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katieblue

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Thanks for moving us here katieblue.  You all have such fantastic NSVs and I'm proud of you!!  Congratulations on a strong finish!  Tomorrow is my last day but I WANT this as my new way of life.  As much as this has been about physical and habit changes, there's been a mental shift too.  I began with dreaded thoughts of having to add more foods to our avoidance list, but now, I'm totally okay with it.  I've also come to appreciate food for its purpose of nourishment and how different it is from eating food just because its there (hello - snacks, treats brought into the office, etc).  

 

The biggest thing I've been missing is regular lunch dates with my husband.  Lunch dates are perfect because the kids are in school, which means there's no cost for a babysitter!  Lol.  We usually meet for lunch once or twice a week but have skipped it for the W30.  After getting through reintros, I'll do some serious checking into restaurants to see which ones would provide good choices for me.  And when the weather starts to improve, maybe we can do some home-packed picnics instead of restaurants.  There was conversation on the old thread about grilling in the summer, and I'm really looking forward to that!

 

I've continued to plan out my reintros, but my plans keep evolving.  I'm really afraid to awaken my sugar dragon from its deep hibernation.  Easter Sunday will be my first reintro.  I've checked into the ingredients for the Honeybaked Ham we'll be having and found that the only non-compliant ingredients are sugar and corn.  So it looks like I'm reintroducing corn first!  I don't know what form the corn is in, whether its corn starch, corn syrup, or what.  But I'll cook some corn to eat with my breakfast, then will have the ham with dinner.  Then I'll return to W30 until Thursday, when I'll try rice.  I think after that I'll go to oats, peas, beans, dairy, and finally, wheat, with 3 fully clean days between each.  If I react badly to something, I'll throw in some extra clean days to be sure I'm feeling good again before trying the next food.  So reintros will take me the whole month of April at least.  Given that the major purpose of doing this was to identify problem foods, it's good for me to be very deliberate about this part of the process. 

 

Congrats again to all of you!  I'll be joining you at the finish line in one more day!

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You're almost there, Jen!! So proud of you for making it all this way, and so excited that you've found motivation to continue eating this way in the future! :) can't wait to hear all your NSV's!!

I hope corn sits well with you on Easter! I'll have to check on the ingredients in our ham once my dad buys it - thanks for the reminder.

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jen c - I totally get the lunch dates w/husband thing! My husband and I would go lunch a couple of times a month - we only were able to do that once while on W30, but we did kind of a picnic thing and it worked out really well. We found a nice spot at a park on the harbor... you actually have a lot more freedom to go where you want to when you bring your own food! :) Anyway, sounds like you've got a great reintro plan. I did the opposite of my plan, so don't be like me. ;) but I think it was because I know we are starting another round in a week or so, so the whole long reintroduction didn't seem exactly necessary. Although after my experience, I kind of just want to go back to W30 and feeling normal forever. Ha.

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So what is everyone's Easter dinner?

My family us Polish so we will have some traditional things but I won't be having everything as I'm only introducing ham and kielbasa that day...

Here's my menu. * means I won't be eating it.

Ham

Kielbasa

Pirogi*

Potato salad (made with whole 30 Mayo!)

Sauerkraut

Broccoli

Asparagus

Salad (with whole 30 dressing!)

Pie*

Oh I can't wait!

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Kalina, all of that is sssooo amazing!!! Congratulations on all of it! (I am SO with you on the sweet potatoes!) And so exciting that it's your birthday tomorrow, just in time! (Did you plan for this? ;))

Honestly, your Polish Easter dinner sounds waaaaay yummy - I would love to have some of that and beat some of this tradition! (I get bored of same old, same old. One of my exes and I used to make tacos for Easter! Lol!) Especially kielbasa - yuuummmm!!

