*Just a little disclaimer, I am not a Dr. or a nutritionist, I'm just a normal chickie with a passion for nutrition and healthy eating. Just because it works for me, doesn't exactly mean it will work for everyone else-- each person is different and I've tried ALOT of different ways of eating before finding something that finally worked. With that being said, moving on....
First off, I want to talk about a few little misconceptions I've heard along the way when I talk to other people about eating healthy and what nutrition means to them. I see a lot of people decide that they want to lose weight and then make some decisions or based off misconceptions that are just silly and won't help that much in the end, so let's clear the air first...
1.) It's labeled "Organic" so it must be healthy, right? I've heard this SO many times: "But it's organic, so it's really good for you." False. In terms of food, organic means that the food was grown or manufactured without pesticides, synthetic fertilizers, GMOs, chemicals, antibiotics, growth hormones, all that other nasty stuff (the list goes on). Which is still awesome! But in terms of calories, fat, carbs, exc... it's not a whole lot different than what you might find in the regular "non organic" isles at your grocery store. So no, living off tacos, oreos, pizza, and owowcow icecream will not make you lose weight just because it's labeled "organic".
2.) I want to lose weight so I'm just gonna replace all my meals with fruit. When people think of healthy eating they right away think of fruits and veggies-- ok, great! But let's not forget it's fruits AND veggies (and a lot of other things!). I get that veggies aren't the most appealing part of the food pyramid but they are SO essential to a balanced diet. I've seen people who want to lose weight so they just eat boat loads of fruit and smoothies all day long and forget their veggies, carbs and lean proteins and I'm like mannnn what are you doingggg?! Although fruits are super awesomely good for you and full of fiber, water, antioxidants, (the list goes on), they are also packed with lots of carbs/sugar. I personally would suggest no more than 2 fruits a day, and don't forget the other parts of the pyramid!
3.) Carbs = Bad False. False false false. Your body needs carbs to survive. You will not be able to make a lifestyle out of healthy eating if you restrict yourself from carbs. If you want to lose weight from cutting back on carbs, I'd suggest cutting out your processed snacks first (chips, pretzels, cheesecurls, pop tarts, exc...) Maybe some bread here and there but really, carbs are not gonna kill you.
4.) I can't drink 8 cups of water daily. It's not important for weight loss anyway. This is me. I said this before and now I am shutting my little mouth because woah was I wrong. I went from drinking 1-2 cups of water a day, to drinking 6-8 now everyday within less than a months time. Get yourself a timer bottle and drink up! http://www.ogorgeous.com/products/jewel-bottles The benefits of water are endless, but when talking about weight loss, water not only keeps you hydrated but keeps you FULL. I used to be so hungry all the time, and now I can eat smaller portions daily because I DRINK 6-8 cups of water a day. It keeps me so so full. I crave less, I snack less, it's just a win win situation.
And NOW let's talk about my meal plan...
WHY DO I MEAL PLAN?
I would consider myself a busy person. I wake up at 5:30 for a 10 hour shift mon-fri, after work I go to the gym for an hour, and by the time I get home it's 6:30 and I'm editing photos, sending emails, and I have to go to bed in 3 hours. The last thing I want to be doing is cooking and thinking about what I want to pack for my lunch tomorrow. So I prep it all ahead of time. Meal prepping helps me to not to grab the first thing I see when I'm hungry. There are no excuses if you already have the food made for yourself and ready to go. I've heard it said before that if you fail to plan, you plan to fail. And I've found that SO true on my journey.
THE NITTY-GRITTY:
HOW DO I DECIDE WHAT TO EAT? -I try to eat as much non processed food as possible. More fresh food, less wrappers and labels. I'm talking fruits, veggies, and lean proteins (chicken, fish, turkey). I rarely eat red meat anymore. Foods in their purest, least processed forms (homecooked meals, raw veggies, homemade snacks, exc...)
-I've cut out a decent amount of bread and almost ALL processed snacks.
-I don't eat sweets on the week days, but allow myself 2 desserts on the weekend. To keep myself from craving the sugar, at the end of every day, I treat myself to one square of Ghirardelli 86% cacao dark chocolate. It's sweet enough to fulfill the craving, but bitter enough that I'm not left wanting more. It's only 60 calories and has only 1 gram of sugar).
-I've also cut out all sugary drinks (soda, juice, alcohol). I'm not a big drinker of any of those things but if you are you could always treat yourself on the weekends. I drink skim milk and water.
-No fast food. Maybe once every other weekend.
*I do not follow my meal plan to a T on the weekends. This is a week day thing for me. On the weekends I allow more wiggle room for myself but I am still conscious of what I am putting in my body.
Red pepper, turkey lunch meat, *light* popcorn Yellow pepper, crackers, tuna fish
lunch prep last week: scrambled eggs and steamed broccoli Clean eating muffins! Only 100 cals and soo yummy. Check out my pinterest board "Smart Treats"
What a full weeks prep looks like Oatmeal with fresh berries for breakfast
MY MEAL PLAN
-Breakfast:
7:30am
1/2 cup of old fashion styled oats microwave cooked with skim milk, about 1 Tbs honey, and about 1/2 cup fruit mixed in (strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, whatever really)
If you like to switch breakfast up, toast with peanutbutter and banana is good. Also toast with mashed avocado. But I am happy to eat oatmeal every morning.
-Snack
9:30-10ish
-A fruit or veggie. I usually have an apple or a banana. Sometimes carrots and hummus or lately i've been liking celery and peanutbutter. Just go light on the PB-- no more than 2 Tbsp, same with the hummus. I make this really yummy greek yogurt dip sometimes to go with my apples that way I get protein AND fruit.
-Might have a cup of tea between snack and lunch
-Lunch:
-12:30-1ish
Usually I prep a whole weeks worth of meals on Sunday. Some ideas of what I've prepped for a whole week of lunch:
-Baked red pepper with quinoa and avocado
-a can of tunafish, crackers, and baby carrots
-Oven baked chicken, steamed broccoli, quinoa
-A salad with chicken, red pepper, apple
-2 scrambled eggs with spinach, mushrooms, red pepper, and onion
-Avocado chicken salad with pomegranate seeds, cut up red pepper on the side
-Greek yogurt, cut up red pepper, half an avocado, and a few slices of turkey
-Spaghetti zoodles with parmasean cheese and turkey meatballs
-Snack
3:30ish
-granola bar
-carrots and hummus
-raw greenbeans
-apple
-grapes
-banana
-a hand full of almonds
(whatever will hold me over for my workout)
-Dinner
6:00ish
-a bowl of cereal with skim milk
(breakfast and dinner is almost always the same for me. After a full day at work and the gym, I'm happy to come home and not have to make anything) Every now and then if I feel like cooking I do stir fried veggies over rice or spaghetti veggies.
-Snack
7:30ish
-1 small square of Ghirardelli dark chocolate (86% cacao)
-Also sometimes I have a little snack pack cup of mandarine oranges as a treat
-9:30
Bed
FINAL THOUGHTS
If you're new to the nutritious food thing, Pinterest will be your best friend. There's so many good recipes on there. Feel free to check out my boards:
-Eat Clean: https://www.pinterest.com/juliefloro/eat-clean/
-Smart Treats: https://www.pinterest.com/juliefloro/smart-treats/
I loved this post Julie! Very inspiring!
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