New Beginnings and Why does June Seem so Long?

[Physibeth]

Wow your garden is lovely! I can't wait until we own our own house so I can have a real garden some day. Of course the pots I have are just growing weeds at the moment because I've been too busy to get anything else planted in them. 

 

I love the TG Stuffing Meatballs! They are like my personal paleo crack! I think I ate 8 of them in one day once. 

 

I hear you on the trying to get pregnant. I'm hoping to do so this fall. My husband is younger and wants all the ducks in the row but my ovaries are not getting younger.   I picked up the book "Primal Moms Look Good Naked" and am slowly working my way through it. Most of the whole food fertility diets include butter and raw milk so I may be adding those back in post W30 as I do believe I tolerate them fairly well. 

[Lizzard77]

Nadia, pickled green tomatoes are fabulous, I made them each September at the end of the tomato crop and give them for Christmas presents. 

 

The garden was the first thing we did when we bought the house 3 years ago.  I have always dreamed of having a garden that could be sustainable and this year it looks like we're gonna make it!  Next summer I will work on my flower gardens, that's slower progress because so much time is spent with the veggies.

 

Beth, I definitely know what you mean about youthful ovaries!  A year ago when we started my Doc said they were perfectly healthy and good to go, now a year later, I am starting to ovulate sooner which means the poor things are ageing and we need to get on it!  Oh well, it will happen when or if it is supposed to, I firmly believe that.  I think we are doing the right thing though getting our bodies healthy before pregnancy!  I will have to check out that book, I have not heard of it, sounds interesting!

[Lizzard77]

Aahhhh, lovely evening poolside with my friends. We had a grand time until it thunder stormed on us, but then we went onto the porch and watched the lightning. I ate a good dinner before I went over: salmon with lemon, lime, and garlic, cilantro cauli-rice, baby yams roasted in ghee (to. die. for) and steamed broccoli. I was quite full and satisfied. I also took over 2 bottles of homebrewed booch in a mason jar with ice so it felt cocktailesqe. I have to say I was not tempted in the slightest by the pizza or booze but everyone there smoked and it like to killed me! I stayed strong but it definitely left me with a bit of a cravey feeling over it though, so happy that I no longer smoke! I was pretty wound up when I got home though and didn't get to sleep till around 1, but slept straight through to 7! I'm getting used to this sleeping stuff! Breakfast this AM: sauteed mustard greens with green and yellow courgette and scapes. 2 eggs scrambled with chorizo and chives, mixed fresh herbs and arugola over top.

[Lizzard77]

Kick butt workout today!!!!! I am amazed at how connected i feel to my body, I can actually focus my mind onto the muscles that need to be working for every move and I have the stamina to really push it.  I feel incredible instead of drained.  Had a chicken breast afterwards and I know I shouldn't have fruit but the fastest carb option was a banana, oh well the potassium is good for me.  I haven't quite figured out the whole pre and post workout meals but I am trying.  The biggest problem is, I like to work out shortly after breakfast which doesn't leave space for a pre WO snack and then shortly after is lunch time so post WO is a little screwy too.  If I wait and eat lunch too late then I don't eat dinner until 6-6:30 which is too late for the hubs and later then I'd like to eat.  Working on it though!  Just happy that I'm back into working out!

[Physibeth]

As usual your eats sound (and look) delicious! Great job at the party last night! I have high praise for people who stop smoking! I never have smoked myself but I'm highly sensitive to 2nd hand smoke so I party every time a smoker becomes an ex-smoker both for their and for my air quality. 

 

I have not really embraced the pre/post-wo meals either for pretty much the same reason. I think the one place I really need it is after my evening BodyPump classes (like tonight) but usually I exercise about an hour or so after meal 1 and have meal 2 within an hour of finishing. Seems to be working for me. 

[Nadia B]

Well done on surviving the party. Surviving the social smoking is major, because idea of having a smoke is what we like. Sometimes it's the situation that calls for it, this thought crosses my mind from time to time. However, from my personal experience of a quitter - it feels like I've never smoked and I can't stand when someone is smoking around now. Taste buds do change with whole eating. Thank God. Especially if you are thinking babies and stuff, right? Anywho, you are a brilliant example to whiners out there how to take control of the situation.

Stupid Canadian customs won't let it in the country, otherwise I would beg for a can of tomatoes, lol.

[Nadia B]

P.S and I would totally eat them despite of my intolerance and AIP protocol. Hands in the jar. Like when I was a kid.

[Lizzard77]

Nadia, if I could figure out a way to get them to you I would! Those and pickled radishes are definitely some of my favorite things to eat.

