a late start to my whole30 log

[Nicole30]

I was introduced to the Whole30 two years ago by an expert who happens to be a friend. I thought the program sounded logical, healthy, and totally unattainable. Even after seeing firsthand the versatility and richness of program-compliant meals I was still convinced my willpower wouldn't allow me to make such a drastic change. I thought: What would I do without whiskey? wine? cheese? tacos?? These things are integral to my being, aren't they? And then I thought: Oh wait. Of course they're not. So I bought ISWF. I told myself I'd start right after my 30th birthday for some tidy synchronism and as a way of booting my hard-living 20s out of my system. But the book collected dust. And I continued to wreak havoc on my poor gut. Then a different friend announced on Facebook that she was starting her third whole30 of the year and it became clear that now was the time. You bought the damn book, you told people about your intent, so no more feet-dragging. Put up or shut up.  

 

Tomorrow will mark the two week point of my first whole30 and at this point it's pretty clear that this is one of the nicest gifts I've ever given myself. There were a few days of constipation and my Google search history is a dark place (e.g. calcium chloride, intestinal mucus, butternut squash contact dermatitis) but I am feeling energetic and clear-headed. I suspect that my face looks less droopy and generally brighter. Not feeling like I look any thinner, but all the other bonuses are so extraordinary that it truly doesn't matter (never thought I'd say that). So in the interest of posterity, or at least so I can look back at this if I hit a creative wall, here goes:

 

My whole30 Food Log

Day 13

 

Meal One:

- 2 eggs (made in my new, adorably teensy egg pan) on a bed of

- 1 1/2 cup raw spinach with

- 1/4 cup salsa

- 1/2 small sweet potato and

- 3-4 T coconut milk with a few mixed berries and coconut flakes

- black coffee

 

Meal Two:

- 1 1/2 cups Cincinnati chili (from the Well Fed 2 recipe) on a bed of

- 2 1/2 cups raw spinach

- 1/2 large avocado

- 1/2 cucumber

 

Meal Three:

- 1 Chicken breast with Hawaiian marinade 

- 2/3 yellow bell pepper cut into strips

- 1/2 large avocado

- 1/2 small sweet potato

- 2 T jalapenos 

 

Notes:

Felt great today. Woke up after 7 hours of sleep (usually do 9 easy) ready to GO! Went to a new neighborhood bakery for the first time. Bought 4 cupcakes and one homemade snickers bar. Took them to some former colleagues at the bar I used to manage where I toasted their craft beer with my fizzy water. Today I didn't just slay the sugar dragon, I laughed in its face. 

 

 

 

[Nicole30]

Day 14

 

Meal One:

 

- 2 eggs with compliant mayo (turns out I don't like this combo, but whatever - I got the fat I needed)

- 2 handfuls of arugula wilted with crushed tomatoes

- 1/3 yellow bell pepper

- 1/2 cup of silky gingered zucchini soup (WF2)

- black coffee

 

Meal Two:

 

- Salad of:

- Chicken breast (cooked in coconut oil with garlic, s&p)

- 1/2 avocado

- 1 or 2 cups baby spinach

- 1/2 cucumber

- roasted tomato salsa

- black coffee

 

Snack type thing:

- 3 olives and maybe a quarter of an Applegate Farms turkey hot dog

 

Meal Three:

 

- 2/3 cup Cincinnati chili topped with onion and parsley

- sweet potato with ghee

- asparagus

 

Notes:

 

- Good energy upon waking. Got some bad news about a friend but still managed to get some cardio and housework in before work. 

 

- Messed up and popped a couple chili and orange zest Castelvetrano olives in my mouth at work. The olives are compliant but the thoughtless way I ate them was not. Felt guilty and decided that since it had been five hours since my last meal I should go ahead and add a veg & protein to round out my olive error. After a few bites I still felt weird about eating and decided to save my meal for when I got home. Impulse control can be really hard when your job is to serve people delicious food and essentially watch them eat it. And those olives are unbelievably good. Still, should've just had a glass of water OR sat down to a proper snack if that's what my body was telling me to do. 

