Jessica's Whole30 Log

[JessXU00]

Hi everyone,

 

I started my third attempt at Whole30 yesterday, but wanted to wait until today to post about it.  A little about me:  I'm a 36 year triathlete living in South Miami (I just moved here a couple months ago for a new job).  In the past when I've attempted Whole30 I've made it about two weeks in and then gave into temptations because I figured 'I have it under control' - wrong!!  I've been working with a new triathlon coach since I moved to Miami and she has been encouraging me to slay my sugar demons in order to achieve some of the performance goals I have in mind.  After over-indulging in the holiday festivities and looking at a couple of big events coming up in the next few months, I figured now is a great time to finally complete my first Whole30.  

 

My two biggest concerns are all the prep that needs to happen in order to be successful and managing my cravings so I actually eat the food I prepare.  I'm going to try to create some make-ahead and freezable meals this week (while I have time) that I can easily pull out, and I'm going to try to try some new recipes that I haven't made before to keep myself interested in the food.  I have Well Fed 2 and I'm getting Nom Nom Paleo's cookbook on Friday (from Amazon), and I have Well Fed on my Kindle.  I'm going to treat this month as an opportunity to discover new spices and new foods.

 

Day 1

Pre-workout: Bulletproof coffee.  I know we're supposed to have fat and protein (and liquid food is not encouraged), but I have been struggling ​so much with my pre- and post-workout nutrition since I started with my new coach.  I think I finally found a formula that works for me, and it's compliant, so I'm going to stick with it for now.  I will add some Great Lakes Gelatin to my coffee tomorrow morning, though.  I make my coffee with a tablespoon of ghee for each cup, coconut milk and a tablespoon of MCT oil.  I used to put a few drops of vanilla stevia in it, but didn't do that today.  It's going to take some getting used to  .

 

Workout: Rode 90' with 3x10' big gear intervals.

 

Post-workout:  Smoothie with coconut milk (from a can!), couple leaves of kale, matcha powder, super greens powder, Great Lakes Gelatin, tbsp of almond butter, cinnamon and salt.  I also used to put vanilla stevia in this, but didn't today.  This recipe has way fewer carbs than I'm used to, which is something I monitor.  So far, I feel like I've been recovering well with it, but it is something I watch closely to see if I need more carbs (like berries or and apple or something).

 

Breakfast (9:15): Three eggs scrambled, Applegate turkey and apple sausage

 

This is when the day started to go south.  I knew I was fighting something the last few weeks, and I guess with all the travel and celebrations (i.e., wine, beer and sugar!), and then with the hard workout in the morning, it caught up with me.  I ended up going home from work because I couldn't focus or do anything, so I went home and took a nap for a few hours.

 

Lunch (2pm): Shrimp ceviche salad with avocado from My Cerviche (picked up on the way home).  I threw out the corn and sweet potato that came with it.  (love, love, love ceviche, but I definitely need to make sure there's avocado in it because otherwise there's not a lot of fat)

 

Was supposed to do a tempo run after work, but that wasn't happening. 

 

Dinner (6:30pm):  Homemade egg salad (three hard boiled eggs, homemade mayo, little cayenne), turkey burger with salsa and 1/2 avocado.  Loved this egg salad!!  This is going to be one of my go-tos.  I love salads like this, like tuna or chicken salad, and it was so easy to make.  I think I might hard boil a dozen eggs to have on hand throughout the week.

 

Snack:  Was starving while watching TV so I had a handful of cashews.

 

Went to bed late, around 11 pm, but there was plenty of dozing on the couch.  My normal bedtime is 9pm (then up at 5 am).

 

Best of luck to everyone who is starting, continuing or finishing their Whole30 now!  I look forward to sharing this journey with everyone and learning from your successes.

[Tom Denham]

You need lean protein after a workout and no fat. And you need starchy veggies as carbs given your training program. It is no surprise that you were hungry at night. You need more protein and a lot more veggies in your day. Study our meal template and see where you can make some adjustments: 

 

http://whole30.com/downloads/whole30-meal-planning.pdf

[JessXU00]

Thanks, I appreciate the insight.  I realized this morning that I didn't have any veggies with dinner last night, so I got some at the store this morning.  I have some sweet potato soup in the fridge, too.

