Join A 2016 Whole9 Challenge!

[jmcbn]

That said, I'm all in favor of the recipe-loving folks on this thread forming a neighborhood cooking service for the less cooking-aligned folks. I'd like to place an order for the gyoza meatballs at once. I'll be over to pick it up this afternoon.

You'll bring your own fork, right?   

I can agree with the budget thing so I tend to shop only what's in season, and especially what's on offer, and try to 'eat the rainbow' from that. I very rarely eat fruit so that helps. Things like spring onions & chilli peppers are generally cheap enough and can help to add both flavour & colour. I remember when my youngest son was little and his diet was so limited due to food allergies that all of his food was white - his meals always looked so sad... 

[Flygrrl]

Happy week 2 everyone!

 

Looking back at what I had over the last week, I realize that I am eating too much potatoes.....It has been reintroduced as compliant food over a year ago...but I feel it's my go-to in order to compensate for bread, pasta and rice...

 

Anyone else? Any suggestion on how to keep that in control?

Tks.

Laura

I really like this train of thought because that's exactly what I'm working on. Not just finding, for lack of a better word, cheats or crutches that follow the W30 rules. It is incredibly eye opening to monitor my internal dialogue while I look for food right now. I put things through the " yeah but is it a choice that breaks my addictions" thought process. Is it a food that follows the rules but I know I have trouble with? I think nuts are a really good example here for me while I travel and potatoes are what you are recognizing.

I am totally on board with you, AmyS and making a budget work. We all have to make this work for ourselves and everything has to be a personal choice within the constraints of our lives. Personally I'm looking at coffee right now. Is it too much of a crutch for me. Nuts will also be OFF limits when I'm not flying ( they just travel so darn easy).

I hope I'm explain g myself well. I look at this month more as a tough love talk with myself over everything I put in my body. If it's a crutch, then it's going off the list for awhile. I need to totally break any and all addictions to be totally free. If we need to do certain things to make our budgets or crazy lives work, then that's the right choice for our personal journey and no judgement. It's all too personal.

Thank you LauraP for bringing this up. Food for thought, as the saying goes.

Ciao.

[Laura P.]

Thank you FoodieCG, for the detailed options and everyone for their feedback.

 

I am using tonight to plan my next 3 days menu (one week menu in advance just doesn't resonate with me) and ther will be less potatoes and more winter veggies.

[ladyshanny]

Thank you FoodieCG, for the detailed options and everyone for their feedback.

 

I am using tonight to plan my next 3 days menu (one week menu in advance just doesn't resonate with me) and ther will be less potatoes and more winter veggies.

Ha, I plan a month in advance this year, it's so freeing!

[Mistyfire]

I never heard of gyoza meatballs before. Found Mel Joulwan's recipe and made them last night. Just WOW, what a treat! I usually eat a bit more simply but this was so worth the extra podcast I listened to while cooking.

BTW, I listened to Robb Wolf's podcast interview of Taylor Collins and Katie Forrest discussing the sale of Epiic Bar to General Mills. This is bound to be very controversial but they have high hopes for what it means for the future of sustainability. Worth a listen.

[Flygrrl]

I gotta tell you gals...this is where it gets tough. I've been up for 24 hours, I'm sitting at the airport waiting to see if I get on my flight home which is oversold, my body thinks it's the middle of the night and all I can think of is sugar. I'm tired, bored and I'm preoccupied with food and someone behind me is playing rap music on her phone which is grating my nerves.

I'm trying to just observe myself. I walk down the concourse looking for something I can eat ( because the flight attendant smothered my naked chicken in sauce after I spent 5 minutes explaining my eating plan) so I scraped off what I could but most was lost and now, 5 hours later, I'm hungry.

I know this airport inside out. There may be things here and there to eat but I'm too exhausted to traipse over to terminal 2 for kale salad and I'm way nutted/fruited/veggie sticked/tunad out by now. I've been living on this stuff for 6 days out of a suitcase.

This is EXACTLY why I'm doing this W30. Exactly for my feelings right now. I know logically no food will make me feel better for more than a fleeting moment. In fact it would make it worse. I was reveling in the first glimpses of tiger blood, great sleep, no cravings and for once not feeling like crap mentally.

Oh, my hubby just called and he'll make me a pile of veggies and ground beef for my arrival.....all is right in the world.

[Laura P.]

ladyshanny: this is a mystery...how do you know what you planned to eat on day 14 or 27 will feel like what want to eat that day...

