What the hell is BMR?

Honestly, I hate the word “diet” when 9/10 times it is a full lifestyle change. Americans are so caught up in the “quick fix” diet culture that most people can’t see the root of the problem. 

Sorry guys but shitty diets are almost always the problem (apart from lack of exercise). Look at not only what we eat but how much of it we are eating. When was the last time you can honestly say you counted out a single serving of potato chips (about 12 chips)? Before I began my lifestyle change I would sit and eat half a bag of potato chips while watching Netflix and not even bat an eyelash. But then I really looked at how many calories I was actually consuming on something that I would consider a snack. 500 or more whopping calories in one go….. it is pretty widely known that 2,000-2,500 calories is recommended per day….. that is wrong over half the time. A woman who is a 5ft tall and sits at a desk job, doesn’t need as many calories as someone who is say is a 6ft waitress . That’s where BMR comes into play.

BMR stands for base metabolic rate, which is the amount of calories you need just to keep you alive if you were bedridden. This number changes based on age and height. Then you add on an activity factor (not active, mildly active, very active) here is mine as an example:

(For women) 655 + (4.35 x weight in lbs) + (4.7 x height in inches) – (4.7 x age in years) 

(For men) 66 + (6.23 x weight in lbs) + (12.7 x height in inches) – (6.8 x age in years) 

So….

655 + (4.35 x 130) + (4.7 x 65) – (4.7 x 26) = 1404 calories (rounded up) 

But… 

if you go to bmi-calculator.net and choose BMR you can just punch in the numbers without all the extra work!  

Then you would consider your activity factor, which is how active you are (now be honest with yourself or this will get you nowhere) 

Sedentary: BMR x 1.2 

Lightly active: BMR x 1.375

Moderately active: BMR x 1.55 

Very active: BMR x 1.725 

With my active job and lifestyle my activity factor is considered moderately active which means to maintain my weight I need to consume about 2100 calories per day (not as many as you would think right?) 

To loose 1lb a week you would have to reduce your calories by 500 per day which is a healthy for weight loss. To lose 1lb you need to burn through 3,500 calories per week by reducing your calorie intake or burning the extra off at the gym or doing another activity. 

With that said, never eat under your BMR!!! I don’t care how tempting fast weight loss seems, your body will go into “starvation mode” which means it will hold onto every single calorie it can because your body doesn’t know when it is going to get fuel again. Plus, it is unhealthy and can lead to a potentially life threatening eating disorder. Love yourself first and foremost always! If you don’t need to lose weight then you should eat the same amount of calories in healthier options (you end up getting to eat more in quantity and quality) 

I know this is a lot of math, but a simple google search can lead you in the right direction. I love the myfitnesspal app for my iPhone, it does all of this math for you and it helps you not only keep track of things like calories (you can even add your own recipes to calculate calories per serving which I LOVE) it also tracks your steps, progress, and you can add friends and be a part of a very supportive fitness and healthy lifestyle community. Support for a lifestyle change is so very important! 

Eating healthy isn’t a punishment, being healthy shouldn’t be torture. Lifestyle changes like these should be a journey of self discovery, self love, as well as giving you the opportunity to experiment with new foods and expand your culinary horizon. You never know if you don’t like something if you don’t try it! Just because you didn’t like broccoli when you were 10 doesn’t mean you won’t like it as an adult, your tastebuds mature right along with you. Give new food a chance and give yourself a chance to be the healthiest version of yourself not only physically but mentally as well.  

Eat well, be well, and cook fearlessly! 

The meal prep princess 

Spinach feta turkey burgers with cucumber dill tetziki

Okay, for those who don’t know me I absolutely LOVE cheeseburgers, they are legit my favorite food! I have a recipe that will just knock your socks off, trust me you won’t even miss the beef. 

Spinach feta turkey burgers 

2lbs ground turkey 

2 eggs

10oz frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed of all excess moisture 

4 oz crumbled feta cheese 

1 tsp salt 

1tsp pepper

1 tsp fresh lemon juice 

2 cloves minced garlic

Preheat oven to 400 degrees

Combine all ingredients, form into 6-8 patties and place on a parchment lined baking sheet and refrigerate for 30 minutes 

Heat skillet over medium heat, add enough oil to coat the bottom. Brown turkey burgers for 2-4 minutes per side until golden brown. Place into another parchment lined sheet tray and bake for 7-8 minutes or until internal temperature reaches 165 degrees (this is important! All poultry must be cooked to 165 to kill all pathogens, no medium rare burgers here please!) 

