Day 26
Breakfast: Paleo pancakes
Lunch: Salad (sans dressing), Grilled shrimp, steamed veggies, sweet pot fries
Dinner: Banana, pork loin, dinner roll, ice cream
Hubs knew he let me down on my birthday, so he's making up for it this morning with paleo pancakes. Hope they're good!
Also, it seems like my clean eating is rubbing off on hubs. We were invited to lunch with my parents, to a place that is famous for all you can eat fried shrimp. Debating whether or not to go, hubs said, "I always feel bad after I eat there. It's just a mess of grease, and I don't think I want to go eat that. But, I guess I don't *have* to get anything fried. I guess I could get something else." Yay hubby!
I was so bloated and miserable at the end of the day. Crazy what one bad weekend can do.
Day 27
Breakfast: Paleo pancakes (leftover)
Lunch: Club bowl at Which Wich (no croutons + avocado)
Snack: TCBY White Choc Mousse
Dinner: Paleo meatballs, green beans, broccoli, blueberries
After how miserable I was on Sunday, I tried to keep things a little more in check on Monday. I felt much better at the end of the day.
One strange thing about how much better I'm sleeping is how much more vivid my dreams are. I've been having some WILD dreams. Last night's was Hunger Games style warfare, and I was trying to save my daughter as well as myself, only we had GPS on all of our clothing, so we couldn't get out. I kept trying to wrap us in foil to disrupt the GPS signal. It was nuts, but completely (scarily) realistic.
Day 28:
Pre Workout: 1/2 banana
Breakfast: Scrambled eggs with salsa
Lunch: Lettuce wraps at CPK
Snack: nectarine
Dinner: Baked salmon, steamed zucchini, Chenin Blanc wine
Snack: ice cream
Hubs and I decided to meet up for a spur of the moment lunch at CPK. I had a long (internal) debate with myself about what to order. The Thai Chicken pizza (my fave thing to get there), the Waldorf salad (sounded good), or the Lettuce wraps (because I really wanted Pei Wei). I ended up with the lettuce wraps, because the pizza dough sounded really gross. It's been crazy hard to keep sugar out of my meals the last several days, but I don't remotely miss grains. I won't have any problem keeping those out for the long haul!
I was exhausted yesterday, and really just wanted wine for dinner. Or ice cream. So I did. I fell back into old habits, that when I had a hard day, I went straight for comfort foods. But, I made a point of savoring it, and I stopped when it no longer tasted good. So at least there's that.
Day 29
Breakfast: scrambled eggs with salsa, banana
Snack: Banana and Pumpkin puree
Lunch: Tilapia and roasted sweet potato
Snack: Larabar (blueberry muffin)
Dinner: Fajitas
Since starting the Whole 30 (and I may have said this before), I feel like it's taking me longer to recover from workouts. I mainly feel it in my hamstrings, they just stay sore forever, even when I didn't work them that hard. So, that's why I scarfed down the banana and pumpkin puree. I'm hoping the carbs will help me heal. I know that I need to stick with the starchy veggies on workout days, but I just love fruit. Gah!
About 4:00, I started craving fajitas like crazy. The hubs was working late and my BIL was out of town, so my sister and I ended up at my parents' house after our run. We ordered Gringo's, and I chowed down on beef and chicken, grilled onions, and guac. I also stole some queso from my daughter. And I ended up eating about 10 chips, which I hadn't planned on. I should have gotten up from the table or pushed the chips away, but I kept sitting and chatting, and ended up eating chips. After I had eaten my satisfying meal. GAH!!
Day 30
Breakfast: Scrambled eggs with salsa, Sweet potato+pumpkin+apple+blueberry squeeze
Lunch: Baked salmon with steamed zucchini (leftovers), nectarine
Snack: Carrot+parsnip+apple squeeze
Dinner: Snacks
So, yesterday, my legs were in agony. Today it's my shoulders. I asked a paleo friend for thoughts on why it's taking me so much longer to recover. I'm not lifting as heavy as I did pre-Whole 30, choosing boot camp HIIT workouts instead of lifting. This whole time, I've thought it was a lack of carbs that is keeping me down, since I was thinking that was the biggest change. But, it finally hit me this morning: Protein!!! Before the Whole 30, I used to drink a protein shake for lunch. 35+ grams of protein every day. And I doubt that I'm getting that now, since my lunch has been leftover chicken or fish with veggies. I'm probably only getting about 4 ounces of meat at lunch, and another 6 or so at dinner (dinner is the same as before). So, instead of trying to find more carb-y veggies to recover, I'm going to concentrate on packing in more protein. Any advice on doing that without a shake would be great!
So, I hate eating dinner during the summer. All I ever want to eat is fajitas and burgers, and of course, fruit! So, I had a banana at my mom's house. And some baked Cheetos off of the Kid's plate. And then some pineapple. And then when I got home, I couldn't decide what to eat, so I had 1/2 of a banana that I found in the fridge. And then I was still hungry (duh) so I had a chocolate cherry torte Larabar. I really wanted to make a smoothie, but I couldn't even convince myself to get the blender out. That's how much I hate being in the kitchen during the summer. So, dinner was a sad affair.
So, that's it. 30 days of cleaning up my eating, paying attention to how I feel, yadda yadda yadda. I took "before" pictures, and hopefully I will be able to snap some "after" pics tonight, and then I can do a whole recap post. But the short version is that I feel amazing. More energy, massively less bloated (my tummy is soclose to being "flat"!!!), easier to go to sleep (yay for naps!). However, I'm not recovering from workouts as quickly, and I'm a little overwhelmed at learning how much sh*t is in the food that we eat everyday, which makes me queasy about feeding it to my kid! Plus, I haven't finished the Whole 30 book, so I don't even know if I did this the right way!!
Ok, so that was a little more than a short recap. :)
Friday, May 31, 2013
Sunday, May 26, 2013
Whole 30 Days 19-25: Out of Steam
Day 19
Breakfast: Scrambled eggs, bacon, pineapple
Snack: Larabar (coconut cream pie = yum)
Lunch: Cumin roast (leftover from last week still)
Snack: 1/2 larabar (blueberry muffin, ok)
Dinner: Off-roading
So, I got back into my high school jeans today. Which is what I've been working towards. So, I'm taking the night off from cooking to celebrate. I ordered a pizza for the husband and the kid. I don't know if I will enjoy it with them, but I do know that I am not freaking cooking! And, I'm celebrating by allowing myself to have some PowerAde Zero. I've missed it so much, and nothing quenches my thirst after a hot run as well as a PowerAde. There's always tomorrow, and the rest of my life, to get back on the Whole 30 bus. :)
Day 20
Pre-Workout: Banana
Breakfast: Tuna, avocado, and hard boiled egg salad, Cranberry, almond, raisin, and pepita trail mix
Lunch: Out with a rep to Jenni's Noodle House: Rice noodle, shiitake, bamboo, snow peas, sprouts with chicken
Dinner: scrambled eggs with salsa, 1/2 banana, Blueberry muffin Larabar
So, last night, I did have 2 pieces of pizza. We didn't have any good beer in the house, so I went for the pizza instead. And I savored the heck out of it, because it was delicious. And this morning, I am a bloated mess, my workout was super hard. I knew that would happen, but old habits die hard, I guess. I also didn't hydrate as well as I should have yesterday. Oh well!
I'm starting to lose steam on this whole thing. As I'm getting further into the book, I'm realizing what I'm doing wrong. And instead of trying to fix it now, it's making me frustrated, and it's making me totally spazz out on my eating. Like, for dinner, the husband wasn't home and I didn't get home until 7. My daughter had already eaten, so I just needed to throw something together for me. And instead of thoughtfully grabbing some veggies (which we have plenty of) and figuring out what to do with those, I took the easy route of cooking some eggs and calling it a night. I am looking forward to doing this the right way, when the national Whole 30 cranks up in July (at least, I assume they are doing it this July).
Day 21
Breakfast: Scrambled eggs with salsa, Ella's Butternut Squash, carrot, apple, and prune squeeze
Lunch: Pulled pork
Snack: Roasted veggies
Snack: Trail mix of cranberries, raisins, almonds, sunflower seeds, and pepitas
Dinner: Tilapia with curry rub, steamed asparagus
That was the last of the pulled pork. So sad. I had some steamed broccoli and carrots leftover too, but they had gone bad. Bummer. Now I'm going to be hungry! :( But.. SCORE. I went into the break room to cut up my kiwi (the only food I had left) and there was a giant pan of roasted veggies, leftover from lunch. I made a plate of carrots, squash, zucchini, mushrooms, and onions. HOORAY!
Day 22
Pre-workout: Blueberry breakfast sausage
Breakfast: 2 hard boiled eggs, almonds with raisins, blueberry muffin larabar
Lunch: Larabar (cashew cookie), sweet potato squeeze, 2 slices of turkey lunch meat
Dinner: Grilled chicken, steamed broccoli
I forgot my breakfast, so I had to scrounge. I'm going to have to chow down on some sweet potatoes like crazy later, because it's a double work-out day today. I've already learned that if I don't recover with carbs, then I don't really recover (my muscles are sore for a week!). Here's hoping I can swing by Target later for some more squeezes, or I can pop my sweet potatoes in the oven before Body Back tonight!
