Alyson's Whole15

[Alyson Leahy]

After my recent weekend sugar/carb binge and the now two-day long "hangover," I decided a little re-boot is in order. Another forum member mentioned a Whole15, and that sounds like a good plan...so I'm going to copy it

Today was day one. I still feel incredibly bloaty from all the white flour and sugar flowing through my veins, so I really didn't eat much. Breakfast: smoothie of OJ, 1/2 an avocado, cucumber and frozen strawberries. Snack: 2 scrambled eggs with dill. Lunch: spinach and mixed green salad with tomato, red pepper, red onion and homemade Italian dressing (olive oil; Balsamic vinegar; onion and garlic powder; dried rosemary, oregano and basil; salt and pepper). Snack: homemade taco meat (sauteed ground beef and onion with cumin; garlic, onion and chili powder) with salsa. Supper: roasted rutabaga and sweet potatoes.

I'm going to try to avoid nuts and nut butters for the next 4 days, as I tend to over do it when snacking. Hopefully tomorrow I will feel normal again!

[Jeanye Mercer]

Alyson, Best of luck! Be mindful of having plenty of protein. Throw some chicken or tuna or turkey, etc. in your salad. And definitely shoot for a protein source at breakfast! I think that will help the "hangover" feeling for sure!

[Alyson Leahy]

Thanks Jeanye! I feel pretty much "normal" after my sugar hangover--can't believe it took three days to recover from poor eating choices. Crazy.

Day Three. Breakfast: Flax Microwave Muffin (flax meal, egg, baking powder, cinnamon, vanilla, stevia, oil) with black berries. Snack: Smoothie with avocado, pear, OJ and blueberries. Lunch: 2 pieces veggie quiche with roasted sweet potato and rutabaga. Snack: Chopped Salad from a co-worker (apples, peppers, carrots, almonds, seeds, vinegar dressing). Supper: Big salad with spinach, chicken, red pepper, cucumber, onion and homemade dressing (pasteurized egg yolk, salt, pepper, lemon juice, garlic, dry mustard, onion powder, olive oil) and a handful of banana chips.

[Derval]

Hi there Alyson, glad you are over the worst of your pay-back.

Just on you food diary a couple of things jumped out to me as not w30 (or 15) compliant - the paleofying of snack foods like muffins, the stevia, and the oj (unless it was the smallest splash) in your smoothie. If you want to slay that sugar dragon don't feed him sweet stuff (apart from a little fruit, pref berries).

Hope I'm not being a pita

[Alyson Leahy]

Hey Dervalc...no, you're not being a pita (whatever that means) I realize I've been cheating a bit this time around. Maybe I should've titled it "Paleo15"? That's really the direction I am headed, or hope to head. The Whole30 taught me SO MUCH, and I loved the freedom of eating basically whatever I wanted without worrying about stupid calories! But ultimately I see myself embracing the Paleo way of life long-term. Thanks for calling me out though. I guess I should decide if I want to continue as a true Whole15 or not...

Side note: I see you are in Ireland; is that where you are from? (I'm Irish and have always wanted to visit! Is it just awesome?)

[Derval]

pita = pain in the ass

I also love the feeedom of no calories counting too, I was a slave to myfitnesspal for almost a year. Though it was interesting when I started the transition to paleo - when the pounds are droppping off and you can see you're eating 50-60% fat!

Yes, I'm Dublin born & bred, it's nice yeah, apart from the crappy weather - except for that one day in my profile pic

[Alyson Leahy]

Ah, pain in the ass...got it.

[Alyson Leahy]

I've decided to stop my Whole15. I'm just really not in the right mind-set to follow another incredibly strict round so soon after finishing the first Whole30--I think I'm just setting myself up to break it. But I truly am loving the Paleo diet--breads made with almond and coconut flour, the occaisional droplet of stevia--along with good fats and protein and produce. That I can handle long term. And I LOVE to bake, so the idea of not being able to taste anything I create is sad

Yesterday my day went as follows: Breakfast: 2 over-easy eggs with raw spinach, salt and pepper (love that the yolk becomes a built-in salad dressing. Way cool). Snack: Smoothie with coconut milk, tiny bit of OJ, 1/2 an avocado, and frozen strawberries (thanks Dervalc, for pointing out my OJ consumption habits! This was actually very tasty; creamier and tangier, much like the taste of yogurt. If only canned coconut milk wasn't $3.69 a can...) Lunch: Mixed greens salad with tomatoes, red peppers, onions and homemade garlic aioli as dressing + Coconut Lime Chicken Soup (this was the soup I made at work for the day. Homemade chicken stock, pulled chicken, carrots, red peppers, red onion, lime zest and juice, coconut milk, corriander, garlic powder, salt and pepper. It was amazing). Snack: Chopped salad from a co-worker (carrots, pepper, apple, almond, sesame and pumpkin seeds, raisins, vinegar dressing).

I cook at a coffee shop/restaurant and had to close yesterday. I made an espresso drink in the afternoon: 2 shots espresso, cocao powder, cinnamon, coconut milk and hot water. Pretty tasty. My parents are visiting this weekend, so last night we went to a little cafe and I ordered a greek salad. Skipped the feta (it's yucky anyway) and had a Parm-Peppercorn dressing. So there was a little dairy involved, but I figured it was a better choice than the sugary raspberry vinegrette that I would have chosen 2 months ago.

