Whole30 #3 starting 8/25

[ShannonM816]

Hi! My name is Shannon, and I'm starting my third W30 today. I didn't keep a log here on the forum for the other two, although I did log them on my blog and on Instagram. I thought I'd try this this time, so if there is something I'm not doing quite right, I can get some feedback on it.

 

I'm really not looking forward to the next few days. I've gotten very off track the last few weeks, eaten lots of stuff I really shouldn't have, including burgers and fries and ice cream and cake and, well, pretty much the complete opposite of Whole30 eating, so I'm pretty sure I'm going to feel like crap the next few days. Of course, I pretty much feel like crap anyway, so maybe there won't be much difference. 

 

So, a little bit about me. I'm 39. I was born and raised here in Texas, the home of Texas-sized chicken fried steaks, TexMex food that's filled with cheese and corn and beans and more cheese, and cream gravy that we pour over almost everything. I do closed captioning for tv, which means I get paid to spend close to eight hours a day sitting at the computer, watching tv. I've always been overweight/obese my entire life, even as a kid when I took dancing lessons two or three days a week, had to do PE class in school, and swam in our backyard pool all day every day all summer. At 31, I was diagnosed with stage 3 uterine cancer and had a total hysterectomy, plus six rounds of chemo and two different types of radiation treatments. I've been cancer free since I finished treatments in July of 2007. A few years ago, I was diagnosed with high blood pressure and have been on medication for it since then, which I'd really like to not have to take forever. When I went to the doctor last week for a physical, I weighed in at 285 lbs. At my highest weight I was at 337. I'm 5'4". I've lost and regained many, many pounds in the past. I've counted calories and points and done the Medifast thing where I just ate their powdered stuff you mix with water plus one real meal every day. It all works for losing weight, it's the keeping it off that seems to be the problem. I guess what I like about W30/paleo is that it does feel like something I could do forever, for the most part, even if I haven't quite managed to stick to it completely so far. Old habits are hard to break, I guess.

 

My goals for this round of W30 are 1) get some exercise of some kind, at least three days a week. 2) make sure I get enough veggies at every meal, and to eat a variety of different kinds (I usually manage this, but sometimes find myself falling into a rut of just eating sweet potato, spinach, and maybe zucchini or green beans for a whole week, and sometimes I feel like if I have a protein I really like, I'll eat a little more of it than I really need and eat fewer vegetables as a result). 3) eat at the table, without distraction, most of the time (occasionally work makes this hard to do, but I should be able to eat at least two meals a day at the table, and most days all three). 

 

Anyway, that's my plan. I'll post my meals at the end of the day.

[ginsinnot]

I'm also starting today, I think it's my 4th but I'm not sure. I also feel great when I'm eating like this but am still working on maintaining it long term. As I ate my lunch today, sitting at my dining table with a placemat, I realized a few things: it's been forever since I've eaten at my dining table, I'm not sure why that is since I have a pretty dining table and gorgeous placemats with matching napkins, and I should probably make this a goal during my W30.

 

Best wishes for your Whole 30

[ShannonM816]

Day 1

 

Meals

 

 

Breakfast, 10:30 am: Spinach sauteed in bacon grease, about a cup of roasted sweet potato, and crumbled bacon, topped with three eggs. I thought it might be low on veggies, so I added some snap peas, and some pineapple chunks. Plus a glass of homemade apple-cinnamon-ginger kombucha.

 

Lunch, 3:00 pm: Artichoke chicken thighs, based loosely on this recipe -- I'm not really all that into olives, so I used capers instead to get some of that salty, tangy flavor, and I used both the zest and the juice of two smallish lemons and didn't add the optional bacon. If I make it again, and I probably will, I'll keep those changes, and for 2 lbs of chicken thighs, I'd use two jars of artichokes instead of one. I put those two chicken thighs on top of broccoli slaw I sauteed in avocado oil. Something about this meal wasn't quite right, though -- about two hours later, I was really, really hungry.

 

Snack, 5:00 pm: Not the best choice here, and I know that, but I had an iced coffee (coffee blended with coconut milk and cinnamon). I should've had a mini meal instead, I know, but I didn't.

 

Supper, 9:00 pm: Taco salad (mixed greens, seasoned ground beef, guacamole, tomatoes), some pineapple chunks.

 

Goals

 

Exercise: No. But I got a bunch of stuff done around the house that needed to be done, so I don't really feel bad. Plus, I've got the rest of the week to get some exercise in. (I might have a tendency to procrastinate a bit  )

 

Veggies: I think I did pretty well here. Lunch was probably short a bit, part of why if I make that recipe again, there will be more artichokes in it.

 

Eating at the table: Yes, all three meals. Didn't play on the phone or the computer or do anything else other than eat.

