5/14 My 2nd Attempt at Whole30

[AuntB]

Hello everyone!

This is my 2nd attempt at this. My problem is that I hate to plan out food ahead of time. I work two jobs and some days i'm only home for 30 minutes before i'm out the door to my other job (at a grocery store!) so having all the time in the world to cook is not always an option for me!

I like to keep things simple. I will pretty much eat the same thing every day and not have a problem with it. It's the weekends/when I see my family that I have the problems. They think this is just a fad and aren't really supportive at all. They are always going out to eat and eventually I give in. I won't allow myself to do this this time.

I'm getting married in september, so I want to be as healthy as I can be, and i'm not going to lie, but i'm really hoping I can drop some lbs in the process.

I'm a distance runner. I will soon begin training for my 10th half marathon. I ran one of my half's last year doing Paleo and it was my best time so far.

TODAY:

Breakast: 2 Organic cage free eggs with 2 slices of bacon from our local farmers market.

Snack: Organic Banana

Lunch: Grassfed/organic beef cinnamon sliders, on a bed of locally grown spinach, butternut squash with ghee and half an avocado

Snack: 15 cashews, and the other half of the avocado

I have to work at my part time job tonight. It's rough because It's at a grocery store and there are literally thousands of bad choices right at my fingertips.

I can do this.... I can do this....

[Tom Denham]

Good for you!

But you might need to eat a little more. Two eggs and slices of bacon is a small breakfast. And, when you eat enough, it is easier to stay with the program. Hunger is a troublemaker.

[kew]

I'm no Tom Denham, but FWIW, I had the same reaction to your breakfast.

[megmac]

My recommendation is to eat more at meals and skip the snacks. The "magic", if there is any, is in eating 3x/day. I do a pretty brutal, hour long boot camp 3-4x week (no crazy heavy lifting, just crazy body weight things) and have never needed a pre or post workout meal in addition to my usual 3. Those seem to be for the real hard core people.

Giving up snacks for me was totally mind over matter. But you have to eat enough at each meal, which takes some practice.

[AuntB]

Thanks everyone. I simply don't like to be uncomfortably full, especially at work, but I get what you're saying about snacks, so I will try tomorow to eat a little more for breakfast!

Dinner: Organic Skinless boneless chicken thighs, local asparagus in ghee, and more butternut squash.

I might have a few berries before I leave for work.

[AuntB]

Day one is over. I did pretty good and wasn't overly hungry. Moving on to day 2!

[calee]

Great job! Isn't it great that asparagus is in season?

Enjoy Day 2.

[megmac]

I know what you mean about not liking to be "full". That was my problem, too. It turns out I didn't need to eat THAT much more to stay satiated until the next meal. I just had to get over my fear of being hungry. I kind of like it now, because it's not that "I'm going to faint if I don't eat" hungry, it's the "those coconut curry meatballs are going to hit the spot" hungry. My entire W30 #2 was dedicated to giving up snacks. It didn't happen over night.

It sounds like you are off to a great start!

[AuntB]

Yes. I think I will get there. Last time I was doing intermittent fasting. I wouldn't eat until lunch time. I felt that REALLY helped with my relationship with food ("I HAVE to eat breakfast") and I never passed out (like I thought I would) i'd just get up and drink water. So maybe i'll get back to that.

This morning I had to Organic cage free eggs and an organic sweet potato with ghee. I AM STUFFED. I'll top it off with a glass of water before I head to work.

I almost made some turkey bacon we got the other night, but raw sugar is an ingredient and I wasn't sure If i could eat it, so I didn't.

I can't have this right?

[AuntB]

and Yes Calee, I'm LOVING all this asparagus!

[megmac]

No, not during the W30. But that kind of stuff is one of the first things I add back when I'm done.

[AuntB]

Damn. I'm glad I didn't make it then. That will make mornings harder because I really like bacon.

I thought it might be safe because it was organic/cage free/no nitrates but the sugar.. argh!!

[megmac]

I struggle with protein for breakfast as well. I like bacon, but haven't found any that doesn't contain sugar. US Wellness Meats has one, but I haven't ordered it yet. This week I am eating 3 eggs over a bunch of spinach and some curried cream of broccoli soup. I threw in a few cashews for some added fat.

[AuntB]

Something I KNOW I need to get over, is the thought of veggies with breakfast. It just seems strange to me, but I know I need to get over that.

I'm trying to think ahead what I want for lunch. I'm lucky enough to live 3 minutes from my job so I can go home and make things for lunch every day. I was thinking about making an egg/canned salmon omlet with a big serving of greens and maybe some cashews.

[megmac]

Lucky you! It's tough to pack 2 meals every day...for 3 people.

I also used to gag at the thought of veggies for breakfast. It turns out I can do it as long as they are raw. My "go to" morning veggies are spinach and cauliflower. I have no idea why because they are not my favorites, but they work for me in the morning. I soft cook my eggs and break them over raw spinach so it wilts, but doesn't cook. It's down right edible! LOL.

[AuntB]

Megmac- that sounds pretty good actually! I really like kale and spinach and avocado. I think those 3 would be the easiest for me to integrate into my first meal. I will have to try that tomorrow!