Allow to rest for 5 minutes for maximum juiciness. Serve with cucumber tetziki sauce! 

295 calories: 16g fat: 2g carb: 31g protein 

(No bun) 

Cucumber dill tetziki sauce 

2 cucumbers peeled, seeds removed, and medium diced 

1C plain Greek yogurt 

2tbsp fresh chopped dill 

Juice of 1/2 lemon 

1 clove garlic minced 

Salt and pepper to taste 

Toss cucumbers in about 2 tsp salt and pour into a colander, allow to drain for 30 minutes. Pat dry with paper towels.

Add the rest of the ingredients and season to taste. Serve cold with those yummy turkey burgers!   

37 calories: 2g fat: 3g carb: 4g protein 

*all calorie calculations were done using myfitnesspal app on a per serving basis* 

I hope you love these as much as I do! Happy grilling! 

The meal prep princess 

Peanut butter cookies

So, we have been discussing healthy and diet for a few posts so let’s have a fun one shall we? Peanut butter cookies, you can smell them from a mile away and everybody LOVES them. I have a recipe that bakes a little flat with crisp edges and a soft middle. The perfect peanut butter cookie to satisfy any craving! 

Peanut butter cookies

2 sticks of softened butter 

1 cup of creamy or crunch peanut butter 

1 cup brown sugar

1 cup white sugar (plus more for rolling)

2 eggs

1 teaspoon baking powder 

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon vanilla extract 

1/2 teaspoon salt 

2 1/2 cups of all purpose flour 

Preheat oven to 350

Cream together butter, brown and white sugar, peanut butter, and vanilla until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time until combined, scraping down the bowl with each addition. 

In a separate bowl combine all dry ingredients. 

Combine wet and dry just until dough forms. Scoop into 1oz balls, roll in sugar, and press criss cross with a fork. 

Bake for 7-8 minutes. Allow to cool for 3 minutes before attempting to consume. 

For thick chewy cookies, chill dough for 1 hour before rolling. 

*fun add ins before baking: mini chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, Reese’s peices, chocolate sprinkles, dried cranberries, m&ms, and more. 

*for chocolate peanut butter cookies, add a few spoonfuls of Nutella or sundae fudge before chilling. 

Remember, it’s all about balance, have a cookie or two, just not the whole tray (but I won’t tell if you do eat the whole tray 😉)

Happy baking! 

The meal prep princess 

Snacks

Hello all, today’s installment talks about one of my favorite things ever. Snacks. I LOVE snacks of all shapes, sizes, and textures! Snacks can also be sneaky and tricky, without realizing it we can sit and eat a whole family sized bag of potato chips and not even realize it until we have hit the bottom of the bag. But I do have some solutions for successful snacking! 

The snacks I love the most would have to be pretzel sticks, dried fruit such as pineapple and mango, freeze dried strawberries, fresh fruit of all kinds, baby carrots and celery, gluten free crackers with tuna, babybell cheese with grapes, yougrt and granola, cottage cheese, dark chocolate, rice crisps, pickles, olives, I really could go on forever and ever about snacks. But apart from snacking right is watching the portion! 

Always pre portion snacks, this has saved me time and time again and it’s handy for keeping in your lunch bag for mid afternoon hunger pains. I bag things like pretzels and dried fruit in zip lock bags. Dose them out in serving sizes, 1/3C of dried pineapple has about 130 calories. Dried pineapple is more calorie dense then fresh pineapple so watch out, however it is good to raise blood sugar and it’s better then eating a bag of candy. Fresh fruit and veggies I pack into small deep to-go’s and stash them in the fridge for breakfast as well as snacking. 

Follow your hunger cues, when you are reaching for a snack, think to yourself “am I hungry enough to eat an apple” if yes, then you are hungry and should eat, if no then your mind is bored, you aren’t actually hungry. Try not to snack in front of the TV if at all possible, because I have a tendency to eat snack after snack if I’m watching tv, so I try to keep my hands busy instead by sketching, playing with a stress ball, crochet (which was an epic fail I should add). 

Always try to have a snack after a workout, something lite, with healthy fat and protein, turkey, a handful of nuts, an avacado and egg on toast, fresh fruits with Greek yougert are all excellent picks! 

Also eating small meals throughout the day keeps your blood sugars level and can help you fight fatigue and help curb the cravings for the junk food. Eating several small meals a day also helps promote weight loss, and better overall health. 

Happy snacking! 

