Clean Eating - Day 9

Welcome back!

Today I want to talk about BALANCE! This is a VERY important feature in this kind of diet. Ryan and I have a made it point to bring variety to our recipes. We have chicken, fish, pork and red meat on the agenda. Obviously you don't want to get bored with what you're eating. But, it's ALSO important to make sure you're balancing your day. For example, we try not to have 2 meals of red meat in one day. You'll notice today we balanced red meat at lunch with fish for dinner. Yesterday we did the same with shrimp for lunch and red meat for dinner. The main reason is this - the more heavy meals you eat, the less likely you are to lose weight. Red meat is totally fine on this diet, but it's not something you should be eating every day for all meals. There are healthier, leaner meats that can make you feel just as full. And they will help you more on your weight loss journey. So basically the key is - variety & balance!

6:25am - wake-up

6:45am - Chocolate Mint Shake (see below for recipe)

7:15-7:45 - Workout (see below for details)

8:30am - Cashew Cookie Larabar. Water.

12:00pm - Leftover homemade chili (see day 8 for recipe) and cucumber salad (see below for recipe). Iced tea sweetened with stevia.

6:30pm - Grilled Salmon Fillets seasoned to your liking. Corn and peach salsa (see below for recipe). Grilled spinach. Water.

11:00pm - 2 gluten-free corn tortillas, fresh made salsa from HEB, 1 sliced avocado. Water.

1:00am - Bedtime

Chocolate Mint Shake- 1 serving of protein powder, 1 scoop of cocoa powder, 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk, 1/2 cup coconut milk, chopped mint, cacao nibs (optional). We did not care for this shake. We kept adding stuff to try to make it better . . . but not to a lot of luck.

Workout - I had limited time in the gym so I made sure my heart rate was up the WHOLE TIME and I got some weight training in. I used the following workout model: 10 minutes on elliptical machine set on "interval" with resistance changing every 2 minutes to get heart rate up. 10 minutes of weights, 12-15 reps of each exercise, with little to no rest between: bicep curl, tricep pull down, lat pulldown, chest press, shoulder press with step-ups (step up on block/step/bench, then press weight above head with one arm. 12 reps, then switch leg & arm), row, chest fly, and 30 crunches on a stability ball. 10 minutes on stair master with the following pattern: 1 minute slow climb, 1 minute slow climb with glute kick backs (kick your leg straight back and squeeze your butt before stepping up), 1 minute slow climb, 1 minute high knees (raise knees up towards chest before stepping up), 1 minute slow climb, 1 minute sideways climb with left side forward (just what it sounds like - climb the stairs sideways. You should feel it in your hips & inner thighs), 1 minute slow climb, 1 minute sideways climb with right side forward. 5 minute cool down. Stretch. Burned about 400 calories in 30 minutes. Protip - By putting a little cardio before your weights, you ensure your heart rate will stay up so you're building muscle AND burning fat. Great for those with a time crunch!

Cucumber Salad -  1 cucumber, 1/4 onion, 2 tsp. white vinegar, 1 tsp. water, black pepper & salt to taste. Toss veggies in dressing and enjoy! I made mine the night before and it tasted great! I found this recipe online but it makes quite a few servings. I cut it down and modified it a little to make just one serving for me.  http://www.yummly.com/recipe/Cucumber-Salad-MyRecipes-244508?columns=4&position=9%2F45

Corn and Peach Salsa - Pre-made pico de gallo (or you can make your own, it just takes longer), sliced peaches, sliced corn, lime juice. Mix. Serve cold.

So a few things to address before I sign off for the day. 1 - You'll notice I didn't snack between lunch and dinner. I just wasn't that hungry! Granted, I had a very filling lunch. But I also made sure to snack after my workout so I wasn't ravenously hungry when lunch came around. (I'll talk more about the importance of post-workout snacks another day.)

However, I DID snack around 11pm. I knew, even while fixing the snack, that this probably wasn't a good idea, but we had eaten dinner really early and then went to a movie. It was really hard not to snack during the movie, not because I was hungry, but because it was habit. Instead, we sipped on a sparkling water with lime slices. Luckily, the movie was a quote-along, and it was Pulp Fiction, so we didn't lack for things to do! So when we got home from the movie, I was kinda hungry and decided to have a snack. For some reason, I felt like I DESERVED it for turning down munchies at the movie theater. I have no idea where this mindset comes from, but I need to further investigate it. Because then, of course, I ate, my body got energy, and I was up until 1am. UGH. This is so important to remember - eating late makes you stay up later which messes with your whole sleep cycle. Just look at how long I was awake yesterday! That's not normal! So, IF you get the urge to snack at night, make sure it's a small snack. I bought some kernels to make homemade popcorn, and I think I may do that next time. Popcorn, especially when you season it yourself, is a great snack that makes you FEEL like you're eating a lot, without really taking in a lot of calories.

Today had some ups and downs, but I am still proud of myself (and Ryan!) for skipping out on the movie theater snacks. And I'm proud that I got a little workout in today!

Check back tomorrow! Love, harmony and health to you!