Confessional

[CrazyGypsyLady]

Who starts a Whole 30 the day before Halloween? This girl right here.

There comes a point where things get so out of control that something's gotta give. Today was my breaking point. I'm coming from a place where sometimes I feel like food is my only friend and my closest confidant. Where spontaneous choices (and yes they are ALL choices-the good the bad and the ugly) find me stalled out on my weight loss journey for 11 months straight. It's one thing to enjoy a piece of cake at a birthday party but quite another to scarf down a slice of strawberry cheesecake from KFC at 2pm. On a Wednesday. Secretly. You see my problem here. That behaviour is shameful and distressing enough for any intelligent, knowledgeable person, but for me it's compounded by the fact that I am a health role model in my community. If I can't practice what I preach, then how can I possibly be anyone's trusted advisor? So I'm deciding to give my deranged metabolism and my unhappy digestive system a reset. I completed a Whole 30 in January/February of this year and it was amazing. I want to be there again. I want to have energy, to sleep soundly, to understand and navigate my cravings and the emotional connection to the foods I'm putting in front of me and consequentially inside me

[CrazyGypsyLady]

Woke up yesterday excited to get going with my day. Started the kettle, rinsed out the french press and got my cast iron skillet warming. I took three slices of compliant bacon, chopped it into bite sized pieces and got it frying. Once it was mostly browned I added in a cup of brussel sprouts I had shredded the night before. I also tossed in half of a cooked sweet potato chopped. Added a sprinkle of onion powder and salt and let it cook away. While it was browning, I made my coffee (Starbucks Anniversary Blend) and packed my lunch salad. Lettuce, tomato, cucumber, red pepper and sugar free ham pieces. I had made some compliant sweet onion salad dressing earlier in the week so I packed that too.

I ended up eating my breakfast on the bus (sorry fellow commuters-it was stinky) and managed to not feel too bitter about the lack of my usual organic heavy cream in my morning cuppa.

Every Thursday we have team training after the shift and it's one of my favourite times of the week. Mainly because I get to spin ideas and concepts with my work team, but also because we get a coffee order! Well, it ended up being a green tea for myself this time and I actually didn't covet the americanos of my coworkers like I thought I would. Here's hoping the next month of Thursdays is as forgiving. I ended up with another green tea on my post training coffee date with an old friend from a previous job. At this point I was thoroughly caffeinated!

Lunch time finally came mid-afternoon and I plowed through my salad and inhaled two hard boiled eggs I had snagged at the grocery store while hunting pumpkins with my friend. Add to that one banana and a scant handful of almonds and I was finally satiated.

I did notice that my energy waned as the afternoon progressed, but I didn't hit "the wall" per se which is a pretty big win. By the time I got home (one hour commute each way daily to and from my jobs) I was definetly ready for supper. Diced onion, red pepper, crushed garlic and bacon fat in the pan. I cut up a leftover chicken sausage link and tossed in a cup or so of pre-made cauliflower rice. Add salt and pepper and BAM! It was delicious.

One of my goals is to eliminate snacking altogether but last night I was still legitimately hungry so apple slices and almond butter did the trick.

Bed at 10:30pm. Better later than never.

[missmary]

Welcome CrazyGypsyLady! Have you looked at the meal template? http://whole30.com/downloads/whole30-meal-planning.pdf 

 

Right now, all the meals you are reporting look great on veggies but they pretty low on protein. Having at least a "palm-size" (all three dimensions of you palm) portion of meat at each meal will keep you satiated and help avoid the need to snack. Bacon is actually more a fat source than a meaningful protein source, so when having bacon I would not do a palm-size portion...better to choose another protein and use bacon as a side/garnish.

 

Best of luck with your whole30!

[CrazyGypsyLady]

Thanks so much. Yes I'm familiar with the template. Its the protein I had on hand at the time. And also the reason I was ravenous by lunchtime.

[CrazyGypsyLady]

Happy Halloween!!

It's amazing how much of a difference 10 extra minutes of prep time can make in the morning! Or in my case how much of a difference a LACK of 10 minutes can make. I certainly was pushing my limit by hitting snooze that last time and my food options for the day reflected that.

