iifym

Grocery List Basics

~ cassandra ~ Leave a comment

I thought I’d share my typical grocery list. I always love to see what’s in other people’s carts…maybe I’m just nosy though 🙂

I usually re-stock produce weekly, and then fill in the meat, eggs, etc. when needed. I don’t really follow any type of “diet” per-se, but I’d say I eat mostly “clean” [I hate that word], and then fill in with some fun foods…which is basically the definition of flexible dieting according to me. For example, you can see some sour gummy worms in this photo.

grocery

Meat/protein:
flank steak
lean beef stew meat (I use this for stir fry)
tuna (I like the tuna packets)
eggs
egg whites
chicken breasts
Ground turkey
lunch meat

Dairy:
almond milk
cottage cheese
sliced Tillamook cheese (sandwiches, omelets)

Produce:
apples
bananas
frozen berries
cucumbers
lemons/limes
red peppers
frozen edamame
romaine lettuce
avocados
little red potatoes
onions

Grains:
english muffins
cream of rice
Kodiak pancake mix
rolls for hubby’s sandwiches
popcorn
garlic quinoa/brown rice (seen here)

Other:
Arctic Zero/Halo Top (gotta have my night time snack!!)
Kombucha
olive oil/balsamic
peanut butter
PB2

My other fave toppings/condiments can be found in this post.

Produce varies depending on the time of year. In the winter I eat more steamed broccoli, roasted veggies, and apples. Now, I’m eating more salads, melon, berries, etc. Shopping in season = tastier and cheaper produce.

With this list  I’ll typically make:
Dinners- stir fry, fajitas made with grilled flank with grilled onions/peppers, turkey burgers, some type of large salad with grilled steak or chicken, and we also usually will do breakfast for dinner once a week.
sides- green salad, roasted potatoes/onions, quinoa/brown rice
lunches- sandwiches, tuna salad, leftovers
snacks-cottage cheese + fruit, apples + pb/rice cake w/pb, boiled eggs, popcorn, arctic zero
breakfasts- protein pancakes, omelets, breakfast sandwich

I split most of my grocery shopping between Costco and Sprouts, and fill in a tiny bit at the regular grocery (tuna, soy sauce, etc)

What are your favorite weekly meals? Does my list look much different than yours?

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Low-Cal Ice Cream Float

~ cassandra ~ 1 Comment

Hellooo…I had to share this little gem. It’s super quick, low-cal and hits the spot if you have a sweet tooth! An ice-cream float for less than 200 calories. NO Joke. I already love Zevia and Halo Top, but the 2 together tastes like a real ice cream float! Zevia’s website also has various other float recipes as well that sound amaze! [Strawberry zevia + vanilla Halo top would also be great!]

Macros on 1 can of  cream soda +  1 cup of chocolate halo top:
130 calories// 30 carbs/7 fat/14 protein

You could also use arctic zero for even less calories, but Halo Top is definitely creamier and more like real ice cream.

zevia_float

 

Do you have any go-to snacks when the sweet tooth hits??

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Recipe: Easy Protein Pancakes

~ cassandra ~ Leave a comment

I finally bought some Kodiak Cakes pancake mix (after getting a free sample), and I am loving how easy it is! I can’t even call this a recipe!

picmonkey_image (2)

for the pancakes:
1/2 c kodiak mix
1/2 c egg whites

topping:
1/3 serving protein powder
2 T PB2
enough milk to make a thin liquid

3/4 c frozen berries
sprinkle of chia seeds

combine the egg whites and pancake mix. cook over medium heat, flipping after 90 seconds. Combine the topping ingredients. Microwave berries, and then mash.  Add chia seeds to the berries, and allow to thicken for a few minutes.

Layer pancakes with toppings and enjoy!

Macros: 422 calories// 54 carbs//5 fat//42 protein

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Perfect Breakfast Sandwich

~ cassandra ~ 1 Comment

My newest breakfast obsession is this beautiful little sandwich. I go through phases (see the last one here)….and I’m OBSESSED. It takes like 5 minutes to make, and is perfect for any meal. It keeps me full for a super-long time too thanks to the glorious fats from the egg and avocado.

