Start date June 1st

[Fiddi]

19 minutes ago, WholeCourtney said:

Do it! I was nervous as well but it was so stinking easy. Put it in the crock pot on low for 8 hours with some chopped onions, garlic, a bay leaf and covered with water. Then took it out (discard the rest) let it cool for a few minutes and peel the outer skin off. Then I chopped it up and tossed it in the skillet with some butter and seasoned it like I would taco meat. It got a nice crust and was finger licking good.

I will!  I just added this to my Paprika App and I'll try it next week, assuming I can find some tongue around here. 

 

My father was released from the hospital and, fortunately, the problem isn't too serious. He can't really drive for a little while, though, so I drove down here to drive them to appointments tomorrow. I say this in the most respectful way possible, but my family's eating habits and the resultant health issues are what has motivated me to kick things into high gear when it comes to my relationship with food. I am blessed with not having a sweet tooth and a pretty health conscious husband.  So that, plus the fact I live a couple of hours away from where I grew up, have helped me not become too overweight and indulgent. If I hadn't left home, I more than likely would already have diabetes.  Anyway, my eating habits usually take a nose dive while visiting my family. This time I came armed with nuts, Lara bars and bags of vegetables. Instead of going out to eat dinner as we usually would do, I made my mom and dad buffalo style chicken breast with mushrooms, avocado and sugar snap peas.  Tomorrow we will be on the road all day, so I'll take along my bars and nuts and try to get us to a good restaurant where I can get a piece of compliant fish, steak or salad. I may not eat everything I should, but I know, no matter what, I will not eat anything I shouldn't. This Whole30 journey has been liberating for me. My parents kitchen is filled with chips of all kinds. I love chips. They literally call my name when they are in my pantry. They do. They have kind of a husky, come hither kind of voice. But those chips in my parents kitchen didn't get a second glance from me. I have tastier food to eat now. And I love it. :-)

 

[Shawnni]

Day 16 - I need to get back into the sweet potatoes I think as I'm hungry as late at night. Feels harder than ever now. I need to make some soups with all that stock I've made

[kalsjourney]

9 hours ago, WholeCourtney said:

@kalsjourney One of my worst eating habits was my late night binge eating. I still struggle to not eat after dinner. Even if Im not hungry or craving food I think about eating and get anxious that I'll get a craving I wont be able to control and I will eat all the food. It really is hard work untangling ourselves from our bad habits.

I can't believe that we are officially half way through!!

Ive added some more workout routines to my schedule and attended my first yoga class tonight. While I feel great I'm so jealous of those of you who have noticeable weight loss. I knew significant weight loss was unlikely as I found out my thyroid meds needed to be increased right before we started and I may not be taking the correct dose. I cant get to down though I know weight loss is only one of the measures of success

It really is!  There are some days that it is not even an issue for me, and then others where I cannot help myself. I am prepared to go Whole45 if needed to try and tackle these personal demons. 

How did you like yoga? I love yoga and was intending on doing a practice when waking up this morning... but I snoozed my alarm for an hour and feel groggy and bloated. Mental note: overeating at night leads to icky mornings, and now I have to rush to get to work. I know what you mean about visible changes, I am in the same boat. You have the right mentality though! Focus on the other positives.

[Ginsky]

Hello, so here we are in the back half of our Whole30, tiger blood territory!  

Leftover clearing continued for breakfast and lunch.

I cooked the last of the turkey this morning and tossed it into salad with creamy dijon dressing (okay, my fancy way of saying mayo+dijon mustard).  

I sauteed some (frozen pre-cut) green beans with garlic, ginger, pepper, mushrooms, (canned) bamboo shoots then added coconut aminos, fish sauce, and chicken broth with extra gelatin added.  I let that all swish around and reduce a bit, tossing some raw cashews in near the end as I heated the last of my spicy Asian inpsired meatballs.  So that was lunch.  

[jiffylush]

Tiger Blood Day 1!

I slept through the night!  10-5 which is much better than waking up over and over.  My legs were VERY sore this morning when I stood up out of bed.  I didn't want to go spin class and I actually got back in bed.  Since I was well rested for a change I didn't instantly fall back asleep.  I layed there for five minutes and knew I would be disappointed if I didn't go so I got up and went.  There is no class tonight and I have to work tomorrow and may or may not be able to get a class in so I am very happy that I made it.

