Thoughts on a Healthier Lifestyle...

Ok, so I have been contemplating vegetarianism now for quite some time. I am not a big meat eater and have really been wanting to change my lifestyle and redirect it in a healthier way. Dieting is not for me and dieting is bad for you anyway. Most dieters just end up rebounding after they quit the diet anyway...for obvious reasons. So, I did a lot of research on vegetarianism and decided that I like parts of it. But I'm not completely sold.

So, I started researching some more about just eating healthy and ways to change your lifestyle, yada, yada, yada. And found some promising things! I decided that instead of a diet or going completely crazy and turning to vegetarianism, I am going to take small steps. And to do this I am going to start substituting healthier options into my diet. I'll eat little chicken and look more into tofu (the very firm kind) & seafood. I have decided to cut out red meat. I don't really eat it anyway, and if I do I know its because my iron is low. It's funny--I will CRAVE a steak randomly and I will know I need to check my iron or increase my iron intake. I am pretty bad at taking my iron pills (I have an iron deficiency) and need to be better about eating more things with high iron content.

I found THIS cookbook and am OBSESSED! They also have a website which I look at all of the time. It has lots of great recipes, substitutions & even options for dining out (making it easier to make good choices). You can take a sneak peek at some of the pages on Amazon and I am anxiously awaiting the arrival of my own :)

I am also obsessed with anything Skinny Cow brand. They make really yummy ice creams and even candy bars. For THOSE days. My favorites are strawberry cheesecake icecream & peanut butter & chocolate heavenly crisps (an amazingly light candybar with only 110 calories!). All of their products are low in calories but don't taste like low in calories. Thank god for products like these!

Other small step examples...

I'm trying to cut out soda as well...this didn't seem like something hard to do until I moved back to NC. For some reason I drink WAY more soda here than I normally do. I think I have a Diet Coke with Lime at LEAST twice a day...this needs to stop. I need to drink WAY more water.

I have switched from my beloved Tropicana OJ plus Calcium with No Pulp (I'm way picky about OJ brands for some reason) to Trop 50. It still tastes pretty good (still Tropicana yumminess) but you can tell its light. But I am trying to just look at things I consume on a daily basis and see how I can make them healthier. Small steps!

I also only eat light string cheese for snacks (Sargento or Baybel rounds are my favorites) or Laughing Cow cheese wedges (so creamy...) and am trying to cut back on dairy. I have always only drunk (is that the right word?) skim milk but I am thinking of switching to Soy. Egg substitutes are another thing I never thought I'd try but I am leaning more towards it after reading up on eggs...

Bottom line is...I love to eat. And I never really had to worry about what I ate until a few years ago when my metabolism decided to stop being amazing. Sad. I weighed like 105 pounds all through highschool and ate Chick-Fil-A like every day. I was way more active in highschool, but still...I miss those days (tear). I know I won't get back to the weight I was in highschool but I would like to at least feel better about my life right now. Everyone wants to feel good about themselves...not matter what size.

This is Late Highschool Me (in the middle) right after graduation...I was wearing one of my favorite pair of jeans in this picture in Waikiki which were a size 0! And I'm so tan! Motivation?

SO, I am trying to take small steps along with exercise (ZUMBA!) Here's to a better me!