 

I'm trying to drop a few pounds, so trying to limit my carbs as much as I can while still maintaining good recovery.  I think I can get the veggies in by focusing on leafy greens and notsomany root veggies, unless timed appropriately.  I'm realizing that part of my issue is not only figuring out what to eat, but when as well.

 

I work with a coach who has helped me craft my pre- and post-workout nutrition, but I'll see about adding more protein.  (I'm getting about 22 grams in my kale/coconut milk smoothie).  I had a metabolic efficiency test done earlier this year that showed a strong reliance on carbs, so we're trying to shift me towards being more of a fat burner.  

[JessXU00]

Happy New Year all!

 

My Day 2 didn't start out great; I think I have a low-grade flu.  I'm not achy and don't have a stuffy nose, but I'm absolutely exhausted and fatigued, my head has a dull ache to it, my chest is congested, chills/sweats and my appetite is nonexistent.  All this seems consistent with a flu diagnosis, but it's not like I'm incapacitated. (I also feel like I'm a bad judge of symptom severity)  I went to the grocery store yesterday morning (good idea) and again in the afternoon (bad idea).  The afternoon run was to get some natural immune boosters a friend recommended, and I went because I really (really!!) want to get better ASAP.  It took me 20 minutes to find parking and I ended up parking on the street!  Crazy NYE grocery shoppers.  10 am was much nicer in the Whole Foods.  That's the only activity I did yesterday...the rest was spent on the couch.

 

Food wise, I was craving comfort food yesterday afternoon and evening, but I guess it's a good thing that I was so out of it because I couldn't fathom going out to the store to get any!  I don't keep non-compliant food in my house, so I was out of luck (I live alone).

 

I am beyond bummed that I've had to spend these two perfectly good days off work sitting on my bum doing absolutely nothing.  I was so looking forward to getting some great workouts in, cooking great food and making progress on a few projects.  There's nothing I can do about it except try to get better ASAP, though.  If anyone has ideas, I'm all ears.

 

Day 2 Food

Breakfast (9am-ish):  Bulletproof coffee with ghee, MCT oil, coconut milk and Gelatin powder.  Two eggs scrambled with spinach and 3/4 turkey and apple sausage (I actually made three eggs, but I couldn't get the third one down - was too full)

 

Snack (noontime):  Orange, handful of cashews

 

Late lunch (3:45 ish):  Leftover shrimp stir-fry with jicama, green pepper, red pepper, diced cashews and coconut flakes.

 

Dinner (7:30 ish):  Turkey burger with three-egg salad with homemade mayo, cup of sweet potato soup.  Had a Kombucha and cup of Echinacea tea (the tea was also a Whole Foods afternoon purchase because I forgot it when I went in the morning).

 

I only had the orange because I wanted to vitamin C in it, although it was quite tasty.  Today I'm hoping to make the 'Best Chicken Ever' from Melissa Joulwan, as I brined the chicken yesterday so I just need to grill it today.  I also want to make some marinara sauce (from Well Fed 2) and hard boil more eggs.

 

Hope everyone's New Year is off to a great start!  Good luck to everyone who is starting your Whole30 today!

 

 

[littleg]

What are you training for?  I can't imagine doing a 90 minute ride this time of year - I'm in UPSNY.  I think its 7 degrees out right now  Keep logging about your training - I like reading those details - especially from triathletes and crossfitters

 

Good luck with the next 28 days!

[JessXU00]

I feel your pain, I'm originally from Syracuse. I'm all too familiar with those cold and snowy months! My most immediate race coming up in Florida 70.3, but my big race for the year is Ironman Florida in November. I've got some Olympic and sprint races plugged in between, but those are my focus. I've never done such an early season race, so it's strting to dawn on me that I need to start getting serious about my prep.

Thanks!

[JessXU00]

I'm going to do my Day 3 recap now because I think I'll forget everything by tomorrow morning, when I return to reality (work). 

