This one is sure to fatten your wallet and loosen your belt.

I’m a big advocate of bringing your lunch to work. But for many, packing a lunch 5 days a week is just out of the question. Time seems to be an issue. If it’s not time , it’s what the heck do I pack for lunch!? Why not take some of the stress of you and delegate! Form a lunch club this year!

Here’s how it works.

1. Put an email out to see who would be interested in joining your lunch club.
2. Whether you have 2, 4 or 7 people on board you’ve just formed your very first lunch club!
3. Assign everyone a day to bring lunch for the gang.
4. On your lunch day – pack a healthy lunch to feed the troupes!

Now you only have to worry about lunch one day a week and on the other days you know your going to get a healthy home made lunch!

Here are some lunch ideas to help you get started!

• Turkey Chili
• Any type of salad with any type of lean protein
• Sandwiches with lean meat on whole grain bread with veggies and hummus to dip!
• Hearty soup with chicken and vegetables – Try this one!
• Lean Beef Stew – like my Hamburger Soup
• Healthy Casseroles – like my Chicken Nachos
• Chicken or tuna salad made with Greek yogurt. Try my Curry Chicken Salad recipe.
• Crust-less Quiche – Here is my favorite recipe!
• Turkey Burgers on Whole Grain English muffins. Make these the night before and heat them up day of.
• Quiona Salad and Soup. Try my Feta Quinoa Salad and my Green Soup!

You have 10 ideas to get you started! And don’t forget, everyone in your lunch club will have 3 or 4 ideas up their sleeve that they love. This is a great way to form a little team at the office and encourage each other to stay healthy and on track this year. Team support is the best kind of support to help you reach your goals. Happy Lunch-ing! Keep me posted on how it goes!

Related posts:

1. 10 Healthy Lunch Ideas
2. 10 Ideas for Bringing A Lunch to Work
3. The Passover Challenge – Lunch Ideas

Now, I’ve got no time- at least it seems that way! So I pulled out the old pedometer to see how may steps I was getting and how hard it would be for me to reach a daily goal of 10,000.

Day One

I strapped on my pedometer as soon as I was dressed for work (even though I was walking around the house a bit more) those steps still count! ( I may just have to put it by my bedside table and strap it on as soon as the alarm goes off to help get in those steps! Seriously! )

I walk to the subway in the morning which is really a stone’s throw away from my house and then from the subway to work (again, really close).

During the day I tried to get up from my desk as much as I could to get water, go to the bathroom, talk to a co-worker (instead of calling down the hall).

I got home and was at 4352 steps. A far cry from my 10,000! Thankfully I had to go grocery shopping and thankfully it was DAY ONE of my challenge and I REALLY wanted to hit my target.

By the end of the grocery shop and walking here and there around the house I managed to squeeze out 11,234 steps! Sweet!  I don’t however think everyday will be this magical. But I can say this, just a 30 minute walk with my husband (bonding time!!!) would have for sure done the trick.

I’ll try to keep you posted with my numbers. It would help if there was anyone else out there that wanted to take on this challenge with me! Get yourself a pedometer and start sending me those numbers! It can be a fun game if you’ve got someone to compete with.

Related posts:

1. Working Out With Your Kids
2. 12 Ways To Sneak in Everyday Exercise
3. Getting Your 10,000 A Day

“I didn’t know I was not sleeping well, until I started sleeping well.”

“3 pounds in 8 days.”

“It was really hard the first week, but the last 3 days, I feel like I really settled into this way of eating. I now appreciate that I no longer feel stuffed after a meal. I feel satisfied and that’s way better then unbuttoning my pants!”

“I was eating so much bread and carb filler – this past week I felt like I was always putting something nutrient rich in my mouth that would help me function as apposed to easting just becuase it tastes good”

Thanks again to Team Passover Challenge! Until next year…

Related posts:

1. The Passover Challenge Wrap Up
2. The Passover Challenge – Dinner Ideas
3. Passover Challenge

CLICK FOR THE TROUT RECIPE

Here is what you’ll need:

• 1 Medium zucchini
• 2 egg whites
• 1 Heaping Tbsp of Almond Meal ( 0.5 ounces)
• Kosher Salt to taste
• Pepper to taste

Here is what you do:

• Wash and grate your zucchini
• Drain as much water as you can out of your grated zucchini
• Whisk your egg whites then toss in your zucchini and almond meal
• Salt and pepper to taste
• On a pan set to medium (spay with olive oil) – form small little patties. * You want them to be thin so that the zucchini will cook all the way through
• Allow the fitters to cook to your liking, flip and repeat!
• Serve when ready!

