Whole 30 Week 1

Whole 30 – Week 1

My goal for the weekly updates is to offer you food choices, recipes and links to them (I get most online) and what emotional/physical revelations I go through.  I’m also going to document what exercise I do.

Monday, May 12

Exercise – 4 miles @ 9 min/mile pace.

Weight – You’re not supposed to weigh yourself on the program, but I honestly wanted to know if I would lose weight.  I’m not trying to, nor do I want to.  I somehow lost 10 pounds since Christmas (maybe training for the marathon?) and went down a short/pant size.  I’m pleased, however, I have a bunch of clothes that I love that don’t fit now.  Like, comically don’t fit.  And I really can’t afford new clothes with all the clothes I already have.  So I’m really hoping to maintain.

Anyways, I weighed exactly 137 at the beginning of this program.

Breakfast – Sweet potatoes, kale, 1 Roma tomato, 2 eggs

Banana 

Lemon water

Small cup of black coffee

*This is a breakfast I sort of formulated with what veggies I had in the fridge.  It was amazing and totally filling. Not giving up my coffee yet.  Sans cream though.

Lunch – Cauliflower rice with ground meat, tomatoes, and yellow pepper

Carrots and snap peas on the side

Avocado on top of cauliflower mixture.

*Love having avocado every day

Snack – Mango

Dinner – Puerto Rican Beef (recipe - http://www.easypaleo.com/2012/01/31/recipe-challenge-puerto-rican-chicken/)

Almonds and strawberries

 

**The hardest part was realizing that I graze on Liam’s food too.  He typically eats what we do, but he has some crackers occasionally. I usually bite them down to size for him.  I, unconsciously, almost did this several times.  I even licked my fingers after giving him a Wheat Thin out of habit.  Just salt isn’t cheating right?

Tuesday, May 13

Exercise – Elliptical at gym + weights.  (I will write out one of my typical workouts later on down the page)

Breakfast – Sweet potatoes, 2 organic apples, tons of almond butter

8 oz black coffee

Lunch – Salad with cherry tomatoes, almonds, mushrooms, carrots with oil and vinegar dressing

Spicy chicken – leftovers from the weekend (I can’t find the recipe, but it’s literally, diced onions in a crockpot, seasoned chicken with paprika, poultry seasoning, cayenne, chili powder, cumin on low for 6 hours.  Spicy, but good!)

**I forgot to take my phone to lunch.

Dinner – Salmon with avocado salsa (recipe - http://www.thecookierookie.com/salmon-with-avocado/)

Plantain chips with guacamole  - plantains look like bananas but are eaten like a potato. I sliced them up, fried them in olive oil and salt and pepper.  Good replacement for chips.

Feelings about the day – sort of apathetic today.  I found that I wasn’t particularly hungry in between meals, but still wanted to snack.  Maybe emotional attachment?  Just bored really.

Wednesday, May 14

Exercise – I usually work out in the mornings, so I set my alarm, but I just absolutely could not get out of bed this morning.  Could be lack of carbs or just lack of energy in general.  I’m typically tired on most days, but this was ridiculous.  I worked out at school instead.

Breakfast – Banana with almond butter

2 eggs, kale, sweet potato hash, acorn squash, Roma tomato

8 oz black coffee

Lunch – Puerto Rican beef leftover with 1 avocado over sweet potato and a few bites of lamb from the week before.

Cucumber slices

Dinner – Cauliflower rice mixture

Salad with cucumber, cherry tomato and homemade ranch dressing (recipe - http://nomnompaleo.com/post/39474749548/whole30-day-2-paleo-mayonnaise

*This is not the exact recipe I used but it’s basically olive oil mayo, paprika, chives, parsley and salt and pepper.  Splash of lemon juice.  Pretty good =)

Thursday, May 15

Exercise – Ran 3.5 miles – this was very difficult for me.  Maybe it’s the lack of carbs?  I struggled to run at a decent pace.