This morning I ran for 30 minutes on the treadmill, and then had a microwave flax muffin with 2 over-easy eggs on top. Yum.

[Alyson Leahy]

Indulged in a Salted Caramel Latte yesterday morning, from the shop where I work. Mom had one, too. I had mine made with whole milk (instead of the usual skim) and I didn't experience any sugar/dairy intestinal troubles at all. Maybe the extra fat is key when consuming the occaisional latte. The rest of the day in food went like this:

Lunch: Hamburger patty and steamed broccoli. Snack: small orange. Snack: handful of almonds. Supper: Ribeye steak, asparagus cooked in a little butter, raw red pepper and carrots and a glass of water. Snack: two spoonfuls of Sunbutter (it has a little added sugar). We were working outside/stripping furniture all day, so we ended up eating both meals later than usual. It was so nice having my parents around for the weekend. Mom and I talked wedding plans almost all day

We all went out for breakfast this morning, at this old school diner that just gives their food away. Seriously, you cannot beat their prices! Had a Denver omelet (it did include cheese) with hashbrowns (and yes, I ate them with evil ketchup). Skipped the toast and only ate half of each--because the portions are crazy big--and felt pretty good about it. Oh, and I had coffee with two creamers (real half-and-half). I think I just need to let go of the idea of eating perfectly ALL the time. Sometimes you just need some white potato hashbrowns with ketchup; one meal will not mess up my whole diet, unless I let it snowball into a gorge-fest.

Spent the morning cleaning out the fridge, doing dishes and baking. Made a pumpkin bread with almond flour and stevia as the sweetener, from the Elana's Pantry website. It's pretty tasty...will probably be better once I let it cool! Also made some chocolate oatmeal bars (because I have a whole bunch of oats to use up, seeing as I'm not really eating grains anymore) for my brother Ryan. His birthday is the 24th. It's a beautiful day in Wisconsin!

[Alyson Leahy]

After the PERFECT weekend it was really tough to go back to work. Did run for 20 minutes this morning though.

Breakfast: 2 slices pumpkin bread with (generous) slather of cashew butter on each + Hot Cinnamon Spice tea at work. Snack: Smoothie with coconut milk, OJ, fresh pineapple, carrot and frozen strawberries. Lunch: Big salad with spinach, mixed greens, chicken, hard boiled egg, tomato, red pepper, roasted red pepper, golden raisins and homemade Italian dressing + a small cup of black coffee. Snack: a few almonds and a banana. Supper: amazing salad with Romaine lettuce, sliced leftover bratwurst, avocado, cucumber and homemade lemon-garlic dressing.

[Alyson Leahy]

Breakfast: Flax muffin with blackberries and shredded unsweetened coconut + Hot Cinnamon Spice tea (at work). Snack: Smoothie with coconut milk, avocado, carrot, pineapple and mango. Lunch: Coconut Lime Chicken soup + mixed greens salad with sun dried tomato, red pepper, hard boiled egg and homemade garlic aioli as dressing. Yum!! Snack: mix of walnuts, almonds, cashews and golden raisins.

Really crazing a Salted Caramel Frappe. My co-worker Ashlie makes them the best, and I will probably indulge Friday afternoon. Until then I will stay Paleo. Yoga tonight, followed by a walk with my friend Kristen. Had a large-ish snack of nuts and raisins this afternoon because I don't like to eat before Yoga...or embarrassing things happen. Then probably a light supper...not sure what yet.

[Alyson Leahy]

Ended up just snacking on some fruit after Yoga; an orange, a handful of banana chips and then before bed a slice of Paleo pumpkin bread.

This morning I had a slice of pumpkin bread with a little almond butter pre-workout--ran 3 miles on the treadmill and then drank a big glass of water. Breakfast was sauteed onion and brussells sprouts with one over-easy egg on top.

[Alyson Leahy]

Breakfast: Scrambled eggs with sauteed onion and leftover steak + Hot Cinnamon Spice tea. Snack: Smoothie with coconut milk, carrot, cucumber, and blueberries. Lunch: Sweet Potato and Chicken Stew (roast sweet potatos and onions; puree onions and 2/3 of the potatoes in a Vitamix with water and a few fresh garlic cloves. Add to soup pot. Add cumin, corriander, curry, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper to tast. Throw in some cooked, shredded chicken. Bring to a boil and then simmer until flavors blend together. Yum) + mixed greens salad with sun dried tomato, red pepper, onion and homemade Italian dressing. Snack: handful of mixed nuts (cashews, walnuts and almonds) with raisins and a little apple. Supper: Sandwich with homemade Nutty Almond Bread, canned salmon, stone ground mustard, tomato and lettuce. Snack: Handful of banana chips.

[Alyson Leahy]

Pre-Workout: Paleo pumpkin bread with Sunbutter. 3 mile run/stretching. Breakfast: Sauteed onion, brussels sprouts and tomatoes with 2 scrambled eggs. Lunch: amazing salmon salad (canned pink salmon with homemade garlic aioli) with cucumbers on Nutty Almond Bread + mixed greens salad with sun dried tomatoes, red pepper, onion and homemade Italian dressing + smoothie with coconut milk, splash of OJ, 1/2 an avocado and 4 frozen strawberries--not super sweet, but creamy. It was very filling. And the sandwich was great, even though my bread turned out a bit dry. Snack: my Friday afternoon induldgence, a Salted Caramel Frappe.