My first Whole 30

[springbound]

Thanks for the list!  I had looked at it before and was planning on quizzing the stafff about what the carnitas were cooked in.  :-)

 

We ended up not going out.  Wife needs to pick a recipe or two for the week and she didn't have time to do that before our somewhat regular Friday night grocery shopping date, so we postponed and I cooked.  Ended up with zoodles under some chicken sausages and homemade marinara.

 

I am still incredibly sleepy at night.  I was in bed passed out before 9.  

 

Today is errand running day.  Grocery shopping, cat-related shopping, bank, gym for a bit, blahblahblah.  I miss lazy weekends.

 

Today's plan:

 

breakfast:  probably a sweet potato hash with chicken sausages and some spinach.

 

lunch:   um, ?  

 

dinner:  Hoping the steaks look good because that sounds appealing right now.

[springbound]

Yesterday recap:  Ended out for lunch.  I got the salad bar and a naked turkey burger at Ruby Tuesdays.  We had to stop to get the wife's watch fixed and I was starving to the point of being hangry so we went to the closest place.  Best choice under the circumstances. 

 

I feel like a rock star every time my mayo comes out well.  Just thought I'd mention that.

 

I finally made the chocolate chili from Well Fed this week for lunches.  I wish it hadn't taken so long to make this!  It smelled so good while it was simmering that we ended up eating it for dinner.  It was definitely better than most of the chili I had last week at the chili fest. I had mine over cauli rice.  Very yummy. 

 

Anyway, today's plan:

 

*  Cook a bunch of sweet potatoes in the crock pot to have for the week.

*  Cook spaghetti squash for week.

*  See if we can find the short ribs that we failed to buy yesterday.

 

breakfast:  leftovers from yesterday.  sweet potatoes, shrooms, peppers and onions, and chicken sausage.  Probably pineapple for dessert.

 

lunch:  Um, chili?

 

dinner:  Don't know because wife is cooking!  Yay!  

[springbound]

Day 8 in the books.  Wife made the crispy smashed chicken from nom nom paleo with some jarred (compliant) salsa.  It was simple and yummy and she made her special asparagus (grated garlic, onion, and lemon) so I was happy.  I really liked having a night off from cooking.

 

Couples counseling tonight.  Not really any huge serious issues, but it's for more of a tune-up. We have a therapist we like that we've both seen individually, so it's not a big scary thing.  Trying to deal with small problems now rather than wait until they're huge. 

 

4 miles yesterday!

 

Today's plan:

 

breakfast:  about 1/4 sweet potato (ugh. need another break, I think.), tuna with lots of celery and onions and mayo, about a half cup of watermelon.

 

lunch:  cauli rice with chocolate chili and a hot dog.

 

There will probably be a snack because dinner won't be happening until about 9. 

 

dinner:  sausages? chard?

[Badwolf]

Chocolate chili sounds awesome, springbound!  Was it Melissa Joulwan's?

[springbound]

Yup!  I kept looking at the recipe and saying, eh, but then I made it and it's really good.  The cocoa definitely adds a depth of flavor.

[springbound]

Dinner plans changed.  Our therapist was sick, so I ended up making the buffalo chicken chopped salad with ranch from The Clothes Make the Girl.  Another winner!  Incredibly easy to put together, tasted like junk food.  Yum.

 

Day 10 has not been off to a great start.  This morning has been a huge mess of tiny little problems.  I'm pretty stressed and I'm annoyed as hell that I can't have cream in my coffee.  ugh.

 

breakfast:  leftover buffalo chicken salad, banana, coffee.

 

lunch:  cauli rice, well fed chocolate chili and a hot dog.

 

This is where my plans end.  I have allergy shots and a trip to the gym after work.  I will also probably stop at Trader Joe's because we're almost out of ghee.  Will have to figure out dinner when I wander home--probably just sausages and sweet potato cakes. 

[springbound]

Day 10 was hectic.  I didn't get home until 7:45 and had just enough time to get some sausages on the stove and make some more ranch dressing for salad.  I had a great workout, but I was so very tired after I got home.  I half-assed getting breakfast together and didn't manage a veggie.  You would think after 3 some odd weeks of doing this I would be used to it. 

