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Ann's Third W30!


Ann

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I'm starting my third W30 today, along with a couple of friends who are first-timers.  My primary two goals this time are decreased body pain and better sleep.  My low back/left hip (osteoarthritis) and left shoulder (tendonitis) hurt all the time.  And now my ankles are starting to hurt, too.  I'm 49 years old, much too young to feel this way.  And because of those aches and pains, it is difficult for me to sleep.  To make things worse, I recently developed an allergy (hives!) to all NSAIDS (Advil, Aleve, aspirin, etc.).  So I'm going to reduce my inflammation by diet!   Of course, I'd also like to shed a few pounds (I could stand to lose probably 25). 

 

Along with this W30, I'm going to try to walk a little every day.  I have a FitBit, but I'm not going to set a specific "steps per day" goal, but simply to just walk a little every day. 

 

I did a W30 in July 2012, and what turned out to be a W24 in January 2013.  I have a really hard time "riding my own bike", and generally tumble back into my bad habits fairly quickly.  But each time I do this, I think I get a little better about making good choices.  And at least a couple of healthy adjustments have stuck with me for the long run (like cooking with coconut oil, or having eggs/V8 for breakfast instead of a latte and scone).  But in all honesty, I have been waaaay off track for a long time. 

 

This morning, I had a good breakfast, and my plan for the day is to do a little meal planning and grocery shopping.  And of course, walk a little. 

 

Here we go!!  I'm excited!   :D

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I love my FitBit, too, Hutlifr!  I got my daughter one for Christmas, and she is kicking my butt already!  She works at Macy's women's shoes department, and has been chasing around like crazy because of the post-holiday shopping (12,000 steps at work on Friday!).  

 

Okay, update -- I'm on Day 3, and going strong!   Here's a summary of my last two days:

 

Day 1:

Breakfast - leftover veggies from Xmas Eve make-your-own-pizza night, sauteed in coconut oil, and fried eggs

Lunch - leftover shredded chicken, steamed asparagus, artichoke hearts, and olives from same pizza event, with a pear

Snacks - La Croix sparkling water, cashews, and later carrots and guacamole

Dinner - Siva's Cauliflower and Meatballs (from Mediterranean Paleo cookbook) -- DELICIOUS

 

15508559754_46145461fb.jpgDay 1

 

Day 2:

Breakfast - fried eggs, leftover fruit salad, avocado, supergreens sauteed with slice of well-sourced bacon**

Snack - La Croix sparkling water, banana

Lunch - leftover meatballs/cauliflower (looks gross in the mason jar just out of the fridge but still SOO good!)

Snack - dried pineapple

Dinner - roast beef (New Seasons, made in house, compliant!), sauteed veggies, mixed greens with olive oil, red wine vinegar, dijon, and sparkling water with a splash of grapefruit juice (made with Sodastream, xmas gift!)

Later - cup of peppermint tea

 

**Okay, about the bacon.  It is well-sourced (Wellshire Farms) but non-compliant.  It was leftover from Christmas breakfast, and it is a weakness - I love this stuff, and couldn't bear to throw it away.  I am not resetting to day one, but I did put the rest in the freezer to avoid further temptation. :unsure:

 

16130142762_315a3e4653.jpgDay2

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Three days in and it's smooth sailing so far.  I had a small headache last night, but feel just fine today.  Back to work tomorrow, which will be a whole new ballgame. I'll set my alarm early so I have plenty of time to have breakfast and get my lunch and snacks packed for the day.  Oh -- I'm going to boil some eggs tonight!   Great for grab and go if I don't roll out of bed early enough to cook a "proper" breakfast. 

 

This morning, I made some homemade ghee, and so .... I treated myself to bulletproof coffee.  Mmmmmm.  I don't make bulletproof coffee often, because it involves dragging out (and then cleaning) my blender. :blink:  But it was soooo worth it this morning. Total decadence!  And I'll be glad to have the ghee on hand to change things up from the coconut and olive oils. 

 

15947716969_ab7d26b8af_m.jpgBulletproof coffee!

 

16133049862_173c153a7d_m.jpgHomemade ghee

 

Okay, so here's my Day 3 food log:

Breakfast: Egg scramble with a bunch of veggies, avocado, and a banana (& bulletproof coffee!)

