Trim Healthy mama

What To Eat When Sick On THM

July 7, 2020 by Stacy Craft Leave a Comment

Find a list of what to eat when sick on THM to keep you on plan while you recover.

There are lots of Trim Healthy Mama store bought and homemade options to help you feel better quickly when under the weather.

With everything going on lately, sickness has been top of mind for a lot of people.

As COVID-19 continues to rise, making a plan for yourself if you have flu like symptoms seems like a prudent decision. And preparing for what to eat when sick on THM is probably easier than you might think.

(Affiliate Links are used in this post. A small commission may be paid to me at no extra cost to you and that helps to support this page. Please see my disclosures page for additional information.)

Medical Disclaimer: I am not a doctor or medical professional. If you are ill, seek the advice of your doctor.

What To Eat When Sick On THM

When you are not feeling well, cooking up a meal in the kitchen is probably the last thing on your mind. But you have to eat and stay hydrated!

Here is a big list of store bought on plan approved items and recipes to make homemade soups and more to get though through a couple of sick days.

Store Bought THM Sick Kit Options

Progresso Light Soups
Kettle & Fire Bone Broth
Sprouted Toast (Check out the list of THM Approved breads here)
Mary’s Gone Crackers or Wasa Crackers
Zevia Ginger Ale – Ginger Ale is a great way to soothe a bad tummy & this Zevia option is sugar free.
THM Hydrates – get your extra water in when you need it!
Coconut Water – Normally you limit this to small amounts according to THM app but if your sick and you can tolerate it, I would drink it.

If you have been suffering from a stomach virus, you may want to follow a BRAT diet. And lucky for you the BRAT diet has all the THM staples on it.

So what does BRAT stand for? Bananas, Rice, Applesauce and Toast.

B – Bananas (E fuel)
R – Brown Rice (E fuel)
A – Unsweetened Applesauce (E Fuel)
T – Sprouted Toast (E Fuel)

THM Cookbook or THM Blogger Recipes

Of course, if you have some energy, plan ahead or are taking care of a sick family member, you can make some recipes from the THM cookbook or from your favorite Trim Healthy Mama bloggers for your “sick day.”

Singing Canary Drink – Immune boosting beverage that will drown you in Vitamin C!
Elderberry Good Girl Moonshine by Joy Filled Eats
Instant Pot Rotisserie Chicken Bone Broth – This is great to make ahead and keep in your freezer for when illness strikes.
Creamy Chicken Noodle Soup by My Table of Three
15 Minute White Chicken Chili – A Pantry Meal by Protecting Your Pennies

Trim Healthy Mama and OTC Medications

Over the counter meds and the THM plan cause questions for a lot of beginners.

Because guess what? There is sugar in a lot of these meds. You know, they put sugar in everything!

Here are a couple of options that can be used on plan:

Manuka Honey – Natural remedy that may help a sore throat. Manuka is the recommended choice of honey for medicinal purposes by the sisters.
XLEAR Cough Drops – Sweetened with Xylitol and Stevia

Keep reading for my personal thoughts on OTC meds and staying on plan.

Illness and Staying On Plan

Whether you are sick with a stomach bug, an upper respiratory infection or maybe suffering through the early stages of pregnancy with a bad case of morning sickness, being sick and staying on plan is definitely doable but it can be tough.

If you have read the 5 THM things I don’t do, you know that I am somewhat of a THM rebel at times. I do what works for me and thanks to following the plan *most* of the time, I lost the 60 lbs that I gained while pregnant with my second child.

And for that weight loss I am so thankful for this plan. However, I believe that when you are sick, you can get a hall pass of sorts.

So if you can stay on plan doing the things mentioned above, you go girl!

But if you are struggling to keep things down and the thought of a piece of sprouted bread makes you want to vomit, by all means don’t eat it. If a big piece of white bread is literally the only thing that your 9 weeks pregnant body can tolerate, feed that baby.

Don’t get dehydrated or further your misery just to stay on plan.

If you can stay on plan while ill, great. If you need to drink a Gatorade or eat a saltine to get better, do it. Then get back on plan as soon as you are feeling up to it.