Breakfast – Frozen berries, banana with almond butter, Egg frittata – with sausage, mushrooms and spinach

8 oz black coffee

Snack – dry, unsalted almonds 

 **No picture

Lunch – Salmon with avocado (leftovers from Tuesday)

Cucumber slices with homemade ranch

Dinner – Shrimp Scampi with zucchini (recipe: http://sweetcsdesigns.com/low-carb-paleo-shrimp-scampi/#more-11223)

Asparagus

Spinach salad with cherry tomatoes, snap peas, ½ avocado, oil and vinegar dressing

Friday, May 16

Breakfast – Banana with Almond butter

2 eggs over eggplant ratatouille (recipe: http://www.realsimple.com/food-recipes/browse-all-recipes/ratatouille-10000000524327/index.html)

Lunch – Subway salad with every veggie and bacon and whole avocado

Dry, unsalted almonds

Snack – Apple with AB (almond butter) and cinnamon

Dinner – Smoked chicken (Nathan smoked this and it was amazing!  He doesn’t exactly remember what he put on it but something of: salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, paprika, thyme and oregano.  And Liam loved it too!)

Mashed cauliflower made with ghee, chives and garlic

Homemade BBQ

**I cheated and weighed myself this morning and I’m down to 133.4.  That’s about 4 lbs in 1 week!  Yikes!

Saturday, May 17

Exercise – Elliptical – 15 min, weight/cardio circuit – 30 min

Breakfast – Egg scramble with tomatoes, mushrooms, kale/spinach, green pepper

Banana with AB

Iced coffee from Panera (I can’t give up my coffee yet!)

Lunch- we were traveling to my nephew's 6th birthday party so Nathan ate before but I wasn't hungry. We had a looong trip for several reasons, so when we got there after 2, I was starving.

I packed all of our food (lunch and dinner) and honestly, it was a pain. More on that later...

I packed leftover eggplant ratatouille with an apple and AB. 

Dinner- consequently, we were still there for dinner just a few hours later. They had pizza and salad fix ins'. I used what they had for toppings and improvised with what I brought. 

Salad with canned chicken (mine), avocado, green, red and yellow peppers, cherry tomatoes. Topped with olive oil and pepper. They didn't have balsamic which would have balanced out the EVOO, but still tasty and filling. 

This was our first real temptation. Ice cream, cake, pizza, and my mom's puppy chow. Weekends are hard bc we constantly graze and they have always been my cheat day. Cheat days no more. 

When we got home, we were still hungry (which is a reoccurring theme these days) so I made a paleo berry cobbler with canned coconut milk poured over it.  

Recipe: From Everyday Paleo cookbook. 

I couldn't find it online, but it's basically frozen or fresh berries, topped with a crumbly mix of almond meal, 1 egg, cinnamon and ghee or coconut oil. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 min. We poured canned coconut milk from Trader Joe's on top. I'll be honest, it needed more sweetness. I was still hungry. But I drank a huge glass of water and went to bed hungry.

Sunday, May 18
Breakfast - 8 oz black coffee (peppermint flavor)
2 eggs with 1 Roma tomato and 2 slices of uncured ham (nitrate free)
Strawberries and almonds

 

Lunch - Chipolte Salad - chicken, fajita veggies, mild salsa with guacamole on top

Almond berry dessert (from last night)

Dinner - Bone broth soup - when Nathan slow smoked the chicken, he took the bones and made soup with organic carrots and celery.  We added kale and green peppers and onions later.  It is phenomenal.

Sunday is usually my food prep day for the week. We still have a bunch of leftovers and no space in the fridge so I didn't have room to make much.  We steamed some broccolini (sp) we had from a week ago and fried up some plantain chips in olive oil with garlic, s/p to dip in guacamole.  

Recap of the week:

Mentally - My mind was prepared, but man oh man, did I mentally want chips, cookies, treats, my mom's puppy chow on a lazy Sunday afternoon =)  Those cravings were hard and not hard all the same.  I keep reminding myself that I'm a grown adult.  If I want it, I can have it.  But this is more than that.  I'm not doing this to prove something to anyone.  I'm doing it to feel better.  To know that I can and do have willpower.  I don't HAVE to have that ice cream.  I don't need a glass of wine (although with the school year winding down, I question that at times).  

I think what's been particularly difficult is changing what my mind knows is "normal".  Putting Liam to bed, doing dishes, and than curling up on the couch with a.....water.  That's it.  I did cave and make the almond berry cobbler Saturday night after I was around ice cream, cake, and pizza all afternoon.  Did I "earn" it?  No.  We don't earn food.  But I was starving and I have become grossly aware of my craving for sweet.

What's weird is that the things I'm craving, I can actually taste more in my mouth in their absence.  I can't really explain it. Have I had bad food dreams?  No.  I have gotten so stressed about this not eating what I usually graze on?  No. It really hasn't been that difficult mentally overall.  It has just been fine tuning some of the not great habits we have.

