The Importance of Meal Planning!!

Why oh why do I always talk about meal planning and why oh why do I share my meal plan with you all each week?  

Meal planning has completely changed the way I and my family eat, it helped me lose weight and keep it off, it helps me save a ton of money on groceries each month, and I love knowing I am prepared!! 

Clean eating has also shown me that it is very true the foods we eat can either give us the fuel to run efficiently or stop us dead in our tracks.  The more I read the more I learn and to me knowledge is POWER!  I was one who never read the ingredient label on packages before, now that is the first thing I check out.  I look for products with the least amount of ingredients and make sure I know what all the ingredients are.  If I can pronounce the word, most likely it is a chemical and should not be put into our bodies.  

The saying you are what you eat, is so very true.  Why? 
Every 35 days, Your Skin replaces itself. Your Liver, about a month.  Your body makes these new cells from the food you eat. What you eat literally becomes YOU!! You have a choice of what you are made of.  

I not only noticed a difference in my weight when I started eating clean but I also saw a difference in my complexion - no more breakouts like I use to have, my hair was growing faster and was more shiny and healthy, my nails were looking the best they ever had, and my energy level was through the roof.  There are so  many more benefits to eating the right foods rather than just weight loss.  

On Sunday each week I plan out my meals for the week ahead. Today I started a new fitness program, Les Mills Pump, and so I am trying a few new recipes from the nutrition guide that came with the program.  I also include on my  meal plan my workouts each day.  I base what I am having for my breakfast and morning snack on my workout that morning.  (I workout at 5am so morning is very critical for me to get my day started right).  

Here is my meal plan for the week.  

Please excuse the lopsided picture! 

Ask  yourself this question - why am I NOT planning my meals in advance? 

 Lack of time, don't know where to start, your family eats different meals, your family won't want to eat healthy, etc.  Whatever the reason why might be, I am inviting you to GIVE IT A TRY.  

You will never know if this can benefit you and your family if you don't give it a try.  

What do you have to lose?

When you are ready I will be here to help you ever step of the way!! I was in your position once too wondering if meal planning will really benefit me and I am here to tell you YES!! I have had great success and so many others have too.  I cannot begin to tell you how much easier it makes life having a meal plan done!!   

Take the time right now and read the following statement to yourself, this is your apology letter to your body for not taking better care of it.  

You are making a change that will last a lifetime!! 

Congratulations!!

Now is the time to learn how to live a 

FIT, HAPPY, and HEALTHY Life 

and we will do it 

TOGETHER!!!!

~Alyson

alysonhorcher@gmail.com

teambeachbody.com/alysonh

myshakeology.com/alysonh

facebook.com/alyson.horcher

@alysonhorcher - Instagram

@alysonhorch - Twitter

Meal Planning Monday

Today I am trying something new - I am creating my meal plan on Monday as opposed to my normal day being Sunday.  This may not seem like a big deal to you but for someone as schedule oriented as I am this is huge.  Something lately has been off with my schedule and so I thought now is the time to change things up a bit and see how it works out.  
You never know until you try, right?!?!

So far today, I have felt like I could take more time to think about our meals for the week.  My goal is to always use up the food we have in the house as opposed to buying.  I am also all about saving money and meal planning and saved us a TON OF $$. Going forward I will make sure whatever we have Saturday or Sunday night that it will be enough food to have as a leftover Monday night so no grocery shopping is necessary.  Then Tuesday, I will go grocery shopping if need be.  My kids loves Bananas and they are on special every Tuesday at our local supermarket so I was always going to the grocery store anyway.  Why not make the most of my time and be MORE EFFICIENT!! 




This morning while the kids were still asleep I sat down with my two favorite books - 
Tosca Reno's Eat Clean Diet Recharged and Eat Clean Diet Stripped.

 Last week and this week I have been following a  modified version of the Stripped plan.  

This was literally my kitchen table this morning.  I had my two books, 2 recipes I found in magazines, and my meal plan from last week.  I write my plan on paper first and then I put it into a word document that I can post. Here is the final version... 

After I have my meal plan done I write up what I absolutely need at the grocery store and then I search through the two local supermarkets to find what's on sale.  I try to save money where ever I can so ad  matching is very important in this process as well as couponing.  Not often do I find coupons for items I need because most tend to be fresh veggies and produce.  In order to save money so we can afford all the fruits and veggies I save elsewhere - household goods, dry staples, health and beauty products, etc.  It is so worth extra effort.           It kills me to pay full price for items!! 

Tuesday we will hit up the grocery store and get what we need and my list is very small this week.  

Since it is mostly fruits and veggies I will most likely go to our local produce/fruit market where you can buy in bulk and save $$.  

