Meal Pinning Monday

Linking up with Emily after taking a week off from the blog!

Last Monday, I started a 30 day transformation (no cheats + exercise), so I have a full blown meal plan for the entire month. With that said, I do not have much planned for eating from pinterest this month. I am, however, going to try to find something similar on pinterest that would serve the purpose!

Monday

Shake Day :)

Tuesday

B- steel cut oatmeal with a scoop of protein powder

S- Greek Yogurt with Xypstick

L- Chicken Salad (Chopped grilled chicken, a little greek yogurt, a little jalapeno, a little dijion mustard) 

all served in a romaine lettuce cup

S- Lean Shake

D- Grilled Pork Chop and Grilled Zucchini Salad (I will probably make the following with a drizzle of this yummy Ranch Vinaigrette).

Wednesday

B- Shake with banana

S-almonds

L- a version of the below... this is my least favorite meal. it will be hard to eat, but I can also have salsa and a little bit of cheese, so I may use grilled chicken and mix it all up and make it like a taco bowl or something.

D- Grilled Steak and a Salad

Thursday
B-2 boiled eggs and a piece of wheat toast
L- Grilled Chicken Salad
D- Grilled Steak with Parmesan Asparagus :)

Friday
B- Wheat Toast with Almond Butter
L-Chef Salad
D- Pork Chop with Kale Salad

Saturday
B- Oatmeal with Lean
L- hamburger patty
D- Quinoa, Paleo Tilapia I pinned a few weeks back and never cooked

Sunday
B-Omelet
L- Turkey Sandwich
D- Grilled Chicken Salad

Bring On Week 1! Ready to Kick Butt!!

Weight Loss Wednesday.... Substitutions

One thing miss is good chips! I love Cheetos, sun chips, and I really miss "hot chips and cheese," but none of those are low carb friendly on my xyngular diet, so I had to come up with some substitutions. 

The first one is my Low Carb Chips and Dip. Just baking pepperoni gives you a nice crispy snack with a lot of flavor!

The second is new to me. I've mentioned before that I am super picky!! I am trying to test something new once a week. A few weeks ago, that was zucchini! It really has no flavor and works perfectly as a chip for salsa (and hummus if you like it). 

The third chip substitution comes from the Louisiana Bride Blog. It's her BBQ Kale Chips. I don't know how to put into words how great these little things are!!!

I am always open to other substitutions, so if you have any, please share!!!

Bacon Cheddar Chicken Burger with Honey Mustard

I fell in love with these :) If ground beef wasn't so much cheaper, I would use ground chicken for everything!!

Ingredients for Burger:

1 lb. Ground chicken

1 tbsp. minced garlic

1 tbsp. chives, chopped

1/2 cup grated cheddar

2 tbsp. stone ground mustard

S/P 

In a mixing bowl, combine all ingredients and mix well.

Form into patties. 

Place on george forman and grill until well done!

Sauce:

1/2 C Stone Ground Mustard

1/4 C honey

Stir ingredients until combined

Serve hamburger  on a bed of spinach (and jalapenos if you like heat like I do!). 

Top with cheese, bacon, and honey mustard sauce.

Serve with sweet potato fries.

Weight Loss Wednesday... Desserts

I have had lots of questions about how to enjoy a dessert every now and then on a low carb diet. White taking Xyngular, I really don't have the cravings for lots of carbs and sweets, but let's face it.... NOTHING is going to completely take away the craving for something sweet forever. So I've compiled a few of my go to sweet things when the urge hits! Please understand these things aren't carb free, but they are much better for you than most desserts. The greek yogurt has a fair amount of carbs, but it also has a lot of protein!

1. Chocolate Mouse

All you need for this quick bowl of yummy is one container of plain greek yogurt, a little bit of cocoa powder and a few packets of stevia (enough until it's sweet enough for you). It's super yummy!

