photo Menu1_zps0679bf32.png  photo Home-5_zpsbb1afa0c.png  photo About-12_zps1f2d03d6.png  photo Recipes-2_zps90dfcd61.png  photo Sponsor-9_zps8283cfc7.png  photo Contact-16_zpsedfcb947.png  photo Menu2-2_zps6cf714ee.png

July 10, 2014

30 Day Slimdown Challenge + Eating Plan

I don’t know about you all, but I celebrated the 4th of July holiday with a little too much indulgent food, three margaritas too many, and a belly ache. It’s so easy to do overindulge when the weekends are filled with summer BBQs, dinner parties, happy hours, and the like.

 And that has tended to be the norm ever since a few months past our honeymoon. It felt so good to let loose after our wedding that I never really honed it in on a consistent basis. I loved moving in with Adam after the wedding where I enjoyed cooking delicious meals, inviting friends over, baking up a storm, and rushing home after work every night to spend time with him.

 So all that hard work of a nightly gym regimen, eating copious salads with grilled chicken, and feeling good in my body flew right out the window.

The wake-up call for me has been three-fold… 

1//  Not feeling comfortable in my own skin (heck no, I don’t want to wear tank tops with flabby arms!)
2//  Those skinny jeans are getting a bit too snug, and I’m waiting for the button to pop off...
3//  The most unflattering photo of me ever taken of me during 4th of July weekend
(I almost didn’t recognize myself.)


Thank goodness Adam and I were on the same page when we both discussed a little lifestyle change boot camp was majorly needed. With a Christmas trip to Hawaii planned (more details to come soon!) and my high school reunion approaching this next year, what better motivation than to start our journey together now.

We have been talking about how we want to approach this plan for a few weeks, and found something that is working out great for us so far! We are kicking it off with a 30 day challenge of following the plan with no cheating to jump start the road to healthy.

Here are the deets below to in case you are looking for good way to spark your healthy eating motivation. I will be sharing our grocery shopping list + favorite recipes next week!


Breakfast - 8AM //
- Protein
- Complex Carb
- Fruit
- Multi-vitamin

Meal examples:
- 2 eggs over easy, whole wheat english muffin (minimally processed), and berries
- 1/2 cup steel oats, 1/2 cup almond milk, blueberries, cinnamon, stevia (overnight oats)
- protein shake (no sugar), fruit


Morning Snack - 10:30 AM (if needed) //
- Protein + Fruit

Meal examples:
- string cheese & apple
- 1 oz. cashews & fruit
- cottage cheese and bing cherries
- hard boiled egg and berries


Lunch - 1 PM //
- Protein
- Complex Carb
- Vegetables

Meal examples:
- spinach salad with veggies and grilled chicken breast
- whole wheat tortilla (minimally processed), seasoned ground turkey, hummus, lettuce, cucumbers
- tilapia fillet, steamed broccoli, half sweet potato


Snack - 3:30 PM (if needed) //
- Protein, or...
- Protein + Complex Carb (if working out)

Meal examples:
- whole wheat rice cake, tablespoon almond butter, half sliced banana
- almonds & fruit
- celery sticks, hummus, turkey deli slices


Dinner - 6 PM //
- Protein
- Vegetables
- Complex Carb (if needed)
- Omega 3 Supplement

Meal examples:
- greek yogurt chicken, roasted squash & zucchini
- baked salmon, mixed steamed veggies, sweet potato or brown rice
- hummus crusted chicken, roasted garlic brussels sprouts, steamed broccoli
- mexican seasoned ground chicken, black beans, tomatoes, mixed greens, sauteed peppers and salsa (taco salad)


Evening Snack (if needed) //
- Protein, Veggies, or Fruit (in moderation)


Dailies
- water (half of your body weight = how many ounces to drink/day minimum)
- daily vitamin supplements
- exercise (minimum 30 minutes 4-5 days/week)
- no caffeine, sugar, white flour
- one drink/week at social gathering (if at all)
- no cheating!
- track food, exercise, and progress on My Fitness Pal (add me and we can do this together!)


.:::.:::.:::.:::.:::.

Believe it or not, just in 4 days I am already feeling like I have more energy, am less bloated, have better focus, successfully ate out on plan, and have conquered the few cravings for sweets and junk food. The bonus? I am down 3 pounds already - loving this. Who knew that with a healthy diet and some exercise you could feel so much better?! ;)

We both took body measurements at the start of the week so that we can compare our success with where we started. Sure, it will be great to see the number on the scale go down as my body adjusts to the new lifestyle, but losing inches and building muscle is more important to focus on. And we got brave by taking before photos - what an eye opener!.

Looking forward to feeling like myself again, and so glad I have a partner in crime along the way.
Wish us luck! :)


What helps you keep a healthy lifestyle?
Any great tips you try to stick to?


   photo Signature-5_zps1ea392df.png
Follow along here:  BlogLovin, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest
________________________________________________

6 comments:

  1. I'm not kidding you, after the long weekend and everything nasty I consumed I'm STILL bloated. I look and feel terrible, but I'm giving it one more weekend (my bday) before I get back on track. I use myfitnesspal too! Find me on there :) p/s you go girrrrrl

    26 and Not Counting

    ReplyDelete
  2. oooh.. this looks like an awesome plan!! my husband and i have been feeling the same way.. in need of an overhaul after so much overindulgence! but... i've been feeling less than motivated. hmm... this has got me thinking! i might need to break out myfitnesspal again too!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Girl. I have lost the word "diet" out of my vocab. It's rough. I need to get on this plan and stick with it!

    ReplyDelete
  4. great plan!! i need to get back into my workout routine -- moving and my vacation totally threw things off. xo jillian - cornflake dreams 

    ReplyDelete
  5. You rock, Meg! This is a very similar plan that I use for my health coaching clients (just started!). Isn't it awesome that you can lose weight without starving yourself? :) I never refer to it as a diet- just a lifestyle change!

    ReplyDelete
  6. This is a great plan! It's so hard after holiday weekends. I feel like I need to get back on track, too. We're going to the lake this weekend, and I need to squeeze into a swimsuit:) Hope you're having a great day, pretty lady!

    ReplyDelete

I absolutely LOVE hearing from you guys! I read every single comment and always try to get back to each of you!
In order to do that, please make sure your email address is set up with your profile so that I am able to respond to you. :)

How to enable your e-mail - BLOGGER ACCOUNTS:
To do this, click on your Dashboard, click on EDIT PROFILE and place a checkmark next to SHOW MY EMAIL ADDRESS, and finally scroll to the bottom and click SAVE PROFILE.

Thanks for reading! You all are hands down the BEST! xo

01 09 10