Sara's Post-Whole30

[Sarasaurus]

I had a work conference this week with an overnight stay at a remote lodge which serves country, family-style meals 3x/day. I was there for only 4 meals, took some portable compliant foods with me, and tried to eat from what was provided as 'best' I could... but wow, it totally messed up my stomach (constipation, mainly) even though I made sure to drink lots of water and took a dose of Natural Calm with me! By the time I avoided all the breads, desserts, breaded/fried stuff, etc. I really didn't have many options and of course got comments about what I was (not) eating. Ugh. I noticed today that it may have tipped me back slightly towards wanting sugar - there was pizza and homemade cupcakes at work today, and I thought about the cupcakes more than I would have liked (of course I ate my tasty W30 lunch and didn't give in!).

[Sarasaurus]

Checking in after several weeks of "riding my own bike" now... I've been off roading when it's worth it, which for me just means it's 'worth' having a less than ideal meal/food - I did not experience any negative reactions during reintroductions or afterward (except for feeling crappy when eating multiple very non-W30 meals, as described in the 8/25 post). This weekend I made ice cream and gave most of it to a friend, but ate a little of it myself. Since I was making it, I could control the amount of sugar and although it obviously contained dairy there were no sketchy/chemical-y ingredients. I also hung out with some friends Sunday night and had the homemade veggie pizza they made. I didn't go crazy with any of it, but the most noticeable thing for me has been that I can come back to the W30 template meal after off roading. That has made me much more likely to get right back on track after 'indulging', rather than having it become a slippery slope of justifying more unhealthy choices. After eating this way for about 3 months now, I'm comfortable with it and I know it works - it keeps me full and satisfied and I've now lost a total of 13 lbs. 

[Sarasaurus]

Reviving my log to try and sort out some issues I've noticed recently... after the holidays I decided to do another Whole30 to get my diet back on track (although it really wasn't bad, I'd indulged over the holidays but nothing crazy, and was up maybe a pound or two). I was surprised by how different my mental/emotional reaction was compared to my first W30 - I think because I felt like I already know how this goes, I was more annoyed/frustrated by the restrictions instead of feeling excited to see what changes I might experience. I finished my second W30 at the beginning of February and continued with a mostly W30 diet, as I'd been doing since finishing my first W30 over the summer. But in the past 2 months I've gained 6 pounds and am back to feeling a lot of bloating/puffy stomach. My suspicion is that it's because of the coffee habit I've developed, which has become pretty much daily and includes half and half... small doses of dairy during reintroductions didn't bother me but I'm thinking a daily dose is having a cumulative effect. So, effective today I'm quitting the coffee (and avoiding any other dairy) and keeping everything else pretty strict W30 to try and pin down the cause.

My other issue is a rash that I got on my neck and chest back in February/March... it was red and terribly itchy at times and then turned into really dry, gross looking patches of skin. It had finally gone away 3-4 weeks ago, but this morning I woke up with it back on my neck! Argh! The only unusual thing I can think of from yesterday was that I ate asparagus for dinner, which I hadn't had in a while (my other meals were the same or similar to the days before). A little Googling found a few references to people asking about similar reactions to asparagus but it seems like it would be unusual. I didn't eat any more of it today and figured I'll give it a few days to see if there's any improvement, then maybe eat another serving as a test.

If anyone happens to read this who has experience or input on either of these issues, I'd love to hear it!

 

M1: Mixed veggies (broccoli, carrots, green beans, peppers), beef sausage, mustard mayo, kombucha

M2: Zoodles with ground turkey and pasta sauce. Also ate some of my coworkers McDonald's fries, and chips sitting out in the break room 

Snack: hb egg w/ mustard mayo, 1/2 Larabar, few mixed nuts

M3: apple, almonds, deli turkey, roasted broccoli, kombucha

[Sarasaurus]

Yesterday the rash on my neck looked better, although still felt itchy at times. This morning it's still looking better and I think is less itchy. I'll give it another day or two and eat a serving of asparagus.

Not sure if I'm seeing any benefits yet from ditching the coffee and half-and-half. I thought my stomach was feeling flatter yesterday but that could be unrelated (or due to the wearing more forgiving jeans than the day before). I think the true test will be my weight, since I don't intend to change the rest of my diet.