 

I was feeling so bad this morning; really, worse than I've felt in a long time.  I was reading online and lots of folks were saying to take Vitamin C, so I hauled myself out to the store around noon to get some.  I got a bottle with 500 mg pills, and I've been taking one every hour or so.  I fell asleep for a nap around 2 or so, and when I woke up, I felt so much better.  I even had enough energy to bake my chicken and make my marinara sauce.  I kept up with my Oscillo, Vitamin D, Fish Oil, Echinacea (which I have to look up how to spell every time I write it) tea with cinnamon, and drank so. much. water.  Seriously.  So. Much. Water.  

 

I just hope it keeps up tomorrow.  My throat is starting to get a little sore, but I'd rather have that than the fatigue I had.  I have a race next weekend in Naples, so I'm hoping I'll be ok for that.  I've got to be careful not to overdo it because I feel better (I tend to do that!).  I think it's probably going to take at least a week to get back to normal.

 

Day 3 Eats

 

Was not hungry at all today, so not a whole lot here.

 

Wake-up (7 am): Bulletproof coffee with ghee, MCT oil, coconut cream.  

 

Breakfast (10 am): Three eggs scrambled with spinach and diced up chicken.

 

Tea, water, vitamins, oh my.  Had an orange and a handful of cashews around noontime, too.

 

Dinner (6:30 pm):  Italian marinara sauce from Well Fed 2 and spaghetti squash.  More tea.  That sauce is really, really good.  It called for pork chops and Italian sausage, but I didn't have any sausage (or, I thought I did but it turned out I didn't), so I just used ground beef instead.  It still turned out ok because I turned up some of the spices, but I think it would out of this world with the sausage.  It would add that little spice that it needs.

 

Edited to add: Snack (8 pm-ish):  Little bit of egg salad

 

I'm sitting on my couch watching the Anthony Bourdain marathon on CNN and drooling over all the foods.  They're in Peru now and it's just amazing.  I want to know how to cook it all!!  So many colors and flavors.  Anthony Bourdain is my absolute favorite.  I could watch his shows all day.

 

Happy New Year!

[JessXU00]

I feel like I'm finally climbing out of the woods with this thing!  I feel a million times better this morning than I did yesterday morning (when I ended up calling into work sick).  From what my experience has been, the mornings are the worst.  Knowing that, I took 1000 mg of vitamin C last night before bed, hoping that might help with the morning woes, and perhaps it did.  I actually have some energy and don't feel the need to curl back up in a ball and hibernate for the next year!

 

Still no training today, but I am going to de-germ my apartment.  Really good - laundry, floors, spray dusting.  I'll probably look through some recipes to make for the upcoming week and go to the farmers market as well.  No training today, but maybe something light tomorrow.  In reality, I'd love to train today, but I'm scared to death of a set-back so I'm erring on the side of caution.  I lost a week of workouts this week, and next week won't be too much better as I ease back into things.  I have that race next weekend which it looks like my coach had me mini-tapering for, but I'm going to ask if I can screw the taper and go right through it.  It's a sprint distance, so I don't think there's a great need to rest prior.  My expectations are fully in check for what that might mean in my race results; I'm more focused on the big picture now.

 

Speaking of which, I got a nice email from USA Triathlon earlier this week saying that I qualified for the Age Group Nationals based on my top age group finish at the Key West Tri a few weeks ago.  The race is in Minneapolis, so I'm not going, but it's always nice to be invited. 

 

Food wise, my appetite is back...and so are the cravings!  Yesterday (my day 4) was tough.  I had two dinners and ate more fruit than I'd like to in any given day.  Fruit is how I give into the sugar monster when I can't have 'real' snackies, so I try and keep it to the bare minimum, especially in the beginning.  I used the fish test more than once yesterday - am I hungry enough to eat boiled fish and steamed broccoli?  A couple times I was, so I ate.  I think it was my appetite coming back, so I just did what my hunger was asking it to.

