Food, Fitness and Fun. How to go from diet to real food after goals are reached?

I have a Goal: Lose 20 lbs in 9 weeks. This is week 3 of 9. I have lost 5 lbs. That is not too bad. (Could be better) One thing is for certain, I am getting in the best shape of my life. Teaching group fitness classes was a "good thing" to do. It means I HAVE to be at the gym at certain times or risk letting other people down.

Now food is the issue. We have been on a pre-packaged weight loss plan since before Christmas. My husband weighed in today and he lost 16 lbs! He is satisfied. He's reached his goal, and is ready to move back to homecooked meals. I have decided to not weigh myself until after the entire 9 weeks are up. The last I knew I had lost 5lbs. Either way we need to wean ourselves off of the pre-packaged food plan towards whole-clean food.  My husband is ready now. (I will complete the 9 weeks. We are in week 3 of 9.)

** The following are just personal opinions for our family. These are not coming from a nutritionist, just a mom. Please take your family's dietary needs into consideration, and consult a nutritionist/family doctor before making any changes to your fitness or dietary routines.

Here are our areas of focus:

• Water intake- Keep choosing water. It's cleansing and necessary. Drink enough daily.
• Raw food gone mobile- Vegetables, nuts, and fruit. Pack it in the purse, and car to avoid the drive thru syndrome i.e. I'm starving and going through the drive thru because I deserve it.
• Clean Food- Food in its purest form- Fresh made whole grain pasta topped with grilled veggies, and shrimp instead of fatty sausage or beef. Make everything from scratch from wholesome ingredients. I'm organizing my recipes and making ingredient substitutions on index cards for the grocery store.
• Purchasing smaller plates and bowls. One of the biggest changes that the prepackaged plan taught us was portion control. This is an important change. Moderation is necessary.
• Fiber- Dietary fiber is going to be monitored. Are we getting enough?
• Low sodium/Low Cholesterol/ Low Sugar: When cooking from scratch use seasonings that fill with flavor but leave out the Salt, Cholesterol and Sugar. Just don't put it into the recipe.
• Frequent eating- Several small meals and snacks 5-6 times a day. It can be a low fat yogurt, fruit, small salad, card size of protein, oatmeal, cereal, plate of pasta....etc. Personally, I want a lot more squashes on hand: Speghetti Squash, Acorn Squash, Butternut Squash, Zuchinni...just so versatile and delicious.

So that is the overview of the plan. It will become more detailed after the grocery store this weekend. I will begin to take photos of recipes that I'm creating. Look for them in future posts.