Bananas

strawberries,

oranges

cucumber 

watermelon

cantaloupe

Bok Choy

eggs

Cumin (ran out - ugh)

star anise

Nothing exciting was on sale so there will be no need to get anything extra to build 

our stock pile of essentials at home.  

Once we get our groceries in I start to slice and dice and pre-portion foods so it is a quick and easy grab and go.  Grabbing and going is not always the case but regardless it is best for me to do this when I can because then I have less excuses when something does pop up.  

I try to get my kids involved whenever I can because I think it is important for them to understand why Mommy takes the time to do all of this. I not only want to eat healthier but I also want my children to understand why some foods are better than others.  Not only do I want them to treat others with respect, I want them to treat their own bodies with respect.  The first step in doing that is eating a healthy diet.  

 Where do you fall when it comes to eating healthy? 

do you? do you want to? or do you have no desire? 

For those that are interested in eating healthy or want to compare how well they are eating, I invite you to join me in my Healthy Eating & Shakeology group.  Everything is done via the internet so no in person meetings are necessary.  We discuss ways to stay motivated so you are not falling off the wagon every other day, we meal plan, discuss tips to incorporate planning and prepping into your already busy schedule, healthy recipes, snacking idea, tips for travel, and so much more.  If you would like more information or would like to join please CONTACT ME and we will set up a time to discuss your specific needs and wants.  

Now is the time to learn how to live a 

FIT, HAPPY, and HEALTHY Life 

and we will do it 

TOGETHER!!!!

~Alyson

alysonhorcher@gmail.com

teambeachbody.com/alysonh

myshakeology.com/alysonh

facebook.com/alysonhorcher

@alysonhorcher - Instagram

@alysonhorch - Twitter

Happy St. Patrick's Day

It is always a great day when you have an excuse to celebrate where you came from.  Now, I didn't come directly from Ireland but my ancestors did and I am very thankful for the life they have given us here in the U.S.A.  I am also thankful for the delicious food the Irish are  know for.  Today we did not recreate any Irish dishes because we had our fill last evening when we celebrated with family.  There were so many choices and everything was delicious!! and now to think about what will we eat for the rest of the week?

Well thankfully, I am the meal/menu planner.  As you know I create my own meal plan and my family will eat most of what I eat. I do however modify and/or change some of my meals throughout the day for my children.  Dinners we all eat what I make.  I like to try new recipes so those do not always go over so well but we do have everyone at least try!! 

So here is my meal plan for the week

The night is gone but we will always be Irish and that I am very thankful for...

  

Here's to Living a Fit, Happy, and Healthy life

and WE will do it 

TOGETHER!!!!

~Alyson

alysonhorcher@gmail.com

beachbodycoach.com/alysonh

myshakeology.com/alysonh

facebook.com/alysonhorcher

@alysonhorcher - Instagram

@alysonhorch - Twitter

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

I was looking for new clean snack ideas and let me tell you how excited I was when I came across this one - Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins!!! Hello, you had me at Pumpkin but then to add in the other two buzz words "chocolate" and "muffin", I thought I was on the wrong website.  Nope, it was clean alright - it came from cleaneatingonline.com.  If you are new to clean eating, this is a website to check out if you need ideas on where to get started.  Another way to check out clean eating is to join my next Shakeology and Clean Eating Group.  If you are interested CONTACT ME so you can grab your spot.  

Okay lets talk about these muffins....

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

Ingredients...

3/4 cup demerara, turbinado, or sucanant sugar

1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce

2 eggs (next batch I will try 4 egg whites)

3/4 cup canned pumpkin

1/4 cup water

1 1/2 cup whole-wheat flour

3/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Directions...

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Place paper liners in muffin pan and spray lightly with cooking spray.

2. Mix sugar, unsweetened applesauce, and eggs together in a medium bowl.  Add pumpkin and water and mix again.

3.  In a separate bowl mix together flour, baking soda, baking powder, spices, and salt.  

4.  Add wet mixture to dry ingredients and mix just until combined.  Stir in chocolate chips.

5.  Fill muffin cups 2/3 full with batter.  Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes.

Yields - 12 muffins

Check out my other Clean Eating Recipes HERE.  and again if you are interested in my next 30 day Shakeology and Clean Eating Group, please CONTACT ME.

Now is the time to learn how to

Live a Fit, Happy, and Healthy life

and WE will do it 

TOGETHER!!!!

~Alyson

alysonhorcher@gmail.com

beachbodycoach.com/alysonh

myshakeology.com/alysonh

facebook.com/alysonhorcher

@alysonhorcher - Instagram

@alysonhorch - Twitter