I'm feeling pretty hungry now. Must include more fat in my breakfast tomorrow. I've had 2 cups of water and a glass of hot tea. I didn't bring a snack with me with this morning so that I can break the snacking cycle. Most of the time I eat the snack just because, and not because i'm hungry.

[megmac]

Do you find that your first round of hunger signals disappear if you ignore them? That's what I'm finding as I do this W30. I must have gotten a little lazy since my last W30 because I'm having to distract myself a little until it's lunch time. I'm finding that I feel hunger coming on and have to remind myself that I am amply nourished for a good 5 hours and that I have no business being hungry yet. Oddly enough, it's working. And once again I seem to be confusing hunger with boredom. Not that the budgeting process isn't a thrill a minute...

[AuntB]

Megmac- Yes. They do go away when I ignore them! What I normally do is take a couple big gulps of water and go back to work, and it completely goes away! It's so funny.

Lunch- I went home only to find that my canned salmon had all kinds of crap in it (soy..ect) so I scrambeled some organic cage free eggs and threw in a packet some sustainably poll fished tuna instead (The tuna was great but $3.50 for 3 oz!!). I also topped it off with organic olives and sauteed some spinach in ghee and garlic. I also had a roma tomato and one kiwi. I feel like i'm going to bust.

I have to go somewhere right after work, so I did bring about 15 cashews with me to eat if I feel hungry. My goal is to get a run in tonight. I haven't run in almost two weeks because i'd been battling a sinus infection from hell. Hopefully it doesn't rain.

[AuntB]

Went for a run tonight. All in all it was sucky. I knew to expec that so whatever.

Dinner: Lemon dill salmon,spinach with ghee, summer squash in ghee, and some black olives.

I'm stuffed... moving on to day 3!

[calee]

AuntB, you're doing great. I just take leftovers for breakfast and lunch, so that includes veggies. I'm generally hungry, so it's like, whatever.

I read that you hope to drop a few pounds. My experience the first week was that I was using cashews as a crutch. I liked the crunch. I was reminded by several to "step away from the nuts". It was wise advice so I will pass it along. If your dinner is going to be very late, the Template has us eat a mini meal. Same as our other meals, just smaller proportions. Yeah, I know. But I did drop the nuts after a few days. And yes, I'd love to drop a few pounds too.

You're coming up on a year of sobriety. Big big kudos on a job well done!

[AuntB]

Calee- Thank you!! You are absolutley right! I've only had about 15 cashews a day, but I do really need to watch out for the snacky factor with them. They are WAY too easy to over indulge on. I've been trying to be really good about my fruit and i've barely had any at all. I really do want to drop some lbs so I need to be aware of what i'm eating!

I was running a little behind this morning, so I made some overeasy eggs and put them with an organic sweet potato and ghee for my first meal. It was SOOO delicious. It keeps me so much more full than Gluten free cereal ever did.

I've gone through almost an entire carton of eggs in 48 hours. Jeez!!!

I really need to try to drink more water. Yesterday I only had about 7 glasses. I know water plays a big role. I will try to do better today!

[AuntB]

Day 3 - Meal 2 (lunch)

Did the same thing as yesterday I don't have a ton of time at lunch. 2 eggs (scrambled with ghee) with tuna, a whole avocado, and some kale sauteed in olive oil.

My stomach is hurting me this afternoon. Not sure if my body is adjusting to all the fat i've been eating or what. I guess it could just be the amount of good food i'm digesting.

Not sure what's for dinner yet, but tonight will be spent relaxing since I have to work 12 hours tomorrow.

[AuntB]

last night for dinner we had more grassfed cinnamon sliders with sauteed onions and peppers, with a side of brussel sprouts in bacon grease and I had some organic mushrooms with fresh salsa. I was so incredibly full up until I went to bed. I was actually uncomfortable. I do not like feeling like that!!

Day4- Started my day off with my favorite sweet potato with ghee and 2 eggs fried in bacon grease on top. YUM!!!

I'm going to have a VERY busy and trying weekend. This will be my first true test.

[AuntB]

Day 6 coming to an end..

Went to a surprise party for a friend saturday night and it was incredibly hard. SO many delicous snacks, but I stayed wtih peppers, tomatos, mushrooms and carrots.

We went to the farmers market on Saturday morning and got some more veggies. Went to the store today and spend another $145 on meats and fish and MORE veggies. This afternoon we made chili. It makes 8 servings so we will have enough to eat for most of the week!

Tomorrow is day 7! Yay!

[AuntB]

Day 7.. Going well. Had my usualy sweet potato with eggs this morning. I really love it. It's something that's quick and easy in the mornings and it keeps me REALLY full until lunch time. I think i will keep eating this for the morning meal. It doesn't bother me eating the same thing every day.. I just like simplicity!

For lunch, I had some cauliflower mash with the paleo chili we made yesterday. It was delicious! I also had some butternut squash and a banana. I've been trying really hard to avoid fruit, but I decided to indulge today. I did try to eat a few strawberries this weekend and I couldn't eat more than ONE! They were so sweet that I couldn't stand it. That could be a good thing!!

Going to try to get a run in tonight. Not sure what to eat before I go, if anything. I'm not used to running on an empty stomach, so I will probably have to eat something small.