 

I've been working a lot on mindful eating and trying to pay attention to my body's natural hunger cues, even before I started this Whole30.  I did a horrible job of it over the holidays, but since then I've been making an attempt to 1) Ask myself if I'm really hungry or if my 'hunger' is just a craving or some other type of emotion masquerading as hunger and 2) Eating slowly and learning when I'm full.  I noticed I was eating so fast - it was just another thing to check off my 'to-do' list.  I wasn't enjoying the experience, or thinking about it at all.  By slowing down, I'm learning to enjoy the flavors and taste more, and eating more reasonable portions.  It's a work in progress, but I've found that it's opening me up to new foods so I can experience the new flavors.

 

Day 4 Eats

 

Wake-up (7 am): Bulletproof coffee with ghee, MCT oil, coconut milk, cinnamon.  

 

Breakfast (not until 11 am or so!): Turkey burger with egg salad, cup of cherries about 30 minutes after that

 

Lunch (1:30 pm):  Two turkey hot dogs with mayo, sweet potato soup (no bacon in mine)

 

Dinner #1 (4 pm):  Spaghetti squash with marinara sauce, sautéed spinach

 

Dinner #2 (7 pm): Another turkey burger with egg salad, apple with almond butter for dessert

 

Snack (8:30 pm): handful of cashews

 

I wonder if waiting so late for breakfast caused me to be so hungry, but I don't think so.  I really think it's just me getting better.  My energy came back around noontime, and I think I just finally turned a corner with this flu.  Now...it's time for reality and Whole30.  Yikes!

 

One thing I've got to figure out is how to get more veggies into my menu.  I think I need to make a couple of side dishes that I can throw with anything, or make sure I have enough greens to sauté for the week.  I'll probably go that route, just try and get some greens in with every meal.

 

To do for this weekend:

• Meal plan for the week ahead
  • Breakfast
  • Lunch
  • Dinner
  • Emergency snacks (I keep packets of nut butter at work, so that might end up being my emergency snack)
• Clean my apartment!!
• Laundry
• Grocery shop
• Cook foods

[JessXU00]

Good morning from South Florida everyone!  Today is the last day of 'break' (sick break/vacation break); back to the grind/reality tomorrow.  I'm planning a massive cooking day today, and I would love to get some exercise in, either a walk or a quick ride.  I also need to figure out my re-introduction into training.  I'm supposed to swim tomorrow morning, so that sounds good to me.  Low key, low intensity, low heart rate.  I'm just so freaked out about a set-back.  

 

I finally found some bones yesterday and made bone broth, which I guess should help prevent any set-backs.  I'm going to keep about 4 cups out and freeze the rest.  It smells delicious - I can't wait to try some!

 

I made out my meal plans for the week yesterday and shopped for everything.  This is the most detailed I've ever been about meal planning, and I hope it works. I think in the past I always got bored with the food and the cravings were just too much to manage, which almost happened last night.  I was dying for a piece of bread or something crusty and crunchy, but of course I didn't have anything in the house, and thankfully I'm too lazy to go get something.  My appetite has been really weird lately.  I had a really small lunch, but it was because I seriously couldn't stomach another mouthful of food - I was stuffed!  I think part of it was because the chicken was a little dry, and avocado is kind of bland.  Because I was so stuffed, I ended up having a bigger than normal snack (I know I'm not supposed to, but I was really hungry!).  Trying to get a grip on my actual hunger and stick to plan is tough!  I think the spices, especially salt and pepper, are going to be really key to me staying interested in food.

 

My mom is doing her first Whole30 attempt this month too.  I'm so proud of her.  She's on Day 4 now, and she said yesterday was a tough day.  She eats healthy, but my parents have always had a lot of whole grains and sweets around the house.  She was getting some of the withdrawal symptoms yesterday, so I had to remind her that sugar is a drug that's just as addictive as heroin.  It's tough to quit, and once you do you have to be really careful with re-introduction.  I attached a pic of us at the Philly Marathon a few years ago.  I think I did the half while my sister and brother-in-law did the full, so while we were waiting on them to finish we did the tourist thing with Rocky.  

 

Day 5 Eats

 

Wake-up (7 am): Bulletproof coffee with ghee, MCT oil, coconut milk, cinnamon.

 

Breakfast (8:30 am):  Three eggs scrambled with ghee, spinach; turkey and apple sausage

 

Lunch (1 pm):  Was starving when I finally sat down for lunch, but didn't eat much.  Had chicken breast, 1/2 avocado and a few spoonfuls of sweet potato soup.