I feel great.  Lots of energy and positive moods.  I went on a long walk for lunch.

Anyway, all good things.

[LesTodd]

On 6/5/2017 at 1:14 PM, Ginsky said:

@Jane3797, I'm not sure which recipes you mean.  I will usually name the book or blog if I used a recipe for a dish but I cook most often without any recipe and without measuring ingredients.  

@kbereilly, congratulations on your great start.  Leftovers are awesome, total lifesaver on days when you just don't want to cook.  It's almost as easy as having someone else cook for you, maybe better since you know what's in it for sure.  I don't always follow breakfast/lunch/dinner traditions when it comes to what I eat.  I often have typical "dinner" meals first thing in the morning and might have eggs, bacon, sausage, hash browns, etc at any time of the day.  Heck, this morning I made buffalo wings and spaghetti squash.  You don't have to be confined to breakfast foods for breakfast if you're looking for variety to replace old grain-filled breakfast habits.  

@katrine77 I like squash with eggs.  Sometimes I'll cut an acorn squash in half, scoop the seeds,

On 6/5/2017 at 8:24 PM, katrine77 said:

Thank you, Ginsky!  those sound like great ideas!  Especially the hash brown zucchini and squash!  I keep thinking vegetables HAVE to be green and that is not true!

into it then bake it.  or I'll cut it into rings, bake, then remove and drop into a hot pan to crack the egg into the middle for frying.  I also like to julienne zucchini and yellow squash with potatoes (onions, whatever seasonings, etc) for hash browns.  At this point though, I'll eat any veggie or salad on the side with eggs.  

@jiffylush, amazing job on being prepared for the potential lunch disaster. Congratulations on your 5 years sober!  I always hear about people having weight loss competitions.  I'm curious, do they go by pounds or by percentage lost?  

(Edited to add) Oh my forgetful brain, I came on here to ask something and then forgot what I was doing.  lol

For lunch I made steamed green beans with baked salmon covered in a lemon coconut cream sauce.  I used about 3oz of coconut cream (comes in a small little can labeled as such instead of skimming the cream/fat off the top of can of coconut milk), lemon zest, scallion, and juice of the same lemon I zested.  My question though, is about the cream.  What that enough fat?  Does it matter that I reduced it in the saucepan to get a thicker sauce?

 

Hi all! Beginning the second half with Tiger Blood! I really feel great: been going to all kinds of fun classes at my new gym--11 days out of 16. Less brain fog, more energy. I feel like I could do this forever. Keeping my food interesting enough, though I have to admit, eating is satisfying but not thrilling. Miss my Cajun cooking. But the results are worth it. Enjoying reading all your yummy recipes and narratives. Best wishes, y'all!

 

[Ginsky]

So, hmmm, I probably should put away my coconut aminos to give this no-coconut thing a fair chance.  lol  I used some duck necks in my beef bone broth so I guess I'll  rely on that a wee bit more.  I don't know how long I'm going to go without coconut, maybe the rest of this Whole30, maybe longer before I try  reintro/test.  

@jiffylush, that's awesome about your sleep!  I'm impressed with your willpower to make it to class when I'm sure bed was feeling so comfy.  

[Ginsky]

So I just whipped myself up a bit of "something" I'll use in place of coconut aminos.  It's  a lot like other soy sauce substitute recipes.  I used a cup of beef/duck broth,  2Tbalsamic vinegar, 2t apple cider  vinegar, pepper,   garlic powder,  ginger,  a date cut in half, porcini mushroom,   boiled, simmered,  removed from heat, added some  salt and fish sauce.  I let it cool then poured it through cheese cloth into a bottle.  It's  lighter in color but it has a  nice taste.  I'm not even sure it needed a date in there.  I've always hated the sweetness of coconut aminos anyway.  

[Lizzard]

Birthday cake is made.  It was a new recipe and it looks and smells soooo good.  My husband said we can freeze a piece    For party tomorrow I'll have a hamburger, no bun with lettuce, bacon, tomato, and mustard.  Dessert for me will be strawberries.  Found some sweet ripe ones at Sam's Club.  

[WholeCourtney]

@kalsjourney Im in the same boat, if I dont see more positive changes with my frame of mind and thoughts toward and about food I will be extending my Whole30. 