So, I had time to swing by Target, but I did *not* have time to get back to the office for the lunch that I had thoughtfully packed. So, lunch was a sad affair of the squeeze and bar that I bought at Target on the way to get my daughter from school, plus 2 slices of lunch meat that I was able to grab from the fridge as I was walking circles around my house, trying to put my niece to sleep. Not surprisingly, I felt munchy, tired, and cranky for the rest of the day. I finally felt better after I got some real food in at dinner. But by that point, I was super frustrated. After my mom came for my niece, I put some yummy-smelling meatballs in the crockpot, but they weren't done by the time I needed to eat, so I didn't get to enjoy them. So once again, I scrounged for some food, and found a chicken breast to put with the broccoli that did cook on time. When I do the Whole 30 in July, I'm going to spend some time planning all of my meals, and start packing a cooler to take with me, so that I won't keep getting stuck without compliant food. Guess I'll get to enjoy the meatballs later this week!
Day 23
Breakfast: scrambled eggs with salsa
Lunch: Grilled chicken, steamed broccoli, mango
Snack: kiwi
Dinner: pineapple chicken, roasted sweet potato
Once again, the food problem. When I got home from Body Back last night, I realized that my avocados were rotten, and that I didn't have any eggs boiled. Which means nothing to pack for eating post-boot camp. So, I skipped boot camp in favor of a run with my sister this evening.
Day 24
MY BIRTHDAY
Breakfast: Chocolate cake with vanilla ice cream
Lunch: Shrimp salad on lettuce, avocado, pumpkin bread
Dinner: Fried pickles, boiled crawfish, Abita strawberry beer, stuffed mushrooms, Italian cream cake
So, I sent the husband a list of 21 day sugar detox treats, and told him that he could make one for my birthday breakfast. It's tradition in my family that you get cake for breakfast on your birthday, but I was going to stay strong. Only, he thought we had all of the ingredients, which we didn't. So at 7:30 last night, I told him that we could just do chocolate cake and ice cream. But that it had to be a gooey, totally rich, and worth it chocolate cake. And Blue Bell vanilla ice cream. I enjoyed the heck out of the cake this morning, but the ice cream tasted super funky. Husband warned me that it would. He actually said, "why does it matter if it's Blue Bell? Your taste buds are all messed up right now," and I wanted to say, "my taste buds are all normal right now, you mean," but I didn't. But, he was right. I did not like the blue bell vanilla. Sigh.
For lunch, my mom, sister, and I went to a tea room that we love. I made the "better" choice of not getting the sandwich sampler that I usually get (pimento, turkey, and chicken salad, all on white bread, with pumpkin bread and a bowl of fruit). Instead, I got their salad with shrimp salad, no dressing, and then enjoyed two bites of my mom's pumpkin bread.
For dinner, my BIL chose a seafood place (it's his birthday, too). The family split an order of fried pickles, and boiled crawfish. They were delicious. I enjoyed an Abita beer. And then I ordered crabbed stuffed (steamed) mushrooms fro my meal, and they were disappointing. So, I only ate 2 of them, and my dad took the rest home. I don't know if it was me or the food that was the problem. Then we all came back to my house, and my sister had baked an Italian cream cake, which I had some, but it was way too sweet! I have a feeling that was me. :)
Day 25
Breakfast: Kolache of scrambled eggs and sausage
Snack: top of a blueberry muffin
Lunch: CFA nuggets, fruit
Dinner: Lamb and potato samosas, Chicken Tikka Masala, Chocolate samosas with chai ice cream. Pimms cup, wine
We took a family trip to Sea Center Texas, so we grabbed breakfast on the way. And in true processed food form, I was hungry like 15 minutes after we ate. My daughter had ordered a blueberry muffin for the road, so I ate the top off of it. And then I was finally full. Blech. For lunch, we popped into CFA before my daughter fell asleep. I could have gotten the grilled chicken breast, and I could have thrown the bun away and just had the breast. But I really didn't want to. So, I got the nuggets, and they were massively disappointing.
For dinner, we had planned to meet some old friends at an Indian restaurant. We'd planned this for months, and I knew I was going to have samosas and tikka masala. My faves. :) The samosas were kind of bland, and the tikka masala was a little too sweet. It was all fine, but not great. When I saw chocolate samosas with chai ice cream, topped with salted caramel, I thought I was dreaming. Until recently, I had forgotten how much I love chai. Salted caramel seems to be a big thing right now, and I love it. And chocolate is... duh. But again, it was a disappointment. It was fine, but not amazing.
Then hubby and I went to a wine bar, where I got the Bee Sweet flight (muscat frizzante, moscato, pink muscat). It was delicious, and I enjoyed spending some alone time with hubs. We've both been going in a million different directions. He loves his job, and I love exercise, and we both have goals relative to those things, and it seems like we never see each other. So it was nice to reconnect, at our favorite type of place. We got engaged at a wine bar in Lubbock, where we used to go at least twice a month. It was nice to find a similar place in Houston (although the one in Lubbock is still better- better wines, better ambiance).
So, lesson learned this week: Processed food is always disappointing. Let's see if I can keep that in mind this week, as things continue to stay hectic, and it seems easier to make the fast choice. Second lesson: alcohol still rocks. :)
Breakfast: Scrambled eggs, bacon, pineapple
Snack: Larabar (coconut cream pie = yum)
Lunch: Cumin roast (leftover from last week still)
Snack: 1/2 larabar (blueberry muffin, ok)
Dinner: Off-roading
So, I got back into my high school jeans today. Which is what I've been working towards. So, I'm taking the night off from cooking to celebrate. I ordered a pizza for the husband and the kid. I don't know if I will enjoy it with them, but I do know that I am not freaking cooking! And, I'm celebrating by allowing myself to have some PowerAde Zero. I've missed it so much, and nothing quenches my thirst after a hot run as well as a PowerAde. There's always tomorrow, and the rest of my life, to get back on the Whole 30 bus. :)
Day 20
Pre-Workout: Banana
Breakfast: Tuna, avocado, and hard boiled egg salad, Cranberry, almond, raisin, and pepita trail mix
Lunch: Out with a rep to Jenni's Noodle House: Rice noodle, shiitake, bamboo, snow peas, sprouts with chicken
Dinner: scrambled eggs with salsa, 1/2 banana, Blueberry muffin Larabar
So, last night, I did have 2 pieces of pizza. We didn't have any good beer in the house, so I went for the pizza instead. And I savored the heck out of it, because it was delicious. And this morning, I am a bloated mess, my workout was super hard. I knew that would happen, but old habits die hard, I guess. I also didn't hydrate as well as I should have yesterday. Oh well!
I'm starting to lose steam on this whole thing. As I'm getting further into the book, I'm realizing what I'm doing wrong. And instead of trying to fix it now, it's making me frustrated, and it's making me totally spazz out on my eating. Like, for dinner, the husband wasn't home and I didn't get home until 7. My daughter had already eaten, so I just needed to throw something together for me. And instead of thoughtfully grabbing some veggies (which we have plenty of) and figuring out what to do with those, I took the easy route of cooking some eggs and calling it a night. I am looking forward to doing this the right way, when the national Whole 30 cranks up in July (at least, I assume they are doing it this July).
Day 21
Breakfast: Scrambled eggs with salsa, Ella's Butternut Squash, carrot, apple, and prune squeeze
Lunch: Pulled pork
Snack: Roasted veggies
Snack: Trail mix of cranberries, raisins, almonds, sunflower seeds, and pepitas
Dinner: Tilapia with curry rub, steamed asparagus
That was the last of the pulled pork. So sad. I had some steamed broccoli and carrots leftover too, but they had gone bad. Bummer. Now I'm going to be hungry! :( But.. SCORE. I went into the break room to cut up my kiwi (the only food I had left) and there was a giant pan of roasted veggies, leftover from lunch. I made a plate of carrots, squash, zucchini, mushrooms, and onions. HOORAY!
Day 22
Pre-workout: Blueberry breakfast sausage
Breakfast: 2 hard boiled eggs, almonds with raisins, blueberry muffin larabar
Lunch: Larabar (cashew cookie), sweet potato squeeze, 2 slices of turkey lunch meat
Dinner: Grilled chicken, steamed broccoli
I forgot my breakfast, so I had to scrounge. I'm going to have to chow down on some sweet potatoes like crazy later, because it's a double work-out day today. I've already learned that if I don't recover with carbs, then I don't really recover (my muscles are sore for a week!). Here's hoping I can swing by Target later for some more squeezes, or I can pop my sweet potatoes in the oven before Body Back tonight!
So, I had time to swing by Target, but I did *not* have time to get back to the office for the lunch that I had thoughtfully packed. So, lunch was a sad affair of the squeeze and bar that I bought at Target on the way to get my daughter from school, plus 2 slices of lunch meat that I was able to grab from the fridge as I was walking circles around my house, trying to put my niece to sleep. Not surprisingly, I felt munchy, tired, and cranky for the rest of the day. I finally felt better after I got some real food in at dinner. But by that point, I was super frustrated. After my mom came for my niece, I put some yummy-smelling meatballs in the crockpot, but they weren't done by the time I needed to eat, so I didn't get to enjoy them. So once again, I scrounged for some food, and found a chicken breast to put with the broccoli that did cook on time. When I do the Whole 30 in July, I'm going to spend some time planning all of my meals, and start packing a cooler to take with me, so that I won't keep getting stuck without compliant food. Guess I'll get to enjoy the meatballs later this week!
Day 23
Breakfast: scrambled eggs with salsa
Lunch: Grilled chicken, steamed broccoli, mango
Snack: kiwi
Dinner: pineapple chicken, roasted sweet potato
Once again, the food problem. When I got home from Body Back last night, I realized that my avocados were rotten, and that I didn't have any eggs boiled. Which means nothing to pack for eating post-boot camp. So, I skipped boot camp in favor of a run with my sister this evening.