 

And now onto day 11! I've overcome a major hurdle this morning--our unit secretary is retiring and we threw a big brunch in her honor.  So many baked goods and egg casseroles and potato casseroles.  I had breakfast when I first got into work, and just had a bit of fruit at the party.  The big challenge was not buying breakfast at the bagel place this morning when I was picking up our order for the party.  I love bagels.  Love. them.

 

The next hurdle is cake in the afternoon, but it's okay.  I shouldn't have a hard time saying no to that, though I'll be saying no to it for quite some time because they bought a full sheet cake. 

 

Today's plan:

 

breakfast:  chicken sausage, banana with cashew butter, pineapple, honeydew, entirely too much black coffee. 

 

lunch:  leftover chicken, lots more salad, homemade ranch dressing

 

dinner:  um, something quick because bowling.  I think I have meat sauce left so maybe that with spaghetti squash. 

[springbound]

Another long day yesterday.  Spaghetti squash, meat sauce, and chicken sausages. (this time Italian!)

 

Tired today.  Yesterday was very busy and very social and I'm an introvert at heart, so I'm in desperate need of some recovery time.  Too bad I won't get it until um, not sure when.

 

Day 12!  Kind of kills me that this should be my day 25, but I'm trying not to have any regrets.

 

breakfast:  chicken apple sausage with spaghetti squash and watermelon.

 

lunch:  spinach salad with a side of tuna salad. 

 

dinner:  Wife's job.  There's a pork roast waiting to be thrown in the crockpot, but if she doesn't do that, she's been told to stop and get something.  We're both sick of sausages and I'm sick of chili, so time for something new.

 

Gym after work.  Need to scrounge a pre and post-wo meal.  I might have to stop at the grocery store to do so.  ugh.  Lack of planning = annoyance and stress.

[Badwolf]

Congrats for keeping your Whole30 going, springbound!  This is around the time when a lot of people give up.  So well done you!    

[springbound]

Thanks!  I appreciate the support! I'm doing the best I can and it's seems to be getting harder as time goes on. 

 

Wife's pork in the crock pot was a total fail.  I thought it smelled weird, but I thought there was fish sauce in the recipe.  Apparently there wasn't.  Neither of us wanted to risk eating fishy smelling pork.  There was a moment when pizza was almost called for because it was about 8:30 at that point and we were both tired and starving.  She ended up with breakfast for dinner.  I ended up with a hot dog, spinach and a sweet potato. 

 

I really need to plan better for the week.  Granted, I had a couple of curve balls this week (the sweet potatoes I cooked in advance were not really good tasting, got sick of the chili faster than I anticipated), but I'm so tired of just throwing something together at the last minute. 

 

Anyway, onward and upward:

 

Breakfast: spaghetti sqaush, a chicken apple sausage and some pineapple. 

 

Lunch:  Spinach salad mixed with tuna and mayo. 

 

Dinner:  I think there's chicken in the freezer.  Might try to pull it out.

[BillS]

Hey, springbound, looks like you're doing really good work here. I share the same "lack of planning" issues when it comes to my meals. Last weekend I decided to try the "cook-up" method described in Well Fed. It was amazing! Three hours in the kitchen on Sunday and I was set for the week. It was my first big cooking adventure in a long time and the reward was well worth it.

[springbound]

A good cook up sounds like it's definitely in order.  I'm just hoping I get time to do one today!  I woke up a wee bit later than anticipated, so I have to go get my run in at the gym, then come home and try to catch up on everything I didn't do yesterday.  Oy.

 

Yesterday went okay.  We ended up at Texas Roadhouse for a late lunch, and I ended up eating my leftovers for dinner.  I was in the mood for steak and we were out and about.

 

Day 15!  Whee!  Further than I was before the Chili Fest!

 

Breakfast:  a homemade turkey burger with lots of onions and shrooms with some sweet potato on the side.  Coffee with coconut cream.

