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The one thing I probably miss most of all ...


aprilb

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... convenience.

I may take some heat for being real here, but this is hitting me. Eating real food, all the time, is constant work. The planning. The shopping. (And its not a one-stop-shop for the best quality.) The dishes. And just when the dishes get done, its about time to start gearing up for the next round. Don't get me wrong. I love cooking! So much so that I blog about it. But on Friday nights? Yeah I'll readily admit that this used to be the night we would call in a pizza order or visit the greasy taqueria down the street for some down-n-dirty tacos and enchiladas. 

And now I can't do that. Maybe ever again. At least not once a week! That's for damn sure!

So I love how I feel. I love how well I sleep. I'm not going to go running off program, BECAUSE all of the benefits far outweigh the pain-in-the-ass part of this new lifestyle. But I do miss the state of blissful ignorance. That is gone. Pandora's box has been opened and I can never go back. At the same time, I don't WANT to ever go back to living how I did before. But sometimes ... I miss just having an easy night.

There is my rant. Go ahead and tell me I need to "reframe" this and get myself an attitude adjustment. I already know I need to. And I will. But for right now I just need a small temper tantrum. LOL

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13 hours ago, aprilb said:

... convenience.

I may take some heat for being real here, but this is hitting me. Eating real food, all the time, is constant work. The planning. The shopping. (And its not a one-stop-shop for the best quality.) The dishes. And just when the dishes get done, its about time to start gearing up for the next round. Don't get me wrong. I love cooking! So much so that I blog about it. But on Friday nights? Yeah I'll readily admit that this used to be the night we would call in a pizza order or visit the greasy taqueria down the street for some down-n-dirty tacos and enchiladas. 

And now I can't do that. Maybe ever again. At least not once a week! That's for damn sure!

So I love how I feel. I love how well I sleep. I'm not going to go running off program, BECAUSE all of the benefits far outweigh the pain-in-the-ass part of this new lifestyle. But I do miss the state of blissful ignorance. That is gone. Pandora's box has been opened and I can never go back. At the same time, I don't WANT to ever go back to living how I did before. But sometimes ... I miss just having an easy night.

There is my rant. Go ahead and tell me I need to "reframe" this and get myself an attitude adjustment. I already know I need to. And I will. But for right now I just need a small temper tantrum. LOL

I won't be the one to tell you to reframe because I feel the same way. We ate out several times a week before and there are days when the last thing I want to do is cook and clean up and make lunch for the next day. But after 5 weeks it seems to be getting easier. We have not eaten out even one time since before Christmas. That is huge in my house. It is becoming a habit.

Also, I try to remind myself that there are many people in this world that do not have a choice. They have to cook and clean at every meal because eating for convenience is not economically feasible for them. And then I remind myself that less than 60 years ago in middle class America there was very little convenience food and eating out was a special thing, thus everyone cooked and cleaned every night. Eating conveniently is a modern invention.  Basically, I try to think if they could do it so can I.  We are lucky that we don't have to do it, but I am making the choice for me health and for my family.

I will say cooking in bigger batches leaves enough leftovers that at least one night a week we don't have to cook. Usually that is Friday night. 

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So true on all counts, @perceivingperdita and thank you for not being judgy with my tantrum. :) I think part of the issue is that I'm coming down with something (probably the cold my husband had last weekend) and I'm feeling the strain of keeping the house rolling in all areas while I'm not feeling my best. I will get over it, and you're right ... our great grandmas did not have these options and they put on their big girl panties and handled it!!