Day 24
MY BIRTHDAY
Breakfast: Chocolate cake with vanilla ice cream
Lunch: Shrimp salad on lettuce, avocado, pumpkin bread
Dinner: Fried pickles, boiled crawfish, Abita strawberry beer, stuffed mushrooms, Italian cream cake
So, I sent the husband a list of 21 day sugar detox treats, and told him that he could make one for my birthday breakfast. It's tradition in my family that you get cake for breakfast on your birthday, but I was going to stay strong. Only, he thought we had all of the ingredients, which we didn't. So at 7:30 last night, I told him that we could just do chocolate cake and ice cream. But that it had to be a gooey, totally rich, and worth it chocolate cake. And Blue Bell vanilla ice cream. I enjoyed the heck out of the cake this morning, but the ice cream tasted super funky. Husband warned me that it would. He actually said, "why does it matter if it's Blue Bell? Your taste buds are all messed up right now," and I wanted to say, "my taste buds are all normal right now, you mean," but I didn't. But, he was right. I did not like the blue bell vanilla. Sigh.
For lunch, my mom, sister, and I went to a tea room that we love. I made the "better" choice of not getting the sandwich sampler that I usually get (pimento, turkey, and chicken salad, all on white bread, with pumpkin bread and a bowl of fruit). Instead, I got their salad with shrimp salad, no dressing, and then enjoyed two bites of my mom's pumpkin bread.
For dinner, my BIL chose a seafood place (it's his birthday, too). The family split an order of fried pickles, and boiled crawfish. They were delicious. I enjoyed an Abita beer. And then I ordered crabbed stuffed (steamed) mushrooms fro my meal, and they were disappointing. So, I only ate 2 of them, and my dad took the rest home. I don't know if it was me or the food that was the problem. Then we all came back to my house, and my sister had baked an Italian cream cake, which I had some, but it was way too sweet! I have a feeling that was me. :)
Day 25
Breakfast: Kolache of scrambled eggs and sausage
Snack: top of a blueberry muffin
Lunch: CFA nuggets, fruit
Dinner: Lamb and potato samosas, Chicken Tikka Masala, Chocolate samosas with chai ice cream. Pimms cup, wine
We took a family trip to Sea Center Texas, so we grabbed breakfast on the way. And in true processed food form, I was hungry like 15 minutes after we ate. My daughter had ordered a blueberry muffin for the road, so I ate the top off of it. And then I was finally full. Blech. For lunch, we popped into CFA before my daughter fell asleep. I could have gotten the grilled chicken breast, and I could have thrown the bun away and just had the breast. But I really didn't want to. So, I got the nuggets, and they were massively disappointing.
For dinner, we had planned to meet some old friends at an Indian restaurant. We'd planned this for months, and I knew I was going to have samosas and tikka masala. My faves. :) The samosas were kind of bland, and the tikka masala was a little too sweet. It was all fine, but not great. When I saw chocolate samosas with chai ice cream, topped with salted caramel, I thought I was dreaming. Until recently, I had forgotten how much I love chai. Salted caramel seems to be a big thing right now, and I love it. And chocolate is... duh. But again, it was a disappointment. It was fine, but not amazing.
Then hubby and I went to a wine bar, where I got the Bee Sweet flight (muscat frizzante, moscato, pink muscat). It was delicious, and I enjoyed spending some alone time with hubs. We've both been going in a million different directions. He loves his job, and I love exercise, and we both have goals relative to those things, and it seems like we never see each other. So it was nice to reconnect, at our favorite type of place. We got engaged at a wine bar in Lubbock, where we used to go at least twice a month. It was nice to find a similar place in Houston (although the one in Lubbock is still better- better wines, better ambiance).
So, lesson learned this week: Processed food is always disappointing. Let's see if I can keep that in mind this week, as things continue to stay hectic, and it seems easier to make the fast choice. Second lesson: alcohol still rocks. :)
Sunday, May 19, 2013
OMG
Well, there they are. I did it. I got back into my high school jeans. And I did it before the 4 year mark. I've got a few months left (about 9 weeks) to blast through the last 8 pounds, to make it an even 100 pounds lost. Stay tuned!
Tonight, I'm going to take a minute to celebrate. I knocked out a quick 5k with my sister, so I am now going to enjoy the heck out of some PowerAde and a beer.
Whole 30 Days 12-18
Day 12
Breakfast: Scrambled eggs with salsa
Lunch: Rosemary chicken with onions, steamed carrots, steamed broccoli, fruit salad
Snack: Grapes and boiled shrimp
Dinner: Banana with almond butter
The last few days, I have not been hungry in the mornings. I have to force myself to eat something, and it's not pleasant. Yesterday, I found that I was hungry at lunch and then around 4:00, but I wasn't hungry the rest of the day.
Day 13
Pre-Workout: Banana
Breakfast (post-workout): Can of soy free tuna, with 1/2 avocado, and with boiled egg, and blueberries on the side
Lunch: Salad of lettuce, rosemary chicken, mango, 1/2 avocado, grapes, and blueberries
Snack: Fruit salad (apples, blueberries, oranges, blackberries, pineapple, fresh cherries)
Dinner: Pulled Pork and baked sweet potato with coconut flakes
I was STARVING all afternoon, I'm thinking a salad doesn't cut it. Then I overate fruit all afternoon, and wasn't hungry for dinner. But dinner was so flipping delicious that I ate it anyway!! :( Big fail.
Day 14
Breakfast: 3 scrambled eggs with salsa, blueberries.
Lunch: Cumin pulled pork, sweet potato with coconut flakes
Snack: Fruit salad
Dinner: Boiled shrimp, steamed carrots, steamed broccoli, 1/2 avocado, fruit salad
I feel like a bloated mess this morning. It's either the overeating and overindulging in fruit from yesterday, or it's the martini and calamari from Saturday catching up with me. Either way, my tummy is massive today! Lesson learned (for now!), I brought leftovers from last night for lunch, and I am super excited about them. :)
For the first time, I did not miss my morning snack! I didn't feel like I needed it, so I didn't have it. This evening, though, I'm craving chocolate like a mad woman, so maybe there is something to getting a little bit of sugar from a banana. I think the other fruit, though, is what is making me bloated because I am stuffed tonight. Also, though, we ate dinner at my parents', and I tend to overeat there.
Day 15
Breakfast: 2 scrambled eggs with salsa, Ella's Kitchen Sweet Potato and Blueberry squeeze
Lunch: Grilled chicken, blueberries, grapes, and dried cranberries
Snack: Larabar (apple pie = delicious)
Dinner: Steak tips with onions and peppers, broccoli, sweet potato fries
I had to scrounge for lunch in the kitchen at work, so it was heavy on fruit.
I'm sleeping like a baby.. well, I'm sleeping better than *my* baby ever did! I've never had a problem falling asleep at night, but it's been awhile since I've woken up at 5 am and felt refreshed and ready to go. But for the last several days, I've felt SO great at 5 am. And besides rainy days, I don't ever feel sleepy during the day anymore. But, it's insanely easy to take naps now. If I find myself with a stretch of time on a Sunday afternoon, I can fall asleep in a snap. It's awesome!
This morning, the scale hit a new all time low. 167.8!!!!! So, I've lost 9 pounds in 15 days. That's pretty awesome. :)
I had to travel for work during the time that I normally eat dinner, so I ate a Larabar on the plane. The apple pie was awesome. Then, in a total culture shock, I couldn't think of a single place in Lubbock that I wanted to go eat healthy food. Since my lifestyle has changed gradually in Houston, it's been easy to find places that serve healthy foods. But in college, we ate like crap! So when we landed in Lubbock, I was all, "Oh, let's go to Manna!" but then I realized I didn't know what was on their menu besides my beloved Brie queso. And then I was all, "Buns Over Texas!" which is not worth visiting if you can't have the fries... and on down the list of all of my favorite places (I wasn't even going to bother with the Italian or Mexican that we used to eat regularly). So we ended up at a steakhouse, which was fine. But we ate so late that I had a lot of trouble falling asleep.
On the plane, I started reading It Starts with Food, which is the book behind the Whole 30. It's a great book, and I would highly recommend reading it. It explains the "why" behind this diet, which is very interesting.
Day 16
Post workout snack: Cashew cookie Larabar (meh)
Breakfast: Scrambled eggs with peppers, banana
Lunch: Turkey burger patty, pineapple slices
Snack: Cherry pie Larabar (too sweet!!)
Snack: Trail mix (picked out the peanuts)
Dinner: Porkchop, steamed cauliflower, banana
Day 2 in Lubbock, and I was still struggling with what to eat. We went to United for breakfast, and I imagine there was probably some milk in my eggs. Then we went to Bless Your Heart for lunch, which is known in Lubbock for its "healthy fare." I thought I would be able to find some steamed veggies, or maybe a salad without cheese or dressing. Nope. The best choice was for me to order the turkey burger, not eat the bun, and then get their fruit cup on the side, which was packed with melon and I hate melon. So, I stayed hungry for the entire rest of the day. I ate the Larabar about 2:00, and it didn't fill me up. Then it was another plane ride during dinner time, so I grabbed some trail mix at the airport, that was cashews, almonds, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, peanuts, and raisins, and I picked out all of the peanuts! I fell fast asleep on the plane, because I was so hungry that I was getting sick to my stomach. No good. Once I got home, I wanted some ice cream like a crazy person. There was a lovely half gallon of Banana Pudding ice cream sitting in the freezer. It's my favorite, and only available in May/June-ish. But I decided that if I was craving banana pudding ice cream that bad, then I should just have a banana. So I did, and it definitely helped my craving.
