Think Flat

The last few months I've been really lazy about exercising and eating right. So as soon as the new year rolled around, I jumped on the proverbial bandwagon of promising to do better.

So far, so good.

But I gotta tell ya, this flat belly thing is for real. After only two weeks, I feel totally different. In a good way. I look different too (also in a good way). Before, I was feeling bloated and pudgy. Buttoning my jeans was an exercise in breath holding.

The flat belly thing is so simple too. Add a little MUFA to every meal. What's a MUFA? What's a MUFA with you? Ha ha. I couldn't resist. MUFA stands for Mono-Unsaturated Fatty Acid. As it turns out, MUFA-rich foods happen to be some of my favorites! They include avocados, olives, olive oil, hummus, almonds and other nuts, DARK CHOCOLATE (what's not to love?) and natural peanut butter. Think good fats.

I can already see a noticeable difference in my waist size. I buttoned my jeans with ease today. And I feel better.

So here's what I'm eating:

Banana-split oatmeal -- steel cut oats with fresh berries, sliced banans and a TBS of dark chocolate chips. Sometimes I add a little soy milk.

A toasted whole-wheat english muffin, drizzled with olive oil, topped with a tomato slice and a poached egg. Invest in a $3 microwave egg poacher - you'll have a poached egg in 30 seconds.

Almond-crusted chicken - crush up some raw almonds. Dip boneless skinless chicken cutlets in an egg wash, dust with cornstarch and roll in almonds. Fry in a skillet in olive oil. I love this with brown rice and green beans on the side.

You can do things as simple as making sure to toss in a few olives or sesame seeds in your salad (just don't drown it in ranch dressing)!

Snack on multi-grain crackers with hummus or tapenade. Tapenade is basically chopped olives, capers, and olive oil. I've kept pistachios on the countertop this week.

I've also had a lot of salmon this week, which is full of the good fats.

If you're so inclined, give it a try. I've got some pistachios to crack.