I’ve been talking about my weight loss journey, and several of my readers have emailed to ask me to share my tips and tricks.  I can say with great confidence that all of my greatest tips and tricks for living a healthy lifestyle come from my failures or identifying areas I struggle in. My struggles have definitely evolved as I’ve gone from having a full time job, to one child, to two kids.

For this current season of life, my biggest food struggles are being busy during the day and wanting to load up on quick, fast food, or processed foods.  I’ve also got a horrible habit of rewarding myself with sweets during toddler meltdowns.   I find that having a concrete plan is helpful!  I like to make a schedule/meal plan, will I need to pack a lunch, or will I eat at home everyday? I also consider if I’ll eat out that week and, if so, not just at any old place. I’ll try to find something like the top restaurant downtown Charlottesville has rather than just junk food takeout.

I love to prep my meals and I think that has had a big impact on my ability to keep to my schedule!  I thought I would share some tips for simplifying the meal prep process.

Boil some eggs.

Use the crockpot to make bulk chicken or ground beef.

Spiralize your veggies! 

I recently discovered these Reynolds™ Disposable Heat & Eat containers.  They make planning your meals for the week so much easier.  They are made with plant based products!  Perfect for the microwave.

You can grab these amazing containers at Wal-Mart!