[ShannonM816]

I just wanted to point out -- a serving of eggs, if they're your only protein, is as many whole eggs as you can hold in your hand. There's a thread titled What A Serving of Eggs Looks Like if you want to read more (I can't seem to paste links on this computer). You should probably be eating three to four eggs, or two eggs plus some other protein if you don't want more eggs, for breakfast.  You might try increasing that and see if it doesn't help you get through the day without wanting a snack.

[Nicole30]

Thanks Shannon! I was able to locate the post. Thanks for the direction it makes a lot of sense; my breakfast today had beef and chicken broth and I found I was full for longer. Hooray for an easy fix!

 

Day 15

 

Meal One:

 

- Pan-fried plantain in coconut oil with cumin and lime juice 

- 2 scrambled eggs

- roasted tomato salsa

- 1/2 cup silky gingered zuchinni soup

(maybe favorite breakfast so far)

 

Meal Two:

 

- 11/2 cups Cincinnati chili with onion and parsley

- 1/3 bunch asparagus

- 1/2 cup zuke soup

- 2 T coconut milk with mixed berries, pinch shredded coconut, pinch slivered almonds

 

Meal Three:

 

- Salad of:

- 1 Chicken breast

- 1/2 large avocado mashed with lime juice and garlic salt

- 1 tomato

- 1 cup shredded lettuce

- yet another 1/2 cup of zuke soup

 

Notes:

- Didn't realize I had the silky gingered zucchini soup (from WF2) for every meal! I really love that stuff apparently, and soup weather is finally upon central Texas. Going to have to make a second batch sooner than I thought!

- Snacking wasn't an issue today as I felt totally satiated between meals. When I do get hungry now, it feels so much different than it did pre-whole30. The feeling of a cavernous, churning belly has been replaced by -for lack of a better description- a shift in my equilibrium. I used to get almost nauseous if I went too long without eating, now there's just a slight energy drop and maybe a tinge of lightheadedness. The signals my body is sending me are much clearer and kinder.

- I'm beginning to deal with the possibility that I may not lose any weight during the program. My clothes haven't started sagging by any means. Trying to stay focused on the multitude of other positive outcomes so that I'm not tying my success to the number I read on the scale 15 days from now.

[Nicole30]

Day 16

 

 

Meal One:

 

- 2 egg omelet with Applegate Farms pepperoni, asparagus, black olives

- 1/4 giant sweet potato, jalepenos

- T coconut milk

 

Meal Two:

 

- Pepperoni 

- 1/2 red bell pepper

- 1/2 cucumber

- black olives

- paleo ranch (recipe from the clothes make the girl)

 

Meal Three:

 

- broccoli, celery, carrot crudite

- apple

- turkey

- guacamole

 

Meal Four:

 

- 1/2 chicken breast with

- 1/4 giant sweet potato cubed and cooked in Better Butter (WFD) 

- 1 egg 

- 1 cup zucchini soup

 

 

Notes:

 

- Spent the day at a music festival where I managed to steer clear of many temptations. Every manner of delicious street food wafted by my face at one point or another. But I was prepared with my approved grub. Also festivals and drinking are practically synonymous for me, so steering clear of booze was an accomplishment. In a moment of pride, and perhaps slightly in need of validation, I texted my friend who also began a whole30 on October 24th - only to find out she'd gone off program. Don't think that's going to be a problem for me. 

- Had to eat more than usual to make up for the extra energy I was expending dancing and walking around the grounds. Ate ~ every 4 hours.

- Finally had the forbidden food dream: I checked the label on some french toast and found it compliant only to realize I'd been tricked. And then I gave birth to twins. Thanks brain.

[Nicole30]

Day 17

 

Meal One: 

8:30am

 

- 2 eggs with lox, capers, red onion

- 2 T coconut milk with coconut flakes, berries, and almonds

 

Meal Two/Snack:

2:30pm

 

- 2 slices Applegate Farms turkey

- T guacamole

- 8 baby carrots

- 1 piece of celery

 

Meal Three:

5pm

 

- 1 1/2 cup Cincinnati chili

- 1 cup zucchini soup

- 2 T coconut milk with 5 blackberries

 

Meal Four:

9:30 pm

 

- black drum filet 

- 1 cup broccoli

- 1 cup asparagus

- T tomatillo salsa

 

Notes: 

- Long and somewhat challenging day. My restaurant is open for brunch on Sundays and this particularly Sunday was a challenge. I really wanted a cocktail afterward, but I went home and had a rushed meal before meeting a friend from out of town at a bar. Where I had mineral water.