 

Snack (3 pm): Cherries, whole bunch of pistachios 

 

Dinner (7 pm):  Sweet potato and almond butter, egg salad.  Nothing sounded good, so I just went for comfort.  Stayed compliant, which is my main goal.

 

In terms of productivity, I managed to do 4 loads of laundry, meal plan and clean the apartment.  Today is a cooking fest.  I also had a binge watching episode of season 4 of Parenthood.   It's vacation!

 

Meal Plan for the Week of January 5-11

 

Breakfast:

• Egg casserole with mushrooms, spinach, pepperoni

Main Meals (need 14 options)

• Chicken salad (3-4 servings)
• Marinara and spaghetti squash (with spinach) (4 servings)
• Steak stir fry (2 servings)
• Shrimp stuffed salmon (2-3 servings)

Side dishes

• Cauliflower rice (over the stir fry, or marinara sauce)
• Brussel sprouts with pecans
• Spinach
• Sweet potato soup
• Zucchini noodles

Supplements:

• Fish oil
• Wellness Formula
• Probiotic

Snacks:

• Cherries
• Cashews
• Macadamia nuts
• Nut butter
• Apples

Pre-workout:

• Hard boiled eggs
• 1/2 Avocado
• Bulletproof coffee (if I do HB egg/avocado, I’ll just take my coffee to work with coconut milk)

Post-workout:

• Kale, coconut milk, gelatin, supergreens, matcha powder, maca powder
  • Include MCT oil if no bulletproof coffee in the AM

[JessXU00]

Another day in the books.  I feel like I am 95% recovered from the flu now.  I went on a longish walk yesterday morning (about 50 minutes), and felt a little queasy afterwards, but that could have been because it was hot and humid and I'm probably still dehydrated (even though I drink so. much. water.)  As I sit here and write this at 6:30 am, normally I'd be halfway through a swim workout, but swim sessions don't start until next week, and this girl (two thumbs pointed at myself) had some struggles getting out of bed and back to reality this morning.  I just have a short swim session, so I'll get it in after work.  I don't think the pool will be too crowded with students still on break.  

 

(Sleep has never been a big issue for me, and it's not something I'm expecting too many gains with during Whole30 because it's already pretty good.  I get 8 hours a night and sleep through the night.  This is (I think) because I'm so tired from working and training during the day)

 

Cravings were a little rough yesterday, but I thought better than they had been.  I had a kombucha in the afternoon while I was cooking that helped.  I didn't have lunch because I just wasn't hungry for it.  I'm still struggling to figure out my hunger cues and eat enough so that I'm satiated until my next meal, without overeating.  I think that's what I'm most afraid of - I don't want to overeat.  I make it a point to stop when I'm full, but sometimes that means that I'm hungry again in a few hours.  I guess that means I need to look at the meal template again and adjust the macronutrients of my meals?

 

I've found this Whole30 to be much more intense than my other experiences.  I feel so much more aware of the combinations of foods than I have been in the past and how they're working to make me satiated, if they're appetizing, and much more focused on improving my general eating experience.  This gets to years of a not broken, but not totally healthy relationship with food (even though that sounds like a Dr. Oz show [who I'm not a big fan of]).  I think this is exactly what Whole30 is supposed to help with, and one of the reasons I was excited to give it another shot.

 

I'm so not looking forward to getting back to reality today.  Particularly because I know it's another year until I get this break again.  I don't want to repeat break with the flu, but I don't mind being a lady of leisure at all. 

 

Day 6 Eats

 

6:30 am: Bulletproof coffee with ghee, MCT oil, coconut milk, cinnamon.

 

Breakfast: 10 am (after my walk):  Three eggs scrambled with greens mix, chicken and apple sausage, bowl of sweet potato soup

 

Snack (2 pm): Cherries and pistachios

 

Kombucha while cooking, around 4:30-5.

