Don't lend me some sugar, I'm still your neighbor!

Living and working between a Trader Joe's and Whole Foods is probably the best thing that ever happened to me. I love going to either store and just browsing the aisles for new treats that I know I'll love. Yesterday after work I stoped by Trader Joe's to pick up some lemons and came home with a bag full of goodies. What's in my shopping bag you ask? Dont worry, pictured below are my most recent purchases.

For those of you who follow me on Instagram, you have seen my recent rant about the app called "myfitnesspal". This app has become my best friend for the past month and I must say I don't think I'll ever stop using it, at least not any time soon. This app is great for keeping track of the calories and nutrients that you are eating to make sure you get enough of everything that you need. I must stress that for me, this app is not about losing weight but rather staying and eating healthy, making a lifestyle change. For those of you who have been following me since I started blogging, you know I've been a healthy consious eater for years now, but this app has put a few things in perspective for me. Today, I'll start with one of them:

1. Sugar is in almost everything.

What most people don't know is that the biggest culprit of weight gain is SUGAR. You may think you're eating something healthy, but it is LOADED with sugar.. this is why you must READ the nutrition labels, they are there for a reason!! Don't fall victim to the advertising of low calorie foods without looking at the sugar content as well! Women should have 26g of sugar intake in a day and men should have 36g. It is okay to go above by a little, like women staying in the 30-range and men in the 40-range, but it's important to be consious of your sugar intake. Depending on the yogurt you eat, it can easily have 24g of sugar which is basically all your sugar intake for one day! So I can't begin to stress the importance of READING THE LABELS!!! That being said, once you start reading labels, trust me you'll find foods that you love that are low in sugar. I've found my favorite low sugar yogurt, pita bread, chips, pretzels, ice cream, cookies... etc. etc. So my first tip is watch your sugar to also help prevent diabetes, especially if you have family history of diabetes which will put you at a higher risk for it.