 

Lunch:  Will probably have another turkey burger (made two) and some salad and some pineapple.

 

Dinner:  Kahlua pork.  It's been in the crockpot since last night and smells amazing this time.  

 

*  Make some mayo.

*  Cook a spaghetti squash

*  Cook a few sweet potatoes.

*  Assemble breakfasts and lunches.

[springbound]

Ah, no cook up yesterday. I was simply exhausted after my run and didn't do much besides be a slug on the couch.  I have never really had a run over 4 miles and yesterday's run was 5.  I totally ran out of gas around 4 miles, though.  I muddled through, but I really hit the wall. 

 

Day 16!  Over the hump!

 

breakfast:  chicken patty and spinach salad with carrots and mayo for dressing, pineapple, pomegranate.

 

lunch:  ground turkey with kale, shrooms, and mirepoix and a wee bit of balsamic.  Probably mayo on the side.

 

dinner:  steaks!  Can't wait.  Mushrooms on the side and something green.

 

Still need to:

 

*  make mayo

*  cook spaghetti squash

*  cook a few sweet potatoes in advance.

*  Pack lunches/breakfast for the week.  (I have a plan.  Just need to do the work.)

[springbound]

Dinner was good even though I overcooked my steak.  I ended up roasting some carrots and it was nice to have something different for a change. 

 

Other things I did:

 

*  Made more mayo. 

*  Cleaned up the kitchen.

*  Lovingly made my lunch yesterday (turkey burger and shrooms and sweet potato hash) and left it on the counter all night. argh! 

 

So, Day 17 is off to an auspicious start.  I scrambled in the two minutes I had to get my stuff together this morning to get something together to eat.  At least I had a back up plan, sort of.

 

breakfast:  chicken patty, balsamic dressing made with mayo, about a quarter of a sweet potato, orange slices. (ugh.  need more veggies. I had lots of them in the hash I had to throw away.)

 

lunch:  another chicken patty, more balsamic dressing made with mayo over a spinach salad with carrots, possibly more orange slices.

 

dinner:  unstuffed cabbage thing from pinterest.

 

workout plan:  3 mile run and weight training.  yay easy day!

 

I'm so very tired today (this cold weather is killing me) so I hope the run goes well.  Oh, and that I stay awake at work.

[springbound]

Day 17 in the books.  The unstuffed cabbage thing was a bust because my cabbage (which had been in the fridge for a while admittedly) went off.  I ended up cooking some chicken breasts with wing sauce and made salad dressing for a side salad.  Boring but serviceable.  Maybe I'll pick up more cabbage after work.

 

The run went well.  Now that I'm getting back in a groove, my endurance and my speed is slowly increasing.   I just want to stay healthy. 

 

Day 18 so far:

 

breakfast:  leftover chicken from last night over spinach with balsamic dressing, pineapple.  (can't get enough of this lately.)

 

lunch:  straight up leftovers from last night--buffalo chicken, salad with ranch. Possibly a banana with cashew butter because I feel like a bottomless pit today.

 

dinner:  hot dogs, sweet potato, some kind of veg.

 

Got some bad news yesterday--my stepfather's older sister passed away.  I feel horrible for her kids who were sort of like cousins to me. Unfortunately, the funeral is too far away for me to travel at the last minute, so I'm doing what I can from here.  Comfort food would be incredibly welcome, but I'm trying hard not to throw away the past few weeks of cleaner eating.  Unfortunately, the need for comfort food and extreme food boredom is making me crazy.  :-/

[springbound]

So tired today.  I ended up staying up way later than I should have because we had to make a run to the grocery store after bowling and then go home and make dinner. (and breakfast. and lunch.)   I am dragging today.

 

Day 19 plan:

 

M1:  tuna salad with mayo and mirepoix over spinach and cucumbers.  Lots of veggies!  Too bad I got full really quickly.  I will have the rest in a little bit.

 

M2:  Chicken patty with sweet potato hash I made last night with some garlic mayo dipping sauce for the chicken.

 

M3:  Planning on making the unstuffed cabbage thing.