We have two gatherings - we go to brunch with Rob's family in the morning, and I'll stick to whatever eggs and veggies are available, along with some damn bacon, FINALLY!! :D

Then my dad and stepmom decided to host Easter dinner this year after I mentioned not wanting to go to my mom's (family drama - just trying to avoid it and the binge stress eating that comes with it). So, they are roasting a turkey and a ham (with maple syrup and pineapple juice glaze... Sssoooo why I chose to do Sunday as my sugar reintro!!) Then mashed potatoes (encouraging for coconut milk here!), roasted green beans and carrots, sauteed kale, grilled cauliflower. I'm making a sweet potato casserole with clarified butter, coconut milk, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, and ginger, and roasting some chopped pecans in clarified butter to spread over the top! And I'm also making a carrot cake, but I don't plan on eating that. Granted, it's a lot of very traditional stuff... But lots of yummy and lots of unintentionally compliant !!

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Hi, everyone, I'm here! Congrats on everyone's W30 nsv's and general feelings of happiness and accomplishment. I think my biggest NSV's are my relationship with food. The first week or so of the W30, I was on an emotional roller coaster, from caffeine/sugar withdrawal (I decided my coffee wasn't worth having w/out my creamer), plus I had a terrible week at work. I was feeling sorry for myself, and kept focusing on what I was missing food and beverage-wise. By the 2nd week, I can honestly say I was just enjoying every bite of nutritious food I was putting in my body, and not feeling deprived. The headaches from withdrawal were gone, and I was sleeping great.

I quit the mindless snacking, and totally stopped snacking at night after dinner. I wasn't tempted by the constant snack offerings at work, and I think my husband and I set a great example of a whole month of nothing but healthy eating for our kids. I made several new recipes from the W30 book that my husband and I loved (our favorite by far was the roasted spaghetti squash w/homemade tomato sauce w/ground beef.) I also figured out that sweet potatoes are plenty sweet enough w/out any brown sugar, or butter!

For our "scale" victories, my husband lost 9 lbs., and I lost 11.5 lbs.! I have never lost that amount of weight on any other diet, even when I was working out like crazy, and eating vegetarian/almost vegan a few years back. I've always hated to waste food, and felt I had to clean my plate, even when I was already stuffed. Now I quit when I'm comfortably full, and don't feel guilty about not finishing. I'm eating smaller portions and feeling very satisfied.

So far I've reintroduced dairy with no problems, and had 2 glasses of wine the night of day 31. I woke up in the middle of the night with a bad headache, and had a foot cramp that was really painful, keeping me awake basically from 3am-5am. Tonight, I kept it to 1 glass of wine (wanted to celebrate my spring break starting from school) and hoping I will sleep better tonight.

Sorry for the length of this post! Hope we keep this group going!

Wendy

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Hello! I think I told you about my easter dinner - lasagne. Mine with zucchini noodles and less cheese than the normal one. big mixed salad. and I'll make some sort of gluten free dessert. Cooking and baking are my hobby I guess. Not tuesday night, coming home from work, the baby is grumpy, nothing is in the fridge cooking. But big meals. I looooove planning big meals and looking up/making up recipes. I love baking. I have always found it hard reconciling the love of baking with my aversion to gluten. And while I can, and do bake, gluten free, there is just something about flour and cake. So I'm going to try to find something as interesting to bake.

 

I went for dinner yesterday and had steak, homemade fries and broccoli. I couldn't sleep and woke up with a half stuffed nose. So I think there was something in that meal..butter? soy? And I realize my next steps towards health are addressing my ridiculous working schedule. I get there in the morning and leave in the evening..often never getting outside. I sit and work and don't take breaks. There is little point in eating well if I'm not going to take care of myself in other ways too. So for the next month I'm going to force myself to go outside once a day.

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Jen, way to make it to your last day!

Kalina, Happy Birthday! My grandmother is Polish/Lithuanian, so we used to have a lot of the same foods. Since my husband and I don't live near family, we're headed to a cabin in GA for the weekend. Maybe we can find a nice place to eat on Sunday. We're just playing the weekend by ear.