Day 17
Breakfast: 3 scrambled eggs, 3 strawberries
Snack: Trail mix without peanuts
Lunch: Lola burger, sweet potato fries
Snack: Larabar
Dinner: Blech.
Stressful morning... I had to swing by the airport, because I left my wallet in hubby's car. And the airport is at the same exit as Shipleys. I realllllllly wanted some Shipleys on my way there, and was slightly considering letting myself get it. But thankfully, Shipleys is beyond the turn for the airport, and by the time I was on my way back and would have passed it, I was so excited about finding my wallet (I didn't know where hubby was parked because he wasn't answering his phone, so I just went on instinct to find his car!), that I completely forgot about donuts. Hooray.
So, in what is by far the biggest victory of the Whole 30, I gave up by bun at Lola's. The buns there are from the Sweet Mesquite Bakery, and they are DELICIOUS. Sweet and fluffy and just yummmmyyyyyyy. But, when my burger came, I dutifully pulled off the meat and veggies, and put my bun in the middle of the table, for my fellow diners to enjoy. I was sad about it while I was eating my naked burger (since I still haven't made any ketchup), but once we were done eating, I was on such a HIGH and felt so good about the amount of food that I ate. Usually when I leave Lola's I'm stuffed and on the edge of miserable. Not this time! Big win for me.
So, after the high of Lola's, I picked up my cousins for a slumber party. They wanted to go to Gringo's, which was fine. I thought I could find *something* reasonable. But once I looked at the menu, there wasn't a whole lot. I ended up with the Amazon wrap, which is a spinach tortilla with chicken and lettuce and stuff, and Amazon sauce. So, the tortilla and sauce were not on the Whole 30. And since I wasn't mentally prepared for Mexican food, I ate chips. Not as many as usual, and I skipped the rice and beans that came with my dinner, and didn't get the free soft serve. So I ended up doing better than usual, but not great. But what they say in the book about this crud being a vicious cycle, that the crummy food making you crave more crummy food... well. when we got home, I ate 39875302957039875 chewy Chips Ahoy. And some Sour Patch Kids while we watched a movie. And generally, I was just totally unprepared for slumber party temptations. The second we got to my sister's house last night, I got shooting pains in my lower right of my torso, very similar to when cysts start acting up. It's shocking that just a little bit of crap (the tortilla, the tortilla chips, and the sugar) could make me feel so bad, so fast.
Day 18
Breakfast: 3 donut holes, 2 scrambled eggs with salsa
Snack: Special K protein bar
Lunch: Lettucewich at which wich, house chips
Snack: Blueberries and grapes
Dinner: Roasted chicken, broccoli, carrots
Clearly, I wasn't over the temptations and poor preparation. We spent the night at my sister's house, and I didn't pack snacks or plan meals, or prepare in any way. And I a paying for it! Today I am bloated, tired, and hungry. Shocking what a small change can do to your body.
Breakfast: Scrambled eggs with salsa
Lunch: Rosemary chicken with onions, steamed carrots, steamed broccoli, fruit salad
Snack: Grapes and boiled shrimp
Dinner: Banana with almond butter
The last few days, I have not been hungry in the mornings. I have to force myself to eat something, and it's not pleasant. Yesterday, I found that I was hungry at lunch and then around 4:00, but I wasn't hungry the rest of the day.
Day 13
Pre-Workout: Banana
Breakfast (post-workout): Can of soy free tuna, with 1/2 avocado, and with boiled egg, and blueberries on the side
Lunch: Salad of lettuce, rosemary chicken, mango, 1/2 avocado, grapes, and blueberries
Snack: Fruit salad (apples, blueberries, oranges, blackberries, pineapple, fresh cherries)
Dinner: Pulled Pork and baked sweet potato with coconut flakes
I was STARVING all afternoon, I'm thinking a salad doesn't cut it. Then I overate fruit all afternoon, and wasn't hungry for dinner. But dinner was so flipping delicious that I ate it anyway!! :( Big fail.
Day 14
Breakfast: 3 scrambled eggs with salsa, blueberries.
Lunch: Cumin pulled pork, sweet potato with coconut flakes
Snack: Fruit salad
Dinner: Boiled shrimp, steamed carrots, steamed broccoli, 1/2 avocado, fruit salad
I feel like a bloated mess this morning. It's either the overeating and overindulging in fruit from yesterday, or it's the martini and calamari from Saturday catching up with me. Either way, my tummy is massive today! Lesson learned (for now!), I brought leftovers from last night for lunch, and I am super excited about them. :)
For the first time, I did not miss my morning snack! I didn't feel like I needed it, so I didn't have it. This evening, though, I'm craving chocolate like a mad woman, so maybe there is something to getting a little bit of sugar from a banana. I think the other fruit, though, is what is making me bloated because I am stuffed tonight. Also, though, we ate dinner at my parents', and I tend to overeat there.
Day 15
Breakfast: 2 scrambled eggs with salsa, Ella's Kitchen Sweet Potato and Blueberry squeeze
Lunch: Grilled chicken, blueberries, grapes, and dried cranberries
Snack: Larabar (apple pie = delicious)
Dinner: Steak tips with onions and peppers, broccoli, sweet potato fries
I had to scrounge for lunch in the kitchen at work, so it was heavy on fruit.
I'm sleeping like a baby.. well, I'm sleeping better than *my* baby ever did! I've never had a problem falling asleep at night, but it's been awhile since I've woken up at 5 am and felt refreshed and ready to go. But for the last several days, I've felt SO great at 5 am. And besides rainy days, I don't ever feel sleepy during the day anymore. But, it's insanely easy to take naps now. If I find myself with a stretch of time on a Sunday afternoon, I can fall asleep in a snap. It's awesome!
This morning, the scale hit a new all time low. 167.8!!!!! So, I've lost 9 pounds in 15 days. That's pretty awesome. :)
I had to travel for work during the time that I normally eat dinner, so I ate a Larabar on the plane. The apple pie was awesome. Then, in a total culture shock, I couldn't think of a single place in Lubbock that I wanted to go eat healthy food. Since my lifestyle has changed gradually in Houston, it's been easy to find places that serve healthy foods. But in college, we ate like crap! So when we landed in Lubbock, I was all, "Oh, let's go to Manna!" but then I realized I didn't know what was on their menu besides my beloved Brie queso. And then I was all, "Buns Over Texas!" which is not worth visiting if you can't have the fries... and on down the list of all of my favorite places (I wasn't even going to bother with the Italian or Mexican that we used to eat regularly). So we ended up at a steakhouse, which was fine. But we ate so late that I had a lot of trouble falling asleep.
On the plane, I started reading It Starts with Food, which is the book behind the Whole 30. It's a great book, and I would highly recommend reading it. It explains the "why" behind this diet, which is very interesting.
Day 16
Post workout snack: Cashew cookie Larabar (meh)
Breakfast: Scrambled eggs with peppers, banana
Lunch: Turkey burger patty, pineapple slices
Snack: Cherry pie Larabar (too sweet!!)
Snack: Trail mix (picked out the peanuts)
Dinner: Porkchop, steamed cauliflower, banana
Day 2 in Lubbock, and I was still struggling with what to eat. We went to United for breakfast, and I imagine there was probably some milk in my eggs. Then we went to Bless Your Heart for lunch, which is known in Lubbock for its "healthy fare." I thought I would be able to find some steamed veggies, or maybe a salad without cheese or dressing. Nope. The best choice was for me to order the turkey burger, not eat the bun, and then get their fruit cup on the side, which was packed with melon and I hate melon. So, I stayed hungry for the entire rest of the day. I ate the Larabar about 2:00, and it didn't fill me up. Then it was another plane ride during dinner time, so I grabbed some trail mix at the airport, that was cashews, almonds, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, peanuts, and raisins, and I picked out all of the peanuts! I fell fast asleep on the plane, because I was so hungry that I was getting sick to my stomach. No good. Once I got home, I wanted some ice cream like a crazy person. There was a lovely half gallon of Banana Pudding ice cream sitting in the freezer. It's my favorite, and only available in May/June-ish. But I decided that if I was craving banana pudding ice cream that bad, then I should just have a banana. So I did, and it definitely helped my craving.
Day 17
Breakfast: 3 scrambled eggs, 3 strawberries
Snack: Trail mix without peanuts
Lunch: Lola burger, sweet potato fries
Snack: Larabar
Dinner: Blech.
Stressful morning... I had to swing by the airport, because I left my wallet in hubby's car. And the airport is at the same exit as Shipleys. I realllllllly wanted some Shipleys on my way there, and was slightly considering letting myself get it. But thankfully, Shipleys is beyond the turn for the airport, and by the time I was on my way back and would have passed it, I was so excited about finding my wallet (I didn't know where hubby was parked because he wasn't answering his phone, so I just went on instinct to find his car!), that I completely forgot about donuts. Hooray.
So, in what is by far the biggest victory of the Whole 30, I gave up by bun at Lola's. The buns there are from the Sweet Mesquite Bakery, and they are DELICIOUS. Sweet and fluffy and just yummmmyyyyyyy. But, when my burger came, I dutifully pulled off the meat and veggies, and put my bun in the middle of the table, for my fellow diners to enjoy. I was sad about it while I was eating my naked burger (since I still haven't made any ketchup), but once we were done eating, I was on such a HIGH and felt so good about the amount of food that I ate. Usually when I leave Lola's I'm stuffed and on the edge of miserable. Not this time! Big win for me.
