I Love Counting Macros + Egg White Muffin Recipe

K, so I’ve been counting Macros “for reals” this week!  Yay!  I’ve really been loving it.

I told you guys I started counting Macros last week, but for some reason I struggled.  I realized I just wasn’t 100% committed from the get-go.  Before I start any new goal, challenge, healthy shift, etc., I know I NEED to be 100% mentally on board first.  I know I have to dig deep, get inside my head, find my motivation and COMMIT!  Once I feel that fierce commitment inside of me, I’m golden.

Too often, I’ll start some kind of “healthy shape-up plan” without being mentally prepared and passionate about it.  Every time I do that, I fail.  Every. Single. Time.

When I’m successful, it’s because I feel FIRED UP, excited, determined and empowered!  I get that “Let’s do this thang” attitude and it’s awesome.

A lot of times I’ll set healthy goals because I want to lose weight, tone up, get leaner, look better, etc., etc., etc.  Those are all great reasons and great motivators!  However, my TRUE motivation comes when I tell myself I want to shape up because I deserve it, I want to feel good, have long-term health, live the best life possible, have energy, be vibrant, be capable, be disciplined and be proud of myself!  When I think about it in those terms ALONG with the “look good, be skinnier” stuff, it turns into synergy!

When I feel that switch flipped inside my head, I know I’m solid, committed and change will happen!  Wahooooo!

So, with that being said, I’m lovin’ macro counting!  It’s really not a whole lot different than how I normally try to eat, but it’s just a little more organized, logical, deliberate and balanced.

Here’s a list of why I think macro counting is awesome and why I can see it becoming a great lifestyle for me…

• It’s all about accountability.  I’ve been tracking all my food in My Fitness Pal.  It’s a little bit of a pain, but totally worth it!  It’s made me accountable for everything I eat and really makes me think about the things I’m putting in my body.  I consciously eat enough protein and carefully select my carbs and fats.  When I do splurge a little, it’s done purposefully and controlled.  Love that!
• It helps me to be consistent.  Too often, I’ll start a plan that’s a little too restrictive and then when it’s over, I PIG OUT!  Counting macros seems to be a very realistic, long-term plan.  It allows me a little bit of wiggle room, but still keeps me on track.  I don’t feel deprived; in fact I feel empowered!  I can have a small handful of chocolate chips and it doesn’t make me want to eat the whole bag.  AND when I do indulge, I don’t feel disappointed in myself.  In the past, one bad food choice would lead to another and another….and then I’d think, “I want to eat this and this and this before I get back on the wagon!”  Then I’d delay getting back on the wagon for a while and then I’d end up frustrated with myself!
• It teaches me self control.  I’ve been keeping my portions in check and have been planning my meals and small treats with purpose.  I haven’t felt hungry at all either!
• It doesn’t matter what time of day I eat.  Sometimes I won’t eat breakfast until 10:00 and sometimes I’ll eat late at night….it doesn’t matter as long as it fits in the macros!  A calorie is a calorie, a protein/carb/fat gram is a protein/carb/fat gram.  I can eat them whenever the heck I want….as long as I stick to the macros.  Love that.
• I love the simplistic, black-and-white, logical approach.  Everything I eat is composed of protein, carbs and/or fat.  When I eat something, I just plug it into My Fitness Pal and I always know where I stand.   There is no guessing involved; either I’m on track or I’m not.  I have faith this plan will work because it’s healthy, balanced, consistent and just makes sense.
• I’m not cutting out any food groups (i.e. feeling restricted and deprived.)  I’m having plenty of lean meats, healthy grains, dairy products, vegetables and even a few empty calories.  I haven’t been having a ton of fruit, but I can if I want to…I just have to account for it!

I really can see this becoming my lifestyle.  I’m sure I’ll take a cheat meal or day off from time to time (just not anytime soon!), but I think I’ll always want to come back to this plan.  It seems like the perfect combination of everything I’ve ever learned and/or read about health and fitness.

With that being said, I thought I’d share some of the things I’ve been eating lately.  I LOVE everything I’ve been eating!  I think it’s vital to find things you like and it’s also helpful and much more simple to just eat a lot of the same things regularly.  I don’t mind eating a lot of the same things because I like them!

I’ve been having oatmeal for breakfast lately and it’s been great.

I kind of go through streaks; I’ll eat oatmeal every morning for weeks and then I’ll get sick of it and won’t eat it for months!  Ha ha.

But, lately it’s tasted good to me AND it fills me up for hours!  I’ve been having 1/3 cup of oatmeal (cooked with water in the microwave) and then I add a scoop of chocolate protein powder (I’ve been using this one lately), a tablespoon of cocoa and a pinch of 100% stevia.  Sometimes I add a dolup of natural peanut butter (about 1/2 tablespoon) or some PB2.  Lately I’ve been adding 1/2 tablespoon of chia seeds too and I love it!  I love the little crunch and it keeps me full longer!

I’ve also been LOVING the egg white muffins I made!  I’ll share the recipe at the end of this post.  I’ve been having them for breakfast, with my lunch or as a random snack throughout the day!  They are a great source of protein (6 grams each) and have no carbs and only one gram of fat (from the cheese.)  They also taste great!  LOVE THEM!

