Meal planning: Nov. 28 - Dec. 4

"It's not the minutes spent at the dining table that put on weight, but the seconds."

Photo courtesy of flickr user free2behealthy

I'll be posting my six-month lifestyle plan later this week, complete with monthly themes to help me tackle this one step at a time, but I do know that December's theme will be eating mindfully. 

I'll have more details later, but the theme this month will simply be making sure that I am choosing the best available option for me. Between the end of the semester, final exams, a three-week trip home where I'll have little control over the menu, and holiday gatherings, I predict that December eating will be a little crazy. 

I won't be focusing on calorie counts per se, but rather opting for healthful choices, eating only when hungry, and keeping portion size in check. Portion size is one of my biggest eating weaknesses, as is stress eating.

One way I'll be tackling this is by creating weekly meal plans to keep me on-task (and on-budget!) at the grocery store and throughout the week. Here's this week's plan:

MONDAY

Breakfast: Cereal with yogurt

Lunch: Thanksgiving leftovers

Dinner: Mark Bittman's autumn millet bake

TUESDAY

Breakfast: Oatmeal with fruit

Lunch: Wheat berry and red fruit salad

Dinner: Autumn millet bake leftovers

WEDNESDAY

Breakfast: Oatmeal with fruit

Lunch: Wheat berry and red fruit salad

Dinner: Work cafeteria

THURSDAY

Breakfast: Oatmeal with fruit

Lunch: Wheat berry and red fruit salad

Dinner: Baked black bean and sweet potato burritos with a roasted tomato and cranberry salsa and chipotle lime cole slaw

FRIDAY

Breakfast: Oatmeal with fruit

Lunch: Wheat berry and red fruit salad

Dinner: Leftover burritos

SATURDAY

Breakfast: Oatmeal with fruit

Lunch: Sourdough panini (filling TBD)

Dinner: Leftover burritos

The beginning

"The first step towards getting somewhere is to decide that you are not going to stay where you are." - John Pierpoint Morgan

Photo from flickr user healthandfitnessfirst

Hello, and welcome to the blog!

First, a disclaimer: This is not purely a weight loss blog, nor is it purely a fitness blog or a food blog, and, most importantly, this is certainly not a diet blog. In fact, you'll rarely see the the Big D mentioned here at all. 

This blog is meant to be an exploration into the creation of a more active, happy, healthy-minded lifestyle. Like many of you, I'm sure, I've made false start after false start in pursuit of a smaller number on the scale or the tag of my clothing. I've half-heartedly pressed forward into diets so restrictive that I felt weak going up stairs (hello, South Beach!), pushed with gusto into exercise plans so overambitious that I burned out after a few weeks, and stared at article after article encouraging me to change my habits without doing anything. 

I am a 20-year-old girl who weighs in at more than 200 pounds, but this isn't just about weight. This is about being able to walk up a flight of stairs without having to catch my breath. Not feeling self-conscious or letting my weight hold me back for fear of being too heavy. Feeling strong and empowered rather than weak and sluggish.

I don't want to be size four, I want to be strong, vibrant, and energized. I want to develop a well-rounded workout plan and a healthy food philosophy to help me accomplish these goals, and I hope you'll stick around to see the progress.

I realize that a lifestyle change will take time and effort, so I'll be implementing these changes slowly. During this time, I'll be posting my recipes, food plans, workout regiment, and general comments about the experience as well as linking to relevant posts from other blogs and websites. I'll also be posting tips on how to get healthy on a budget.

I hope some of you will join me on the road to a healthier lifestyle, and, if not, that my own journey inspires yours in some way.

Healthfully yours,

The Get Fit Chick