So, after the high of Lola's, I picked up my cousins for a slumber party. They wanted to go to Gringo's, which was fine. I thought I could find *something* reasonable. But once I looked at the menu, there wasn't a whole lot. I ended up with the Amazon wrap, which is a spinach tortilla with chicken and lettuce and stuff, and Amazon sauce. So, the tortilla and sauce were not on the Whole 30. And since I wasn't mentally prepared for Mexican food, I ate chips. Not as many as usual, and I skipped the rice and beans that came with my dinner, and didn't get the free soft serve. So I ended up doing better than usual, but not great. But what they say in the book about this crud being a vicious cycle, that the crummy food making you crave more crummy food... well. when we got home, I ate 39875302957039875 chewy Chips Ahoy. And some Sour Patch Kids while we watched a movie. And generally, I was just totally unprepared for slumber party temptations. The second we got to my sister's house last night, I got shooting pains in my lower right of my torso, very similar to when cysts start acting up. It's shocking that just a little bit of crap (the tortilla, the tortilla chips, and the sugar) could make me feel so bad, so fast.
Day 18
Breakfast: 3 donut holes, 2 scrambled eggs with salsa
Snack: Special K protein bar
Lunch: Lettucewich at which wich, house chips
Snack: Blueberries and grapes
Dinner: Roasted chicken, broccoli, carrots
Clearly, I wasn't over the temptations and poor preparation. We spent the night at my sister's house, and I didn't pack snacks or plan meals, or prepare in any way. And I a paying for it! Today I am bloated, tired, and hungry. Shocking what a small change can do to your body.
Sunday, May 12, 2013
Whole 30 the Real Deal
Day 6:
Breakfast: Scrambled egg whites with bruschetta topping (see previous post)
Post workout: Banana
Snack: Beet Chips
Lunch: Turkey empanada stuffing, steamed carrots, fresh broccoli
Snack: Mixed nuts
Dinner: Salmon with asparagus, grapes, and strawberries.
I slept like CRAP last night. It took me forever to fall asleep, and then I woke up every hour. At 4:15, I threw in the towel, and just laid in bed with my eyes open. I don't know if it was the long nap or the Whole 30, or something else, but it wasn't pleasant! I went ahead and drug myself to Boot Camp, since I was up anyway. There were only 5 of us there, and it was fun. I don't feel like I worked as hard as I did last week. The timeline tells me that it's totally normal. But that sucked! With each step I took on the runs, I could feel a jarring in my hips. I'm hoping that's not a Whole 30 thing, but a sign that I need new shoes. I'm gonna go get some on my lunch break, hopefully that will help!
After lunch today, I felt super crummy. I had a headache, my eyes were sensitive to light, and I was craving dried blueberries (or anything sweet... gummy bears even sound good!) like a mad woman. I'm really hoping I'm not going to crash and burn on this Whole 30. But the fever-y headache-y feeling has got to go! On the plus side, this morning I felt less mucus-y then I can remember feeling in a long time. So that's a plus.
I totally spazzed on dinner, it was completely flavorless. What a waste of fancy fish! I am currently craving some banana nut bread (there's a fresh loaf, homemade by my dad, just sitting in the pantry). I think trying to go cold turkey on the fruit was a bad idea, I wanted it all day long. I think tomorrow I will add one fruit back in, maybe some strawberries at lunch, or an apple with almond butter for a snack.
I've heard mixed messages on snacking. I haven't read the book, but some people tell me that the book bans snacking, and some people say the book makes no mention of snacking. I'm going to stick with snacking for now. I think all these years of 5 small meals may have made my stomach smaller, because I get SO full when I sit down for dinner. If I try to go to 3 large meals, I think I am setting myself up for failure at the end of the 30 days, because I know I won't be able to stick with that format.
Day 7
Breakfast: Scrambled egg whites with bruschetta topping
Snack: Apple with almond butter
Second snack: Handful of walnuts, raisins, and coconut flakes
Lunch: Turkey empanada stuffing, broccoli, peas from the garden
Snack: Walnuts, raisins, and coconut flakes
Dinner: Grilled chicken, steamed broccoli, and strawberries
I am the most boring lunch date ever. I have zero problem eating the exact same thing for breakfast and lunch every day, forever. The walnuts, raisins, and coconut is surprisingly delicious. I'm excited that this challenge is really making me get out of my comfort zone of flavors and cooking. That's not to say that I'm getting good at making new things, but that I am trying!
Yes, I ate two morning snacks today. I didn't hit the gym this morning, and I'm always hungrier on days that I don't work out. Weird. Dinner was supposed to be mashed cauliflower, but we forgot to buy any cauliflower at the store! Whoops. Good thing the Munchkin had tossed an extra head of broccoli into the cart. I still miss ketchup more than anything else. I found a recipe for homemade sugar-free ketchup, I'm going to make it this weekend.
Day 8
Breakfast: scrambled egg whites with bruschetta topping, glass of orange juice
Snack: Apple, walnuts
Lunch: Hamburger patty with avocado, carrots, grapes
Snack: Banana, almonds (was at my mom's house again, need to plan better for Wednesdays)
Dinner: Ham, kale chips, 1/2 grapefruit
I finished off the last of the bruschetta topping, so tomorrow will be back to avocado. :) My throat was hurting all day yesterday, so I added a glass of OJ this morning (100% juice, nothing added), because I like to try that before I try medicine. It made me SOOOOO sick. Or maybe it was the diet that made me sick. But I was down for the count yesterday.
In other news, I hit a new low on the scale today. Anyone who read my MS150 posts knew that I had gotten down to 172.2, but was yo-yoing, putting on 4-6 pounds every weekend because of the carb loading for my training rides. Which is what made me want to do this diet... if a reasonable bowl of pasta or pizza on Friday night, 4-6 Fig Newtons, and a serving of Endurox can make me put on 4-6 pounds while I'm riding my bike 40-80 miles, I wanted to see what would happen if I cut out those carbs! Happily, the scale settled at 171.6 this morning, even though I weighed 20 minutes earlier than I usually do (yes, those 20 minutes matter!). So YAY for being that much closer to my goal weight!!!
Day 9
Breakfast: Scrambled Egg whites. Avocado was rotten inside :(
Post Workout: Banana
Lunch: Hamburger patty, steamed asparagus
Snack: Fruit (pineapple, small kiwi, strawberries) pilfered from the break room. :)
Snack (worked late): Handful of almonds on the LONG drive home
Dinner: 1/4 of Spanish Tortilla (DELICIOUS)
Boot camp was back to being AWESOME this morning. I had SO much stinking energy. They had flags up around our parking lot that was blacktopped earlier this week, and I was leaping over the flags when we took off on our runs. Leaping. And smiling. In the middle of boot camp. WTF? I don't even know me. I asked the owner to make most of the exercises harder for me. It just all seemed too easy. Go me!
I almost cried when I cut into my rotten avocado. Because that means I have to eat a dry burger for lunch, unless I can find some Whole30 ketchup in the next 1.5 hours. Blech.
Something I learned today: parsnips are delish. I don't know that I've ever had one, but I really liked them!
So far, the things I miss the most are Powerade Zero and ketchup!! I thought I would be crying for wine and ice cream by now, but I've hardly even missed those. But oh, how I miss my occasional Powerade and my all-the-time ketchup. The ketchup thing might bring me to tears before this is over.
Day 10
Breakfast (so not hungry): 1/4 of the Spanish Tortilla
Post Workout: banana
Lunch: Chicken salad, steamed carrots, 2 strawberries
Snack: 1/2 grapefruit
Dinner: Hamburger patty with salsa, steamed squash
I really need to work on my post-workout snack. I know I need more protein, because my muscles are screaming at me, but I don't want to chow down on meat at 7 am. I think I will spend some time researching quick protein sources that are Whole 30 friendly. :)
My chicken salad is grilled chicken that I shredded, 1/2 large avocado, 1/2 small apple, and some cut up grapes. Basically the linked recipe, but I did avocado instead of almond butter. I don't know, it was late, and I thought that's what the recipe said, but apparently not. It was dang good, if I do say so myself.
I had my first "test" of being out with friends. My besties were hilarious jerks about it, saying I couldn't go out if I wasn't gonna drink. Other than that, it wasn't too bad. It was Bunco night with my mom's group, and it was easy to avoid the food and drink there. If margaritas and chocolate had been served, that might have been a different story. Then we went out to a bar that was beer only. And at first, I reallllly wanted a beer, but then we all got up to play shuffleboard, and at that point I didn't feel as awkward about sitting around and not drinking!
One thing that I am surprised about is how much my taste buds have already changed. And how much I'm willing to just throw sh*t together and see what happens. That was a big fail on the fish the other night, but a big win with the chicken today. As for the taste buds, I licked my finger after opening my daughter's IcePop last night, and OMG it was DISGUSTING. I won't be making that mistake again. I used to knock back cherry IcePops, no prob, but last night, it tasted like I had insect repellent on my tongue. Which, I probably did, with all the crap that is in those. Which is why I am ordering these and making my own pops for her. Hopefully she will like them, now that she's tasted all of the HFCS, she will probably turn up her nose at mine!
Day 11
Breakfast: FAIL.