Please share the tricks...

[Laura P.]

I gotta tell you gals...this is where it gets tough. I've been up for 24 hours, I'm sitting at the airport waiting to see if I get on my flight home which is oversold, my body thinks it's the middle of the night and all I can think of is sugar. I'm tired, bored and I'm preoccupied with food and someone behind me is playing rap music on her phone which is grating my nerves.

I'm trying to just observe myself. I walk down the concourse looking for something I can eat ( because the flight attendant smothered my naked chicken in sauce after I spent 5 minutes explaining my eating plan) so I scraped off what I could but most was lost and now, 5 hours later, I'm hungry.

I know this airport inside out. There may be things here and there to eat but I'm too exhausted to traipse over to terminal 2 for kale salad and I'm way nutted/fruited/veggie sticked/tunad out by now. I've been living on this stuff for 6 days out of a suitcase.

This is EXACTLY why I'm doing this W30. Exactly for my feelings right now. I know logically no food will make me feel better for more than a fleeting moment. In fact it would make it worse. I was reveling in the first glimpses of tiger blood, great sleep, no cravings and for once not feeling like crap mentally.

Oh, my hubby just called and he'll make me a pile of veggies and ground beef for my arrival.....all is right in the world.

Thank you sooooo much for sharing this experience. Listen to our bodies, what ittells us.. what it needs/want or what WE want to hear?

I sure hope you enjoyed those veggies your hubby had ready for you! You rock!

[AmyS]

I totally made meatballs tonight. I just used spices I had on hand, and when I ran out of oven room I flattened the rest and cooked 'em like burgers, but dangit, I cooked meatballs! Using a recipe (sorta)!! I blame you all. My children thank you all.

[cottagequeen]

I never heard of gyoza meatballs before. Found Mel Joulwan's recipe and made them last night. Just WOW, what a treat! I usually eat a bit more simply but this was so worth the extra podcast I listened to while cooking.

BTW, I listened to Robb Wolf's podcast interview of Taylor Collins and Katie Forrest discussing the sale of Epiic Bar to General Mills. This is bound to be very controversial but they have high hopes for what it means for the future of sustainability. Worth a listen.

I haven't listened to the podcast, but did read his post about it. I really hope it works out the way they are hoping. I wondered what was going on last weekend when I saw the Bits at my fave health food store. Was not impressed with the bits thing. Really small amount of meat with a small amount of nuts/seeds for the price. I'm watching and will continue to purchase the compliant bites and bars as long as they don't change them.

 

Got some fresh okra, so will be trying out the roasted okra recipe this week!

[jent103]

ladyshanny: this is a mystery...how do you know what you planned to eat on day 14 or 27 will feel like what want to eat that day...

Please share the tricks...

 

I am not ladyshanny, and I also don't plan a month in advance (I do a week) - but I will say, the freedom of not having to figure out what to eat and how to make time to cook it every day far outweighs the "but I feel like Mexican, not Asian!" feeling for me! Some people feel right the opposite, though. Mel Joulwan has a great "weekly cookup" plan that basically has you cook the ingredients (eg, plain ground beef or chicken and steam-sauteed vegetables) and then spice them up however you feel like later in the week. I tend to cook more defined recipes so I haven't tried it, but might be a good start for somebody who wants the flexibility.

 

http://meljoulwan.com/2013/07/27/whole30-week-1-food-plan/

 

As for me, I spent the weekend at my brother's house taking care of my niece and nephew on my own (my first time to do that overnight). Their family eats what most people would consider healthily, but it's still a lot of stuff that I normally don't eat - oatmeal bake, chicken tortilla soup with corn and beans and corn chips. Even though I'm not on a strict Whole30, I took some food with me and was glad I did, though I did indulge in a couple of things. Mindful eating kind of flew out the window when I was eating scrambled eggs while trying to answer questions and wrangle kids, though - much respect to you parents out there! I will say, the biggest wakeup call was when I'd decided "yes, this <treat redacted so as not to tempt others> will be 'worth it'" - and then proceeded to start eating it while looking something up on my phone and trying to talk to my 4yo niece at the same time. Fortunately I caught myself and realized "dude, you are not even enjoying this. Hold up." But it's so easy to do! Yikes.

 

Good luck this week, team!

[Laura P.]

Jent103: Thank you for your input and the link. I'll definitively try to do this, starting 3 days at the time, then 1 week...

