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If you’ve been following my Faster Way to Fat Loss journey, you know that carb cycling is part of what makes this program really work for women. Each week we have two low carb days (NOT no carb, just keeping your net carbs lower), so having some good low carb meals on your plan is crucial to your success with the Faster Way.
Varying your carb intake keeps your body guessing and helps prevent weight loss plateaus that many people experience. Our bodies are very smart and learn to adapt when we eat the same way day in and day out. By varying carb intake and macros over the week, you can keep your body in fat-burning mode!
Since this was a new way of eating for me, I had to do some research to come up with family-friendly lower carb meals. As a recovered carb addict, I am happy to report that I really enjoy eating many of these meals and I don’t miss the carbs nearly as much as I thought I would! 🙂
My Favorite Easy Low Carb Meals
- Stir fry with your protein of choice (I usually do chicken or beef but tofu works well too). If you are short on time, grab pre-cut veggies or use a frozen veggie blend. There are also many low carb stir fry sauces you can use. The Primal Kitchen No Soy Teriyaki sauce and marinade is one of my favorites. They also make great salad dressings!
- Bunless burgers. It was surprisingly easy to give up the buns (that’s saying something from a carb addict!). I like to season the burgers and serve them with sliced avocado or guacamole. I promise you really won’t miss the bun, and not using it will allow you to appreciate the flavor of the burger a lot more!
- Omelets or egg scrambles. All 3 of my boys LOVE breakfast for dinner, so omelets are always a great choice for our family. They are quick and easy to get on the table and you can make them with your choice of veggies and/or meats– they’re are so many different ideas for omelet fillings. It’s a great way to use up what’s left in the fridge and vegetable bin at the end of the week. To save time, cut up veggies ahead of time, so they are ready to throw in your omelet for breakfast, lunch or dinner!
- Lettuce wraps with ground pork or chicken. The boys love lettuce wraps too since they can eat with their hands! We frequently get them as appetizers when eating out, so it’s a fun to enjoy them at home too. My favorite lettuce wrap recipe is PF Changs Chicken Lettuce Wraps from Damn Delicious.
- Zoodles or other vegetable noodles with meat (or meatless) sauce. Thanks to the popularity of Zoodles, you no longer have to make them on your own. You can find them in the produce or frozen foods sections and they are SO easy to cook and top with a marinara sauce or meat sauce. BONUS: it also helps you get your kids to eat more veggies!
- Cobb salad (one of my favorite meals for low carb days!). Cobb salad is my go-to dinner or lunch on low carb days– I seriously can’t get enough of them! I love all of the flavors, and all of that protein and healthy fat makes them quite filling. If you are eating out, Panera has a Green Goddess Cobb Salad that’s an easy and tasty low carb meal option. Dining at home? I found a great Green Goddess Cobb salad copy cat recipe you can make yourself!
- Sheet pan fajitas (minus the tortillas of course). Sheet pan meals are such a great option because you can prep the ingredients ahead of time and all you have to do is pop it in the oven. My Healthy Meal Prep Pinterest board and Faster Way to Fat Loss board have a lot of other sheet pan meals you can try. A simple Pinterest search will provide you with enough ideas to last for a year!
- Pizza with cauliflower crust. Did you know you can make pizza crust from cauliflower?! Top with your favorite protein and veggies and enjoy. If you don’t want to make the crust yourself, you can buy premade crusts or entire cauliflower crust pizzas in the frozen foods section of your local grocery store. You can often find them in the gluten free section.
- Baked Almond Crusted Cod. We don’t eat a ton of fish in our house, but cod is a family favorite and this Baked Almond Crusted Cod recipe couldn’t be any easier. It’s delicious and satisfying and pairs well with green beans or roasted broccoli.
What are your favorite low carb meals?
We are in this together, so I would love to know what your favorite low car meal ideas are. Leave a comment below and include the recipe link if you have it!
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