I was asked today, ‘Don’t you miss eating what you want?’.  My answer was no.  I still get to eat what I want – I just modify the types of food or ingredients I use.  I absolutely love pizza – I could eat it every day!  Whole wheat pita bread, cauliflower crust, spaghetti squash crust are all ways I can still have pizza… then I make my own sauce so I can somewhat control the amount of sugars.  I make them in advance so I can quickly have them for lunch or dinner through the week.

Weigh In:  168.2
This time last week:  169.9

Activity:  Yard work; Over 10k steps; writing this blog while on the treadmill.

Breakfast:  Smoothie with ice, almond milk, greek yogurt, a couple pineapple chunks I had frozen with 1 banana, 1 apple.

Snack:  Small snack size of salted cashews

Lunch:  Smoked chicken, chickpea mac & cheese that I had made last night (still creamy!), homemade kimchi, skewer of cherry tomatoes & cheese sticks.

Dinner:  Chickpea pasta mac & cheese with green beans.

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Water is very important – especially if you are moving around a lot!   My goal typically is to have three 32 oz mugs of ice water by the time I go to bed.  If I walk over 12k steps, I’m definitely aiming to drink more water than that.

A few things I’m keeping an eye out on:

• Amount of sugar in a serving – if it’s more than 4g, I am being cautious
• Amount of protein in a serving – I’m aiming for at least 20g of protein per serving each meal
• If I have a sweet tooth craving, I turn on the keurig and add creamer to my cup of coffee

Last week, each day I was losing weight – it wasn’t a lot, but I could see there was progress!  This is why I want to share with everyone what I am doing and I welcome any constructive comments as well.

**I am not a nutritionist or personal trainer by any means and my results can very much vary from anyone else’s.  Please keep that in mind and feel free to share this blog with friends!  

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Looking for some ways to make extra money or earn gift cards?  Check out the list below!  Some links may be affiliate related, which earns me a bonus and possibly you as well!

ReceiptPal – simply take pictures of your receipts and earn points for gift cards

Receipt Hog – simply take pictures of your receipts and earn points for an Amazon gift card, PayPal payout, or Visa Prepaid card payout.  You also can earn points to take surveys from the purchases made, and be rewarded spins when snapping at least one receipt every week!  Since 2014, I have redeemed $160 worth of payouts.

iBotta – one of the first apps I used for rewards in 2013.  This is a favorite of mine since you learn about so many new products out there… if you are wanting to try that new seasoning, why not get money back as well?  Since 2013, I have earned $1,124.59.

Achievement– use a Fitbit or other type of tracker?  Check out Achievement.  It will count your steps and earn you points, which can be redeemed for an Amazon gift card.

Paidviewpoint – Do you love taking surveys, but not spending too much time doing so?  This is a great one to join, if you haven’t already.

Fetch Rewards – Simply scan your receipt and receive points that can earn you amazon gift cards.

Inbox Dollars – Paid to click emails, surveys, money for certain items on receipts, and more!

Crowdtap – Some surveys are super quick to take – get points and redeem for gift cards.