2. MIxed Berry Greek Yogurt 

Now, you could buy the flavored kind, but it has extreme amounts of sugars and carbs. I make my own and it has lots less! I sprinkle a little xypstix in my greek yogurt and top with a few berries. It's soooooo goood, and it hits my sweet tooth every time! 

3. Lemon- Berry Slushy

My biggest summer time craving is snow cones, but I cannot allow myself to consume that much sugar! For this, I just pop a peeled lemon, a xypstix mixed with the proper amount of water, and some ice into a blender until slushy consistency! So yummy!!! 

I have pictures some store bought options.

4. Cocoa rosted almonds... if you would like to make your own, my friend Emily at Louisiana Bride Blog has posted a recipe. You can find that here. 

5. Sugar Free Jello! 

6. Sugar Free Popsicles!

7. Nature Valley Protein Bars!

Now I will share a few ideas I have found on pinterest. I have made the chia pudding, and I LOVE it!!! It's a favorite for sure!!! I've also made the PB cookies, and they were nice... not my favorite, but they are good if you want a cookie!

Meal Planning Monday

Linking up with Emily again for Meal Planning Monday!

I am doing another 8 day challenge this week, so my week will be a little strange. Instead of an actual 8 day challenge, I plan to a 4 day one. 

Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday

Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday will be shake days. I'll probably have a lot of coffee shakes this week for meals. Maybe do a lemon shake for dinner! They are pretty good!

For protein snacks, I plan on doing a few things I found on pinterest in the afternoon and protein bars or omelets for breakfast. 

Here are a few of my snacks I plan on making this week.... 

Wednesday

I have been wanting pizza like everyday, so I am giving into the cravings this week!!!
I am making the quinoa pizza bites today even though the link isn't showing here.


Friday

I have a bacon wrapped chicken breast in the fridge that I need to use! I am going to stuff it with this yummy goodness :)


Saturday

I'll be at a wedding, so I'll try to keep my day full of low carb options!

Sunday

Last pizza day!!! I have been trying one new thing a week since I started really running out of foods i like! This week is cauliflower in a cooked way. Last week, I tried Zucchini, and I really liked it!

Low Carb Pancakes

2 posts in 1 day?!? whaaaaat!! Actually, this one belongs with the other one, but I couldn't get it all out at one time, so here we go with post 2 for the day! :)

Decided to make waffles instead of pancakes because I have yet to use the waffle maker I got for Christmas that mom, Spenser, and Michael fought for during Black Friday! However.... I think these work better in pancake form. I did alter the recipe to what I thought would give me really good waffles, but really there were just pancakes in waffle shapes.

This isn't my recipe entirely. A girl doing xyngular with me posted it in our recipe group on My Fitness Pal. She found the recipe in a really old cookbook.... see cookbooks are still gems :)

Low Carb Ricotta Pancakes

4 eggs 
1 cup ricotta cheese 
1/2 vanilla flavored whey protein powder
1 teaspoon baking powder 

optional

blueberries

bananas

walnute or pecans

chocolate chips

Spray griddle with non-stick cooking spray.

In a mixing bowl, whisk together the eggs , butter, and ricotta until smooth. Whisk in the protein powder, baking powder. Mix until well combined. 

Drop batter onto the griddle... amount depending on your preference of size. Flip pancake when it starts bubbling.

Serve with real butter, sugar-free syrup or jelly, or Splenda and cinnamon.

Nutrion Facts (no options added or topping) 

Serving: 1 waffle

Calories: 182

Fat: 13 g

Sodium: 87 mg

Carbs: 2.8 g

Fiber: 0

Sugar: .6 g

Protein: 14 g

***I use full fat everything because I am on a low carb diet, and low fat means high sugar and carb count.
****Nutrional Facts are based on the brands of ingredients I used. I sit in the store and read every label to get the best facts. That may not be the case for you.

Peace, Love, and Geaux Tigers

P.S. On the blog tomorrow-------- CHEAT Day (Pasta Edition)