- Ate dinner (M4) at the Whole Foods flagship location downtown. The seafood bistro chef was very patient while I drilled him on oils, sugars, etc. He happily made me a delicious, compliant meal. It was phenomenal to have someone else cook for me for the first time in 2 1/2 weeks. My gratitude was off the charts at this point. 

- Picked up some Rooibos tea and fell in love. 

- My tastebuds are definitely fine-tuning and becoming more sensitive to real flavors. 

[Nicole30]

Dammit I lost my last post. Erg, here goes again.

 

Meal One:

10:30 am

 

- 2 eggs over easy with lox

- 1/12 cups broccoli with lemon juice

- coffee with coconut milk

 

Snack:

4pm

 

- Hard boiled egg

- 1/4 apple

- 10 grapes

 

Meal Two:

7pm

 

- 1/3 can tuna

- 1/2 red bell pepper

- t coconut milk  and a few blackberries

 

Meal Three:

10pm

 

- 6 oz Beef tenderloin seared in ghee

- 1 cup mustard garlic brussel sprouts (WF2)

- 1 cup citrus cauliflower rice (WF2) with extra chili flake and non pareil capers

- 1/2 cup broccoli with lemon juice

- 1/2 pan fried plantain with a lime, blackberry reduction and a

- T cinnamon coconut whipped mount, topped with a 

- pinch of toasted almonds and coconut flakes

 

Notes:

- Forgot to pack a snack/plan a meal for my errand heavy day and ended up with half the contents of Starbucks protein box (my boyfriend dutifully took the bread, cheese, and peanut butter). Worked well except for that I didn't get a fat.  

- At dinner I used a lot of ghee - to the recipe specs, no extra - and still had coconut milk for "dessert". It's our anniversary, so I wanted to make a special compliant dinner for us, but didn't think about the fats adding up until after the fact - when I was sleepy and sluggish on the couch. It was delicious though. One of the better dinners I've pulled off, whole30 or no.

- All in all, could've been a better day, but there were some moments of culinary genius.

[Nicole30]

Day 19:

 

Meal One:

 

- "Tuna Casserole" leftover cauliflower rice and broccoli pan-fried with some tuna - kind of brilliant flavor/texture combo

- 1 fried egg

- coffee with cinnamon coconut whipped milk

 

Meal Two:

 

- 2/3 cup Cincinnati chili, garnished heavily with fresh parsley and raw onion, over

- spaghetti squash

- 1/2 avocado

 

Snack:

 

-1/4 red bell pepper

- 1 hard boiled egg

- 1/2 tomato

- 1/4 avocado

 

Meal 3:

 

- 6-8 oz grilled turkey with

- spinach, mushroom, and duck fat (Central Market organics frozen bag, will buy again)

- sweet potato with a pinch of garam masala (another great flavor find)

- 1 persimmon, my first ever!

 

Notes:

 

- Good day. Think I'm feeling some PMS come on, but it's hard to tell because my body is signaling differently now. 

- Going to the movies a lot (instead of bars, I guess) and the temptation there is strong. Sitting between loaded cheese fries (my dude's) and chips and queso (my bestie's) wasn't easy. It wasn't that I wanted to break, but I had to resist ordering a dry salad - just to eat for the sake of eating. No bueno. I did resist the urge and had a lovely pot of mint tea. I also moved out of the middle seat so I'd be less surrounding by the delicious/disgusting ez-melt cheese. 

- Tried on some cutoffs from three summers ago and they button! So maybe that scale will look a little different when I see it again. 

[kirkor]

for some tidy synchronism and as a way of booting my hard-living 20s out of my system

...

Today I didn't just slay the sugar dragon, I laughed in its face.

Colorful & powerful language -- I love it!

[kirkor]

1 persimmon, my first ever!

I hope it was a Fuyu not a Hachiya!

