My first Whole30

[DanielleM]

I started my first Whole30 on Sunday, 12 May. Now, to preface this, I've been paleo for about a year - I picked up ISWF and Well Fed, and I've been about 90% paleo at a guess at home. When I travel for work- it's hard to stay even paleo. Relying on restaurants, or having clients feed you where you have no choice at all... I've been traveling a lot lately, 1-2 weeks out of the month since last fall. It's time for a reset!

I haven't been able to start a Whole30 until now. I have a window of 6 weeks before my next trip. Now is the time to do it! Let's go...

Sunday, Day 1: (Felt really great! Very excited to finally be doing this!)

Breakfast- eggs scrambled with onions, peppers, tomato and Aidells chicken apple sausage in coconut oil. Home-made guacamole on the side. Black Coffee.

Lunch: (I honestly don't remember- I did all of my grocery shopping through lunch and I was still full from breakfast.)

Snack: Banana & a few macadamia nuts and cashews.

Dinner: Grassfed steak topped with onions and mushrooms sauteed in olive oil. Rosemary-garlic roasted sweet potatoes. Roasted Brussels sprouts.

Monday, Day 2: (Again felt great, lots of energy!)

Breakfast: Leftover egg scramble from the day before. Spinach with olive oil. Black Coffee.

Lunch: Leftover grassfed steak & rosemary sweet potatoes.

Dinner: Baked Ono (fish) topped with salsa (compliant). Zucchini Noodles from Well Fed. Spinach and kale salad with tomatoes, topped with olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

Tuesday, Day 3: (Tired! I felt exhausted after lunch, it was hard to get through the rest of the day. I got a little angry for no reason at the end of the day, but felt much better after dinner!)

Breakfast: 2 hard boiled eggs. 2 chicken sausage. Black coffee. Small Banana

Lunch: 1/2 pork chop cooked in coconut oil. Kale with olive oil.

Snack: handful of macadamia nuts, raisins, and cashews.

Dinner: 2 baked chicken drumsticks. Baked sweet potato with 1 tsp ghee.

[AuntB]

Sounds great so far!

[Terresa]

Some thoughts for when you're traveling: dairy-free omelets for breakfast (turns into the scramble you've been making really , but restaurant staff seem more comfortable going at it from the angle of calling it an omelet); and raw veggies and pieces of roasted chicken, or 100g of roast beef, etc, from a grocery store deli for lunch. This really helped me last weekend when we were away for a sporting event with two of our kids.

Best of luck and good health!

[DanielleM]

Thanks for the encouragement and ideas! My last trip I was fortunate enough to stay at a hotel with a little frige- and a grocery store down the street. I can't tell you how much that helped for breakfast. A couple of hard boiled eggs and some veggies and guacamole (thank goodness for the Wholy Guacamole 100 calorie packs!) and I was good to go until lunch. Now if only I can have that happen more often- usually there is no fridge in the hotel rooms, or no grocery nearby....

Wednesday, Day 4: (Tired this afternoon. And I feel overly warm...Not sure if that's me or someone turned the air up in the office. Drinking a lot of water too- I've refilled my 32 oz. Nalgene 3 times today. Slight headache in the afternoon.)

Breakfast: 2 hard boiled eggs, kale with olive oil, salt and pepper. Small banana. Coffee with a little ghee. (Not sure I like the taste of that. I used to use butter. Only drank about half to 3/4 of my cup. Might go back to black.)

Lunch: 3 baked chicken drumsticks (leftover from last night) and sauteed kale with olive oil.

Snack: small banana and a handful of cashews & macadamia nuts.

Dinner: Spaghetti squash with marinara and homemade paleo meatballs

[DanielleM]

Day 5: Couldn't sleep at all last night. Woke up alright this morning though. My body feels awake, but my mind isn't quite there. The afternoon is rough. Still drinking a lot of water. Refilled the Nalgene twice today so far.

Breakfast: 2 hard boiled eggs, kale with olive oil. Small banana. Half a cup of black coffee. (not intentionally cutting back, but I just didn't want any more. )

Lunch: 4 left over meatballs from last night with a little tomato sauce. Kale with olive oil. Small banana (have to use them up before thye go bad!)