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We just finished on Saturday and are now doing reintro. We live overseas where eating out isn't a huge option and convenience food is ridiculously expensive, so I cook from scratch most of the time. It's a lot of work! And there are days where I just don't want to! :) And I love to cook. There were definitely days where I did NOT want to prep one more veggie/eggs/meat or cook a whole meal, but I also realized everything that @perceivingperdita said and would put on my big girl panties and keep going. I do love a healthy, beautiful meal, and sometimes that makes the experience worth it. I am getting some tools in my arsenal to make meal prep easier going forward, like my husband getting me an electric pressure cooker (like and instant pot) for an early birthday gift. Leftovers are a great way to make it an easier night once a week. I sometimes cook extra and freeze it or we just clean out the fridge and call it dinner. The other thing I really love is having a big bowl of salad in the fridge all the time, cut up veggies in containers, and then only having to cook some kind of protein. Often on nights where I want a quick meal it'll be steak. I just take it out earlier in the day and then sprinkle it with salt, pepper and herbes de provence and sear it in a cast iron skillet for about 5 minutes per side (depends on how you like it cooked) then move it to the oven for 7-10 minutes on about 450*. If you like garlic, throw some roughly chopped  or just smashed cloves in the pan when you're searing and they get kind of carmelized by the time they come out of the oven. Grab some salad and fresh veggis as sides and call it dinner! Super fast and you feel like you're eating a gourmet restaurant steak. Great option for a night when you might normally go out for a nice meal. 

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  • 2 weeks later...
16 hours ago, Sarahhuzzah said:

I agree wholeheartedly with this topic.  And, like our OP, while I understand the need to move toward Whole eating and all the amazing benefits of eating "real" food . . . The dishes are really, really, REALLY getting to me (and I'm only on day 16). 

Do you have a dishwasher? I started putting almost every thing that I could in there. I used to wash tupperwares (mine are glass) by hand but since Whole30 started putting them in the dishwasher. Lifesaver. Every little bit helps! I still wash pots/pans by hand though.

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This is how I feel as well. Even "healthier" convenience options, like overnight oats, that save time and create fewer dishes to wash would be welcome. 

And I live alone, so all I dream about is for someone to come over and cook for me and do all of the cleaning for a change! I feel like it would be a total gamechanger for how I feel. I'm not having any food cravings or any desire for off-plan things at all. I just want to not have to wash 4 things of tupperware the moment I get home, before I can even start cooking that night's dinner and creating more dishes that I'll have to wash. Blah!

I mind the grocery shopping less, same with the cooking. I do enjoy cooking, and I always make enough for leftovers. It's just the part where my sink is literally never empty. 

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On ‎2‎/‎15‎/‎2017 at 8:12 AM, sunnytropic said:

Do you have a dishwasher? I started putting almost every thing that I could in there. I used to wash tupperwares (mine are glass) by hand but since Whole30 started putting them in the dishwasher. Lifesaver. Every little bit helps! I still wash pots/pans by hand though.

I do have a dishwasher and I might have to take your advice and start putting things in it that I typically wouldn't.  I always hand wash knives and my stainless steel pots and pans . . . though I know they are supposed to be dishwasher safe, I just can't bring myself to put them in there! 

 

On ‎2‎/‎15‎/‎2017 at 9:20 AM, dc221104 said:

 I just want to not have to wash 4 things of tupperware the moment I get home, before I can even start cooking that night's dinner and creating more dishes that I'll have to wash. Blah!

...  It's just the part where my sink is literally never empty. 

YEP.  All of that.  Yes. 

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I'm in a different position because I am retired and have time to cook and clean up, but I still have a very similar sentiment. I now have time to play a little and throw a bit of caution to the wind and have a happy hour in the middle of the week and go out to eat a little more.  But wait, No it's not that easy, because I'm older and have a slower metabolism and now have to watch almost everything I put in my mouth and be so diligent about working out.  What a princess I am here.  Where is my grateful self?  At 63 I feel entitled to a more carefree life, but it's not so.  I have to turn this around.

I'm on Day 7 of W30 #2 and my tire around the middle is shrinking again.  That's all well and good and somewhat euphoric, but the truth is I wouldn't be in round 2 if I had been able to sustain some kind of personal food roadmap the first time.  That roadmap and the "off-road" map is so important to me right now.  I don't want to do this again.  I want my own personal sustainable change.  

