Let's get started!

I'm not going to throw this thing at you all at once. It took me six years to get to where I can follow all my rules most of the time. Take it one rule at a time. Over the next several entries, you will see bold-faced rules. Don't get mad if you follow one rule and don't feel better, lose weight, or lose belly fat. This is NOT a 5 day get skinny kind of thing. This is a lifestyle change. You'll need to learn to live all the rules, most of the time, little by little, before you see the see those changes. Today we are going to start by being CONSCIOUS of what we eat and when we eat it. We sabotage our healthy eating goals when we get too hungry, so for the first rule, we are going to EAT.

RULE #1:

Eat 4-5 times every day and eat food combinations that will keep you full.

Decide ahead of time when you are going to eat. You don't need to know exactly what you are going to eat but you do need to think about how your day will shake out and where you will be at each meal time. Do this:

Breakfast : a whole grain or potato, a protein, a fruit
Snack : protein and a carb
Lunch: whole grain or potato, protein, fruit or veggie)
Snack : protein and a carb
Dinner: whole grain or potato, protein, veggie

I do 8:30, 11:00, 1:30, 4:00, 6:30. If we are eating a lot earlier, I skip the 4:00 one. You tweak the times to fit your schedule but never go more than 3 hours without food and try not to stray from the food combinations I've suggested. You need to plan ahead if you are going to be away from home. If I know I'm going to be at Walmart at 11:00, I pack a cheese stick and some raisins in my purse and munch while I shop. We do this for our kids, right? Why not for ourselves?

These meals/snacks are SMALL. I have 3 sizes of plates. I use the middle size for my "meals" and the small size for my "snacks" (if I need a plate). I think about kid-sized portions when I make my meals. Today's breakfast was one apple, one egg, and one slice of toast with a little butter. This is not a grown-up restaurant breakfast, this is a kid's meal. You will be eating in just 2.5 short hours. You don't need the Denny's grand slam. In fact, when eating out, continue to think this way. Order off the senior menu or the kid's menu and if they give you too much, DON'T EAT IT. Ask for a to-go box and portion up what you don't need before you dig in.



I'm not telling you WHAT to eat yet. I'm only telling you to eat small meals 5x a day and keep them kid-sized. I'm not telling you to count your calories, not yet. I just want you to be AWARE of what you put in your mouth and when. I want you to recognize what keeps you full for the whole 2.5 hours and what does not keep you full.

I suggest you to pair certain foods together. Why? Because you will stay fuller longer if you do it this way. I've dieted lots. I've counted calories lots. What I've learned is that 200 calories of chips does not feel as good in your body as the 200 calorie combination of a cheese stick paired with an apple.

Food combinations I like for breakfast:

• Oats with ground almonds and dried cranberries
• Egg, toast, fruit
• whole grain unsweetened cereal with bananas, honey and milk
• leftover brown rice with an egg white stirred in and microwaved (makes it creamy) with maple syrup and berries on top
• cottage cheese with canned fruit (with no added sugar) and sunflower seeds

Food combinations I like for lunch:

• one hard-boiled egg mixed with Kraft Olive Oil Mayo and a little mustard, one slice of bread, and some carrot sticks
• leftovers from last night's dinner
• one piece of whole wheat bread with natural peanut butter and fruit sweetened jam and a piece of fruit
• beans and brown rice with salsa stirred in and some pepper slices on the side
• a pile of spinach with a sliced boiled egg, shredded carrot and any Newman's Own light dressing.
• microwave baked potato with some leftover taco meat, chili, lentils, or something like that on top

Food combinations I like for snacks

• apple and a cheese stick (my stand-by)
• a baggie of nuts and a little bottle of 100% juice (can grab this at the gas station)
• a smoothie made with spinach, 1/2 frozen banana, 1/2 C. orange juice, water, and protein powder
• banana and some Triscuits
• baked tortilla chips, microwaved with 1/4 cup cheese and salsa
• a slice of bread with natural peanut butter

Dinner is dinner. I make what my family will eat, which sometimes means little extras that I wouldn't do if it were just me, like butter on the green beans and extra cheese on the enchiladas. I make sure I get plenty of veggies and a reasonable portion of what is prepared. As you read through this blog, you'll find my recipes and see some of the dinners I make. I don't make seperate meals for seperate tastes. We are all in this together! Kids can learn to eat healthy!

RULE #2

Drink lots of water. In between meals, when you get to hour 2 and you have 30 minutes to wait until you eat again, you'll start to feel hungry-ish. Drink 2 glasses of water. Stand right there at your sink and chug them down. Put your glass on the windowsill. Repeat. Get a water bottle and take it everywhere with you. When you want a soda, buy a bottle of water instead. You should be peeing a lot. This is the best "cleanse" you can do.