Dinner! As fabulous tonight and I actually had enough left over for lunch tomorrow! I'm gonna call it "Shut the eff up flank steak" cause you can't talk you're so busy eating! I combined ideas from ISWF perfect steak and a tyler florence recipe, marinated it in lime, coffee, cocoa, chili powder and a few other items. Grilled it and served it on mixed lettuces and a spicy ACV and cilantro slaw with roasted toasted cumin beets (from my garden) on the side. Yummerssss!

[Physibeth]

Um...please to be sending me that recipe. Lime, coffee, cocoa, and chili powder on steak? Yes please and thank you! I have a grass fed rib eye in the fridge for our Sunday evening steak grill, do you think the marinade would work with that cut as well?

 

Beets from your garden! Oh someday I will have my own! And time to tend my own! So lovely! I don't think you are allowed to be jealous of my farm delivery when you have one in your backyard. 

[Lizzard77]

I will pm you the recipe Beth.  We have CSAs around here just none of them deliver.  And yes you are right, i probably can't complain as for the next few months the majority of my veggies will come from my backyard.  Also my farmer's market is only a 10 minute drive.  I just think it would be neat to have it delivered to my door!

[Lizzard77]

Breakfast: Sweet potato and beets greens with 2 fried eggs and a piece of pork belly left over from dinner, the closest I have been to bacon in 29 days!

[Lizzard77]

It is the eve of my final day.  I can't believe I am here, on the other side!  I can't believe that 4 weeks ago I nervously wrote my first post and anxiously entered a month long commitment to my health.  Wow, here I am.  I was fully compliant, as far as I know, and had a whole new horizon of food open up for me.  I can't even imagine what a meal would be like with out 2-3 cups of vegetables and at least 8oz of meat.  I can't believe my plates used to be meat, veg, grain, wow really?  I used to think I couldn't be satiated or a meal wouldn't be a meal without grains?  Hmm, it's amazing how a short 4 weeks can change your thinking so drastically.  I know I have a lot further to go with this journey but I am so darn proud of myself for making it to this point.  I have a lovely meal planned as a celebratory dinner tomorrow night, and the hubs and I have planned a full day of fun activities.  Definitely more on all of this tomorrow, just some preliminary thoughts for this evening.

 

I was not interested in food at all this morning, even though I woke up famished!  Odd.  Pickings were a bit slim at the farmer's market, luckily I only had a few items I needed to grab for the start of this week.  Heading out to a new farmer's market on Wednesday so didn't want to load up too much.  When i got home I chopped, cleaned, and steam sauteed all my greens, organized my fridge, and made the no-tato salad from Well Fed.  It came out pretty good!  I played with the flavorings a bit to suit my tastes and was really happy with it.  the hubs and I had a pot luck BBQ this afternoon, I decided not to tell anyone what was in it but just put it on the table with everything else.  At one point someone had helped them selves and after taking a bite said "Wow, this is awesome, who made this?"  This gave me the opportunity to talk about it and opened the door for people to ask about  W30.  I learned that cousins of one of the guests follow a paleo diet and own a crossfit gym in the area.  Pretty cool.  The only problem is I caught myself being slightly self righteous and preachy.  Not the way I want to be, at all!  i don't know where it came from, took me by surprise, ugh i so don't want to be judgemental, gonna have to keep an eye on that!

 

I had a pretty good time but everyone around me was smoking and drinking, there were loads of sweets every where, it was definitely a trial.  Mentally I began thinking towards the day after reintroduction so I could pop a brew and have some sugar.  Also not what I want to be doing.  Evidence that I am not finished with my W30 journey, merely at a mile marker.  I am going to make the choice to not go absolutely off road crazy.  I am going to make the choice to be the person I want to be.  If anything, that is a lesson I have taken away from this, I have choices and my choices are important steps toward achieving the life I want to lead.

 

Well, moving on from there and happy to be sitting on my bed, with my kitties, sipping ginger tea, and waking up tomorrow without a hacking cough OR a hangover! 

[Nadia B]

Already?! Really? You've just started. Congrats! Sit on your bed, I'll do the happy dance for you

Food police stage is innevitable but short. It's hard to master explaining this without getting preachy too, takes practice or effort to stay silent. At least it was smart to wait for people to start ask questions.

Big hug from Canada, neighbour! All the best in the future whole journey.

[Lizzard77]

Nadia, it feels like yesterday that i started!  I can't believe I named my log  Why does June seem so long, because now its over.  I am looking forward to getting through the next two weeks, reintro then a week at the In-law's, then getting home an eating my new normal again, W30.  Mentally doing a happy dance but will physically do so tomorrow night when it's officially the final day. 

 

Hugs back at ya, and thanks for the well wishes.  But fear not, I will have a post W30 log too, I have so enjoyed my daily writing sessions

[Physibeth]

You have done great Liz! You've come miles from your first post! I'll be dancing with you too!

[Nadia B]

Now it's a party! Let's pop some kombucha and celebrate (I know, tomorrow is the day).