 

 

[Chezzie]

I'm inspired! Your meals look fabulous! Taco salad is one of my favorites. Did you make homemade seasoning for that or use the little packet of Lawreys (or something like that?)

[ShannonM816]

Day 2

 

Meals

 

 

Breakfast 9:30 am -- three scrambled eggs, sweet potato with spinach and crumbled bacon, apple cinnamon ginger kombucha.

 

Lunch -- 2:30 pm -- taco salad (mixed greens, zucchini, yellow squash, jicama, tomato, snap peas, fermented onions, ground beef, guacamole, toasted coconut flakes) and pineapple.

 

Supper -- 8:30 pm -- leftover artichoke chicken thighs on top of sauteed broccoli slaw, zucchini, and yellow squash, apple chai kombucha.

 

Goals

 

exercise -- no. I got distracted cleaning house, and then it was time to work. Must exercise in the morning.

 

veggies -- good.

 

eat at table -- two of three meals -- supper was at my desk while working.

 

 

[ShannonM816]

Haven't really been keeping up with this, I should work on that. Here's what the last few days looked like:

 

Day 3

 

Breakfast: scrambled eggs, sweet potato, breakfast salad (jicama, zucchini, yellow squash, carrots, snap peas) topped with toasted coconut flakes, and a pineapple ginger kombucha.

 

Lunch: steak, salad topped with fermented ginger carrots and guacamole, pineapple, and grilled chayote squash (I'd never tried this type of squash before. I liked it. I sliced it, tossed with some avocado oil, and put salt, pepper, chili powder and garlic powder on it and grilled it while I was grilling the steak. Yum.)

 

Supper: ground beef, spinach, sweet potato hash-like thing (I guess? I'm not sure what to call it. It was just a way to use up the last of the ground beef that I wasn't terribly impressed with), toasted coconut flakes, pineapple.

 

Day 4

Breakfast: steak and egg scramble, breakfast salad with fermented ginger carrots, and iced coffee with coconut milk.

 

Lunch: taco salad with guacamole and tostones (twice-fried plantains -- I've had plantains at restaurants, but I think this is the first time I've cooked them. Really good, and easy to make. I did choose the greenest plantains I could find at the store, I didn't want it to end up dessert-like, and then topped them with a roasted garlic sea salt.) Also, apple chai kombucha.

 

Supper: leftover artichoke-lemon chicken thighs and breakfast salad with some cashew butter.

 

Day 5

Breakfast: steak, eggs, fermented ginger carrots, tostones, and pineapple ginger kombucha. The idea was I'd be able to dunk the tostones in the runny egg yolks, and then I overcooked the eggs, so that didn't quite work out. 

 

Lunch: lamb chop with greek seasoning; grilled sweet potato slices with cinnamon; spinach, tomato, and cucumber salad with balsamic vinegar, olive oil, and Penzey's Parisien Bonnes Herbes; and apple cinnamon ginger kombucha.

 

Supper: Bratwurst with mustard, sauteed broccoli slaw, and fermented onions. 

 

 

Exercise all three days was pretty much nonexistent. I sort of half heartedly did a little one day.

 

I did eat at the table two of the three meals each day -- supper tends to be eaten at my desk while working right now. In a couple of weeks, my schedule will change and that will probably also change.

 

I've definitely tried new veggies, and I think I'm eating enough vegetables, although I'm probably having more starchy veggies than an inactive, overweight person should have. I'm not going to aim for keto, I've done a low carb diet before and ended up just not feeling good, but I should probably work on more green stuff and less sweet potatoes and plantains.

[ShannonM816]

I'm inspired! Your meals look fabulous! Taco salad is one of my favorites. Did you make homemade seasoning for that or use the little packet of Lawreys (or something like that?)

 

I'm so sorry, somehow I scrolled right by this and didn't notice it. I sort of made up the seasoning, but something was off about it. I should've looked up a recipe instead, I must have left something out or put too much of something. I know i used chili powder, cumin, salt, pepper, and garlic powder. I figured that would be close, but I guess not.

[ShannonM816]

Day 6

 

Breakfast: Scrambled eggs, sausage patties, breakfast salad, and apple chai kombucha

 

Lunch: lamb chop, sweet potato, tomatoes, and mayo, and Amazing Blues flavored kombucha from Holy Kombucha.

 

Supper: bratwurst with mustard and garlic dill sauerkraut, zucchini, and a plum.

[ginsinnot]

Shannon, you take great food pics!

[ShannonM816]

Shannon, you take great food pics!

Thanks! Although I think it's more luck than skill. 

[ShannonM816]

Day 7

 

 

Breakfast: Scrambled eggs, sausage, breakfast salad, and apple chai kombucha

 

Lunch: bratwurst with mustard, Wildbrine red beet and cabbage sauerkraut, baked sweet potato with cinnamon and coconut oil, La Croix Passionfruit sparkling water

 

Supper: hot dogs, roasted sweet potato, cucumber slices, mayo, pineapple kombucha

 

Goals

Exercise: not really. Walked a few minutes, gave up. Feeling kind of down today. Pretty sure it's not a lack of starchy veggies though  .

