Tips for Eating Out

It's coming up on the weekend and I’m sure your weekend is packed with picnics, summer fun, birthday parties or dinner at a restaurant. As I’m writing this sentence my blood pressure is already starting to rise because I know that all of these things are filled with high fat, sugary, and hard to resist temptations. The last picnic I went to the menu consisted of pigs in a blanket, roast beef, stuffed chicken breasts, mashed potatoes, salad, and fruit salad. Oh, and need I forget the beer, liquor, pop, cookies and cake! So needless to say there was not much for me to choose from. I did my best to keep it clean.

To keep from having to stress about everytime you go out in public and eat here are some of my best tips to help you not only stick to your goals BUT feel confident in your choices! You don't have to avoid eating out-- you just have to be on your toes.

1. PLAN! I ALWAYS peak at the menu before I go so I know what choice to make before I get there and smell ALLLL the food. I am 100% always hungry when I arrive at a restaurant (duh!) So I want to make sure I'm making the best LOGICAL choice and not the HUNGRY choice!

2. Repeat to yourself "I don't have to eat it all!" You don't have to finish your plate. YOu don't have to eat everything on the table. You don't have to have dessert. KEEP YOUR GOAL IN MIND

3. Speaking of not eating it all portion control by halving your plate and boxing it up! I will often do this FIRST thing as I get my plate and eat only what's left. The portion sizes are SO much bigger than what I actually need. Bonus: I get lunch for the next day!

4. Satisfy your hunger only. This one used to be sooo hard for me. But if you eat until you're full and not stuffed, you're eating intuitively.

5. Start small and green! I ALWAYS start my meals with a salad with dressing on the side. I am a huge ranch fan so I"ll dip my fork into the dressing and then get a bite of salad. This way I'm still getting a giant burst of flavour BUT not loading up on the calories and fat. If there aren't any salad options I'll go with a broth based soup.

6. NO BREAD PLEASE! Remember this is not helping you achieve your 10 pound weight loss goal.

7. Eat what you eat at home! Look for entree options featuring steamed or raw veggies, grilled, baked, or roasted meats or fish. If they're not listed you can always ask the server to have it prepared that way.

8. Don't trust the low fat or fat free symbols. Fat is also a necessary macro for satiety, feeling of fullness.

9. This is going to sound weird, but practice chewing each mouthful for 25 times. Believe it or not, it gives your body a chance to recognize when you are becoming full.

10. Skip alcohol. I know some of you may have gasped at this. But, you'll want to avoid it because the sugar and calories from alcohol can derail you majorly. Have some sparkling water with lemon or lime slices instead. Once you've reached your goal or are hitting your bench marks THEN celebrate. But routinely? Skip it.

11. Skip dessert OR have fresh fruit with ship cream. Think of your plans to shed those pounds, eat healthier, feel better, etc. I know I feel SO bloated, so lagged, and just blah after eating a huge meal at a restaurant and then topping it off with dessert. It takes me a few days to get into the swing of it again. Another healthy option is bringing some healthy cookies with you and order some coffee.

If you can't resist the restaurant offers.... then PRE-GAME! :P This way when you go out to eat you don't have to even worry about what's on the menu and you can focus on socializing.

I tend to avoid the drive through at all cost. But, I get it. I know sometimes life gets busy, you forget to eat, this is just where you end up, and the kids are screaming. It happens. SO, If you're having to go through the drive through my go tos are always a side salad with some kind of grilled meat and fruit. At Wendy's I"ll order a grilled chicken wrap with extra veggies kids meal with fruit and water. At McDonalds often it's grilled chicken with a side salad.  I'll cut up the thicken and place on the salad with an olive and vinegar dressing or a low fat balsamic.

I get it, one of the most difficult things to manage while following a healthy lifestyle is your social life. So surround yourself with family and friends that support what you are doing and are not sabotaging your efforts. Instead of going out drinking or to a restaurant here are some alternatives:
Go to the gym
Invite them to your house to workout and stream Beachbody on Demand
Meet at the park and walk
Have a game night at home with healthy snacks!
Organize a game in your neighborhood or with the kids
Volunteer at a local charity (Animal Shelter?!!)

Eating clean and creating a healthy lifestyle doesn't mean you have to become a boring person. It just means you're having different experiences than just food and drinks. Think and live outside the box and you will have people wondering what you're doing because your energy levels are soaring and your personality is shining! :)

Sesame Chicken

I LOVE take out. I am a huge fan of anything that's cheap, fast, and easy. However, the downside is this will usually appear in my waistline too! When I started this whole healthy eating journey when I was trying to lose 80 lbs after having Connor I started making small changes. Often those changes were about making my favourite foods... but healthier! You wouldn't believe I went from spending almost $900 a month in food for TWO people to only $350 for two adults and a toddler while still eating healthy and delicious meals!