Katie, your sweet potato casserole sounds amazing!

Wendy, congrats on all of your NSVs and weight loss!

I ate compliant yesterday and this morning, but we're on our way to Okefenokee now, and I don't know what will happen!

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jen c - I have been yearning for that mental shift you spoke of for a long time now.  I would know that the things I were eating were not the best choices, but something in my mind was like, "someday I'll get my act together, but for now, I need this!!"  I'm so happy that "someday" has finally come!  Diving head first into a Whole30 was definitely the push I needed to change my mindset about what I'm putting into my body.  I feel like the way I think about food is permanently changed for the better.  And congrats on your Day 30!!!  :D

 

Wendy and Frankie - I'm glad you finished so well after that rough start!  I'm curious how the one glass of wine treated you, if two affected you so badly!

 

Ramonax - I also feel there is something very enjoyable about making a huge meal for those you love.  The planning, the executing, and then enjoying!!  When I try new recipes and they don't work out as expected, at least it was a learning experience.  I absolutely love to bake too.  I'm going to work part time this summer baking for a friend who is opening a food truck in town.  Have you ever made any tarts with a nut crust, filled with pastry cream/lemon curd and topped with fresh fruit?  Yum!  I want to tackle something as pretty as this Rhubarb Tart.  And I'll keep my eyes open for some fresh figs for these Fig Bars.  I'm thinking that would be good with some ripe stone fruits too.

Thats nice the positive changes you made are spreading into other areas of your life too.  One of my goals is to start exercising more.  We just had a lot of nice weather, and I was walking 5-8 miles a day with baby in the front pack carrier.  It just started raining today, so we'll have to get creative inside!  :)

 

Happy Birthday, KalinaM!  Your Easter dinner sounds yummy.  I took out a big moose roast, which I'm going to brine.  I think I'll make some potato salad too, and roast whatever veggies look good from the store.  And sweet potato casserole!  Maybe some stuffed mushrooms for apps?

 

katieblue - Do you leave your sweet potatoes chunky or puree them?  I think I'm going to puree mine.  I'm looking forward to sweet potato casserole that is not so super sweet, like my family makes during thanksgiving.  My husband always eats his after dinner, because it is like dessert!  I love it cold the next day.

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Wednesday I reintroduced some legumes.  

For breakfast I had sautéed broccoli, taco meat, and black beans with fried eggs on top.  The black beans didn't add much flavor-wise.

I made some pudla (indian chickpea flour crepes) with my curry stew.  They were alright, but it felt strange to eat something "bready".

With lunch, I ate apple slices with peanut butter.  It tasted really bland compared to the sunbutter I've been eating with apples.

For dinner I had a huge taco salad with more black beans.  Again, the beans didn't add much.  I realized the salsa we have is compliant, before I just assumed it had sugar in it! Silly me.  Made good, easy salad dressing mixed with mayo.

I also had some tall glasses of soy milk throughout the day.

I felt kind of puffy that evening, and pretty gassy yesterday.  My son's skin looks clear still, so thats good.  I'd say a soy intolerance is ruled out.  For me, legumes are kind of blah now.  Don't miss 'em.  And I definitely don't miss that much farting!

 

Today, I'm trying non-gluten grains.  I had a bowl of oatmeal with breakfast, along with some sautéed green beans and fried eggs.  I was a big oatmeal fan before, but I always made myself 1 1/2 - 2 servings.  Today I made a single serving, and topped it with coconut oil, cinnamon, flax meal, chopped pecans and half a banana sliced thin.  It was OK, but I think I would have been just as happy with a sliced banana with all those toppings on it!

A friend gave us some live butter clams, so I'm cooking them in the last of the curry broth, and eating some rice with that for lunch.  I'll make some corn tortillas for tacos tonight.

I feel like this stuff is leaving less room for more nutritious items on my plates!  And as I'm reading through your posts, my head feels kind of foggy.

