Ditch the Soda

Does this shock you? Because this photo sure surprised me when I first saw it!! I look at this and immediately cringe knowing that much sugar is in these drinks. After I thought about it though, these measurements aren't surprising.

Need the caffeine? Try a regular coffee with skim milk and artificial sweetener. It isn't near as much sugar and calories as the Red Bull, Mtn Dew, and Starbucks prepared drinks. I even make my own iced coffee at home if I don't want to drink it hot. The trick is to fill a cup with ice and pour the hot coffee directly into the cup. The ice "shocks" the coffee and doesn't melt as fast as when you put ice into a cup of hot coffee. 

Like the carbonation? Opt for diet sodas instead. I know many people don't think diet sodas taste similar to their regular versions, but consuming this much sugar isn't healthy for anybody.

Need something sweet? Try Crystal Light packets! They're low in calories, taste awesome, and are easy to have on the go.

No matter what though, water is always my go-to drink!!

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Behavior Change Project

For one of my nutrition classes this semester, my class was assigned to do a "behavior change" project. We had to choose a behavior we wanted to change and change this behavior for two weeks, record our progress, and then write a two page paper on it. Doesn't sound that hard, right? I had been thinking about how often I go out to eat and decided to change that behavior. For those two weeks I was only going to go out to eat once a week. ONCE A WEEK.

Let me put this into perspective: I typically eat dinner out around 4-6 days a week. Its embarrassing and costs me a fortune. I never realized how much money I spent eating out until I stopped and counted it up. Our project included a reward of our choice. My reward was to buy decorations for my very bare apartment. After those two weeks I ended up with money for decorations, gas, and the weekend. Cha ching!

Back to the project though: throughout those two weeks I discovered an amazing thing. Tyson Frozen Grilled Chicken strips. It sounds questionable but just about saved my life. Being a nutrition major, I really should cook more but sometimes you just do not have the time (excuses, excuses I know). But this product by Tyson is amazing. I put the chicken strips on salads, in sandwiches, on pizzas, and even just ate them by themselves. Pop a few into the microwave for about 2 minutes and viola! Protein! I knew about frozen chicken fingers but I really did not want a bag of frozen fried chicken in my freezer. This way, I had healthy cooked chicken and it didn't take an hour to prepare. Tyson has a whole line of Grilled & Ready Products, be sure to check them out!

Confession: I went out to eat twice one of those two weeks. Embarrassing.