Need a XO? Eat one. Again, don’t beat yourself up while you are sick. Give yourself grace, nourish your body the best you can and heal.

Remember to always check with your physician if you are concerned about symptoms, an illness or your diet.

Low Carb Chicken Bacon Ranch Wrap – A 5 Minute Meal

September 27, 2020 by Stacy Craft Leave a Comment

A low carb chicken bacon ranch wrap that can be made in 5 minutes. A great option for busy weeknights when you have no time to cook a big meal.

My husband and I were talking about our biggest temptations for going off plan the other day. His top #1 missed food was pizza. He loves it so much and although we do low carb tortilla pizzas a lot, he wants the real deal. Like all the time, he wants it.

As I was thinking of the food that I miss most, I realized that there isn’t one single food that I just really crave. Convenience is what I miss most about our old life. The ability to whip through a drive through and order a number one without having to do a special order with no bun. Or ordering whatever sounded good from takeout.

Because after a busy day, sometimes I just want the easiest way to feed my family. And while you can certainly eat low carb (THM S) at a fast food chain, I’ve been working on healthy and ultra simple meals that you can make at home.

Eating at home saves money for one thing. It also allows you to be totally in control of the ingredients that you use and what you put into your body. And finally we live in a small suburb outside of a major city. Although there are plenty of restaurant options not too far from us, there isn’t really anything that is ultra convenient. So if I have a quick meal, it is actually easier for me to cook something rather than go grab food at a restaurant.

So I started trying to come up with a list of meals with minimal ingredients that I either typically have on hand or that are easy to grab in a last minute grocery trip. And then, the meal needs to be super quick to make. Like 15 minutes or less from start to fork on the plate.

The goal is suppers that are literally quicker to make at home than it would be to get in your car and grab a bag of fast food. And these low carb chicken bacon ranch wraps fit all of the criteria for my no time to cook dinner list.

(Affiliate Links are used in this post. A small commission may be paid to me at no extra cost to you and that helps to support this page. Please see my disclosures page for additional information.)

Low Carb Chicken Bacon Ranch Wrap – A 5 Minute Meal

When I first starting Trim Healthy Mama, I tried to cook every complicated meal out there. Hours of my life were spent in the kitchen, my counters were cluttered with ingredients that I had never heard of the week before and some meals were a big flop after spending a lot of time cooking.

And you know what that is frustrating and unsustainable. So what did I do? I quit after a week or two.

I like to think that I am not a quitter but my first approach at THM was so complicated and hard that I couldn’t make it a part of my lifestyle. It was simply a diet that I started and then stopped.

So to prevent that, I needed some healthy meals that I could make with little effort. Or better yet that my husband could make! I love when he helps out with dinner prep.

Making this low carb chicken bacon ranch wrap is so tasty and a very quick meal.

What You Need for Rotisserie Chicken Wrap – THM S

To make this low carb wrap, you need a couple of things that are usually a staple at my house.

Rotisserie Chicken or Shredded chicken (I keep bags of frozen rotisserie chicken or cooked/shredded chicken in my freezer for easy meals)
Shredded Cheese
Bacon (To keep this a simple meal, I use the microwavable kind)
Ranch Dressing (this is my fave)
Low Carb Tortillas
Romaine Lettuce

Assembling the Simple Chicken Rollups

To make the wraps, start by pulling the chicken off the bone if it is a rotisserie. Alternatively you could also use canned chicken that has been drained.

Next place one low carb tortilla on a plate. Fill with the desired amount of chicken, cheese, cooked bacon, romaine and ranch dressing.

Roll the tortilla up like an enchilada and cut it at an angle down the middle.

Serve it with pork rinds and extra ranch for dipping!

