There's A Party In My Tummy...

The most important step in choosing a healthy lifestyle is deciding to do it. The next step is actually doing it. Many times I made the decision but wasn't successful in following through because I really didn't know what to eat. I knew, obviously, what healthy foods were but there really is only so much chicken, fish, and veggies one can injest.
One of the reasons I think we have been successful this time is because we changed our mind set. THIS ISN'T A DIET!!! This is how we will live the rest of our lives. So it's extremely important that we eat things we like and aren't starving ourselves.
It's crucial to find out how many calories you should be eating for you specifically. I eat 2100 calories a day. I mentioned in a previous blog that I eat 6 times a day, every 3 hours and make sure I eat equal amounts at each meal.
The first priority is to make sure you eat enough calories. The second priority is to make sure you are getting enough protein at each meal.  The third priority is to make sure you are getting enough carbs and the last priority is making sure you are eating the good fats and limiting the bad ones. Good fats are in nuts, olive oil, avocados, etc.

So now what??

I have a few "go to" cookbooks that I use regularly for breakfast and dinner ideas and staple snacks to keep me on track.
Cookbooks I love are Ellie Krieger "So Easy" and Ellie Krieger "The Food You Crave." I also am a huge fan of Hungry Girl. She has a new cooking show on the Cooking channel on Saturday's. She has a daily newsletter, 2 cookbook's , and she is on Facebook, so check her out.
Websites that are also helpful are http://www.sparkpeople.com/ and www.tasteofhome.com/healthy.
It's a good idea to write down everything you eat so you know exactly what you're eating and how many calories you are getting.
On the menu for this week is Pumpkin Pie Muffins, Oatmeal & Applesauce Pancakes, Oven "fried" Chicken, Four Cheese Macaroni, Hummus and Grilled Veggie Wraps, Spaghetti, Sloppy Joes, No pudge Brownies, and Yum Yum Chocolate Muffins. All of these are low in calories and fat and very delish!
Snacks that I eat are almonds, cocoa almonds, greek yogurt, hummus and veggies, cheese sticks, light babybel cheese, grapes, apples, bananas, strawberries, multigrain crackers, cottage cheese, baked tortilla chips & salsa,100 calorie popcorn, mini rice cakes, fiber one bars, protein bars,and sugar free jello and pudding. I mix and match the low cal ones to make sure I am getting 300-350 calories at each snack.
Now that we have been doing this for 5 months it has become our way of life. I never have felt like I was dieting. I am eating yummy foods and never have that starving feeling.
I have lost 44 pounds, my BMI has gone down 5%, and I have gone down 4 sizes! I average about 2 pounds a week and I am losing mostly fat while maintaining my lean mass.
I know this may be a cliche, but seriously...if I can do this so can you. This is the reason for this blog, to pay it forward and give hope. Right before I started this I was hopeless, desperate, and scared. But I did it and am continuing to do it and so can you!