Healthy Travel Snacks

Hello from Vermont!

We are here for a few more days and have been busy, busy, busy! I wanted to stop by for a minute and share some of our favorite healthy travel snacks that we brought with us this trip. These are perfect for plane, train or automobile and are super tasty.

When we used to travel we would bring lots of unhealthy treats because I mean come on we were on vacation right? Well over the years we have changed our diet and lifestyle and instead of chips and candy we take fresh vegetables, fresh and dried fruits, kale chips, nuts and other healthier snacks.

Vegan Travel Eats

On this trip we brought:

  • Go Raw Pumpkin Super Chips
  • Fig Cookies
  • Glee Gum
  • Inner Peas
  • Freeze Dried Strawberries
  • Lots of Blue Diamond Almonds
  • Strawberries
  • Mangos
  • Bell pepper and carrot sticks
  • Hummus
  • Bottles for water

Vegan Travel Blue Diamond Almonds

We ate the fresh fruits, veggies and hummus on/in between our flights and have been snacking on the other items throughout our trip. We are staying with my parents and they live in the Middle of Nowhere, Vermont population 697 so we end up doing a lot of driving while we are here and healthy on the go snacks and bottles of water are essential.

I’m going to need to restock for our trip home so I might have a few new things to share later!

What are you favorite travel snacks?

Conclusion: Michelle Bridges 12 Week Body Transformation

12week3The following post is sponsored by Girls Gone Sporty on behalf of Michelle Bridges 12 Week Body Transformation. As always all opinions are my own.

I am in the homestretch for completing Michelle Bridges 12 Week Body Transformation 4-week preview plan. I am often not one to stick with training plans (with the exception of running) so I am proud of myself for sticking fairly close to this plan. I’m not going to tell you I didn’t have off days because I did have 3-4 but overall I stuck to the plan and I can tell you I notice a difference.

  • Weight: My weight fluctuated during this training time but overall I saw a 2lb lost (according to today’s weigh in). My goal was to be closer to 5lbs but I’m still happy with 2.
  • Inches (or Centimeters): Here is where I have seen more of a difference. It was a bit confusing to do everything in metric although after going to University in Canada I get why metric is just more accurate overall (take note American teachers). Anyways I lost centimeters around my hips, waist, arms, and legs which for me is even more significant that the overall weight loss. Clothes fit a bit better and I even went and bought myself some new items!
  • Workouts: I tried to stick close to the plan and I got in 90% of my workouts including a lot more running. I am feeling good and back on my game for sure. I am planning to keep up with running, strength training and also some yoga.
  • Food: This was the only real place I found issues. I tried most of the vegan recipes but since there was such a small selection my husband, daughter and I got bored fast with the options. Now I refuse to cook separate meals for the two of them so whatever I make is for all of us so I had to consider them a bit when choosing our meals for the week. I ended up creating meals a number of meals that stayed in my calorie allowance that were low in salt, sugar, fat and were filled with protein and important nutrients. Some of the dishes I made were gluten free pasta with lentil marinara, Buddha bowls, tempeh with greens and roasted roots and banana ice cream (whipped frozen bananas).

Overall my experience with this program was a positive one. I lost a little weight, lost centimeters and got back on track with working out. As I said in the past I have heard rumors that they will be increasing the number of vegan options so if you are vegan the selection of food should improve. I also really enjoyed the weekly motivational videos from Michelle Bridges. They really helped to keep me focused and on track with my goals.

So would I do the full 12 week program? Although I know it would be a huge challenge I would love to try it out. I was impressed with the preview and think that there is a lot of potential for this to be a really great 12 week program.

Do you think you would be interested in this program?

October Grocery Challenge

As you all know we are in the middle of another move. Although this time we are just moving across town it seems that it’s just as hard as our cross country move. On top of moving there is the expense of moving which for us includes paying double rent* and moving expenses so this coming month we are reigning in the budget. That’s where the challenge comes in to play.