Breakfast was the same deal as yesterday: bacon, brussel sprouts and a half sweet potato. I skipped the coffee -no time- and chugged a bunch of water instead. I quickly prepped another garden salad, this time adding a half can of tuna (which I've since learned is not nearly enough protein for a serving) and the sweet onion dressing yet again.

Breakfast was eaten on the bus again and again I sincerely apologize haha. I had exactly 7 minutes before starting my barista shift after arriving. I quickly donned a set of devil horns, wrote my name: 'The Devil' in chalk marker on my name tag. I then spent 6.5 hours surrounded by sugar. Syrups, pastries, sauces and the likes. When I did my Whole 30 earlier this year, I was working as a barista full time and I was a grumpy mess most shifts. My mantra at the café is this:

"Those drinks/pastries are none of your business!!!"

This worked like a charm most days and I'm hoping it does again because to be honest, day 2 involved A LOT of inner turmoil and bartering with myself. But I kept it on the straight and narrow, drinking a couple black americanos and a ton of ice water. I still felt hungry on my first break and ate a serving of organic dried apple rings and roasted salted almonds. A bigger breakfast would have prevented the need for this snack - see, I'm learning here haha!

When my lunch break arrived I was totally ready for my salad. While I munched I had the opportunity to chat up the benefits and reasoning behind my Whole 30 with a coworker who has been on the fence about starting one which was really rewarding for me.

Being that it was Halloween, our normal supper routine was tossed out the window. The husband and kids had subs (that smelled sofaking good) and I made myself a nice skillet. Two eggs, two small new white potatoes, onion, chopped kale, bacon, red pepper fried in rendered bacon fat. Topped with Franks and small avocado and promptly inhaled.

Cue trick or treating. This was the first year I, as a mother was banished from taking my sons (10&12) out so I begrudgingly sent them out to have a blast with their friends. The doorbell, Facebook posts full of spooky goodness and cute kids in costumes kept me busy but by the time my little ghouls arrived back home I was famished again.

My husband had prepped some 1/4 lb beef burger patties for our lunches the next day so I snagged and heated up a couple, topped with roasted garlic aoili and a side of baked sweet potato with coconut oil, freshly grated nutmeg and cinnamon. I was happy to see posts from Whole 9 in my FB news feed telling ass of us Whole 30ers to stand strong and make awesome choices. And I did. *phew*

I'm hoping to get to a place soon where I'm eating the right amounts of proteins and fats. I'm confident that I'll eat a substantial amount of veg as I love love love it and always fill my plate with it's goodness.

I managed to pass out hard on the couch watching a documentary on Netflix around 10pm. Because I'm a party animal like that.

Overall, I feel really good about my day. If only because I stuck to my guns and not a single Tootsie Roll or Twizzler made its way past these lips.

[jennor]

Good work!

[CrazyGypsyLady]

Yesterday morning came and with the exception of the distinct realization that I have caught my husband's man-cold (lord help us all) I felt really really good. Well, I at least felt well rested. I had a later start time in the morning which afforded me the opportunity to prep and eat breakfast at home. I know that part of creating good habits is to refer to breakfast as meal one, but I'm solid with eggs fat and veggies for brekky so I shall call it as such

Saturdays are also a market day for our family so we tend to make an everything-but-the-kitchen-sink skillet and use up all of the week's leftover protein and veg. Its a great way to see what you really do need and helps with meal planning once that fridge has been emptied of all the 'bits'. This Saturday morning's had kale, eggs, bacon, sweet potato, pork sausage, sweet peppers, brussel sprouts, onion and apple. Paired with black coffee and a half avocado and then off to work.

Saturdays at my café can get intensely busy at times. Eight hours of building espresso drinks and tea lattes is exhausting both mentally and physically and I'm proud that the stress of it didn't allow me to budge once. How easy it would be to pop a sample of a chocolate caramel muffin in mouth, to snag a pumpkin spice latte on my break. NOPE. First break came and I recaffienated with a black americano. Lunch involved warming up a beef burger plated with romaine, tomato, compliant dill pickle and aioli. As I'm still figuring out how much fuel my body actually needs on a given day, I completed the meal with dried organic mango slices. I chugged more water and some black tea as well.