Breakfast-Sandwich

Ingredients:
english muffin
cheese
1 egg or 1/3 c egg whites
morning star veggie patty (could also sub turkey sausage, or whatever you want!!)
avocado

It’s pretty self explanatory, just make sure that english muffin gets toasted to perfection ❤
Macros depend on how much of eat you use. I usually do 1/3 c egg whites, 1/2 slice cheese, and 1/4 of an avocado with a 120 calorie english muffin it comes out to 335 calories- 35 carbs/12 fat/25 protein. Boom!

Have a great Thursday!

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10 Minute Meal Prep with Costco

~ cassandra ~ 3 Comments

In my opinion meal prepping can make or break you when it comes to staying on track during a busy week. It can also be intimidating to spend an hour or 3 on Sunday/Monday night. Enter my beloved costco. With 3 products and 10 minutes, a weeks worth of lunches can be prepped!

Meal Prep with Costco3 products:
Frozen steam-able broccoli (frozen veggie section)
Seeds of Change brown rice/quinoa packets (dry rice/pasta section)
Shredded Rotisserie Breast meat (deli section)

broccoli: 6 minutes
rice: 90 seconds
portion chicken: 3 minutes

While the broccoli is steaming, portion your chicken. I usually do 3 or 4 oz servings, but this depends on you and your goals/daily caloric intake you are aiming for. Any chicken you/you’re family won’t use in one week can be frozen. After the broccoli is done, allow to cool for a moment. While rice is in the microwave, portion broccoli. During this time you may also want to chop some extra fruit or veggies for snacks. After the rice is done, allow to cool and measure it into your containers. All done!

The great thing about these simple meals is that they can be seasoned in anyway and of course you can use any veggie you’d like. I like to put Franks on mine, or sometimes will make a quick peanut sauce with PB2 to throw on top.

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Pumpkin Protein Waffles

~ cassandra ~ 2 Comments

Good news…my pumpkin protein pancake recipe worked perfectly in the waffle maker. And SO yummy  too.

Waffles

Recipe:
1 scoop Cellucor Cinnamon Swirl Protein (or protein of your choice- vanilla would be good with some extra cinnamon mixed in)
1 egg
1/4 c pumpkin
1/4 c egg whites

mix together, pour into preheated/greased waffle iron.

topping:
mix to desired consistency- SF/FF jello pudding in cheesecake flavor, splash of milk, and about 1/4 c greek yogurt.

enjoy!

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Fitness Resources: Workouts and Flexible Dieting

~ cassandra ~ 3 Comments

I thought I would share a few of my favorite (and what I think are reputable) sources for fitness info. I have linked to blogs before, but I really wanted to focus on good quality, well-researched information to either start working out, new workout programs, and info about flexible dieting aka IIFYM [which I have found very beneficial to my overall well-being].Since I was compiling my own list of resources, I figured others may be interested as well.

fitness&flexible dieting

 

  •  Girls Gone Strong: A motivational and very helpful website with alllll kinds of info about health topics pertaining specifically to women. Lots of good workout how-tos.
  •  Precision Nutrition: Very well-known and well-respected company with a wealth of knowledge on their site. The authors are all very well educated. I’m SO excited to start my Nutrition Coaching certification through them next week!
  • Bodybuilding.com: The classic go-to for fitness info. It can be intimidating since there is SO much, but the workout programs are great. There is info for people at all fitness levels. Check out this article on female strength training for beginners.
  • BioLayne: I couldn’t mention Flexible Dieting without mentioning Dr. Layne Nortion. He’s a PhD in Nutritional Sciences so he really knows his stuff. He has a great youtube channel as well where he busts a lot of myths and misconceptions about nutrition and fitness.
  • Kyle Hunt Fitness: he has a great ebook on flexible dieting, and his blog has great info about reverse dieting, nutrition misnomers, etc.
  • Krissy Mae Cagney: aka kmaecags on social media…She also has a great ebook on FD (and ebook weight lifting programs as well) The flexible dieting book teaches you how to calculate macros for yourself based on your goals, which is essential!
  • Healthy Living Heavy Lifting: From the title of the site, this obviously has fitness info too, but I really love the perspective on nutrition.

