What I Eat on a Daily Basis

Top: Lululemon, similar here | Bottoms: Lululemon, similar here and here | Shoes: Nike, also here | Water Bottle: Hydro Flask, also here

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One of my goals I set for myself this year (remember this post?) was to find a workout routine and stick to it.  I started BBG and absolutely loved it!  For two straight months, I didn’t miss a single workout.  And in those two months I noticed some real changes to my body and mind.  I had a ton of energy and just overall felt so much healthier.  My body felt so strong and it helped that I was also seeing physically results as well.  I went down a whole size in jeans and who doesn’t love that?!?  And I was seeing results in areas that I’ve never seen before!  I loved that workout so much, but sadly for a few health reasons that I will explain at a later date, I had to give it up.

At first I wasn’t too upset about it.  Working out is a lot of work!  I had to plan each week when I would be able to squeeze time in for my daily BBG sessions.  So at first it was much more relaxing to just come home, cook dinner and spend time with the family!  I had seen such good results with the workout and since I could no longer continue, I knew I had to change up my eating habits in a big way.  While getting in a consistent workout daily is important for toning up, what you eat is much more important.  If you are still eating cheeseburgers and French fries every day for lunch but working your butt off at the gym, chances are you won’t see much improvement.  What you put into your body is just as important, if not more!

So I decided since I couldn’t continue with the workouts I love, I would clean up my diet.  And today I wanted to share some of my daily meal ideas.  I am, by no means, an expert.  And trust me I still have my cheat meals every week!  I try to stick to a strict diet during the week and on the weekends I’m a little more loose with what I eat.  But that doesn’t mean I go crazy either!

One of my biggest pieces of advice I can give you is to make sure you are watching your portion size.  On the weekends, we eat out quite a bit.  There are a million delicious restaurants all within walking distance of our apartment and we love to try new places!  This probably sounds silly, but I always try and eat less than Kurt.  Mostly because he is a man and can consume more calories than me.  For example, if we order bruschetta as an appetizer and there are three pieces on the plate.  I will eat one and let Kurt have the remaining two.  And we are really big on sharing dinners.  We love to get the whole experience when we go out to eat- appetizer, entree and dessert.  So we like to share a lot!  But I always let him have the second helping!

Another piece of advice I can offer is to start slow.  You will not become the healthiest eater overnight.  Start with one simple meal a day and do that for a few weeks or even months.  Your tastebuds will change and you will realize that it is easier than you first thought it was.  Once you have mastered one meal, move on to the next meal you want to tackle.  For me, I first started with breakfast.  I always ate breakfast, but pouring yourself a bowl of cereal every morning is probably not the healthiest.  Once I got the hang of that I moved on to my lunches.  It then became a habit and now I crave the healthy foods!

Just a few of my tips that I follow!  So now let’s get into the healthy stuff that I eat every week!

Daily Meal Ideas

Breakfast

Every morning I start my day off with eggs!  They are packed with protein which makes you feel full longer.  I scramble 1 full egg and 1 egg white and lately I’ve also been adding in spinach for some extra greens in my diet.  Sometimes if I’m real crazy I will also add mushrooms or broccoli for more veggies.  But that’s only if I’m feeling crazy!  haha. I top it with Trader Joe’s Everything But the Bagel Sesame Seasoning.  If you haven’t tried this yet- it is amazing!  We use this seasoning on a lot of things- it’s so good and makes all of your meals taste that much more flavorful!  I also drink a full glass of water.  It helps to jumpstart your day in a more natural way than coffee.  And then you are that much closer to getting your daily dose of water in for the day!

I know it can seem time consuming cooking eggs every morning.  But once you get the hang of it, it is so easy.  I take the easy way and just mix everything together in the pan and cook it all at once.  Clean up is a breeze too!  Don’t let the “time” throw you off because once you get into the swing of things- they are super easy to make!

Lunch

Lunch for me is one of the harder meals to stay on track with!  It is my biggest meal of the day and usually when the time rolls around I am starving!  I made a promise to myself that I would try and take my lunch to work at least 2-3 times a week.  I was eating out way too much and overeating and it just wasn’t healthy.  Kurt and I started food prepping together every Sunday and one week I just sort of threw this recipe together.  And now it is one of our favorite lunches!

The base of it is quinoa which in my book is so delicious.  To me, it doesn’t taste any different than rice.  We get the Trader Joe’s quinoa pictured above and love it.  They have a few different kinds and flavors but this is the simplest and best!

I add a big scoop of quinoa to a container followed by a very generous helping of Trader Joe’s Mediterranean hummus.  If you haven’t tried this hummus before it is simply amazing!  It is like no other hummus I have ever tried.  It is sooooo good and a lot more creamier than regular hummus.  I also cut up some cucumbers, olives and throw in some feta cheese.  If you like tomatoes that would also be good in this too- I just don’t like them.  When I go to eat this, I heat it up for a could of minutes in the microwave and lunch is served!  It’s so good, healthy and fills you up!  Sometimes if I’m feeling extra hungry I will eat a pita on the side too.

I like to change up my meals every few weeks because I tend to get sick of them.  Another recipe that I always go back to is a taco bowl and it’s even easier than this Mediterranean bowl!  I cook turkey meat instead of ground beef and then season it with a taco seasoning packet.  I then add a big scoop of quinoa, black beans, and serve it with all my favorite taco toppings like salsa, jalapeños and an avocado!

Dinners

For dinners we tend to change up it up weekly and like to try new things.  Kurt has been on a real kick lately and has been cooking up a storm.  He has found a ton of new recipes from this site that we have been making lately.  We also love to make soups because you can cook them all day on Sunday’s and then eat them for a few days during the week.  They are simple, healthy and super convenient.  We made this recipe a few weeks ago (pictured above) and it was so good we made it the following week too!  It is packed with so much protein so you don’t need to eat a lot at all!  There is quinoa, chicken, shrimp, sausage and veggies in it.  Squeeze fresh lemon on it before you eat and it is soooo good!

Snacks

I eat a ton of snacks throughout the day!  I eat every couple of hours so I’m never famished when I actually go to eat a meal. Every morning when I first get to work, I always eat yogurt with fruit.  My favorite kind of yogurt is Fage.  It is so creamy and delicious.  It took me while to love Greek yogurt because of the taste but it is so much better for you.  And I prefer to eat the full fat kind.  It is much creamier and I personally always choose full fat options over ones that have less calories.  They fill you up more and satisfy your palette.  But that’s just me!  I add blueberries and raspberries and drizzle with a little honey right before I eat!  It’s one of my favorite snacks!

Another snack that I always eat is a banana around mid morning.  If I am still feeling hungry before lunch, I keep almonds in my desk drawer that I snack on.  You just need a few and they fill you up which is why I they are a great snack option!

Usually in the afternoon I am full from lunch but I usually do still pack a snack just in case. My go to easy snacks are Kind bars.  They are packed with nuts and all taste so good!  Some of my favorite flavors are Peanut Butter Dark Chocolate, Carmel Almond and Sea Salt, and Almond & Coconut.

Eating healthy can be so daunting and overwhelming. What are some of your favorite recipes?  Cheers to healthy eating!!

xoxox Amanda

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