One of my favourite meals is Sesame Chicken! It's easy, it's delicious, and fast. But this time, my waistline thanks me. ;)


Ingredients:
1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts (cut into 1/2 inch strips)
2 Tablespoons cornstarch
1 pinch each salt & pepper
1 tablespoon olive oil or sesame
Cooked white rice for serving
Small bunch spring onions scallions, chopped

For the sauce
3 Tablespoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons honey
½ tsp. chili paste
1 teaspoon fresh ginger grated
1 clove garlic minced
2 Tablespoons sesame seeds
1 tablespoon sesame oil optional

Instructions
In a medium bowl, combine the soy sauce, honey, chili paste, ginger, garlic, sesame seeds and sesame oil. Set aside.
In a large bowl combine the chicken, cornstarch, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Heat a large pan over high heat for at least 2 minutes. Add oil and chicken to pan. Stir-fry chicken for 5-6 minutes or until it's golden brown. Add the sauce and allow the sauce to simmer for 3-4 minutes or until the sauce is thick and sticky.

Remove chicken from pan, sprinkle with chopped spring onions and more sesame seeds if desired. Serve with hot white rice or noodles.

Roasted Carrots

When I started 80 Day Obsession I went all in. I even followed Autumn's Timed Nutrition. Which was hard for me because it meant I had to eat vegetables.... FOR BREAKFAST! I am a total sweet tooth fanatic so switching to more savory dishes with vegetables was a huge transition. However, I am blown away by my results when I completed the program AND how much I love roasted carrots! I'm getting ready to start LIIFT4 and I'm STILL eating vegetables for breakfast

Ingredients:
5LB bag of whole carrots
1 tablespoons Onion Powder
1 tablespoon Garlic Powder
1/2 tablespoon Paprika
two dashes Salt
2 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO)

Directions:
Peel Carrots and cut into 1/3s.
Preheat oven to 400
Add carrots into a large mixing bowl and drizzle with EVOO and sprinkle in onion powder, garlic powder, and paprika. I play around with the mixtures but usually it's eyeballed amount listed above.
Bake carrots at 400 for about 40 minutes until tender and roasted.

Kale Chips

You're not going to believe it.... but I actually like Kale chips. It's the ONLY way I will eat kale. To me, any other way, it just smells like stinky feet. When I did the Ultimate Reset and had kale I HATED IT, and it kinda set the tone for my hate relationship with Kale. BUT everyone was raaaavvviiinnggg about Kale and how good it was for you. So, I went on the hunt to try and make a Kale Chip I would eat to satisfy my crunchy chipy needs. The worst thing that could happen as I wasted a couple of bucks of kale, so I tried it!

I'm incredibly surprised that I not only love them, but I ate the whole batch at once and even Connor was chowing down.

Ingredients:
1 bunch of kale
Sea Salt
Sprinkle Parmesan Cheese

Directions:
Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F
With a knife or kitchen shears carefully remove the leaves from the thick stems and tear into bite size pieces.
Wash and thoroughly dry kale with a salad spinner.
Drizzle kale with olive oil and sprinkle with sea salt.
Bake until the edges brown 10 to 15 minutes. But not burnt!
Sprinkle with parmesan cheese!

It really is THAT easy to have a healthy serving of greens while you munch on your sandwich!

Cookie Dough Greek Yoghurt

I have a sweet tooth. It used to be my BIGGEST downfall in eating healthy until I realized I could have my cookies and eat them too! ;) I had actually found this recipe while scrolling endlessly on pinterest one night. I LOVE cookie dough ice cream so I jumped up and made myself this treat at midnight. No Ragrets. Anything with yoghurt, peanut butter, and chocolate is MY JAM! Except that it's not jam, but it is delicious. So, here we have clean eating cookie dough yoghurt that reminds me of Cookie Dough Ice cream! It's sooooo gooood! It really is the perfect treat to replace the blizzard or ice cream. It's creamy. Chocolately, Peanutbuttery. Delicious. Ingredients 1 cup plain Greek yogurt 1 tbsp honey 1/4 tsp vanilla 1 tbsp nut butter pinch of sea salt 1 tbsp mini chocolate chips. Directions: Combine Greek yogurt with the nut butter, honey, vanilla and sea salt. Mix until smooth and creamy. Top with mini choc chips and tada! Your perfect snack. Share this recipe with someone if you think they'd' like it!

