Whether you are trying the new “it” diet, counting macros on your own or with someone (with me), seek the help of an online nutritional coach (like WAG or RP Strength), give The Paleo Diet, Keto, or Whole 30 a try, you have to be committed. Before you can blame any of those diet regimens or people for not helping you reach a realistic goal, you have to give it 100% of your effort. I don’t mean do your best for 5 out of the 7 days of the week for a month or two, but E V E R Y . S I N G L E . D A Y . for at least a month.
Why waste your time if you aren’t going to do it? What’s the point in that? You waste a lot of time, energy, and money learning about this new life style, but never give it 100%. You will never truly know if that diet works for you, if you don’t do it as it is designed. A lot of people will test the water on a new diet, but rarely do they dive in head first and do it as prescribed…then said person will still blame the diet for not losing the weight they had hoped to. When in reality, their lack of discipline/consistency with the diet they picked was the cause of their failure or they picked an unrealistic goal.
I always told myself when I was in the dating world or giving advice to friends, if you (me) are a priority, he will make time for you. Thankful I don’t have to give that advice anymore. The same principle can be applied to anything in life. If it is important to you, you will make time for it. If losing weight or putting on muscle is important to you, you will make time for that. Making time for something extra requires effort and sacrifice. If you choose a very restrictive diet then parties, take-out, date nights, etc. all become a bit more complicated. Not impossible, just complicated.
A lifestyle change is going to take time to adjust to and require a level of planning. We are all creatures of habit. Everyone has certain things they are particular about and food is no exception. Diets really seem to be one of the main things that people have such a hard time making changes to. For many, food is comforting and they like to have the same types of food they grew-up eating.
We can control the food that we buy and put into our mouths, but for some reason people let food control them. Food can not control you, you make the choice to buy the junk food and eat it. You are no longer an adolescent that has to eat whatever mom buys at the grocery store. You can make those choices. Make a choice that you can stick with, one that is realistic, and doesn’t scare the mess out of you. A choice that you can be consistent with.
I choose to count macros, because I do not like restrictions being placed on what I can and can’t eat by someone else or a specific diet. Personally, my body runs well on a high carbohydrate or a high fat diet. I am not an elite athlete, so I am not as concerned with my diet being completely perfect and getting ALL of my calories from quality sources. Dark chocolate, Pino Nior, and Halo Top are a few of my love languages. If you ask my students, they can all tell you that I like dark chocolate. I get dark chocolate from my students on holidays/special occasions and there is just no way I can make myself throw it away. There is always a bottle in the wine rack, dark chocolate hidden somewhere, and at least 2 flavors of Halo Top in the freezer. I count my macros, but I also treat myself when the extra calories are there to do so.
Pick a “diet” that you can mentally stick to. Changing the way you eat is hard. If someone says it is easy, they haven’t made big changes. If you can’t dive-in head first and make the changes necessary, take baby steps and make small changes until you have worked your way up to the diet you have chosen. Don’t just quit on the diet, that you have not given your full attention to. Once you have truly put in 100% of your effort into this new lifestyle change and it still is not working or doesn’t make you happy, make adjustments.
Don’t be afraid to be committed to a diet. In the grand scheme of things, if the diet doesn’t work for you, it was just a few months of your life, not forever. If you want to see changes that will last, you have to be consistent.
We start soccer practice Monday afternoon. I can’t believe we are starting our first “sport”! I know that 5:30 doesn’t sound late to most people, but for me, who is used to having the afternoons open and an almost toddler that gets very hangry if she isn’t fed by 6:00, 5:30 is late. Meal prepping is going to be more important than ever right now & I have made it my mission to pick some very easy meals to cook this week.
Also, say a prayer and send all the positive vibes, because Anderson is under the impression that everyone is just going to sit and watch him play. Lord help me.