Post Run Snack: 2 orange slices and a banana
Snack: 1/2 hamburger patty
Lunch: Hamburger patty with salsa, steamed asparagus
Dinner: Porkchops, with... well, read below!
For breakfast, I grabbed what was left of the Spanish tortilla (about 2/3s of 1/4) and scrambled up some egg whites, to eat on the way to my 5k. They did not sit well at all, so I only ate about 4 bites. :( The run kinda sucked on empty stomach, I had a stitch in my side for the first 2 miles, and felt like I was fighting that. We turned in a 34 minute time. Not my best, but the rumor at the finish line was that it was longer than 3.1miles, and it definitely felt like it.
So, for dinner, hubby and I decided to go to Perry's Steakhouse. It had been awhile since we've had a date night, and I picked Perry's because I thought it would be fairly easy to eat at a steakhouse. But, once we made the reservations, I knew that I would want a martini. So, I referred to the Cheating Flowchart page of the Whole 30, and I decided to have a martini. And then I had a revelation.
This Whole 30 thing has been pretty darn easy. And so, I got to thinking... if I can really do this with minimal change to my diet and lifestyle (which I've done so far) then can't I do this forever? And if I want to incorporate most of these Whole 30 changes into the rest of my life, then why do I need to be overly strict for the first 30 days? The goal when I started this was to find out if carbs were causing me to have a "wheat belly" and if cutting our sugar would help me come off the metformin. And in the first 12 days, I found out that I am definitely affected by wheat belly. As a whole, I feel much better at the end of the day while on the Whole 30.
So, I'm going to finish out the Whole 30, avoiding all of the things they say to avoid. And then I'm going to live the rest of my life avoiding white grains, limiting brown grains, massively limiting sugar, and really thinking twice about the things I'm putting into my body.
As for dinner last night. I enjoyed the heck out of calamari, then had the famous porkchop (but scraped off the butter), and their fried asparagus. I also had the elderflower martini (which, ironically, didn't taste as amazing as it usually does), and a glass of malbec, which I couldn't finish. This morning, I was as mucous-y as I was before starting this, and this afternoon, my intestines are very mad at me. So, I've learned what sugar, alcohol and flour do to my body! But I still wouldn't change a thing!! :)
Breakfast: Scrambled egg whites with bruschetta topping (see previous post)
Post workout: Banana
Snack: Beet Chips
Lunch: Turkey empanada stuffing, steamed carrots, fresh broccoli
Snack: Mixed nuts
Dinner: Salmon with asparagus, grapes, and strawberries.
I slept like CRAP last night. It took me forever to fall asleep, and then I woke up every hour. At 4:15, I threw in the towel, and just laid in bed with my eyes open. I don't know if it was the long nap or the Whole 30, or something else, but it wasn't pleasant! I went ahead and drug myself to Boot Camp, since I was up anyway. There were only 5 of us there, and it was fun. I don't feel like I worked as hard as I did last week. The timeline tells me that it's totally normal. But that sucked! With each step I took on the runs, I could feel a jarring in my hips. I'm hoping that's not a Whole 30 thing, but a sign that I need new shoes. I'm gonna go get some on my lunch break, hopefully that will help!
After lunch today, I felt super crummy. I had a headache, my eyes were sensitive to light, and I was craving dried blueberries (or anything sweet... gummy bears even sound good!) like a mad woman. I'm really hoping I'm not going to crash and burn on this Whole 30. But the fever-y headache-y feeling has got to go! On the plus side, this morning I felt less mucus-y then I can remember feeling in a long time. So that's a plus.
I totally spazzed on dinner, it was completely flavorless. What a waste of fancy fish! I am currently craving some banana nut bread (there's a fresh loaf, homemade by my dad, just sitting in the pantry). I think trying to go cold turkey on the fruit was a bad idea, I wanted it all day long. I think tomorrow I will add one fruit back in, maybe some strawberries at lunch, or an apple with almond butter for a snack.
I've heard mixed messages on snacking. I haven't read the book, but some people tell me that the book bans snacking, and some people say the book makes no mention of snacking. I'm going to stick with snacking for now. I think all these years of 5 small meals may have made my stomach smaller, because I get SO full when I sit down for dinner. If I try to go to 3 large meals, I think I am setting myself up for failure at the end of the 30 days, because I know I won't be able to stick with that format.
Day 7
Breakfast: Scrambled egg whites with bruschetta topping
Snack: Apple with almond butter
Second snack: Handful of walnuts, raisins, and coconut flakes
Lunch: Turkey empanada stuffing, broccoli, peas from the garden
Snack: Walnuts, raisins, and coconut flakes
Dinner: Grilled chicken, steamed broccoli, and strawberries
I am the most boring lunch date ever. I have zero problem eating the exact same thing for breakfast and lunch every day, forever. The walnuts, raisins, and coconut is surprisingly delicious. I'm excited that this challenge is really making me get out of my comfort zone of flavors and cooking. That's not to say that I'm getting good at making new things, but that I am trying!
Yes, I ate two morning snacks today. I didn't hit the gym this morning, and I'm always hungrier on days that I don't work out. Weird. Dinner was supposed to be mashed cauliflower, but we forgot to buy any cauliflower at the store! Whoops. Good thing the Munchkin had tossed an extra head of broccoli into the cart. I still miss ketchup more than anything else. I found a recipe for homemade sugar-free ketchup, I'm going to make it this weekend.
Day 8
Breakfast: scrambled egg whites with bruschetta topping, glass of orange juice
Snack: Apple, walnuts
Lunch: Hamburger patty with avocado, carrots, grapes
Snack: Banana, almonds (was at my mom's house again, need to plan better for Wednesdays)
Dinner: Ham, kale chips, 1/2 grapefruit
I finished off the last of the bruschetta topping, so tomorrow will be back to avocado. :) My throat was hurting all day yesterday, so I added a glass of OJ this morning (100% juice, nothing added), because I like to try that before I try medicine. It made me SOOOOO sick. Or maybe it was the diet that made me sick. But I was down for the count yesterday.
In other news, I hit a new low on the scale today. Anyone who read my MS150 posts knew that I had gotten down to 172.2, but was yo-yoing, putting on 4-6 pounds every weekend because of the carb loading for my training rides. Which is what made me want to do this diet... if a reasonable bowl of pasta or pizza on Friday night, 4-6 Fig Newtons, and a serving of Endurox can make me put on 4-6 pounds while I'm riding my bike 40-80 miles, I wanted to see what would happen if I cut out those carbs! Happily, the scale settled at 171.6 this morning, even though I weighed 20 minutes earlier than I usually do (yes, those 20 minutes matter!). So YAY for being that much closer to my goal weight!!!
Day 9
Breakfast: Scrambled Egg whites. Avocado was rotten inside :(
Post Workout: Banana
Lunch: Hamburger patty, steamed asparagus
Snack: Fruit (pineapple, small kiwi, strawberries) pilfered from the break room. :)
Snack (worked late): Handful of almonds on the LONG drive home
Dinner: 1/4 of Spanish Tortilla (DELICIOUS)
Boot camp was back to being AWESOME this morning. I had SO much stinking energy. They had flags up around our parking lot that was blacktopped earlier this week, and I was leaping over the flags when we took off on our runs. Leaping. And smiling. In the middle of boot camp. WTF? I don't even know me. I asked the owner to make most of the exercises harder for me. It just all seemed too easy. Go me!
I almost cried when I cut into my rotten avocado. Because that means I have to eat a dry burger for lunch, unless I can find some Whole30 ketchup in the next 1.5 hours. Blech.
Something I learned today: parsnips are delish. I don't know that I've ever had one, but I really liked them!
So far, the things I miss the most are Powerade Zero and ketchup!! I thought I would be crying for wine and ice cream by now, but I've hardly even missed those. But oh, how I miss my occasional Powerade and my all-the-time ketchup. The ketchup thing might bring me to tears before this is over.
Day 10
Breakfast (so not hungry): 1/4 of the Spanish Tortilla
Post Workout: banana
Lunch: Chicken salad, steamed carrots, 2 strawberries
Snack: 1/2 grapefruit
Dinner: Hamburger patty with salsa, steamed squash
I really need to work on my post-workout snack. I know I need more protein, because my muscles are screaming at me, but I don't want to chow down on meat at 7 am. I think I will spend some time researching quick protein sources that are Whole 30 friendly. :)
My chicken salad is grilled chicken that I shredded, 1/2 large avocado, 1/2 small apple, and some cut up grapes. Basically the linked recipe, but I did avocado instead of almond butter. I don't know, it was late, and I thought that's what the recipe said, but apparently not. It was dang good, if I do say so myself.
I had my first "test" of being out with friends. My besties were hilarious jerks about it, saying I couldn't go out if I wasn't gonna drink. Other than that, it wasn't too bad. It was Bunco night with my mom's group, and it was easy to avoid the food and drink there. If margaritas and chocolate had been served, that might have been a different story. Then we went out to a bar that was beer only. And at first, I reallllly wanted a beer, but then we all got up to play shuffleboard, and at that point I didn't feel as awkward about sitting around and not drinking!
One thing that I am surprised about is how much my taste buds have already changed. And how much I'm willing to just throw sh*t together and see what happens. That was a big fail on the fish the other night, but a big win with the chicken today. As for the taste buds, I licked my finger after opening my daughter's IcePop last night, and OMG it was DISGUSTING. I won't be making that mistake again. I used to knock back cherry IcePops, no prob, but last night, it tasted like I had insect repellent on my tongue. Which, I probably did, with all the crap that is in those. Which is why I am ordering these and making my own pops for her. Hopefully she will like them, now that she's tasted all of the HFCS, she will probably turn up her nose at mine!