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Wendy, congratulations!!! Sounds like you both totally killed it and came out with so many victories!! I'm so happy for you!! :)

Galaxigrl, hope you have a blast on your vacation!!!

Ksea, I always puree my sweet potatoes, too! That combined with pecan topping baked until golden - to die for! I have actually never tried it cold, but now I'll have to. I made the tray today and it is MASSIVE. We will definitely have leftovers! Lol!

I love your attitude toward the beans and non-gluten grains. It really sounds like you have your head on straight and are making conscious choices. I'm really impressed!!

I went off the rails today. :( I was making the carrot cake and got frosting on my hand, and automatically, I licked it. Before I knew it, the sugar dragon charged forth and I was eating as much as I was putting on the cake. I feel so bloated now and my head hurts. I didn't mean to introduce sugar and dairy today at the same time, but wow do I feel awful. And I hate how I felt so out of control. I really think that what they say is right - the only way to quiet that dragon is to starve her! I will not be partaking in any cake on Easter, that's for sure. The frosting was really good but NOT worth feeling like this, and honestly? The healthy things we were eating tasted so much better without the consequences. Now I have to figure out if I can eat compliant dinner tonight feeling as sick as I do. :(

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Thanks for all the congrats, friends (yes, I really feel like you girls are friends, now ).

Ksea, I did fine with the one glass of wine. In fact, I slept like a baby. Tomorrow, my husband and I are going to a concert, and usually, we have a couple of beers, so it'll be interesting how that affects me. Today, I went off the rails, to borrow katieblue's expression. I was out shopping with my daughters, and promised them lunch, so we went to this Asian buffet. Before W30, I would have eaten way too much, but I did pretty well. I ate about half as much as I normally would have, and couldn't finish my egg roll and crab Rangoon. I felt so guilty about eating fried foods after eating so healthy. The sesame chicken tasted way too sweet. I left feeling bloated.

Galaxigrl, hope you enjoy your weekend away!

Katieblue, where can I find your sweet potato recipe, is it on the old thread? I'm planning our Easter dinner, and think that sounds like a perfect side dish. We're having ham (not my choice, family won), Brussel sprouts, deviled eggs, and a very non-compliant corn bake casserole that my family loves.

Wendy

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Wendy, I'm also impressed at you with the buffet!! I always have eaten until I am in pain at buffets. Haha. I think on the next round, I will really focus on the awareness and consciousness of eating. I want to be where you guys are!

Also - we totally are friends! We've been through a Whole 30 together, and beyond! :)

I actually don't have a recipe for the sweet potatoes, because I usually just toss it together, but I will try and type one up now! You may have to taste and adjust when you make it, but this will be a good idea.

I usually make one sweet potato per person, and the amount of butter, spices and eggs will need to change if you use less or more. So, today I made 10 potatoes. You bake them in the oven as usual, then toss them in a big mixing bowl and puree them to your liking. I used a potato masher this time but have also used an electric mixer. I added about 1/2 cup of clarified butter, 1/2 cup coconut milk, 1 tablespoon cinnamon, 1 teaspoon nutmeg, 1 teaspoon allspice, 1 teaspoon ginger, 1 teaspoon salt. If not worried about Whole 30 I usually also add 1 teaspoon vanilla extract and 1 tablespoon maple syrup, but left them out this time. Add 4 eggs, mix well, and place in a big lasagna pan, smoothing out the top with a spatula.

Then for the pecan topping, I used a saucepan and melted another 1/2 cup clarified butter. Once it was hot, I threw in about 1 cup of chopped pecans and 2 cups of whole pecans, and stirred the mixture until it started smelling nutty, like toasted pecans! I threw in about a tablespoon of coconut flour at the end to thicken it a little. If not Whole 30, I have also used about a tablespoon of maple syrup and/or brown sugar here - but it totally doesn't need it! You can also salt them or add cinnamon if you like. Then you just spread them out over the top of the casserole. Bake it at 350 for 30-40 min or until it is browned enough for your liking! You can also make it in advance and heat it back up at 350 for about 20 min (you can cover it to make sure it doesn't burn and uncover for the last few mins).

