Mel's Tips:
Breakfast:
Granola with milk
Blended coffee drink
>> Most people think granola is healthy because it often contains good grains, dried fruits, and nuts, however it depends what kind of granola you are buying and how much you are consuming. A lot of granolas are full of sugar and high in fat, running anywhere from 500-700 calories per cup. If you add a cup of milk, you are looking at up to an additional 130 calories bringing your breakfast calorie consumption way too high. It's best to stick to muesli or cereal without a lot of added sugar and without oil (this is where a lot of the calories in granola come from).
>> Most people enjoy coffee in the morning and often order blended coffee, especially during the summer when it's hot! Blended coffee drinks really vary in calories depending on where you buy them and what size you order, however the average drink (medium size) is going to run anywhere from 190-500 calories. It's best to only treat yourselves to these once in a while, if you must, and stick to regular coffee, or even tea when possible.
Lunch:
Tuna Sandwich (or similar)
Side dish (either potato chips, cole slaw, greens with dressing, or potato salad)
>> There are a lot of lunchtime sandwich eaters and though eating a sandwich is not terrible, you really have to be careful about what kind of sandwich you are ordering, what kind of bread you choose, and what kind of spreads you choose. A typical tuna (or other) sandwich on a roll with mayo and cheese can run anywhere from 670-1500 calories. It obviously depends where you are ordering the sandwich from, but it's best to stick to mustard as your spread and choose bread (preferably whole wheat) instead of a roll to save calories. Side dishes like cole slaw and potato salad (etc.) can run anywhere from 120-358 calories. It's best to stick to veggies on the side or salad with a small amount of dressing.
Snack:
Trail Mix
>> I am a huge fan of nuts and dried fruit, however a lot of trail mixes these days contain chocolate, white chocolate, toffee, you name it. Per cup you could be consuming anywhere from 500-600 calories. It's best to buy your own nuts and dried fruit and make your own form of trail mix at home. Make sure to bag up your mix into pre-portioned bags because we all know that once you start with trail mix, it's hard to stop.
Dinner:
Burrito
Chips and Salsa
>> Burritos are amazing, but can be SO high in calories, especially if you are not making them at home. A typical chicken burrito with beans, rice, guacamole and cheese can run up to 1120 calories--the tortilla alone is around 300! It's great to cook burritos at home where you know you won't be using too much oil and you can substitute the large flour tortilla for a smaller whole wheat version.
>> Chips and salsa at any Mexican restaurant are plentiful and it's almost impossible to stop eating them after just a few. Twenty-three chips run about 250 calories--this is in addition to the burrito!!
Dessert:
Cake/cookies
Dessert is of course the best part, BUT it can be a bad way to end the day! A typical slice of cake you would find in a restaurant is going to be about 500 calories (the serving size should really be half of this) and cookies can run anywhere from 150-300 calories per cookies and we know it's impossible to have just one. Dessert is definitely not to be omitted completely, but just make sure that when you do eat dessert, choose it wisely (the healthier the better) and don't consume it frequently!
About Melissa Melcombe, Founder of Melslife
Melissa "mel" Melcombe is a 24-year-old food enthusiast, vegetarian, and developer of the healthy living website called melslife, which has become the leading source of healthy living information for "echo boomers." mel does not see herself as an expert, but rather as a passionate person who has a lot of opinions about health, food, and healthy lifestyles; and she wants to share her information with the world.
Website: www.melslife.com
