I love food, that's my problem!

So I admit it....I have a problem......I have a food addiction! I love food. When I'm depressed, I eat.....When I'm happy I eat, when I'm mad, I eat! Basically food is a reward as well as a comfort for me. 

This wasn't a problem in high school because I had a fast metabolism. But once college started that all went down the drain! Suddenly I couldn't maintain a diet of french fries, burgers, chicken wings, and nachos without the pounds coming along with it. In January I finally realized that I had to make a change...

I'm not gonna lie, I STILL love food. BUT I had to come up with ways to still enjoy it without letting it rule my life! First I had to figure out what was so appealing about the greasy fattening foods I consumed on a daily basis. For me, a busy working woman, the convenience was the first thing that always caused me to resort to a drive thru for my meals. I never seemed to have time to cook a healthy and balanced meal. Second, was taste. I have always thought healthy food was just plain nasty. Who would want to eat a yogurt for breakfast when you can have a Egg Mcmuffin sandwhich? lol...Lastly was cost. It seemed alot cheaper to hit up the Mcdonalds $1 menu instead of spending cash at the grocery store. So I started thinking of ways I could simplify my meals, and make healthy food taste good.

Which leads me to my weekly meal prep! Every sunday night I prepare my meals for the whole week. (Lunch and dinner) That way I have no excuse as to why I don't have time to have a healthy meal. Second, I started to find a creative way to make the foods I like without all of the extra calories. For example: I love hamburgers! So instead I decided to make a grilled turkey burger with veggies as a side. I also LOVE potatoes. So I decided to make a small lean flank steak, brussel sprouts, and mashed cauliflower. (Its no mashed potatoes BUT it comes pretty close when you have a craving) Lastly, when I started doing my meal prep and cut out my weekly trips to the drive thru I began to realize how much money I had left over. Going to the store and buying a weeks supply of veggies is much cheaper then hitting Mcdonalds every day.

My meals for the day generally go as follows:

Breakfast- Protein shake with fruit and veggies

Lunch-Lean meat/veggies

Snack-trail mix/nuts

Dinner-lean meat/veggies

After workout snack-apples with almond butter

I'm by no means an expert. But what I've learned from this journey is that you have to find something that works for you. So far this works for me! So I am sticking with it. It's actually become a fun challenge for me to come up with ways to remake my favorite foods in a healthier way. You should try it! Good luck, and happy eating folks!