 

Planned exercise:  3 miles run and weights.  Foam roller once I get home from the gym.

 

Happy Whole 30 problems:  I bought some work clothes in December on sale.  I haven't worn much of them because it's been so miserable this winter that I haven't wanted to wear skirts, etc.  I am wearing one such outfit today despite the continuing cold because I need to do laundry and both the shirt and skirt are too big--the skirt keeps sliding down my hips.  I knew I was feeling smaller, but I have apparently definitely lost a size.

 

Speaking of weight loss, I am trying to not get in the "eat all the things once the Whole 30 is over" mindset.  The changes I'm making need to be a permanent thing despite my utter love of pizza and ice cream and chips.  I am terrified of putting weight back on--it's part of what scared me into starting the Whole 30.  It's like I don't know what moderation even looks like. ugh. I think I needed more brain surgery than stomach surgery most days. 

[GFChris]

 

Speaking of weight loss, I am trying to not get in the "eat all the things once the Whole 30 is over" mindset.  The changes I'm making need to be a permanent thing despite my utter love of pizza and ice cream and chips.  I am terrified of putting weight back on--it's part of what scared me into starting the Whole 30.  It's like I don't know what moderation even looks like. ugh. I think I needed more brain surgery than stomach surgery most days. 

 

One thing at a time.   

Finish your Whole30 first, then do controlled reintroductions of only those foods you want to eat again, or foods that you are curious about, in terms of your physical/psychological reaction.  After that, decide how you want to proceed.  One post-W30 option to consider is keeping your home compliant, and only judiciously off-road when it's special while dining out or at someone else's home.

[springbound]

Thanks for the advice!  I need to stop putting the cart before the horse.  One step at a time.  I'm rereading the sections on reintroduction in ISWF now just to prepare myself.  I think I just feel like I need a solid plan so I won't be flailing.  Can you tell I don't trust myself at all to make good choices? :-P

 

Anyway, tired today again.  I fell asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow and didn't wake up until my alarm went off.  That never happens.  I was able to stay awake until 10 so at least that's a bit better.  It's funny though.  It still feels like I have an off switch. 

 

Day 19 is done.  I made the unstuffed cabbage recipe for dinner.  It came out okay, but I think what I like about stuffed cabbage is the sweet/sour aspect and not being able to add any sweetener sort of threw it off.  It tasted good, but just not quite what I expected.  

 

Day 20 plan:

 

M1:  tuna salad mixed with lettuce, mirepoix, cucumber with pineapple spears on the side.  (again, splitting it up because I couldn't eat very much this morning.  I'm planning on the fruit but not sure it will happen.)

 

M2:  unstuffed cabbage, orange slices.

 

M3:  chicken if it hasn't gone off.  hot dogs probably if it has. 

[springbound]

Day 20 in the books.  Dinner never really happened.  I got home after running a bunch of errands after work and had just enough energy to make a quick hot dog.  Then we went grocery shopping (Trader Joe's is so much nicer on a Friday night than Saturday morning!) and it was time for bed by the time I got done putting things away and prepping and washing that one load of laundry that I had to get done.

 

Anyway, up early to plan the day and drink coffee and listen to NPR.  

 

Day 21 plan:

 

M1:  Turkey burger with a huge pile of garlicky mushrooms and onions with some mayo for a dipping sauce.

 

M2:  ?????????  

 

M3:  No clue whatsoever.  But I'm sort of hoping I can talk the wife into shaved steak with peppers and onions.               

[springbound]

Yeah, Day 21?  One of my hardest days yet.  I was a bottomless pit and every temptation was exceedingly difficult.  We went grocery shopping and they were sampling a ton of stuff in the store, all of which was non-compliant and I rejected.  We went out for lunch while we were out and it was very hard to content myself with an overcooked chicken breast and vegetables.  I stayed on plan (yay?) but I was grumpy. Very grumpy.  Ugh.  I took a nap (because when the going gets tough, the tough go to sleep), and woke up too late for a proper dinner.  I had a healthy portion of unstuffed cabbage, was still starving, and fried up a sweet potato with onions in ghee and ate the whole damn thing.  Oy.  This pouch thing is so fickle.  Some days I can barely eat.  Some days I eat like I never had surgery.  