About halfway through the afternoon I had the stunning realization that because I was heading straight to a basketball game with my family after my shift and that I hadn't thought to pack myself supper. So then the choices were as follows:

1. Wait til I get home at 10:30pm to eat

2. Try to find Whole 30 compliant food at a sports venue

3. Cry and be frustrated

4. Try to find enough compliant food at my café and scarf it down on the bus on the way to the game

I chose a bit of 3 and a bit of 4. I was so mad at myself for this oversight andbuting in the position where I found myself without a solid plan. So I ended up eating a couple hard boiled eggs, an apple and a handful of grapes. Not optimal, but better than the alternatives.

Oh right! I forgot to mention option number 5!

5. Screw this whole thing, grab a panini and get to eat like EVERYONE ELSE

Option 5 came to the forefront of my mind more than once.

But option 4 stuck, which says something.

By the time I got home late last night, I went directly to bed, somewhat hungry bit too exhausted to really care.

[KayKay]

Hello fellow Londoner! Congrats on another Whole 30! I'm not sure I could survive a single day working in a cafe, so hats off to you!

I started my second W30 yesterday. When you're feeling challenged, know that I'm somewhere in town likely feeling the same way!

[CrazyGypsyLady]

Awesome! I will certainly keep that in mind haha. Keep me posted

[CrazyGypsyLady]

Set your clocks back an hour they said. You'll get to sleep in they said.

5:45am on a Sunday. Really? REALLY?!

Not the start to my day that I had hoped for, but I managed to languish in bed for an hour or so before my rumbly rumbly forced me up and out.

Coconut milk coffee misto with coconut oil, two poached eggs on braised cabbage and leeks with a side of bacon and avocado cured my tummy grumbles pretty quickly.

I spent the morning doing my regular Sunday meal prep. Hard boiled eggs, sauerkraut, veggie sticks, rice in bulk (for the family),two trays of meatballs and quarter chickens ready for the week.

In the midst of the food prep I managed to throw togetger a pumpkin soup with homemade chicken stock almond milk and veg. It was-okay. I think it could have been significantly improved with the addition of some sweetness. Maple syrup? Either way it was my lunch and I tolerated it and paired it with a couple hard boiled eggs to get the protein in me.

The husband and I took the dog on a nice walk while the Moroccan chicken was baking in the oven. The kids and husband had theirs with white rice and green beans. I enjoyed the same, but with cauliflower rice. It was good. So good in fact that there was merely a pile of bones left behind when it was all said and done. I've got those reserved to make more bone broth overnight in the crock pot

Looking back on the day, I can see that I ate more cruciferous veg than I generally do which might explain why I experienced some mild to moderate discomfort throughout the evening.

My scumbag brain kept thinking it was much later than it was and I crashed out hard by 10pm.

Overall a decent day,but I'm still failing to find my balance of food intake so that I'm not famished every 3-4 hours as it seems to be so far.

[CrazyGypsyLady]

Monday morning started off with a really simple breakfast of two eggs fried in rendered bacon fat, white potato hash browns and another coconut milk coffee misto.

I found myself not being all too interested in food today for some reason. I feel in ways that I grieve the loss of certain foods (cheese and heavy cream) and it just bums me out. I need to get my head wrapped around that and change my thinking patterns as this thought process is part of the reason why I keep failing at reaching a healthy body composition. Its certainly the same reason it took me 20 years to quit smoking. Once I had flipped that switch in my brain over to the reality that I was a nonsmoker, it was a breeze and I haven't looked back. Over 11 months now and not one single drag. So why can't I get my act together with my emotional attachment to food? Ugh. Its frustrating to think about.

Took a long dog walk post-breakfast and enjoyed the sunshine. And speaking of sunshine, this time of year is freaking DARK AND DEPRESSING anymore these days. I snagged some vitamin D from my office and am taking it religiously. Circle slash S.A.D .!

Now as far as the afternoon food consumption goes, it was sufficient I feel in volume but I didn't eat it all at once and basically snacked intermittently. Two whole hardboiled eggs turned into devilled egg yumminess, handful of roasted pistachios, same of fresh raspberries, dried mango slices and pepitas. Had a black tea with almond milk in there somewhere too.

I worked the afternoon at the office and came home to an amazing bowl of chocolate chili served in a roasted acorn squash bowl. Yay husbands!

