The deliriously high temperature and humidity persuaded us to stay indoors for Independence Day, away from the crowded beaches and the fireworks in Midtown. Instead, we grilled and hung around inside, making good use of Kim’s Amazon Prime account, our Roku, and of course, the air conditioner. Well, ST grilled; hamburgers and hotdogs, to be exact.

Holidays are a challenging time for weight loss, especially if your husband is an amazing cook.

As a matter of fact, I’ve come to realize that simply being a middle class American is challenging for weight loss. In our neighborhood, there is a  grocery store, supermarket, or restaurant with delicious offerings on every corner. There are advertisements and programs running on TV all day, telling me to eat, eat, eat. Food is cheap and readily available whenever I want it. How can I not partake in gluttony when there are a barrage of images, sounds, and smells that encourage me to do so, daily?

It’s embedded in my cultural identity. Last Saturday night, ST and I attended a wedding in which a traditional Chinese banquet meal of nine courses was served. I ate four courses before I stopped myself. Who needs to eat that much food? No one!

Frustratingly, I need to eat less in order to lose weight. Exercise alone is inadequate.

I’m really thankful that I did the DIY Blueprint Cleanse. As someone who has a voracious appetite, it prepared my body for dieting by adjusting it to zero food. Now, small portions feel and are adequate. Currently, I’m on a low-carb, low-meat diet. I tend to favor three meals per day instead of six small ones, simply because preparing six meals per day is exhausting and time-consuming. Additionally, the South Beach diet is not healthy or feasible for me. So I’ve been eating three small meals per day and a few snacks here and there. Here’s what’s worked these past few days:

For a small filling meal or snack:

• A few slices of mozzarella and fontina cheese served with a sliced avocado, pitted green olives, and grape tomatoes.
• Grape tomatoes with homemade hummus.
• An apple.
• A watermelon smoothie made with fresh watermelon, ice, and water.
• A modified green juice that is much less labor-intensive, made with green apples and cucumbers.

To satisfy cravings for sweet and creamy food:

• One sliced banana with cottage cheese. This and peppermint tea and milk really help kickstart my day and keep my belly full.
• I also drink a watermelon smoothie made with fresh watermelon, ice, water, two dollops of plain Greek yogurt and a dash of agave nectar as a snack or dinner at night.

When I’m sick of salad:

• I eat shrimp avocado salad. I subtract the jalapeños and onions though and add an avocado. Delicioso and filling. You can eat a healthy portion without any guilt. I’m obsessed.

• Grape tomatoes. These little guys are sweet, tangy, and go with everything from shrimp to hummus.
• Limes. My favorite salad dressing is lime juice, olive oil, sea salt, and fresh ground pepper. Perfectly summery and fresh for any kind of salad.
• Avocados. Avocados are your friends. Friends that you devour heartily.
• Cashews. Eating a few here and there help stave off hunger. They can be high in carbs if you eat more than a handful, but I need carbs. I buy the roasted and salted variety that is crunchy and creamy. Almonds do the trick too and they’re cheaper.
• Shrimp. When you’re in the mood for something meaty, this is it.
• Plain Greek yogurt. Sweetened fruit and yogurt is very high in sugar and carbs. Plain, unsweetened Greek yogurt can be sweetened with some agave nector and used to make smoothies creamy.

Partially… not really.