Bikini Ready

Eating healthy doesn't have to be boring. It's all about getting into a new routine and sticking to it until you learn to love it!

It's sad for me to admit, but when I get to work the first thing I look forward to is eating my bowl of oatmeal! The great thing about skipping the Instant Oatmeal packs and making your own is you know exactly what goes into it! (plus its a lot healthier for you - instant has added sugar/salt/chemicals, even if you get the plain kind, but regular has none of them).

My Morning Oatmeal:

1/2 cup of Old Fashioned Quaker Oats

1/2 cup of skim milk

1/2 cup of water

1 tablespoon of brown sugar or honey

4-5 of each raspberries and blackberries

In a bowl I combine the oats, milk, water and brown sugar. If you are using a shallow bowl I suggest cooking in two rounds for 1 minute 15 seconds (total of 2 1/2 minutes) since the milk has a tendency of making the oatmeal bubble overboard. Add the berries to the top, and if you are feeling extra indulgent you can also drizzle a little honey on top (I usually do one or the other). Since you are using old fashioned oats instead of instant it also helps keep you feeling full longer! Try topping with almonds, strawberries and bananas! You can always mix up your toppings!

My actual oatmeal, drizzled with a little honey (no brown sugar)

Another habit I have been introducing to my waistline is packing a salad for lunch, rather than bringing last nights leftovers (I mean dinner is the heaviest meal of the day so why am I eating it twice?) Just like oatmeal, the great things about salads is you can add different ingredients each day to make it feel brand new! 

I love adding dried cranberries and walnuts with a light pomegranate vinaigrette to some spinach. For a more hearty salad I love adding avocados, red onion, green bell peppers and carrots to a spring mix salad with a light ranch or italian dressing. In the summer time sliced apples or strawberries are delicious! Lets be honest, you probably aren't going to make your own dressing, but if you were here is an easy one.

Light Pomegranate Vinaigrette:

3 tablespoons pomegranate juice

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar

1 tablespoon honey

Pinch of Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1/4 cup olive oil 

or check out this recipe for a pomegranate balsamic salad dressing with only 26 calories! I love packing my salads with some grilled chicken or miso soup! I just recently ordered the spicy chicken salad while out to dinner at the Cheesecake Factory and can't wait to replicate it (although Hungry Girl only rated it a 5). It has a corn salsa, black beans, roasted red peppers, brown rice, grilled chicken and cilantro (almost like a healthy Chipotle burrito bowl)! Which brings me to my next recipe...

My healthier version of Chipotle's Cilantro Rice: (tastes amazing)

1 cup extra long grain rice or basmati rice

1/2 lime, juice of (or a couple good squirts of lime juice concentrate)

2 cups water

1 tsp salt

Handful of fresh chopped cilantro

1 tablespoon vegetable/olive oil

In a small pot, add rice, water, 1/2 tablespoon of oil and salt. Bring to a boil then reduce heat and cover. Once fully cooked, in a medium bowl, combine chopped cilantro, lime juice, rice and remaining oil and toss until completely mixed. I love serving this as if I was making a burrito bowl. I mix with corn salsa, fat free sour cream, lettuce, black beans and chicken (grilled with garlic, chili powder, cumin and ground pepper).

Heres to Healthy Beginnings and itty bitty bikinis!
xoxo,
Cara