 

Yesterday:

M1: burger patty, spinach, horseradish mayo, 1/2 apple

M2: Zoodles w/ ground turkey and tomato sauce, 1/2 apple

Snack: 2 hb eggs w/ mustard mayo, Larabar

M3: 2 carnitas tacos, chips, guac

[Sarasaurus]

M1: beef sausage, mustard mayo, roasted broccoli, sweet potato

Snack: Rx bar, kombucha

M2: Zoodles w/ ground turkey and tomato sauce, 1/2 burger patty, few almonds, spoonful of coconut butter

 

Slept much later than I intended this morning so my eating schedule was pushed way back. The rash on my neck is definitely much better... planning to have asparagus tomorrow night and see what happens. I'll be glad to know there's a cause, but sad if I have to stop eating asparagus! Logging my meals again has made me realize all the little things that have been sneaking in. I still don't feel like I'm eating much differently than I was a few months ago, and quite good/faithful to W30 in general, but it's good to get focused again and bring those things to my attention.

[Sarasaurus]

So, I failed to factor Easter into my plans... went to family dinner this afternoon and while I tried not to go completely off the rails, there wasn't much I could do to avoid dairy. I also ate some cake, which I only feel bad about because I'm concerned that the dairy/lactose I've been consuming has sabotaged my fat adaption and obviously putting more sugar on top of that isn't going to help undo it. In my normal, "mostly W30" eating plan it would have been no sweat - indulge a little and then back to normal. 

M1: kalua pork, brussels sprouts, sweet potato

M2: chicken (breaded w/ milk and flour, I scraped off the breading as best I could), green beans, pickled egg, spinach salad w/ strawberries and pecans (dressing was already on the salad and definitely contained dairy so I tried to get as dry a serving as possible), cake

[Sarasaurus]

M1: burger patty, spinach, horseradish mayo

M2: apple, kalua pork, green beans

Snack/preWO: few bites of pork and green beans I didn't have time to eat at lunch, hb egg w/ mustard mayo, 1/2 larabar

postWO: 1 slice deli turkey

M3: 2 fried eggs, asparagus, sweet potato

Thinking I should probably ditch the larabars for now. I keep them at work for snacks/travel food and haven't found that they make me crave sugar, but since I'm looking to get back to fat adaption they're probably more sugar than I want. 

[Sarasaurus]

M1: kalua pork, green beans

M2: 1/2 burger patty, beef sausage, brussels sprouts, green beans, apple

Snack/preWO: hb egg w/ mustard mayo, 1/2 larabar

postWO: 1 slice deli turkey

M3: 3 fried eggs, asparagus, sweet potato

No ill effects from the asparagus last night so I finished it off today... I'm glad, but frustrated that I don't know what caused that rash to come back. I'm also really frustrated with how fat I feel right now but I know I need to give my body at least a couple weeks to adjust.

[Sarasaurus]

M1: chicken apple sausage, brussels sprouts, spoonful of coconut butter

M2: kalua pork, green beans, apple

Snack/preWO: hb egg w/ mustard mayo

postWO: 1 slice deli turkey

M3: burger patty w/ horseradish mayo, roasted broccoli, sweet potato

Sooo I've always heard that coffee makes you poop... apparently (for me) cutting out coffee has the opposite effect. I've upped my magnesium and am drinking a ton of water but it's not really helping yet. Aside from being uncomfortable, it's also making it hard to tell if my body composition is changing at all.

[Sarasaurus]

M1: chicken apple sausage, green beans w/ coconut oil

M2: handful of nuts, kalua pork, mixed veggies w/ mustard mayo, few fries w/ ketchup

Snack: hb egg w/ mustard mayo

M3: 1 slice deli turkey, kalua pork, mixed veggies w/ mustard mayo

My co-workers offered some fries from their lunch and I ate a few with ketchup - the ketchup tasted so sweet! I also realized that Easter passed and I didn't eat a single Reese's egg, and it wasn't even a struggle! While the issues I'm sorting out now are frustrating, it's gratifying to realize how much I have stuck to the W30 way of eating and continue to recognize NSVs.

My digestive system seems to be getting straightened out, but I remembered that during my first W30 I ate pulled pork (store bought) for several meals and it didn't agree with me. This time it was homemade but I'm wondering if there's something about the pork that my system doesn't like, so I put the rest in the freezer and will see how I feel over the next couple days. I think going off coffee is the major factor, and starting my period may have contributed also, so I'll give the pork another try in a couple weeks.

[Sarasaurus]

M1: Rx bar

M2: burger patty w/ horseradish mayo, brussels sprouts, sweet potato, kombucha

M3: burger patty w/ horseradish mayo, sugar snap peas w/ ghee, 2 squares 85% dark chocolate

M4: salmon cake w/ mayo, mixed veggies

Haven't had time to post my meals the past couple days, but Friday night went out for dinner and had a burrata mozzarella appetizer and pizza, and leftover pizza for breakfast Saturday morning. Weighed myself Saturday morning and was down one pound, so hopefully back on track despite the cheese and carbs. My stomach is feeling better; I've pretty much lost the bloated feeling. I was noticing that although I think my meals are properly sized I sometimes feel really full after eating, and don't have much of an appetite in the evening. It could have just been the bloating/constipation but now that's subsided so if I'm still feeling overly full I'll look at reducing portion sizes. 

