Stay Back, Stay Alive

Stay Back, Stay Alive is my motto for many things in life.  If someone is being crabby, if there is a big mess or a disaster or if there is food around that you should avoid at all costs.  I get a lot of healthy living emails per week and one of the emails that I got today was about 10 Foods to Avoid.  Most of them seem obvious to me, such as cheesburgers, red meat, fried food.  This article got me thinking about things that I love that may not be good for me and what healthier alternatives may exist to satisfy my cravings. 

Top 5 Favorite Foods and Alternatives

1. Chips
The salty, crunchy delicious goodness of chips is my number one weakness.  I love Old Dutch Nacho Burst tortilla chips and Lay's Sour Cream and Onion.  Seriously, there isn't much I wouldn't do to get my hands on a bag of chips.  So, obviously chips are high in fat, calories and sodium, so I try to avoid them now, but I must admit that it is really hard.  I try to eat Popchips, Baked Chips or Goldfish to satisfy my desire for salt and crunch, but only in moderation.

2. Sandwiches
I know that you're thinking this seems like it couldn't be that unhealthy, however my favorite sandwich is buffalo chicken which is made with butter and other unmentionable fatty items and topped with delicious, but not nutritious blue cheese.  So, I try to make things that still give me the Buffalo chicken flavor without all of the guilt.  I love the Buffalo Chicken Choppity Chop Salad from Hungry Girl.  I eat it as a salad, as a sandwich topper and even on a wrap as a pizza topping.  It is delicious and has way less fat and calories in it.

3. French Fries
Honestly, I struggle with this one.  I mean, in my book there is not much that can compare to a hot crunchy delicious french fry.  However, I reallty like the Alexia brand foods.  They are all natural foods that contain real ingredients and several healthier alternatives when it comes to getting a potato fix.  I love the Oven Reds potatoes.  You can eat 8 pieces (which are pretty decent sized) for 3.5 grams of fat, 120 calories and only 19g carbohydrates!

4. Pizza
I used to work at a really good pizza place when I was in college and part of the perks of working there was being able to take home pizza pretty much whenever we wanted to.  It was a blessing as a poor college student and a curse to my waistline.  I have gotten pretty good about satisfying my pizza cravings these days by simply buying Flatout wraps and topping them with pretty much anything imaginable.  I make regular pizzas, veggie pizzas, taco pizzas and buffalo chicken pizzas.  The wrap is only 19g carbohydrates and when you top it with healthy veggies and just a little cheese it is a great alternative to greasy and fattening pizza.

5. Chocolate
My love for chocolate may be slightly abnormal, but I honestly love the stuff.  I grew up in a house where my Mom baked everything from scratch and everything was delicious, but very fattening.  I must admit that I still haven't found anything that really satisfies my sweet tooth that is still a healthier alternative.  I will eat some sugar free pudding, Skinny cow ice cream sandwiches or chocolate goldfish crackers or some of the 100 calorie packs that have chocolate things in them to try and satisfy my craving, but sometimes it just isn't enough. 

So, there you have it.  My five food weaknesses and some of my healther alternatives.  If you have any suggestions for me feel free to let me know. What are your weaknesses and how do you deal with them or satisfy them in a healthier way?

Happy Hour is about the people you're with NOT the food and drinks

So, another challenge under my belt.  Today I had a happy hour with co-workers and usually we get a bunch of appetizers and drinks and share them.  Since I am three weeks into this lifestyle change I was a little nervous to see how it would all go.  I ordered a water (i'm not drinking soda anymore) and I ordered a side salad with no croutons and balsamic dressing on the side.   It was super good and I didn't even miss the fried food and cocktails that I used to drink.

On another note I said I would start posting photos of myself, food that I am eating and daily life experiences, so as promised I have some photos to share with you.

This is an example of my homemade 100 calorie packs.  Reduced fat cheese-its, reduced fat wheat thins, animal crackers, goldfish and pretzel gold fish.

Another example of my organizational skills.  1/3 cup dry oatmeal for breakfast or 1 cup of whole grain cheerios.

I like to cut up my fruit and portion it out right away so that I can grab it on the go and can never use the excuse that I don't have anything good to eat.  On Sunday's I usually wash and chop my fruit and veggies in put them in containers.  It is so helpful!

This is an example of a salad that I would eat before eating my grains and meat for dinner.  The salad has romaine lettuce, red onion, red peppers and yellow peppers.  I usually drizzle about 1 Tbs or less of light balsamic dressing to this.

This is an example of the toppings that I would put on my flatbread pizza for dinner.  This is about 3/4 cup rotisserie chicken with the skin removed.  1/4 cup of red onion, 1/2 cup of peppers and a small amount of olive oil and 2 heaping tsp of garlic and 2 tsp of the salt free taco seasoning below.

I am really trying to watch my sodium intake, so I decided to make my own salt-free taco seasoning.  It was from Food.com and it was super good!  I also learned that not all chili powder is created equal.  Some chili powder contains salt, so it is important to look at the ingredients!  Use 1 to 2 tsp on meat for seasoning.

Sorry that this is sideways!  I absolutely LOVE Flatout Flatbread.  Love, love, love!  I make all kinds of sandwiches, wraps and pizza with these.  You need to go to the grocery store and get these now (this is not a paid endorsement I just really love them and think you will too).

All of the toppings on top of the faltbread with 1/4 cup of low-moisture part skim mozzarella cheese. I bake mine in the oven at 400 degrees for 10 minutes on a pizza tray.

 This is the end result!  So delicious and honestly you wont even miss "real" fattening pizza.  It is very satisfying and filling.

So, this is my boyfriend and me about a year ago.  When I started this lifestyle change I was about 25 pounds heavier than this photo.  I am almost back to this size and is something I look at when I need a little motivation.

Have a great weekend everyone!  It is another busy one for me and Sunday is my second weigh-in.  Hoping for some more great results!