Secrets of Success

Meeting your water intake quota

My tried and true trick to meet my water quota is to start my day with a glass of water and before long, nature calls, and I 'll have to "go". As soon as I'm done in the bathroom, I'll drink another glass, and the cycle continues. If you drink everytime you "pee", you'll have no problem.

When the Sweet Cravings Hit

When I am craving something sweet after dinner or in the afternoon I turn to dessert teas.... chocolate hazelnut, creme caramel, vanilla nut... there are several out there. They usually come in decaf varieties. As an added bonus, tea suppresses your appetite!

Shop the perimeter of the grocery store!

Stick to the perimeter of the grocery store when shopping. You get your fruits and veggies, meat, eggs, juice, healthy breads, etc and skip all that processed food that is loaded with salt and other preservatives!

Eating Right Portions when I eat out

I cut all my portions in half. No matter what the portion is I only eat half of what I get except for Vegetables!

Tired of Raw Vegetables?

I've never met a vegetable I didn't like, so eating them plain and raw is fine with me. But for some variety, I keep a bottle of Wishbone Salad Spritzers handy and this jazzes up the flavors and is a change in the "same old thing." Zero calories for 10 sprays keeps within my calorie budget.

Meal Planning

I find that if I have food planned and with me I am not tempted to head to the vending machine at school at night. I plan meals the night before and pack a bag with a meal and snack for the evening and I am not tempted to grab the junk.

Portion control for a busy lifestyle

On weekends, I make vegetable soup in a crockpot. I freeze individual portions to take to work for lunch. Some weeks I make chicken vegetable, other weeks my choice is beef vegetable.

Putting together food groups

Tracking food is so important to weight loss. But it was tedious until I started putting together food groups and favorites. Now it takes me far less time. I thought I was label conscience before, but much more so now especially the calories per portion, VERY IMPORTANT!

consistency

I am a creature of HABIT. Thus, where some find it boring and mundane, I find it comforting to find a meal that works for me,(keeps me full, healthy, etc) & I stick with that every day! At least 5 days a week.

Buy a Food Processor and Use Your Imagination

I started buying food I never heard of before, like couscous, tofu, lentils etc and spend hours looking for healthy recipes. I bought my first avocado and fresh spinach at age 43, how sad is that? But anyhow, then I bought a food processor and used some creativity to make some very tasty meals.