Hope that is good!!

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Ramona - I think it's great that you're going to try to get out every day. Sometimes I don't walk outside once during the day, and it makes me sad when I'm leaving. Everyone needs a little sunshine!

ksea - I really need to start exercising, too. I feel like it's so hard when you have a little one! I'm going to start with 10 minute intense workouts in the morning and then see if I can work up to something more.

Katie - that sucks that you had a bad reaction to the icing. But it's good as far as knowing what does and doesn't make you feel good. Glad you're going to resist the cake on Sunday! And thanks for sharing your sweet potato casserole recipe. I'm definitely going to make that sometime.

Wendy - we are definitely friends, and congrats on not going to crazy at the Asian buffet.

I had Pad Thai for dinner tonight. I'm glad I didn't finish all of it, but I didn't feel so great after eating it. Too sweet for sure. Now my husband and I are watching bball and drinking beer, but I'm not drinking nearly as much as I normally would have! Small victories. I have no issues cooking W30. I just wish it was easier to eat out on it!

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Katie - I know what you mean about the sugar dragon. I went out of town for the day with friends and our kids. I packed a w30 lunch (super veggie frittata, apple) and left feeling full. We drove and hung out and went to this sweet little coffee shop, by then I was starving and the food was in the car. I ordered this raw food dessert - coconut, banana and strawberry with chocolate on top. I don't even know why. If I am going to eat sugar, why not something I adore? But I became blinded by hunger and ate this weird thing. It was okay. not spectacular. just okay. And in the grand scheme of things, probably better than a 2lb bag of easter eggs. It felt like crack cocaine to me. All I could think off, all day after that, was how I could GET MORE SUGAR. It's ridiculous. Then I start making all these weird deals with myself - okay, I can have one square of chocolate when I get home, b/c tomorrow I won't eat sugar...except I am going to make a cake, so I can eat as much cake as I want, but only tomorrow..oh, but then I can eat easter candy. Okay, so I will eat all the sweets I want this weekend, but stop on tuesday. That's all I thought about all day. And I actually am making a cake tomorrow (flour free chocolate cake with egg whites). So I feel at the top of this roller coaster and I can't stop it.  So in writing all of this, I realize, I just need to stop it. 

 

also, Ksea, I want to move into your house and have you cook for me for the rest of my life. OMG your food sounds so good!

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jen c - I have been yearning for that mental shift you spoke of for a long time now.  I would know that the things I were eating were not the best choices, but something in my mind was like, "someday I'll get my act together, but for now, I need this!!"  I'm so happy that "someday" has finally come!  Diving head first into a Whole30 was definitely the push I needed to change my mindset about what I'm putting into my body.  I feel like the way I think about food is permanently changed for the better.  And congrats on your Day 30!!!  :D

This has always been exactly me too!  "Someday . . . ."  I'm also very thankful that "someday" has finally come! 

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Day 30 is complete!  I appreciate reading what you've all had to say so far about reintroductions.  I'm apprehensive at adding in food but know that it has to be done in order to find out what was making me so sick.  But it's hard to set my mind to it:  "hey, I'll eat this and maybe feel awful!  hooray!".  :wacko: :wacko:   And I'm so afraid of waking the sugar dragon.  Ugh. 

 

I grocery shopped today for Easter food and enough to get us through mid-week.  I was cringing as I put Campbell's Chunky soup in the cart for my husband and boxed cereals for the kids.  Compared to a month ago, they're eating far less processed food and more fresh veggies and fruits, but they still have some they'll continue to eat.  Improving their diets a bit at a time will be a good motivator for me to keep on with good food choices for our meals. 

