Handy Tools I Can't Live Without

     Ok, so I am not sure what made me feel like I needed to share this, but I do, so here I am. My weight loss has not been without the help of some very handy tools, and honestly I could not do it without them.

    First, I take you to the kitchen. Now here we have all of my measuring tools. Calorie counting is impossible without them. I HIGHLY suggest a digital scale, it has been by far the most accurate way to measure my food. I tried to use a non digital one first as they are cheaper, but I noticed that it was not very accurate when weighing really light things (think pasta, and salad). Anyway, a good digital scale will give you weight in many formats (ounces, grams, pounds, etc.) It is however, not the most convenient tool if you are not at home, or if you are measuring loose things like spices. Therefore I have the liquid and dry measuring cups (no heaping cups are not a sign of accurate measuring :) ). You may be wondering why I have so many measuring cups and only 1 measuring spoon, if not, I am going to tell you anyway LOL... Well that is because I use this for condiments, most condiment serving sizes are done by the TBSP. I recommend a few sets of these because you go through them quickly. (I don't like washing dishes all day and learned that real fast)

Here we have some of my favorite kitchen gadgets (some are not pictured because they would have been a big hassle to get out, don't worry, I'll fill you in). I could not live without my air popper... I absolutely love me some pop corn but the microwave variety is so high in calories and doesn't taste near as good. You don't get as much for the calories either. There are sprays and such that you can buy that are low or no calorie to put on it making it a great treat, high in fiber too. For me, I splurge on the topping and use Popping and Topping Oil from Orville Redenbacher. It is a little high in calories, but so worth it, and still less than microwave pop corn. Moving on, the cutting board and knife are pretty self explanatory, when you are calorie restricted you eat a lot of fresh food from produce to meat, you need to be able to cut them. The apple corer is fantastic, it slices and cores those yummy apples. Now for the not pictured items... George Foreman grill & BBQ grill. This is the healthiest way to cook most meats. I use the foreman on days that I can't grill outside. Did you know that with beef especially, you can almost double the calories by cooking it in the pan. When you grill it, a lot of the fat drips off of it, saving calories. I almost fell on the floor when I learned this. My rice cooker is another fav go to, I can perfectly cook a batch of rice and steam my veggies all at the same time. It comes out perfect every time, I will never eat minute rice again.

     Last but not least my other devices I could not live without... First my scale, for my weekly weigh in of course! A good trusty measuring tape. I wish I had used this all along so I could say exactly how many inches I had lost, but last month was the first time that I had any desire to do so (doing monthly from now on). The next 4 items kind of go together Zumba DVDs (not pictured because I don't need any trouble with the folks over at Zumba), my Zumba toning sticks, jazz shoes (this makes doing the workout so much easier, it is hard to move the way they want me to on carpet without them), and lastly... water, it is absolutely essential to good health and hydration. Your body will thank you for it, mine does! It has also been proven that, often times thirst is mistaken for hunger. I didn't really buy that when I heard it, so I tried it. It is true as far as I can tell. Next time you are feeling hungry and don't really have a reason to be (i.e. you just ate not too long ago) try it and see how it works for you.

     I hope at least some of this information helps, I will try to get it on to a separate page soon for quick reference. I hope you all have a fabulous week!