THE SKINNY ON SIMPLE SALADS

Moving and renovating are two of the biggest stresses on relationships, so it's no wonder I gained twenty pounds after a major renovation in California, a big move east and living in (what has turned into) a two+ year renovation in New York. Instead of complaining about it with a bowl of Chunky Monkey in my hands, I decided to take matters out of my mouth, lace up a pair of running shoes and get to work on renovating my body. Believe it or not, once you start it's easier than you think to keep that exercise ball rolling. To get a jump start on my weight loss I've started running every day and have taken a serious look at my eating habits. This blog is a good indication of what I've been eating...breads, pastas, delicious alcoholic beverages...instead of working on our house, I'm as big as a house, BUT it's all about changing habits. Instead of grabbing a bag of chips I eat a few pieces of celery (any diet will tell you that vegetables (for the most part) are totally free calorie-wise, so eat up!). They're good for you, taste pretty good and (most importantly) they fill you up! After spending my day at Lowe's yesterday designing a desk for a client in the city (more on that later) I came home with an appetite of a college football team. Instead of diving into a bowl of pasta or cracking open a bag of chips I made a delicious, incredibly simple and filling salad. On a steamy, hot night it was an even better way to chill out without FILLING out my jeans!
JUST CHILL
I took one cucumber, chopped it up on a plate, added sliced onion, minced garlic, tomatoes and half an avocado. For dressing I sprinkled a tablespoon of olive oil and a dash of apple cider vinegar with pepper. Simple, fast, cheap, delicious and HEALTHY!
TIME TO COMPLETE TASK:five minutes
COST:I had everything in the refrigerator, but would cost under $4
STRESS LEVEL: feeling skinny after a mini-salad: LOW