MENU
Barbecue Sandwich
Grilled Chicken Blueberry Feta Salad
Hamburgers + Beet Salad
Pork Tacos
Lemon Thyme Grilled Salmon Cauliflower Rice
Barbecue Sandwich
I love barbecue. I would argue that it is my favorite “southern” dish. I don’t care for the hash and rice, just give me lots of meat and a good sauce.
I like to cook our pork butts in the crockpot. It is super simple and makes the juiciest pulled pork you’ve ever had. I rub the meat down with yellow mustard, season generously with salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and paprika. Put the butt fat side up in the crockpot. Fill the crockpot about 1/2 to 1 inch deep with a vinegar based barbecue sauce or a combination of apple cider vinegar/white vinegar and Worcestershire. Cook on low for 6-8 hours or until the meat is thoroughly cooked and the bone pulls out easily.
I don’t make any sides to go with my BBQ sandwich, because like I said my favorite is just the meat. If you want and you don’t care about macros, make yourself some potato salad or coleslaw. When I eat my sandwich I will typically eat around half a pound of meat. Whatever does not fit on the bun, I will eat alone. I don’t make a fancy slaw to go on the sandwich, just some pickles and a good sauce is all I need. I feel like my BBQ sandwich night, might equate to someone else’s Manwich night, just healthier and much tastier.
Ingredients:
Pork Butt
Seasoning on pork:
Yellow Mustard
Garlic Powder
Onion Powder
Salt
Pepper
Paprika
Worcestershire
Apple Cider Vinegar or White Distilled Vinegar
Sandwich:
Fresh bakery buns (Brioche Bun: 164 calories, 5g protein, 27g carbs, 4g fat)
Pickles
Grilled Chicken Blueberry Feta Salad
In hopes of balancing out the carbs from the bun on the BBQ sandwich and the bun for the hamburgers, I need a light meal to pair with it.
This salad has minimal ingredients and will really surprise you on the flavor. It has the basic honey, lemon, mustard dressing, but like always I omit the oil in the dressing. You can grill the chicken if you have time or cook it in the oven. I opt for the oven so I’m not running back and forth from outside to inside the house while I meal prep. It is tricky enough cooking with two small babies, that love their mama’s hip.
*-changes I make to meet my macros
Ingredients:
FOR THE LEMON POPPY SEED DRESSING:
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
* omit oil
1/3 cup lemon juice
* 2 Lemons
2 tablespoons honey
* 1 tablespoon honey or 0.25 ounce per serving
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
*1-2 Tablespoons, adjust to taste
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon poppy seeds
1/4 teaspoon Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
FOR THE SALAD:
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1 pound)
8 cups mixed salad greens
1 cup blueberries
* 1 cup blueberries per salad
1 large avocado, sliced
* omit avocado or almonds, don't have both
1 cup almonds
* omit almonds or avocado, don't have both
3/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
* non-fat feta
1/2 large red onion, thinly sliced
Hamburgers + Beet Salad
It doesn’t get much more simple and ‘All-American’ than a good hamburger. Hamburgers are usually though of as unhealthy, because of the carbohydrate loaded bun, mayonnaise loving people, and all the extras like bacon and cheese. Skip all the unnecessary items (not the bun, unless you are on a low/no carb diet) like mayonnaise, cheese, and bacon and the hamburger really isn’t bad for you!
I always eat two patties, but only have one in the bun. The second patty I will eat alone or wrap in lettuce if there is any extra. We don’t meal prep these, especially if it is nice weather because the kids love being outside and it’s nice to sit around and relax while the husband does the grilling. If you need to meal prep these you can grill them ahead of time or patty out the meat before you plan to cook them, to save yourself some time.
I know a beet salad is not your typical side dish for hamburgers, but beets are good for you and I want something a little extra with all the basic sandwich type meals I have planned. I feel like I need a vegetable to balance it out. This beet salad is super basic. I just leave out the scallops & eat it as is.
