Julie's Easy, Healthy, Go-To Meals

*Mainly Plant based whole foods, low processed carbs, cut out most processed snacks.
*I steer clear of animal products when I can (for personal best results) but add them in where you like
*If at any time you’re hungry, eat fruits or veggies in between meals
*No dessert on week days mon-fri
*Drink at least 6-8 cups of water a day
*Dedicate 30-40 mins a day to walk/jog
*bean/corn/pepper salad recipe is: 1 can black beans, 1 can corn, 2 diced bell peppers, lemon juice, 2 TBS vinigar, 1 TBS olive oil, ¼ tsp oregano, ½ tsp garlic powder, red onion if you like, salt&pepper to taste-- refrigerate.

DAILY MEAL PATTERN:

-Breakfast 7:30am
-Snack 9:45/10
-Lunch 12/12:30
-Snack 3:00
-Dinner 5:30/6

-Small light snack only if hungry
-Bedtime 9:30

BREAKFAST

-½ cup old fashion oats microwaved 2 mins in milk, sweetened with 1 Tbs honey, topped with lots of fresh fruit (strawberries, bluberries, raspberries, apple & cinnamon, exc…)
-Chocolate Banana Smoothie: 1 frozen banana, 1 cup skim milk, 1 Tbs peanutbutter, 1 Tbs cocoa powder-- blend.

-Whole grain toast with mashed avocado or peanut butter with sliced bananas. Eat with a side of fruit.

-2 eggs scrambled with 1 heaping cup of raw spinach, diced tomatoes, and cheese cooked in.

-Large bowl of assorted fruit (I like mango, grapes, and apples together)

-banana pancakes: 1 banana, 1 egg white, ¼ cup flour, ½ tsp baking powder, splash of vanilla, sprinkle of cinnamon-- top with fruit, yogurt, a scoop *halo top* icecream, or all natural syrup.

-English muffin w/ 2 egg whites, 2 pieces of turkey bacon, 1 slice of cheese (300 cals)

-plain greek yogurt w/fruit, honey, & plain cheerios or flakes

SNACKS (but typically just fruit)

-carrots & hummus
-edamame beans (salted)

-pretzels

-fruit (watermelon, strawberries, nectarines, bananas or apples sliced with peanut butter, grapes, mangos)

-snack pack cups of mandarin oranges

-avocado toast

-corn tortilla chips and salsa

-greek yogurt with fruit

-corn bean pepper salad

-nuts
-cellery w/1-2 Tbs peanutbutter (or PB2)

LUNCH or DINNER

-Black beans (or refried beans) and rice on tortilla skin, taco shell, lettuce taco “shell”, or over lettuce (as a taco salad) topped with salsa, diced tomatoes, avocado, and olives, or other assorted vegetables.

-A bowl of cereal w/ milk

-Oven potato “fries” (potato cut into wedges, baked at 400* 30 mins on each side and topped with salt and dipped in ketchup), w/ a side salad, and side of fruit.

-Stirfry vegetables over small portion of rice or rice noodles

-Zoodles- with spaghetti sauce, alfredo, salt and butter, exc...
-Bakery fresh roll with mayo (or veganaise) topped with fresh sliced tomato. (add grilled zucchini and mozzarella topped with Italian seasonings as an option)

-2 small redskin baked potatoes topped with salsa and greek yogurt “sour cream”, dish of black bean/corn/bell pepper salad.

-steamed vegetable, small serving of rice, small portion grilled chicken

-Assorted soups (vegetable tortellini, lentil, minestrone, veggie chile, exc…)

-Homemade pizza topped with veggies (spinach, tomato, basil, bell peppers, mushrooms, exc)

-salad w/ sweet dressing, apple slices, bell pepper, cucumber, croutons, chicken optional -Zucchini fritters on a bed of lettuce topped with salsa and sour cream (and a side of fruit)

-Assorted roasted vegetables over brown rice with a homemade honey garlic soy sauce

DESSERT (eaten sparingly when craving something sweet)

-A baby cone of Halo Top ice cream  (240 cals in a pint, high protein, low sugar) maybe 50 calories in a baby cone

-Homemade hot cocoa: 1 Tbs cocoa powder, 1.5 Tbs sugar, splash of vanilla, 4 shakes of salt, skim milk (i use almond or coconut ususally)

-pizzelle s’mores: 1 marshmallow and a few chocolate chips sandwiched between 2 pizzelle “cookies” broiled in the oven for 45 seconds. Get pizzelles at Aldi.