Recipe should make 10 small fitters. Here is the scoop on one:

Related posts:

1. Crustless Quiche
2. Trout Recipe
3. Baked Sweet Potato Fries

• 1/2 grapefruit
• 1/2 apple
• 1 kiwi
• 1 cup Berries
• 1 slice of pineapple, divided.

I followed this breakfast with a snack about 2 hours later.

To me this breakfast feels like a luxurious treat! Fruit is natures candy you know! It really keeps me full, provides me with a plethora of anti oxidants and I get a ton fiber!  Not to mention the fact that it REALLY keeps me regular in the morning!!

Here is the scoop in my breakfast:

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1. Heathy Breakfast Ideas
2. On The Go Breakfast Ideas
3. Warm Quinoa for Breakfast

So, are low fat, low or no sugar, low calorie foods good for us ? Short answer – In my opinion, no.

1. Calories in these types of treats are replaced with chemicals that provide no nutrients. When you eat, your body expects to receive nutrients. When it does not get these nutrients, it wants them- leaving you feeling hungry and wanting more. So after your sugar free snack – your going to feel hungrier and your cravings will get stronger  – inevitably you will eat more.
2. Many give themselves permission to eat more. If you went into a place like Baskin Robbins, you would order your ice cream- eat your portion and leave- feeling satisfied with your treat – knowing that you just ate something sinful and delicious. But (most of us- not all) have a low fat treat and feel like- “Hey! I can have another! It’s low fat!” And another leads to another and maybe another of something else! It was low fat, right!? Well, after 2 or 3 – low fat it is NOT.
3. And if we’re not talking about the sweet stuff, lower calorie and fat products have to replace what they took out with something so that they still taste good. What do they do ? They take the fat out and they put salt and fillers in. CLICK HERE to read about salt and the effects it can have on your heart. Low fat, low calorie food tends to be VERY high in salt.

Here is my personal opinion, you can take it or leave it!

1. If your going to have a treat, then have a treat!  Something with real food in it! Bake a batch of brownies and have one, bake chocolate chip cookies and have two! Go out for ice cream and have 1/2 a cup! These are foods your body will be able to use properly and know what to do with when you eat them.
2. If your eating the REAL DEAL, your going to have less of it because you know that it is high in fat and calories! Chances are, you will consume less calories and fat then you would have if you opted for the low fat version.
3. If you REALLY REALLY WANT IT – BAKE IT! Anything baked is better for you than out of a box! (In moderation of course) You are putting whole ingredients into your food and you can see exactly what is going in it. It’s kind of hard to imagine a batch of cookies you make at home lasting for a year without going stale. Well, think about the chemicals that have to go into the box of cookies at the supermarket in order to make them have a long shelf life. Its not normal.

***PLUS- there are ways to make homemade baking a little healthier using real food - CLICK HERE to read my healthy baking swaps!***

Leave all the chemical ridden foods behind you! If you want a treat, save up for the real thing!

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1. Real Sugar vs The Fake Stuff
2. Sugar Cleanse – Week One
3. The Best Breakfast Cereals

Bite Sized Shredded Wheat - Whole Grain Wheat.

*Come on! This is an amazing cereal with ONE ingredient! How rare!

Kashi Whole Grain Cereal Puffs - Kashi Seven Whole Grain & sesame ( Hard red wheat, brown rice, whole grain oats, triticale barley, try, buckwheat, sesame seeds)

*All food, no sugar. Try adding 1/4 cup of Grape Nuts or Original All Bran to add some fiber!

Weetabix : Whole Wheat, Barley Malt Extract, Sugar, Salt, Iron, Niacin, Thiamine Hydrochloride.

* Yes, there is sugar in there- but it’s not corn syrup and it’s not some chemical like Aspartam or Sucralose. Plus your only getting 2 grams of sugar in one serving!