The meal prep princess 

Why diets fail

Today I want to touch on an important topic that seems to be buzzing all through my social media pages. The dreaded “get your summer body diet!” Ugh *insert serious eye roll* I have seen articles boasting the successes of drinking apple cider vinegar every morning, ketosis, the military diet, beach body diet, it works! (No it doesn’t). I swear there is a pill, shake, wrap, quick fix solution for everything. Well I hate to be the bearer of bad news but weight loss isn’t a “quick fix” it’s not a “3 day miricle detox diet” or my favorite “loose 10lbs your first week!”. No. No. No. No. NO!  

We will discuss BMI, BMR, and calories in another installment but healthy weight loss is 1-2lbs a week, 1lb = 3500 calories that have to be burned off to loose just 1lb. 

The biggest reason diets fail is because people set the bar wayyyyy to high and set unrealistic goals. A goal of “I’m going to run 5 miles a day” isn’t a great beginner goal, because after the first few days they get tired, give up and are back to square 1 all over again. Make a realistic obtainable short term goal this is a goal that can be achieved within 1 year, for example “I will only have fast food once a week” or “I will do 30 minutes of exercise 3 days a week” or “I will only get a fancy coffee drink on Sunday, and drink regular black coffee (or with half and half if you are me) the rest of the week” those are easily obtainable goals that even a beginner can accomplish and feel good about accomplishing. Weight loss and good health are all about baby steps and climbing the ladder to success. 

Once you have your short term goals figured out, set yourself a long term goal which is something that is accomplished in the long term, not next week or even this year. For example “I will loose 20lbs this year (short term) and I will maintain and keep it off by eating healthy and exercising regularly (long term goal)” 

Diets also tend to fail because people get into this mindset of “oh I can’t eat anything good anymore” eating healthy is not a punishment! We as Americans are addicted to food that is seriously not meant to be eaten! As I said in “how it all began” I used to eat a lot of fast food, then I started eating clean and the first few weeks I really really wanted to hit up the drive through because “I deserve it” but I maintained my willpower to achieve my short term goals and after 2 months I no longer wanted that kind of food. Trust me, after a few weeks of eating what humans were made to eat fast food won’t taste good, it won’t taste right anymore. Keep the faith and believe in yourself above all things, you deserve more than eating out of a paper bag. 

Slip ups are bound to happen, we are all human and we all make mistakes. Another reason diets fail is because one little dietary misstep or a skipped gym day leads to “I’m just a failure, I can’t do anything right, I might as well give up” don’t give up!!!! Tomorrow is a brand new day and a day to get back on track, never give up just because of one bad day or even a bad weekend. You can do anything you set your mind to. I promise over time things will get easier. 

Believe in yourself, love yourself, and don’t give up! Remember, it’s not a diet it’s a lifestyle change. 

Love

The meal prep princess 

Meal prep basics part 2

Okay, you survived meal prep basics part 1. Welcome to meal prep basics part 2! So you have all of your fresh delicious food ingredients in your fridge, now what? Let’s get cooking of course! 

The most important part of meal prepping is following S.O.S which stands for “sanitation, organization, and safety” first off you want to completely sanitize all food surfaces with a spray or Lysol wipe, empty the sink of all dishes and give that a good wipe down, make sure your dishwasher is empty (trust me you will be filling it up by the end of this) keep your Lysol wipes handy and nearby for cleaning up after preparing raw poultry, beef, fish, and pork. 

Organize yourself accordingly, I take my largest bowl I own and put a grocery bag liner in it and that becomes my garbage bowl, keep it nearby for handy disposal. Prep all your fruits and vegetables first, chop everything for a stir fry, wash and thoroughly dry all salad mix, fruits and veggies. Box up your fresh fruit snacks or veggie snacks. Next I prepare my starches like rice and quinoa, I cook them according to the recipe I am using, then I spread them on lined sheet trays to cool in the refrigerator. Once that’s done I move on to protein items, I cut, clean and cook all my chicken breast at once (unless it’s for a specific recipe) same with beef and pork. Stick to the recipe!!!! 

Now safety, this is where it gets just a touch complicated. Foods if not eaten right away have to be cooled as fast as possible to avoid too much time in “the temperature danger zone” which is the ideal temperature for bacteria to grow this range is 41-135 degrees F. With that in mind, don’t leave things to cool at room temperature if you can help it. Take your chicken off the hot pan and put it in the cooler right away, for soups, stews, and chilis take the pot and submerge it in a sink full of ice water, stir every few minutes until cold (replenishing ice as needed) then portion, cover, and refrigerate. If things are still a little warm after they are portioned, leave the lid cracked to allow steam and heat to escape. Use a separate knife and cutting board for all raw meat, do NOT flip the cutting board over to cut veggies on, that is how salmonella happens. Completely wipe the space with a Lysol wipe and get out a clean knife and cutting board before moving on. 