Lunch:  Big green salad with roast beef, veggies, and olives (dressed w olive oil/red wine vinegar/dijon) -- (note: I put those grapes in a bowl, but was so full from the salad I only ate two of them)

Snacks:  Cashews and a tiny bit of dried pineapple, peppermint tea 

Dinner:  Still mowing down on my leftover meatballs/cauliflower! 

I had dinner reeeaaally early (like 5:30 early), so I'll probably have a small snack a little later.  Maybe those grapes that I didn't eat at lunch... ?

 

15511139374_d7ed2a00de.jpgDay 3

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Update:  9:30pm, and even though I had dinner four hours ago, I'm actually not hungry at all.  I'm sipping a cup of peppermint tea, and ready to crawl in bed super early with my book, so I can get up super early and go to work.  Night all! 

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Romesco sauce!  I made romesco sauce for dinner, and will enjoy it for the rest of the week (or until when it runs out!)  One of my favorites  :wub:

 

Day 4 was uneventful.  I had a bit of afternoon craving -- it seems usually around 2:30-4:00 I want to snack on something, especially when I'm at work.  And it can't be hunger, because it's less than two hours after I finished a big lunch.  I did bring a snack to work today, but ate it before lunch :ph34r: , so I settled for a cup of tea and it got me through until dinnertime. 

 

Breakfast - fried eggs, sauteed veggies, blob of guac

Snack - cashews and dried pineapple

Lunch - (forgot to take a pic) leftover meatballs/cauliflower soup**, simple green salad w olive oil/vinegar/dijon, a few green olives

Dinner - pork medallions with romesco sauce, steamed broccoli with ghee

 

** So much of my menu is so repetitive, but I actually don't mind eating the same thing over and over.   There's only one small jar of the meatball/cauliflower soup left in the fridge.  Maybe I will eat that for breakfast tomorrow instead of eggs and veggies, just to shake things up.  Haha! 

 

15523824413_474a60f249_z.jpgDay 4

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Day 5 went pretty well, although I did get another small headache this morning.  I had a cup of black coffee, and felt better within half an hour or so.  Caffeine withdrawal?  Typically, I have three or so cups of coffee a day, but mostly give it up during a Whole30 because I like my coffee with cream.  Since Thursday morning, I have only had two coffees on Sunday (bulletproof), and the one today.  So I chalk the headaches up mostly to caffeine withdrawal. 

 

I'm finding that, during the work week, my two toughest times of the day are the first moments after I get home (when I am in the habit of pouring a glass of wine), and the period of time after the kitchen is clean and before bed (when I also am in the habit of having a glass of wine, or two...)  My craving isn't miserably intense, but I definitely miss it.  Hoping I settle into new evening routines that stick post-30. 

 

Okay, Day 5 menu.  I think I might be light on veggies, but then again, that is actually a big pile of power greens with breakfast (they start out so big, and sautee down so small!).  And same with the sauerkraut -- if that was fresh cabbage, it would be a big pile!  So maybe I'm all right.  Turns out I do not like these hot dogs (which is maybe a good thing) - I ate one and a half, and only ate that much because I didn't want to be hungry later.   Oh, and I added a healthy serving of squash with dinner, because I've been having trouble sleeping.  Seems like I saw someone post something about having some starchy carbs at dinner to help with sleep.  We'll see!  

 

Oh, and one more thing ... I'm going to wean myself off the afternoon snack, soon.  I realize snacks (when necessary) are technically supposed to be more like mini-meals, and mine, while food-compliant are not template-compliant.  But I'm forgiving myself for these first few days just until I get better in the swing of eating the right amount at meals.  :P

 

Breakfast - Eggs, power greens & onions sauteed in olive oil, avocado

Lunch - Leftover pork medallions with romesco sauce, broccoli, a few baby carrots and olives

Snack - Cashews & dried pineapple, banana, La Croix sparkling water

Dinner - (compliant but gross) hot dogs, sauerkraut, 1/2 delicata squash w/ghee

 

15532835973_570abcb6be_c.jpgDay 5

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Thanks, Padrye and Lainey for the comments!  I like to keep a photo log of my food.  Somehow seeing the whole day in a photo helps me look at it critically -- like, am i having enough veggies?  Am I eating enough?  Or even remembering back, "that was good, I should make it again!" 