Hamburger Ingredients:
Fresh bakery buns (Brioche Bun: 164 calories, 5g protein, 27g carbs, 4g fat)
Lettuce
Tomato
Onion
Ketchup
Yellow Mustard
80/20 ground beef or venison (cooked and drained per pound 42 calories, 5g protein, 0 carbs, 2.5g fat)
Seasoning:
Fennel Seeds
Salt
Pepper
Chili Powder
Garlic Powder
Onion Powder
Beet Salad Ingredients:
FOR THE DRESSING:
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tbsp cider vinegar
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp minced shallots
1 1/2 tbsp raw honey
* 0.25 ounce per salad
FOR THE SALAD:
2 cups diced cooked and peeled yellow beets
* boil the beets
1/4 cup crumbled goat cheese
* 12 grams per salad
12 large sea scallops (18 oz)
* Omit scallops
olive oil cooking spray
* Omit oil
kosher salt and pepper to taste
5 oz baby arugula
8 grape tomatoes, halved
Pork Tacos
To continue making my week easier, I’m going to use the remaining pork butt to make tacos. I don’t need two different pork butts, since the seasoning is basic. I can just use the remaining pork and heat it up in a skillet, with a jar of Mexican Green sauce or salsa verde. The green sauce that we have been getting doesn’t have much of a kick to it anymore, so make sure you grab your favorite hot sauce too.
This meal is so great, because it’s leftovers made into something totally different and delicious. The green sauce has little to no calories, the wrap is low carb, the vegetables are low carb, and you can pile on as much protein as you can fit in the tortilla! Perfection.
You can sauté the peppers and onion ahead of time and reheat the night you plan to eat the tacos. After you eat the meat for the BBQ sandwiches, you can mix the green sauce in with the remaining meat and heat it up in a skillet. I like to weigh out each portion of meat before mixing in the sauce, so I have an accurate count for the macros. Top off with your favorite hot sauce and enjoy!
Ingredients:
Pork Butt
Seasoning on pork:
Yellow Mustard
Garlic Powder
Onion Powder
Salt
Pepper
Paprika
Taco:
Low Carb/High Fiber Tortilla
2 green bell peppers
2 red bell peppers
1 onion
Spray pan with olive oil
1 jar salsa verde/Mexican green sauce
Lemon Thyme Grilled Salmon Cauliflower Rice
I was trying like crazy to get a pasta dish that Josh wanted, to fit in our macros this week, but I came to the sad realization that it is meant for when we aren’t being strict on macros. Maybe a bulking cycle, not a cut cycle.
Alas, I found this recipe. I like to try at least one new recipe a week. Sometimes I over do it and have two or three new recipes. That makes meal prepping really difficult, when you aren’t sure of the next step and have to keep re-reading the recipe. This new recipe is very simple though, but I will be making a few adjustments, per usual.
Instead of salmon, I am going to use pork chops, I am changing out the cauliflower rice for jasmine rice, and I will omit the avocado in the salsa. I’m sure this meal is delicious as it is written, but everyone should customize recipes to fit their tastes and needs.
Ingredients:
Salmon & Squash
2-4 salmon fillets more or less, depending on size
* Pork loin chops
1 large lemon juice and zest
1 tablespoon fresh thyme
1/2 teaspoon sea salt to taste
2 large garlic cloves minced
olive oil for cooking
* Spray pan with olive oil
2 small zucchini squash cut lengthwise
* 4 large zucchini
Cauliflower Rice
* Omit cauliflower rice and use jasmine rice
16 oz cauliflower rice fresh or frozen
* Omit
1/2 cup chicken stock
* Omit
1 large lemon juice and zest
sea salt to taste
1 tablespoon fresh thyme or oregano
Salsa
8 oz baby heirloom tomatoes sliced in half
1 avocado sliced into small chunks
* Omit avocado
1 tablespoon fresh thyme minced
1-2 tablespoons olive oil
* Omit oil
lemon juice from 1 lemon
sea salt flakes to taste
red chili pepper flakes to taste
E N J O Y !