[Nicole30]

Thanks Kirkor - the persimmon was, in fact, a Fuyu. Hooray for happy accidents.

 

Day 20

 

Meal One:

 

- 2 eggs with

- Chicken apple sausage (Applegate Farms) on a bed of 

- 1 cup wilted spinach and arugula

- 1/2 avocado

- 1/2 tomato

 

Meal Two:

 

- leftover turkey, spinach, mushroom, and duck fat stir fry topped with salsa

- small salad of spinach, arugula, and boiled egg

- loose handful of blackberries dipped in cinnamon whipped coconut milk

 

Meal Three:

 

- 6 oz ground turkey sauteed in 

- 1/4 can tomato paste

- 4 oz crushed tomatoes seasoned with cumin and chili flake

- 2 cremini mushrooms stuffed with pico de gallo and topped with jalepenos

- 1/2 avocado, scallion, garlic salt, t lime (quick guac)

 

 

Notes:

 

Turns out creminis are immature portabellos! The range of things this whole30 is teaching me about the world within and without continue to be remarkable. Another discovery, this one grosser but no less enlightening, is that cauliflower makes me - ahem - need some alone time. I absolutely love the citrus cauliflower rice recipe from Well Fed 2 but both times I've made it I've had a serious case of bubbleguts. I understand cruciferous veggies have this affect on plenty of folks, so at least I'm not alone in my fart shame. I've still got some leftover but I don't know if I'm willing to continue down the road of scientific verification. 

 

My first attempt at bone broth is in hour 14 of slow-cooking. Gelatin has never been one of my favorite food-stuffs, but the array of benefits I've read regarding the mineral-packed stuff makes it sound at least worth a shot. Plus, a month ago I thought I didn't like sweet potatoes. Food-wise, it's pretty much a whole new world for me and I couldn't be happier about that.

[Nicole30]

Day 21

 

Meal One:

 

- 3 oz ground turkey in spiced tomato sauce over

- spaghetti squash with a 

- fried egg on top (weird carbonara spin that was quite good)

- 1/4 sweet potato with ghee & garam masala

- black coffee

 

Meal Two:

 

- Salad of spring mix 

- 3/4 pack of Applegate Farms turkey

- 1/4 sweet potato (cold, cubed)

- 1 tomato

- 1/3 avocado

- T dijon mustard

 

Meal Three: 

 

- 2 sushi handrolls (made by me! another first) each filled with

- 1 slice lox

- 1/4 cucumber

- 1/4 avocado 

- 1/2 Lara bar 

- Chai Tea

 

Snack

 

-1/4 cup bone broth

 

Notes:

 

Made sushi and bone broth in the same day. Who am I anymore?! Feeling really good - minimal gastric issues as compared to yesterday. Intended "Meal Three" to be a snack, but after work I found that I was still satiated. Had to strain my bone broth into freezer containers when I got home and naturally had to try some as well. It turned out nicely. I followed the ISWF instructions and slightly regret not roasting the bones (as other recipes suggest), but there's always next time. Starting to wonder what my life is going to look like when the 30 days are over. My brother's wedding and Thanksgiving are immediately after, so the opportunity to indulge wildly will be readily available... but oddly, that doesn't sound appealing. I've gotten used to being good to myself and I don't think I'm going to want to stop. At the very least I want to treat booze, bread, and dairy like special occasion items and not the dietary staples I'd let them become. 

[Nicole30]

Day 22

 

Meal One:

 

- Burger patty topped with

- 1 fried egg

-1 1/2 T roasted red pepper and avocado sauce

- handful of spinach and spring mix

- 1/2 cucumber

- zucchini soup (new batch!)

