Day 142 - Why Planning Daily Meals Is Good

Yesterday was a rough day. I woke up late (no thanks to again trying to stay awake late to watch Pirates of the Caribbean, I've never seen them; I know, I'm really behind) which lead to being unable to pack my typical snacks and lunch to take with me to school. It also created a bad choice for breakfast.

Usually I have protein (egg whites), veggies and fruit for fiber, skim milk for dairy, and oats. This is a big breakfast, but it gets my metabolism going first thing in the morning but leaves me completely satisfied. So satisfied, in fact, that I don't get the munchies throughout the day, especially if I time my snacks and lunch properly. This is great for preventing over eating and feeling ravenously hungry (which inevitably leads to bad choices and me whining to my husband about what I shouldn't have eaten).

I failed to do all of this, and an eclair (which was planned) and a giant shortbread cookie (which was not planned) wound up in my mouth. I tracked everything and accounted for it, and it's completely within my eating plan but I just want to set myself up for success and to NOT fall into these food traps.

Well, needless to say I came home and was famished! So I talked with the hubby and we created a fun southern-style salad with what we found in the pantry and icebox.

BBQ Chicken and Corn Salad... yummmmmmmmmmmm!

Let's analyze what we see here, shall we?

Salad: a bed of fresh mixed greens, 1/4 cup sweet corn, 1/4 cup Pico de Gallo, 4oz. BBQ chicken breast.

Sides: 2oz wedge of garlic and herb focaccia bread; 2 tbsp. each Jack Daniels Original BBQ sauce and sour cream. (I can't help myself, I love sour cream with BBQ and chicken!)

This was packed with flavor and had 2 servings of veggies in it (1/2 cup between the corn and pico de gallo, and 1 cup of mixed greens). You can easily knock down this 11 PP meal by skipping the focaccia and the sour cream, but I think it's too dry without the bit of extra BBQ on the side. Still need a Heart Healthy oil for the day? Drizzle a teaspoon of safflower oil over the greens, it has no flavor or aroma like olive oil and only your happy heart will know it was there!

Tomorrow - Snacks: morning, afternoon and early evening. Yup, there's time for all of them!