What do I do about the pizza? I love pizza.  But I do have gluten sensitivity (not celiac).  Does anyone have any pizza substitute that is worth eating? When our kids want to come over with their kids for an impromptu visit, they bring Papa Murphy's and then I make my own food.  I tried to make cauliflower crust and wouldn't use that recipe again.  And I've tried to use the einkorn flour (heirloom with less gluten) to make thin as possible slightly more compliant crust, too, and that made me decide pizza wasn't worth it if it was like that. So I started eating a bit of pizza again--part of my downfall.  Part of why I'm on Round 2. And I haven't even said anything about the cheese.  I would even be happy with flatbread thoughts. Does anyone have any pizza substitute worth eating?

So sorry about this rant.  I am going to try during my last 22 days to channel my frustration to be more ready for post W30 this time.  I'm doing the Whole30 again, but my mind is saying it's all about the roadmap so I can be prepared on March 13.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Amen @aprilb I've got some belly issues (colonoscopies at age 29 are expensive!!!) and therefore went for a Whole60 instead of a Whole30. I am currently on day 52 and reintroduction  has been taking up a lot of headspace lately. I DON'T miss a lot of the food (yes, I have craved pizza and a cookie from time to time) nor the way I would feel after my usual mindless food choices, but I DO miss the convenience of it all too!! I totally feel you. I feel GREAT for the most part right now and I have shed quit a bit of weight. My energy levels are way more sustainable and I am in control of my food cravings! Hallelujiah! So I wouldn't trade any of it in, but I miss not having to harass my waiters when we occasionally go out for date night or being the only one not eating during the catered lunch because I can't or bringing my own damn meat to BBQ'swith friends because the seasoning they probably used isn't compliant. I am loving my food choices right now but am wishing that there were more of us out there who ate like this so I wouldn't be such a stick in the mud around everyone else. Why can't everyone live Whole30 so I can be 200% happy living life the way I do! :P Ha! If only.....

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On February 17, 2017 at 6:53 PM, Gramma Susie said:

 What do I do about the pizza? I love pizza.  But I do have gluten sensitivity (not celiac).  Does anyone have any pizza substitute that is worth eating? When our kids want to come over with their kids for an impromptu visit, they bring Papa Murphy's and then I make my own food.  I tried to make cauliflower crust and wouldn't use that recipe again.  And I've tried to use the einkorn flour (heirloom with less gluten) to make thin as possible slightly more compliant crust, too, and that made me decide pizza wasn't worth it if it was like that. So I started eating a bit of pizza again--part of my downfall.  Part of why I'm on Round 2. And I haven't even said anything about the cheese.  I would even be happy with flatbread thoughts. Does anyone have any pizza substitute worth eating?

Chickpea flour flatbread, called socca, makes a good pizza crust.  When I've made it, I've used Mark Bittman's recipe and my results have varied, but it was always edible and sometimes fantastic.  If you do any experimentation with this and find a reliable recipe/method, please share.  

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  • 3 weeks later...

The constant cooking and cleaning up was getting to me, too.  So very early on in my Whole30, I started stocking my freezer so I wouldn't always have to start from scratch.  Whenever I cook I make huge amounts and freeze individual portions in Ziplocs for later.  Right now I have mini- burgers, chicken meatballs, (1lb makes 12; 3 per serving), veal stew, lamb tagine, and thick turkey meatloaf slices in my freezer.  When I don't feel like cooking, all I have to do is defrost and re-heat.  

For one of my favorite breakfasts, I combined cubed butternut squash and beets and added chopped onions and a little chopped kale, and roasted them in the oven to make hash.  Then I froze them in a large Ziploc in a thin sheet.  All I have to do is break off a chunk or shake some out into a sauté pan, heat and add eggs, either sunny side up or soft boiled, depending on my mood.  Yum.  And quick!

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