Modifying "comfort" foods to "whole" foods

[lori_vt]

I got up this morning planning to have banana pancakes (mashed banana scrambled with eggs) and homemade breakfast sausage, but as I was cooking the "pancake" it occurred to me that I might be shortchanging myself and my W30.  I read a bunch of forum posts last night, and I think it must have sunk in while I was sleeping.  I decided to modify my breakfast, and wanted to get some feedback.  Instead of calling them pancakes, I called them crepes (which I never eat) and I cut my sausage patties into strips and rolled them In the crepe making it way more savory and changing it from my usual weekend pancake routine.  I also had 1/4 avocado cut in strips.  I may be short on carbs for the meal, but mostly I'm wondering if changing it in this way is more in line with the principle of the W30.

 

Also it occurred to me that my coffee habit might not be considered compliant.  I'm on Day 22 and have breezed through this for the most part.  My eating was very close to W30 before I started except that I would eat 4 meals a day, and consume the occasional sweet or dessert or bread, etc.  But I have regularly used coffee (decaf only) as a "filler" to get me from breakfast to lunch.  I gave up the cream, which might have been the biggest challenge for me, and replaced it with a little coconut oil and canned coconut milk.  So I believe that I adapted the ingredients well enough, but I'm still drinking about 3 mugs of decaf after breakfast / before lunch in order to not feel hungry too early.  B'fast is at 7:15 on weekdays, get to work at 8:30 and prepare coffee at work, have my typical 3 cups which takes me to 10 or 10:30, then switch to water til lunch (anywhere from 11:30-12:30). 

 

Feedback on these "habits" would be truly welcome.  If I'm right that I missed the boat on the spirit of W30, I'll set another start date after the holidays. 

[MrsStick]

You're right on the pancakes - they're definitely what the Hartwigs like to call "sex with your pants on" (SWYPO). The idea is that when you Paleoify a food that you can't have, it won't be as good as the original and you'll still probably want the original food. Kind of like having sex with your pants on...you'd much prefer the real thing! 

 

The problem with those kinds of foods is it doesn't challenge your relationship with your food. The Whole 30 is about resetting your emotional relationship with food, so anything that's out (including pancakes or crepes, since both are forbidden) that you make a "Paleo" version of isn't helping you at all. In this instance, it's still allowing you to have a "usual weekend pancake routine" which, given how some people react to grains and definitely to the sugar bomb that traditional pancakes are. Does that make sense?

[GFChris]

What MrsStick said on the pancakes/crepes.

 

On the coffee, it sounds like you're drinking out of habit vs. being hungry or thirsty. If it's the former, this is also what the Whole30 is intended to help stop. If you're truly hungry between meals,look at your earlier meal to increase portion sizes. 

[KathyV]

so after you have completed the Whole30 is it ok then to have that Paleo pancake once a week.  It would be like SWYPO (sex with your pants OFF)

[Tom Denham]

I think the savory crepes are an improvement, but that you are still too close to a less healthy way of eating. I remember when I first started Whole30-ing and was shocked at how the Hartwigs excluded or minimized eating fruit, especially at breakfast. Honestly, I thought they were weird and kept eating fruit and boiled eggs as my breakfast. Later it sank in that fruit is never as nutritious as vegetables and that I needed to include veggies at breakfast. And that sugar is hard on our bodies, that fruit delivers a big dose of sugar, and that the worst time to cope with a dose of sugar was at breakfast. So, I would encourage you to keep developing. I had steamed broccoli with Cincinnati Chili from Well Fed 2 for my breakfast this morning, but I am in year 4 of Whole30-ing now.

 

If you need coconut oil and coconut milk in your coffee to keep from getting hungry between breakfast and lunch, you probably need a bigger breakfast. It is one thing to add coconut oil/milk to achieve a taste that you like and another thing if you require the fat calories to stay comfortable. 

