Ditching the salt

I used to eat a lot of frozen meals for lunch because they were super convenient.
Amy's brand to be specific....thinking it must be better than Lean Cuisine.
They ARE organic with less salt....but lesbihonest...there is still a lot of salt for one meal. Especially a meal at work whilst wearing some sort of pencil skirt or tailored pant that doesn't necessarily allow for lunch-time bloat.  Fun.

I have noticed, though, since implementing weekly meal-prep for my breakfast, lunch, and snacks, that eating too much salty food on the weekends or at dinner has started to affect me at a faster rate than it used to. Also? The heat of summer doesn't help any with water retention and swelling.  Oh Lord....I just know I will have cankles when I'm knocked up. Thank God there are maxi dresses!

Anyways, my meals prior to dinner are very clean. Hell, even dinner is relatively clean. Lunches are flavored with hummus, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and hot sauce.  And trust me, I know that some of those items have salt in them. It's unavoidable.

My goal isn't to eliminate all salt. It has just made me hyper aware of when I eat something incredibly salty and how I feel afterward.
And that feeling is bloated and fat.

Is it temporary? Sure. But it's still there....every Monday.
Because over the weekend I like to have a margarita (or 3) and then we'll grab a pizza or mexican take-out and one thing leads to another and Monday rolls around and somehow Shamu has replaced me in my bed.

Mark has mentioned he feels this way too.  Like all the chaos catches up with us to start the work week and even my stretchy work-out clothes seem to pinch the jiggly parts.

The solution is simple. We won't grab the easy, salt-laden foods if we don't have any, right?
However, that's unavoidable as well. Because we all know that grilled food at a pool party pairs well with chips and dip and margaritas, obv.

So, I am going to make a conscience effort to just buy more whole foods. More than just what I need for myself during the week. It's probably going to cost more, but I think in the long run, if I'm not in a fit of rage because "I feel fat" it's a win-win in the entire household.  I'm sure Mark will thank me.

And since we are chatting about being fit I should tell you that I tried to back off my cardio for a bit.
Change it up.
Instead of doing HIIT sprints five days a week and wanting to shoot myself on Friday, I completely eliminated running in lieu of plyo movements (jumping jacks, box jumps, etc). And while those things are fine and dandy, I'm not quite sure it's as effective at replacing my condensed cardio routine.

My workout routine these days is:

Monday: 12 minutes HIIT on the treadmill, followed by shoulder/back
Tuesday: 12 minutes HIIT on the treadmill, followed by heavy legs
Wednesday: OFF (maybe...if I don't feel like death I'll head in and do a whole body workout)
Thursday: 12 minutes HIIT on the treadmill, followed by biceps/triceps/abs
Friday: 12 minutes HIIT on the treadmill, followed by lighter legs, focusing on butt and inner/outer thighs

And yea, I'll probably throw in some pull-ups, push-ups, box jumps, and jacks if the mood strikes.
I'm realizing though that those 12 minutes of sprints really helps show off the muscles that I am working so hard for.  Without it....it's just fluff.

What about you? Are you sticking with a summer routine? Or did you get bored and quit/switch it up? Do you change your diet around in the summertime?
Thanks for reading!!