My goal for the month of May is to change my eating habits. Not to go on a diet, but to adapt to a healthier lifestyle, especially when it comes to food.

Related: January – Drink more water

Water is still my go-to thirst quencher and I am utilizing my Soda Stream more often for a little variety. There is the odd ginger ale or diet Pepsi thrown in, but not frequently.

Related: February – Zero alcohol

Boozy bevies are a maintaining as a few a week. I don’t go overboard and make a smarter choice in what I am drinking. I really enjoy the Nütrl vodka and soda water varieties. Low calorie and zero added sugar. Have you tried these?!

Related: March – Spending Freeze

We are really watching our finances lately, since our large expense is due this month. I haven’t been shopping online, with the exception of a few beauty product purchases and a new spring jacket. A couple of unexpected purchases have come up this month. But hey, brakes are a bit of a necessity!

Related: April – Get moving

Walking has been one of my (almost) daily constants. I do get in my target steps each day, with some days getting a few (hundred) more under my belt. With nice weather finally arriving, my daughter and I will to go for a bike ride around town or to the park. The little walks and bike tours are great, particularly after dinner!

May …

So, for May, I was going to write all about how I plan to eat clean and cut back on sugar and become the queen of nutritious meals – but that is completely unrealistic for me (or anyone) to adhere to just a strict eating plan.

Therefore, I am committing to making smarter choices when it comes to food. I will try my darnedest to avoid the vending machine at work and the candy aisle at our local variety store.

Snacking after dinner… This is the worst time for me. I love watching TV by myself after my daughter and husband have gone to bed but I get the munchies something severe. Using this time more conscientiously (hello, self care) to go for a run or squeezing in a yoga or kettlebell workout instead of parking my ass and binge eating would be much better for me.

Preplanning my lunches (snacks included) for work the night before so I don’t throw junk into my bag to eat at my desk. I usually go for leftovers for lunches so they don’t go to waste. But, more often than not, these meals are quite heavy – especially for a desk-jockey like me. Making a salad or wrap for work-day lunches is a much better option and not so filling.

Planning our family dinners for the week so we’re not scrounging at 5:30 asking “what’s for dinner?”!! We’re actually not too terrible in this department since I implemented our weekly dinner planner, conveniently located on our fridge. I bought a cheap dry erase board from the dollar store and we create our weekly menu! Easy peasy and no second guessing!

Most importantly, being conscious of what I’m putting in my body and asking myself “are you really hungry” before eating unnecessary calories. I often find myself “hungry” out of pure boredom. This is something I have to truly work on! Perhaps I’m just thirsty or just looking for an excuse to eat. Keeping myself busy is a good distraction and trying to eat only at regular meal times.

Tracking my food doesn’t work for me, so I will not be counting my calories on a daily basis. Instead, I will do my best to use my Beachbody 21 Day Fix containers in order to estimate proper portion control and avoid over-eating.

Read food labels. Seems pretty simple right? You’d be surprised what amounts of salt and sugar you’re putting into your body! I suffer from both a sugar and salt addition. I use pink himilayan sea salt (which you don’t need much) and limit my processed sugar intake by choosing fruit instead.

No scraping entire food groups (everything in moderation). I was my healthiest (and happiest) when I was eating paleo, but this was such a hard and unrealistic plan to follow. So I do enjoy bread and pasta, just in healthier portions and of the whole grain variety. There is a lot of controversy over keto-type meal plans for the simple reason that eliminating a whole food group is not a healthy choice.

To reiterate, this is not a diet (four letter word), this is a lifestyle change and an overall health reboot.

I understand that I will never look like the models and influencers that I covet on social media. I just want to be a healthier (and happy and proud and self-accepting) version of ME.

So, in short, my goal is to attempt to try new foods, eat lighter, be aware of my sugar intake and simply to make better choices.

Cheers to health!