Hello my friends! Days 5 & 6 are important and I put them together on purpose because they both tie back to the same theme; time. I know a lot of you have different reasons for being busy; kids, working a couple jobs, working crazy hours, and having a schedule that makes your Microsoft Outlook calendar look like a rainbow (<--raises hand). Adding in wrapping presents, party planning, gift shopping, etc cramps an already busy schedule. So, tonight I'm going to provide you with some of my favorite QUICK AND EASY healthy meals. This will hopefully provide some ideas to help save you a little time this holiday season so that you can spend QUALITY time with your family and friends. I love this season so much and if we can all take some time to relax and enjoy the moment, we will all be better off mentally.

LUNCH

Can we all agree that packing lunch is the WORST?! And, I don't know about you guys, but, I don't really have time on Sundays to do "Sunday Food Prep". I try, but, time isn't on my side on the weekends, especially when I'm working weekends. Here are my favorite go-to lunchables that barely require any work.

1. Hard boiled eggs (just throw them in the night before and then toss them in the fridge to grab on your way out)
2. Cheese sticks
3. Seasonal fruit (citrus right now!)
4. Tuna Fish
5. Roasted chick peas (again, just season them with whatever you like and then throw them in the oven on 400 degrees for 20 minutes). You can do this while you cook or eat dinner the night before.
6. Green Beans
7. Whole Wheat Bread
8. Healthy GMO-free bean chips (Beanitos or some other healthy brand)

Ideas on putting them together:
- 2 hard boiled eggs, green beans, piece of fruit
- Open face tuna sandwich (make it at work, just bring the bread and the can of tuna)
- Cut up hard boiled eggs or make some tuna and eat them with the chips and then eat a piece of fruit

Dinner

I am always so hungry when I get home from the gym that I have a routine that I do most nights so that I can eat as quickly as possible. 1) Prep Food, Preheat Oven (or put something in it like potatoes) 2) Shower 3) Make the food. Here are some of my favorite go-to quick AND HEALTHY dinner meals.

1. Roasted potatoes with fish stick (Ians fish sticks are the BEST option - no crap ingredients). The trick for roasting potatoes in less than 20 minutes? Cut the potatoes into small pieces (kind of like home fries) and put the oven on HIGH, 405 degrees. Your entire meal will be done in less than 20 minutes.
2. Open face tuna melts... Tuna on hot (GMO free) corn tortillas with avocado & cheese
3. Roasted veggies & a grilled protein (idea here: http://bit.ly/ZmIf1e)
4. Salad: Lettuce, Chickpeas (protein), Cashews, Feta, Olive Oil, Red Wine Vinegar
5. Grilled shrimp & roasted butternut squash topped with feta and pumpkin seeds (again, chop the butternut squash up small and turn the heat HIGH, 405 degrees)
6. Stir Fry over quinoa
7. Baked potato with chicken, broccoli, & cheese
8. Crustless Quiche (Mix eggs, veggies (I like spinach or broccoli), and cheese and bake.
9. Pasta (yes, pasta) a Small bowl of Barilla protein plus pasta with some evoo, crushed red pepper, and olive oil never hurt anyone.
10. Raviolis with asparagus (yes, raviolis). The frozen ones take about 4 minutes to cook. Pick a lighter version rav such as butternut squash, chicken/pea, lobster/crab etc,. Roast up some asparagus and add them to a pan with evoo, little bit of butter, sage, & crushed red pepper and mix all together. DONE! Adding the asparagus to the meal adds fiber & vitamins... balancing the heaviness from the pasta.

I hope you find some of these ideas helpful! I'd love to hear how you create QUICK and HEALTHY meals. Share in the comments below. Have a relaxing day! xo

I live, eat, and breath by the 80/20 rule. In terms of my diet, 80% healthy; 20% not AS healthy.

(Note: 20% means dining out, organic frozen yogurt, an occasional dark chocolate, etc. NOT fake food) I've found that a happily balanced life and diet provide the best results. It's not healthy to deprive yourself of anything that you enjoy.

This week, however, I am following a 90/10 rule. Every few weeks, I like to eat as clean as humanly possible. My diet will include very well balanced meals, increased antioxidants, increased protein, lower carb, very low sugar. We all know that sometimes that 80/20 rule can expand to 70/30 after a few fun weekends and work events. Following a 90/10 will get you right on track. Below you will find a breakfast, lunch, and dinner that I've prepared this week. All three are super easy and will leave you feeling energized and refreshed! (plus, they are pretty tasty)

Breakfast

I've been hitting my boxing classes in the morning lately so I need a breakfast that hits on all levels: protein, potassium, carbs, and antioxidants. I like to call this breakfast "recovery fuel".

- Blueberries

- Antioxidants, vitamin C, fiber

- Blackberries

- Antioxidants, fiber

- 1 Banana

- Potassium, Carbohydrate

- Cinnamon

- Antioxidants

- Slivered almonds

- Vitamin E, mono-unsaturated fats

- 2% Cottage Cheese -

High levels of protein that have an amino acid makeup that studies have shown recovers muscles faster than other forms of protein.

Lunch

Most days this week I prepared a simple mixed green salad with avocado, egg, and vegetables. I ran out of some of those ingredients today so I packed this instead (so simple!) Just pre-pack the ingredients and make it when you sit.

- Greek non-fat plain yogurt - Very high protein

- Slivered almonds - Vitamin E

- Frozen blueberries - Easy to pack!, antioxidants, fiber, vitamin C

- Cinnamon - Antioxidants

- Dried cranberries - Mostly for flavor but also antioxidants (kind of falls in the 10% - high in sugar)

Lunch

- Greek non-fat plain yogurt - Very high protein

- Slivered almonds - Vitamin E

- Frozen blueberries - Easy to pack!, antioxidants, fiber, vitamin C

- Cinnamon - Antioxidants

- Dried cranberries - Mostly for flavor but also antioxidants (kind of falls in the 10% - high in sugar)

Dinner

This salad is super tasty. It's really quite easy to make an Asian Chicken Salad healthy. I did use an organic wasabi ginger marinade for the chicken instead of my own. This is fine to do as long as you read the ingredients and ensure there aren't any preservatives, additives or corn syrup, etc.

- Romaine lettuce - Antioxidants, fiber

- Shredded carrots - Vitamin A, fiber

- Organic chicken breast - Protein

- Orange pepper - Vitamin C, antioxidants, Vitamin A

- Slivered almonds

- Avocado - Fiber, Omegas, Potassium, Vitamin C, Folate

- Pea pods - Potassium, manganese, vitamin C, fiber

Dressing: 1 parts sesame oil, 1 part rice vinegar, tbs mustard, tbs honey, salt, crushed red pepper; mix & dress!