 

Dinner (6:30 pm): Steak stir fry with peppers and onions.  OMG.  Love.  I marinated the steak for a few hours in olive oil and this key lime balsamic vinegar I got in Key West a few weeks ago.  Absolutely delicious.  I poured everything from the steak bag into my cast iron to brown the steak, scooped it out and then sautéed the veggies in the steak sauce (with some salt and pepper), and added some coconut oil to grease up the pan a bit more.  This was one of the best meals I've had in a while.  I can't wait to have leftovers for lunch!

 

Some tea after dinner.

 

The coconut oil I keep above my stove seems to be in permanent liquid stage now.  I guess that's from all the cooking I've been doing?  I'll check it again tonight after I've been gone all day.

[JessXU00]

To say that I am frustrated with being 'under the weather' is the understatement of this (very young) year.  I am so sick of being sick.  I was feeling so much better this weekend, but around 11 am at work I started to plummet; my ears were killing me, my throat was starting to get sore, coughing, and the fatigue was back.  I ended up going to the Employee Clinic to see a nurse practitioner during my lunch, where she diagnosed me with a *(&$ing sinus infection.  

 

Before I moved to Miami, I spent about half of the year with a chronic sinus infection (spring and fall).  It was infuriating, and one of the biggest reasons I took this job (I never had allergy problems until I moved to Delaware).  I couldn't handle it anymore.  I can handle feeling lousy, but the fatigue that comes with it means no training, no nothing, except work.  I go to work and spend all my non-working hours so drained from it that it's all I can do to just sit on the couch and get ready for another work day.  I hated it, as I hate it right now.

 

They gave me Claritin and nose spray (the same stuff I had in Delaware), and also a saline nose spray to keep stuff moist.  Apparently my nose is ridiculously swollen inside.  I know there's nothing I can do about it now except wait it out, rest, hydrate, etc., but I can't even begin to share how upset and frustrated I am about this.  Thank God I've got this Whole30 to keep me on my toes, otherwise a) the infection could have been worse and at least I'm doing something to help my performance.

 

I had my strongest craving/temptation yesterday at the CVS when I was picking up my prescriptions.  I was so pissed off, frustrated, angry, etc. about having to be there to pick up this stuff, and I walked into all the Valentine chocolate displays.  Normally, I would have picked up a bag of peanut butter M&Ms or other chocolate stuff to 'make me feel better', but I held strong and resisted.  That stuff isn't going to make me feel better.  I came home and finished binge watching the season 4 of Parenthood and went to bed.

 

Day 7 eats (it's been one whole week!!)

 

6am: Bulletproof coffee with ghee, MCT oil, coconut milk, cinnamon.

 

Breakfast (9:15 am):  Egg frittata with shredded sweet potato, chicken sausage and rainbow chard.  I made enough of this for the entire week, so this will re-appear every day.

 

Lunch (1 pm): Leftover steak stir fry with a bit of sweet potato soup

 

Snack (3 pm): Cashew butter lara bar

 

Dinner (6:30 pm):  Chicken salad with my best chicken ever mixed with celery and pecans on a bed of greens.  Kombucha to satisfy my sweet tooth.

 

I really had hoped I could talk about training more in this blogish thing, but maybe in a few days.  Particularly now, I think I might extend my Whole30 to Whole45, as I have a big training camp the weekend of Feb 18-22 that I want to be in tip-top shape for.  I feel like I haven't had a good opportunity yet to figure out how this way of eating can become routine in my actual lifestyle, and I know I need at least a month to get it figured out.

[littleg]

Sorry about the sinus infection  Hope you feel better soon!  

 

One of my crossfit coaches swore he never got sick once he started eating raw garlic every day... 

[JessXU00]

I read that somewhere, about dicing up some garlic very finely.  I just don't know if I can stomach it!  Maybe later today I'll work up the courage to try again.  Thanks for the advice!

[JessXU00]

Another day, another success. Yea!  I felt a million times better yesterday than the day before, seriously.  It's like night and day the difference.  I guess that nose spray really worked!  I didn't do any workouts yesterday evening because I didn't want to tempt fate too much, plus I had to make a dinner, so I just did those things instead.  Maybe it's the effect of the Whole30, maybe it's finally feeling better, but whatever it is, I feel awesome.  Amazeballs.  I can't wait to get back into training and nail some great workouts.