BokChoywithTahiniSauce2

This month we are challenging ourselves to eat at least 84 meals (breakfast, lunch & dinner) and all snacks at home/packed for work.  We will be allowed to have a max of 9 meals out however they must on average be $25 or less for the three of us and we are allowed max of 2 coffees each out per week.

Challenge:

  • Groceries: 84 meals at $5 per meal +Coffee/Alcohol/Chocolate/Snacks + Oil/Spices = $550**
  • 9 meals out + Coffee Out =  MAX –> $275 Goal –> $200

Currently we are spending nearly $1000/month on going out, coffee and groceries – yeah I know it sounds like a lot. So this is really going to be a challenge but with moving, a Seattle trip and the holidays I have a lot of motivation to stick with this challenge. I plan on posting $5 meal recipes and would love to have others participate and share theirs as well.

If you are interested in participating in this challenge leave a comment below and then head over to your own blog and write your own post and goals and link back to this page by October 1st.

Who’s in?

*Portland has a crazy rental market and when you find an amazing place like we did you have to jump on it or take the chance that you may or may not find an equally wonderful place.

**Update: um so I can’t add.

Healthy Living On A Budget: Dining In

Earlier this week we discussed dining out now lets talk about eating in.

How can eating at home help?

You have control – You have all of the control. You can control: the portion sizes, the quality of ingredients and the costs. When we eat at home we are able to buy high quality ingredients to make dishes that are tasty, healthy and better fit our budget. You can control the salt and the fat, which helps you take control of your diet.

Image Credit

Meal Planning Tips:

Plan you menu for the week and make a grocery list. Make sure to include snacks and drinks on your list. Planning will help you to stay on track and to cut costs.
Focus on simple, healthy meals during the week and one “WOW” dinner on the weekend. When you keep things simple you reduce stress and the desire to eat out. The “WOW” dinner is a replacement for eating out; make something special and make an event out of it. One of our favorite things to do is pick a movie and create a meal that follows the theme of the movie.
Have a prep day. One of the biggest challenges many of us face is time. Take one day per week, I find Sundays work well for me, and prep your meals for the week. This helps things run smoothly through the week and you will have more time doing the things you want, rather than being in the kitchen all night.
Buy in bulk and portion out. I love to buy nuts, seeds and dried fruit in bulk for snacks. When I get home I portion them out into little containers so they are easy to grab and go. This is also great to do with other snacks such as veggie sticks and hummus or whole grain crackers and salsa.
Keep it simple and have fun.

Healthy Living On A Budget: Dining Out

What are the biggest problems with eating out?


1. Portions – Most of the times, your portions are way too much for one person. Many times, Neil and I will share an entree and a salad or appetizer. But, whether you just arenʼt feeling like eating the same thing as your partner, or you just feel like youʼre hungrier than you probably are, sometimes you just want your own meal. You could always ask the wait staff to box half up of your meal before they bring it out, but, honestly, how often does that actually happen?

2. Expense – Thereʼs no two ways about it, eating out is expensive. Just think about how much that pasta with salad dish would have cost you at home. Would that bottle of wine you shared at dinner really have cost you $35.00 at the grocery store? Often, a meal for two (as simple as the one i just mentioned) can cost upwards of $60. In reality, you can make it at home for $15-25 (including that bottle of wine!). I know that part of what you are paying for is the experience, but why not try to recreate that at home? And hey, tipping your partner with a kiss is a lot cheaper than 15-20% of that $60 bill (and more fun!).

3. Mystery – Often, it can be a mystery as to what you are actually eating. Unless a restaurant clearly labels each ingredient on their menu, you may not have any idea what is in your dish. Often restaurant dishes are filled with sodium and fats used to heighten flavor which makes you want more, creating repeat customers. Not to mention that you donʼt know what the quality of the ingredients they use are or whether they are packaged or made from scratch.