Healthy Tips and Tricks for the Lazy Dieter (like me)

Until a little over a year ago I ate what I wanted, when I wanted, and how much of it I wanted.  That worked fine for me in high school and before because I lived a very active lifestyle, with practices, games, competitions, etc., I was always on the go, so it didn't matter if I ate Taco Bell three times a week. 

Being healthy doesn't mean giving up turkey legs and wine!  

Then I went to college and gained the typical amount of weight.  I shrugged it off because, hey it's college, it happens right?  Then I turned 21 and the scale became less friendly...and then I graduated and thought for sure I would stop eating like crap, right? 

High school. 

College. 

No.  Haha.  I love cooking, baking, and experimenting with food, so when Jess and I first moved in together I frequently made large, elaborate pasta-based meals with heavy sauces and then some fudgey brownies for dessert.  Delicious? Yes. Good for you on a regular basis? No.

Same dress, borderline too small vs. almost too big two years later! 

So, for the first time in my life I am looking at the nutritional information on EVERYTHING I BUY. Now, I did it the "easy" way by using Weight Watchers.  I say easy because I basically just entered my weight, goal weight, basic info, and bam, they told me exactly how much I could eat. While I'm at it, I will use this to be a plug for Weight Watchers. I highly recommend it to people who are just looking to be healthier in their choices.  It is not a radical diet, requires no exercise (although it is recommended...), is a reasonable price, and is very flexible.  I consistently lost 1-2 pounds per week and reached my goal in less than a year.  For me, it was worth the money because I honestly don't feel like I was motivated enough to do it without the push of knowing that I was paying for it.

Pre- and post-WW! With my gorgeous mama! 

So below are some of the things that have helped me get to where I am now and hopefully they'll help you, too!


Portion Control & Meal Planning - No Leftovers!
As mentioned above, I used to make a whole box of pasta every time I fixed spaghetti.  Or I'd make 4 chicken breasts so that we could take them to work the next day for lunch.  This turned into us overeating because it was there and so easy to not listen to suggested portion sizes.

This is an easy remedy and although it takes a little self-control, you can look at it this way: you'll save money because you're actually buying less food!  So I only make enough food for the two of us for dinner, no exceptions.  Jess requires more food than I do, so I just make sure his portion is slightly larger than mine.

So what do I eat for lunch now, you may ask? Something simple, lots of veggies, low points so that I can splurge more for dinner.  I eat tuna & crackers, some sort of soup (Lipton double noodle is 6 points per package and Progresso makes Light soups that are 2-4 points per can, crazy!), spinach salad with some berries & tuna with croutons for crunch (and carbs), steamed vegetables with a little fat free Italian dressing...I've gotten quite creative!


Snacks
I'm a snacker.  I bored-eat, stress-eat, emotion-eat, you name it. Literally chips & salsa are my favorite snack.  I could eat them every single day if my body could handle it.  Sitting at a desk for half or more of my work-day is rough on the mindless eating.  So here are some of my favorite snacks:

1. Pretzel sticks - Seriously, you can eat like 40 for only 2 points, and they can be dragged out to make a lasting snack.  Highly recommend pretzel sticks for salty-fixes.

2. Mixed fruit - You can buy pre-made, but make sure it is packed in water and not syrup.  I just make my own with whatever fruits I can find: mangoes, kiwis, berries, peaches.  Just chop it all up, mix in a bowl, and pack in to-go containers for easy grab & go!

3. Apples (similar to above) - I eat at least one apple per day. Did you know eating an apple in the morning has as much energy-booster as a cup of full-caff coffee??? As an admitted coffee-junkie, I believe it works! Just pack it into a baggie with a bit of lemon juice to keep it from browning and bam, snack all day...apples are big!

4. Chips & Salsa - in moderation*. I still have to have my chips & salsa, so I just count out my chips and put them in a bowl and just know that that is it, no more.  Good news is, most salsas are zero points, especially if you make your own, so that's good.

gimme.

Activity
Woof.  I hate working out.  So this will be the shortest tip: walk.  Walk around the block, walk your dog (that's what I do), walk in circles around your apartment or office when you're bored.  Just do something.  I also do yoga classes semi-regularly which have been wonderful. Just find something that works for you and do it! It doesn't have to be running 6 miles a day, or weight-lifting for an hour. Any increased activity on your schedule will help boost you metabolism and make it easier to lose weight, not to mention any time you spend active is less time you can snack!

Get outside, it's pretty there!

Planning
PLAN EVERYTHING.

Whether you join Weight Watchers & get the app or not, plan what you will eat every single day. I'm sure there are other apps to help you track food & activity, probably free ones!  I sit down and plan most (obviously I cannot plan it 100%) of my meals at the beginning of the week.  I go ahead and plug it into my app to hold myself accountable.

Before planning like that for my week, I sit down, make a meal-plan, and make a detailed grocery list.

Making a grocery list and sticking to it really is important.  I do not buy anything that is not on my list.  Literally, I plan out splurges - like I'll only buy cookies if they're on my list and "planned" on splurging on them.


Water
I lied, this is my shortest tip: drink it and drink lots of it. Avoid soft drinks, drink water. Please.

My water cooler at work :) 

Write down servings & point values (this one is specifically for Weight Watchers)
Whenever I buy anything I check the point values and use a permanent marker to write the serving size and point value right on the bag, just so I know before I get anything out, exactly what I'm getting into.

I'll do this with things in the fridge like salad dressing, greek yogurt, butter, sour cream, etc.  It really makes things so much easier!  And now after months of opening stuff with big numbers printed on them, it almost is like instinctual how I know what every serving is.  Practice makes perfect!



I hope these tips help! I did end up cancelling my Weight Watchers subscription after I met and maintained my goal weight for a while, but I still use many of the ideas and lessons I learned while on the plan. I'm sure that some day when I'm feeling extra-tempted I'll sign up again, but until then I'm using my progress as motivation!

Now go have some cake.