Snack: Handful of cashews...(Not feeling well after these. Too many?)

Dinner: First night eating out on Whole30. I'm a little nervous. Going to Macaroni Grill. Got some goodsuggestions on the forum on how to manage this. I'll post back after dinner and figure out what I'm going to have.

Dinner ended up being Chicken and asparagus. I feel pretty good about this since the menu listed this dish as soy, dairy, peanut, gluten free. When I ordered, I specified that I can't have dairy or gluten, and subbed the offered potatoes for asparagus, which was also listed as free of all the allergens. The server was sure to point out that it was both dairy and gluten free when he brought my dish to the table. Everyone complimented me on how healthy I was to resist the bread and wine.

[DanielleM]

Day 6

Breakfast: 2hard boiled eggs, spinach with olive oil. Half a cup of black coffee. Avocado.

Lunch: spinach salad. 2 paleo meatballs.

Snack: cashews

Dinner: went out to eat again. The server was very understanding. Ended up with a dry salad, scallops and portobello mushrooms sautéed in olive oil with double steamed veggies. Ceviche...which was amazing!

Day 7:

Breakfast: I missed breakfast. Had half a cup of coffee.

Lunch: two hard boiled eggs, sweet potato with ghee

Dinner: scotch eggs with roasted Brussels sprouts in olive oil, salad with olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

Day 7 was great- I was able to get through ALL of the P90X yoga session. I only like the yoga, which most people tend to hate. I haven't been able to get through the whole 1.5 hours for a while. I'm pleased.

[DanielleM]

Day 8:

Breakfast: scotch eggs with sweet potato hash. Half a cup of black coffee

Lunch: paleo meatballs, banana

Snack: cashews, kombucha

Dinner: Jambalaya with chicken, chicken sausage, shrimp, and cauliflower rice.

I was very sore today, having trouble recovering from Saturday's yoga. I did some very gentle yoga to ease some of the soreness for 50 minutes. Still drinking a lot of water.

[DanielleM]

Day 9:

Breakfast: Leftover scotch egg and sweet potato hash. Spinach and olive oil. Half a cup of black coffee. (I just can't stand the taste anymore- and I LOVED black coffee before. Weird!)

Lunch: Leftover jambalaya. Banana. Handful of cashews.

Dinner: 3 baked chicken drumsticks, brussels sprouts, sweet potato with ghee.

Very sore today. Looking forward to doing some yoga tonight and working some of the soreness out.

Ended up doing about an hour of yoga. Still very sore. Possibly need a post-workout meal, but it was very close to dinner.

[calee]

Danielle, I love the sound of the flavors of everything you're eating. How smart of you to seize this window of opportunity to do your Whoe30 whie not traveling!

[DanielleM]

Thanks, Calee! It turns out that I do have to travel towards the end of my Whole30. But I think I am going to be able to stay at a condo, so I'll have access to a kitchen and a grocery. Thank goodness!

As far as flavors go, I have the Well Fed cookbook. Needless to say it's amazing and inspiring. And I have a boyfriend who loves to cook with me, and make all these wonderful paleo dishes- even if he's not paleo himself.

[DanielleM]

Day 10:

Breakfast: Spinach, three eggs cooked in ghee, banana, herbal tea

Lunch: Leftover Jambalaya

Snack: Banana, handful of macadamia nuts, Kombucha

Dinner: Sashimi and grilled calamari. I

Much better today. No coffee! I didn't even bother trying it. I feel fine. I did 20 minutes of yoga this morning to wake up instead. Most of the soreness is gone. Still drinking a lot of water- but that's a good thing. A little headachy this afternoon. Looking forward to more yoga when I get home tonight!

Update: Didn't get a chance to do any yoga after work. Went out to dinner instead. Plan was to go to a movie after (Star Trek!) but ended up with a worse headache by the end of dinner. I have a pinched nerve in my neck that's been bothering me since Saturday. I also skipped coffee this morning, so I'm certain that is what made the headache worse.

[DanielleM]

Day 11: (Is it really day 11 already?)

