What I Eat

I've had a lot of people tell me they'd like to lose weight but don't know where to start or what to eat.  I think the nutrition part of a healthy lifestyle can be tricky and is often why people fail (well, that and lack of exercise ;)).  So today I'm going to give you a breakdown of what I eat everyday.

I basically eat the same thing everyday.  People have asked if I get tired of it.  Nope, I don't.  Because I get to swap out some things.  Carbs for carbs (i.e. brown rice for quinoa), protein for protein (eggs for chicken), and fat for fat (avocado for Smart Balance butter).

Currently (and this changes as my muscle mass increases) I have a total of 1950 calories per day (probably more because I can eat as many veggies as I want, and I do).

Meal 1:
7 egg whites
1 cup oats

What can you do with that?  Well, some days I have scrambled egg whites and mix cinnamon and Splenda with the oats for oatmeal (just add water -- and I don't always cook it).  Some days I put it in a blender with cocoa and coconut extract and make chocolate coconut "pancakes."  They're more dense than real pancakes but it's a change from scrambled egg whites and oatmeal.

Sometimes I swap the oats with cream of wheat or Ezekiel bread.  If I'm really in a hurry I swap the eggs with protein powder.

Meal 2:
5 oz cottage cheese
1 c fruit

I'm not great at measuring the fruit.  So I probably have a little more than a cup but I get hungry before and after this meal.  Sometimes I blend the fruit with spinach, ice, and water for a smoothie.

Meal 3:
1/2 c brown rice
4 oz chicken
veggies
1 tbsp Smart Balance butter

I love this mixed or separate.  I love it microwaved, sautéed, or in the oven.  I swap the rice with red potatoes, sweet potatoes, quinoa, Ezekiel bread (if I'm in a hurry).  I swap the chicken for egg whites when I haven't prepared chicken.

When I prepare chicken I try to do a whole bag at a time.  That usually lasts about 4 days.  Sometimes I cook it in the oven, sometimes I put it in the food processor to make ground chicken (and cook it like ground beef).  I add seasoning like ranch powder, taco seasonings, or Mrs. Dash.

Meal 4:
1 large apple (or 2 small)
3 tbsp almond butter or peanut butter (natural -- purchased in the bulk section of Winco)

Meal 5:
Same as meal 3 but 1/2 tbsp Smart Balance butter instead of 1 tbsp.

Meal 6:
1 c avocado
4 egg whites
1 1/2 c berries

Sometimes I have almonds, almond butter or olives instead of avocado.  Sometimes I cook the egg white in Smart Balance butter instead of having an avocado.  And sometimes I have peaches or apple instead of berries.

By the way, I eat meal 6 around 9 or 10 PM.  So you don't have to stop eating after 6 like you've heard so much.  I hate going to bed hungry and I never do.  But it is all about what you eat.  Everything I have is natural and unprocessed (unless you count the Splenda).

This food scale is my best friend.  It's Eat Smart brand and I got it on Amazon for around $30.

I really hope this helps those of you who have food questions.  If you have other questions or would like me to expound, feel free to ask!

Catching Up

Wow.  It has been a roller coaster 2 weeks.

First, my hair.  I promised an "after" pic.  I had a little photo shoot with Debra Macfarlane Photography.

Now that my hair is darker I feel okay about getting a spray tan and fake eyelashes for the competition.

Next, we went to the lake for a weekend.  It was a blast but there was no internet.  Not even 4G.  It was like going dark from the world.  And that's not a bad thing but definitely different.

I ate and exercised almost according to plan while at the lake.  There wasn't any exercise equipment so I just ran, which my trainer doesn't love because it is a killer on the joints.  I like to run though.

The next few days was the hard part with exercise and nutrition.  I took my girls and my mom to Boise and got all off schedule.

Three days of being off schedule was hard.  I didn't eat enough and I didn't exercise enough.  Eating treats wasn't the issue.  It was really just sticking with the schedule.  I didn't.

I met with my trainer, Jerry, and did a body analysis.  I was stoked that I didn't lose any muscle during my crazy week.  I lost a couple of pounds of fat though.  Yay!  The pic below is him.  But in real life he's super nice and not so intimidating.  He competes (I guess that's probably obvious).  He also does online training so if you're looking for a trainer, contact him.  He knows his stuff!  From now on I will talk about Jerry and refer to him as "Jerry" and not "my trainer."

follow Jerry @jerryshannon on Instagram

I'm now:
134 lb
13.9% body fat

One goal that I reached last week was fitting comfortably into my "goal jeans."  They are the smallest jeans I own and I don't have a muffin-top in them!  Talk about a good feeling!  This is all worth it.

Beginning of December/End of July

Sophie will be 9 months on Friday.  That is also the day that we will be done nursing.  She has 2 teeth and sometimes that's not a lot of fun.  I've been just feeding her at night and in the morning to prepare us for the change.  I feel a little guilty because I nursed Morgan for 11 months.  I'm sure she won't feel ripped-off or like I love her less but I can't stop all of the mommy guilt.