 

Eating at table: 1 out of three meals.

 

Veggies: Little heavy on the sweet potato, lacking in the green stuff. Will do better tomorrow.

[ShannonM816]

Day 7 (yesterday)

 

 

Breakfast: sausage, zucchini, egg scramble, and apple chai kombucha

 

Lunch: mixed greens, broccoli slaw, cucumber, fermented onions, ground beef, all topped with a mix of mayo and mustard, and an iced decaf coffee with coconut milk

 

Supper: hot dogs and roasted golden beets with a mayo-mustard mix for dipping, a plum, and an apple chai kombucha

 

Goals:

Exercise: Yes! I dug out my old Walk Away The Pounds DVD and did one of the workouts on it. It really wasn't bad, although I remember part of why I got tired of doing them -- the cheesy conversations during the workout. They're okay the first time you hear them, but by the 20th or 30th, you're rolling your eyes.

 

Eat at table: 2 of 3 meals, supper was eaten at my desk while working.

 

Veggies: I think I did pretty well. At least it wasn't all sweet potatoes all day again.

[ginsinnot]

Great job on getting your exercise in! I feel the same way about commentary on exercise DVD's, okay a few times, then NOT. I like to turn down the sound and turn on my own music when I get to that point. I'm usually okay following along at that point without the sound, just the visual cues once I've done it a few times.

 

Tasty looking meals!

[sassyboo62]

Great pictures and I just got some great ideas for more food.  I am so not an imaginative cook and I love seeing others pics.

[ShannonM816]

I haven't really kept up with this. I've stayed on track, food-wise, although yesterday's meals, while compliant, didn't really meet the template -- they were a bit fruit-heavy, and low on fat and protein. I had to go into the office to work when i'd planned on staying home, which threw off what I'd planned, food-wise, and also put me in a bad mood. Today is Day 13. Hopefully I can finish out the next 17 days strong. Originally, I'd planned to keep going for 45 or even 60 days, and I still may, but I think my bad mood from yesterday is still hanging around, because just at the moment, I'm so over this and ready to be done.

[ShannonM816]

Days 8-13 happened. The food was compliant. A few days, while the food was compliant, it didn't meet the template. Exercise I think happened one other day somewhere in there. I have mostly eaten my meals mindfully, at the table, except usually one meal a day at work, and last weekend when I really just wanted to sit on the couch and stare at the tv while I ate, so I did. 

 

Day 14:

 

 

Breakfast: baked sweet potato with avocado oil and scrambled eggs

Lunch: (not pictured) raw veggies and mayo dip. I had to go in to work today to caption a football game, so I had to pack up a lunch, and forgot my protein. Yay. 

Supper: Grilled steak (burnt, because that's how the day has gone -- of course it's burnt. And there were two in the package, so I cooked them both, and burned them both.) and grilled sweet potato and yellow squash, and a pineapple ginger kombucha. I was still hungry and had a banana and peach with some coconut cream.  I probably should have had more veggies instead, but it is what it is. 

 

So is it wrong that I'm seriously considering stopping my W30 next Monday to go out to lunch with a friend? I'm going to lunch whether I try to stay W30 or not, but I'm not sure I want to stay W30 for that one meal. My goal, in general, for my life is to be able to go out to lunch with a friend without worrying, but staying close to W30 at home. I've done two W30's before. I know I can do them. I'm not really sure what's going on with me. I'm just kind of fed up with everything. I'm grouchy and weepy and I swear, if I weren't menopausal, I'd assume it was about that time of the month, but that's not really a possibility.  I know I had some emotional days in my other W30's, but I don't remember them being this bad -- or maybe I'm just not remembering correctly. I also know that over the last few days, my meals, although they've been technically compliant, have not met the meal template. Maybe that's contributing to this feeling. I feel like I've eaten more fruit than usual, and less of everything else. 

 

Tomorrow, I'll get back on track, eat according to the template, get in some exercise, maybe spend some time outside in the sunshine, and hope I start to feel better. I really need to figure this out this week, because next week, I'll be working longer than usual days, which are hard even when I feel good. If I go into them feeling bad, I'm afraid I won't have the willpower or the desire to stick to W30 at all. Between W30's, those are the weeks when I've gone really off the tracks, food-wise, and it's really hard to get back on track afterwards. 

[ginsinnot]

I'm sorry you're having a rough couple of days. This weekend was easier for me, but the previous weekend was hard (I was mourning/missing tailgating for football).