 

That said, the day before and yesterday were the days when I most felt tempted to cheat.  I ran to Whole Foods during lunch yesterday to pick up some things and walked through the baked goods/prepared foods section.  OMG.  So much delicious, sugar and carb laden wonderfulness.  I know I'm not ready to take a break yet if I'm still having those thoughts.  I was soooo tempted to take just a little break, but I didn't.  I did get a thing of berries and plowed through those like there was no tomorrow, though.

 

Day 9 Eats

 

5:30 am (wake-up): Surprise, surprise, my bulletproof coffee!  I made it with ghee, MCT oil, coconut milk, gelatin and cinnamon.

 

Breakfast (10 am): Egg frittata with sweet potato, rainbow chard and chicken sausage

 

Snack of macadamia nuts around noontime

 

Lunch (1:15 pm): Spaghetti squash with my meat marinara sauce (is that a contradiction?  I don't think you can have meat in a marinara sauce)

 

Bone broth around 3 pm, more macadamia nuts around 4:30

 

Dinner (6:30 pm): Salmon stuffed shrimp with roasted brussel sprouts tossed in olive oil and my key lime balsamic vinegar.  OMG, this was so good!!  My salmon turned out a little dry because I didn't have a lid big enough for my cast iron pot, so I baked it in the oven instead, but I could tell it could be really delicious.

 

It's about 9 am on Day 10 as I write this, and I can report that I wasn't really hungry when I got up.  I was able to do my swim with no problems at all (except my own fitness and form limiters!), and I'm still not really hungry but I'm having my (very interesting) recovery drink now.  The swim was ok.  It started out ok, but deteriorated toward the end.  I'm guessing it was a little long for where my fitness is right now.  This is a link to the workout.  It was 3200 yards, which is one of the longest swims I've done in a few months.  Considering it's been two weeks since I've been in the pool, it makes sense that I'd be a little off.

[JessXU00]

I'm starting the process of getting used to 'real life' with Whole30.  The cravings last night were some of the worse I've had, but I made it through.  I had my mindfulness class, and we were doing a meditation, trying to focus on our breathe, and all I could think about was a bowl of cherries or chocolate peppermint bark.  I guess that means a) I'm still addicted to/craving sugar and my meditation skills need some help!  

 

I haven't read the daily email today, but I'm hoping it has some tips for addressing cravings.  For me, they come right as I'm leaving work (perfect timing to pop by the store and grab some sweets).  I'm making it through by sheer will.  The fact that my mom is doing it with me, that my coach knows I'm doing it and says I need to eat like this to perform well and my own stubbornness not to slip up are the only things keeping me going.  I've been rationalizing that after 30 days, I'm gorging on a plate full of chocolate.  I'm hoping that this phase passes quickly (and that it is indeed a phase) and I'll see light at the end of the tunnel.

 

Now that I think about it, I've trained myself to have those cravings because that's what I would always do - pop by the store on the way home from work for some deliciousness.  It's a habit I've ingrained into myself.  I guess this is the process of breaking that habit.  It's painful!

 

Weird eats yesterday.  I attempted a post-workout meal, but it set me off for the entire day.  All of my meals were shifted back 2-3 hours because I wasn't hungry.  Not sure what this means - maybe I just didn't need it?  I've got to figure this out.  I'm thinking that it's almost a day-to-day decision.  If I know my tank is somewhat empty, and I've got a hard workout planned => I'll probably need something.  If I've been feeling ok full and my workout is medium/easy, then maybe I won't need anything.  I'm going to have to live it for a bit to figure out what protocol I need to follow.

 

Day 9 Eats

Wake-up (5:15 am): Bulletproof coffee with ghee, cinnamon, MCT oil, coconut milk, gelatin powder.

 

6:30 am: Swim (the workout I posted about yesterday)

 

8:45 am: Post-workout nutrition, which was weird and I won't do again.  It was an experiment that wasn't totally awful, but not something I'd like to repeat on a regular basis.  I took my leftover bulletproof coffee and added a few leaves of kale, more coconut milk, a scoop of almond butter, maca powder (that has chai in it), greens powder. Funkiness.