- also made mayo this morning and had a taste of that (much improved! buying a higher quality olive oil was vital)

 

Meal Two:

 

- 1 cup quick tuna salad (can of oil-packed solid white tuna, 2T chopped pickled jalepenos, 2 t lemon, T mayo, pinch dill, pinch pepper, 1 chopped hard boiled egg)

-1/2 orange bell pepper

-1/2 cucumber

- larabar

 

Snack:

- 1 hard boiled egg

- 1/2 bell pepper

- coconut milk in coffee

 

Meal Three:

 

- Soup of:

- 2-3 cups of beef bone broth with 

- 1 cup of spaghetti squash stirred in with

- 1 small shallot

- 2 t tomato paste

- 1 t coconut aminos

- black pepper

- garlic salt

and

- 1/2 a cucumber, sliced and dipped in 

- 2 T mayo

- 1 fuyu persimmon

 

Notes:

 

Long, cold day. Didn't do a thorough job of meal-planning but was very happy with my quick concoctions - makes me feel like I've really got the hang of this. Already thinking I'll do another Whole30 in January and try to eat Paleo in the meantime. Excluding holidays and special occasions - But that's easy to say now. I have a feeling that once I let alcohol back into my life, I might not be holding the reigns as tightly. However, I know that I am ultimately in control; if this program has taught me any one thing, it's that.

[Nicole30]

Day 23

 

Meal One:

 

- 1 hamburger patty with 

- fried egg on top

- spinach, spring mix

- salsa mixed with

- mayo

 

Meal Two:

 

- apple slices

- salad with o&v

- 1/4 avo

- burger patty with onion slices, tomato, and lettuce

 

Snack:

 

- 1 hardboiled egg with mayo 

- 1 cup zucchini soup

- Thunderbird Energetica bar

 

Meal Three:

 

- 2 links chicken Italian sausage

- 2 cups broccoli

- 1 sweet potato with

- 1 T mayo

 

Notes:

 

Today was rough. First day where I've thought: I can't wait for this to be OVER. Meal two was at a restaurant with family. They were late and I was hangry. I'd researched beforehand, but not thoroughly enough and realized too late that my only protein option (without canola oil) was hamburger - which I had for breakfast. The portion was not big enough to satisfy but at least I didn't pass out. Spent the afternoon shopping all over creation and the night watching a  jazz legend play. At one point I had the table to myself. A boat of the club's complimentary, very buttery, popcorn and a bottle of good bourbon that they'd allowed my party to bring in were both at arm's reach. A refrain kept repeating in my head "no one will know." But, of course, I would and that's the whole damn point. Instead of giving in, I planned the meal I'd make when I got home. Which was delicious and satisfying and I went to bed only two hours after eating it. So yeah. Rough day. 

[Nicole30]

Day 24:

 

Meal One:

 

- mug of Zucchini soup

- 3 egg frittata with

- spaghetti squash and

- jalepenos

- topped with salsa

- small sweet potato with mayo

 

Meal Two:

 

- Lara bar

- 1/2 sweet potato

- burger patty

 

Meal Three:

 

- Chipotle salad with

- extra carnitas

- extra guacamole

- extra lettuce

- hot salsa

 

Snack:

 

- Kombucha

- a few olives

 

Notes:

 

BIg improvement on yesterday. Chipotle was delicious and SO easy! Might have go back again before my w30 is over. More positive stuff that is coming out of my new lifestyle: Getting up and immediately working out/writing (even if it is just a food log that I get around to) has become second nature, I'm flossing more often (has a bit to do with a higher protein diet and a bit to do with having a more consistent routine), and I'm not eating off other peoples' plates - yes, I'm one of those people. Also, turns out I like Kombucha. Tried a local brand (Buddha's Brew) last night that flavors with fruit/veg juices, not sugar, after the fermentation process. This one had broccoli, spinach, and pineapple among others. Really tasty stuff. Snacking on the 'booch and olives was probably a bad move without a protein available but I was at a movie and so excited that there was something compliant available. Also: Kombucha and olives at a theater seemed pretty lucky and very Austin now that I think about it. I also resisted the urge to eat when I got home and went to bed early. 5 days to go!  

[Nicole30]

Day 25

 

Meal One:

 

- 2 eggs 

- 1 link chicken italian sausage

- arugula and spinach

- T guacamole

 

Meal Two:

 

- 3 slices lox

- Thunderbird Energetica

- Ginger kombucha

- persimmon

 

Meal Three:

 

- NY Strip steak (The Perfect Steak from Well Fed 2)

- 2 cups Sweet potato and prosciutto soup (slightly modified version of another WF2 offering)

- Salad of spinach, arugula, carrot, black olives, avocado, and tomato - lemon juice

- 1 cup broccoli with lemon juice

 

Notes:

 

Meal Two is embarrassing. Way too much sugar and not enough sustenance. I was getting ahead of myself and planning Meal Three without giving that present moment its due. Also, 2 kombuchas in 36 hours is probably excessive. I had a little nagging headache, my first since I started the program, to remind me to pay attention.

