Drop 10: My Eating Experiment

I don't need to drop 10 pounds... but I could be taking better care of my body (and if that means losing a few pounds, I wouldn't complain!).  It hit me when my yoga teacher said to our class, This is your one body.  Considering that, I felt like my body deserved better.

So when I saw the Drop10 Challenge in SELF's April issue, which includes workout and eating plans, I was intrigued.  I'm always looking for new healthy foods.  The recipes seemed straightforward and incorporated various "superfoods" (and allowed for some "cheating"), so I decided to give it a try.

Some of the "trial" happened over my spring break from school and from nannying which gave me more time for planning and prep.  But I also told my perfectionist self that I would not follow it exactly, just try and make some of the meals and snacks over the next couple weeks, see what I liked and go from there.

I'd say I ate according to the plan about half the time over the past two weeks.  That's a win in my book.

What I learned...

- I don't love plain Greek yogurt but vanilla-flavored Greek yogurt is pretty good.
- Quinoa is so versatile (believe it or not, this was a new food for me!).
- Variety is the spice of life... meaning I spent about 45 minutes in the produce section picking out a million different fruits and veggies, but it was worth it.
- Portability is key.
- Flavor is a must (spicy salsa, a little fat-free cheese, onions, guacamole, etc).  Sometimes I added extra dressing or syrup or whatever, but hey, if it means I'm eating more veggies, that's fine.
- Some combinations just don't do it for me... and that's okay because there are endless healthy options out there.
- I am pretty addicted to/dependent on sugar and salt.  Chips and candy are my main downfalls these days.  Yikes.
- I love "everything in the fridge" salad, where I combine whatever random stuff I have left over and top it off with Ken's Lite Caesar dressing.  It helps that the toppings I had on hand were similar to the Potbelly's salad I talked about here.  (Scott even liked it!)

And one of the biggest things I learned...

Eating well makes you feel better and want to work out.

It was crazy how I craved exercise when I was eating healthy foods.  And once I started working out more often (3x a week, which hasn't happened in a long time!), I wanted to continue.  Let's hope this keeps up now that school started up again!

There are a lot of recipes included on the plan, but I just made some of them.  Here's a visual peek at my Drop10 eating experiment... (I starred my favorites of the group, but I would try any of them again.  All the recipes are available on Self.com or in the April issue.)

Tropical Treat (Greek yogurt, kiwi, granola, almonds)

Avocado Egg Salad Sandwich*

Honeyed Ricotta and Apple Wrap

Chicken and Quinoa Tossed Salad*

Chicken and Quinoa Tossed Salad*

Fruit Shake (strawberry-kiwi)

Baked Beef Taquitos* (I used ground turkey instead of beef, and yes, the sour cream and guac were my own additions!)

Sweet Potato with Almond Butter-Maple Sauce

Quinoa-Edamame Salad with Sesame-Ginger Dressing*

Cucumber Salad* (much tastier than this picture looks!)

Banana-Nut Pancakes (mine ended up more like a scramble!)

Fried Egg over Spinach Quinoa

Blueberry-Maple Hot Cereal (made with quinoa; I used strawberries instead of blueberries)

Salmon and Apple Salad Wrap* (I used a sandwich thin instead of a wrap)

Sweet potato "fries" and brussels sprouts (see below)

Stuffed Chicken with Sweet Potato Fries (I cut the "fries" into slices... didn't want to chop off a finger)