Today’s Meal Plan:
| Meal Plan |
Time |
| Fruity waffle sundae |
7am |
| Avocado dip with crackers |
11am |
| Salmon ginger rice bowl |
3pm |
| * Office party * |
7pm |
Today’s Workout: 20 minutes on the indoor trainer (picture below!), strength-training, 3-mile jog.
Riding the indoor trainer in my husband's "Tennessee Room"
The next phase of Cinch is 25-days long and similar to the first phase, it involves 4 meals spaced 3 to 5 hours apart, starting within an hour of getting up in the morning. The book offers 100 recipes to mix and match for the daily meals, all of which look amazing and are pretty easy to make, but you can also substitute your own meals as long as they match up nutritionally. As Sass puts it, its just like putting together a puzzle, and the goal of this next 25 days is to learn how to put together the puzzle yourself so you can keep up your healthy eating habits. Although not a nutritionist, fitness and nutrition have long been a passion of mine and I’ve gone through quite a few courses on the subject. Now I just have to master the art of practicing what I preach!
On that subject, I had my first slip-up last night. I had been doing so well, even getting through several major temptations throughout the day, but when I get home, it’s habit to immediately seek out food and dinner was going to take some preparation. Thankfully, I do not keep any junk around the house, but suddenly everything in the pantry looked wonderful. I started with my daily dose of dark-chocolate, and then I rationalized that I could have a second one since we’re allowed to have up to 100-calories of dark chocolate per day and the ones I bought are only 50. But I ended up having 4 before moving on to a slice of bread, spoonful of peanut butter, 5 baked black-bean chips, and a 1/2 cup of milk. But I stopped there and realized I’d already eaten enough calories to account for dinner. Hey, I saved myself the cooking time! Yes, I slipped up, but all is not lost. Once again I feel like this is a learning experience for me. Unlike past occasions when I’d give up and go back to my old habits, it’s not realistic to think we can all live by a strict routine all the time, so I’ll just consider it a splurge and move on.
I posted today’s meal plan and workout schedule above. Although this diet does not require working out to achieve success, it’s recommended. I actually enjoy staying active, so maybe sharing my daily workouts will give you some ideas. I like to try and get a short workout in first thing in the morning (typically cycling or yoga), then my primary workout at lunch (usually weights and jogging or a class). I’m fortunate that my employer has an on-site gym with personal trainers on-staff and is also located on a large park with running trails, plus they give us an extra half hour for lunch if we use it to work out. And yet a lot of my co-workers still don’t take advantage of it and I just don’t understand!
Yesterday and today’s breakfast was the Fruity Waffle Sundae (1 waffle with 1/4 cup ricotta, 1/2 cup cherries, 1 kiwi, pumpkin seeds) and it was awesome! Mine didn’t look as pretty as the magazine picture, but oh well. I subbed fresh cherries instead of the dried cranberries, and I think next time I’ll sub flax seeds for the pumpkin seeds. They just tasted a little odd with the other ingredients. Overall, I’d give it an A- recipe with quick and easy prep!
For lunch (yesterday), I subbed my own meal because I didn’t have time to prep a recipe from the book. So I chose a 1/2 Almond Butter Sandwich with Grapes. By the way, the Maranatha Raw Natural Almond Butter is the best I’ve ever had! Not only does it taste great, but if kept in the fridge, it doesn’t require stirring.
Yesterday & today’s snack is the Avocado Dip (1/4 avocado, 1 egg, dash pepper & cayenne), plus Baked Black Bean Chips (in place of whole grain crackers), and a Tangerine. I wasn’t sure about the combo of avocado and egg, but actually it was pretty good. I guess the egg works as a filler since using more avocado would add a significant amount of calories and fat. Have you guys ever tried the Guiltless Gourmet Black Bean chips? They are so good and you get 18 chips in a serving for only 120 calories and 3 grams of fat! And did I mention that they are delicious!? For more info, click on the picture below.
There’s an office party tonight, so no cooking required, but I hope they have some healthy options! How is everyone doing?
Rocky Top Rebecca 