 

Why oh why did I choose to do my Whole30 over New Years Eve?  My daughter's friends are coming over here for a drink or two before they head out to celebrate NYE at a bar  (they have a DD), and I'll be sipping on my fizzy water with cranberry/blueberry juice (compliant).  I can do this. But man, I will want to have a couple drinks with them.  Strong, I am strong.  I will sleep like a baby tonight, because I was strong.

 

Okay, Day 6 was another success (assuming I don't cave into temptation when the mixed drinks start happening!) 

 

Breakfast - Fried eggs, sauteed veggies

Lunch - green salad with roast beef, snap peas, yellow peppers, olive oil/vinegar

Snack - a few cashews

Dinner - roast chilcken quarter, sweet potato/zucchini fritters cooked in ghee (yum!), and roasted asparagus/mushrooms

And a couple of sparkling water/cran/blueberry juice.

 

Onward to day 7!

 

16159529031_57c24d2531_c.jpgDay 6 by eabeeb1

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Yes, your pics look amazing! 

 

I hope you were able to make it through this very difficult night! Especially when there will be people drinking in front of you! 

 

I am like you in the way that I generally give up coffee during a Whole 30 because I LOVE cream in my coffee. I would rather not drink it at all. How do you make your bulletproof coffee? I have tried before but have not liked it AT ALL. I don't think I was making it properly.

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Thanks, Shelley!  I made it through last night, but it was honestly a struggle.  I self-talked myself like crazy --

 

Wine Dragon:  "It's New Years Eve! I hardly ever get a chance to hang out with my daughter's friends, it would be SOO fun to just have a couple of drinks with them!"   [Daughter has been away at college the last four years, and just moved home last fall]

 

Strong Ann:  "Why do you need to have a couple of drinks with them to have fun?  You could be an example to these young folks (and yourself) on having fun without drinking!"

 

Wine Dragon (after everyone is gone and the house is quiet):  "You could have just one glass of wine, and no one would even know.  It's New Years Eve, relax a little!  You don't have to tell anyone."

 

Strong Ann:  "That one glass of wine will reset the six days you have put in so far.  Why bother doing this if you aren't REALLY going to do it?  You will feel good about yourself tomorrow if you don't."

 

LOL!!!   I didn't.  Honestly, I didn't.  And I feel great today, as I begin DAY 7!

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Bulletproof coffee -- this is how I make it:

 

  • Brew pot of coffee (I use high quality coffee beans)
  • Put a cup of hot coffee in blender, and add big spoonful of ghee & coconut oil (I use just a tad shy of a tablespoon of each).
  • Blend until emulsified.  I have a Ninja blender, which is pretty strong, using the single-serve cup thing, and it only takes a couple seconds.
  • Add some spices if you want, and give it another whir.  i.e. cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla, cocoa powder [best to avoid cocoa if you are overcoming a chocolate addiction]...
  • Top with cinnamon and/or nutmeg, if you want.

 

Okay -- so this morning, I made a cup to have with breakfast.  I put both cinnamon and vanilla in it, and topped it with a little nutmeg.  I had never made it with the nutmeg before, and wow -- it reminds me SO much of a Starbucks eggnog latte!  Which is one of my weaknesses during the holidays - most years I try to limit myself to maybe two of them.  Maybe the nutmeg turned my bulletproof coffee into SWYPO?   Or maybe it wasn't ever the eggnog I loved so much, but the nutmeg??  Sooo good though.

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AWESOMENESS!!  So, I'm meeting two girlfriends at a pub where they make awesome nachos to celebrate my friend's 50th birthday.  The birthday girl specifically requested this place -- it's sort of a dive place, and we used to go in there in our *much* younger years and drink beer and have nachos all the time.  So it's sort of a nostalgic thing.  I called the pub just now and told them I was on a strict diet plan, and asked if it would be okay for me to bring a salad from home and have that while my friends enjoyed a nacho. They said no prob!!   Yay!!  I was worried it might be awkward (not to mention difficult) to sip iced tea and watch the two of them eat the nacho.  

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Ann I LOVE your Blog!!!

Today (Jan 1) is my first time,,,and I am so motivated when I see the photos of your meals.

Not a boring thing there!

 

Please allow me to ride along during your W30,,,as I learn from you.

Thanks!

AJ

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Thanks, AJ!  Hope your Day 1 is going well!  