 

Anyway, day 22.  I went to bed at a reasonable hour but slept fitfully with a ton of strange vivid dreams so I feel like I didn't sleep at all.  We're getting breakfast together now (bacon, sweet potato hash, chicken sausage for me) and then we'll head to the gym.  Short run today, thankfully.  Then it's time to get the seeds started!  I'm trying not to go overboard, but I've got like 7 kinds of tomatoes that I want to try this year.  

 

M1:  The aforementioned bacon, sweet potato hash, chicken sausage, coffee with coconut cream and a tsp of cocoa powder because I need something different.  I think post-whole 30, I'm going to drink black coffee at work during the week and only put something in it on the weekends.  I think it's a good balance and also keeps me from having to remember to bring half and half to work.

 

M2:  Hot dog wrapped in bacon, salad?

 

M3:  Thinking about a pot roast in the crockpot and mashed cauliflower.  Gravy anyone?

[Badwolf]

Ooh, yeah, gravy!  I've made some with arrowroot powder and coconut flour before.  It was deeelish!

[springbound]

Yeah, no gravy yesterday.  Sad!  Wife dropped me off at the gym then went to get new tires and ended up getting something else fixed on the car (we are a 1 car family.)  Thankfully there's a great coffee shop around the corner from the gym, so I hung out and waited but it ended up taking most of the afternoon i.e. when I would have cooked a roast.  Takeout steaks and vegetables ended up being dinner--we went home and wife deep cleaned the kitchen. Neither of us wanted to disturb it after that!

 

Anyway, day 23!!!  1 week left!  And it's going to be a challenge.  We are staying with friends on Friday night and attending their baby shower on Saturday.  I won't have a lot of control over food on Saturday at least. I can bring some stuff, but I don't want to be that guest, either.

 

Today's plan:

 

M1:  tuna over romaine salad with mayo, pineapple

 

M2:  leftover unstuffed cabbage, orange slices

 

M3:  chicken with pan sauce, mashed cauliflower, asparagus?

[springbound]

Day 23 done and as planned.  Amazing!

 

Day 24 plan:

 

M1:  tuna w/ mayo over spinach and cucumbers, pineapple (underwhelming.)

 

M2:  leftover chicken from last night, sweet potato with ghee.  (might abandon this and get a salad from downstairs because something fresh and tasty might be nice.)

 

M3:  Going to ask wife if turkey burgers are okay with her. 

[Badwolf]

Look at you go, springbound!  Over three weeks of awesome eating!    

[springbound]

More than three weeks considering I started this at the beginning of February.  If not for that one day....

 

Ah well.  Moving on....

 

Day 24 went basically as planned.  I did end up getting a salad from our little cafeteria.  It's one of those places where they make your salad and you choose what to put on it.  Ended up with a huge vat of vegetables and put the chicken I brought on top of it and made do with oil and vinegar and salt and pepper for seasoning.  And the burgers for dinner were good.  I cooked some sweet potatoes in ghee with shrooms and onions and it was delicious.  Not as many veg as I should have, but better.

 

First day running outside in months!  I was dodging the puddles, but it was gorgeous out.  Of course we're getting snow today, but whatev.  I'm trying to live up to my screen name and not get bogged down in the never ending winter machine.

 

It looks like we will be cooking our friends breakfast/brunch on Saturday, so perhaps it won't be so bad food-wise.  If I can just make it through the shower, it will be fine. 

 

Day 25 plan:

 

M1:  romaine with TJ chicken patty, cucumber and leftover caramelized onions from last night and balsamic/mayo dressing.  Pineapple.  (to which I am becoming somewhat addicted. I think it might be time to lay off.  It's not quite no brakes but I'm starting to crave it because it's like fruity sunshine.)

 

M2:  Leftover sweet potatoes/onions/shrooms and a hot dog with mustard.

 

M3:  Chicken?  Spaghetti squash? Bowling night tonight.