How I'm Doing It: What I'm Eating

I get a lot of questions about what specifically I have done to lose weight and get fit, so, I'm going to spend some time with a series of blog posts that does just that. This is the third in the series on nutrition.

So, first, I cut back snacks and portions and then I started tracking everything. But, what am I actually eating?

Here's a typical day in my diet: 

• Breakfast, usually around 8 am - Yes, that's right, I now eat breakfast! I usually have oatmeal (approx. 160 calories). I use a whole grain oatmeal with less sugar and no artificial sweeteners. It is great, quick and tasty. 
• Morning snack, around 9-11 am - This snack usually consists of berries, such as blueberries or raspberries (approx. 80 calories). With it, I usually have some nuts like almonds (approx. 60 calories) or peanuts in the shell, of course (approx. 160 calories).
• Lunch, which varies a lot by the day - A salad with whole grains, nuts, veggies, greens and cheese (approx. 350 calories) with a slice of bread and fake butter (approx. 150 calories) or alternatively leftovers from dinner or black beans with fixings (approx. same number total calories).
• Afternoon snack - I usually have veggies with hummus (approx. 100 calories).
• Dinner - 67% of the time it will be veggie fajita style vegetables with lots and lots of salsa, along with a little cheese (approx. 415 calories). Here is why I love these: you can eat a huge pile (literally five cups of veggies) and it is so filling, but at the same time healthy and nutritious. I use a bag fajita mix. I don't eat much salt, so I don't mind the extra sodium contained here. If I'm not eating fajitas, then I'm probably eating a meal from meal planning services like Marley Spoon, Plated or Sunbasket. These range from approx. 450-800 calories. If it is on the higher end, I usually eat a smaller portion or omit something so that I get the number down as low as I can. I love the meal services because I hate taking the time to shop and think about my meals and these options are healthy and delicious. I will often take the leftovers and turn it into lunch for the next day.
• Night snack - What I snack on depends on what I am craving and how many calories I have left for the day. My total calorie goal is currently at 1,760. This is to keep on pace with my goal of losing two lbs per week. So, for the night snack, I might eat any of the following: a salad (approx. 350 calories), veggie soy nuggets (approx. 220 calories), fruit (approx. 120 calories), cheese and crackers (approx. 350 calories), popcorn (approx. 130 calories), dark chocolate (approx. 100 calories) or bean chips and pico de gallo (approx. 150 calories).

You can see by adding the numbers above, it is fairly easy to keep it under my calorie goal. If I go out to eat it is a little harder, but I'll go into that in another post!