More Easy Low Carb Dinner Ideas (THM S)

Mama’s Italian Salad

BBQ Smoked Sausage & Cauli Rice Skillet Meal

Keto Cheese Enchiladas (No Tortillas)

More Simple Healthy Carb Meals (THM E)

Black Bean Tacos

White Chicken Chili – A Pantry Meal

White Beans and Turkey Ham

7 Layer Dip Bean Tostadas

Low Carb Chicken Bacon Ranch Wrap

Servings

Wrap

Ingredients

1/3-1/2 chicken breast (From a Rotisserie)
1 Tbsp ranch dressing
2 Tbsp Shredded cheddar cheese
2 Pieces Microwavable Bacon (cooked)
1 Mission Low Carb Tortilla
1 handful Romaine Lettuce

Servings

Wrap

Ingredients

1/3-1/2 chicken breast (From a Rotisserie)
1 Tbsp ranch dressing
2 Tbsp Shredded cheddar cheese
2 Pieces Microwavable Bacon (cooked)
1 Mission Low Carb Tortilla
1 handful Romaine Lettuce

Instructions

Warm the bacon slices in the microwave to crisp them.
Shred the chicken breast and add it to the center of the tortilla.
Top the chicken with the cheese, bacon, ranch dressing and romaine.
Roll up the tortilla and cut in half.
Serve with pork rinds and mini peppers if desired.

7 Frugal Trim Healthy Mama Dinners

January 4, 2019 by Stacy Craft 2 Comments

Trim Healthy Mama can seem overwhelming and expensive. Eating healthy doesn’t have to cost a ton. Here we have planned 7 Frugal Trim Healthy Mama dinners for your family of 4 (that your non-THM family will actually eat).

When I am following Trim Healthy Mama, I like to keep it really simple. Simplifying the plan helps this working mama of 2 young kids stay sane and eating healthy. Today I am going to share 7 Frugal Trim Healthy Mama Dinners that we eat frequently. They are all quick to prepare, will feed your family of four and are inexpensive.

(Affiliate Links are used in this post. A small commission may be paid to me at no extra cost to you and that helps to support this page. Please see my disclosures page for additional information.)

Eating Cheap On Trim Health Mama Plan

Myth #1: Eating healthy is too expensive! Ya’ll that is fake news! I know you can buy junk food that is cheap. Sure you can buy a frozen pot pie, a can of chips or a box of orange mac n cheese for a $1 or so.

But you can also buy a carton of 12 eggs. Yesterday at Aldi, for less than a $1.50 I found a huge bag of gala apples. So I can eat a hard boiled egg (S) or an apple (E) for snacks and I spent less than $2.50 for both.To make those snacks complete, I would add probably add a lite string cheese or even a slice or two of lean deli meat.

Another tip to save money on THM is to only buy the lite string cheese or the lean deli meat. If you pair your boiled eggs with the lean cheese or meat, you are still getting enough fat from the eggs to make the snack an S. However, you won’t have to buy additional cheese and meat to go with your E snacks like an apple where you can only have the lighter varieties.

I encourage you to open your heart and mind to researching the plan and finding ways that you can do it, even on a tight budget. It may be a little more difficult than just walking into the store and buying whatever you want. However, it is so worth it to have your family eating better foods.

These 7 frugal Trim Healthy Mama dinners will help get you and your family on the right track.

Want to budget but hate cash envelopes? Try this FREE digital tracker.

7 Frugal Trim Healthy Mama Dinners

Myth #2. You will be in the kitchen for hours a day on THM. Ok, ain’t nobody got time for that! Whether you are working 40+ hours a week with two little ones at your feet like me or you may be running from the football field to ballet every night, we need quick and easy and THM compliant. That’s not too much to ask, right?

My favorite THM meals are cheap, quick to prepare and something that my whole family will eat. My husband will usually at least partially participate in my Trim Healthy plan so long as I don’t get too crazy with cauliflower or onions (or other things he doesn’t think he likes). My daughter (5) is in that phase where if it isn’t shaped like a chicken nugget, she may or may not eat it. The baby will currently eat anything, so naturally he is my fave.

So, getting my family to eat the food that I prepare can be a challenge. These meals are all things that my family of four eats frequently and for the most part all enjoy. (being 5 can be tough, so her level of love can vary from day to day!)

Trim Healthy Mama Meal Plan

Here is the list of 7 Frugal Trim Healthy Mama dinners that we eat at our house often.

