At work yesterday one of my coworkers said I'm a "health food nut." I suppose there are worse things to be known for!

Yesterday's lunch was leftover minestrone soup (absolutely packed with veggies!) with quinoa crackers and grapes. The whole meal was around 500 calories and kept me full for hours.

Pictured: the minestrone when I made it over the weekend (with a side of garlic bread)

Did meal prep for the week today for lunches. Sweet potato and black bean taco bowls (with a corn salsa) over brown rice.

Meal prepping helps me by keeping me accountable, counting calories easily, and saving money! Anyone else meal prep?


I also made salmon teriyaki bowls for dinner (that's the pic). Served over brown rice with edamame, avocado, carrots, and cucumber. I have extra salmon marinating for tomorrow.

Week 7: You aren't losing weight.

This is a harsh reality for me. I look at the scale and see it stop on a number. My mind goes in to solution mode!

SOLUTION?:

Cut more calories!

This might seem like the best idea, but sometimes it is not. That's because our weight doesn't just come from fat.

THE QUESTION:

I know this is something we all probably know but we forget it so easily. Have you ever lost weight and you feel like your body looks exactly the same? This is because your fat/muscle ratio remained relatively similar. Being in an extreme calorie deficit will shrink you down! However it likely won't achieve the body and fitness goals many of us have in mind.

HOW TO FIX THIS:

I highly suggest incorporating some body weight exercises. Pushups are great! If you can't do pushups, do modified pushups. You can do them in your knees or on an incline. You can do partial range of motion to get started. You can do a negative movement (Only controlling your weight downward).

REMEMBER:

If you're working out, eating healthy, getting good sleep and the scale isn't moving, you're likely going through a body recomposition. If your ratio of muscle to fat is improving, this requires the adding of weight (Muscle) to your body. Don't fear the scale staying the same if you're doing all the right things. Focus on doing the right things and track more progress than just scale progress.

Weight is going up, although I've been eating great! I've really been focused on plant-based eating and cooking from scratch. Here is a quinoa bowl with roasted bell peppers and onion, with kale and Impossible sausage. Topped with a homemade parsley pesto. This is my lunch all week, and at just over 500 calories a portion, it's filling and healthy!

I'm approaching this DietBet as a way to change habits. No fast fixes, but small, incremental changes. My scale is going the wrong direction (hormones 😡) but I can feel that my pants are looser, I have more energy, and I'm happy with how I feel. Plus, my skin has never been clearer as an adult!

I probably won't hit my Round 2 goal, but I'm celebrating my NSV and positive lifestyle changes!