste of the greens and the nutty taste of the cheese. This one's a keeper, and I'll probably make more in the coming weeks.



Second:
Tropical Salad
This second salad's dressing was inspired by Patty Laurel's Instagram picture. I can't link it here, but you can look for her in IG @pattylaurel.
For my greens, I used the remaining ones from the pack I bought in Rustan's.
I topped it with homegrown tomatoes and seedless grapes.
For my dressing, I used a teaspoon of olive oil, a teaspoon of apple cider vinegar, half a teaspoon of brown sugar, and a drizzle of honey (Patty used balsamic vinegar and I substituted mine with apple cider and brown sugar as it was readily available from our pantry).



Skydreamer's Tropical Salad


What I Think: I didn't really like the sour/vinegary flavor. I mean, what did I expect, right? I added vinegar after all. It's ok, I guess. I was fine with the honey, but not so much on the vinegar.

I think I'll stick with the Mediterranean salad.
But you take your pick.
Try both of my creations or create your own salad with your preferred toppings/meat/fruits and your favorite dressing! Either way, let me know how it goes! xx