[Sarasaurus]

I've neglected posting for over a week... oops. I weighed myself two days ago and am at the same weight I was on 4/13 when I gave up the coffee/half and half to try and get back to the WholeSarasaurus that I was so happy with. I'm frustrated, because my diet has been what I'd consider 'normal' - most meals are W30, with a meal or two per week at a restaurant or noncompliant in some way (and my noncompliant meals aren't binges or anything, I still try to minimize sugar and stay as close to the template as possible). So today I started back on strict compliance, although I have several events coming up that I probably won't be able to get more than 5-6 consecutive compliant days. Having done two W30s I'm not convinced there's much value in multiple rounds, and I don't like the mindset of being "on" or "off" W30, but strict compliance is what got me to the good place I was in. I have noticed in the past 2 weeks an overall reduction in the bloating/puffy stomach I was experiencing.

M1: 2 hot dogs, brussels sprouts w/ a little ghee, mustard mayo, pistachios

Snack (in the field/meetings so lunch was delayed): hb egg w/ mustard mayo, apple

M2: roasted veggies, burger patty, horseradish mayo

M3: 2 eggs fried in coconut oil, spinach, sweet potato, bite of coconut butter

No postWO today because I didn't have any lean protein prepped, but I did work out (Crossfit).

[Sarasaurus]

M1: 2 hot dogs, brussels sprouts w/ ghee, small spoonful of coconut butter

M2: roasted veggies, burger patty, horseradish mayo, kombucha

preWO: 2 fried eggs

postWO: still no lean protein prepped...

M3: salmon w/ mayo and lemon oil, broccoli, sweet potato

Didn't get to do my usual grocery shopping over the weekend and still haven't made it to the store, so I'm scraping the bottom of the fridge/freezer... at least I've got enough stuff on hand to make compliant (if uninspiring) meals.

[Sarasaurus]

M1: chicken apple sausage, broccoli w/ ghee, spinach w/ coconut oil

M2: burger patty, roasted veggies, horseradish mayo

preWO: none, wasn't hungry

postWO: none, STILL hadn't gone grocery shopping

M3: beef sausage, sugar snap peas, mustard mayo

Getting out of my normal shopping/prepping routine this week has made life so much more difficult. I'm feeling pretty good though!

[Sarasaurus]

M1: chicken apple sausage, sugar snap peas w/ ghee, spoonful of coconut butter

M2: apple, carnitas bowl w/ salsa, lettuce, and guac (Chipotle)

Snack: 2 hb eggs w/ mustard mayo

M3: spoonful of coconut butter, sauteed cabbage/carrot slaw, barbacoa beef, salsa, guac

[Sarasaurus]

M1: green beans w/ coconut oil, beef sausage, mustard mayo

Snack: Larabar

M2: sauteed cabbage/carrot slaw, barbacoa beef, salsa, guac

M3: spoonful of coconut butter, hb egg w/ mustard mayo

Got stuck in the field today longer than planned and was getting super hungry, so a Larabar was the best I could do at the 7-Eleven/Burger King. Ate my lunch when I got back to the office and regretted eating the whole thing - I knew I was full, I just didn't want to keep the leftovers since I had already put guacamole on it and that would be gross reheated. So dumb. I felt uncomfortably full for most of the afternoon and now, almost 8 hours later, an egg and a little coconut butter was all I could do for "dinner". 

[Sarasaurus]

So I managed a Whole5 (Monday-Friday), went out to dinner last night (Mexican - pork loin w/ red mole, scalloped sweet potatoes, and broccoli) and will have a catered dinner at an event tonight (generally pretty healthy food, but not W30). My other meals this weekend have been compliant. I weighed myself yesterday and am still at the same weight  I'm kind of at a loss at this point; ideally I guess I'd do another W30 but I have travel and special events coming up every couple week for the next few months. 

[Sarasaurus]

M1: zoodles, tomato sauce w/ ground beef

Snack: hb egg w/ mustard mayo

M2: barbacoa beef, cauli rice, salsa, guac, mango and blueberries

post WO: one slice deli turkey

M3: 2 eggs, roasted veggies, sweet potato

I'm going to try reducing my portion sizes a bit and see if that makes any difference with weight loss (while making sure I can still go 4-5 hrs between meals). I was feeling a bit bloated today, likely due to my off-plan eating over the weekend, but I had breakfast about 8:30, an egg at 11:45, and wasn't starving when I finally got to eat "lunch" at almost 4pm. Tried to keep dinner on the smaller side too but still felt like a struggle to eat it all.

