Finding Time

I don't know about you, but when you finally get serious about changing your life to be healthier it really cuts into your daily grind.  Before now most my free time (basically any time not spent at work, church, etc) was spent watching television or reading, face booking, etc.  Now it's spent working, working out (or doing fun physical activities) and preparing decent meals.  It was a bit awkward at the beginning but I think I have finally hit my stride.  


Me and my husband have been taking turns preparing dinners but more often than not because it's close to 7pm when we get home, we have been tossing together the easiest meals possible. Easy doesn't mean we are resorting to fast food or boxed meals though.  We try to do the brunt of our cooking on the weekend and stock the freezer for the week.  We usually end up with a meat with a side of vegetables, grains or both.  Since the meat is already prepared (and frozen)from the weekend, it makes it so much faster.

Since I've been working out, my appetite seems to have gotten out of control.  I spoke with the nutritionist trainer and she said with our type of workouts, we shouldn't be going more than 4 hours without eating. I decided that I should probably increase my workday food bag to include extra (higher protein) snacks.  Here I have green smoothie for morning snack, a salad and juice for lunch and fruit and cheese snack an hour or so before workout class.  Eating this way seems to keep me satisfied.

  Here is an example of a meal my husband tossed together for our evening.  This was a couscous/quinoa mix with veggies and reheated baked chicken thighs.  It was fast and filling.

My weekend lunches are a bit heavier than the workday lunches but they also tend to be the odds and ends of what we have leftover from the weeks' lunches and dinners.  This is a chicken salad on a flat bagel and a side of tabbouleh salad.  It was okay.

Most days I have fruit for snacking/15 minute breaks.   I don't eat all of these on the same day. I just like to have them there when hunger hits.  I don't like to be unprepared or even think of taking to the vending machines. And my co-workers always tease me about eating the prunes.

Here is a sample of the workouts I've endured in the last week and a half.  I figure keeping track of them down on a spreadsheet let's me see how I'm doing.  If I have too many blank days in a month, I know I need to pick it up a bit.  

Our lives are definitely a little different now but I think we've adjusted just fine.  Besides, who wants to always spend free time sitting around watching television or social networking when you can get outside and enjoy it by riding a bike, playing petanque, basketball, volleyball, or picnic?  It's different but it sure its fun!

Quote of the day: "If you don't do what's best for your body, you're the one who comes up on the short end."~ Julius Erving