Pescatarian Meal Prep Week

Eating at 30%+ protein while doing my best to eat mostly vegetarian can be tricky at times. Here is my meal prep / meal plan for the week that I put together one Sunday evening.

Meal 1: Egg White Burrito & Fruit
1/3rd cup egg whites, 1/4 cup low fat shredded cheese, high fiber tortilla or slice high fiber bread, sprinkle of cayenne. 8 strawberries.

Meal 2: 5 oz Coconut or Greek yogurt, 3 homemade protein bites

Meal 3: Salad: 2 cups mixed greens, 1 oz feta, 1/3rd cup edamame, 1/4 cup pecans, sprinkle of dried cranberries, 3 tbs balsamic vinaigrette. Side of 1/2 can chunk tuna in water with 1 tsp each mustard & relish.

Meal 4: 1/4 block tofu baked with teriyaki, sauteed spinach with garlic.

Meal 5: Grilled meatless sausage, 1 oz cheese, 2 tbs bruschetta, 8 flax seed crackers.

Room for dessert? 1 oz 80% cacao with 4 oz red wine.

  

Vegetarian Taco Salad

I've been trying to look up new salads to make to bring to work since I've been rather bored of the ones I've been making for the past 3 years, that haven't varied too much.

I like Mexican food and have been trying to eat less meat (even though I don't eat much anyway) so for this week's meal prep I tried putting together something of a taco salad bowl, which came out delicious!

Chopped romaine lettuce, organic pinto beans, organic cherry tomatoes, shredded cheese, pineapple salsa & Tapatio.

Previous I had thrown in ground turkey,  so if you're not vegetarian, there's another healthy option. 

12 Simple, Delicious Salads to Bring to Work

Pear, quinoa, walnuts, chickpeas, and spinach leaves

I've made the same salad, or slight variation thereof, for about 90% of the days I've worked over the past three years: Spinach leaves, cherry tomatoes, shredded mozzarella cheese with a balsamic dressing. Usually I'll add a healthy fat like nuts or avocado on top. Sometimes I'd sprinkle in dried cranberries or another fruit. Occasionally I'd switch the mozzarella to feta. Other than that, I was in desperate need of a salad intervention.

Taking inspiration from my Quick & Easy Food Ideas Pinterest board, I gathered together a top twelve list of simple-enough salads I can easily make for work over the next month to get out of my rut. Having a wide variety of salads to choose from that shared similar ingredients is ideal for me to try different things without having an extensive food inventory. I used this blog as my shopping list for the week:

Cucumber & avocado caprese salad

Pear, pomegranate, cilantro, onion, lime salsa

Pears, cranberries, feta, walnuts, romaine, balsamic dressing

Apple, cranberry, walnut, feta, spinach, honey dressing

Pomegranate, cranberry, walnut, goat cheese, mixed greens with balsamic & olive oil

Shaved Brussels sprouts, cranberries, avocado, Parmesan, mixed greens, lemon vinaigrette

Cucumber & feta salad

Chicken, tomatoes, feta, mixed greens

Jicama, citrus, pomegranate, watercress

Strawberry, avocado, shaved almonds, kiwi with honey-lime-yogurt dressing

End of my 10 Week Plan v2.0

Tonight ends my 10 Week Plan v2.0. The last time I did this was almost 2 years ago & had great success, so I wanted to try it again. I had killed my metabolism the years I was sick because doctors kept telling me to eat less & less (only 800-900 calories a day) so losing weight has been hard the past 3 years since I've been healthy. But I'm happy to report my results!

 

• - Starting wt: 142.4 - Ending wt: 132.8
• - Macros: 30C, 35 P, 35 F.
• - ~ 1350 cals / day. 1 cheat meal per week.
• - Exercise: 5-6xs week, approx 240 mins / wk.
• - HIIT 1/2 the time, strength, yoga & pilates.
• - *NO processed carbohydrates besides cheat meal!* (This was a main focus from the first one & this one in regards to difference in my eating, & both trials have proved true for me. I rarely eat any processed carbohydrates anyway, and with calories and macros remaining same, even a very small about of processed carbs hinders weight loss.)
• - Good carbs focused on: Leafy greens, fruit in the morning. 1 slice of high fiber minimal processed bread or tortilla a day. Bananas & dried apricots for potassium. Greek yogurt.
• - Good fats focused on: Avocados! Nuts & nut butters. Kefir. Cheese 3oz/ day limit.
• - Minimum alcohol. 1 - 2 glasses of wine per week max (minus Valentine’s wine tasting day). 3 martini-type drinks total during 10 week period.
• Size 4 to comfy size 2! :) And a happy camper! 