I had them with my rice cake concoction for lunch the other day…

Folks, this weird rice cake creation is SO GOOD!  I actually look forward to eating it and have it almost every day!  I know rice cakes have a rep for being bland, dry and boring, but when I make them like this….they are YUMMY!

I just take two rice cakes (I’ve had white cheddar, caramel corn and buttered popcorn flavors) and top them with a light smear of Jif Whips peanut butter (I love the salty caramel and chocolate flavors.)  Then I top them with 1/4-1/2 cup of lite cottage cheese each.  Soooo good!  It’s like a yummy sweet/salty combo and tastes just like a treat to me!

I’ve of course been having a lot of random protein shakes lately as well….

I probably don’t even need to take pictures of my shakes because they all look exactly the same!  This one was a weird one, I’ll admit.  I mixed 1 cup unsweetened almond milk, 1 cup water, 1 scoop chocolate protein powder, 1 tablespoon cocoa, a pinch of stevia, a splash of peppermint extract, half of an English cucumber, a whole zucchini, 2 big handfuls of Power Greens (spinach, kale and chard) and a bunch of ice!

Ya.  So, it was a chocolate, peppermint, zucchini, cucumber, leafy green shake!  It was actually quite awesome because I just tasted the chocolate and mint!

I made this for dinner the other day and I’ve had the leftovers for lunch a couple days too…

This was so good and such a great comfort food meal!

I don’t have a recipe; I just make it up every time.  I just cut up the chicken breasts and then cook them up in a little butter (maybe 2-3 Tablespoons) in my electric frying pan.  I also sprinkled a little lemon pepper on them.  After they’re cooked through, I add two cans of low sodium chicken broth (btw, I cook up A LOT of chicken; most people might only need one can of chicken broth.)  I heat the broth to a low boil and then add a couple tablespoons of cornstarch that I pre-mixed in a little water.  I mix it all together and it thickens up a bit.

We serve it with mashed potatoes, but I made cauliflower “potatoes” for Kev and I (I’m still working on the perfect recipe for that!)  We also had peas on the side.  I loved this meal!

I’ve also been happy to have this on hand this week….

I LOVE this turkey!  It’s from Costco, obviously, and it’s so good.  It reminds me of more legit Thanksgiving turkey instead of deli meat.  It’s a little spendy, but I think it’s worth it.  It has minimal, all real ingredients and NO preservatives (nitrates/nitrites.)  Also, each slice has EIGHT grams of protein, no carbs and half a gram of fat.  Saweet!

I’ve also been having this as my late night snack a couple of times…

2 cups of Skinny Pop popcorn (love this stuff!) and some of my fav Protein Pudding WITH chocolate chips!  Woot!  This was fabulous and felt so indulgent to me.

I also got on a little baking kick and made these…

These are Jamie Eason’s Lemon Protein Bars and they are good!  I used 1/2 tsp of my natural Stevia instead of the sweetener they use in the recipe though.  It turned out great!

I also made some of these….

These are Jamie Eason’s Turkey Meatball Muffins.  I forgot to take a decent picture, so I took this picture after they were already frozen!  Lame.

These are also very good and so nice to have in the freezer!

I also made my Egg White Muffins that I told you guys about earlier in this post.  There are a ZILLION different recipes for egg and/or egg white muffins all over the internet.  When I did the Oxygen Challenge last summer, I made a recipe for egg white muffins that was included in the plan.  They weren’t very good. 🙁  I’ve since experimented a bit and enhanced the recipe and I LOVE them now.

Soooo, here’s how I make them….

Ingredients:

• 4 cups egg whites
• 3 Tablespoons milk (dairy, almond, coconut, etc.)
• 1 cup spinach; chopped
• 1/3 cup onion; chopped
• 1/3 cup bell peppers; chopped
• 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese; shredded (optional)
• 1/2 teaspoon seasoned salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

I didn’t want to use any oil in this recipe, so I heated a small amount of water (a couple of tablespoons) in a pan on top of the stove for a couple minutes.  I added the peppers and onions to the pan and cooked for 3-5 minutes, until soft.

I put a lid on top of the pan to help it cook faster….

Add spinach and cook until wilted…

In large mixing bowl, mix egg whites, milk, seasoned salt and pepper.  Mix well with a wire whisk.
**Note: when you whip the ingredients well with a wire whisk, it puts a lot of air into the mix which helps to make the egg white muffins light and fluffy!

Add softened veggies to the egg mixture and mix together.  Pour mixture into muffin tin sprayed with cooking oil (I put about 1/3 cup in each muffin.)

Add a sprinkle of shredded mozzarella cheese to the top of each uncooked muffin.

Bake for 15-20 minutes or until set.

**Note to self (and all of you!): If you use a silicone baking pan, make sure to put it on top of a cooking sheet BEFORE you fill it with the egg mixture.**

Let the “‘muffins” cool and then transfer to a sealed container and keep in the fridge.

When ready to eat, heat in the microwave for 30+ seconds and enjoy!  These are especially good topped with a little natural ketchup or salsa.

Well, that’s enough talking for today!  I hope you are all enjoying your weekend!  xoxo

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