Congratulations! You’ve made the first step in your commitment to a healthier lifestyle. How does it feel? Can you feel the pounds melting off already? You are going to look and feel fabulous before you know it mama! As mommies we tend to always put our health and self care on the back burner while we tend to our children, keep track of daily activities, and spend time with our significant others. I’m glad that so many of us are taking the first steps to put our health and self care back on the schedule. 

Working out is a big first step, but it’s not the only step to make changes in our lives. It’s important that we keep our bodies moving to stay healthy, but we must couple workouts with clean eating. My husband has this saying, “You can’t outwork a bad diet,” and as a former personal trainer, I tend to pay attention to his expertise. So I have to ask, “What are you eating mama?” We’ve all been there where we’re working on our fitness and we get home and there’s nothing to eat, so we make excuses for choosing unhealthy foods with a promise to work it off in our next workout session. 

If you want to maximize the results in your new healthier lifestyle journey I have put together a few tips to help stock your kitchen with foods to make clean eating easier. We want to do everything we can to make our new commitment, a lifestyle change. 

Spices

Keep healthy spices like pepper, sea salt, Himalayan pink salt, turmeric, ginger, curry, paprika, oregano, rosemary, parsley and garlic on hand to season beef poultry and fish. Combining many of these seasonings will make a delicious rub for your meats.

Healthy Oils

Replace canola oil, vegetable, and crisco oil with healthier oils like olive, coconut, avocado, or grapeseed oil.

Nuts and Seeds

Keep nuts like walnuts, almonds, cashews, and sunflower seeds on hand to help curb unhealthy snacking. Pair nuts with dried fruits to make a quick trail mix between meals. 

Leafy Greens

Leafy greens are great for salads or smoothies. Spinach, Kale and Chard are all great options for introducing leafy greens to your diet.

Veggies

Listen to me. Eat all the greens! All of them, as many as you can. Add them to sides with your dinner. Whatever you do, just eat them. They are delicious.

Fruit

Fruits make excellent snacks and wonderful additions to smoothies. Remember, fruit is natures candy so if you have a sweet tooth, grab a piece of fruit to help satisfy that craving. 

Protein Sources

When choosing protein sources try to choose healthier cuts of meat, wild caught fish, and cage free eggs. 

Sauces and Condiments

A good rule of thumb when purchasing sauces and condiments is to monitor the amounts of sugar in the ingredients. Avoid unhealthy ingredients like soy and unhealthy oils used as ingredients. 

Other Clean Eating Foods

My family and I try to stick as closely to a Paleo and Whole30 mix of eating habits as we can. As a result, we tend to keep away from grains, legumes, and dairy products. There are some healthy grains like quinoa, oats, and rice that fall into clean eating that you can keep on hand in your pantry, as well as dried beans and lentils. Adding plain greek yogurt to smoothies or granola can also be a delicious snack. If dried fruits are your thing, pick up some goji berries or blueberries.

Let’s do this!

We all want to make a smooth transition into a much healthier lifestyle and being able to set ourselves up for success in our eating habits is the next step in our commitment to becoming healthier and fit mommies. 

Until Next time,

Mommi Bella