Day One: Cheesy Salsa Verde Chicken with Cauliflower Rice (S)

Ingredients: Steam bag of Cauliflower rice, Salsa Verde, cream cheese, Frozen Chicken tenders (1/2 bag)
Recipe: My most popular Recipe, read all about it here!
Tips: Use mild salsa if you want kids to eat this. The medium is quite spicy. This is a very rich and filling meal. If you want an additional side, I would go with a green vegetable or a side salad.

Day Two: Black Bean Tacos (E)

Ingredients: black beans, Mission Low Carb Tortillas
Recipe: Warm your black beans and serve in tortillas. Top it with some greek yogurt as a sub for sour cream if you have it, Shred some fresh spinach (you should have some to spare from Day four), some hot sauce and a sprinkle of cheese (go really light if you want it to be an E, too much and you will XO)
Tips: This is such a quick meal. It is probably our go to “it is 6:30 and we have no dinner plan” meal. We love it.

Day Three: Whole Baked Chicken, Steamed Vegetables, Sweet Potato (E)

Ingredients: Whole Chicken, bag of mixed vegetables, sweet potatoes
Recipe: Season and roast your chicken (I use a Rotisserie similar to this but you can do it in the oven or even buy one already cooked from the grocery), Steam the veggies in microwave and cook your sweet potato.
Tips: This can be an “emergency” meal if you pick up an already cooked chicken at the store and do your sweet potatoes in the microwave to prevent a drive thru run.

Day Four: Smoked Sausage with Grilled Vegetables, Cheesy Spinach (S)

Ingredients: Smoked Sausage, onion, Red, green and yellow Bell peppers, Fresh Spinach, portion of heavy whipping cream, Portion of cheese
Recipe: You can find the recipe for the sausage and veggies here. For the spinach, wilt the spinach and cheese it up with the HWC and cheese
Tips: I really prefer this with Chicken sausage but Walmart doesn’t have one that fits the plan that I can find (I get it from Aldi). The meal itself is pretty light so make sure you bulk it up with all the veggies. Adding in a zucchini or yellow squash would be good too.

Day Five: Ground Pork and Vegetable Stir Fry (S)

Ingredients: Ground Pork, Stir Fry Vegetables
Recipe: Just brown your pork, drain any fat and combine with vegetables. Cook until veggies are softened. Add in a tablespoon or so of liquid aminos and some ground ginger (tsp) if you have it.
Tips: Very quick meal. You could add in some cauliflower rice if you wanted to bulk this meal up.

Day Six: Grilled Chicken Tenderloins, Fried Radishes, Cheesy Zucchini (S)

Ingredients: Remaining 1/2 bag frozen chicken tenders, Radishes, Zucchini, Small portion Heavy whipping cream, portion of shredded cheese
Recipe: Just season your tenderloins with what you have on hand, fry radishes in olive oil (save some bacon grease from breakfast for extra flavor) and make the cheesy zucchini
Tips: the cheesy zucchini makes it to our plate at least once a week. It took a little convincing to get my girl to try it but it tastes a little like mac n cheese so she gobbled it up.

Day Seven: Turkey Ham & Beans (E)

Ingredients: 1/4 – 1/2 of turkey ham, white (Northern) beans
Recipe: Easy 15 minute recipe here
Tips: Top it off with a little parsley if you have it. This is so easy and my kids always eat it. If you can find sprouted rolls, those are yummy as a side.

More Cheap And Easy THM Meals:

THM S No Tortilla Cheese & Onion Enchiladas

THM S Instant Pot Taco Meat (With Secret Nutritious Ingredient)

THM S Tortilla Pizza

THM E The Best Crockpot Taco Soup

THM S Mama’s Italian Salad

THM E – White Chicken Chili (A Pantry Meal)

Walmart Grocery List

A low grocery bill is great. But I also need my THM grocery list to be easy to get. Going to three different grocery stores is not something I have time to do on a weekly basis.

I do shop at Aldi often, but I know not everyone has access to this store. So I chose to show this meal plan with a Walmart grocery order since I think most people have access to a Walmart. And because I love their free grocery pickup! It saves me so much time and sanity to just pull up to a parking spot and get my food. No getting the kids out of carseats!

