About a pound of beef
1 large can of whole tomatoes with basil (it’s what I had on hand)
1 can of no-salt added green beans
Leftover canned green chilies (from my recent low-carb chili) to add a little kick
Season to taste

This is all cooking right now, and tomorrow, when I leave for school in the morning, I’ve got a bag of frozen vegetables that I’m going to toss in. I’m going to take the meat out and cut it into chunks and put it back in so it can cook for a few hours while I’m out and about. I’ll take it out, toss it in the fridge while I’m at work in the evening, and heat a bowl up for dinner tomorrow.

This should last me for quite a few meals this week. I’ll post an update and let you all know how it turned out.

There’s three weeks until school’s out for me–hope everybody else is doing well with midterms, projects, and studying for finals!

Edit: the stew turned out WONDERFULLY! I had a bowl for lunch and one for dinner after coming home from work (okay, really BIG bowls), and I have a big bowl’s worth left over (my crockpot is fairly small). It’s filling, and a great way to get in those veggies.

Some of my favorite things to make are:
Chili
Pulled pork
Shredded beef
Chicken
Soups/stews

And that’s not nearly all of what I make in it!

Today, I’m going to give you an idea for a quick meal that involves a crockpot for a good part of it.

Salads are a standby dish when I’m either in a hurry to eat or when I just plain don’t know what to make for lunch or dinner. Here’s an easy way to whip up a good, filling salad topped with shredded chicken:

Toss some chicken breasts (or thighs, if you like dark meat) into a crock pot with minimal seasonings (salt, pepper). Let it cook until the chicken can be shredded, and store in containers or zipper bags.

Now, when you’re in a hurry, grab a plate, open up a bagged salad, put some on said plate, and grab some of that shredded chicken. Either heat some up (sometimes I like it warm) or just toss some of it on top of your salad. That’ll cover your protein and veggies for the meal, and all you need to add is some salad dressing (check the carb count!), and you’re all set!

Here’s some ideas to enhance it:
Hard-boiled eggs (I usually boil 4-6 every few days for grab-and-go protein)
Cheese
Sliced olives
Bacon (who doesn’t love bacon?)
Avocado

See? It’s easy! Now after that for lunch, you can come home and make shredded chicken no-tortilla fajitas later by adding some salsa (check the carbs) and heating it all up in a skillet. Add some cheese on top and make some Mexican cauli-rice, and you’ve got another speedy meal that tastes wonderful!

Why college students? Firstly, I’m one myself. Secondly, college doesn’t exactly provide the best environment for a healthy lifestyle. There are parties almost every weekend, dorm food kind of stinks, fast-food is plentiful and readily available (including on campus), and apartment pantries are well-stocked with Top Ramen and EasyMac while refrigerators are stocked with beer and ketchup.

I have lived through dorm food, and gained weight. I have lived through weeks of Top Ramen and fast-food…and gained weight. I have gone low-carb and lost weight…only to put some (but not all!) of it back on again.

My body just doesn’t do well with carbohydrates, and I suspect many overweight college students don’t handle them well either since that’s pretty much what the college “diet” is: carbohydrates.

You are more than welcome to follow me along on my weight loss journey at my personal blog, and I wish you well on your journey.