I am a sucker for pasta, but with my cousins wedding coming up I have pledged to only cheat once a week… and why cheat on pasta if you can make a "skinny" version of it?
When I saw 15 calorie pasta at Walmart, I just about had a heart attack. I've heard of brands that have low calorie pasta, but never saw it anywhere, and the last place I was expecting was to see it at Walmart! 
Now, no this does not live up to Olive Garden pasta or even normal fettuccine noodles -- but for 15 calories a serving it sure is worth it! 
You could make your own sauce for the recipe to be lower in calories, but for me, someone who is new to cooking, I'm not on that level yet. 
Instead I opted for Preggo Homestyle Alfredo Sauce, but by all means if you do know a better and healthier sauce recipe leave it in the comments below and I would love to try it out! 

Ingredients:

1/4 tbsp Olive oil 

1 bag Pasta Zero - Shirataki Fettuccine  (bought mine at Walmart near the tofu)

1/2 cup Preggo Homestyle Alfredo Sauce 

1 serving of Tyson: Grilled & ready chicken breasts strips  

2 Cloves garlic minced 

1 tsp Ginger minced

1/2 cup Mushrooms

1/2 cup Spinach (cut into medium pieces)

Seasonings: (measure based on desired flavor)

I used Paprika, Italian, black pepper, crush pepper, and Oregano

 Number of servings recipe makes : 2

Calories per serving: 195

XOXO, 

Sarah 

XOXO, 

Sarah 

Blog: http://eraforsarah.blogspot.com

Twitter: https://twitter.com/EraforSarah

Instagram: http://instagram.com/sarahcharania

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I've been contemplating trying out this new "fad" of the green juice/ smoothie, and finally gave in, ---for the better! 

I call it "Salad in a cup"-- or mason jar in my case.

It's got tons of nutrients, and if made correctly; tastes yummy! 

I normally drink it for breakfast and it keeps me full for about 4-6 hours! It's quick and easy, and you can use basically anything. 

I've attempted this juice a couple different times-- and have finally came up with a good recipe! 

Ingredients:

(You can add or subtract any ingredient, depending on your wanted flavor- I'm a fruity 

person so I add lots of fruits. 

Also, keep in mind this serves one person!

 just experiment until you're satisfied!)

Green apple (1- sliced)

Carrot (1- chopped)

Kale (3-4 leaves)

Spinach ( 1/2-1 cup)

Frozen Peach (1- sliced in half)

Frozen Kiwi (1- sliced in half)

Ice

XOXO, 

Sarah 

Youtube.com/EraforSarah 

Sports Bra: Target 

White Tank: Papaya Clothing

Tights: Academy 

Shoes: Nike Outlet 

Honestly, the first time I stepped in the gym (about 5 months ago) I felt SO uncomfortable. 

I thought I had a spotlight on me and everyone was staring… In reality everyone 

was going about their own business… but in my mind, I looked like

 a lost puppy. 

It's all about being comfortable in your own skin, and the best way to do that is 

wear what makes you feel good and don't worry about anyone or anything but yourself. 

No one at the gym is worried about what you are doing or how you 

look because they are all there to reach their own goals, just like 

you are trying to reach yours. 

But aside from that, I know work out gear can be EXPENSIVE! 

If your first starting out don't go out and buy all this gear because honestly you can 

do without it. I just took some things out of my closet that I've had 

for years (ex: old tanks, tights, tennis shoes - that you thought you were gonna wear but never did). 

Start with that, and then if you know you're committed then spend money 

if you think is worth it! 

Have a Fit Friday! 

XOXO, 

Sarah

 For today's "Fit Friday" post I'll be showing you what I got 

while I went grocery shopping earlier this week! 

(keep scrolling for close up pictures!) 

Now, I know eating packaged foods/snacks isn't the healthiest way to eat, but I'm usually 

on the go and need a quick low calorie snack and this is what

 works best for me!

 As always, I am open to suggestions and ideas so if you have any specific "fit friday" requests or want to see more Grocery Hauls let me know

in the comments below or send me a tweet! (@eraforsarah) 

XOXO, 

Sarah 

Starting Weight: 135 Lbs. (April, 2013)

Over All Goal: To weigh 110 by December 2013.

Current Weight: 115 Lbs. (July 2013) 

Total Amount of Weight lost: 20 Lbs. 

Welcome back to another post in the "Fit Friday" series!

It's been a couple of weeks since I've written a Fit Friday post, and that's because I've been away on Vacation for quite some time, and am leaving again in a few days, so I thought I would get this highly requested post in before I disappear again, for a couple of days!

