The post 25 Meatless Monday Recipes to Kick Off Your Week first appeared on Nikki Kuban Minton.

what I eat, meaning I will eat the same thing for 5-6 days a week and switch the other days up!

A Typical Day For ME:

5:45a Wake up and Workout

Post Workout: Drink Results and Recovery

Breakfast: Warm Lemon Water, 1/2 cup of Oatmeal with Cinnamon, a scoop of protein powder and 1/2 cup of almond milk, with an apple, banana, strawberries, or a peach sliced into the oatmeal!

Snack #1: 5 egg whites with hot sauce and 1/2 cup of salsa

Lunch: Salad with unlimited veggies (peppers, onions, tomatoes, carrots, sweet potatoes, cucumbers) and a bean (garbonzo, kidney, black, navy, pinto)

Snack #2: 2 cups of carrots or cucumbers and a TBSP of Hummus OR a handful of Mixed Unsalted Nuts

Dinner:  Chocolate Shakeology with a banana and PB2 OR Tropical Shakeology with pineapple OR Greenberry Shakeology with Tropical Frozen Fruit Blend

Snack #3: Grapefruit OR Protein Bar

*** I stick to 2 fruits a day, and if I don’t workout in the AM I skip the oatmeal and eat my egg whites and salsa for breakfast and Snack #1 will be 2 rice cakes with a TBSP of Natural PB or Almond Butter

How do you find a healthy diet balance without feeling ilke you are doing without?
* PLAN– You have to prepare and plan. Don’t go to the grocery store hungry but think through when, how and what you want to eat for the week. Make a list of exactly what you need and make a weekly event (or daily, or bi-weekly, whatever works!) and stick to your list.

* Have BACK UP PLANS– Sometimes meetings go longer then expected, traffic delays stop us, reservations and friends run late… ALWAYS have healthy options stashed in your bag, your car, your desk… Go to snacks on hand are a MUST to help you avoid the office candy stash or quick fast food runs!  Examples of healthy things to stash are almonds, protein bars, apples, protein shakes, tuna packets and string cheese. These are GREAT to have on hand.

* EAT FREQUENTLY! Don’t ever let yourself get to “starving” and don’t ever let yourself get “uncomfortably stuffed.”  Eating small meals 5-6 times a day keeps your blood sugar regulated, your hunger at bay and keeps your body working as a fat burning machine!

* EAT balanced meals. Make sure all of your meals contain a balance of healthy carbs, healthy fats and proteins. Take a look at my “what I eat” for examples.

* Don’t deprive! It is ok to have your favorite foods as long as you don’t over-do it! I LOVE chocolate and definitely have some most days. the key word is “some.” One small piece of dark chocolate satisfies the craving if I have eaten balanced meals the rest of the day.

* CHEAT MEALS If you LOVE ice-cream, pizza, whatever… plan a day where you allow yourself to have your favorite meal ONE day a WEEK- no more than that one meal. But have the REAL thing in a normal portion and do it just that day. If you cheat but have “fake alternatives” you will still crave the real thing and feel deprived!

* Apply the 80/20 rule. If you do what is right 80% of the time, majority rules!

The post What do I Eat?!?! Nikki Kuban Minton’s Meal Plan first appeared on Nikki Kuban Minton.