Who doesn’t love TACOS? Do you think you can’t have tacos because there aren’t any healthy taco recipes out there? Think again? Honestly– I think Mexican food is one of the easiest to hack and make healthier and still taste DELICIOUS. My husband and I have played around in the kitchen and made up several healthy taco recipes that are now staples in our monthly routines. In fact I’d say we are obsessed.

In this blog post, you’ll find all these healthy taco recipes plus tips on how to mix and match additional ingredients to make them more or less spicy or add your own twists with different proteins/veggies etc.

I have 3 healthy taco recipes for you in this post and each of these healthy taco recipes is less than 600 calories per serving and can be easily customized for food intolerances or flavor preferences. Further– when I make these — my man LOVES them and he’s not necessarily TRYING to make “healthy taco recipes” he just wants “YUMMY TACO RECIPES” LOL — they deliver!!

One of the things we all know is of utmost importance in losing weight– watching what we eat. Watching how much we eat. We know that in order to lose fat– you gotta “diet” to some degree. And it’s very easy if you don’t count calories, read labels or measure your food- or if you eat out a lot — to overeat BIG TIME– even on “healthy” foods. 

Read that again. You can be working out regularly and eating HEALTHY FOODS and — you can gain weight. Or just not lose weight. It actually happens to more people more often than you think. In fact, one of the women I have recently stumbled on on YouTube- “High Carb Hannah” shares her story regularly about how she went Vegan and gained 40lbs- she was eating mostly fruit and a lot of it. 

Am I saying to avoid fruit? Nope. But- too much of anything can equal weight gain. For me, dieting is more about focusing on making great tasting meals with VOLUME FOODS— ideally a lot of vegetables and yes fruits– and protein– and from High Carb Hannah I learned how you can eat more food by cooking creatively and using less HEALTHY FATS (READ THIS POST to learn more about why you need to watch the healthy fats if you are trying to lose weight.) So, if you need to watch the calories you consume — make the calories you ARE consuming ENJOYABLE– delicious (yes it’s possible) and full of nutrition– give yourself a lot of bang for the buck. 

Let me share some examples of what I’m talking about above. 

First– how can you gain weight or be unable to lose weight eating “healthy” foods– 

1) If you eat out a lot and choose healthy options but aren’t aware of the calories- based on my experience, the AVERAGE “healthy” sandwich at a fast food or fast casual dining restaurant is 700-850 calories. For a sandwich!! Not counting chips/apples on the side. If you are like me and when I started my caloric deficit number was 1600- that’s more than half my calories in one meal- one sandwich! 

2) If you eat out- most sit down restaurant salads- even with grilled chicken or shrimp etc. can be upwards of 1200-2000 calories. Yup. You could exceed your daily caloric intake in one meal with a salad. 

3) Sushi restaurants are EASY when ordering rolls with mystery sauces and fried fish- to get your calories up FAST. You do a few high calorie chef special rolls and maybe some spring rolls and a couple fortune cookies- easy 1500 calories in one meal. 

4) Lots of folks going vegan or vegetarian go overboard on pasta/breads/fruits and gain a ton of weight. 

5) Going to Starbucks a lot? Your AVERAGE very conservative latte/cappuccino is 200 calories– that’s conservative. Many people get a coffee drink 2-3x a day. That can be an extra 600-1000 calories you aren’t counting up. 

READ THIS POST as well for some information on how CAN EAT OUT on a regular basis and avoid these traps but still enjoy your food. 

Why you want to make your meals DELICIOUS and FILLING– focus on volume foods vs. convenience foods and lots of “fake” carbs”

1) If you eat a meal – for example- one of my favorite “diet foods” is (seriously) Lean Cuisine Spinach Pizza. One Pizza is 360 calories and it’s DELISH. I’m obsessed. But I can EASILY EAT 2 OF THEM. Read that again. I can eat 2 and barely be full. Does it have protein? Sure. But it’s light fluffy bread crust (probably why I like it) . I can eat 2- and I Have to convince myself mentally to only do one…..but 45 minutes later I am HANGRY.

2) Compare that option to a protein bar- many people think they can diet by having a protein bar for lunch vs. lunch. Same concept. You won’t be full. You’ll eat a lot of sugar. It’s not a meal. 

3) Conversely- when you creatively make a big-ass-bowl or a Taco with a ton of protein and veggies- that meal, with maybe slightly more calories will keep you full for HOURS. Big difference in your daily experience when you are full and satisfied vs. having a growling stomach all day. 

So let’s look at some of me and my man’s FAVORITE dinners (or of course you can make these for lunches too) – I mean these are FILLING and DELICIOUS and MACRO FRIENDLY – perfect for your next Taco Tuesday. I promise, once you make these, you’ll make them again and again and again.