Saturday, November 8, 2014

Costco grocery list & shopping tips

So, on my way to Costco this past time, I realized that we honestly get the same exact things every time we go. I don't usually bring a list anymore because we stick with the basics and we know what works the best for us. 

AND, so many of y'all ask what we eat all the time! It's really simple! But here is some pictures to help you! 

Now, we don't get every thing on each picture every time we go. Most of the stuff can last us a good long while. But we do choose at least 2 or 3 to have in the house all the time. 

We are on the go a lot, so for K1, these are snacks that we keep handy and can grab quickly on the way to church or out for the day. 

Veggie Straws
Organic Z bars
Organic Variety Pack Snacks
Organic Animal Crackers

Personally, I feel that Costco has more organic snacks than any other place. Plus, buying in bulk always saves you money IF you eat it quite a bit.


Here is the protein we always get.
10 lb bag of Chicken
Turkey Burgers
Salmon Burgers (we go between that and Tilapia)
Ground Turkey

This lasts us a GOOD WHILE, so we do not buy meat but about once a month IF that. 


Here is the list of dairy items we always have on hand. (technically almond milk is not dairy.)

Cottage Cheese 
(we like to add fruit to it & make protein bowls which is egg whites, PB and cottage cheese)
Greek Yogurt
Eggs (we buy 7 1/2 dozen)
Organic butter
Almond Milk
One other one to add would be mozzarella. 


Then here are all the vegetables/beans we stock up on. 
Asparagus
Organic Mixed Vegetables
Organic Baby Spinach
Peppers (the small or big kind)
Black beans
Organic broccoli
Cucumbers


These are the carbs we buy.

Sweet Potatoes
WW tortillas (you can also do WW bread or WW english muffins)
Almonds
PB (try and get natural- less sugar)
Quinoa
Salsa
Brown Rice
Olive Oil



And LAST thing we always pic up is two or three from this list. You can pick any kind of fruit but these are our favorite!
(Avocado should have been on the good fat list, haha)


Few tips for buying in BULK:

1. It only helps to buy in bulk IF you know you are going to eat it all. Otherwise, you will have a lot of food that will go bad. 

2. If you know something will go bad QUICK, eat THAT first. We've paid the consequence for this a few times. Don't put it in a drawer of a fridge otherwise you'll forget it's there! aka peppers, haha!

3. Plan your list before you get in there. Otherwise you might go a little crazy... just speaking from experience. Look in your cabinets before you go & plan out your meals for the week.

4. Don't be afraid of buying meat and produce there. It used to be scary to buy those items there but now it's one of the best and most popular places to buy meat and produce. And costco has a LARGE variety of organic and grass fed meat. They also call your cell phone if there is ever a recall on ANYTHING. We've been members there for a long time and they have only called us one time. 

5. Take a calculator to keep track of what you are spending!! Even though it's a warehouse where you can get a lot of items for a discounted price, it doesn't mean that it's rock bottom prices. Things can add up quickly, so just like I said before, make sure you only go in there to get what you NEED so you don't overspend. 

6. CLEAN OUT your fridge and freezer BEFORE you head out. Get rid of all old leftovers and food that is about to go bad. You will need room to put all your groceries in and you definitely don't want to have to come home and rearrange the entire fridge. 







Friday, November 7, 2014

4 weeks of CLEAN EATING ONLY


I'm really excited about sharing with you my journey back to my pre-pregnancy weight. 

The good, the bad, AND the ugly.

I gained a little over 50 lbs with this baby (my 2nd) and I have 20 lbs left to lose to get back to 115, which is where I originally started. 

Unlike my first, I worked out almost every single day AND ate as clean as I could (minus the first few weeks due to EXTREME morning sickness.) And even at that I STILL gained over 50 lbs! (60 with the first). 

For those of you that have ever taken before pictures before, you know that it can be sickening. All these things start flooding in your mind and can get you discouraged before you even start. 

I felt that exact same way here. ^^^



I had to be REALLY careful not to let that affect my mood or my attitude. But I TOTALLY understand why some people feel like they are "too far gone" to even try... and I empathize with you. 

But in the forefront of my mind I kept telling myself, "Jess, you KNOW the tools in order to lose the weight. You just have to WANT it bad enough and the EXCUSES will have to go."

So, before I got the OK to workout again, I decided I would start with Day 1 with my challengers, and eat CLEAN for 4 straight weeks until I was cleared. 

What made it TEN TIMES easier was that I had friends in this group that I was doing this with. I felt their pain and we PUSHED through together. Instead of just coaching them.. they were coaching me... and the accountability and support are the ONLY reasons I didn't give up. 

So, here i am. I followed the 21DayFIX meal plan to a T because it's the best meal plan structure I have found and is FOOL PROOF. 

I planned out my meals a week in advance and I made sure I had everything in my house that I needed and everything OUT that was going to tempt me. 

Thank goodness my scale was broke, so I had to rely mainly on how my clothes fit. 

After 4 weeks I felt pretty great with my progress! 

I am now on week 3 of Insanity now and can't wait to continue showing you my progress!! 

This past weekend I marked a HUGE goal off my list and got Insanity certified!!! 

My husband told me today that he would see my top abs!!!!!!!!! 

Staying LASER focused!!!!