Meatless

I would classify this as a good day.  Went to the gym this morning: 2 miles treadmill, 3 miles bike.  Had a tuna wrap with a few pringles and an apple for lunch, then tried something new for dinner.  Vegetarian Nachos.  What prompted the meatless adventure?

While outside reading Shape magazine, there was a story on the cover that grabbed my attention.  The slogan said: Slash your grocery bill and still eat healthy!  Naturally I was intrigued by the "save money" aspect, so I quickly flipped the pages til I came upon what the real story was actually about; Becoming a part time vegetarian.  A study from the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition states that people who eat more red meet and processed meat/poultry gain more weight than those who eat more vegetable based diets.  Eating less red meat also increases your chance of getting breast cancer by 24% along with putting you at a higher risk of coronary heart disease (according to a 26 year long study at Harvard) 

Their suggestion wasn't to cut out all meat all together.  However, their suggestion was to cut out at least 1-2 meat based meals per week and substitute them with a vegetarian options.  Not VEGAN, but vegetarian.  So replacing a sausage muffin for an egg muffin or a vegetable wrap instead of a turkey and cheese.  OR a cheesy bean burrito instead of a hamburger filled shell.  This is what inspired the meatless nachos.

I had tortilla chips with covered with cheese, lettuce, onions, green peppers, black olives, tomatoes, and salsa.  I had some Fat Free Refried Beans (with Taco seasoning for added flavor) on the side.  It was both filling and delicious.

I may try to add more "meatless" meals into my diet to see if there is any improvements to weight loss efforts and how I feel in general.

**on a side note I am totally proud of my boyfriend for embracing our meatless mexican dinner!