Each Pound : 9

Nine things learned for nine pounds lost...

1. it's a calorie goal, not a calorie limit
2. fruits and vegetables are carbohydrates (what?!)
3. weight lifting makes your body feel alive
4. there's a difference between can't and won't
5. it's not a race
6. a higher protein goal precludes less healthy snacks
7. macronutrient goals are as important as calorie goals
8. expect to make mistakes, but own up to them
9. getting adequate rest is important (and still lacking) for muscle recovery

Tip: Plain Yogurt

PLAIN YOGURT


I can't be the only one who sometimes accidentally buys plain yogurt when I mean to buy vanilla (man is THAT ever a bitter surprise). Thus it was by happy accident that I found this super tasty trick. If you get plain by accident or if you just like plain yogurt, try drizzling a generous amount of honey on it. It tastes even better than commercially sweetened yogurt and you can add fresh fruits or jams for extra flavor. You can also go for an entirely different flavor profile and add maple syrup instead of honey – it's actually super delicious!

Tip: Soup Add-Ins

This isn't really a recipe per se, but more of a quick tip so that's what I'm calling it.

SOUP ADD-INS


We have eaten a LOT of soup in this house on busy nights. So much so that we got pretty sick of it. That is, until we discovered Amy's brand organic soups. They. Are. Delicious. Super tasty, healthy, and very reasonably sized and priced. And there are like 30 varieties, too!

The only problem we ran into was that they're also vegetarian and Marcos just doesn't do meatless very well. Fortunately these soups stand up very well to bite-size meat add-ins like chopped ham, chicken, and sausage to make for fantastic and fast main dishes in a pinch.

I highly recommend you pick up a can or two to keep in the back of the pantry for those nights you don't feel like running out or making dinner. Just chop and add some leftovers and voilà! Yummy stuff :)