Just in case my food log doesn't make it completely obvious, I should mention that I find Melissa Joulwan to be an absolute inspiration and one smart cookie, to boot. Her irreverent voice and recipes have been integral to my whole 30 success. I owe her a major debt of gratitude. And about 50 delicious meals. 

[Nicole30]

Day 26

 

Meal One:

 

- 3 eggs scrambled with

- 2 large-ish cremini mushrooms and pico de gallo

- few dashes of hot sauce

- 1/2 tomato

- handful arugula, spinach, carrot mix

- black olives

 

Meal Two:

 

- 1 cucumber dipped in salsa mayo

- handful of olives

- Applegate Farm's prosciutto 

 

Meal Three:

 

- 1 green bell pepper stuffed with 

- 1/2 lb ground beef picadillo (w/ spices, cubed russet, green olive slices, tomato paste, fresh tomato, onion, and garlic)

- 1/2 sliced tomato

- 1/4 avocado

- handful arugula, spinach, carrot blend

- zucchini soup

 

Notes:

Great day, which is odd because day1 of my ladytime is almost always terrrrible. Planned well, got a new hairdo, went to bed early, and basically ruled at life. Starting to look at reintroduction protocol and figuring out how in the heck I'm going to do a wedding and Thanksgiving next week without blowing my clean slate. I'm optimistic though. Apparently I'm a lot more hard-headed and determined than I've been giving myself credit for. 

[Nicole30]

Day 27

 

Meal One:

 

- 3 eggs scrambled with 

- 1 cup cooked broccoli

- roasted red bell pepper and avocado sauce

- sweet potato soup

 

Meal Two:

 

- Tuna salad with 

- mayo

- jalapenos, dill, lemon

- 1 cucumber

- 1 avocado

 

Snack:

 

- Thunderbird Energetica

 

Meal Three:

 

- Picadillo with fried egg on top

- Sweet potato soup topped with

- chives and probably part of my finger because I cut the crap out of myself

 

Notes: 

Good day. Read about reintroduction again and am starting to formulate a plan. Really want to do legumes and GF grains (ramen) the first day, but it's not advisable - so we'll see. I was late in getting to this post, so I'll move on to...

 

 

Day 28

 

Meal One:

 

- 1 egg

- Turkey burger

- roasted red pepper and avocado sauce on 

- spinach

 

Meal Two:

 

- Salad of:

- pepperoni

- spinach

- black olives

- 1/2 yellow bell pepper

- 2 T ranch

 

Snack:

 

-Larabar

 

Meal Three:

 

- Chicken breast

- brussel sprouts

- sweet potato soup

 

Notes:

Staying the course. 2 more days! I can't believe it's almost over. Grocery shopped last night, but didn't put anything non-compliant in my cart. Didn't even occur to me. Think I may try to keep my home permanently whole30 stocked. 

[Nicole30]

Day 29

 

Meal One:

 

- Sunrise scramble (from Well Fed: 1 egg, turkey, apple, spice blend, sweet potato, scallions)

- Spinach

- I egg

 

 

Snack:

- grapes

 

Meal Two:

 

- Salad of: spinach, green olive, pepperoni, turkey breast, yellow bell pepper, avocado

- kombucha

 

Snack: Thunderbird Energetica 

 

Meal Three:

 

- 2 links chicken sausage

- Sweet potato

- spinach

- coconut milk

 

 

Notes:

Too much fruit sugar again today (for the second time during program) and I had another headache - i'm pretty sure - because of it. I'm going to do a little research to see if this happens to other folks. Limiting fruit is usually easy but I went to a wine tasting for my job today and it was a little tricky to get out of actually tasting any wine. Eating grapes seemed like a good way to conceal my lack of involvement. Feeling pretty proud of myself. Almost done with the 30 days, but my lifestyle will be different from here on out.