Breakfast: Scrambled eggs in ghee, spinach with coconut oil, sliced tomato. Green tea (to stave off the inevitable lack-of-caffiene headache. I think it's helping.)

Lunch: Spinach and kale salad with olive oil and balsamic, 2 hard boiled eggs, 2 leftover chicken drumsticks, carrots. (Had to pack my lunch today instad of going home- yay for lunch meetings...) I also have a sweet potato with ghee in case I need it.

Dinner: Steak with sautéed mushrooms and onions, roasted Brussels sprouts, kale salad with lots of veggies and olive oil.

No yoga this morning. Had to run some errands in the AM before work. No yoga this evening either.

Drank green tea all day. Definitely helps with the caffeine dragon!

[DanielleM]

Day 12:

Breakfast: 2 hard boiled eggs, leftover steak, kale with olive oil, green tea.

Lunch: Cobb salad with steak, tomatoes hard-boiled egg and olive oil. (Went out to lunch with work. I emailed the chef before I went, and he said this was the most compliant option without cheese and bacon. I ordered it without cheese, bacon and dressing. The waiter looked at me like I was nuts. He brought me dressing on the side anyway "in-case you want to kick it up a notch". Wasteful, in my mind. There was also a bit of cheese left on. I picked it out and avoided that half of the salad. Very disappointing! Especially since I did my homework, and the chef was so helpful.)

Dinner: 2 chicken drumsticks, sweet potato with ghee.

[DanielleM]

Day 13:

Pre-WO: 1 hard boiled egg

Post-WO: 1/3 chicken breast and a handful of baby carrots

Breakfast: 2 Hard boiled eggs, kale with olive oil, green tea

Lunch: 2/3 Chicken breast, sweet potato with ghee

Dinner: Chili from well fed, salad with olive oil, homemade guacamole with carrots.

Did 75 minutes of yoga this morning. I woke up 2 hours early and just couldn't go back to sleep! Yoga felt good, I think the pre & post food really helped! A little tired at work today, I feel like I'm hungry this morning...I'm wondering if the introduction of the pre & post WO meal has thrown something off since I'm not used to it. Still can't stand coffee- I'm changing to green tea for now!

[DanielleM]

Day 14

Breakfast: leftover chili and guacamole, small peach, green tea.

Lunch: 1/2 chicken breast and baked sweet potato with ghee, kombucha

Dinner: pad Thai from "We'll Fed" and salad.

Woke up with a bit of a headache this morning... Almost feels like a sinus/allergy headache. Felt better by the afternoon.

[DanielleM]

Day 15:

Breakfast: leftover paleo pad Thai

Lunch: leftover paleo pad Thai

Dinner: sashimi! I brought along macadamia nuts for some fat, and coconut aminos to use instead of soy sauce. Yum!

[DanielleM]

Day 16:

Breakfast: a few bites of leftover chili, green tea

Lunch: 1/2 chicken breast and sweet potato with ghee, kombucha

Dinner: 3 chicken drumsticks, sweet potato with ghee

Today was strange. I wasn't hungry. The only thing that sounded good was the sweet potato. Breakfast and lunch were pretty close together - I ate breakfast late, then had to leave the house to meet friends at noon. So I ate again right before I left. Maybe an hour apart. But I wasn't hungry for dinner either.

[DanielleM]

Day 17:

Breakfast: 2 Hard Boiled eggs, green tea

Lunch: chicken drumsticks, sweet potato with ghee

Dinner: chicken sausage, sweet potato with ghee

I'm losing my appetite. Sweet potato was the only thing that sounded good!

[DanielleM]

Day 18:

Breakfast: chicken sausage, spinnach with olive oil, green tea

Lunch: leftover chili, sweet potato with ghee

Dinner: Steak with mushrooms and onions sauteed in olive oil, roasted brussels sprouts and salad. (This is becoming my favorite dinner!)

Again, little appetite. Once I am eating, I'm fine. But I'm not craving anything- I have to force myself to eat.

[DanielleM]

Day 19:

Breakfast: 3 scrambled eggs and fresh spinnach, green tea. Handful of macadamia nuts & rasins (since I didn't use olive oil like I usually do. Worried I didn't get enough fat at breakfast, so I brought the nuts to work.)

