Menu Plan Monday Week 50: Eating Clean and Healthy

Happy Monday! Wow, what a weekend this has been! Explored a beach somewhat near us, date night, and lots of working out!

As you all know I am very active. Most of my hobbies involve being on the go and my love for all things beachbody keep me toned up. Also, I eat fairly healthy 80% of the time...right now it is more like 95% of the time as I have a little more fat on my abs than I prefer and I'm trying to get that to go away. I don't eat 100% clean all the time because I am human and I love things like cinnamon rolls and cookies so right now I am allowing my self one cheat meal one time per week. This takes some serious planning and some sacrifice on my part as I really love food...really, really bad for me food. But, I know this doesn't make me feel good. It really makes me feel quite awful. So before I put something into my mouth I ask myself last time you ate this did you say you shouldn't eat this again? If I did I either cut it in half & just savor a small amount or usually I put it away entirely and find something else because I don't want to feel horrible later.

Now, because most people have the misconception that eating clean can leave you hungry and that you don't eat much I am going to bust that myth with my schedule:

Disclaimer: I am not a doctor nor a health & nutrition expert by any stretch of the imagination. I have just played around over the years and know what works for ME. Take this advice with a grain of salt and play around and see what works for you. Always consult a physician with any drastic dietary changes.

7 am or so: chug 8oz of water I keep by my bed
7:20am: warm cup of water boiled with lemon & cinnamon
8am: breakfast
10:30 am (Post workout): Protein shake
12:30 or 1:00pm: lunch
3:00pm: snack
6:00pm: dinner (I usually have a glass of red or white wine with dinner, whatever will complement the meal more)
8:30pm: snack, but only if I am hungry.
Throughout the day I drink an additional 2-3 liters of water.

My 8:30 pm snack does not always happen. If I am feeling tired and know I will be going to bed around 10:30 or 11:00, if I am feeling peckish I will just tough it out because if I eat too close to bed time I will have really weird dreams and they will disturb my sleep and I am like a princess and need my beauty rest...especially as I've gotten older and more active. Remember sleep is a great way for the body to recover so make sure you are getting enough! I know situation for some of us can sort of mess that up, but get as much as you can!

So, anyway moving on....here is this week's menu!

Go to Org Junkie to see other yummy meal plans!

Breakfast:
M-W-F: Egg burritos with sweet potato pieces and fruit.

Egg burrito
Serves 1
1 Egg
3 egg whites
Burrito fillings such as:
Diced tomato
Diced onion
Black beans or kidney beans
Avocado
Dash of Cumin
Salt & pepper
Salsa (if you don't make your own read the label & make sure there isn't any added crud in it like sugar/high fructose corn syrup)

Combine the egg & three egg whites and whip with a fork. Pour into a pan sprayed with non stick spray and let cook for a few minutes as if you were making an omelette. Once set a bit toss in a bit of your favorite burrito fillings like tomato, onion, a sprinkle of beans, some avocado. Season with a sprinkling of cumin, salt & pepper. Fold over the sides like you would a burrito and let finish cooking, flip when you feel it is ready. Put on plate and pour a bit of salsa over the top. Serve with some diced sweet potato and a bit of fruit.

Tues-Thurs Banana Pancakes with nut butter & berries

Banana Pancakes
Serves 1
2 eggs
1 banana
1 Tablespoon nut butter of choice
Handful of fresh berries

Mash banana until nice & liquidyish, in separate bowl whip the two eggs. Combine with a whisk until mostly smooth & outside edges are a bit foamy. Cook as you would pancakes in a lightly greased skillet. Cover each pancake with about half to 1 teaspoon of nut butter. Sprinkle some fresh in season berries over the top.

Saturday: This is usually my treat meal. I freaking love cinnamon rolls and the grocery store here sells some chemical laden high fructose corn syrup no doubt made custardy cinnamon rolls that I LOVE. So, I usually have ONE of these with a green smoothie.

Sunday: Egg white omelettes (for hubby & the kiddo they will be regular egg omelettes because they need more fat in their diets) with a combo potato/sweet potato hashbrown mix, and a strawberry spinach salad.