-diced apple with 1 Tbs melted peanut butter, sprinkled with chocolate chips

-snack pack of mandarin oranges

-*nice* cream (find any recipe on Pinterest)

*Follow me on Instagram @thejuliejourney for new meal ideas or my Pinterest boards:
-eat clean

&

-cruelty free

**These are my typical foods I put into rotation daily for breakfast, snack, and dinner. Lunch I prep for a whole week on Sundays and I try to cook something new off my Pinterest board every week.

My Super Non-Basic Anti-Top40 Workout Playlist

What I jam on when I get werk doneeee:

1.) Clairity- Velcro
2.) Moby- Honey
3.) Empire of the Sun- DNA
4.) Europe- The Final Countdown
5.) The Glitch Mob- Fortune Days
6.) Shiny Toy Guns- Somewhere to Hide
7.) Alpha 9- Come Home (Original Mix)
8.) Borns- Electric Love
9.) Walk off the Earth- Take my Hand
10.) Mayday Parade- When I Grow Up (Pop Goes Punk Cover)
11.) Tristam- I Remember
12.) Halsey- New Americana
13.) Angels & Airwaves- Rite of Spring
14.) I See Stars- The Hardest Mistakes
15.) Armin Van Buuren- Youtopia 
16.) Avicii- Dear Boy
17.) Hellogoodbye- Here in your arms
18.) Avicii- Levels
19.) X-Men First Class- Credit Song
20.) Lights- Running With The Boys
21.) Axwell Ingrosso- Sun is Shining
22.) St. Patrick- Pvris 
23.) Bastille- Of The Night
24.) Of Mice And Men- Blame It (Pop Goes Punk Cover)
25.) Benny Benassi ft Gary Go- Cinema
26.) Chicane- Middledistancerunner
27.) Marina And The Diamonds- Primadonna
28.) Classixx- I'll Get You
29.) Metro Station- Shake It
30.) Culcha Candela- Hungry Eyes (WIR club mix)
31.) Empire of the Sun- We are the People
32.) Fall Out Boy- Centuries
33.) Mulan- I'll Make a Man out of You
34.) Fall Out Boy- Immortals
35.) Paul Van Dyk ft Plumb- I Don't Deserve You
36.) X Ambassadors- Renegades
37.) Shiny Toy Guns- Le Disko
38.) Laura Brehm- Valkyrie
39.) The Donkeys- Lower the Heavens
40.) 30 Seconds to Mars- Night of the Hunter (Flood Remix)

Post workout selfie from today-- down 19lbs and fitting back into clothes I kept telling myself "shrunk in the wash".
Put your tunes on and get werk done!

                                                                                

Stay Inspired

Pictures that are *inspiring* me to reach my goals today! Every now and then I need visual reminders as to why I started this whole fitness journey to begin with. Inspirational tough-love quotes, yummy nutrient rich foods, healthy people, cute workout clothes, and educating myself with FACTS!

------

Week 1                                                         Week 19

Down almost 19lbs

Just keep reminding yourself why you started, and how far you've come/CAN come. It's amazing what 4 months of dedication can do. Don't waste another day sitting around *wishing*. Get off your booty and DO IT! 

Part 2: My Workout Plan

15 weeks into my fitness journey and I am down 15 lbs! It is SUCH a good feeling knowing that I have worked hard to accomplish this for myself. I feel so much better and healthier, as well as my mental and emotional state has skyrocketed to beautiful places. I don't remember the last time I thought a bad thought about myself, felt unsatisfied, was moody without reason, or ate something and felt guilty about it (which I used to have a problem with fairly often). This journey so far has taught me balance, self love, motivation, and the beauty of encouraging others, and what a wonderful journey it has been thus far.

