A Step In The Right Direction

 

I woke up this morning and realized I'm one week into my new life. The changes I've put into place will hopefully lead to a healthier me. Stepping on the scales I discovered I'm down a whopping FIVE POUNDS from this time last week!

Am I thrilled with those numbers? Of course I am. Realistically I know most of that is probably water loss and I can't expect those kind of results every week. But it's a step in the right direction.

 

To be perfectly honest, it's not the numbers on the scale I worry about. I've adjusted the food I eat and I've increased my physical activity level. Simple mathematics tells me the numbers will go down. What I worry more about is how to change my mindset which helped get me in this predicament in the first place.

I could be wrong, but I believe most people become overweight for three reasons:

1) Emotional eating...the main monkey on my back. I will have to retrain my brain to look at certain situations in a different manner so once I get the extra weight off, I won't end up allowing negative thoughts sending those numbers back up again

2) Medical conditions...unfortunately I have a couple of those as well. It's a struggle sometimes to select one healthy option that doesn't trigger an unwanted dietary reaction but I'm slowly figuring things out.

3) Pure laziness...sometimes I'm guilty of this. Rushing in the morning so I won't be late for work or at the end of the day being too tired to go home and cook supper, it's easier (and the lazy way out) to grab fast food. I've now stocked my pantry with easy to make meals and carry a piece of fruit to eat on my drive home.

Do you know of any other reason people gain weight? Do one or more of these reasons hold YOU back from creating a healthier version of yourself? WE all can do this! All it's going to take is to begin with one step in the right direction...

LOW CARB RECIPE:

Veggie Cheese Bake (6 servings)

4 medium crookneck squash

4 medium zucchini

1 large orange bell pepper

2 cups low sodium chicken broth

4 oz Kraft fat free Mexican shredded cheese mix

10 slices fat free American cheese

Garlic powder, black pepper, and salt-free seasoning to taste

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.Spray rectangular baking pan with nonstick cooking spray. Layer slices of crookneck squash on the bottom of the pan. Layer slices of orange bell pepper on top of squash. Layer slices of zucchini on top of bell pepper. Add seasoning and chicken broth. Cover with aluminum foil and bake covered for 45 minutes or until vegetable are thoroughly cooked. Drain excess chicken broth to be used later for another recipe and sprinkle shredded cheese over top of vegetables. Layer slices of American cheese over shredded cheese and place uncovered pan back in the oven for another 10 minutes or until cheese is melted. Allow vegetable to sit for 5-10 minutes in order to create a cheese sauce. Yields: 6 servings.

Each serving has 179 calories, 4 g fat, 2.5 saturated fat, 853 mg sodium, 776 mg potassium, 19 g carbs, 4.5 g fiber, 11 g sugars, 17.5 g protein.

***I have more low carb recipes listed on my Pinterest boarrd at https://www.pinterest.com/donasdays/low-carb-goodies/ or check out my Clawing My Way Back To A Healthier Me board on Pinterest at https://www.pinterest.com/donasdays/clawing-my-way-back-to-a-healthier-me/***