Reheating is pretty self explanatory, microwave, throw in a pan, and heat well… 

Congratulations! With these simple tricks and tips YOU are now ready to begin meal prepping like a pro!! I believe in you, you can do it! Now there are no extra dishes to wash during the week, no more running out on lunch break for a cheap gross fast food burger, make all your friends and family jealous with all your fabulous and tasty food and the best of all? You get to eat a HEALTHY well balanced meal every single day, snacks included! What’s not to love? 

Cook fearlessly! 

The meal prep princess 

Meal prep basics part 1

Okay, for anyone who has ever been on Pinterest I’m sure you have seen pages upon pages of beautifully boxed and portioned prep meals all lined up on the counter in neat nutritious perfection. It’s a little intimidating I know, actually it’s a lot intimidating especially for a first timer. But relax, I have all the tips to success (after many weeks of trial and error). 

The most important part of prep is your list! There will be 3 lists. 

List 1: decide ahead of time what you are going to make. Since I prep for 2 people for the week I make 3 different dishes of 6 boxes of each item. Once you have decided what to make, find your recipes if need be. It can be as easy as a chicken ceaser salad, or as complicated as tamales. But I try to prep things that are fast, keep well over a period of time, and reheat well if need be. 

Things that prep well are: salads (dressings always on the side, or else things get soggy) pastas with sauce, shredded pork, chicken or beef, chicken breast, roasts, chili, stew, wraps (condiments on the side for the same reason as above) egg cups (recipe will come later) fresh fruits and vegetables too, yogurt parfaits (granola on the side) cutie orange fruit, peel on bananas, pomegranates, almost anything can be prepped beforehand with some assembly required. 

Things that don’t prep very well: runny yolk eggs, avocado, most fish (salmon actually preps pretty well), fried or crispy anything (trust me it will get soggy) sandwiches on soft bread (if you are going to do a sandwich, make your “filling” and keep the bread and condiments separate and assemble when you are ready to eat) pre cut apples tend to get brown no matter what you do with it so better to eat out of hand. 

List 2: now that you know what you are making write down all of your ingredients (and quantities) then, go into your pantry and find what you have and don’t have (I cross things out as I go) there is nothing worse then getting home after a big grocery hall and realizing you forgot or ran out of something and have to run back to the store. 

List 3: re-write your final grocery list. Write it out with the layout of your local grocery store in mind trust me this will save you boat loads of time and steer you away from temptation. So mine is written out as produce, deli meat, raw meat, canned/box items (by aisle, I have my local store layout memorized by now), frozen, dairy, and finally non-food items (toilet paper, “to-go’s”, etc) 

A note on “to-go’s” this is what all of my finished meals come packaged in. They are disposable cheap Tupperware containers that I can wash and use again (or throw out if they get gross or I forget them in my car for 2 weeks). I use the square ones for my meals, small deep ones for fruits and vegetables, and bowl types for stews, soups, and chilis. 

Now comes the legwork, when you get to the store stick to your list! I cannot stress this enough. I pre-plan all of my snacks before hand and write down what I’m getting. I used to go to the store and grab a box of cookies, or candy, or things I just didn’t need that were unhealthy or a waste of money. Stay strong, it all pays off, you might want those cookies now but in a few months you won’t even give them a second glance. Be prepared to spend around 30-60 minutes at the store depending on your haul. Try to go as early as time will allow, my local store doesn’t re-stock throughout the day so in order to get the best produce and meat I have to beat the Sunday crowd. Plus if your store doesn’t carry something, this gives you time to adjust your recipe or find a substitute (I have googled substitutes from my phone numerous times right there in the store) once you are finished, treat yourself to a cup of coffee (we have a Starbucks in my local store) this perks me up and prepares me for my prep day ahead. 

Now throw it all in your car and hurry home. Put away the frozen and perishables like meat and produce. Now grab your first list with recipes and read them over again before you begin to make sure nothing has to marinade for an hour, has to sit, bakes for 4+ hours etc. 

The next step is actually prepping, this will be a separate post so you don’t get overwhelmed by reading a novel of tips and tricks, trust me prep is easy once you get all of the above done. Stay tuned. 

Love

The meal prep princess