[Vian]

My usual breakfast is 1 mug (I think it's 14 ounces) of bulletproof coffee (I use 1/4 c. half and half, but coconut milk works instead, plus 2 tbs. coconut oil) 3 eggs over easy, and some veggies. Lately it's been thinly sliced brussel sprouts sauteed with a little bacon and shallots. I like to put the eggs ontop of the veggies so the yolks turn into a sort of gravy. I tend to eat the same thing for breakfast every day so I don't have to think about it and can throw it together and eat in about 20 minutes. On weekends I sometimes take a little more time with breakfast though. I try to go very low carb, but if you feel like you need more carbs, you can add some carrots, sweet potato, or squash.

 

Anyway, that breakfast lasts me about 5 hours. I eat breakfast at 8am and lunch at 1pm. Its very important to be fat-fueled, as relying on too many carbohydrates for quick energy causes wild blood sugar and insulin spikes, and when your blood sugar is low, you get hungry. That's why people who are carb-fueled feel they need to eat every 2-3 hours. People who are fat fueled can go much longer between meals.

[lori_vt]

Thanks for all the replies.  Before W30, my breakfast was 1 slice of bacon, 1 cup or more of chopped veggies sauteed til tender, then 3 egg whites and 1 egg yolk cooked over easy, and also 1/2 cup of quinoa with either 1 Tbs of dried cranberries or 1 Tbs of prunes along with 1 Tbs each of sesame seeds, chia seeds, hemp seeds and pumpkin seeds.  I would still drink 3 cups of coffee with light cream throughout the morning because I just like coffee, but it's probably the cream in it that I liked so much.  If I ate breakfast at 7:30, my stomach would be grumbling by 11 or 11:30, and that is one hefty breakfast!  My usual pattern was to eat a huge breakfast, medium sized lunch, mid-afternoon snack (mostly protein, maybe with a piece of fresh coconut and occasionally fruit) and a small dinner.  I've been very happy with my weight for the few years (5'3, 125, BMI 22), but switching to this type of eating (trying to just do 3 meals) I've noticed all my clothes are tighter.  Not liking that one bit.  I have always been a healthy eater - after being a competitive bodybuilder with a keen eye on body fat, etc. 

 

I really think I was doing everything right except I hadn't noticed that I was still falling into mindless patterns (having "pancakes" one day on the weekend) and drinking 3 cups of coffee (decaf), and ought to have paid more attention to the WHOLE food idea.  I haven't felt deprived at all on this, quite the opposite - I think I'm eating better because I spend all day Sunday cooking-up food for the whole week.  I've been using mostly Well Fed recipes   I haven't hit any of the issues in the Timeline, but I was prepared for it.  Though I have to say that I don't have Tiger Blood and I'm going into the 4th week.  I might have a slight case of food boredom, even though I have prepared a huge variety of food - each week has been different.

 

I don't understand why I seem to need to eat such a large quantity of food between waking up and around 3 in the afternoon.  After that, I don't need much at all.  But it is really hard for me to go from 7:30 - 12 without a coffee "filler" or being really really hungry.  Hungry enough to eat plain tuna at 10 or 11!  Because of bodybuilding and the very rigid diet I was following (900-1000 kcal, 120 gm protein, 75 gm carbs, 25 gm fat, 30 gm fiber), I have stayed away from fruit for the most part - too much sugar (carbs) and calories.  Lots of fresh veggies, salad, tuna, chicken, and sweet potatoes. 

 

The banana and egg "recipe" came from somewhere that said "Whole 30 approved."  I wouldn't have thought so, but I figured, hey I'll try it.  It was way too sweet for me - and I added an extra egg to try and water down the banana!  Before W30 I would make protein pancakes on Saturday or Sunday just for something different, but I don't think anyone else would eat them - they were kind of different.

 

I guess I should probably not really count this W30 attempt as a clean one, considering the pancake/crepe thing, and also my coffee.  I plan to do this again after the holidays.  I'm still going to finish out my last 8 days, and I'm going to test myself on the coffee thing.  Just the thought of not having my usual for the next 8 days makes me pretty anxious.  Argh - it really has a hold on me!