Physically - I have been extremely tired.  And not doing anything particularly strenuous in my workouts, but running 3-4 days a week (3-5 miles each) and lifting/circuits.  But I have been tired.  Like legs weigh 50 pounds tired on my runs.  This is new.  I've been scaling back a bit.  I've also lost weight.  4 pounds as of today.  My goal is not to lose weight as I can't afford anymore clothes, but I guess I should be thankful.  I've also had some unexpected stomach/bathroom issues.  I'd like to think it's all the fiber, but I ate a lot of fiber before.  Maybe it will pass...

Financially - What sucks the most is that we are snacking on or eating fruits and veggies for meals.  That crap is expensive.  Think about how much a bag of apples cost.  Well, I'll tell you at Aldi, a bag of organic apples is around $4.50.  A bag of tortilla chips for us could last a week and cost around $2.  Ouch.  We will definitely be spending much more on groceries.  It's hard to know exactly how much b/c I stocked up before it started, but I'll try to figure a total later on.

Other stuff - I have never been more aware of the fast food/restaurant industry's schemes to get us to eat their food.  It's everywhere.  Although I knew this before, now, I can't have that food.  I never really ate it before, but there's something about making you want something when you can't have it.  What is this junk?!  We've probably all been there but it is terrible.  Never more have I wanted McDonald's new seasoned shake fries.  But I can taste them, and they're not good.  They aren't worth it.

Another struggle we have had and will have is traveling, trips, and parties.  Sure, if we stayed at home and just worked (packing our lunch), we'd be set!  But life is not like that.  Things come up.  We had my nephew's birthday party this Saturday and we had to pack our own food.  That could be disrespectful to some people as their guests.  It took a lot of prep, and time, and thinking.  And it stressed me out.  Normally, we could have gone, eaten light if we didn't want much, but still allowed ourselves the indulgence of cake and ice cream.  But we couldn't.  Well, we could have, but saying no is for our bodies.  It was hard, but it wasn't that hard.

All in all, a good first week, but we are counting down the days we can go back to normal.  That's not good I don't think, but meal planning and prep is a bear.  I soooo took for granted being able to snack on chips as a side or bread for a sandwich as a quick lunch.  Liam eats what we eat so we pack for him as well.  Ugh, toddlers and their eating.  That's another story....

Stay tuned this next week for our trip to the zoo and what we pack, graduation for my school, and Memorial Day.  

Nathan's recap for the week:

Whole 30 Week 1 in Review
With 25% of the Whole 30 behind me, I found myself reflecting this morning on the first week.  I can sum it up simply: hungry.
I'm doing the Whole 30 with Kel not just because I'm the perfect supportive husband, but to try to cure frequent, seemingly random gut pains and indigestion.  While reducing grain, sugar, and lentils in my everyday diet had helped, I'd never done a full Whole 30-type "cleanse" to heal the damage probably done by semi-weekly college Taco Bell runs.
Despite making dietary changes years ago, this week I still missed being able to grab a small bag of chips or surplus muffin that was laying around the work kitchen.  I struggled not to snack… I did have have some mixed nuts throughout the day to keep my stomach from grinding in on itself, saving my sanity.  I started to WAY overeat at meals out of fear I'd be hungry before the next!  Obviously something wasn't right.  A little web research suggested more good fats at meals so I upped the oil/avocado/nut intake at meals and by day 5 and 6 I was doing better.
Still, every time I get in the car I see restaurant signs for places I NEVER go, but simply because it's forbidden I want it!  Driving through the smell of grilling burgers and frying potatoes, I find myself planning my "re-tox" diet of Chick-Fil-A and Sam Adams Summer Ale (well, not together).  I have to trust that the next 3 weeks will alleviate those cravings (it's not  "Whole 7" for a reason…!), and I keep reminding myself that hitting up a Wendy's drive though on Day 31 will probably induce immediate vomiting!
I'm looking forward to this week as it's supposed to be when everything mellows out and we start seeing the "fruit" (har!) of our discipline.  I really hope to see improvement in my energy and digestion so I can then recommend it to friends and family as personal testimony, not just research.  Here's to week 2!

Please ask me if you have any questions about recipes, where we get our food, and what we buy!

Whole 30 week 2.....here we come.

The Whole 30 Program

The Whole 30 Program

What is the Whole 30?

This will explain it better than me: http://whole30.com/

This website has great information, printables, recipes, and answers to any and all questions.  Their book It Starts with Food is also great and I feel it’s necessary to get the most out of the program.