So to start off, my best friend throughout this whole process is myfitnesspal - A calorie counting website

 (I use the app, but you can record on your laptop/computer also)

I log everything I eat along with how many calories I burn a day. Once you download the app, it will help you navigate your way through it so you know how to use it.

This app is super helpful, being Pakistani, I eat a lot of food that I doesn't have labels on it, so I don't always know how many calories are in something, Myfitnesspal has it all, so I can keep track all the time, even when I'm eating ethnic foods. (it also helps me keep track of how much weight I am losing on the "progress" tab). 

Here are some helpful tips when making your diet plan:

#1. Don't Skip Meals: I realized this the hard way, before I knew a lot about health and fitness, I used to skip meals left and right, I would sometimes eat one meal a day, because I thought that it would make me skinny-- since I didn't eat as much, but in reality I was eating double, sometimes triple of what I would have eaten because my body would go into starvation mode throughout the day, and then I would over eat in that one meal I would eat.  After learning the lesson, I started to eat five times a day, all three meals, and two low calorie snacks. (see next point for low calorie snack ideas).

#2: Low Calorie Snacks: If you want to snack, don't pick up a bag of Cheetos and munch away, make sure you know how much you are eating, the best thing to snack on is fruit. But if you do wanna eat something else other than fruit here are some of my favorite low calorie snacks: Keebler Right Bites- 100 calorie, Mayfield Brown Cow Juniors, The Laughing Cow Cheese, Ritz- Whole Wheat Crackers,Sliced Lean Chicken- Kroger. 

#3. Portion-ize: when filling up your food in your plate, don't think "oh I'm really hungry today I'll eat a lot" What I do is take half the amount I think I can eat, and then if I'm still hungry I will take more. When it comes to cereal and making my own food, I measure how much I put in everything, so that way I know when I look at the label, how many calories are in my meal. Eventually you will know how much a cup, and half a cup is without even measuring, but I'm not to that level yet. 

#4. Eat More Colors: I'm sure you've heard this one before. You know you're food is healthy if you have color on your plate. things that are one color are less healthy than a colorful plate. For example: A bowl of mashed potatoes vs. chicken stir fry with vegetables. 

#5.Cheat Meals: We all have cravings, and want to eat something unhealthy every once in a while, and that is ok! Some people eat one cheat meal per week, and some people eat one cheat meal per month. You have to figure out what works best for you! I used to eat one cheat meal per week, because that's when I was trying super hard to lose weight, now that I know what works best for me, I eat everything I want (in portions) and then burn it off if I feel like I've eaten too much. 

I hope this was helpful, and if you have any more questions 

about my diet or workout routine feel free to comment down below in

 the comment box, or tweet me! (@sarahcharania)

Welcome to a new series here on EraforSarah!
If you follow me on Twitter or Instagram, you know that I have become this total 

fitness nut over the past couple months. 

I have been getting a ton of questions about my workout routine and diet. 

So a couple fridays a month, I will post:
 helpful workouts, healthy recipes, what I eat to lose, or maintain 
my weight, my workout routine and how it changes, and anything else health related! 

Get inspired: I was totally inspired by my future sister-in-law (hi Bhabs!). She helped me out a lot, and just guided me to becoming more fit, healthy, and happy!
Getting inspired and motivated by someone is so important because you have someone with you on your journey and it really makes it fun, and easier!

First step: As you might have known through one of my past posts (Here) I rarely used to weigh myself, but when I decided that I wanted to make a decision to change my lifestyle, thats the first thing I did.

Second step: The next thing I did was set 2 goals, a short term, and long term.
  (you can see my goals at the top right hand corner) 

Cardio Exercises: 
I started off working out for about 2.5 hours a day, 6 days a week, Just cardio. 

Now, I didn't do the same thing everyday, I would mix it up. Total I would burn about 500-800 calories a day. 

As my weight decreased, I limited my self to 1-1.5 hours a day, burning 500-650 calories.

I only worked out a lot in the beginning to get a head start, and a little bit of a push.

Slowly, When I started noticing a difference in my body, I added some strength exercises, still focusing on my legs.

Strength Exercises (Machines, and Body):

• Leg Extension - ( 3-5 sets, 10 reps, 40 lbs)
• Leg Press- ( 3-5 sets, 10 reps, 60 lbs)
• Squats- ( I have been doing the 30 Day Squat Challenge and see a MAJOR difference!) 

If you all are interested, I will do a Part 2 on my diet. 

Helping Hint:

Count your calories. It's so helpful when you are trying to lose weight, and to keep track of your progress!