 

Breakfast (11 am): Egg frittata with sweet potato, rainbow chard and chicken sausage

 

Lunch (3 pm): Chicken salad over collard greens

 

I had a bottle of kombucha when I got home, around 5:30, before leaving for meditation class

 

Dinner (8:45 pm): Chicken hot dogs with mayo, cashews.  Wasn't totally hungry, but I felt like I needed something.  But...the texture of the hot dogs did not sit well with me last night.  Everytime I think about them this morning I kind of want to barf.  Maybe it was just eating too late at night, but it'll be awhile before I have those again.

 

I really want Chipolte.  A big 'ol rice bowl with black beans, chicken, guac, salsa and cheese.  Maybe I need more carbs.

 

This morning was a run workout, hill repeats up Key Biscayne bridge.  I did three sprints up the bridge, and then ran easy for a bit.  The sprints knocked me out - I'm not used to running fast, uphill!  My heart rate was super-duper high today, which I think was because I haven't run in about two weeks and I'm still getting over being sick.  It should come back to normal in a week or so, but it's definitely something I'll continue to monitor. It was also really windy today, which might have something to do with it (increased effort to go into the wind). 

 

Good luck with your day today!

[JessXU00]

I'm catching up on the last two days because I wasn't quite sure what I wanted to write about what's happened.  Simply stated, I broke the Whole30 rules.  I just couldn't manage the craving anymore.  I ended up having a bar that had oats and brown rice syrup in it, and a gluten free pizza.  I've been going over and over in my head why I did it, how it made me feel and truthfully, if the Whole30 protocol is really the right thing for me.

 

Here's what I know about Whole30:

• This is the right way to eat.  It's the right foods and it's the way to be healthy.
• The rules are strict.  They don't even allow for minor slip-ups.
• It takes time to do this right, both physically to prepare meals and mentally to wrap your head around what the end results of this program are and what that means in the long-term.

Here's what I know about myself:

• Rules and I have issues.  I let them dictate what I need to do and lose my own sense of want/need.  I don't like it when that happens and it messes me up (and I end up binging on a gluten free pizza!)
• I feel better when I eat like this.  I sleep better, my mood is more stable, and I know that I'll perform better.  I don't want to go back to feeling like I did.

I decided that I'm going to pick up the pieces and carry on, but I'm not going to do a 'Whole30' protocol because it's too strict for me.  I need the freedom to be able to say, yes, I will have that one vegan, all natural coconut macaroon that has three cacao nibs in it because that will get my sweet tooth and it's not going to kill me in the long term.  Or, I'll have pastured butter with my sweet potato instead of ghee.  I feel like without this flexibility, I'm set-up to fail.  I guess you could say that I always have that flexibility on the program (I can always choose whether or not I want to have butter vs. ghee, but I should just choose not to when doing Whole30).  To me, for where I'm at now, it's too strict.

 

At the end of the day, I have to live with the consequences of what food I choose to eat, be it a bar of chocolate or an egg frittata. The choice has to be mine, made not because I'm on a program, but because it's something I actually want.  I think part of the reason my meals were kind of crazy is that I felt really limited by my choices (I know that's not actually true, but it's what I felt).  I think removing that limiter for me will release some pressure and help me relax about meal selection (which I was always kind of nervous about).

 

The other thing I figured out - I can't deal with 4-5 helpings of the same leftovers.  Notsomuch.  By the 3rd day, I want to throw it into a deep, dark garbage disposal.  I'm going to have to freeze stuff and be able to pull out of the freezer towards the end of the week.

 

I'm going to end this thread, but keep writing on my own blog because it's actually been really helpful.  I'm still aiming for clean, low (really low!) sugar eating until my training camp on February 19, but this time I'm going to allow other foods, like the pastured butter, or little macaroon, or a piece of dark chocolate.  What I'm going to focus on is eating mindfully and really paying attention to my hunger and craving queues to make sure I'm not eating for some other reason.  I think that, coupled with the principles of Whole30, will really set me up for success.

 

Thanks all, and best of luck with your Whole30 journeys!