The most important thing is to have the right mind set.  I stay focused on my goals and the end result.  Dieting is never fun, but seeing the results is a lot of fun!  When I want to eat something not included in my diet, I shift my thinking on why I’m making certain food choices and the results I want to see.

I believe in living a healthy lifestyle and eating healthy the majority of the time, with the occasional splurge. Everything in moderation. I could never give up pizza or chocolate forever. Living a healthy lifestyle I maintain my weight. But if I want to lose weight I have to go into diet mode. What I’m sharing today is specifically on what I do to lose weight.

Dieting to lose weight is very different than maintenance mode.  I like to focus on weight lose for 6-8 weeks then switch over to maintenance mode for a few weeks.  I go back and forth until I have reached my goal weight.  Taking the break from dieting and switching to maintenance mode helps me to stay on track and not feel too overwhelmed when I’m dieting.  I do think it’s important to stay focused and not cheat for a minimum of 6 weeks.  It takes my body 3-4 weeks to get into fat burning mode and about 6 weeks before I see any results that are noticeable. If I am able to continue with a diet and not switch over to maintenance I keep the momentum going!  I will reach your goals faster.

I focus on the foods I get to eat rather than the foods I’m not allowing myself to eat.  “I get to eat this delicious salad” rather than “I don’t get to eat pizza”.  I have found healthy snacks that fit into my diet and have them always available.  I love eating chips, so instead I found freeze dried okra.  It gives me that similar crunch while being healthy.  I often explored my grocery store for new foods and healthy options.

I have lost 20-30 pounds several times in my life (why I keep gaining it back is a whole other story!) and this is the only plan that works for me:

• I set myself up for success! I look at my calendar and pick a day to start.  Giving myself enough time to put a plan together and mentally prepare.
• Focus on eating protein with veggies and some fruit (I’m not much of a fruit person so I rarely eat it).  I eat a small amount of carbs (3-4 times a week), consisting of sweet potatoes or quinoa.
• I cook all my own food.  I was ordering healthy take out and still not losing weight.  Once I started cooking everything from scratch I started to lose weight.
• I try to do intermittent fasting on as many days of the week that I can.  But if I’m hungry early I do eat.  I don’t starve myself.  Drinking black coffee or a sparkling water can help to curb my appetite to push back eating an hour or 2.
• I love to eat things like tacos, sandwiches, burgers, wraps, etc.  I substitute the bread for a lettuce wrap.  Small changes like this make a big difference. I was actually surprised that most of the time I prefer a lettuce wrap. I taste more of the food I’m eating rather than just bread.
• Don’t eat after dinner
• Eliminate sugar and dairy. There are so many great options to substitute dairy products. I like almond milk or oat milk.
• I get 1 cheat meal per week.  I eat whatever I want and as much of it as I want. I typically have my cheat meal on Saturday for dinner. Some weeks I plan it out based on what I’m craving. This also gives me an opportunity to go out to eat and order whatever I want with zero guilt!
• Drink tons of water (I drink a gallon a day) and limit alcohol. I don’t drink soda or any drinks that have calories or sugar. If I do drink alcohol it is a basic vodka, soda with fresh lemon.
• Be active at least 3 times a week, the more the better.  I mix it up with gym, running, biking, rollerblading so I don’t get bored.

A typical day of meals:

Breakfast

-eggs with avocado, I’ll make turkey bacon if I have time

-smoked salmon with avocado

Lunch

(it’s usually leftovers from dinner or meal prep)

-salad with chicken, add any healthy toppings to mix up the flavor

-taco bowl with lettuce as the base

Snack

-protein shake, I make mine with frozen fruit, water and protein powder.  I also buy plant based protein drinks for something quick and it can travel.

-veggies with hummus

-nuts, trail mix, hard boiled egg, protein stick

Dinner

(I started cooking every night and not doing take out, this made a huge difference!) depending on how much time I have determines what I will cook.

-fish or chicken and veggies, add sweet potatoes or quoina to make it more filling

-I’ve been making a lot of bowls with lettuce or quinoa and/or sweet potatoes as the base.  I add anything I want: chicken, steak, peppers, broccoli, green beans, roasted kale, avocado, corn, beans, etc. I’ve been playing around and having fun with different flavors. If it’s healthy I’ll throw it all in a bowl and see how I like it. So far I haven’t had a bowl I don’t liked.

-grilled chicken with roasted sweet potatoes and veggies

-tacos, I make shredded chicken or ground turkey. I either do a lettuce wrap or a taco bowl with lettuce as the base. I add salsa, hot sauce, avocado, peppers, jalapeños, cilantro.

In years past I would eat the same thing every day and it was very boring. This year I have explored more food options and flavors. I like to mix it up and keep my meals interesting while still being healthy. I have researched recipes online, walked around my grocery store exploring healthy foods I have never tried. The more fun I can make it the better chance I have to stick to it!