Lunch
M-W-F: Turkey & cheese sandwiches with green smoothie & side salad.

Sandwiches
Serves 1
2 slices whole wheat bread (read ingredients make sure tit only has good stuff)
Mayo (read label again)
Dijon mustard (again, read your label)
2 slices nitrate free turkey
1 slice cheese of choice
Sandwich add on's:
Onion
Lettuce
Tomato
Red pepper

Spread mayo on one side, mustard on the other, put down cheese on one side (I like to spit the cheese in half so I have some on each side). Lay down the turkey on one side, put in the add on's you want on top of the turkey, top with other side. Cut in half if desired.

Side salad:
Serves 2
Diced cucumber
Diced tomato
Green onion, sliced thin
Olive oil
Balsamic Vinegar
Salt
Pepper

Combine the cucumber, tomato, and green onion. Top with a drizzle of olive oil, balsamic vinegar. Add salt & pepper to taste. (I like to make this the  night before so I can let the oil & vinegar really settle into the cucumber because secretly I hate cucumber lol)

Tuesday: Green smoothies from the Vitamin shop and a big green salad to go from the grocery store. We are going to our new apartment to wait on our furniture that day so no telling how long that will take and what all I will have managed to get in the house before then.

Thursday: Green smoothie with egg white omelette stuffed with tomato, onion, peppers

Friday: Tuna salad served on apples with green smoothie 

Tuna Salad
Serves 1
1 can of tuna in water
1 hard boiled egg
1 teaspoon of mayo
1 teaspoon of dijon mustard
1/4 of an avocado
Diced onion

Drain the can of tuna and put the tuna in a bowl. Gently cut the hard boiled egg in half & separate the yolk, dice the egg white. In a small bowl mash the quarter of an avocado with the yolk from the egg. Combine avocado/yolk mixture with the tuna and egg whites. Add in the mayo, mustard, and onion. Serve on apple slices.

Saturday: Soup & sandwiches

Sunday: Out for a late lunch/early dinner if it is nice. If it isn't nice I will grill up some chicken breasts & serve with brown rice and some mushrooms and onions.

Dinner

Monday: brown rice veggie mix (brown rice with a bag of mixed veggies), zucchini on the side topped with cheese and a side salad...hubby will have chicken satay, rice, and corn

Tuesday: Will probably eat out. Having furniture delivered that day & will have to be out & about getting things like towels and what not for the new place.

Wednesday: Homemade veggie burgers/regular burgers for hubby with leftover brown rice mix and a cup of sugar snap peas

Thursday: Chicken breasts with homemade fries and side salad

Friday: Pizza and a giant salad (I will make the dough in my bread maker and will serve with a big side salad) or baked potato bar....we will be watching The Neverending Story with the teenager since she hasn't seen that one yet.

Saturday: Will try my hand at a homemade alfredo sauce. The husband has been dying for some good alfredo & none of the restaurants around here serve it & the stores don't sell any. If you have a tried & true recipe that has no veggies in it for my picky husband please leave it in the comments! I will serve the sauce over spaghetti squash for me. Will serve with a big salad.

Sunday: We will have a big late lunch/early dinner out somewhere. For snacks at night we will munch on fruit and any leftovers in the fridge.

Snacks
**Post workout will always be a protein shake** 
Apples & pb
Sugar snap peas, hard boiled eggs
Avocado toast
Leftovers

My week in workouts coming up:
Monday: Run for 20 minutes (2 30 second sprint sessions in there), insanity cardio abs
Tuesday: Insanity Cardio Power & resistance
Wednesday: Run for 40 minutes & Cardio Recovery
Thursday: Insanity Cardio Circuit
Friday: Run 30 minutes and Insanity Cardio Power and Resistance
Saturday: Insanity Pure Cardio
Sunday: P90X, X-Stretch

Busy week coming up! I am most looking forward to playing around with making the Alfredo Sauce. I know it won't be amazing for us, but it will be a nice treat to have! I am going to try and make it with all whole foods so it is more filling and we need to eat less.

What are you cookin' up this week?