 

My girlfriends' lunch went well today -- I'm glad I thought to call ahead and was able to bring my lunch along.  The salad on their menu was shredded iceberg lettuce, sorry looking tomatoes, shredded cheddar, olives, and an array of totally non-compliant dressings! Notice the remains of the nacho behind my salad bowl (birthday girl made good work of that!), and further back, tater tots!  

 

15982997369_d391cf6681_n.jpgNacho lunch w the girls!

16143733696_c0e738d7e1_n.jpg10897825_10203329785546432_8386927861662467520_n

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Ann - have you tried kombucha?  May be too much of a SWYPO but its a tasty alternative to other alcoholic bubblies your pals are drinking :)

 

You bulletproof coffees look delicious... as does that meatball and cauli soup - I'll have to check out that cookbook!

 

Also, how do you add those pictures?  Techno-challenged here and I can't figure it out.  Thanks!

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Every time I've tried kombucha, I get a slimy thing in it, and it totally grosses me out!  I do like the flavor, but have a fear of slime... I have a local market that has three (rotating) kinds of kombucha on tap (to fill growlers).  I have yet to try these, all I've tried is what comes in a jar.  Any suggestions for getting over the slime??

 

Photos - It took me a bit to figure this out, too.  I upload my photos to Flickr, then click on the photo, then in the lower right corner choose "share" and then copy the BB code (after deciding on the size you want the photo to be).  Then paste that code into your post.  Wha-la! 

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Think of it as a slimy probiotic :)  That is the good-for-you part!

 

I've gotten a few surprises drinking GTs in a bottle with a little mini SCOBY... I love the stuff so much though it doesn't bother me.  Growler varieties will be slime free though - only the sealed bottles get slime because a baby SCOBY starts to grow.  

 

Thanks for the tips about the photos, I'll try that.

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Made it through my first week - Day #7 was another success!

 

I re-read the Sugar = Sugar = Sugar post (http://whole9life.com/2010/06/sugar-sugar-sugar/) earlier tonight, and realized that adding a splash of 100% fruit juice to my sparkling water is pushing the limits of what is allowable.  I'm not going to do that anymore.  :blink:  And speaking of sugar, why the heck won't my kids (20 and 22 yrs old) polish off the last of the Christmas candy?  I'm about to throw the darned stuff away!

 

15548938244_59036031d2_m.jpgUntitled

 

Okay, here's my food for Day 7 --

Breakfast - believe it or not, I was not in the mood for eggs!  Roast beef, sweet potato/zucchini fritter, and romesco sauce, and a cup of bulletproof coffee

Lunch - green salad with veggies, avocado, a few green olives, and roast beef (dressed with olive oil/vinegar)

Snack - cashews, and sparkling water with a splash of (100%, but still naughty) blueberry/cranberry juice

Dinner - boneless skinless chicken thighs (which turned out icky), and cabbage and onions sauteed in ghee (which turned out great -- I ate a half a head of cabbage (!), and tossed most of the chicken)

 

16169373231_f5736cd1c2.jpgDay 7 - one week down!

 

Onward to Week 2.  Happy New Year, everyone! 

Ann

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I woke up ravenous this morning (lack of protein with dinner last night, no doubt).  So I made a 3-egg super greens omelet (I usually only have two eggs), and leftover cabbage, and bulletproof coffee (my day-off breakfast treat).  I've always sort of thought I *should* be eating three eggs instead of two -- my hands are average sized, you know?  But I had to push myself to get even halfway thru the omelet and cabbage before I couldn't take another bite. And at that point, I had only sipped a little of the coffee, so that wasn't "displacing" my regular meal.  (I am continuing to sip on the coffee though, as I type this). 

 

Usually, I'm just fine downing a decent sized breakfast.  But yesterday, I totally did not want eggs (which is weird for me), and today, I just had a smaller appetite than usual.  I wonder if this is some hormonal type changes going on as my body figures out its healthy rhythm? 

 

16150261286_40641c6362_m.jpgDay 8 breakfast

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Try this with chicken thighs.  Yum!  Skip the siracha and add some sesame oil and fish sauce.  Goes great with cauli fried rice.  I think we eat this twice a week sometimes - not counting left overs!

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I am a fellow egg lover, and I also can't manage to eat more than two in a single meal! All your food looks so good. I've never thought bulletproof coffee sounded appealing before, but your pictures make it looks so great I might just have to try it tomorrow!

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