I’m back with my Desperately Seeking Motivation series.

I’m sharing how I pulled myself out of the blah feeling I was being crushed by. Spoiler Alert: It wasn’t easy and it was NOT quick. Hell, I’m still working on it.

Food is Essential

As I was sliding down my slope of blah-ness, my diet took the dive with it.

When I realized that I was craving French fries, I knew I had a problem. Honestly, I don’t even really like fries that much. They had just become a habit.

But, food wasn’t the problem. Food is not the enemy. Food is essential.

It is our relationship with food that matters.

I am a stress-eater and a snacker, so to achieve any success, I knew meal planning(ish) and filling our house with healthy foods was the best thing to do.

Healthy Meals

• Salmon, roasted tomatoes, green beans or broccoli, and brown rice
  • The whole family appreciates this meal. Okay, MyChild doesn’t eat the tomatoes, but I can get past that.

• Caprese Salad with whole wheat pasta and grilled chicken or grilled salmon

• Tacos with ground turkey or marinated flank steak (the BEST recipe is in Against All Grain by Danielle Walker!)
• Grilled Italian Sausage with Italian Oven-roasted Veggies
• Grilled Chicken salad – hearts of romaine, baby spinach, shredded carrots, chopped celery, whole wheat pasta, zoodles, tomatoes, and EVOO + red wine vinegar

On one work day, this was my packed lunch and snacks:

Confession: Hi, my name is Sandy, and I am a snacker.

The GOOD thing is that it doesn’t have to be junk food.

Some of my go-to snacks include:

• (Self-assembled) Trail mix – dry roasted cashews, whole walnuts, and dark chocolate chips [of note: I do NOT like raisins, craisins, dried fruit, etc. It’s all just an obstacle to the good stuff. Add it in, if that’s your thing!]
• Carrot chips
• Mott’s Applesauce pouch
• V8 juice
• Granny Smith apples
• White cheddar cheese
• Ranch Wheat Thins
• Garden Herb Triscuit
• Jello

One thing I LOVE about eating correctly/on the much-more healthy side is that I start to appreciate the sweetness and flavor of the healthy food (did you know carrots were sweet?) and start to crave the [delicious] Oreo, candy bars, and treats less. Don’t get me wrong, I still love those things, but I’ve lessened the cravings for them.

One important thing to remember is

Even if/when you increase the activity,

if you are still eating like crap,

you will still feel like crap. 

What are some of your go-to healthy meals and/or snacks? 

I love variety and trying new things. Let me know in the comments!

Check out the whole series HERE or jump to individual posts below:

Desperately Seeking Motivation

Emotional Self-Support

Exercise Makes You Happy

Words of Wisdom

Food is Essential