Chicken Fingers and Fries

One of my go to foods for Connor to eat is Chicken fingers and fries. If we go out we will often order this for him. Or, if we're at home, I'll make these in a batch and freeze for him. I had came across this recipe while looking for a recreation of deep fried chicken fingers so I could at least feel LESS mom guilt about what he was eating. So, when I found this, I was ecstatic! We all LOVED this recipe and Connor will always go to down when we make these. They're also great as leftovers and thrown in a ceasar salad!

Ingredients:
Ezekiel Bread
1/4 c parmesan cheese
Garlic powder
Onion Powder
Italian Seasoning
Egg whites
4 chicken breast cut into strips 
Sweet potatoes
Extra Virgin Olive Oil


Low Sodium Seasoning Salt

Directions:
Heat oven to 350F
Toast the Ezekiel bread, break up into pieces, and put into the food processor. 
Add 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, garlic powder, onion powder, and any other spices that you like and process until fine.
Cut up chicken breast into strips.  
Beat 4 egg whites, dip chicken in egg and then bread mixture.  
Bake on 350 degrees for about 30 minutes, until chicken reaches 165F.  
Meanwhile I cut the sweet potatoes length wise into steak fry strips.
Added Olive Oil, Sea Salt, and Sweet Potatoes into a ziploc bag. Shaked while close.
Add the Sweet Potatoes onto a baking sheet. Once the chicken was finished I cooked the potatoes until crispy for about 25 minutes. 

Container: 1 red. 1 Yellow. 

Bruschetta Chicken

My husband is a HUGE fan of Bruschetta, but as part of my nutrition plan I am focused more on lean protein and vegetables.... which means I have to give a bit in the carb department. The good news is I don't ALSO have to give up in the flavour department! This Bruschetta Chicken was the bees knees and did not disappoint! I hope you enjoy this as much as we did. This recipe was found from the P90x2 nutrition guide.

Ingredients:
Salsa Topping
6 medium Roma tomatoes, seeded and chopped
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh basil leaves
1/2 tsp sea salt
3 cloves fresh garlic, minced
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 tbsp olive oil
Chicken Breast
1 tbsp chopped fresh oregano
1 tbsp chopped fresh basil
1/2 tsp. chopped fresh thyme
1 tsp chopped fresh Italian parsley
2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp fresh ground black pepper
1/4 tsp sea salt
4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves

Directions: 
For chicken breast, combine all ingredients in a large ziplock plastic bag.  Shake to distribute well, seal, and marinate in refrigerator for at least 1 hour.
For Salsa, combine all ingredients in a medium bowl.  Cover and chill in refrigerator until ready to serve.
Preheat over to 350 degrees.
Remove chicken from bag; discard marinade.  Place chicken in glass baking dish.  Cover with foil and place in oven for 30 to 40 minutes or until chicken is thoroughly cooked.  Serve with salsa on top; garnish with fresh basil leaves.

I had served mine with both quinoa and brown rice, both are delicious options. For my vegetable I would often used lightly roasted broccoli. This was a HUGE hit at our family-- even my picky and sensory eater nibbled at it. Which, is a HUGE win since it was a new food!

Strawberry Yoghurt Parfait

As I'm preparing for LIIFT4 I've been thinking about what I'm going to do to overcome my biggest obstacle: sweet tooth. And I was thinking back to when I FIRST started my health and fitness journey after having Connor 4 years ago. I made the healthy swap of ice cream to yogurt! Ice cream can definitely be part of a balanced diet, but if you're on the road to weight loss or fat loss then it's best to skip it MOST of the time. And, if you're like me, eating sugar makes you crave even more sugar! It truly is a vicious cycle. Here is one of my favourite fruits to add to yogurt and to feel fancy I simply layer them.

Ingredients:
1 cup washed and diced strawberries
1 cup greek yoghurt
1 tsp honey

Directions:
Add 1/2 tsp of  honey drizzle to inside of cup.
Layer strawberries and greek yoghurt in the cup.
Add remaining 1/2 tsp of honey drizzle to top of strawberries

Containers: Red and Yellow

This works well premade for a grab and go breakfast, a high protein snack to beat the mid day slump, or even as a healthy dessert swap.

