SMART Goals & Mid Morning Snack Ideas

I have some exciting news to share!! I had my 6 Week Bootcamp Evaluation this morning and I met ALL of my goals! I have lost 8.8 pounds, 6.5 inches & my body fat has decreased from 29.5% to 25.9%! I walked out of the appointment feeling GREAT and motivated to do even better in these last 6 weeks. I think for me the major take away is the importance of setting goals for yourself. And not just in your head- write them down.
SMART goals are something I use at work & they transition into fitness very well. What is a SMART goal? Well it's Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic & Timely.
Here's an example of a bad (but common goal). "I want to be thin". Ok... so what that leaves out is- what is thin to you? Do you want to loose inches, pounds? And when do you want to be thin? And is this reasonable goal with the actions you plan to take?
A better goal is: "I will loose 5 pounds by staying in my calorie range by November 1st". Is that still a simple goal? Yes. But now you have a way to measure yourself that takes into account what your goal is (loose 5 lbs) how you are going to reach it (counting calories) and when you will reach it by (Nov 1st). Check out this article about Fitness SMART Goals- it made a lot of sense to me and can help you develop your own. www.fitnessmantra.info and in the search type SMART Goals. The article is the second one that comes up.
And now for some mid morning snacks- to keep you from overeating at lunch. I like these to come in somewhere around 100 calories. You'll notice that all of these things take little or NO preparation. This way you can toss them in your bag and head to work- or about your day.
A few personal favorites:
-Trader Joes Light String Cheese (60)
-1/2 toasted whole wheat english muffin with 1/2 Laughing Cow Light Cheese spread (100)
-Trader Joe's Mini Bran Cakes blueberry or apple cranberry (80)
-Medium bananna (110)
-Flavored Non Fat Greek Yogurt (my favorite is the honey flavor) (130)
-1/2 cup dry Kashi Go Lean Crunch Cereal (95)
-Mary's Gone Crackers brand wheat & gluten free crackers. Good by themselves or with a little cheese. (100-150)
-Almonds. I purchase these raw and non salted. Raw because uncooked food has more nutrients & unsalted so I am able to stop eating them (dry roasted salted nuts are a weakness of mine).(100)
-Whole Wheat Waffle. I like to buy these frozen and then toast them at work. Kashi makes a blueberry one that is really healthy- I like the Trader Joes Brand Blueberry one the best. (95)
Enjoy!
Chel