Summer Slim Down

How's it going guys? Summer is fast approaching and, like many others, I've gotten a little puffy over winter. I have approximately four weeks to lose my fluff and I wanted to share my plan with you guys.

Whenever you're on a journey to lose weight, it's important to remember that it's not all about the number on the scale or even really what you look like. It's about how you feel about yourself and your health. What I mean by that is, when you look in the mirror, are you happy about what you see? Are you proud of the person you see looking back at you? In order to feel happy about your body, you need to love it. Not anyone else. You.


Two weeks ago, I started on my 2k14 summer slim down. So far, I've lost 5 pounds. I'll share with you guys the meal plan that I followed and the workouts that I did. This is an adapted version of a meal plan that I found on skinnyms.com and I recommend that you guys take a look at her website for additional healthy recipes.
Please keep in mind that I am not a certified nutritionist and that you may need to alter this plan in order to meet your personal daily caloric needs.

Day One:

Breakfast: Whole-Grain Banana Blueberry Pancakes (274 cal.) + 1 tablespoon maple syrup (52 cal.)

Lunch: Slow Cooker Hearty Vegetable and Bean Soup (183 cal.)

Dinner: 2 slices of Zucchini Bell Pepper Pizza (230 cal.)

Garden Salad with Lemon & Oil Dressing (220 cal.)

Snack Option: Hard-Boiled Egg (78 cal.)

Total: 1,037 calories

Day Two:

Breakfast: 2 Individual Egg and Spinach Bowls (168 cal.)

Lunch: Quinoa and Vegetable Stir-Fry (250 cal.)

Dinner: Slow Cooker Enchilada (249 cal.)

Dessert Option: Sweet and Savory Parfait (374 cal.)

Total: 1,041 calories

Day Three:

Breakfast: Cinnamon Roll Oatmeal (327 cal.)

Lunch: Asian Chicken Wrap (123 cal.)

Dinner: Slow Cooker Cheesy Spaghetti with Turkey Sausage (256 cal.)

Kale Caesar Salad (217 cal.)

Snack Option: Slow Cooker Cinnamon and Honey Nuts (192 cal.)

Total: 1,115 calories

Day Four:

Breakfast: Overnight French Toast Casserole (299 cal.)

Lunch: Clean-Eating Cobb Salad (282 cal.)

Dinner: Slow Cooker Chicken Chili (142 cal.)

Citrus and Spinach Salad with Creamy Lemon Dressing (318 cal.)

Snack Option: Orange (45 cal.)

Total: 1,086 calories

Day Five:

Breakfast: Skinny Fruit and Yogurt Salad (140 cal.)

Lunch: Spicy Potato and Chickpea Stew (385 cal.)

Dinner: Skinny Lasagna Roll (240 cal.)

Snack Option: Peanut Butter and Honey Oat Bar (157 cal.)

Dessert Option: Slow Cooker Brown Rice Pudding (194 cal.)

Total: 1116 calories

Day Six:

Breakfast: Pita Pocket Breakfast Sandwich (297 cal.)

Lunch: Slow Cooker Fiesta Chicken Soup (112 cal.)

Dinner: Three Cheese Ziti with Turkey (289 cal.)

Garden Salad with Lemon & Oil Dressing (220 cal.)

Snack: Iced Grande Skinny Mocha Latte from Starbucks (100 cal.)

Total: 1018 calories

Day Seven:

Breakfast: 2 pieces Crustless Asparagus Quiche (106 cal.)

Lunch: Spinach and Bean Burrito Wrap (282 cal.)

Dinner: Skinny Slow Cooker Chicken Pot Roast (178 cal.)

Farro Salad with Apples and Walnuts (389 cal.)

Snack: Venti Iced Caramel Macchiato from Starbucks (370 cal.)

Total: 1325 calories

Day Eight:

Breakfast: Pick Me Up Breakfast Smoothie (297 cal.)

Lunch: Creamy Pesto Pasta Salad (190 cal.)

Dinner: Baked Parmesan Chicken (197 cal.)

Black Bean and Brown Rice Salad (292 cal.)

Snack Options: Slow Cooker Skinny Apple Sauce (82 cal.), Orange (85 cal.)

Total: 1058 calories

Day Nine:

Breakfast: Pumpkin Spice Bread (177 cal.)

Lunch: Veggie and Pesto Sandwich (260 cal.)

Dinner: Quinoa and Shrimp Paella (275 cal.)

Snack Option: Nectarine (63 cal.)

Dessert Option: Apple Berry Crisp (280 cal.)

Snack: 1 cup of 1% Lowfat Milk (102 cal.)

Total: 1094 calories

Day Ten:

Breakfast: Blueberry Banana Bar (269 cal.)

Lunch: Asian Salad with Crispy Chicken (173 cal.)

Dinner: Southwestern Black Bean Casserole (259 cal.)

Cucumber and Tomato Salad (66 cal.)

Dessert Option: Slow Cooker Bananas Foster (110 cal.)

Snack: 1 cup Almond Milk (60 cal.)

Total: 937 calories

Day Eleven:

Breakfast: Banana Oat Pancakes with Apricot Compote (312 cal.)

Lunch: Clean Eating Chicken Salad Pita (240 cal.)

Dinner: Skinny Quinoa Skillet Supper (221 cal.)

Watermelon, Tomato and Feta Salad (162 cal.)

Dessert Option: Slow Cooker Fudge (114 cal.)

Total: 1049 calories

Day Twelve:

Breakfast: Yogurt Parfait (184 cal.)

Lunch: Turkey wrap, potato chips and chocolate chip cookie (540)

Dinner: Greek Pita Sandwich (250 cal.)

Total: 974 calories

Day Fourteen:

Cheat Day

Workout:

As for as working out goes, I don't exactly have a specific plan that I do everyday. I tend to do what I have time for. However, here's a sample of what a workout of mine usually looks like:

40 classic crunches

50 squats

20 lunges (10 per leg)

50 push-ups (increase by 5 each day)

20 minutes run on the treadmill at 7.5 MPH at an incline of 3

1 hour of Pilates

For my Pilates, I do Blogilates videos on YouTube.If you are limited on time for working out, I HIGHLY recommend that you forgo all of the things that I listed above and just do some various Blogilates videos. You will see the difference in your body in less than a week. Cassey truly is an amazing instructor and very motivating. She has hundreds of videos for all different parts of the body including total body workouts and cardio. I highly, highly recommend that you check her out on YouTube and, if you stick with it, I promise you will notice a difference.

These upcoming four weeks before I go away for summer, I'm going to be trying out a diet called The Fast Metabolism Diet by Haylie Pomroy. It was recommended to me a by a few friends of mine who have done it in the past and lost a pretty significant amount of weight on it. I'm excited to try it and to let you guys know how it goes. It you'd like to purchase the book, you can do so here. You can buy the app that you need to go along with it on the iTunes store for $2.95.

If anyone decides to try the meal plan listed above, let me know how it goes for you. Good luck!