Meal ideas....

Day 17

Finished my Level 2 work out for today, going to rest because I have lane swimming again tonight.
I had my weigh in today, i'm happy to report that she had roughly the same number on her scale (taking into consideration that I was wearing jeans and had breakfast/water in me by then)

Last night we were rushed for shopping and it was 7:30pm so we decided to grab something on the go (Fast food is prohibited in my house now, never again will my son eat that crap!) so we went to subway instead, well actually my husband did and got Cameron & himself a couple healthy subs, I on the other hand went to "Extreme Pita" which is one of the limited approved places to eat from Simply For Life.

I got a grilled chicken pita which was jam packed with veggies, so much so that half fell out and I was able to save those for today's lunch too. Talk about getting your money's worth! I got 2 meals out of 1. I also tried a Kale smoothie for the first time, it was so yummy! Just makes me want to get my vitamix machine more.

So I had a couple friends ask what I eat. To give a few ideas here are some things that I have eaten and have changed my whole family's life. I'll name 2 options for each meal otherwise it would take FOREVER to type.

(Note: if you don't care to know, or have the time just scroll past all the headings to skip this section)

Breakfast: Always have protein for breakfast (almonds, eggs, cottage cheese, yogurts etc). so this morning I made a fruit salad. I chopped up apples, bananas, strawberries, oranges, and kiwi's but really you can use whatever fruit you have on hand. I measured 1 cup of that and then in a separate bowl I usually do about 3/4 cup of vanilla greek yogurt with 1/4 cup plain greek yogurt (because I can't stand the sour taste of just plain yogurt so my nutritionist recommended that as a compromise). Sprinkle some cinnamon on top and there you go. I am full after that.

OR another option for breakfast is an egg white omelette with all kinds of veggies like zucchini, mushrooms, peppers, celery and top it off with 2 tbsp of salsa. I usually have that with a piece of fruit. If not buying organic I will peel and slice an apple as there are pestisides and chemicals on the skin. Things you can peel are usually OK to buy non-organic. Things you can't peel (peppers, lettuce, mushrooms, strawberries/berries in general) you should try to buy organic or wash REALLY well if you can't afford to buy organic produce.

Also if you look back in my blog entries you will see I posted a picture of a Mediterranean breakfast which is basically the mixed fruit idea but with yogurt and cottage cheese on the side. 

Lunch: Ok so for me I again incorporate protein into my lunch because I am working out 6 days a week and usually finish my 30 day shred work out in time for lunch and you should have a good source of protein after a work out.

So I love wraps! Whole Wheat or Whole grain. Not white. So as mentioned above I went to Extreme Pita last night and had left over veggies/chicken to stuff for lunch today, so I took a whole grain wrap with cucumber, onion, lettuce, tomato, grilled chicken, grilled mushrooms, parsley/garlic, hummus, a bit of cheese, a bit of a garlic sauce, a bowl of 1% cottage cheese (4oz), and 1 carrot peeled and sliced. 

(see image below)

Pardon the few bites from my wrap, I was pretty hungry and forgot to take the picture before I sat down lol

So wraps are always a good idea, with some sort of veggie too. Lots of water too. 

OR another lunch idea is I eat nut type bread (so like the squirrely bread, but I don't like that bread as I find it too dense so I found another loaf type from Costco called "Oat and Nut with Honey" its super good, and my nutritionist approved of this tweak) so 2 pieces of bread, and 2 tbsp of 100% all natural peanut butter and I usually put a LITTLE bit of strawberry jam on there too, but I have come to really enjoy the all natural peanut butter by itself too. I'll have that sandwich with a piece of fruit.

The key to remember is to switch what you are used to for supper and make it your lunch. Want home made hamburger helper? Perfect lunch idea. Explore and mix it up.

Snack Ideas: It is super important to eat every 2-3 hours as that increases your metabolism. So I snack on all kinds of fruits (1 serving size), and almonds (about 4 oz), "Kashi" brand granola bars, any kind of vegetable too served with hummus (note: hummus MUST be less than 4g of fat per serving so watch the labels) 

Dinner/Supper: Important dinner rule. No carbs as it gets later in the day your body slows down on breaking down food, carbohydrates are complex for the body to break down and require a lot of energy so eating carbs at night just results in your body storing it as fat. So for supper I will have a meat (fish, chicken, pork, beef) and tons of veggies (steamed or in a salad or raw on the side). 

I use the marinades that my nutritionist has provided me. No sauces like ranch, ketchup etc. If I have a BBQ I have approved BBQ sauces to use but can also probably use a little bit of store bought BBQ sauce. I have 1 serving of meat and the rest of my plate is tons of veggies.

If my family is having tacos for supper, i'll have a taco salad instead and for lunch the next day I can use up any remaining ground beef and have a taco myself with veggies on the side. I also make my own taco seasoning too so the sodium in that is very low. 

For sodium my nutritionist told me you should aim for 400mg/serving or less. No more. Again watch your labels. Water is a key ingredient to succeeding. I drink at least 72oz of water each day. 

Well that's all the examples I have for now. Going to try to take it easy as I have another grilling session of lane swimming tonight. I am not sure HOW I am doing this, i've been asked that by several people too (my husband included) I just keep pushing and pushing. It sucks, but I have lost 10 lbs in 2 weeks so that is my driving force right now.

My goal is every time I lose 20lbs i'm going to do something nice for myself (ie. get my hair done, nails done, pedicure, massage...etc) anyone want to join me? lol. This is a LIFE CHANGE, its not a diet because its not a temporary thing i'm doing to lose weight. I want to teach my kids good eating habits too. Which is why my WHOLE FAMILY must change over to how we eat.

I feel good about not allowing fast food. There are healthier alternatives if you are in a pinch for eating out. 

Well that's all the time I have now. Hope this blog was helpful.

~Ciao