[Lizzard77]

Quick morning musing over breakfast. Yesterday, more than once people said to me "I could never eat like that" and "I like food too much".

1. It's not that you can't, it's that you choose not to

2. Does this look like I don't like food?

Breakfast: 2 eggs scrambled with zucchini, sorrel, and arugola over sweet potato hash browns with scapes, green onion, and allspice. No, I hate food!

[Physibeth]

The snarky response I always want to give to people who say "I like food too much" is "No you like food like substances too much" 

 

I don't of course. I can be blunt but I usually retain my snark for people that know me well enough to know it is snark and not personal.

 

What I do usually say is that I didn't think I could do it either and that I realized I don't really miss the things I no longer eat and that the food I am eating is much much tastier and satisfying than what I used to eat.

[Lizzard77]

"I don't really miss the things I no longer eat and that the food I am eating is much much tastier and satisfying than what I used to eat."

 

I like that one, it's much better than "Eff you, the food I eat is recognizable and food, not a chemical slurry created by scientists and not nature."  What I'd like to say, but don't.  It's just amazing to me that I'm hearing complaints of bad digestion, joint pain, lethargy, sleeplessness, and my friends all know that I was there with them a month ago.  They see the changes in front of their eyes in me, but refuse to believe that even giving this a try, a chance, a month long choice, could maybe change their lives?  I just have to shake my head and go eat some more chicken and coconut oil

[Physibeth]

I think this rings true in all areas of life where people struggle with idols. That really what food can become. One of the things I've really struggled with is making food about sustenance and health not an object or worship. It is easy to see what we idolize when we ask ourselves to give things up and see how we react.

[Lizzard77]

Kickin up my heels tonight and toasting to me with my most beautiful booch yet, Mulberry Hibiscus. I just polished off my final W30 meal (for the month long challenge at least) and am taking the rest of the night off.

 

For dinner I made Roast duck that I broke down into legs and breasts, I would not have won a butchering contest but didn't do a bad job for my first time breaking down a duck.  Threw the carcass, gizzards, and back and neck into the crock pot with some carrots, celery, and thyme for stock.  Threw the excess skin and fat into a saucepan to render into fat and cracklings, then seared the breasts and thighs and tossed 'em into the oven to roast for about an hour.  I served that with a blueberry ginger pomegranate reduction, roasted carrots, and roasted mushrooms.  It was all quite tasty and you only get a pic of the duck because I was so excited to eat I forgot to snap a pic.  Figures, I have snapped a pic of almost every meal for the last couple weeks and my big final meal I totally forgot!  Sorry folks, it looked as good as you can imagine

 

So tomorrow I introduce dairy.  I wonder how it will taste to me.  I have imagined it and when I think about eating a piece of cheese or drinking a glass of milk, it doesn't really get me excited, I guess that's a good thing!  I remember at the beginning, when I made a salad for lunch, or cut up tomatoes with basil and balsamic, I thought that the only thing to complete those dishes would be some nice mozzarella or blue.  Not any more, the sweetness and flavor of food comes through with each bite and I don't need the extras at all.  I am most interested to see how my morning tea is with milk since that is the one thing I struggled the longest with this month.  I did go to my farm yesterday and pick up raw milk, the hubinator is rejoicing!  We've only kept organic 1/2 and 1/2 this month since I was not participating in milk drinking.  My farmer asked where I had been, I simply said vacation, wouldn't want her thinking I'm abandoning her or anything!  Anyway, I am nervous to see what my findings will be in regards to dairy.  I do think it's something I want in my life but am not sure why.  I picked up some yogurt and raw cheese too to have with my other meals of the day.  I am not sure if I'm going to eat the yogurt tomorrow though because it has evaporated cane syrup in it and I want to have a sugar reintro all by it's lonesome. 

 

The hubinator seems awfully excited for it to "be over", I keep having to remind him that not only will I be continuing to eat W30 during reintro but I am planning on eating this way 80% of the time, more if I discover foods that bother me during reintro.  I think he has this vision that I did the month and now everything will go back to the way it was before.  Seriously?  You think I struggled to break habits and patterns, detoxed my body, and exchanged my couch butt for the slowly forming shapely one, only to go back to the way things were before?  F- no! You must be cray, boy!  I am very happy with where I am and where I am going.  Get used to it buddy, get on the train or not but just know it's gonna keep on truckin'.

 

Anyway, the next 10 days will be very interesting, excited and apprehensive.  Mostly excited. 

[Physibeth]

Congratulations! Excited to hear how reintroduction go. Based on all the reading I have done I think if you can tolerate it there is a lot to be gained with having high quality dairy in your diet. I plan on finally being brave enough to purchase raw milk when this is all done. I want to make my own yogurt and butter. 

 

How did the mushroom experiment go? Mine are waiting in the fridge for your report!

[Derval]

Congratulations