[Sarasaurus]

Yikes, haven't posted since Monday... I don't remember all my meals this week, but I've been 100% compliant until this evening - social event at my gym with a workout and potluck. I didn't eat a lot, but had chips, cookies, cheesecake, etc. I did feel maxed out on sugar pretty quickly, which I guess is good. Went ahead and weighed myself this morning and still the same weight. I do feel like I've done better with portion sizes this week and that has made me feel better, even if it's not moving the scale.

[Sarasaurus]

Reading back over my posts from last year, and I was never able to resolve the weight gain/loss of fat adaption that I experienced early in the year. With some major (positive) changes in my life, I decided to do another strict W30 to try and get back to my happy post-W30 state from 2016. Yesterday (2/9) was Day 30, today was Day 1 Reintro (legumes). I'm feeling good, although I definitely haven't seen nearly the dramatic changes in my body that I experienced with my first W30. Forgot to weigh myself this morning.

Reintro Day 1

Meal 1: hot dog, mustard mayo, leftover chicken tikka w/ cauli rice, peanut butter

Meal 2: has browns, spinach, black beans, pico, 2 fried eggs, 1 slice prosciutto

Snack: peanut butter

Meal 3: 2 hot dogs, mustard mayo, black beans, pico, guacamole, 2 slices prosciutto, peanut butter

Workout: yoga

[Sarasaurus]

Reintro Day 2

Meal 1: chicken tikka w/ cauli rice, 1 slice prosciutto

Meal 2: 2 slices prosciutto, 2 fried eggs, sauteed zucchini and mushrooms, clementine

Meal 3: steamed shrimp w/ Old Bay, roasted broccoli and potatoes, mustard mayo, 2 slices prosciutto

Workout: none

Well, I remembered to weigh myself this morning... and I've gained half a pound! It's possible that working out more regularly has caused me to gain some muscle, but my overall feeling is that any changes in my body composition have been minimal. I plan to finish reintroductions and stick to a mostly W30 diet, and hopefully begin seeing some results.

[Sarasaurus]

Reintro Day 3

Meal 1: 2 hot dogs, snow peas, ghee, mustard mayo

Meal 2: chicken, roasted broccoli and potatoes, guacamole

preWO: 3 slices deli turkey w/ mustard mayo

postWO: 3 steamed shrimp

Meal 3: haddock baked w/ ghee, roasted broccoli and potatoes, Shine organics pouch, few blueberries, coconut butter

Workout: Crossfit

I almost forgot tomorrow was my next reintro day and had to change up some of my meal prepping... but it's a good thing if compliant meals are my default! I felt bloated today and my jeans felt super tight on my stomach. I doubt it's from anything I've eaten - I don't think it would take that long to see a reaction from legumes, and I didn't feel gassy, just fat 

[Sarasaurus]

Reintro Day 4 (yesterday)

Meal 1: gf oatmeal w/ flax and chia seeds, blueberries, coconut butter, snow peas, steamed shrimp

Snack: steamed shrimp

Meal 2: chicken, roasted broccoli, brown rice, guacamole

preWO: 3 slices deli turkey w/ guacamole

Meal 3: chicken, veggie fritters, roasted potatoes, brown rice

Workout: Crossfit

Forgot to post yesterday... non-gluten grains reintro. No noticeable effects except that I seemed to be hungry sooner than usual after my meals.

[Sarasaurus]

Reintro Day 5

Meal 1: 2 hot dogs, mustard mayo, veggie fritters

Meal 2: sauteed zucchini and mushrooms w/ tomato sauce and ground beef, clementine

preWO: 3 slices deli turkey w/ mustard mayo, 1/2 Rx bar (later)

Meal 3: 2 fried eggs, veggie fritters, roasted potatoes, mustard mayo

Workout: Crossfit

I feel like I'm getting hungrier around 4:30/5 than I used to... that's the time I'd be due to eat again so I don't think it's a problem, but I need to be prepared with more food so I don't end up eating bars out of desperation. Really liking this veggie fritter recipe (cabbage, kale, and carrots) 

[Sarasaurus]

Reintro Day 6

Meal 1: chicken, veggie fritters

Snack: 1/2 Rx bar

Meal 2: sauteed zucchini and mushrooms w/ tomato sauce and ground beef

Snack: 3 slices deli turkey w/ mustard mayo

Meal 3: 2 fried eggs, mixed greens, Tessemae's dressing, guacamole, veggie fritter, mayo

Workout: none

Not enough fat at breakfast this morning and I was hungry by 10:30. Felt a bit bloated most of the day, not sure what the culprit might have been (Rx bar?).