I have always been a fitness and health enthusiast. I was a high school and college athlete and I used to read nutrition books in my spare time and even considered being as nutritionist for a while when I was in high school.
When I got pregnant with my first baby I was worried that I would never be able to get my body back to how I was used to it being. How long would it take me to loose the weight? Would I ever be able to not only lose the weight, but be firm and toned like I was before I was pregnant? Would I ever recognize my body ever again? How could I manage to keep myself healthy and in shape after I had my kids and was working full-time??
The answer? It is all about PREPARATION!
I thought back to my easiest go-to meals and thought about how I could keep them in my regular rotation by coming up with many different iterations of them by adding or changing a few ingredients to keep things new and exciting and I was able to keep myself in check pretty easily.
I know some people like to skip breakfast but it is SOOO important for your metabolism! I am 37 years old and keeping that metabolism burning is really the secret to staying in shape and that’s usually why some people gain extra pounds as they age. They maybe had a naturally fast metabolism when they were younger but as they got older they didn’t adapt or change any of their habits from what they were when they were teenagers or college kids.
The below recipes are easy to make, don’t require expensive or obscure ingredients, don’t require that you be an experienced cook (some don’t even have cooking at all!) and the rest of your family will enjoy them as well!
Overnight Oats
This is super simple and can easily be updated based on what you have in your pantry or fridge! It is so easy to throw together while you are cooking dinner or after the kids are put to bed, just pre-portion them in small mason jars and grab one and go in the morning to eat on your commute.
The basics are that you need a 1:1 ratio of oats to liquid (either milk or coffee mixed with milk) and you need a sweetener of some sort. After that you can mix & match other ingredients to make it your own. You just might need to adjust the amounts of wet to dry ingredients accordingly in order to keep the consistency from getting too wet & soupy or not wet enough where the oats don’t have enough liquid to soak overnight.
BASE RECIPE FOR 1 SERVING
1/3 cup oats (use rolled oats, not instant)
1T sweetener of choice (maple syrup, agave, honey)
1/3 cup liquid of choice (I like to use Soy Milk or leftover coffee & milk that I didn’t finish if I have leftover from that day)
BONUS TIP: I like to use Silk shelf-stable soy milk which we have on an Amazon Subscribe & Save. That way we always have milk on hand for coffee, baking, etc.)
OPTIONAL ADDITIONS:
***1/4 tsp spice (I like pumpkin spice or cinnamon)
***1/3 scoop of protein powder (protein powder will soak up the liquid so you may need to add a little more liquid to compensate)
I like to use plant-based protein powder Vega. There are lots of different flavors you can use depending on the flavor profile you are going for)
***1/4 cup nonfat plain Greek yogurt (will need to use a little less milk if you use this so it isn’t too watery)
***1/4 cup pumpkin puree (will need to use a little less milk if you use this so it isn’t too watery)
***Top with fresh or frozen fruit (frozen fruit will melt and add more liquid to the oats. so if you choose this option, add some protein powder or a little less milk to compensate for that)
***Top with 1T nuts or seeds (I like to use pumpkin seeds, slivered almonds or walnuts)
Nonfat Plain Greek Yogurt + Fruit, Nuts, Honey or Protein Powder
Buying those flavored yogurts at the store aren’t as healthy as they look. There is usually a TON of sugar and other additives. The healthier (and more cost-effective) thing to do is to buy a large tub of the Plain Nonfat Greek yogurt and you can portion it out into small mason jars (like the overnight oats) and you can add any of the below for different flavors or textures.
I also like to buy the plain nonfat greek yogurt because there are other savory dishes it can be used in as well. I often use it when make tuna salad and I also use it as a topping for tacos or chili in place of sour cream for an added dose of protein
BASE RECIPE FOR 1 SERVING:
1/2 cup nonfat plain Greek yogurt
OPTIONAL MIX-INS OR TOPPINGS:
***1T Protein Powder (chocolate protein powder mixed in feels like having chocolate pudding!)
***Frozen Fruit (if you usually like the fruit flavored yogurts at the grocery store, buy a bag of frozen fruit (whichever you like) and portion the plain yogurt out and top with the frozen fruit. As the fruit melts it will help to flavor the yogurt and will also color the yogurt (similar to what you may be used to if you are used to purple berry-flavored yogurt for instance)
***1T nuts or unsweet coconut flakes (I like to add this sometimes for a little texture & crunch)
Protein Pancakes / Waffles
I make these all the time and my girls are always trying to steal them! I have made the batter ahead of time and blended it in a blender and put the uncooked batter int he fridge to make “fresh” in the morning and I have also pre-made the waffles or pancakes and they both work fine. When I am pre-making them, I like to under-cook them a little bit and then I pop them in the toaster oven while I make my coffee.
