Eating My Way Toward a Healthier Me

In keeping with my little fitness/wellness theme this week (remember my 2-a-day crazy workout post?), I thought I'd give you an inside look on what I've been eatin' over the last year or two.

I've managed to lose 30 pounds, something I'm quite proud of. But in addition to having started a challenging workout routine, part of my success has been due to running far, far away from the foods I love - mac'n'cheese, spaghetti o's (yes, I still love these and yes, I realized I'm not an 8-year-old), frozen dinners, lots of pasta....the list could go on. I've also learned to stop skipping breakfast and to always bring my lunch with me to work. I'm often the girl sitting and eating carrots and yogurt at a restaurant while my co-workers grab yummier stuff, and I'm ok with that.

I always start my day with a high protein, high fiber cereal, usually by Kashi (I love the Kashi Go Lean and the Kashi Heart to Heart). I recently switched to skim milk and have never noticed a difference between that and the 2% I used to buy.

(Please excuse the old picture, but it's me eating cereal, nonetheless).

My lunch is always a peanutbutter sandwich on whole wheat bread, a lowfat yogurt, a bag of carrots or a mixture of strawberries and grapes, a banana, and if I'm feeling wild and crazy, some pretzels or string cheese. Lately because I've been working out so much, a pack of instant oatmeal has also been helping to fill my tummy. But I make sure that I'm eating all day long, which I think is key. I actually eat my sandwich around 10am, and eat all the way through 3pm, spreading the food out during that time.

(It's great marrying a photographer...you seem to have pictures of yourself in every situation!)

Dinner after the gym is usually on the lighter side as well. I love buying organic frozen burritos that are just beans and rice. They're great to have on hand, give you something hot, but aren't super fatty! I eat those a lot during the week. If Mr. S has time to cook, he'll make some sort of chicken dish (this week it's been a blackened chicken breast over salad with a lemony Italian dressing - yum!). For "fun" we make homemade pizza with a wholewheat crust (a recipe we've developed over time), topped with part-skim mozzarella, chicken sausage and veggies.

Finally, we drink a lot of smoothies in our house (Mr. S will sometimes have 2 or 3 a day!), especially after the gym. He experiments with different fruit combinations for himself, but I like to stick with a strawberry, banana and peanutbutter smoothie:

Handful of frozen strawberries
2 ice cubes
1 banana
Orange Juice, as needed
1-2 tsp of peanutbutter (smooth, not chunky!)

Combine all in blender, adding more juice depending on the desired consistency.

(This is what it looks like....yum!)

I personally think it's silly to go a little crazy on a pre-wedding diet. Keeping it healthy in the months leading up to the wedding will not only make you feel better through the last stages of planning, but will encourage you to maintain that healthier lifestyle after the wedding! I do not want the feeling of "crashing and burning" on my wedding day because I've been restricting what I've been eating. But that's just me, to each her own!

And so, without further adieu, I leave you with my "before" and "after."

The Before (OMG I can't believe I'm sharing these! And please ignore the dreadful sunglasses):


The After:

Source: Laurie Peacock Photography

Seeing these is an important reminder of just how hard I've worked to not only meet this goal, but maintain it, and how blessed my life is! I'm healthy, in shape, and Mr. S has encouraged and motivated me every step of the way. If fitness wasn't so important to me now, I don't know how ready I would feel for the wedding - I want to look back on the pictures and feel that I looked my best!

What steps are you taking to be a healthier you?