Here is exactly what I put in my cart to make the 7 frugal Trim Healthy Mama dinners. This list does assume that you have a few basics like olive oil, seasonings and liquid aminos (I just use regular soy sauce but that is not on plan, you can read how I make the plan work for my budget here).

Also, your family, your meals. These are ideas for basic meals. Add additional veggies or fruit as you see fit. If you buy fruit or veggies in season, you can usually get a serving of 4 for around $1. Also, frozen veggies are almost always available for around $1 a bag.

Cost Per Meal

Using this 7 Frugal Trim Healthy Mama Dinners meal plan, the average cost of dinner is $8.15 per meal. That works out to $2.03 per person.

These meals easily feed our family of four which consists of my husband, a 5 year old, a 1 year old and myself. My husband is a pretty big eater and most meals we still have some type of leftovers.

At the end of this meal plan, you should also have about half of the turkey ham leftover, most of the heavy whipping cream, some shredded cheese and some fresh spinach leftover. You could make some yummy omelettes or 2 minute microwave eggs with those ingredients.

More THM Help

If you found these 7 frugal Trim Healthy Mama dinners helpful, here are some other things that may make your THM life easier! As a working mama, easy lunches are a must. Here are 6 THM lunches for work and 5 things to do with leftover chicken for lunch.

Another easy and fairly low cost dinner option is a twist on my popular cheesy salsa verde chicken and cauliflower rice. These Salsa verde chicken enchiladas require just a handful of ingredients and 20 minutes in the oven.

If you want something totally different, try my Granny’s low carb cajun shrimp casserole. She always made it with white rice but I THM’d it by using cauliflower rice. So good!

You can find two other meal plans here & here if this 7 frugal Trim Healthy Mama dinners guide was more your style.

What are your THM goals this year?

THM Store Bought On Plan Bread

June 17, 2020 by Stacy Craft Leave a Comment

A huge list of THM store bought on plan bread options that you can purchase at your local grocery store.

Lots of THM beginners want to know what kind of bread you can have that is on the Trim Healthy Mama plan.

And with that I mean what kind of store bought bread can you have. I mean, I’m not a drive thru Sue all the time but I’m also not Betty Crocker either.

You know that saying “the best thing since sliced bread?” It didn’t come about with busy mama’s making bread.

Nobody wants to have to make and slice their own bread. (OK, I actually want to & it is on my THM bucket list to grow one of those creepy sourdough starters in a mason jar on my counter, feed it and make my own beautiful loaf. But I am a working mama of 2 young kids. No time for now!)

Affiliate Links are used in this post. A small commission may be paid to me at no extra cost to you and that helps to support this page. Please see my disclosures page for additional information.

Finding THM Store Bought Sprouted Bread At The Grocery

If you are looking at breads, the first ingredient should be a sprouted grain and there should be less than 2 grams of sugar (1 is preferred).

To save you the trouble of reading every bread label, here are some commonly used THM store bought on plan breads.

Need Store Bought On the Go THM snacks? Click Here!

Found at Most Large Grocery Chains (Walmart, Kroger, Target)

You may be able to find these at additional grocery stores but this is where I have found them in my area.

Ezekiel Sprouted Bread – Look for it in the freezer section (Kroger, Walmart, Target)

Silver Hills Sprouted Bread (Target, Sprouts, Whole Foods)

Pepperidge Farms Soft Sprouted Bread (Target, Kroger, Walmart)

Greenwise Sprouted Multi-Grain Bread (Publix Bakery)

Simple Truth Sprouted Grain & Legume Bread (Kroger)

Found Primarily at Specialty Stores (Aldi, Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods, Costco)

Knock Your Sprouts Off Bread (Aldi)

Sly Red Ancient Grains (Aldi)

Trader Joe’s Sprouted Sourdough

Alvarado St. Bakery Sprouted Bread (Whole Foods, Natural Grocers)

Angelic Sprouted Bread (Sprouts, Costco, The Fresh Market)

THM On Plan Store Bought Sourdough Bread

Trim Healthy Mama on plan store bought sourdough can be hard to find but it is possible.

