Last week I was talking about getting back on that horse- I think I did a pretty good job, too. This week went much better!

This past week I focused on making healthy eating choices, I squeezed in a workout twice (not as much as I hoped but two more than last week! Working up to a daily goal.) I got in bed on time most nights, but not all, so I got up on time most days (but not all.) This past week I gave up added sugar (minus my 3tsp in my morning coffee – or some days I had hot tea) and I did really well with that! I’m going to repeat that for a second week.

I’m down a pound and a half from my “starting weight” I listed a couple of weeks ago, down to 188.5 now. =)

I keep talking about making healthy eating choices. So what do I mean by that, huh? Here’s a little bit of what “healthy choices” is to me:

~ sugar and treats and healthy fats in moderation
~ no artificial sweeteners, avoiding processed foods and pre-packaged foods as much as possible
~ lots of fresh fruit and vegetables
~ water, water, water
~ whole grains, lean meats, real food, whole food.
~ lots of cooking from scratch

Black bean and cheese quesadilla, topped with lettuce, tomato, cilantro and sour cream.

My favorite breakfasts are plain greek yogurt with fruit and/or granola. Eggs and two slices of bacon and fresh fruit, oatmeal and fruit and whole grain toast, omelets and breakfast tacos, etc.

Tuna salad with apples and pecans on top of cucumber slices and crackers. (I didn’t have wheat crackers. =\ )

My favorite lunches are simple: fresh fruit or veggies, cheeses and lean meats and whole grain crackers. I like tuna salad and salads and pretty much anything simple.

Chicken stir fry with mandarin orange sauce, green beans, red bell peppers, fennel, and topped with fresh cara cara oranges.

Speaking of simple, it’s how I take my snacks, too. Apples and peanut butter, carrots and dip, yogurt and granola, etc.

Healthifying our breakfast for supper of biscuits and gravy. I ate ONE sausage biscuit, an egg with salsa and avocado, and a large pile of apple, mango and orange.

Suppers are the hardest, because we live in the south, we like good “home-cookin” and my hubby likes his gravy and he’s not crazy about veggies. =) But I make do. I like to make chicken and rice and various stir fry type meals. I try to healthify our southern meals like making porcupine meatballs with brown rice and baking sweet potatoes instead of making mashed potatoes.

My “go to” sweet tooth fix – a sliced banana, a tbsp of peanut butter, a very tiny drizzle of chocolate syrup. The chocolate syrup disqualifies it for my “no added sugar” challenge this week though. =(

I do a lot of things many people don’t really consider “healthy” – like drinking whole milk, and eating butter and real sugar. I wish I was drinking raw milk and making my own butter. =) But moderation is always the key. =)

So that’s how we do it here.

Let’s review those Healthy Habits:

1.) Go to bed and get up on time. – In bed around 11, up at 6:30 a.m.
2.) Start my day with time with the Lord. – About 30 minutes, reading straight through the bible.
3.) Use my food/activity diary with MyFitnessPal.com with my iPod app.  – If you want to join me, my username is “mrsamberoliver.” Come find me!)
4.) Drink enough water. – 8 glasses a day or more.
5.) Weigh and measure myself at the beginning of the week. – The goal is to keep an eye on it, not to obsess over it.
6.) Make healthy eating choices. – Choosing healthy foods over less healthy ones, leave the unhealthy things alone.
7.) Be diligent with the kids’ bed routine, story time, prayer time, in bed on time – so that they get enough sleep to be healthy, too!
8.) Go to bed with a tidy house. – This helps the next day get off to a great start!
9.) Add exercise time to the morning. – Working up to 20 minutes every day or almost every day.
10.) No added sugar! – For a week or maybe two, to break that crave and kickstart my weight loss (hopefully.)

It’s your turn! For accountability & encouragement, join Healthy Habits each Tuesday and share your post across all four blogs: Teachers of Good Things, For the Season, The Vicki Arnold Blog & Classic Housewife. Remember: We *like* to like, tweet, pin and share posts linked up with direct urls and linking back to Healthy Habits!

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Regular participants could be considered for co-hosting Healthy Habits in the future – if you’re interested, contact Dollie at Teachers of Good Things! In addition to our regular weekly Tuesday linkups, join Healthy Habits on our Facebook pages every other Monday and on Twitter with the hashtag #healthyhabs



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Amber

Hey, y’all! I’m Amber and I wear many hats. I drink a ton of coffee and I’m constantly sweeping crumbs off the floor. After 18 years of homeschooling, I’m getting close to graduating my third child and now we are starting over at preschool with our fourth, Lil Miss Mouse. She keeps us young and she’s the main reason for my excessive coffee consumption. Drink up!