Paleo Update

I've been going strong so far this week, andddd I know it's only been 2 days, but I'm happy! 

I like that I haven't restricted how much I eat, just eating the right stuff. That definitely helps me transition so I don't feel deprived.

Tried another Larabar today and OMG, I'm a convert! I love that the ingredients are clean and simple. I may even get handy soon and make my own versions.

Made this amazing looking dish last night and had leftovers tonight:

Simply put beef short ribs with seasonings and beef stock in the slow cooker all day and they fell apart for short rib tacos. I obviously didn't have the taco shell part, but my dear hubby did. Sautéed up some peppers and onions to go along with homemade guacamole and pickled red onions. Seriously, I'm starting to out pickled red onions on everything! I was throwing together my salad for lunch today and look what happened to jump on:

You guessed it! Pickled red onions 😜

Well that's all for today. Tomorrow will be the real challenge as I am at a golf tournament all day long, so options are limited. Wish me luck!

Amanda

Hitting Restart

May is a new month and what better time to hit restart. I could beat myself up for slacking off so far in 2015, but I've been happy, so I won't be too hard on myself! I celebrated my bachelorette with friends, got married (!), executed an amazing event at work, traveled to Nicaragua for our honeymoon and generally lived life well with my new hubby. 

My weight has slowly been creeping back up this year and it really sunk in for me when my clothes started to tighten up. It can't be that they're all shrinking - right?! I'm lucky to have a new coworker who I just sync with and has a lot of the same health goals as I do. We take walks throughout the work day and are holding each other accountable as we clean up our eating this month. 

I am doing paleo-ish. Let me clarify. I'm going to stick to a paleo-based diet most of the time. I honestly don't think having almond milk and quinoa is my problem. So if small things like that get thrown in the mix, I'm not going to worry. But I'm going to stay away from most carbs, breads and cheese.... and all those processed snacks I have been binging on lately!

Just tried Larabars for the first time today and it wasn't bad! I think the cherry pie was a bit to tart for my taste, but I'm definitely going to give them a try.

My main goal this first week back to clean eating, is to not worry about quantities, just eating the right stuff. I can then get back on track calorie counting once I have the types of foods under control!

I'll keep you posted - wish me luck!

Amanda

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

Monday Motivation [Nov 3]

Oh, Monday, it's you again...

This Monday could be a lot worse though, so I'm choosing to stay positive today! J and I had a great weekend and it really felt like fall here in Florida, finally. We'll see if it can last.

Here's a quick recap of our weekend:

• Passed out candy to trick-or-treaters for the first time and we definitely had fun with it. You know you're old when seeing small children dressed up as princesses and ninja turtles is an exciting evening, but it's reality. The kids in our neighborhood all looked adorable and were all well-behaved, which was a bonus. Our dog, Cooper, even got in the spirit with some orange and black bandannas and greeted the kiddos.
• Our neighbors came over and passed out candy with us, because it's more fun to turn trick-or-treating into an excuse for adult fall-themed refreshments. I made SkinnyTaste's Hot & Spicy Buffalo Shrimp Dip and made crescent rolls filled with a pumpkin and cream cheese mixture. I probably should have added more sugar and chocolate to make them sweeter, but I was attempting to be a little bit healthy with my snacking.
• Saturday we watched the Florida/Georgia game and unfortunately the bulldogs lost... 
• We warmed up the leftover shrimp dip and picked up some winter beer to enjoy while we watched The Neighbors, which was actually a lot funnier than we both expected! 
• Sunday we were pretty boring with cleaning, grocery shopping, cooking, giving the dog a bath... you get the picture. BUT I am excited that the 21 Day Fix starts today and I got all prepared for it yesterday!

Here's a little motivation to start the week off right:

Yes! When I look back at pictures and even current pictures, this motivates me to not want to stay the same.

Seriously, I have looked at other blogs where they post their fitness warm up and it just makes me want to cry, THAT is my workout right now!

Such a good reminder. A lot of the 21 Day Fix is focusing on eating whole foods and no processed crap! I had some fast food last week and I felt so sick the next morning - this is your body's way of telling you that it's bad for you!

What did you do this weekend? Hope you have a great week!