Simple. Wholesome. Balanced.

Hey Foodie Friends! I’m switching it up today on the blog and instead of sharing a new and delicious recipe with gorgeous photos, I’m showcasing what a ‘day of eats’ looks like in my world.  In this post you’ll see quick snap shots (not so pretty photos) of my meals and snacks I enjoyed in one day. This is #reallife.

By sharing my day of eats with you, my hope is that I will inspire you to consume nourishing foods and to show you examples of what a balanced meal could look like. I’m not here to tell you what you should and shouldn’t eat. We’re all different. What foods make me feel my best might not be the same for you.

You’ll see that I don’t eat fancy schmancy. Not at all. I keep it as simple as possible because I would rather spend less time in the kitchen so that I can have more time to enjoy life, blog, be outside…do the things I love! Which is why I love sharing recipes with 10 ingredients or less. In addition, I don’t follow any specific ‘diet’ or food rules (except for an occasional Whole30) and I don’t count calories or macros (I once was an obsessive calorie counter – that’s in the past). I strive to nourish my body with wholesome, real foods and to eat with intuition. And trust me, I’m not perfect! I like my chocolate, I overeat sometimes, I indulge, I eat almond butter straight from the jar, I skip meals on busy days, and I drink wine. I’m human. Besides, there is no such thing as a ‘perfect diet’, right?!

Meal prepping is the way to go!

Before I share with you my day of eat, I wanted to chat about preparation and how it impacts food choices. I’m a big believer in that you’ve got to be prepared! “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail”. It’s true!

One way I set myself up for a healthy week ahead is by completing a weekend meal prep.  I’m not talking about the kind of meal preps that requires measuring and weighing out every portion to a T or only prepping chicken, tilapia, asparagus, broccoli and sweet potatoes. Heck no, these kinds of meal preps I’m speaking of consist of delicious and tasty foods that happen to be healthy too!

On the weekends, I allocate 1-2 hours of my time to prep foods for the week ahead. Having a fridge full of prepared meals makes eating healthy simple and delicious. Prepping and planning also helps to reduce food waste and as a result, you save money! I’m on a budget, so saving money is a big perk for me!

If you’re new to meal prepping and feeling a wee bit overwhelmed, I recommend starting with just 5 items. Keep it simple.

Here are just a few of my favorite foods to prep: 

• Veggie Egg Bake (such as this one or this one). Feel free to change up the veggies and use what you like or what you have on hand. Egg bakes are aa delicious way to use up veggies that are about to go bad.
• Hard boiled Eggs
• Salads
• Grilled meats
• Baked Sweet Potatoes 
• Roasted Butternut Squash Cubes
• Healthy Muffins
• Turkey Meatballs or Burgers
• Roasted Veggies
• Energy Bites
• Hummus (or Cauliflower Hummus)
• Slow Cooker Chicken Tacos
• Slow Cooker Beef Stew

Psssssss….I’ve got some exciting news! We have Meal Prep Series coming soon!

As The Real Food Dietitians, we want to provide you with the best guidance and tools you need to cook nourishing yet simple meals, to be the healthiest you can be, to provide delicious meals for your family, to show you that healthy eating is actually quite simple, and to inspire you to try new recipes and to give weekend meal prepping a try! Our meal prep series is FREE for all of our readers and we’re so excited to provide this service to you. Stay tuned for more details! In the mean time, be sure that you’re on our Newsletter List so that you can be the first to know about this awesome series.  

Dietitian Stacie’s Day of Eats on November 30, 2016:

Meal 1

Organic coffee + heavy cream + collagen  – I have this almost every morning. Read about the benefits of collagen here.

Protein Egg Pancakes drizzled with Pumpkin Spice Donut Coconut Butter + apple slices  –That coconut butter is to die for!

Meal 2

Two Butternut Squash Oatmeal Muffins with a little almond butter – new recipe I’m working on!

Meal 3

Trader Joes Chile Lime Chicken Burger served on top of spinach with Bubbies Sauerkraut + carrots + kalamata olives + mushrooms + snap peas + green and red onion + pumpkin seeds + almonds + Primal Kitchen Ranch Dressing – this was one of those ‘clean out the fridge’ kind of salads.

Use coupon code: realfoodrds for 10% off your Primal Kitchen order.

Meal 4

Primal Fuel + Collagen – enjoyed this clean protein option as my post-workout fuel!

Meal 5 

Simple Chicken Stir-fry with green beans, snap peas, red onion, mushrooms, garlic & ginger made with Coconut Aminos served over cauli-rice and topped with toasted almonds – I had this meal at least 3 times this week. I’m a big fan of leftovers.

After dinner treat – Alter Eco Dark Chocolate – the best!

 Moving my body daily is a non-negotiable.

Whether it’s a walk or jog, an online workout (from Tone-it-up, Purely Twins, Lori Harder or Nourish Move Love) or a CrossFit class. I know that when I move my body daily I’m a much happier person inside in out, I’m able to better manage my anxious tendencies, I’m more productive, and I have more energy. A body in motion, stays in motion!

On this particular day my workout consisted of a 10 minute morning circuit, which I do almost every morning to get my blood flowing and body warmed up for the day – nothing too intense. Then a CrossFit WOD at Fairmont CrossFit (for the love of burpees and thrusters)!

I hope you found this ‘Day of Eats’ post helpful. If so, I’d love for you to comment below and let me know if you’d like to see more posts like this!

Also, pretty please let us know what you find most difficult with meal prepping? Feel free to ask any meal prep questions you have in the comments.

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About Stacie Hassing

Stacie is a Licensed and Registered Dietitian from rural southern Minnesota where she and her husband reside on 5 acres with their two pups, Walter & Lucy. She’s a creator of simple and wholesome recipes, a lover of nature, a crossfitter, a seasonal runner, and she’s on a mission to inspire as many as she can live a healthier and happier life from the inside out.