My Bikini Season Game Plan 2015

You know it's time to re-think your health goals when you have to break out the fat jeans. Every year, I start off strong in January with daily workouts and three healthy meals a day, but by April I'm scrambling to workout once a week and becoming way too relaxed about my diet. I wish I had an excuse, but I don't. I was just been lazy and prioritizing work instead of my health. Thankfully, I've found a fail-proof plan that's been working really well for me this month that helps me stay healthy without stressing. Keep reading to learn about my Bikini Season Game Plan for 2015!

Find a healthy lunch you love.

 It's fairly easy to get back on track with breakfast because I can whip up a quick healthy smoothie or yogurt and berries, and it isn't too hard to find nutritious dinner options at night. My main problem area is lunch. Things can really go downhill at lunchtime because 9 times out of 10 I'm halfway finished with a work project or running late to an appointment. I basically grab whatever food I can in 5 minutes or attempt to find some sort of snack food around the house. I wish that I had time to freshly prepare a fancy salad with awesome toppings and freshly grilled chicken every day for lunch, but let's be real- that's never going to happen. Except now it does every single day - minus the part where I actually prepare the salad myself.

Meet my lunch BFF: the Wendy's salad menu.  It features three amazing salad creations that are absolutely perfect for a quick lunch. In addition to being extremely quick and affordable, each salad comes in two sizes and features freshly chopped vegetables! The BBQ Ranch Chicken Salad, Asian Cashew Chicken Salad, Apple Pecan Chicken Salad are all incredibly delicious, but I've been gravitating towards the Apple Pecan Chicken Salad lately. The mix of fresh lettuce, crisp apples, roasted pecans, creamy blue cheese, and sweet and sour cranberries is basically magic- especially when it's paired with the Marzetti® Simply Dressed^®Pomegranate Vinaigrette!

While some restaurants use frozen and pre-packaged lettuce in their "fresh" salads, Wendy's salads feature vegetables that were freshly chopped that day. Plus, they only use premium white meat chicken breasts that are grilled at the time of your order! If you'd like to see behind-the-scenes footage of how Wendy's produce goes from the farm to your salad bowl, check out the Wendy's "Romaine Lettuce Journey" You Tube video! Now I don't worry about staying healthy at lunchtime. I simply head to Wendy's, pick up my half-size salad, and finish my work with a delicious meal!

Stay hydrated throughout the day.

 It's no secret that I drink way too much diet soda. The caffeine and the taste are addicting, but I know that my body feels better when I drink water throughout the day. While there's nothing wrong with water bottles or plain water, I know that I will drink about 5x more water if it's infused with citrus flavors.   I try to make the process as easy as possible, so I've been stocking my fridge with pitchers of ice water and sliced fruit. Every few hours, I'll take a 5 minute break to head downstairs and re-fill my water glass. It's an easy routine that's helped me feel energized throughout my work day!

Create an excercise backup plan.

I have a gym membership, but it's about 30 minutes from my house. I know that doesn't seem like a long distance, but the hour-long commute time makes it difficult to commit to daily workouts. My goal is to take away that excuse, so I've stocked my house with yoga mats and variety of free weights. On days when I just can't make it to the gym, I'll find a workout video on Youtube and complete the workout in my living room. Again, I make the process simple by keeping all of my fitness equipment ready to go in my living room. When I have an extra 30-60 minutes, I'll roll out my mat, put on my sneakers, and bust out the weights!

These three tips may seem simple, but they've made a huge difference in my daily routine! Plus, now I have an excuse to go bikini shopping!

What's your bikini season game plan this year?