 

A few thoughts: concentrate on the meal template. I can get a little lazy at this stage, making sure I've got all the protein/fat/veggies in every meal. I'm okay if it's a meal here and there (like you having just your veggies and dip the one day). But if it is a few meals, my mood and energy definitely plummet. So, maybe really concentrate today and tomorrow on following the meal template and giving your body what it needs. I bet your mood will improve.

 

And just keep trucking along on the W30. I wouldn't make a decision about lunch out right now. You've got time. And I'm guessing having the rough couple of days is a big part of thinking about stopping before you're done. Next Monday will be Day 21! You'll be so close to 30.

 

This is my 4th W30 but I have had a few starts/stops before and I always wish I either hadn't started or hadn't stopped. As in, I feel worse about not finishing something I started.

[ShannonM816]

Feeling much better today. I slept late and ate my three meals, all matching the template. I straightened up the kitchen and cooked some and had a really easy workday. 

 

 

Breakfast: sausage, yellow squash, and carrots and a banana

Lunch: Bratwurst with mustard, fermented onions, broccolini, and a modified version of Velvety Butternut Squash

Supper: some leftover steak, carrots, celery, and guacamole -- this was on the small side, but it was getting late and I needed to eat to have some time before bed, but I wasn't really very hungry.

 

Ginsinnot -- I agree with everything you said. I know my meals lately have been technically compliant, but not necessarily matching the template, and I know that's probably a big part of why I ended up in such a funk. I suspect I had a few days when I wasn't eating enough, and that definitely leaves me not feeling my best, physically or mentally. In the light of a new day, planning to quit a week from now seems silly. 

 

[ShannonM816]

Day 16

 

 

Breakfast: Steak and egg scrambled with yellow squash, carrots, and celery, and apple spice kombucha.

Lunch: Bratwurst with mustard, Wild Brine's red beet and cabbage sauerkraut, and Velvety Butternut Squash, and apple spice kombucha

Supper: Ground beef with yellow squash, carrot, and celery, and some pineapple

 

 

 

[mangio_bene]

Love the photos and fiesta ware .. I will be doing photos on my fiesta ware too!

[ginsinnot]

I'm so glad you're feeling better! Sometimes it just really helps to put your thoughts out there, even when you look back and think they were silly. I think this is where the forum really excels, letting us put things out into the universe and then make the right choice for us.

 

Hoping you have a great rest of the week

[ShannonM816]

Day 17

 

Breakfast: Squash, spinach, ground beef, and egg scramble, banana with pineapple, and apple ginger kombucha

Lunch: Bratwurst with mustard, mashed sweet potato, and cucumber with fermented onion

Supper: Salmon cakes from Well Fed 2, velvety butternut squash, and spinach and cucumber salad with a ranch-like dressing made from mayo, lemon juice, and a spice mix called Deliciously Dill

[ShannonM816]

Day 18

 

Breakfast: Green eggs (eggs and spinach), banana with almond butter

Lunch: Bratwurst, mashed sweet potato, cucumber, sauerkraut, and apple ginger kombucha

Supper: salmon patties, salad with spinach, celery, carrots, and ranch dressing, and apple spice kombucha

[ginsinnot]

Those might be the greenest eggs I've ever seen!

 

Do you make your own sauerkraut or have a favorite brand you buy? I love sauerkraut. I've never made it. I usually get some from my mother-in-law, but last years batch was way too salty for me and I pitched the lot. I haven't found a favorite store brand to buy.

[ShannonM816]

Those might be the greenest eggs I've ever seen!

 

Do you make your own sauerkraut or have a favorite brand you buy? I love sauerkraut. I've never made it. I usually get some from my mother-in-law, but last years batch was way too salty for me and I pitched the lot. I haven't found a favorite store brand to buy.

 

I went a little heavy on the spinach with that batch. 

 

I like Wildbrine brand -- that's their Red Beet and Cabbage variety in yesterday's bratwurst picture. I also like their Garlic Dill. I haven't tried their pickles, and I see on their site they've now got salsas, I haven't seen those anywhere yet. Some of their kimchi varieties were not W30 compliant, I think they had soy in them.

 

I have fermented some things myself -- I did some ginger carrots that were okay, and some fermented onions that I love, which is weird because I'm not a huge onion person when they're raw, but fermented they're somewhere between raw and caramelized -- not as sharp a flavor as raw, not quite as sweet as caramelized ones can taste, if that makes sense? I keep meaning to make my own sauerkraut, and just haven't gotten around to it yet. If you get another batch that's too salty, leave it out on the cabinet to keep fermenting longer, or if the thought of having it on the counter bothers you, stick in the fridge for a while, it will keep fermenting there, just more slowly than at room temperature. The ginger carrots I did were way too salty at first, even leaving them a week longer than the recipe said to, but as they've sat in my fridge for over a month now, they're actually getting much better. If I make them again, I'll probably just leave them out on the counter even longer and see what happens.