Do you have any go-to sites for health and fitness? Happy Thursday!

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IIFYM/Flexible Dieting Update #2

~ cassandra ~ 2 Comments

So today is officially 4 weeks since I started IIFYM (read my intro post here and update #1 here).

IIFYM

My relationship with food has changed so much in a month it is crazy. I’ve been consistently tracking, and consistently seeing progress. I weighed myself for the first time in a LONG time, and I’m about 5 lbs lighter than I was last time. I’m also lifting more weight and hitting PRs more consistently, which makes me happy. I just want to be strong! It’s been surprisingly hard to eat so many carbs (which isn’t even a lot- I just was just eating SUPER low carb before- so no wonder I wasn’t making #gainz). Carbs and fats are not to be feared!

IIFYM

 

People commonly think IIFYM is full of poptarts and butterflies, but really I’ve continued to eat a lot of nutrient-dense foods. Lots of eggs, veggies, chicken- but sometimes will have some cereal or whatever. It’s been really freeing to have no food “rules”. Nothing is off limits, but tracking gives me accountability, which I really needed. So here’s to another month!

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Protein Snacks

~ cassandra ~ 1 Comment

We all know protein is important for keeping and building muscle (and also, keeping you full). Now that school is back in session, it’s always good to have a few extra snacks in your purse for busy days! Here are a few of my faves….

protein-snacks

beef jerky
Muscle Milk light drink boxes (costco)
Greek yogurt
rolled up lunch meat w/cheese stick
Questbar
cottage cheese
boiled eggs
GoodFoods Chicken Cranberry Almond Salad (costco)
Tuna Packets (pre-drained)

What are your go-to healthy snacks?

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IIFYM/Flexible Dieting Update

~ cassandra ~ 2 Comments

So I’m about 3 weeks into my IIFYM Experiment, and I have to say- I am loving it. I’ve been consistently tracking since August 1 (with the exception of a few days). I haven’t been on point the whole 3 weeks…my little brother was in town last week and I ate more Sour Patch Kids than I’d care to admit (#guiltypleasure), but so far so good. I’m seeing improvements, so I’m happy.

IIFYM

I originally calculated my macros from the IIFYM website, and then recalculated last night based on this ebook called Flexible Dieting. I highly recommend the ebook. She is amazing.

Anyway… Just thought I’d share a few things I’ve learned in the past 3 weeks.

  • my body likes carbs. I didn’t realize how much I was restricting carbs in the past, but it became obvious when I first started tracking and was so far from my carb goal at the end of the day. I ate a few servings of fruit a day, and figured that would do it- but NOPE. (which explains the reasons for binging. restricting fats or carbs too much for too long is bound to lead to binges.) BUT since focussing on increasing my carbs, I feel like my training is better- I’m hitting more PRs.
  • Eating more and getting leaner = mind. blown. Heavy lifting is taxing on the body aka the body needs food to prepare and recover. Duh.  I honestly feel like my metabolism has been on fire which is a great feeling!
  • Tracking has been SO beneficial. I was nervous about IIFYM for a while because I didn’t want to become obsessed with counting and numbers. Turns out it’s just helping me be more aware of what I’m putting in my body, and how my body reacts.
  • I still have a hard time including junk in my macros regularly. On the weekends if we eat out, I’ll obviously track as best I can. But, I still have the mentality that there are “off-limits” foods- which is the restrict/binge mindset that Flexible Dieting/IIFYM aims to combat. For example, if I were to have candy in the house (my weakness) it would be difficult for me to just count out a few ..It’s a work in progress, but so far so good. Still learning a lot.

I’m excited to see how my body continues to change! Will post some progress pics in September. Happy Hump Day!

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