Last week I shared the first half of my fitness journey which is *FOOD* and my meal plan. You can check out my meal plan and my thoughts on basic nutrition here: http://juliesfitnessadventure.blogspot.com/2016/03/my-meal-plan.html

The second part of my fitness journey has been my workout routine. Although weight loss is 80% what you eat and only 20% working out, it is still important to maintain a fitness routine, which again, just like food, is different for each person. You should be getting some sort of exercise daily, at least 45 minutes. Each body reacts differently to different types of workouts so I am not going to sit here and tell you what is going to help you lose weight because there is just no way I can know that. I've tried a lot of different exercise from walking, dancing, lifting, I even completed the P90X dvd's. Just a little example how each person is different... Everyone talked about how ripped you will be after doing P90X. I heard people say they got in the best shape of their life from doing it, they lost so much weight, gained a ton of muscle, exc.... Well my husband and I dedicated 12 weeks of our life consistently to this P90X dvd-- morning after morning we religiously woke up at 6 am and completed each disk-- and I'm totally gonna toot my own horn and say we did AWESOME with each activity P90X had to offer. But let me tell you something.... I did not lose any weight. I became a bit stronger, but I didn't look different, I didn't feel different, I wasn't in the best shape of my life, I didn't shed pounds-- even with maintaining a healthy diet while doing the P90X dvd's, nothing happened for me. It was really discouraging for me and I felt like well if that didn't work to shed this stubborn weight than nothing will... But that's because I wasn't trying to figure out my body. I wasn't trying to learn what worked for ME, I was just doing what everyone else was doing. And I feel that just goes to show that each person's body reacts differently to different types of workouts-- Find what works for YOU. What is creating progress in your life? And do that.

MY WORKOUT PLAN:

MONDAY-    *20min ab routine at work while baby sleeps
                       *30min walk with baby
                       -GYM: *30mins of cardio
                                    *30-40mins of legs & butt exercises

TUESDAY-    *30min walk with baby
                        GYM: *30 mins of cardio at the gym
                                   *30-40mins of arm & back exercises

WEDNESDAY-   *20min ab routine at work while baby sleeps
                              *1 full hour of cardio (I usually alternate running/walking for the first half hour  and then speed walk the 2nd half hour)

THURSDAY-   *30min walk with baby
                            -GYM: *30mins of cardio
                                         *30-40mins of legs & butt exercises

FRIDAY-   *30min walk with baby
                   *20min ab routine at work while baby sleeps
                   -GYM: *30 mins of cardio at the gym
                                *30-40mins of arm & back exercises

SATURDAY-    Rest

SUNDAY-   Rest

*Looking at this it looks a bit excessive but I also basically have a sit-down job. I am a nanny to 1 baby so when he is playing, I'm sitting with him. And when he's sleeping I'm sitting on my computer working or reading. So I try to throw in extra exercises where I can to keep moving.

                                                      ^Stir fried brocoli, zucchini, pepper, and carrot ribbons over quinoa           ^Me down 15lbs! 

WHAT EXERCISES DO I DO
Here are the charts that I have designed for myself with the workout moves that I have either created or picked out myself. A lot of them have made up names for machines I don't know the name of, or moves that I came up with myself-- but you can kind of get the idea. I have each of these charts printed out and take them with me for every workout. I write down how many sets/reps I've done as well as the amount of weight I'm lifting. Keeping track of what you're doing is the best way to make SURE you are making progress and not plateauing. Every few weeks I will add weight or reps, and eventually when I feel the activities are too easy, I will update my charts to challenge myself with new moves.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Find what works for YOU. Create a written workout plan that you will take with you and keep track of yourself on-- get serious about making progress! Try lots of different things to figure out what works best for your body. Take before and after photos to track progress (sometimes it's easier to *see* than to *feel* progress and pictures are a great reminder as to why you started a fitness journey in the first place). Get a buddy to work out with you if it makes it easier to stay dedicated, but don't fully rely on anyone else to keep you on track but yourself. Friends and family will fail you, they will not always be there to hold your hand through every workout. Learn to press on alone when you need to because only YOU can truly hold yourself accountable, and the reward is so great. And always, love yourself.