Day 11
Breakfast: FAIL.
Post Run Snack: 2 orange slices and a banana
Snack: 1/2 hamburger patty
Lunch: Hamburger patty with salsa, steamed asparagus
Dinner: Porkchops, with... well, read below!
For breakfast, I grabbed what was left of the Spanish tortilla (about 2/3s of 1/4) and scrambled up some egg whites, to eat on the way to my 5k. They did not sit well at all, so I only ate about 4 bites. :( The run kinda sucked on empty stomach, I had a stitch in my side for the first 2 miles, and felt like I was fighting that. We turned in a 34 minute time. Not my best, but the rumor at the finish line was that it was longer than 3.1miles, and it definitely felt like it.
So, for dinner, hubby and I decided to go to Perry's Steakhouse. It had been awhile since we've had a date night, and I picked Perry's because I thought it would be fairly easy to eat at a steakhouse. But, once we made the reservations, I knew that I would want a martini. So, I referred to the Cheating Flowchart page of the Whole 30, and I decided to have a martini. And then I had a revelation.
This Whole 30 thing has been pretty darn easy. And so, I got to thinking... if I can really do this with minimal change to my diet and lifestyle (which I've done so far) then can't I do this forever? And if I want to incorporate most of these Whole 30 changes into the rest of my life, then why do I need to be overly strict for the first 30 days? The goal when I started this was to find out if carbs were causing me to have a "wheat belly" and if cutting our sugar would help me come off the metformin. And in the first 12 days, I found out that I am definitely affected by wheat belly. As a whole, I feel much better at the end of the day while on the Whole 30.
So, I'm going to finish out the Whole 30, avoiding all of the things they say to avoid. And then I'm going to live the rest of my life avoiding white grains, limiting brown grains, massively limiting sugar, and really thinking twice about the things I'm putting into my body.
As for dinner last night. I enjoyed the heck out of calamari, then had the famous porkchop (but scraped off the butter), and their fried asparagus. I also had the elderflower martini (which, ironically, didn't taste as amazing as it usually does), and a glass of malbec, which I couldn't finish. This morning, I was as mucous-y as I was before starting this, and this afternoon, my intestines are very mad at me. So, I've learned what sugar, alcohol and flour do to my body! But I still wouldn't change a thing!! :)
Monday, May 6, 2013
So this happened
I've never in my life had a bicep. Never. I feel like kind of a badass, and I'm showing everyone. I'm so proud.
Now to get rid of the flappy fat on the bottom, so my triceps show. But no scary Madonna arms! :)
I got a body tape with my last bodybuilding.com order. So, I measured myself, and since Body Back, which ended in early November, I've lost another 2"+ in my chest and another 4"+ in my waist. Only 1.5" in my hips, but that's not too bad for 5 months. No wonder all of my clothes don't fit all of a sudden!
Sunday, May 5, 2013
Whole30-ish, Week 1
So, I decided, on a whim, to give the Whole30 a shot. The whole nocarbsnodairynosugarnolegumesnofun part is going to be easy. (When I remember) I have crazy willpower. I usually break these challenges by forgetting that I'm on them. Like Lent.. I remember that I gave up chocolate once I'm two sticks into my Kit Kat.
Anyway. What I *can* eat is proving to be the challenge. Here's their easy cheat sheet on good-better-best choices. But since I decided to do this on a whim, I don't have grass-fed, pastured, organic perfection in my fridge. What I do have is the stuff that we meal planned for this week (we've meal planned since years ago, when we were poor college students), and the will to do the best that I can with it.
So, Day 1:
Breakfast: Egg whites, scrambled, with 1/2 small avocado.
Snack: Banana
Lunch: Two slices of tomato with tuna, baby carrots, pineapple.
Snack: Oranges
Dinner: Organic chicken breast, 1/2 small avocado, steamed carrots, fruit salad
Snack: Apple, blueberries
Day 1 was a little rough because I forgot my lunch and snack at home. I work 1/2 days on Wednesday, so then lunch and snacks was what I scrounged up at my mom's house. I feel like I did an okay job. The tuna was canned (not the best choice!), and I went a little heavy on fruit. I cooked the chicken on Monday night, so I'm not sure if it was pastured organic, but we've bought organic chicken ever since the regular breasts started getting so huge. So, I know it was at least organic. By dinner, I was STARVING, but felt full after just a few bites of chicken and avocado. My daughter wanted some dirty rice, and it was SO hard to not nibble off her plate as I was preparing it. After dinner, around 7:30, I was STARVING again. Hubs was home by that point and decided to make a pizza with my FAVORITE Trader Joe's dough (I told him that he could), and I wasn't remotely tempted by it. At the end of the day, I felt great.
Day 2:
Breakfast: Scrambled egg whites with avocado (old habits die hard)
Post work-out snack: banana
Lunch: Turkey empanada filling (ground turkey with onion, cumin, garlic, raisins, and olives, without the empanada part!), snap peas from the garden at my office, fresh broccoli
Snack: Apple and nuts
Dinner: Porkchops, greens, and roasted sweet potatoes
A little better, but I'm going to have to work on my snacks still. Today, I'm feeling a little bloated, could be because I ate WAY more food than my body is used to. I went to boot camp this morning, and felt fine.
I'm still taking all of my meds and supplements (EFA, fish oil, Multi Vitamin, BCAA on lifting days, Yasmin, and Metformin) and I'm not sure if I'm supposed to do that or not. I need to spend some time researching the supplement part (I'm not going to skip my meds without the docs' approval).
Day 3:
Breakfast: Breakfast "Tacos"
Snack: Banana
Lunch: Porkchops and sweet potatoes (leftovers)
Snack: Almonds, blueberries, coconut flakes
Dinner: Tilapia with mango, pico, and avocado. Broccoli, mandarin oranges
This morning, I woke up with a bit of a sinus fever, so I decided to stay home from work. For breakfast, I made scrambled eggs and sausage for the family. They ate theirs with cheese and tortillas, I ate mine with an avocado. This was a tough day for snacking, since I was home. Every time I had to go in the pantry for something, I wanted to grab a snack (like a cookie), so it was a test of my willpower for sure! We didn't have anything for dinner, so we went to Chili's, where I tried to avoid everything as best as I could (I skipped the obvious sugar sources, like the vinaigrette on my fish).
Day 4:
Breakfast: Scrambled egg whites with avocado, bacon
Snack: Blueberries and almonds
Lunch/Dinner: Crawfish, crawfish, and more crawfish! Some sausage, and a La Paloma
I know we're not supposed to be weighing, but the scale is my vice. With PCOS, I've put on as much as 8 pounds in a day. EIGHT. So, I have to weigh everyday, or I get crazy off track. But, since Wednesday morning, I've lost 4 pounds. Winning!! We had our annual crawfish boil, and it was quite the party. There were sweets coming out our ears, but it wasn't too hard to skip them (shockingly). And with my Paloma in hand, I didn't really miss the beer, either. But, a friend asked me to make her a margarita, and that almost did me in. OMG it smelled SO good. I handed it to her as fast as I could, so the temptation was gone. The Whole30 timeline says this is supposed to be your cranky day. I felt a little snappy that morning, but it wasn't too bad. My company had their annual summer party that evening, and I had planned to go. However, I didn't know how much longer I would be able to say "no" to alcohol, so I gave my willpower a break and went to bed early.
Day 5:
Breakfast: scrambled eggs with bruschetta topping
Snack: Apple with almond butter
Lunch: Tuna mixed with avocado, on greens, with tomato. Steamed baby carrots.
Snack: blueberries and beet chips
Dinner: Hamburger on Portobello mushroom caps. Steamed squash and zucchini
Sunday morning, I found some party leftovers in our fridge. A friend had brought bruschetta and left the extra topping. SCORE for my eggs! It had tomatoes, lemon juice, peppers, and yumminess. I also weighed myself and was pleasantly surprised that 12 million pounds of crawfish, 2 days of skipped workouts, and way less water than I usually drink only resulted in a 2 pound gain. Most Monday mornings, the scale is showing me +4 or +6 pounds from all the carb loading that I've had to do from my Saturday bike rides (and the beer that I usually drink... and the ice cream that helps me "recover"), and then I spend the week trying to lose it. I haven't gone on a long ride in a few weeks, so I haven't had to carb up. In June, I'm going to start training for an Olympic distance Tri. I'm hoping my body will have adjusted to this no-carb thing, so that I don't have to load up for recovery.
Sunday mornings we go to the grocery store, so I was able to get all loaded up on Whole 30 goodness. The hubs was shocked when we spent $16 on two pounds of ground beef. I was surprised that my choices at the fish counter were farmed Atlantic or wild Alaskan. I thought that wild Atlantic was the best, but I'm going to have to do a little digging to verify that. I bought the wild Alaskan, I'm excited to cook it. I was also very disappointed to see that all of the ham is cured with (or has added) sugar. All of it. And... no sugar free ketchup. Not a single option. I could CRY. I really thought I was going to be able to rock some ketchup this month (I lovelovelove ketchup, almost as much as I love fruit). I haven't eaten my hamburger yet, I'll let you know if I do end up crying. I may swing by Whole Foods tomorrow and see if I can find any other options.
Day 5 is supposed to be the sleepy day. And seeing as I just woke up from a 2 hour nap, I'd say that's true. I also feel a little unfocused, I've been doing lots of walking into rooms and forgetting why I'm there, or starting a story and then forgetting what I wanted to say. Hopefully that passes today, since I need to be sharp at work tomorrow!