It was all I could do to keep my eyes open after 9:30 pm. I'm convinced that my body is processing something, whether its my husband's cold, toxins or what I don't know...but I'm really stuffy and fuzzy headed. Ah well, could be worse.

[KayKay]

The time change is so depressing!

I was thinking about my own food issues yesterday and you know, it took you about 95% of your life to set those in stone (that's about 38 years for me), so you aren't going to undo that attachment in 30 days, or 60...it's going to take time. But it can be done.

Do you have a great almond milk recipe? I'd love to make some this month.

[CrazyGypsyLady]

The time change is so depressing!

I was thinking about my own food issues yesterday and you know, it took you about 95% of your life to set those in stone (that's about 38 years for me), so you aren't going to undo that attachment in 30 days, or 60...it's going to take time. But it can be done.

Do you have a great almond milk recipe? I'd love to make some this month.

Thanks for the reminder. I know it's important to look back and see where I'm come from and how far. Perspective!

My almond milk is really simple. One cup of almonds soaked overnight, drain, add 2 cups filtered water and a pinch of salt. Blend, process through nut bag or cheesecloth. BAM!

[CrazyGypsyLady]

Tuesdays are my 'long day'. Out the door by 6am and home by 9pm. Needless to say, it took some planning to navigate the day food-wise.

Breakfast was leftover chocolate chili with a cubed sweet potato. So good! Definitely doing THAT again! It was eaten on the bus. Again.

I have to start getting up earlier so that I can at least scarf it down at my kitchen table. Its been a tough few days sleep-wise. I'm unsure as to whether or not the time change has completely ruined me, or if I can conveniently blame my Whole 30. Or my husband's constant nighttime cough. Or I'm over caffeinated. Either way, I'm sleeping like crap. I feel like I'm not entering that deep, restful sleep. I don't think I'm dreaming either which is freaking me out. I'll keep track of this and see where I end up.

I worked at both the office and café and barely had time to scarf down the giant lunch salad I prepared. Two hard boiled eggs, cucumber, carrot, celery, tomato, leaf lettuce, sweet onion dressing. I did end up snacking on some pistachios and a banana around 7:30pm as I hadn't eaten since 1pm and wouldn't get supper til 9:30pm at the earliest.

And let me tell you it was totally worth the wait! Pan fried (it was raining so no grilling) sirloin tip steak with spanish onion and cremini mushrooms. Herved oven roasted potatoes and steamed brussel sprouts. Proper delicious.

By 10pm I was making tuna salad for today's lunch and plotting out some meal prep needs.

Tossed the humidifier on with some drops of tea tree oil and crashed by 10:35pm.

[CrazyGypsyLady]

I'm exhausted. This nighttime alertness business needs to stop. Now. I still managed to get breakfast going and eat at home which was non-negotiable. Even for an overtired, bleary eyed, snot nosed grump like myself. Two eggs, scrambled and fried in coconut oil, sweet potato and cabbage/leeks. And somehow I was able to enjoy a bit of black coffee too -winning!

My morning shift flew by with the help of more coffee and then before I knew it I was meeting up with my husband for our weekly lunch date.

In the past we have generally gone out for Portuguese chicken, bunless burgers or to a salad bar but since I'm rockin' this Whole 30 I felt it was best to brown bag it. We enjoyed tuna salad wraps (reminder to my hubby to wash the lettuce more carefully next time-mud-ew) fruit salad and green tea.

I spent the rest of my break (split shift with a 5 hour break between) reading Gone Girl which was recommended to me by a lady in my book club. And then I passed out on the couch in our lounge for a wee nap.

So, I'm not a 'napper'. This napping business is foreign to me. And a clear sign that I'm really not sleeping well. And that the couch is comfy. And that I do indeed drool when I sleep. As now all of my coworkers know. Sigh

By the time I finally got home around 8pm, I was famished and ready for supper. Spiralized zucchini topped with scramble fried hot organic pork sausage tomato sauce. A big bowl of it. And enough leftovers for lunch the following day.

Directly afterwards it was shower then bed by 10pm. Phew!

[KayKay]

Maybe the time change is just hitting you? I know my kids have been crashing at night.

I love that your husband is so supportive! Winning! (That made me laugh, btw.)

I'm taking myself out to Farm Boy for the salad bar today. It's my weekly "treat" (not packing a lunch).