 

I also got a chuckle out of a memory today . . . when we bought our first refrigerator 15 years ago, we got a freezer-on-the-bottom style simply because it brought the produce drawers closer to eye level.  We'd hoped that would help us to remember to eat what few fruits and veggies we bought back then, although it really didn't, and we continued to buy with good intention but always ended up throwing stuff out.  Now . . . after I go shopping, both produce drawers and another shelf are crammed full and ALL of it is being eaten and I end up just hoping I have enough to make it to the end of the week.  :D  

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So what is everyone's Easter dinner?

My family us Polish so we will have some traditional things but I won't be having everything as I'm only introducing ham and kielbasa that day...

Here's my menu. * means I won't be eating it.

Ham

Kielbasa

Pirogi*

Potato salad (made with whole 30 Mayo!)

Sauerkraut

Broccoli

Asparagus

Salad (with whole 30 dressing!)

Pie*

Oh I can't wait!

Here are the recipes I'm making for Easter.  The sweet potato bites will have butter subbed out to make them compliant and I'll omit the cheese from the marinated vegetable salad.  The garlic roasted vegetables are compliant as is.  I'll also be taking mixed fresh berries with coconut whipped cream for a sugar-free dessert.

 

http://www.reynoldskitchens.com/easy-recipes/recipe-items/bacon-wrapped-sweet-potato-bites/

http://simplynourishedrecipes.com/garlic-roasted-vegetables/

http://www.thekitchensnob.com/vegetable-salad/

 

I'll eat the Honeybaked Ham, which contains sugar and corn, but will pass on all of the traditional side dishes that will also be there.  So sugar and corn will be my first reintroductions, but all else I eat will be compliant. 

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Galaxigrl, omg, pad thai was my FAAAVE. Even before Whole30, I was low-carb and therefore largely grain-free so I haven't had it in so long, but it was ssoooo good. Sorry you didn't feel well after it - could have been a whole mess of things in there, soy, grains, sugar. Also yay for another NSV with the beer!!

And I really wish it was easier to eat out, too. I have to say that is my biggest issue with it, because the food prep it therefore requires is sssooo massive. Not that we ate out a lot, but now it's like, we can't really eat out, at all, so I need to make sure there is food in the house.

 

Ramonax, oh wow, that's CRAZY how one little thing could set off the dragon for the entire day! I was lucky in that I felt so sick afterward, I think it put the dragon back in her cage to go recover, because I'm thinking, holy crap, I do NOT want more of that. I woke up this morning with a serious stomachache - thankfully the headache passed, though! I hope your dragon quiets down soon, too... it's crazy to realize how much we let them drive before! Do you think you're going to eat the cake?

& I completely agree, I vote we all move to ksea's house and clean up after all her cooking in exchange for the fabulous-sounding meals. :P

 

jen - Congratulations on finishing!!! So excited for you!! :) And I'm pretty sure you don't have to introduce anything if you don't want to - I'm pretty sure it's all personal choice. So if you're apprehensive, you could just super slow roll it and introduce things when you feel like hey, this is here, I think I want this. At least, that's what I've gathered from others' posts.

That's so funny about the fridge!! We realized the same thing! We used to let so much produce go rotty, but now, the fridge is always stuffed and then it all seems to go away so fast! (Except right now, I've got a cake and a sweet potato casserole in there taking up ALL THE ROOM).

Thanks for sharing the Easter recipes! Your sweet potato bites look sssoooo delicious!! I think the next round I'm going to have to make the trip to a Whole Foods so I can grab some compliant bacon, because I seriously miss it!

 

I'm going out with my friend tonight to try this Paleo restaurant: http://www.cavepaleoeatery.com/

I really want to try the Jerk Pork burger or the Thai turkey burger!! I can't believe I didn't find this until after the Whole 30 was already over - Most of their dishes are compliant! (With the exception of some sweetened with "natural" Paleo sweeteners like syrup or honey). I'm really excited to try it - and also excited to have a friend who is up for trying it even though she doesn't eat Paleo/Whole30! As much as I adore Chipotle, I'm really excited to have another option!!

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