21 Day Fix [day 1]

I'm beginning the 21 Day Fix fresh this week, as we leave for our honeymoon in Nicaragua in 3 weeks! I haven't gained much weight, if any, over the past few months, but I know I could certainly feel better in a bikini.

Just a quick update on my overall progress towards my goals. My goal when I started last year was to lose 35 pounds and that is still true. I feel that it will be a healthy weight for me and my body type, and I won't be pushing myself to the extreme. I would love to set new goals when I hit that weight goal, that will probably be more specific to fitness and muscle mass. But for now, I have lost just under 20 of the 35 pounds. And I have officially set a target date - my 29th birthday at the end of June. That's just about 4 months and I can aim to lose about 5 pounds per month. That's a bit ambitious, but I honestly need something to challenge me!

So that's where the 21 Day Fix comes in. I have done it off and on and never completed the full 21 days. I will be on a work trip for 6 days of those 21, which may be difficult, but I'm going for it! Really, the 21 Day Fix focuses on clean eating and moving everyday. Here's a quick overview of the eating plan. It also gives you a DVD with a different 30 minute work out each day.

I will check in later this week and share some measurements, weight and before photos.

My meal plan for today looks something like this:
- Breakfast: Chocolate Shakeology made with half coffee, half water, banana and hazelnut butter.
- AM Snack: Baby carrots
- Lunch: Mixed greens salad with grape tomatoes, red onion, roasted sweet potato, baked chicken and tahini lemon dressing.
- PM Snack: 2 hard boiled eggs
- Dinner: Brown rice topped with ground turkey, sautéed onions and peppers, avocado and salsa. My version of a burrito bowl!

I also meal prepped like a champ last night. This makes the most difference for me when trying to stay on track. Here's what I accomplished in less than an hour:
- Boiled eggs for week
- Peeled, diced and roasted sweet potatoes with coconut oil and seasoning
- Sautéed chicken tenders for my salads this week
- Made lemon tahini vinaigrette
- Made crockpot apple butter. I plan to use this in oatmeal this week and possibly even with pork chops.

This is seriously one of my favorite salad dressings and can't be easier to make. I use my ninja blender, as I feel it emulsifies the oil and other ingredients better. I have put all the ingredients in the dressing bottle before and just shook it, but it's never the same! I also typically make this with dijon mustard instead of tahini, but didn't have any on hand. I figured it would taste a little like hummus - so that works for me!

Lemon Tahini Vinaigrette:

• 1/2 cup water
• juice and zest of 1 lemon
• tbsp white wine vinegar
• tbsp tahini paste
• 2 tsp honey
• tsp sea salt
• 1/2 tsp fresh ground pepper
• 1/2 cup olive oil

This is adapted from a weight watchers recipe I found years ago. I love how it substitutes water for some of the oil, which really lightens it up. If you use the blender and really emulsify the dressing, you can't even tell it's not all oil based.

Well that's all for today, I'll check in with you later this week!
- Amanda