How to Healthify Your Not So Healthy Foodie Faves

Hey babe! We're dedicating a lot of time and effort this month to learning the art and discipline of taking care of ourselves; for the purpose of making it possible to slay our goals more consistently and prevent us from losing steam. It might seem too good to be true in the moment, but trust us - the benefit to your fitness is sooo worth it! If you're anything like us over at LSF, then self-care involves food…. a lot of food. In the art of self-care, it's important to do things to refresh and recharge that don't take away from your goals. When it comes to enjoying food as self-care, it can be tricky to find healthy food to eat that still feels like a reward for your efforts.

Having a game plan going into culinary indulgence is super important in keeping yourself from going overboard or being tempted by foods that will cause you to backslide. We've laid out some of our very favorite guilty pleasures and taken the 'guilt' factor out of the equation. All you have to do is read on without any of the stress!

French Fries

There are few things better than a hot plate of fries and a big ol' glob of ketchup. But luckily, we do know something that's better! It involves a simple switching out of regular fries for baked sweet potato fries. Baking them is much healthier! While sweet potatoes are a teensy bit higher in carbs and calories than regular potatoes; they're also filled with more nutrients that your body needs, such as Vitamin A! Serve them up on a bread plate, to prevent yourself from over-serving; make your own dipping sauce rather than sugary ketchup from a bottle. Some good options are things like greek yogurt mixed with garlic, dijon mustard, or even drizzling some wild honey over the fries before digging in! The added richness will ensure that you don't need as much and will be easily satisfied by this indulgent delight!

Cookies

I don't blame you if you have a hard time believing that cookies can actually be a healthy food to eat, but let us educate you! Cookiestypicallycontainsimple carbs, sugar,less-than-good fats, and a lot of empty calories. This guilt-free recipe has swapped out the bad for the good! Like natural monk fruit sweetener, protein-packed peanut butter, complex carbs in the form of rolled oats, and even collagen peptides; for the health of your hair, skin, and nails! After you take a hot tray of our Peanut Butter Dream Cookies out of the oven, curl up with a good movie, and a glass of oat milk. We guarantee you'll be thanking your lucky stars that it's not your (old) favorite boxed brand from the grocery store!

Tacos

Tacos are the perfect way to end a day at the beach or grab with a friend on a night out! They're oh-so-easy to make at home! Oftentimes these heavenly morsels can have hidden offenders, like tortillas fried in oil, heavy sour cream, fatty red meats, and more. Since they don't fill up a whole plate on their own, it's too easy to end up eating more than you need. But fortunately, we've found a way to make this meal a whole lot healthier without sacrificing any of the deliciousness! Our recipe for Instapot Chicken Tacos is filled with things like lean meat, veggies, good fat from avocados, and a healthier alternative to sour cream! Next time you're tempted to swing by the taco truck, this easy-to-make recipe is sure to offer you a healthier (and dare we say… tastier?) alternative!

Pizza

This glorious carb-disk of goodness (is that what pizza means in Italian?) has been everybody's downfall at one point or another. It might seem like it's completely out of the question when you're contemplating healthy food to eat. We have fabulous news for you -- we've found a way to make pizza not just a treat you can allow yourself, but something you can enjoy and savor without feeling like you're cheating on your goals!

Our Butternut Squash and Sausage Pizza is ridiculously good in its own right. It is sprinkled with healthy add-ons like butternut squash (duh), nutrient-packed greens, and leaner chicken sausage in place of pork! You can even customize your crust (I prefer paleo) to match your dietary needs or preferences! We know it sounds too good to be true, but oh babe, you better believe it! Make sure to work it into your next night-in. Check out this helpful video on how I manage to eat pizza, drink wine, and still have abs… uh, yea - ya heard me right!

Pasta

If your eyes scanned the page and you saw the word "pasta" coming up, I'm sure you thought you were seeing things. But you read right, babe! It's the mother of all comfort foods, and yes! It's possible to make it part of your diet without packing on the pounds! Not only that, but we've taken arguably the most indulgent pasta dish on the planet, and have removed every noodle of guilt, leaving you with a bowl full of healthy heaven! Our gem of a recipe for Chicken Alfredo is nestled in our Guiltless Nutrition Lifestyle & Recipe book. It's just too darn good to let slip! You can find this recipe as well as a wealth of other game-changing resources in the Guiltless guide. So go snag yours!

Now that you have these healthified and guilt(less) pleasures in your back pocket, make sure you're remembering to incorporate some seriously fabulous food into your self-care practice! Remember that it's so important to identify the things that personally make you feel rested, indulged, and recharged. This allows you to maintain motivation for forward movement! For many of us, we're constantly looking for healthy food to eat but are tempted by the foods and treats that we crave and make us feel happy, not just healthy!

Hopefully, now you see that you can have foods that satisfy both your craving for comfort food and check the "healthy" box all in one. They are able to fit perfectly into a self-care routine that is compatible with your goals. As always, we're on your team and are here to encourage and challenge you; on your journey to being your best rested, best fed, and best feeling self! Xoxo!