Simply put, it is a way of eating for 30 days (no diet talk here). Eat solely some fruits, tons of vegetables, and protein.  No sugar, grains, alcohol, artificial sweeteners, legumes, or fake food on the plan.  For 30 days.  Lots and lots of healthy fats are pushed in this program.  After the 30 days, you slowly introduce grains, dairy, etc to see where your triggers are emotionally and physically.  The goal is to retrain your body to use protein and fat for fuel rather than carbs. 

Why we wanted to do it.

I heard about this on Instagram from a friend who was reading the book.  I started researching it, checked out the book from our library (couldn’t finish in the 2 weeks, so I had so I bought the book!) and talked to my husband about what this kind of change could do for us.  We already eat pretty well, but could use a tune up in a lot of areas.  My husband has issues eating grains and dairy already so we don’t have much of them in our diets.  We also follow an eating plan from our chiropractor which incorporates most of these concepts.  Find out more here: http://www.maximizedliving.com/.

We figured it would be a good idea to try and see if we couldn’t feel better, fix our afternoon food and caffeine crash, and cut out grains in general.

Resources I used to prepare

I read a lot of forums, blog posts, Pinterest recipes for the plan, and a few books.  This is what I recommend and am using during the program:

Grain Brain by Dr. David Perlmutter - http://www.drperlmutter.com/about/grain-brain-by-david-perlmutter/

            This book opened my eyes to the effects grains have on our bodies, and specifically, our brains.  Several studies cited in this book link grain and sugar consumption with Alzheimer’s disease, ADHD, and dementia.  Sugar causes inflammation and this inflammation goes to the brain causing problems.  Great, great read.

Everyday Paleo by Sarah Fragoso - http://everydaypaleo.com/books/

            This has been my go-to cookbook for The Whole 30.  It is Paleo based which refers to eating as the Paleolithic era ate.  There are only a few tweaks needed to make this 100% Whole 30 friendly.  She offers great recipes for kids too and a cross fit workout you can do on your own.  Plus, the Whole 30 book endorses her book in theirs!

What I did to prepare for the program?

If I’m being honest, the book suggests starting the program right now.  Right this second.  Go throw out your bad food right now!  Okay, I wanted to fully prepare for it, so we picked a day (after a good friend’s wedding weekend b/c we knew we’d want alcohol) and got ready for that day. 

I ate a lot of junk.  Mostly to clear it out, but mostly b/c I had to say bye bye to it for 30 days.  I ate the donuts in the teacher’s lounge.  We got more ice cream throughout the week.  I got my free Chick Fil A meal for Teacher’s Appreciation Week…and didn’t feel bad about it.  So whether or not that’s good or bad, I did it.  I didn’t go crazy.  I just ate what was available if I was hungry. 

I also food prepped.  I researched which stores at the best deals on food, stocked up on chicken, beef, and fish. I grated cauliflower (used as rice replacement) and froze it and grated zucchini for pasta dishes.

Oh yeah…these happened. 

My goals

Overall, I don’t expect to never eat French fries again or never drink alcohol.  Not realistic.  But here’s a few things I am shooting for:

1.       Not rely on carbs so much.  I didn’t realize how much I was eating in the late afternoon.  Stop the grazing!

2.      Shake the afternoon crash feeling when I reach for caffeine and crackers, cookies and sweets.

3.      Get my hormones in check like cortisol which can surge if you drink too much coffee and cause the body to store more belly fat. 

4.      Not need sweets after my dinner meal.

5.      Stop eating after 7 pm.

6.      Get better sleep.

7.      Complete the 30 days!  - I turn 30 this year so what better way to feel better and help my body than with the “30” challenge!

My challenge to you….

I realize this would be very hard for most people.  We are at an advantage b/c we incorporate a lot of these principles already.  But here’s what I wish would change…

This is my grocery cart at Wal-mart.  Hormone free, grass-fed chicken, fish, fresh veggies, eggs, and unsweetened applesauce.  This cost me $85.  That’s a lot of money for not much food.  But what you get from real, authentic food could save your life. 

This was the cart in front of me.  Sickness right there on a conveyer belt.  Prepackaged food, condiments, soda, frozen dinners.  You name it.  And it cost him $384, and the government helped pay for it.  The system is broken.  I don’t blame him or his family.  He’s probably doing the best he knows how to do with what little he may have.  But, that’s why those of us who can and are able should seek to educate and inform.  Hear me…not condemn.  It starts at the top.  I know how I would eat if I didn’t have the right people in my life to teach and encourage me.  Coming from someone who lost a parent to an incurable sickness, something has to give.