Lunch: chicken apple sausage, sweet potato with ghee

Dinner: pulled pork, guacamole, salad, and cauliflower tortillas- http://slimpalate.com/cauliflower-tortillas-paleo-grain-free-gluten-free/

Weird dreams last night! And I remembered them, which hasn't happed for me in years. Amazing. I never remember my dreams, even when I try.

The cauliflower tortillas were... not good. Not that I was missing tortillas, but the cauliflower part sounded awesome since I love, love, love cauliflower. But these... ugh. Ended up crumbling them up as a topping, which was ok. I don't think this is going to be made again.

[DanielleM]

Day 20:

Already???!!! Wow!

Breakfast: Leftover pulled pork, spinnach and guacamole. Green tea & konbucha

Lunch: chicken sausage with mashed cauliflower.

Dinner: Salad with leftover pulled pork and guacamole and carrots.

Kind of headachy today. Having trouble focusing. I'm getting anxious about my business trip on Sunday. I'll be gone days 22-26. At least I will have access to a kitchen and grocery store... thank goodness!

[DanielleM]

Day 21

Breakfast: totally missed breakfast. Slept late then went to the grocery.
Lunch: tomatoes stuffed with ground bison, topped with egg. ( from Primal Blueprint)

Snack?: Broccoli with ghee & pulled pork
Dinner: Paleo Chicken Paresan (no cheese!) and roasted butternut squash with sage and garlic. Marrow and parsley salad as an appetizer.

Completely missed breakfast today... Lost track of time, slept late and ran off to the grocery to get the stuff for breakfast...which turned into lunch by the time it was done. The stuffed tomatoes were delicious and filling! I hoped to fit in another small meal to make up for missing breakfast...I managed it, but it made dinner difficult to eat!

[DanielleM]

Day 22:

 

Breakfast: 1/2 chicken parmesan and butternut squash.

Lunch: stewed beef, onions, carrots and spinnach with olive oil and garlic.

Dinner: two chicken drumsticks, sweet potato with ghee.

 

First day traveling. Went shopping. Hard to plan for just a few days...I'm used to shopping for a week or more.

Terrible headache today- no caffiene! Otherwise I feel pretty good. Just the headache is killing me.

 

Day 23:

Breakfast: A few bites of the leftover stew and guacamole- didn't have time for more...or my green tea.

Snack: (since breakfast was almost a non event...) Grass fed jerky (grassfed gourmet!) and shredded coconut.

Lunch: spinnach salad with tomato, carrots, 2 hardboiled eggs with olive oil. (Thank goodness for LunchBots!)

Dinner: Chicken drumsticks, sweet potato with ghee.

 

Today was...awful to start out. I had a caffiene withdrawl headache until about 4PM. Then it went away. I didn't mean to go without, but just didn't have time for my usual (now) cup of green tea (instead of coffee).

[DanielleM]

Day 24:

Breakfast: one cup of leftover beef stew, guacamole, green tea! (finally had time for a small cup.) small banana

Lunch: spinach salad with 2 hard boiled eggs, tomato carrots, and olive oil.

Snack: grass fed gourmet beef jerky

Dinner: chicken breast, sweet potato with ghee

Slept about 9.5 hours last night. That really helped. I still wake up in the middle of the night 2-3 times. Woke up with the start of a headache. I was able to drink a cup of green tea in the AM. I do not want to go through another caffiene withdrawl headache today!

I dreamed about eating bread last night, which I haven't craved since I started eating paleo a year ago. In my dream it looked delicious, but it had the taste and texture of sawdust. I spit it out, and was panicked that I might have swallowed some crumbs that I didn't even want! I was still in my whole30 in the dream, and was so disappointed that I might have to start over- I woke up... So glad it was just a dream!

[DanielleM]

Day25:

Breakfast: leftover beef stew, spinach and guacamole. Green tea, small banana

Lunch: spinach salad with 3 HB eggs, carrots, tomato, olive oil

Dinner: baked chicken, Brussels sprouts, sweet potato with ghee

Better today. I slept well, but not enough hours due to work schedule. A little hungry 2 hours before lunch, which is strange since I ate more for breakfast than I had yesterday.