Meal Plan for the week- 21 Day Fix Approved

Last week was a rough one...my mood was off, I was overwhelmed with work, and I failed to plan my meals leaving me reaching for whatever was in sight.  Not to mention all of the wine that was consumed!

So today I got back on track and made my meal plan, went shopping and prepared everything for the week. I got more creative with my meal planning because I flat out was just SICK AND TIRED of salads EVERYDAY for lunch!  And of course had time for my 30 minute workout with Autumn on the 21 Day Fix workout plan! I seriously love this program because even if you fall off the wagon...it is so easy to get back up again! I am excited to start fresh and be ready to conquer the week!

I have found when I plan everything out for the week, I spend WAYYYYY less money on groceries which means more money in the savings account!....BONUS!! Meal plan below :) 

HEALTHY BIRTHDAY CAKE

ONLY 5 INGREDIENTS!!! Thank you to @tastyhealth for the recipe!

150g whole almonds
1 tsp baking powder
4 Tbsp granulated sweetener of choice
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 Whole eggs plus 2 egg whites

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line a 7" or 8" round pan with parchment paper
2. Place almonds in a food processor and run for a couple minutes until the almonds are ground to a course meal.  Put the almond meal in a bowl, add baking powder and stir well.  Set aside.
3. Whisk one egg white in a bowl until stiff and set aside.  This will take a long time by hand so an electric mixer would be a HUGE help!!
4. In a mixing bowl beat eggs plus one egg white with sweetener (I used stevia) until fluffy. Add the almond meal and stir just until evenly combined.  GENTLY fold in the stiff egg white.  DO NOT STIR!  You want to keep the air in the batter.  Pour into the pan and immediately put in the oven.
5. Bake for about 25-30 minutes or until cake has risen.
6. Allow to cool for 10 minutes, run a knife along the sides and invert the pan onto a large plate.
7. When it is completely cool, cut cake in half and fill it with whatever you like!  I used mashed up bananas and Justin's Hazelnut PB (whipped with milk).  Top with cool whip or frosting!!  SOOO GOOD!! 

FRENCH TOAST (in slow cooker)

Another one of my breakfast favorites turned into a healthy recipe!!

INGREDIENTS:
2 eggs
2 egg whites
2 Tbsp of honey or agave
2 tsp of vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups of almond milk (or whatever milk you prefer)
1 tsp cinnamon
9 slices of whole grain bread (each slice cut diagonally to make 18 triangles)

Filling ingredients:
3 cups of dices apples or bananas
3 Tbsp honey
1 tsp lemon juice
1 tsp cinnamon

DIRECTIONS:

1. Add the first 6 ingredients together in a bowl and whisk. Lightly spray the inside of the slow cooker with nonstick cooking spray.
2. In a separate bowl, Mix all the filling ingredients together, making sure the fruit is coated. Set aside.
3. Place 6 triangle slices of bread in the bottom of the slow cooker.  Add 1/4 of the filling.  Repeat until there are 3 layers of bread.  Add remaining filling.
4. Pour egg mixture over bread. Cover and cook on high 2 to 2 1/2 hrs or until bread has soaked up the liquid.  
5. I topped mine with some liquified PB2, and heated up jam.  You could also do syrup. ENJOY!!

BLUEBERRY WAFFLES WITH CINNAMON HONEY PB

Heaven on earth!!  I love breakfast and I am always looking for ways to make healthy versions of the high in calorie classics.  Here is a good one...enjoy!

INGREDIENTS FOR WAFFLE:
1/4 c oat flour
1 Tbsp coconut flour
1 Tbsp powder peanut butter
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
2 Packets of Stevia
2 Tbsp almond milk
2 Tbsp unsweetened apple sauce
1 Tbsp Nonfat plain greek yogurt
3/4 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp butter extract (if you want)
handful of blueberries

DIRECTIONS:
Mix dry ingredients together.  Then mix wet ingredients into it.  Fold in blueberries.

DIRECTIONS FOR PB:
Place 8oz of peanuts (unsalted) in blender with 1 Tbsp honey and cinnamon to taste.  Continue to blend until it turns into peanut butter.  NO SALT, NO OIL, NO SUGAR NEEDED!!

STUFFED SWEET POTATOES

When I saw this recipe I just had to try it!  My mom makes the unhealthy version of this over Thanksgiving so when I tried it and showed this to her...she said I'm hired this year to make it!  Try it out and let me know what ya think!


INGREDIENTS:
2 Medium sweet potatoes, cooked (bake or microwave)
1 Tbsp peanut butter
1 Tbsp cream cheese (1/3 less fat)
2 egg whites
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
mini marshmallows
corn flakes
almond slivers or pecans

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 375
2. Cut sweet potatoes in half and scoop out the middle, leaving the skin as a "shell"
3. Mix sweet potato insides with PB, cream cheese, egg whites and spices.
4. Scoop mixture back into shells.
5. Crush up the almonds and corn flakes, crumble on top and place a few mini marshmallows on top.
6. Bake for 15 minutes until marshmallows begin to brown.  Can broil for last minute if desired.

ENJOY!

21 Day Fix Results!!

This 21 day experience was pretty amazing.  I learned so so much about myself, my eating habits, how nutrition truly makes the biggest difference in results, and how food is surrounding us in our day to day lives without us even realizing it.

Week 2 was a bit of a struggle as I will flat out admit I cheated several times. The media surrounds us with food and I was weak and gave in. But week 3 I was STRONG and DETERMINED as I knew I had a trip to Florida just days away.  I stuck to it, did the 3 day quick fix at the end, did the double workouts and nailed it! It is more about what I learned than my "number" results but at the same time I am so happy with how much toning and how hard the actual workouts are. I thought there was no way a 30 minute workout could kick my ass...WRONG!

Things learned:

• I used to eat SO MUCH EXTRA food during meal prep
• I ate too much carbs
• I used to crave sweets and fruit all the time
• I would eat too close to bed time
• I didn't hydrate enough
• I worked out too much and did not match my efforts in the kitchen

After this 21 day fix, I will now take it into round two after a few days away in Florida to get some sun and relaxation time.  I will still hold myself accountable while away by knowing how much of each kind of food to eat, even when I am out to eat. SERIOUSLY those few bites of bad, unhealthy food is NOT WORTH THE GUILT AFTER! I will get my workouts in before hitting up the beach, and you better believe I am taking my shakeology with me!  I already looked up that the hotel had a gym before we booked it...have to sweat it out before putting the bikini on.

So the results.... Lost 7 pounds, 4 inches.  I am told my booty looks a lot smaller but that isn't one of the measurements I took haha so add a couple inches to that total lost! Waist is smaller, I FINALLY lost inches off of my soccer legs, and toned up my back and abs.  Beyond excited!

This program was by far the best way to learn how to eat properly.  It truly SIMPLIFIES NUTRITION, and CHALLENGES YOU IN 30 MINUTE WORKOUTS!! The color coded portion controlled containers were awesome!  If you are thinking about this program, JUST DO IT!

And always ask me Lynng258@gmail.com if you have any questions about the program!