 

Unlike last year, I know I'll need to stick to the plan longer in order for me to develop healthier food habits/relationship, and planning meals is one of the tools that I have to learn how to use.

 

Have a great week everyone!

[mergthemagnificent]

Just want to say thanks to everyone for the great discussion on planning ahead.  I'm sorta with you, Laura....but the idea appeals to me....so I will join you in the three days ahead first, then a week strategy.  Yes, planning ahead is probably one of the tools I need also!

 

One of my colleagues at work is doing her first Whole 30 right now too and we talked this morning about the AMOUNT OF TIME IN THE KITCHEN.  I told her I think this gets better over time as skills and repertoire develop....and as you learn what basics YOU want to always have in stock....and what your go-to meals are.  I also told her I had learned SO MUCH about food and eating being part of the forum...first why and how to make bone broth, then ghee, then what the heck are persimmons and how do you pick/eat them...and now, on to planning...

 

Thanks, everyone...

[ladyshanny]

ladyshanny: this is a mystery...how do you know what you planned to eat on day 14 or 27 will feel like what want to eat that day...

Please share the tricks...

I've never really been the sort of person who "felt like" something for dinner.  I've never come across a situation where it was chicken stir fry on the schedule but I felt like pork burgers instead.  Whatever is planned is what the groceries were bought for is what I scheduled time to cook (or prepped in advance for) so that's what we're eating.  If it doesn't turn out or we didn't get great joy in eating it....well....there's always tomorrow!  

[ladyshanny]

PS. I started doing a month a time because I actually really dislike menu planning and doing it once a week makes the dislike crop up every 7 days whereas doing it a month in advance makes the dislike crop up every 28 days!  

[Laura P.]

PS. I started doing a month a time because I actually really dislike menu planning and doing it once a week makes the dislike crop up every 7 days whereas doing it a month in advance makes the dislike crop up every 28 days!  

 

FUNNY! So there is hope that one day I'll get there as well... Thank you!

 

Just want to say thanks to everyone for the great discussion on planning ahead.  I'm sorta with you, Laura....but the idea appeals to me....so I will join you in the three days ahead first, then a week strategy.  Yes, planning ahead is probably one of the tools I need also!

 

One of my colleagues at work is doing her first Whole 30 right now too and we talked this morning about the AMOUNT OF TIME IN THE KITCHEN.  I told her I think this gets better over time as skills and repertoire develop....and as you learn what basics YOU want to always have in stock....and what your go-to meals are.  I also told her I had learned SO MUCH about food and eating being part of the forum...first why and how to make bone broth, then ghee, then what the heck are persimmons and how do you pick/eat them...and now, on to planning...

 

Thanks, everyone...

 

As I am reading Ladyshanny's and your comments, I realize there is an awful lot of procrastination in my not "liking" to plan or wanting to leave it open for "what I am in the mood for".

This opens the door for me to some soul searching and re-evaluate my commitment, the true reasons why I am doing the Whole30, and what I really want to accomplish in the long run.

 

Thanks to all.

[FoodieCG]

For me, I am reframing the plan ahead strategy. I know folks who eat out (and choose in the moment what they will eat) most evening meals at least; this isn't what I do. I do tend to shop once a week for staples and proteins, and more frequently for veg. This automatically reduces the choices in a given time frame.

The reason it seems important for me to develop new food behaviors is because I can get really intensely emotional when I get the idea that I want a specific food. As my lifestyle has changed I have calmed down about these hyper-emotional eating attachments, and I have learned that I can get past the intense emotions by just going ahead and eating what is available to cook, but I can get into an uncomfortable struggle with myself.

I think this is a residual problem from a time when food meant more to me than enjoyable nourishment. It was really a form of disordered relationship to food. I am challenging myself to move toward greeting each nutritious and honored food with the same appreciation--not compulsion. Planning ahead, budgeting, making decisions based on season, nutrition, price, efficiency, etc, rather than out-of-control emotions, helps me move closer to a healthy relationship to eating and food.

I know lots of people who can follow a hankering for a certain food--or, just as easily, let it go if it's not feasible. Unfortunately, I wasn't one of them. Living abroad where my choices were automatically shifted, helped me to begin to learn tools to move past this kind of obsessing, but I am now in touch with a truly different way to make food choices. I have begun to plan ahead and let unhealthy thoughts go. I want my responses to food to reflect my values about food; for me, this is the first kind of mindfulness about eating that I am fostering.