Apple Crisp Yogurt Recipe

With this sweltering heat I'm remember of fonder times. When it wasn't as hot, as sweaty, as it was crisp weather with comfort foods! Unfortunately with comfort foods there's usually calories you're not wanting-- especially if you have a fat loss goal! The first year I started clean eating I was devastated to give up my Pumpkin Spice Lattes, Fried Apples, and Cinnamon rolls. However once I started seeing the results from ditching the calories, how much better I felt from skipping the sugar... I was HOOKED. Still, I wanted my favourites. So, I made a commitment to start finding recipes to foods and drinks that could replace the old habits I had. As part of making this my lifestyle I'm committed to not giving up everything that I enjoy, but rather finding balance so I can have my health and my food! Right now my go to for ice cream is replacing it with greek yoghurt-- it's got a great punch in fat and protein to help keep me full but also creamy enough to feel satisfying for that sweet tooth.

Ingredients:
1 apple washed and cut into chunks
1 teaspoon of dark chocolate chips
1 cup plain greek yoghurt
1 tsp of all natural peanut butter
sprinkle of cinnamon

Directions:
Mix the ingredients together and enjoy!

Container: Red, Teaspoon, Yellow Swap, Purple,
It really is that simple to have a healthy after school snack, a pick me up during the slumps of the day, OR when you're reaching for something sweet or crunchy. THIS is my go to. Often the kids are also trying to but in and steal some, so you may want to make extra for yours too ;)

Peanut Butter Oatmeal

Oatmeal is one of the most underrated breakfast foods. If anything it should be THE breakfast food of champions. ;)

I say this because Oatmeal is one of my favourite powerhouse foods. It's a good source of carbohydrates and beta-glucan fiber-- the fiber that helps improve cholesterol, heart health, and blood sugar levels. Compared to most other grains, oats have more protein and fat which will help with feelings of fullness and satiety-- which is perfect if you have a fat loss goal like I do! And that's not even mentioning that it's loaded with important minerals, vitamins, and antioxidant plant compounds like Manganese, Magnesium, Copper, Iron, Zinc, Folate, B1, B5, and Avenanthramides. Avenanthramides are antioxidants which are almost solely found in oats! They have anti inflammatory and anti itching effects and may also help lower blood pressure levels by leading to better blood flow.

See? Powerhouse food. I often include oatmeal for breakfast in my clean eating groups so others can reap the benefits AND to show that you can make oatmeal... not boring! Here is one of my favourite oatmeal breakfast recipes to share!

Ingredients:
1/4c uncooked 100% old fashioned oatmeal
1/2c unsweetened almond milk OR water
2 tbsp. peanut butter with no added sugars
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tbsp. honey

Directions:
Add oatmeal and almond milk to a pot and boil until done.
Mix in peanut butter, cinnamon, and honey

For special treats for the kids I'll even make Chocolate Oats by using chocolate almond milk instead of vanilla oatmeal. I'm a HUGE fan of chocolate oats with peanut butter-- it's like cheating but not!

Containers: 1 yellow, 2 spoons

Shakeology Choclate Bar

OMG! YOU GUUUUYYYSSS!  I have the biggest sweet tooth ever, and I think I finally found my fix! I've been working really hard to cut out sugar because, for me, it's so addictive. The more I eat it, the more I want to crave it.

I'm also following the new LIIFT4 workout plan with the nutrition plan. I'm really wanting to maximize my results so I'm finding healthy foods I can make feel like a treat. and, TA-DA! Shakeology Chocolate Bar!

I am going to add this to the list of things that I was skeptical of and just didn't sound.... appealing. Even as I was texting my husband about a healthy chocolate bar I could make into all the things I love.... I'm sure he was rolling his eyes at me.

The recipe is super simple AND you can even get the kiddos in! Connor and Lilly both loved being my helper. You just add one scoop or packet of Chocolate Shakeology mix it with one spoon of coconut oil until there aren't any clumps. I spread it onto parchment paper and put it in the freezer. Some parts I sprinkled unsweetened coconut flakes and put one almond as a DIY almond joy. Others I added teaspoons of peanut butter as a DIY Reeses CUP. There are endless possibilities!

Best of all you're able to enjoy with ZERO guilt!

Ingredients:
1 scoop or packet of chocolate Shakeology
1 spoon of coconut oil melted

Directions:
Mix the melted coconut oil and chocolate shakeology until no clumps remain
Spread onto a sheet of wax paper
Put into freezer until solid

You CAN stay on track and still have Chocolate! ;) You guys have got to try this and let me know! connor and Lilly were both fans of the plain bars and tried coming back for seconds and thirds.