Wednesday, March 21, 2012

DAY 9: SUBSTITUTIONS

My husband and I have been in Mississippi for a couple of days, and I probably don't have to tell you how difficult it can be to stay on track while you are visiting grandparents who love to feed you! I cheated a little and have one of Papaw's homemade strawberry cupcakes, some peanut butter M&Ms, and a delicious bacon cheeseburger and fries from a local Tupelo burger joint. And I don't feel the least bit guilty, because with all that cheating, I still have lost 1.5 pounds and two inches in the past week! 

I think it's okay to cheat every once in a while as long as you eat a healthy diet. I've been loading up on fruits, fresh veggies, whole grains, lean meats and healthy fats (olive oil and avocado), so my splurge wasn't enough to really set me back. 

As the temperature rises outside, I've been staying cool with creamy guacamole. I don't eat mayonnaise, but if you do, guacamole is a tangy, healthy alternative. Here's my easy recipe:



1 avocado
1/2 cup salsa (I use On The Border medium salsa)
the juice of 1/2 a lime
3 garlic gloves, chopped

Throw all of the above ingredients in a food processor and blend until you reach desired consistency. I like mine a little thicker than applesauce, so it's easy to spread onto a turkey sandwich. And avocados provide numerous health benefits, from fighting several types of cancer to boosting heart and eye health.

I also found another healthy substitution. I recently discovered that my favorite drink at Starbucks, a tall decaf soy white chocolate mocha, had over a whopping 350 calories! So I tried an alternative, a tall decaf soy (because I'm still breastfeeding) iced skinny vanilla latte, which has only 90 calories and less sugar. It tastes almost exactly the same (except my new drink is a little less sweet, which I appreciate), but I can drink guilt-free!

As far as exercise goes, Sunday was a rest day for me. Monday, I walked/jogged at a local park with Liam in the jogging stroller and my three nieces. I didn't do any cardio yesterday, but I did manage to fit in some upper body strength training and a little core work. Even if I can't fit in a full workout when I'm on the road, I still try to do the following exercises once a day so I don't lose focus: 

Pushups
Tricep dips (on the floor, not on a chair, but this video shows the modified chair technique)

Today, I'm planning to do Insanity Pure Cardio and Ab Ripper X. There's nothing like seeing the scale move to boost my motivation to keep going.

Happy Hump Day!





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