Keeping Healthy "On-The-Go"

It's been 31 days since my first official weigh-in on My Fitness Pal which I had started using in conjunction with joining the "Slim by the Summer" group. In 31 days, I am proud to share that I have lost exactly 6 pounds. Not too bad in four and a half weeks. I actively started working out (almost) daily just 2 weeks ago and I am definitely seeing results. I have been fighting with my "fat jeans" for several days now. They seem to want to fall down, but my jeans for when I'm "skinnier" are too snug still, so I'm rocking my favorite belt right now to keep my jeans from falling down.

I tried on my "goal dress" this morning after my weigh in... it zips almost halfway, but is still quite snug... 75 days to fit back into this dress... I would LOVE if my hair would grow back to this length and my body would magically be this tan in the same amount of time too.  I look at this picture from my honeymoon daily to remind me of my goal... MOTIVATION!!!

I started my third week of the Bikini Body Mommy 90 Day Challenge today. 20 minutes of circuit training. I felt the burn, that's for sure, and it felt great! Tomorrow is at least 45 minutes of cardio so I think I'm going to break into my new Zumba Core for Wii tomorrow and see how that goes. Dancing is fun so I'm excited for a new, challenging workout. I've been rotating between my Jillian Michaels and Jazzercise DVDs for cardio so I want to keep mixing it up each week so my body doesn't get too use to the same routine.

I've become even more Pinterest-crazed than I was a few weeks ago. I've been pinning a lot of fitness suggestions for workouts (particularly for abs), and healthy recipes. Through my pinning madness, I came across recipes that led me to Skinnytaste. I must give Gina some serious kudos --- she has hundreds of recipes on her website that are healthy, family-friendly recipes. Each has the key nutritional values as well as the Weight Watchers points for those following WW (both the original points system and the PointsPlus system). 

I tried my first recipe from Skinnytaste on Valentine's Day... Chicken Rollatini with Spinach alla Parmigiana. Basically, it's chicken parm rolled up and stuffed with spinach and cheese. Can you say YUM?! It was delicious!! I am always skeptical when I try new healthy recipes because you expect less calories to mean less flavor, but this quickly became one of my dinner favorites. Last night, we had Pork Chops with Applesauce --- also yummy (not as good as the chicken --- but I'm also not as big a fan of pork, though my husband loves pork and enjoyed it). Tonight, we're having the Chicken Picatta, and tomorrow, Skinny Chicken Enchiladas... so excited about these dishes!! I'll let you know how they turn out!

This week's topic for our Slim by the Summer group is to share how we maintain healthy eating habits away from home. I'll be honest, I'm not on the go nearly as much as I use to be since I'm a stay at home mom. Ellie and I do literally stay home a couple days a week, but I try to get out a few times, even if it's just to go walk around the mall. Keep the cabin fever away. But when I know I'm going to be going somewhere, I try to plan accordingly. I use the My Fitness Pal app as a resource when looking up the nutritional value of dishes when they do not list it on the restaurant websites. And I try to plan my meals at the beginning of the day if I know what I'll be eating.

For example, I know on Saturday night, my husband and I just about always go out for dinner. There's a local restaurant we love, and we tend to mix that up with Outback Steakhouse, Texas Roadhouse, Olive Garden... the big chains. I knew Olive Garden was going to be a struggle, so I went on their website to find their healthiest meals and planned my day around dinner, plus worked out a little more. 

I realize this isn't always possible. That's when I try to steer clear of anything that might be too tempting for me. Which would be just about anywhere with french fries or pizza. Difficult at the mall or a rest stop on the highway, right? I look for the healthiest options. Salads with grilled chicken (not fried/crispy). Light salad dressings (unless there's an option of oil and vinegar). If there are sandwiches, I try to go for a wrap over bread, no mayo (which I don't like anyway). I always drink water or the occasional diet soda. 

I recently signed up for emails from Women's Health Magazine. They send workout tips, recipes, and emails that actually come through Men's Health Magazine from "Eat This, Not That". These emails are actually very helpful as some of the most recent emails received include the most and least healthy restaurants to dine at, which restaurants are healthiest for which meals, etc. I was surprised to see some restaurants on these lists... Chik-fil-a is one of the healthiest restaurants... and Baja Fresh is one of the least healthiest!! I would most definitely suggest that you check out the "Eat This, Not That" website and sign up for the emails --- I keep all of this in the back of my head while I'm out and about. 

Side note: The Slim by the Summer "DietBet" starts this week! I weighed in this morning. You can visit the website or add the app to your mobile device. You literally start your own diet bet with your friends (or join the existing bets if you'd like). It's 28 days long, everyone puts the amount of your choice (can be $5, I've seen them as high as $50) in the virtual pot and whoever loses 4% of their body weight gets to split the money. That's 1% weight loss a week. It may be a stretch but I'm going to push!!

I hope you have an inspiring week!!