I have yo-yo dieted throughout my adulthood, with the exception of a couple of really fit years in my early 20s. I know how to eat properly, but I’ve never wanted to lose weight badly enough to give up or limit the stuff I love. And let’s be honest, I love to drink – not just beer, cocktails, and wine, but also Coke. I’d be willing to bet 60% of my body fat is a result of the things I have drank over the years.
I am a firm believer that it takes a true lifestyle change to lose weight permanently. And I’m here to tell you – a diet shake is not a lifestyle change. Just saying.
Dustin and I started changing the way we shop and eat a couple of months ago. It has been gradual, but as a result, I have finally dropped below 150 for the first time since I got pregnant with Quentin. I am not allowing myself to get back above it! I don’t think it will be hard to maintain, but I need to add in some serious exercise so I can keep going. I still have about 30-35 pounds to go!
What we are buying and doing is actually quite simple once you get used to it. We are just eating real food. Period. Now, there are times we just grab something processed, but it’s for one meal and we’re back to The Real Food “diet” the next meal. Dustin has completely eliminated grains and sugars from his diet. I have cut way back on both. I don’t want to eliminate grains, but I can admit that I feel better when I’m not eating them. We basically buy a loaf of multi-grain bread, a gallon of whole milk, some cheese, lean meats and fish, and lots of fruits and vegetables each week. We buy a few other things here and there, like juice and snacks for the boys, as well as some things to complete meals, like a can of tomatoes or something. It has been amazing to watch our entire family change.
The boys are even eating better, thanks to us not providing as much junk. It’s amazing what they’ll eventually eat when they have no other options! Nuggets and fries are still very convenient, since a sitter does their dinner 4 nights out of the week. However, we are slowly changing even that. We have switched to sweet potato fries, for one. That was met with some resistance, but they aren’t even thinking about it much anymore. I have plans to pre-make homemade nuggets for the freezer as well. They already love those, so that’s on me.
I am really excited about the healthier lifestyle we have created in our house! It’s a work in progress, but we are finding that it doesn’t have to be expensive to eat healthy! And it’s way easier than I could have imagined!