Here is the sourdough criteria:

First Ingredient should be Whole Grain
Yeast should NOT be in the ingredients

Trader Joe’s has an on plan sourdough. You may also find an on plan sourdough at some specialty store bakeries like Sprouts or Whole Foods.

Serving Size & Fuel Type

Bread is a carb source so traditionally it is going to be used in “E” Meals.

E Meal Bread Serving Size : 2 Slices

But if you want to get crazy, you can also have some bread with “S” foods. Wait, what?!

You mean to tell me I could have a piece of cheese toast? Or I could sop up a nice runny egg with a piece of toast?

Yes Ma’am! This is called an S Helper. It is when you go over the carb limit for an S meal but don’t add enough carbs to move into XO (crossover) territory.

S Helper Bread Serving Size: 1 Slice

If you have more than 1 piece of bread with other S foods, you would move into XO territory.

The Exception To The Rule

If you have an Aldi near you, they have a relatively new product Zero Net Carb bread.

Here is a picture of it & a review from the Aldi Reviewer.

I have tried it and I like it. If you get this bread, you can eat it in an S meal and keep it in S territory (no S helper or XO). I like having that option.

*Note: The THM team calls this one a personal choice. It is not for the purists at heart but I’m definitely not that.

Looking for THM Approved Store Bought Wraps and Tortillas? Check out this list of 14 On Plan wrap options.

How to Eat (& Like) Sprouted Bread

If you have not eaten sprouted bread before it does take a little adjusting to. Especially if you are coming from a super soft white bread.

So what is the key to liking sprouted bread?

I have found that toasting the bread is my favorite way to eat it. I honestly don’t care for ANY of the sprouted breads that I have tried fresh out of the bag (and I have tried a lot).

But toast it up in the toaster and it is great with on plan peanut butter, Light Laughing Cow Cheese, Polaner’s jelly or sandwich fixins like this THM E tuna salad.

Need more Trim Healthy Mama Help? Check out this THM A to Z post where all your questions are answered and meal plans and ideas are found!

THM Beach Vacation Meal Plan

August 11, 2020 by Stacy Craft Leave a Comment

Stay on plan while traveling with this free and easy THM beach vacation meal plan.

Staying on plan when you are out of town can be difficult. But with a tiny bit of planning and this THM beach vacation meal plan you can lose weight with your toes in the sand.

I had a week off work planned and our original plans got COVID cancelled. Moping and feeling sorry for myself for several weeks is probably the biggest understatement of the year. Followed by some guilt because obviously a cancelled vacation is such a minor issue compared to the things that have happened to so many people during this pandemic.

But I’m human and I couldn’t help be disappointed in our plans falling through. So on Tuesday my husband & I booked a condo for the fam and headed down to the beach for some much needed fun (6 ft apart)!

This is totally not my normal personality. I think I’ve only done one spontaneous thing in my life, make that 2 now. I’m a planner. I like to look for a condo in October and book it. Then I spend months planning activities, meals and things that we need to pack with us.

A 3 day jump on a beach trip is just not normal for me but I was willing to do whatever to go. And sticking to the Trim Healthy Mama plan was one thing that I wanted to do during the vacation week.

If you are wanting to stick 100% on plan during your vacation, follow along to see how I prepped & everything that I ate for the week.

(Affiliate Links are used in this post. A small commission may be paid to me at no extra cost to you and that helps to support this page. Please see my disclosures page for additional information.)

THM Beach Vacation Meal Plan

The day that we decided to book a beach condo, I started a THM meal plan. The next day I did a grocery pick up at our local store to work on a little meal prep for the week.

I planned a few breakfast options, a few lunch options and 7 dinners. The reason that I didn’t do 7 breakfasts is because we don’t mind repeating a couple of breakfasts over a week. For lunches, I like to have a couple of fresh ideas and then we ate leftovers the other times.

THM Meal Plan Overview

Here are the meals I planned for our THM beach vacation meal plan.