Me at the end of my 10 Week Plan v2.0 Spring 2016

Meal Prepping this Week

Good ol Egg White Bites. Super convenient & can be eaten warm or cold. I like to make a big batch then eat them over the course of 3-5 days. You can check out the recipe here: http://naturalbeautyandbody.blogspot.com/2014/06/easy-egg-white-bite-recipe.html

I also picked up some ground turkey for my first time a couple weeks ago by the suggestion of one of my personal trainers. I'm not much of a meat eater & wasn't sure what to do with it exactly, but I decided to make ground turkey wraps:

I went to Trader Joe's and got 99% fat free lean ground turkey. Put the whole thing in a large pan sprayed with olive oil spray to coat, then a tablespoon of olive oil in the center. Added a couple sprinkles of chili flakes, fresh ground pepper, garlic, some basil, a splash of balsamic vinegar and two tablespoons of Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ sauce. 

Put that on a bed of romaine hearts, sprinkled some light shredded mozzarella cheese over, added a tablespoon of pineapple salsa and now have my new favorite mini meal!

50 Weeks to a Happier Healthier You - One Small Step Each Week

New Years resolutions can be exciting & overwhelming. Whether it's lose 50 lbs, eat better, go to the gym more, less this, stop that, go here... Breaking things down into smaller easier things can often be a more ideal way for people to stick with their goals long term.

Here are 50 small things you can do, one per week, to help better your health and life. Some things may be easier than other, so I'm breaking them down into groups of 5 that you can choose which one you want to do first - just be sure to do them all before going to the next group.

Step 1: Make room for good things to come
1. Clean your bedroom. You'll be surprised how much more clearer & organized you'll feel to start.
2. Go through your pantry and remove any expired foods.
3. Check your closet. Be honest and get rid of anything you haven't worn in a year or not planning to wear in the next year. Saving one special occasion outfit outside of these parameters is okay.
4. Pick that one corner, room, other closet or huge box you've been dreading to tackle, and then tackle it. Get it over with!
5. We all have one more place that needs a cleaning: bathroom, car, other closet. Pick one and be done!

Step 2: Trim the Fat
6. Donate everything you have left from Step 1. There are many MANY other people out there that can put to use the things you are not.
7. Check your food labels & get rid of the things no one should have: trans fats & aspartame.
8. Get a large water bottle for daily use: 32oz is great, 64oz is what you'll need in a day, and 20oz should be the minimum smallest size.
9. Find or make a playlist (iTunes, Pandora, Spotify, cassette tapes, whatever) that will help you relax after a stressful day.
10. Take just 1 minute each day this week to remind yourself of all the things you've accomplished so far, and all the things you will continue to accomplish this year.

Step 3: Add some eats
11. Add or eat 1 piece of fruit each morning during your work week. Apples and bananas are convenient. Berries are yummy & full of antioxidants. Melons & cantaloupes have a very high water content and usually the least calories.
12. Find a vegetable you would like to add or eat more consistently in your diet, and figure out a couple ways to prepare it that you like (raw, grilled, slow cooked, baked, with pepper? olive oil?)
13. Think of an easy, healthy, go-to snack (less than 150 cals) that you can keep in your car or desk at work whenever hunger strikes that can save you from making poor drive-thru or vending machine choices. This could be a handful of nuts, trail mix, dried fruit or a fiber bar.
14. Remember that water bottle you got in Step 2? Use it daily. I like to freeze half of it overnight & fill the rest up in the morning to have cold water all day. Add some fruit or lemon juice if you like.
15. If you choose to have dessert on occasion, find a healthy alternative option. My favorites are frozen Greek Yogurt bars, Soy or coconut milk desserts, and sorbets. Enjoy most of these guilt-free desserts at less than 100 calories.