BASE RECIPE FOR 2 SERVINGS:
1 banana
1T milk (I use Soy milk)
1/2 cup egg whites
1 scoop Vanilla Protein (I use plant-based Vega protein)
2 tsp cinnamon
OPTIONAL MIX-INS OR TOPPINGS:
***Chocolate Chips
***Fresh Fruit (I like to use bananas, blueberries or strawberries)
***Top with 1T maple syrup, unsweet coconut flakes, a dollop of nonfat plain Greek yogurt or sprinkle protein powder on top (like powdered sugar)
Baked Oatmeal
Instead of pre-portioning out little mason jars of overnight oats, you can mix everything up in a bowl and bake it. That way just slice it into portions like cake and you can grab and go eating with one hand, no spoon needed!
Same as the overnight oats, you need a 1:1 ratio of oats to liquid. You will need a few other ingredients as well since it is being baked but you can mix it all up and pop in the oven one day while you are cleaning and you will have breakfast for the next 6 days all prepped and ready to go!
BASE RECIPE FOR 6 SERVINGS
DRY INGREDIENTS:
2 cups oats (use rolled oats, not instant)
1 tsp baking powder
WET INGREDIENTS:
2 cups milk (I use unsweetened Soy milk)
1 tsp vanilla extract (you could also use almond extract for an interesting flavor profile)
1T sweetener of choice (maple syrup, agave, honey)
OPTIONAL ADDITIONS:
***1 tsp spice (I like pumpkin spice or cinnamon)
***Top with fresh or frozen fruit (frozen fruit will melt and add more liquid to the oats. so if you choose this option, add a little less milk to compensate for that)
***Top with 1T nuts or seeds (I like to use pumpkin seeds, slivered almonds or walnuts)
INSTRUCTIONS:
1. Preheat the oven to 375°F.
2. Mix dry ingredients & mix wet ingredients in 2 separate bowls
3. Add wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix well
4. if you are adding any fruit or nuts, fold them in now
5. Pour all ingredient into a 9″ x 6″ glass baking dish that is sprayed with cooking spray (I like to use coconut oil spray for baking)
6. Any ingredients you would like to use as toppings rather than mix-ins, make sure to press them down into the mixture so they don’t roll off the top when you cut a slice
7. Bake for 35 minutes
8. Remove from the oven and let it cool for 5-10 minutes.
9. Slice / portion out into ziplock bags to have in the fridge and be able to quickly grab as you run out the door
Smoothies
Smoothies are always an easy way to get a breakfast meal in (especially for those people that say they aren’t hungry in the morning and that they “don’t eat breakfast”. I always need coffee every single morning, NON-NEGOTIABLE! Sometimes I am in a hurry and don’t have time to both make my coffee and breakfast in time to run out the door. What to do on those mornings?? Mix your coffee and your breakfast together to make a coffee smoothie!
QUICK COFFEE SMOOTHIE – BASE RECIPE:
coffee & milk (as you normally would have)
1 scoop protein powder (I prefer chocolate flavor with my coffee. it’s like mocha basicallly!)
OPTIONAL ADDITIONS:
***1 banana
***small handful chocolate-covered espresso beans (this adds a little more chocolate, caffeine, and also some texture to the smoothie)
***small handful of nuts (I like brazil nuts, walnuts or almonds)
***1 heaping tablespoon of nut butter (I like almond or peanut butter for a little extra protein)
MAKE-AHEAD SMOOTHIE PACKS:
Coffee smoothies are the ones that I make the best on the fly. Other smoothies I like to pre-portion into ziplock baggies. Then all I need to do is toss the contents of the bag into the blender and add some Soy milk or coconut water
***yogurt cubes (I like to freeze non-fat, plain greek yogurt into ice cube trays and portion a cube or 2 into smoothie packs
***frozen fruit (I like bananas, berries, mango and pineapple)
***frozen spinach (If i have a bag of spinach that is starting to go bad I throw it in the freezer. I add a handful or so to a smoothie with some fruit and protein powder. If the green color freaks you out, mix with berries. You won’t taste or see it.