OUTFIT DETAILS

Jacket: Adidas | Top: Zella | Leggings: Adidas | Shoes: Nike

TACO RECIPE

What makes the chicken so delicious is I cook it all day in my crockpot. It’s slow cooked so the chicken is tender and amazing with tons of flavor. It’s incredible!! I use this crockpot. This makes my life so easy with the kids busy schedule with sports and after school activities to have dinner ready. And I love knowing it’s healthy for all of us. I choose a lettuce wrap with healthy topping. My kids will do a tortilla with other toppings ;)

• Chicken crockpot ingredients:
• 1 jar of salsa, I choose mild so it’s not too spicy for my kids. I add hot sauce to my taco (I like spicy)
• 2-3 pounds of chicken
• Packet of taco seasoning
• Diced red onion (I chop it up the night before and keep in my fridge for an easier and quicker morning)
• One hour before the chicken is ready, take it out and shred it. Then put it back in the crockpot for the final hour. Use this shredding tool to make your life easier.

I showed my chicken crockpot recipe on my IG stories and saved it to my highlights. If you are a video person you can watch on my IG story highlights.

Add all the topping you want. I like salsa, hot sauce, avocado, peppers, jalapeños, cilantro. When I’m in maintenance mode and not in diet mode I will also add cheese, sour cream and crushed nacho cheese Doritos.

At the beginning of the year I decided I wanted to start cooking more. I’ve never really been much of a cook. And when I do cook it’s so basic and boring I don’t enjoy it. In 2020 I got into a bad habit of ordering take-out for dinner almost every night. Although I was ordering “healthy” most nights, how healthy is it really? That’s the question I asked myself when I was killing it in the gym and still couldn’t loose weight.

I wanted to take control over all the food I’m eating, be more healthy and loose weight. In the last year and a half I’ve gained about 25 pounds. I can’t stand gaining weight and looking in the mirror and feeling like my body isn’t mine. I didn’t want to do some crazy crash diet. I want to create a healthy lifestyle that is sustainable.

For the last 7 weeks I have cooked healthy and delicious meals. Dinners that are full of flavor that I enjoy eating and look forward to! With the change in cooking my own healthy meals and working out, I have lost 8 pounds. More important than that, I feel so much healthier and stronger!

I want to share a couple of my favorite recipes that I have made. These are recipes that I have sent to my friends and have made multiple times because they are that good! They have tons of flavor, are not boring, and are great left over the next day. I will also share my tweaks and tips that I find helpful for each recipe. If I can make these meals, you can too!

Roasted Broccoli Quinoa Salad

I got this recipe off Eating Bird Food, you can see the entire recipe here. This recipe was a huge surprise to me how amazing it is! When I read the recipe nothing about it seemed like it was be so delicious. But the flavors are all so incredible I enjoy every bite and want to keep eating.

My changes: I always need a protein with every meal. The first time I made this bowl I added steak. The second time I made it I added chicken. Both are equally as delicious. The rest of the recipe I made as is. This recipe is what got me obsessed with roasting my vegetables, especially kale. I now roast kale almost every day and put it with everything. It’s great in a salad to add a crunch.

Avocado Shrimp Quinoa Bowl

This recipe comes from What’s Gaby Cooking. I have been following her on Instagram for years and have baked many of her yummy desserts and they are always so delicious!! (check out her chocolate chip banana bread and snickerdoodle cookies!) This is the first dinner recipe of hers that I have tried and it did not fail me. You can find the recipe here.

My changes: This is the first time I have made shrimp. All I can say is do not be intimidated. It was so simple! The same as grilling chicken. The recipe calls for 1/2 pound of shrimp. I made a whole pound and I was glad I did. The flavor on the shrimp is delicious, but everyone who ate it (except me) said it was a little too spicy. Unless you like very spicy food, I would cut back on the cayenne and chipotle pepper.

The homemade Pico de Gallo is very delicious, but also time consuming. If you are able to make it the day before or earlier in the day it will save a ton of time when cooking dinner. Or if you don’t want to do all that chopping and dicing you can buy one already made at the grocery store.

This dish is incredible left over. I stored all the ingredients separate from each other to keep them fresh. The bowl tasted the same the next day.

Lemon Herb Salmon

I got this recipe from YouTube channel More Seasoning. You can find the recipe here. He shows 3 different versions of how to make salmon, they all look amazing. I have only made the lemon herb salmon and it is delicious!

My changes: I made the salmon just like the recipe and I would not change anything about it. It was so delicious! I absolutely love the tip on how to wrap up each salmon filet individually in foil. It keeps the salmon so tender and there is no mess to clean up.

I made roasted green beans and kale to go with me. As my friend and I ate the salmon and veggies we couldn’t get over the flavor and how good it is! We kept saying it tastes way too good to be completely healthy. And, I made an extra salmon filet and ate it for lunch the next day. So happy I did!

Extra Cooking Tips that Have Helped Me

Make extra of every dinner. My days are very busy and I never want to spend time making lunch. Having healthy leftovers I can grab quickly keeps me on track to being healthy.

Always have cooked chicken in the fridge. I cook chicken 2-3 times a week for dinner. I lightly season it and cook about a pound extra. I cut it up the extra and keep it in my fridge. Chicken is so diverse, I can throw together a salad, mix it with salsa for tacos, etc.

Get a George Forman grill. I purchased one the beginning of January and I use it almost every night!! I purchased this one. It makes grilling soooo quick and easy! Then the grill plates remove and I put them in my dishwasher. I don’t know how I’ve lived without one.

Try new foods, new recipes, don’t be intimidated and have fun! I have began to enjoy cooking and I now look forward to it! I turn on music or my favorite tv show and zone out. It’s also a great time for my kids to come talk to me about their day. And there is great satisfaction in serving my family eating a delicious meal that I cooked!