I’m more and more convinced through reading and research that our sicknesses, ailments, inflammations are all largely related to our diets.  So, our family chooses to pay into preventative health care over doctor visits, bad food, take-out, etc.  Before you think I’m acting all high and mighty, we do drink alcohol, we do eat fried food (occasionally) and we eat bread (sometimes).  We don’t claim to be perfect, but we are paying more for sick people these days and I feel the foods we/they eat are keeping them sick.  We can change this with little small changes.  I want the best for my son and his future and that starts with food…ha, see what I did there?!

Follow my blog for updates week to week as we do The Whole 30!

A post for mom

I’ve been thinking a lot of about my mom recently, mostly because I am now a mom myself.  I find myself looking at Liam and thinking, “there’s no way he’s leaving the house as a teenager or he better have respect for women.”  All these thoughts lead me back to what my parents did for us and how they raised us.  It’s weird what memories stay with you from childhood and the imprint they leave on you.  My childhood memories mostly involve being beat up by my brothers and spending time with my mom. It’s not my mom’s birthday and it’s certainly not Mother’s Day yet, but this has been on my heart to share with her.  So, mom, this post is for you…..

She spent time with me.  We stirred the cookie batter before we made cookies.  We went grocery shopping at Aldi on Saturdays and ate our bologna sandwiches in the car before we made the rounds (this memory made me believe we were poor because rich kids got to eat fast food on shopping trips.  Little did I know she was just being a wise spender =) She let me hold the center of the bows while we wrapped Christmas presents so she could tie it. 

She disciplined me.  She told me no…..often. I was very rarely in a “big trouble”, but I can recall the times of, “Kelli, you’re being very rude.”  Hello, wake up call.  She let me whine, listened, and then told me I was whining. 

She was/is my biggest fan.  She never missed a volleyball game, even when I sat the bench because she was showing me that supporting my team was more important.  She taught me that you won’t always be on the floor, but that is no excuse for a bad attitude or lack of effort. She traveled over 3 hours to watch me coach more than once.  She wore my sports button (if you were in grade school in the 90’s, you know what I’m talking about!)  

She loves Jesus.  I’d sneak downstairs on a Sunday morning and see her prepping for Sunday school pouring over her Bible.  She highlighted it up and down and her worn pages showed me a woman who yearned for a deeper relationship with God. 

She is always positive.  She offers a different perspective when I’m naturally negative.  She asks the hard questions and pushes me to be better.  She doesn’t let me settle for less than my best.

She is generous.  She fills our cars with gas, stuffs $20 bills in our pockets and sends us with food and our favorite drinks for our homes.  She sends me home with diapers and formula, and will mail me coupons and notes of encouragement.  She let me try any and all of her food at restaurants (and still does).  She comes to every one of my races, takes care of my son, and sleeps on my couch countless times without complaining.  She is the definition of selflessness.    

She is real.  I complained to her during dad’s final days, when she was about to lose her husband, that it was making me mad how non Christians never have to go through pain like this (or so it seemed)  and she very frankly responded, “Yeah, maybe they don’t.  But I feel really bad for those people because they don’t have Jesus and we do.” What?!  The strength of this woman is something I can only pray I got a piece of in my DNA.  She taught me that it’s how you respond to the things that happen in your life that make you who you are. 

She is the best grandmother I know.  She loves and treats each of her grandkids as individuals.  She plays games with them, lets them share her bed, reads them stories, will drive hours to watch them play sports, feeds them, changes dirty diapers (with enthusiasm mind you) and loves spending time with them.

Heck, she is the best mom I know.  These are MY memories but I know my brothers have similar stories to share about her.  She was never my friend, but a mom.  A mom who knew that she was the adult, she would make mistakes, but she was doing the best for her kids.  She tried every day.  Now, as I’m a grown adult, I see how she is the very best friend a person could wish for.  She is supportive, never talked bad about me, is always honest, laughs with me, and wants to talk to me and know how I’m feeling. 

So here is to my mom who rides the shopping cart through the parking lot, cries when she laughs too hard, always has a box of wine in her fridge, keeps tissues stuffed in every hoodie, has a bunker of expired food in her basement, and has Certs in her purse that taste like the tissues they were next too. 

I love you Mom.  You are the inspiration for everything good I want to be.