Step 4: Get Connected
16. Sign up for MyFitnessPal: www.myfitnesspal.com
17. Talk with a friend or family member that has had success in reaching their health or fitness goals.
18. Find a health or fitness website that interests you.
19. Sign up for daily emails for tips and ideas from an online magazine that interests you.
20. Download a free exercise app for your phone.

Step 5: Put Your Connections to Use
21. Try logging your food every day for a week in MyFitnessPal
22. Find a friend, family member, coworker or classmate to engage in some form of exercise with. This can be as simple as a single 30 minute walk.
23. Find a healthy recipe online that you'd like to create this week.
24. Think of an inspirational quote for your week.
25. Do an exercise from one of the apps you downloaded on your phone.

Step 6: Review & Reinforce
26. Look what you did in Step 1. Redo anything that needs to be reinforced.
27. Look what you did in Step 2. Redo anything that needs to be reinforced.
28. Look what you did in Step 3. Redo anything that needs to be reinforced.
29.  Look what you did in Step 4. Redo anything that needs to be reinforced.
30. Look what you did in Step 5. Redo anything that needs to be reinforced.

Step 7: Substitute
31. Replace 1 non-water drink during your day with water or unsweetened tea.
32. Replace cow's milk with almond, rice, or organic soy milk.
33. If you drink alcohol, have a glass of red wine this week instead.
34. Replace all white sugar in your house with stevia.
35. Replace all processed white pasta in your house with whole wheat, organic rice, quinoa, or vegetable pasta.

Step 8: Move
36. Walk 10 minutes 5 days this week.
37. Do 20 squats or 20 lunges once a day for 5 days this week.
38. Find a 10 minute YouTube video of Pilates or Yoga to end your day with.
39. Try a 20 second plank. Try to increase your hold time by 5 seconds each day for 5 days.
40. Find a 5 minute arm workout online and do it.

Step 9: Daily Life
41. Get a planner (paper or online.)
42. Make a grocery list for the week. Only purchase and eat things from that list.
43. Schedule a 30 minute time, 5 days this week in your planner where you will do some form of exercise.
44. Drink a minimum of 64 ounces of water per day.
45. Eat a fruit of vegetable with every meal.

Step 10: Last steps
46: Designate 1 cheat day a week for your meals. Follow your healthy habits the other 6 days of the week.
47: Pledge to not put knowingly harmful ingredients into your body (aspartame, BHT, trans-fat, etc.)
48: Get a minimum of 60 minutes of strength training per week.
49. Find a workout buddy or consistent fitness motivatior.
50. Do something nice for yourself this week. You earned it!

Top 5 Things That Keep Me Full

I've been on another level of constantly hungry the past couple of weeks, and if I didn't know myself I'd think I was pregnant or a 16 year old stoner. I've easily been eating 25% more a day than I normally do and it's driving me crazy, wondering if my body is trying to store up for the winter like a bear, or my metabolism suddenly had a spike increase out of nowhere. The bear theory is probably more likely.

350 more calories a day is a whole sixth meal - a large one - added on to my already 5 meals a day. On my small 5'2" frame, that can lead to extra unwanted fluffiness real quickly. Continuing to track my food in MyFitnessPal I tried upping my protein to 40%, which is high for me, to try & reduce my hunger. No such luck. On to things that help fill me up...

1. Egg Whites
Or rather, egg white scrambles that I make with mozzarella cheese and tomatoes. Egg whites have a lot of protein in them, but none of the fat, so I can eat a very large plate for only about 200 calories, fixings included.

2. Quest Bars
My favorite clean cheat snack. With 20 grams of protein and 17 grams of fiber with a great variety of yummy flavors, it's no wonder I buy these things by the box.

3. Soup (tomato or broth based)
This almost slipped my mind until tonight, when I yet again was staring into my fridge 15 minutes after I finished eating. I started making my own soup in the beginning of this year and really like it - it's chicken broth based with lots of veggies. I'll share the recipe later this week. Or, Trader Joe's Roasted Red Pepper & Tomato Soup is delicious at only 100 calories per cup. I like to have two cups and sprinkle a little parmesean on top. Sometimes the consistency is a little thick for my preference, like tonight, so I just add water over the stove.

4. Pasta or Quinoa
One of the things that is way too easy for me to eat excessively, but I do measure it out in moderation. I usually consume about 1&1/2 servings, equivalent to about 300 calories, and it's a great inexpensive & versatile option. Sometimes people say it's preferred not to have carbs like these at night, but once or twice a week it makes for a really satisfying dinner. I make my own pasta sauce usually too, which is awesome.