             

Part 1: My Meal Plan

Hi guys! It's a beautiful day today and I'm excited for the week ahead of me! I've been in great spirits since the warm weather rolled in (despite that one awkward day where it snowed on the 1st day of Spring... yea let's not talk about that). I've been slackin hardcore on my fitness blogging but that's ok because I haven't been slacking on my fitness! In fact I'm going stronger than ever and down a total of 14lbs! I feel amazing. I feel happy, encouraged, sun-shiny, and ya know what really excites me? That other people are seeing my progress and getting INSPIRED TOO. I love that. I honestly mean it when I say that I LIVE to inspire people. I've had a handfull of people contact me asking how I've done it, what my meal plan is, how often I work out, exc... So I figured I'd share with the world, chat a little bit about my thoughts on healthy eating, and go through a step by step plan of what I eat through out the day.

*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.

^ No noodles here! I use my spiralizer to make zoodles! Tastes like spaghetti and I'm eating 2 whole zucchinis! These turkey meatballs are the bomb too. 

Red pepper, turkey lunch meat, *light* popcorn                       Yellow pepper, crackers, tuna fish

A full days meal prep from last week

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 

Along with this meal plan, I do at least an hour of exercise every day (Which I will blog about another day). I've been eating/working out like this for 14 weeks and I am down 14 lbs. Again, every body is different. Be kind to yourself, take time to figure out what works for you. Don't calorie count. If you are hungry, EAT. If you are full, put it down. If the dessert isn't good, don't finish it. The more you practice self control, the more it becomes second nature and you will see results.

HELLO PINTEREST
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/

Healthy Pancakes

Good morning! I've been waiting for the weekend for what seemed like forever, and after stepping on the scale this morning and seeing more progress, I was specifically excited to treat myself to one of my newer favorite recipes: healthy banana pancakes. You've probably heard of "3 ingredient pancakes" from Pinterest, Buzzfeed, Vine, exc... and it's essentially an egg, a banana, and a sprinkle of cinnamon... but let's be real here for a sec... that's just banana flavored eggs. Gross. So yes, my healthy banana pancake recipe was derived from the "3 ingredient pancakes", but taste much better than fruit flavored scrambled eggs ;) Here's what you need for breakfast for 2:

-2 ripe bananas
-2 eggs
-less than 1/2 cup of flour
-1 tsp baking powder
-A splash of vanilla extract
-A sprinkle of cinnamon

It's pretty self explanatory-- you just mix it and make your pancakes so I'll let you take it from here ;) The part I like most about them is how low cal they are. The recipe makes 6 small pancakes (so splitting it with someone you each get 3) which ends up being a filling breakfast for under 300 calories. We put maple flavored Chobani greek yogurt and pecans on our pancakes this morning for extra protein and it was delicious. Don't skip breakfast! It's the most important meal of the day-- make it count.

My Fitness Update

It's been about 2 weeks since I last blogged about my fitness goals but a lot has happened over that small period of time! I finally weighed myself 2 weeks ago (which was the first time I stepped on the scale since I began my journey 9 weeks ago), and at 7 weeks I was down 7 lbs-- which I'm really proud of myself for accomplishing! Although I've been feeling lately like I am starting to plateau so last night I was able to sit down and re-evaluate my goals with my husband who has been a really strong support to me through my entire journey. Along with my re-evaluation, I've started some new healthy habits that I'll share and would encourage everyone to participate in!