And now, since I've stocked up on real Whole 30 foods, I'm going to start a new post.
Anyway. What I *can* eat is proving to be the challenge. Here's their easy cheat sheet on good-better-best choices. But since I decided to do this on a whim, I don't have grass-fed, pastured, organic perfection in my fridge. What I do have is the stuff that we meal planned for this week (we've meal planned since years ago, when we were poor college students), and the will to do the best that I can with it.
So, Day 1:
Breakfast: Egg whites, scrambled, with 1/2 small avocado.
Snack: Banana
Lunch: Two slices of tomato with tuna, baby carrots, pineapple.
Snack: Oranges
Dinner: Organic chicken breast, 1/2 small avocado, steamed carrots, fruit salad
Snack: Apple, blueberries
Day 1 was a little rough because I forgot my lunch and snack at home. I work 1/2 days on Wednesday, so then lunch and snacks was what I scrounged up at my mom's house. I feel like I did an okay job. The tuna was canned (not the best choice!), and I went a little heavy on fruit. I cooked the chicken on Monday night, so I'm not sure if it was pastured organic, but we've bought organic chicken ever since the regular breasts started getting so huge. So, I know it was at least organic. By dinner, I was STARVING, but felt full after just a few bites of chicken and avocado. My daughter wanted some dirty rice, and it was SO hard to not nibble off her plate as I was preparing it. After dinner, around 7:30, I was STARVING again. Hubs was home by that point and decided to make a pizza with my FAVORITE Trader Joe's dough (I told him that he could), and I wasn't remotely tempted by it. At the end of the day, I felt great.
Day 2:
Breakfast: Scrambled egg whites with avocado (old habits die hard)
Post work-out snack: banana
Lunch: Turkey empanada filling (ground turkey with onion, cumin, garlic, raisins, and olives, without the empanada part!), snap peas from the garden at my office, fresh broccoli
Snack: Apple and nuts
Dinner: Porkchops, greens, and roasted sweet potatoes
A little better, but I'm going to have to work on my snacks still. Today, I'm feeling a little bloated, could be because I ate WAY more food than my body is used to. I went to boot camp this morning, and felt fine.
I'm still taking all of my meds and supplements (EFA, fish oil, Multi Vitamin, BCAA on lifting days, Yasmin, and Metformin) and I'm not sure if I'm supposed to do that or not. I need to spend some time researching the supplement part (I'm not going to skip my meds without the docs' approval).
Day 3:
Breakfast: Breakfast "Tacos"
Snack: Banana
Lunch: Porkchops and sweet potatoes (leftovers)
Snack: Almonds, blueberries, coconut flakes
Dinner: Tilapia with mango, pico, and avocado. Broccoli, mandarin oranges
This morning, I woke up with a bit of a sinus fever, so I decided to stay home from work. For breakfast, I made scrambled eggs and sausage for the family. They ate theirs with cheese and tortillas, I ate mine with an avocado. This was a tough day for snacking, since I was home. Every time I had to go in the pantry for something, I wanted to grab a snack (like a cookie), so it was a test of my willpower for sure! We didn't have anything for dinner, so we went to Chili's, where I tried to avoid everything as best as I could (I skipped the obvious sugar sources, like the vinaigrette on my fish).
Day 4:
Breakfast: Scrambled egg whites with avocado, bacon
Snack: Blueberries and almonds
Lunch/Dinner: Crawfish, crawfish, and more crawfish! Some sausage, and a La Paloma
I know we're not supposed to be weighing, but the scale is my vice. With PCOS, I've put on as much as 8 pounds in a day. EIGHT. So, I have to weigh everyday, or I get crazy off track. But, since Wednesday morning, I've lost 4 pounds. Winning!! We had our annual crawfish boil, and it was quite the party. There were sweets coming out our ears, but it wasn't too hard to skip them (shockingly). And with my Paloma in hand, I didn't really miss the beer, either. But, a friend asked me to make her a margarita, and that almost did me in. OMG it smelled SO good. I handed it to her as fast as I could, so the temptation was gone. The Whole30 timeline says this is supposed to be your cranky day. I felt a little snappy that morning, but it wasn't too bad. My company had their annual summer party that evening, and I had planned to go. However, I didn't know how much longer I would be able to say "no" to alcohol, so I gave my willpower a break and went to bed early.
Day 5:
Breakfast: scrambled eggs with bruschetta topping
Snack: Apple with almond butter
Lunch: Tuna mixed with avocado, on greens, with tomato. Steamed baby carrots.
Snack: blueberries and beet chips
Dinner: Hamburger on Portobello mushroom caps. Steamed squash and zucchini
Sunday morning, I found some party leftovers in our fridge. A friend had brought bruschetta and left the extra topping. SCORE for my eggs! It had tomatoes, lemon juice, peppers, and yumminess. I also weighed myself and was pleasantly surprised that 12 million pounds of crawfish, 2 days of skipped workouts, and way less water than I usually drink only resulted in a 2 pound gain. Most Monday mornings, the scale is showing me +4 or +6 pounds from all the carb loading that I've had to do from my Saturday bike rides (and the beer that I usually drink... and the ice cream that helps me "recover"), and then I spend the week trying to lose it. I haven't gone on a long ride in a few weeks, so I haven't had to carb up. In June, I'm going to start training for an Olympic distance Tri. I'm hoping my body will have adjusted to this no-carb thing, so that I don't have to load up for recovery.
Sunday mornings we go to the grocery store, so I was able to get all loaded up on Whole 30 goodness. The hubs was shocked when we spent $16 on two pounds of ground beef. I was surprised that my choices at the fish counter were farmed Atlantic or wild Alaskan. I thought that wild Atlantic was the best, but I'm going to have to do a little digging to verify that. I bought the wild Alaskan, I'm excited to cook it. I was also very disappointed to see that all of the ham is cured with (or has added) sugar. All of it. And... no sugar free ketchup. Not a single option. I could CRY. I really thought I was going to be able to rock some ketchup this month (I lovelovelove ketchup, almost as much as I love fruit). I haven't eaten my hamburger yet, I'll let you know if I do end up crying. I may swing by Whole Foods tomorrow and see if I can find any other options.
Day 5 is supposed to be the sleepy day. And seeing as I just woke up from a 2 hour nap, I'd say that's true. I also feel a little unfocused, I've been doing lots of walking into rooms and forgetting why I'm there, or starting a story and then forgetting what I wanted to say. Hopefully that passes today, since I need to be sharp at work tomorrow!
And now, since I've stocked up on real Whole 30 foods, I'm going to start a new post.
Thursday, May 2, 2013
The (mostly) Whole30
I've been doing a ton of research on PCOS-friendly nutrition. There is a ton of info out there on how we are at war with our food. I won't get into all of that now, except that the thing I saw most often was Cysters keeping the weight off with Paleo type diets. Which got me thinking...
When I was training for the MS150, I learned very quickly that my body does not respond to sugar. That eating sugar while doing long bikes is a formula for my body to crash. Before I learned that, it was taking me four days to recover from rides. FOUR DAYS. That's insane. Since I learned that complex carbs were the best way for me to sustain longer rides and quick recovery, I carbed (16 Fig Newtons, 2 GUs, 2 servings of Endurox, 2 Oranges, some trail mix, and lots of almond clusters were what got me to Austin). I rode my bike 150 miles and gained 4 pounds doing it. Now, I'm sure some of that was water retention, but it sure made me curious as to the toll that carbs are taking on my body.
So, I decided to see what would happen if I gave up all carbs and all "added" sugar (again, I'm not giving up fruit. EVER.) for awhile. And the more I thought about it, the more I thought, I'll just go "all in" and give up dairy, too. So, I set off to do some research, and kept coming back to the Whole30.
My first intention was to do my own thing, with the Whole30 as a base, starting May 1. I still have 13 meal replacement shakes to drink, so I thought, "well, I'll give up carbs, sugar, and dairy, try to give up legumes, but finish my shakes." Then I decided that was ridiculous, and I might as well jump right in. But, I didn't decide that until... oh, lunch time on May 1. So,this week, I'm doing a "busy mom" type Whole 30. I'll cover that in the next post. For now, let's talk about what this Whole 30 thing is.
First, the program
That's it. No carbs, no dairy, no sugar, no legumes. 30 days. Goal weight, here I come.
Now, at the same time, I started a boot camp with Real EFX Fitness. A few months ago, I bought a Living Social deal to try them out for a month. So, I started on Tuesday, April 30th. Surprisingly, the format is very similar to Stroller Strides (but without babies!). In the two classes I've been to so far, he has the gym set up in 6 stations, and you rotate stations, breaking it up with short runs. So far, it hasn't been the in "your face, carry your partner on your back while flipping this tire up a hill" angry, shouty experience that I was expecting. He is all about you knowing your limits, and not hurting yourself, but still getting in a great workout. And of course, it sure was nice to show him how far out my limits are!! The first class, he had set up a station for reverse lunges with a barbell. He told me that I could grab 10 pounds, and I thought he was talking about adding plates to the bar. When I realized that he meant hand weights, I laughed and told him I was good with the bar. A few stations later, he came over to ask me what my normal routine is, I guess by that point he noticed that I'm fitter than I look!! This morning, he asked me if I'd like to try his heavier weight class, instead of the cardio-intense one that I had been doing. I think I will give it a shot, but I will probably stick with the group class. I can lift heavy on my own!
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