I love food, cooking, planning. I enjoy trying new foods and cuisines. I believe these are fun and healthy things. I don't want to make changes on this. I am continuing to grow in terms of the less healthy behaviors and emotions about food.

[LucieB]

"I know logically no food will make me feel better for more than a fleeting moment. In fact it would make it worse." 

Oh PIN THAT quote somewhere so I can see it when I need it! That's good stuff. 

 

I had a great weekend. I set little goals, actually wrote them down and checked them off as the weekend progressed. Have a M1 with no distractions, sit down to enjoy M2, stay out of the kitchen and don't munch until 6pm, drink something, and the like. Seeing the list get checked off motivated me to keep going. And it set one goal at a time, not an overwhelming "must do" type of thing. 

 

I modified the Gyoza meatballs to make a chopped pork steak with egg yolks hash containing the spice and sauce flavorings. To round out the meal, I thin-sliced and steamed radishes, carrots, and a dark green pepper for veggies. Then added a little teaspoon of grated ginger and one of chili sauce, sprinkle with cilantro. Done! It's dinner tonight. 

 

Great discussion on how to make the Whole30 nutrition part of the lifestyle. Pre-planning and freezing really helps for the days when you come home late or too tired, being able to have a meal ready keeps me from making a mistake with a lazy meal. It does get easier and faster to prepare these.  

 

For those who freeze meals -- ever think you'll remember what you froze, then a few weeks later find a tupperware in the back of the freezer with no label? I had a mystery meal Satuday. Turned out it was my ground beef with olives and tomatoes meat loaf/hash. Couldn't identify it until I thawed it.  
 

[AmyS]

PS. I started doing a month a time because I actually really dislike menu planning and doing it once a week makes the dislike crop up every 7 days whereas doing it a month in advance makes the dislike crop up every 28 days!  

I might try this. I do weekly menu plans and it makes me nuts. Once a month actually sounds like a relief to me.

[ladyshanny]

I might try this. I do weekly menu plans and it makes me nuts. Once a month actually sounds like a relief to me.

The other thing I really love about it is that as the person "in charge" of groceries, prepping and cooking, it's like a nice surprise to me to take a peek at the menu and not automatically know everything that was planned.  Kind of like going to a restaurant, if that makes any sense.  A restaurant where I have to cook it, serve it, clean it up and pay for it.  In hindsight, that is not a business model that would work.  LOL!

[FoodieCG]

So, I was fussing to myself about this horrid cold/flu I haven't been able to shake, when I realized how negative my self-talk was getting.

Then, I felt ashamed about my self-talk...lol.

[kirkor]

So, I was fussing to myself about this horrid cold/flu I haven't been able to shake, when I realized how negative my self-talk was getting.

Then, I felt ashamed about my self-talk...lol.

 

Be grateful you noticed it, and can now course-correct. Some people never think to notice what's going on in their own heads, and just end up perpetuating negative states for far too long (sometimes forever?).

[Laura P.]

Be grateful you noticed it, and can now course-correct. Some people never think to notice what's going on in their own heads, and just end up perpetuating negative states for far too long (sometimes forever?).

 

So, I was fussing to myself about this horrid cold/flu I haven't been able to shake, when I realized how negative my self-talk was getting.

Then, I felt ashamed about my self-talk...lol.

 

"BE CAREFUL HOW YOU TALK TO YOURSELF...BECAUSE YOU ARE LISTENING!" . Lisa M. Hayes

 

I remind myself of this all the time! Being loving, mindful and grateful are powerful anti-poison!

[FoodieCG]

Sometimes when I listen to myself I just gotta laugh...

[marthab]

I am re-setting at day One.I made a lot of terrible choices. But I am not beating myself up. Just crawl back. 

I have been reading everyones posts and find you all very inspiring.  I have been down this road before and I know I can get back up on the horse. I hade a dinner party with friends and that threw me off the horse big time and I felt like crap the next day, so I am back with new determination. 

This morning I made my mayo and made some ghee. I made and omelette for breakfast with gound beef and jalapeños and spinach, and for lunch I had tuna and mayo and lettuce and tomato with a few grapes. I feel better already. I don't drink alcohol -thirty one years sober- but I had a sugar hang-over yesterday for sure. I will spare you the details. 

I especially am learning that I am no good at moderation. I just need to stay on the path. 

So keep on keepin on.I appreciate you!