1.) TURMERIC 
I've started taking a turmeric capsule with breakfast every morning. Turmeric has been dubbed the queen of spices for many reasons-- listen to this: Turmeric has the ability to:
-Relieve joint pain
-Protects your brain
-Supports cardio vascular health
-Balances blood sugar
-Spurs weight loss
-Improves digestion
-Treats depression
-Reduced blood pressure
-Boosts immunity
-Combats Cancer
I mean I'm really not sure why you wouldn't make this a part of your daily supplement intake... it may just be my imagination but I also feel like I have more energy when I take it. You can buy a bottle of turmeric at your local supermarket or drug store for about $13.

2.) DRINKING MORE WATER
I recently got this amazing timer water bottle. I wasn't sure how much it would help me but it seriously works and makes drinking water so much easier! Try adding some lemon and apple slices for an added flavor boost. If you want to get your own timer bottle check out Blogilates where I got mine:
http://www.ogorgeous.com/products/jewel-bottles They have jewel tone or clear.

3.) LIMITING INTERNET TIME
This one is embarrassing but it had to be done... Since starting my nannying job I realized I was spending hours on the internet every time the baby went to sleep. Then I would be on it even MORE when I went home after work. After about 3 months of this, I realized I was starting to feel depressed, lonely, sluggish, it was awful. After a good cry and a talk with my husband I cold turkey cut my internet time from about 5 hours a day to 15-20 minutes a day. And let me tell you, I feel SO refreshed. I no longer feel the need to endlessly scroll or check up on people or share every single thing I'm thinking/doing with the world. Instead I'm doing more reading, cooking, working out, baking, painting my nails, talking to my husband, exc... I feel so much more productive and over all happier. I highly encourage everyone to evaluate the precious time they may be handing over to the internet.

4.) CREATE A WORKOUT PLAN
I self evaluated my workouts when I realized I wasn't ever sore or seeing improvements, and came to the realization that some of the machines I'm doing at the gym, I'm STILL doing the same weight limit I was doing 4 years ago... embarrassing. No wonder I'm plateauing. So 3 weeks ago I wrote out a workout plan for different parts of my body (legs, butt, arms, back, abs, cardio), and a spot to write how many sets/reps + what weight I'm doing each time. Since I started, I'm sore more often (yay! that means it's working!), as well as SEEING myself improve and get stronger, easily increasing the weight I'm lifting. I also started doing less cardio, and more free weights. Writing out what you've accomplished during your workout ENSURES that you will be able to constantly challenge yourself to become stronger.

5.) FIND A SUPPORT SYSTEM
I have a great thing going with my best friend Talia, as well as my hubby. At the end of every week Tal and I make it a goal to reach out to eachother and check in on how we are doing with our goals. It's a great time to talk about all our accomplishments as well as our downfalls and how we want to fix them. Yesterday I was feeling kinda "eh" about my goals. I didn't feel as on fire about the subject as I did 9 weeks ago as well as feeling like I was plateauing with my eating habits and weight loss. My husband (God bless him because he is amazing), sat down and listened to me vent about my complacency, and then helped me re-evaluate my goals and gave some great advice as well as helped me write out a workout plan for myself to stay on track. He helped me to realize a few key points that I think will really help me reach my goals:

-No more fast food every weekend--- We tend to go out to eat a lot on the weekends (Taco Bell, Chick Fil A, Wendys, Chinese, exc...) which obviously leads to unhealthy choices. Instead we are limiting our eating out to once or twice a month.

-Don't let the weekend be a free-for-all-- -Joshua noticed that once the weekend rolls around I tend to drop my good eating habits and over indulge in sweets as well as just not being mindful of making sure I'm eating balanced meals. This one will be tough for me because I have an awful sweet tooth and love my junk food (who doesn't), but I'm ready to take that on!

-Workout 5 days a week instead of 4, and really pin point my diet--- Plain and simple, he said if you want to maintain your weight then I can keep doing what I'm doing (which is great), but he said if I want to lose weight and get stronger, I need to go above and beyond with my goals, push myself, and really shoot for the moon. Go big or go home. He gave me some great snack/meal ideas and helped me write out a schedule for the workout plan I made so I'm getting in at least 1 hour-1 hour + 40 mins, 5 days a week.  I'm really excited to start my extra day every week!