Around our house, we have been focusing on eating healthier as summer time rolls around- something about the warmer weather just makes us want lighter food and more water! Some healthy habits we have started (and hopefully will stay around):
1. Food Logging: MyFitnessPal has been amazing and logging regularly helps us stay on track with our goals. We do allow ourselves a cheat day where we don’t worry about staying under our caloric goal but we still log it so we don’t go too crazy!
2. Read Labels: There are so many foods that have hidden sugars, sodium, etc. It is best just to be aware! For example, I love greek yogurt. But the Greek yogurts I was eating had upwards of 20 grams of sugar! Now, I buy plain greek yogurt and add a little honey to it.
3. Measuring and Weighing Food: I have found it is way to easy to eat a whole bag of chips with hummus if I’m just eating them out of the bag. But guess what? That is, like, 5 servings! To keep myself in line (and make it easier to log my food) I measure out my food before I eat. Scales are amazing too, because who knows how to eyeball a serving that is 3 grams? I sure don’t! I also like to use ramkins as serving dishes for yogurt or cottage cheese- they hold about 1/2 cup which is perfect for those foods!
4. Drink Water: Water is so important- always try for 8 full glasses of water! And for those of you who hate the boringness of it, I suggest trying sparkling water (but see #2- beware of excess sodium. Some brands have zero grams of sodium, which is perfect!). You can also add lemon, cucumber or mint leaves to your water for a little extra flavor! Ever since reading French Women Don’t Get Fat, I have always had one full glass of water in the morning right when I wake up and one at night before bed. It’s an easy trick to get two extra glasses into my day!
5. Aim for 10,000 Steps: when I track my steps (my phone does it automatically) I find I park further away at stores or work and I take walk breaks throughout the day. 10,000 is a good goal- I usually get half throughout my day and then Chase and I go for a walk in the evening together for the last 5,000.
Also, salads have been a go to meal, and I am loving this fennel orange salad inspiration from Not Your Standard. See Kayla’s post below!
XO,
L
Fennel Orange Salad
notyourstandard
If you know me well, then you know my love for a good salad. I’m a strong believer in eating healthy and I try to make sure that any food going in to my body is beneficial for me. I’ve been asked a lot recently what I eat on a regular basis and since it’s such a significant part of my life, I definitely want to share it all with you. So, come July, I will be showing you a lot more of my daily routines and eating habits. Let me know if you have any special requests in the meantime!
For now, here is a simple and fresh fennel and orange salad that is the perfect side dish. Since I hardly eat any meat, I tend to create summer recipes around different kinds of fish. This salad creates a nice acidic balance to salmon or any white fish. Find this recipe and my strawberry mint quinoa salad over on my weekly food column.
Looking for more great salads? Try my Spring Quinoa Salad or Soba Noodle Salad with Peanut Dressing.