[amberino21]

Lori, when did you stop eating such restricted calories? Eating like that for an extended period would have done some serious damage to your health - if you've come to the whole 30 from that, your body is going to take a long time to heal and initially you will put on fat. Please don't get discouraged - your body is used to being starved. It's going to hold on to every single thing it can so its ready in case you decide to starve it again. Over time, your body will realise that your plan is to keep it well fed - it'll start functioning better and not store what it can.

(If you want to compete again, prep doesn't have to be that painful!)

If you are actually hungry, eat! But eat a proper meal of protein, fat and vegies. Perhaps you need 4 meals a day - some people take longer to adapt to three meals.

[lori_vt]

I figured out why I'm so hungry in the morning - I've been taking my dog on a 3 mile run before breakfast most mornings!  So my breakfast is also my postWO.  I hadn't realized it because I usually just eat when I'm hungry and haven't limited it to 3 meals.

 

Amberino, I stopped competing in 2008 after tearing my ACL. It took a little while for me to get my eating back under control (a year).  Those limited calories and macronutrients were only pre-contest.  I didn't eat like that all the time.  I've always preferred to eat more like an Atkins diet or Eat Right For Your BloodType (O+), so my carbs have always been somewhat limited.  I probably eat about 1200 calories a day, at least before W30, mostly protein, veggies, healthy fats, sweet potatoes, occasional complex carbs, nuts and seeds and sometimes fruit. 

[amberino21]

1200 calories is still restricted calories IMO, and you've probably been starving your body of calories and nutrients for quite a while - you may put on some fat initially eating more, but try to think about nurturing your body and getting healthy!

[praxisproject]

SWYPO can really affect your palate too, it's not just about the ingredients. I found my Whole30 to be a radical change in my palate and same for a later 30-round of nightshade-free.

[lori_vt]

I asked my library to order the book ISWF, and as soon as it comes in, I will be the first to read it.  I think that will help me prepare for the next W30.  I hardly make ends meet every month, so I just don't have the money to buy the books.  Buying the food is expensive enough!  After thinking over the comments, I am sure that my relationship with some food is unhealthy.  (coffee habit, snacking, etc).  I look forward to doing this plan As Recommended to see what comes up with my food dependencies.  I never thought 1200 kcal was restrictive!  Based on my height, weight and activity level it seemed acceptable, but I have always eaten more food than anyone I know, and I maintain the same basic body composition.  Perhaps I have been too restrictive - eating meals from Well Fed, I find that I eat more at each meal trying to have enough to make it to the next meal, but I hate that "over-stuffed" feeling, like I just had a Thanksgiving feast.  Does your stomach "shrink"?  Not in the physical sense, but in the adaptive sense (eating smaller more frequent meals as opposed to 3 larger meals). 

 

I think many of my food "habits" are SWYPO even though they are considered healthy (compared to mainstream).  I'm sure the next W30 will be a bigger challenge, unless I can change my habits before I begin.

[KatMar]

I realize I'm pretty late to this, but maybe I've caught you just as you're starting again post holidays.

I do like your crepe idea, and I do plan to try that sometime (after my Whole30). I agree that they tend to be super sweet, so I've been thinking to try a mostly green banana (or plantain) to make a less sweet pancake/crepe. Again... post W30. I love banana pancakes themselves and they don't make me crave traditional pancakes, but they definitely feel like a sugar bomb that push better food choices out of the way, so I'll save them for occasional post W30 treats in any fashion.

As to the coffee, have you managed to break/reduce that habit? I've mostly switched off coffee entirely and brew myself a mix of roasted chicory root and raw carob with a bit of coconut oil or coconut milk most mornings, but if I want more, I'll limit myself to tea. To be honest, decaf coffee scares me a bit, so maybe this is something worth looking into for you if, like me, the taste and mouthfeel is what's important?