Eating Cleaner Diet Restart: Week 1

...I love a good challenge...

 ...And I LOVE succeeding when I fear failure...

Back in October I did an 8 week diet that consisted of eating gluten free, dairy free, and sugar free. I was VERY strict on my diet and even avoided high sugar fruits and any type of sweetener besides Stevia. That diet was HARD and slightly unrealistic for a LONG TERM way of eating.

So I am now on a mission to find a more REALISTIC way of eating healthy

and an attainable Healthy Eating Lifestyle.

In order for ME to be successful in a diet change, I have to write down the

WHY'S & WHAT's

WHY do I want to change my diet, WHY am I putting in the effort

& WHAT are my goals, WHAT would my ideal diet look like?

Here are my WHY'S and WHAT's for the next 12 weeks.

WHY:

~ To help with my health issues (ezcema, PCOS)

~ To easily maintain my ideal body weight & actually SEE the results of working out

~ To break my sugar cravings

~ To try new recipes, new foods, new cooking methods

~ To be in CONTROL of my life and feel HAPPY & HEALTHY

WHAT:

~ Eliminate Gluten

~ Eliminate Refined Sugar

~ Small amounts of dairy (maybe 2x a week)

~ Small amounts of natural sugar (raw honey, maple syrup, coconut sugar)

~ Eat a low GI diet to help keep blood sugar low

~ Watch fruit consumption and stick to lower sugar fruits

~ Eat as many veggies as possible!

~ Try new foods

~ Try to follow the rules of food combining (amazing concept that WORKS)

And lastly, don't forget that when changing your diet you WILL have bad days and WILL sometimes give into cravings. FORGIVE YOURSELF and do BETTER tomorrow. No small slip is worth stressing over.

HERE IS WHAT I ATE THIS WEEK:

Monday:

Breakfast - Protein Banana Flax Smoothie, 2 c. watermelon

Snack - 1 whole, peeled cucumber, a handful of almonds, cashews & sunflower seeds

Lunch - 8 Rice Thin Crackers topped w/ homemade chicken salad

Dinner - Roasted ranch red potatoes, steamed cauliflower & broccoli

Post Workout - Protein Smoothie

Tuesday:

Breakfast - 2 eggs + 1 egg white scrambled w/ onion & ham, 1 c. watermelon

Lunch - Tilapia Tostada w/ side of steamed broccoli

Snack - 1 oatmeal breakfast cookie

Dinner - 1.5 c. taco soup topped with avocado & tortilla strips

Wednesday:

Breakfast - Protein Banana Flax Smoothie 10 small strawberries, 15 small grapes

Snack - 2 oatmeal breakfast cookies

Lunch - 2 c. leftover taco soup topped with avocado & tortilla strips

Snack - handful of almonds, cashews, chocolate , white cheddar popcorn 

Dinner - Homemade Sloppy Joes topped w/ lettuce eaten with tortilla chips

Snack - 4 apple slices

Thursday:

Breakfast - Homemade gluten free waffles w/ strawberries & a little 100% pure maple syrup

Lunch - Chipotle Chicken Salad

Post workout - Protein Banana Flax Smoothie

Dinner - Zucchini Pasta w/ Pesto Chicken

Snacks - Fruit, ThinkThin mixed nuts bar

Friday:

Breakfast - Protein Banana Flax Smoothie , 6 apple slices

Snack - ThinkThin mixed nuts bar

Lunch -  1.25 c. leftover taco soup topped with avocado & tortilla strips

Dinner - Texas Roadhouse w/ our friends! Can you believe I didn't eat a ROLL???!!!!! AHHH! It was SO HARD! I got: 6 oz steak, fries, house salad and had a couple bites of jess's bacon cheeseburger. I was proud of myself for not STRESSING over the small amount of gluten in the croutons and the hamburger bites. I made the choice NOT to each 4 ROLLS and that was quite the accomplishment. I'm going for a LIFESTYLE change, not a crazy strict diet with no exceptions.

Saturday:

Breakfast - 2 scrambled eggs, 2 c. watermelon, cantaloupe, honeydew

Lunch - Tilapia fish tacos with avocado, mango salsa, sauteed onion & zucchini , lettuce

Snacks - Fruit, Trail Mix

Dinner - Haven't had it yet and it's 9:00pm! Oops got to stop blogging :)

Please comment with any questions or let me know what healthy goals you have!