Breakfast
– Sausage Balls
– Oatmeal + Fruit
– Boiled Eggs
– Green Smoothies
– Yogurt/Berries

Lunch
– Pimento Cheese & Celery
– Charcuterie Board
– Broccoli Salad
– Burgers

Dinner
– Tortilla Pizza
– Grilled Chicken Alfredo with Broccoli
– Shrimp Boil
– Grilled Chicken Fajitas
– Parmesan Crusted Grouper
– Lasagna
– Cheeseburger Salad

Vacation Meal Prep – Before You Leave

Time was very limited for me before we left for vacation. So I wanted to make the most out of my THM Meal prep and the things that I packed from home.

Here are the things that I did at home:

Made Sausage Balls (2 Batches) & froze
Grilled a tray of taco chicken for the fajitas and grilled some lightly seasoned chicken for the Chicken Alfredo Night. Sliced and froze the cooked chicken for easy meals on vacay.
Sliced bell peppers and onions for fajitas and froze.
Blended a Zucchini for a chocolate trimtastic cake and froze.
Mixed all dry ingredients for a trimtastic cake and placed in a ziplock bag.
Boiled eggs to take with us to eat for breakfast on our drive down.
Made deli meat roll ups on low carb tortillas to eat for lunch on the road.

THM Beach Vacation Meal Ideas & Portions

Here is the photo diary portion of this post. You can see exactly what was on my meal every day of my 7 day beach trip. We ate in every night, partly because of COVID and partly because dining out with little kids is not fun!

Please forgive all the paper plates and cell phone photos. I wanted to relax on my trip and dishes and pulling out my camera didn’t fit that bill.

Also, I don’t always eat so many S helper or planned XO. However, it was vacation and I wanted to live a little. And spoiler alert, I still came home 2 lbs lighter than when I went! Whoo hoo!

Wanna save money on THM on plan products? Join the Protecting Your THM Pennies FB Group.

Day 1 – Travel Day

Breakfast (S): 2 Boiled Eggs, a handful of cashews and some coffee. I guess it was so early that I forgot to take a picture of this meal.

Lunch (S): A Mission tortilla with a Laughing Cow Cheese, a little mustard and deli meat. Mini Sweet Peppers & a couple of pork rinds. All eaten in the car & on the go.

Dinner (S): Tortilla Pizzas and Salad. I wanted something quick and easy after a long 8 hour day in the car.

Day 2

Breakfast (S): Sausage balls, Two Good Yogurt & Blackberries

Lunch (S): Turkey Sandwich on Joseph’s pita with nuts and blueberries.

Dinner (S): Chicken Broccoli Alfredo over Dreamfields pasta & a big salad with ranch.

Day 3

Breakfast (S Helper): Eggs, Meat Sticks and a piece of sprouted bread with Laughing cow.

Lunch (S): Charcuterie board with meats and veggies

Dinner (E): Shrimp with gold potatoes

Day 4

Breakfast (E): Oatmeal with an apple

Lunch (S): Shrimp, Nuts, Mini Peppers and a Mayo/Siracha Dipping Sauce & a Two Good Yogurt with Bake Believe chips for dessert.

Dinner (S): Parm Crusted Grouper and a big Salad with Ranch – this was so delicious!

Dessert (S): Trimtastic Cake with Cream Cheese Vanilla Icing

Day 5

Breakfast (FP): Two Good Yogurt with 4 small strawberries

Lunch (S): Rotisserie Chicken Bacon Ranch Quesadilla on a Low Carb tortilla with Broccoli Salad + Trimtastic Cake & Strawberries

Dinner (S): Chicken fajita with grilled veggies on a low carb tortilla with cheese and sour cream.

Day 6

Breakfast (S Helper): Egg scramble with diced ham, sprouted bread with laughing cow and strawberries.

Lunch (S): Leftover grouper, leftover broccoli salad. This was going to be a XO because I’m on vacation and wanted to enjoy a little food freedom but I didn’t end up eating the potato on my plate so it ended up just being an S.

So funny story. I didn’t not eat the potatoes because my willpower is awesome. I told my husband, “wow these potatoes got super hard overnight in the fridge. It is like they weren’t even cooked.” Uhm – because they weren’t cooked! I forgot that I had chopped the extra potatoes thinking that I would could them the next day for the kids.

So I put some nice rock hard, uncooked potatoes on my plate! That is one way to avoid your planned XO.