 5. Chicken
The only meat I regularly purchase at a store. I used to not eat meat (or many animal foods) for quite awhile. I began eating more early 2013 as I introduced more protein in my diet, and I took the easy way out by adding in more animal foods, like chicken, Greek yogurt, and eggs. I usually consume about 5 ounces, which is equal to about 150 calories at a time.





I will definitely be making soup tomorrow night. The tomato soup was very satisfying this evening.

Have a great week!

~Samantha Marie

Eat Good Food First

Where did the past two weeks go? Oh yes... I was scrambling to get a good grade in my Intro to Dietetics class, and my wonderful mother came to visit me from Oregon. My first real available day off, I slept until about 3pm.

Catching up on emails and articles of the past month as 5 o'clock rolls around, I come across "The Top 20 Foods You Should Be Eating." There are SO many foods we should be eating, how on earth do we eat them all? Or if you're one of the people in 2/3rds of America's population that are trying to lose weight, myself included, you wonder how you're supposed to eat and lose weight at the same time.

I tried many different experiments on myself when I began to eat more healthy and lose weight a couple years ago, but only a few things stuck. A couple of new things that I had to force myself to try ended up being so second nature to me that I hadn't really thought of them much anymore. Sometimes after a long time though, old habits sneak back in without you realizing, and then you get reminded of that simple thing that helped you a great deal in the first place.

Food is awesome. Even crappy food is awesome. How many of us would gladly eat three times as much as we do now if it meant we would still be healthy and not gain weight? Heck, I even keep eating after I'm already full, which we all know is a big no-no. I'm human just like everyone else, continuously working on fixing my flaws.

Eat good food first.
Let's go a little deeper in to this. It's more than just trying to eat healthy (or eating less if that is your healthy goal.) We have recommended daily values, and they differ depending on who we are. Instead of focusing on what you "can't" eat, focus on what you should be eating enough of, and eat those first. For myself, this includes having a goal of 30+ grams of fiber a day, and making sure I get enough of my micro-nutrients like calcium, iron, and vitamins, and macro nutrients like 100 grams of protein a day (your needs may be higher or lower.)

The point of this goal is: Try to get into your body what you already need for that day. When dinner time (or after dinner time) comes around & you see you're low on fat for the day, or carbs, it's totally fine & acceptable to have some extra cheese or glass of wine. Get in what you need first, and if you need help figuring out what that is & how to track it: www.myfitnesspal.com

Stay healthy, my friends!

~Samantha

Back on the Wagon

It's Monday, and if you are like most people in the United States this past weekend, you likely consumed an excessive amount of food (yum, BBQ!), more alcohol than you usually do (myself: went wine tasting with an old friend), and didn't stick to your usual workout routine (got out of bed at 3pm today.)

Even if you're not in the United States or even celebrated anything at all, you still had a weekend and most weekends you tell yourself you'll start working out Monday, or feel bad from everything you did or did not do the past 2 or 3 days. I'm telling you to NOT feel bad, to savor all that food & those memories (the ones you can remember), and no matter what happened yesterday or what may happen on Monday, tomorrow is ALWAYS a new day.

Personally, I believe in balance. If you are one of those alien creatures who have no problem working out & eating fabulous 365 days out of the year, good for you! But I don't believe those people exist so don't feel bad about not being one. The important thing for you is to take ownership. ALLOW yourself those occasional times to do and eat whatever you want, just as long as those "occasional times" aren't four days out of every week or every day after 3pm or something.

What I learned from my recent 10 Week Plan is that going hardcore for 10 weeks isn't for me, but 5 weeks is totally doable. I also learned things like I seriously need to stretch more because lifting weights & working out as much as I did needs its balance as well: It needs rest & sleep. Some people have a cheat meal once a week, some people take weekends off (just don't go so crazy all weekend that you ruin all your hard work from during the week), some people like to have long-term plans or goals and THEN reward themselves after.

Point being, it's more than okay to have pigged out last weekend, or even next weekend. Heck, it's even healthy and you should plan for it! Today is a new day, tomorrow is a new day - what are you doing to do with it?