Smart Bran – Organic wheat bran, organic oat fiber, organic evaporated cane juice, organic psyllium seed husk, organic barley malt extract, organic oat bran, organic whole oat flour, sea salt.

Grape Nuts – Whole grain wheat flour, wheat flour, malted barley four, salt, dried yeast, soy lecithin. *Enriched with the following vitamin and minerals- iron, vitamin B6, zinc to name a few

Original Kashi Go Lean - Soy Grits, Kashi Seven Whole Grain & sesame ( Hard red wheat, brown rice, whole grain oats, triticale barley, try, buckwheat, sesame seeds), evaporated cane juice, corn meal, corn flour, soy protein, wheat bran , oar fiber, corn bran, honey, evaporated cane juice, natural flavors, calcium carbonate, salt, annattoo color.

* 13 grams of protein and 10 grams of fiber in one bowl! Wow! And no chemicals or corn syrup to boot!

All Bran Original (The sticks) – Wheat bran, sugar, malt (corn flour, malted barley), salt, vitamins (thiamine hydrochloride, pyridoxine hydrochloride, folic acid, d-calcium pantothenate), iron.

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And I can sit here and write all the ways and reasons you should say NO thank-you to this chocolate or cinnamon heart – I can write 10 suggestions of other things to buy your loved one including flowers, a massage or a pedicure. But the reality is- we are all going to have to cross paths with the stuff. It’s unavoidable. All I ask is that you have it in moderation. Try to stick to one or two treats! Make sure to ask yourself if it’s truly worth it before you pop it in your mouth. And don’t use the day as an excuse to go over board.

One tiny little ball of chocolate it usually around 100 calories (that’s just under 1/2 a chocolate bar) so if you have two chocolates that’s about 1 whole bar. Would you sit and eat 3 chocolate bars in a row ? Then don’t allow yourself to easily pop 6 of these things!

They are deceiving!

And remember – after the big day- throw any left over candy in the garbage. Don’t bring it into the office to taunt others (including yourself) with it. It’s way better in the garbage then on your thighs !!!

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1. Halloween Candy On A Diet
2. Calories in Halloween Candy
3. Tips For a Healthy Halloween

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1. 10 Holiday Health and Fitness Tips
2. 10 Holiday Health and Fitness Tips
3. Low Fat, Low/No Sugar, Low Calorie – DANGER!

1. You have to eat to lose weight. This rule is of the utmost importance for two reasons.

A. In order for your metabolism to work to it’s best ability- it needs to always be working in some form. Once it rests, it get’s a little lazy. Starting up again is slow- meaning you’re working through calories at a slower pace. Think of it like this: Your want to use a treadmill – it’s way easier (and better for you) to go from a walk to a jog to a run then to go from standing still straight into running.

B.  If you don’t feed your body enough food, it begins to think you’re in starvation mode. What does that mean? Your body is terrified it won’t get enough fuel to make your essential muscles and organs work. So it will take whatever you feed it and HOLD ONTO IT. It will store it as fat (yup, even if it’s fat free) in case such an emergency arises.  I’ve seen people who eat 1000 calories a day GAIN weight.

2. Your body’s # 1 source of energy is carbohydrates. When you eat, your body grabs the easiest thing you ingested and turns it into usable energy. This is normally the simple carbohydrates like white breads and sugars. Now imagine you did not feed your body these things- what would it use ? We’ll if it’s doesn’t have carbohydrates to draw from it moves to fat. Your body will work hard to convert fat (that you have eaten and that’s stored in your body) to usable energy. You want your body to reach for stored fat. This is why many diets take away a lot of unnecessary starches.

3. As soon as you eat a food high in sugar (and fake sugar) you’re setting yourself up for faliure. It’s not YOU personally- but your bodies reaction to how it digests what you have eaten. The food (be it white bread, cereal or a cookie) is going to tell your body that it feels REALLY great to eat this UNTIL you crash, however many minutes later. And then your body is going to want more – regardless of whether you are still hungry- so it can feel good again. Yes it is like an addiction. So although these foods don’t HAVE TO BE off limits while you’re trying to lose weight, know that they are invertible setting up roadblocks for you. Turning down something that looks delicious is a hard enough struggle with your brain, why get your body involved too.

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