I LOVED yoga. Ive practiced before at home with free amazon prime videos but I was super nervous to take a class and embarrass myself but it was awesome. Definitely making it a permanent part of my routine. 

[kalsjourney]

Today was GREAT!

Lunch was basil coconut curry over spaghetti squash, and then around 3:30 I had a hard boiled egg. Once I was liberated from the shackles of work I biked in the 99 DEGREE HEAT to the rock climbing gym. It was harder than I remember it being, but to be expected given my level of fitness and the several years it has been. I spent half an hour on an auto belay wall - started just getting up a couple of feet and managed to get about halfway a few times! But my hands were tired so I called it a day, but I am excited to go back soon!

I got home from work and had a post workout snack of cashews, epic bites, and a couple sweet peppers. Then I began prepping dinner - cauliflower soup, which used almost everything in my fridge (bok choy and kale remain), and while it was simmering I biked to the store for some protein to go with dinner, and nabbed eggs and bacon for the morning. Tomorrow I will finish off my fridge and I'll go shopping on Sunday.

[HopingtoHeal]

Just a flying visit before I head out to work!

@kalsjourney great work with the gym!  and your soup sounds delicious!

Yesterday went well for me, I did my third gym class of the week - body balance - and left feeling good. I had a good hearty breakfast and lunch and I met a friend for coffee in the afternoon and realised when I got home that I didn't even look at the cake counter which is huge for me because I ALWAYS had cake before - a lot of the time when I wasn't even hungry, it was purely habit! For dinner we made chilli, using our normal recipe but substituting the kidney beans for an extra pepper and the stock cube for bone broth. I had mine in a baked sweet potato and it was absolutely delicious, I've never baked a sweet potato before but I definitely will again! And I also made a batch of butternut squash soup some of which I will take for lunch today.

@Lizzard great job on the birthday cake and planning how to be compliant around the celebration! My GF brownies the other day were a crumbley mess so couldn't be sent to the church event. Husband tells me they taste fine which unfortunately means I now have a tin of brownies in the kitchen!!! I won't be tempted to eat one though. Not worth it!

We are off out to a friends birthday bbq tonight and I am all prepped with what to take with me. Feeling much more confident about navigating social situations based around a meal. And my friend was really understanding and helpful

Day 17 here we come!

[Ginsky]

@Lizzard, I hope you're enjoying the party today!  

@WholeCourtney, I'm happy you found something you enjoy to make a permanent part of your routine.  

@kalsjourney, your rock climbing adventure sounds so cool!  I loved reading your fridge/meal/shopping plan.  

@HopingtoHeal, the baked sweet potato with chili sounds amazing!  Have a wonderful time at the BBQ, supportive friends are the best.

 

I'm finally sitting down and I fear I may never get up again.  haha  

I had sausage again this morning and a big plate of green beans and kalamata olives

For lunch i just threw together tuna salad and a separate leafy salad.  

Of course I have to get up to make something happen for dinner.  Probably finish off that sausage as part of it before it can get forgotten and lost in the shuffle.  

[Jane3797]

I have really enjoyed the last few days of posts from all of you.  They arrive in my email so I keep up that way.  I can't like or comment from there but I am silently supporting from the rafters.

@Ginsky

You a re a natural cook and could/should create your own cookbook.  I love your replacement for coconut aminos.  Prior to Whole30 I was a huge advocate of Bragg's Liquid Aminos.  That 30 Days of Whole Food Cooking was not a Whole30 compliant reference but comes very close.  But just the same I apologize for the referral.  Delish recipes and inspirational pics, though.  I am very good at copying recipes and replacing certain ingredients with W30 compliance as I go along.

I find I cook up a storm and then burn myself out, making it through a few days' cooking break while eating very simply.  Thank goodness for frozen stuff (and leftovers).  I appreciate everyone's enthusiasms which renew my own when I get tired of it all.

Today I was pulling weeds and found my pants were really bagging.  If they had a belt I would have to tighten by a few notches.  As it was I just kept hiking them back up.

Here's to a great support system full of good and well-intentioned winners!

 

[Shawnni]

Hi all, I'm still here. Plugging along and I have to admit I am so pleased with how well I am doing. Even though I've had some physical issues my mind set in regards to eating has been steadfast and true. 

My goal at the  beginning was to assess my emotional habits around eating. But also for me it was to be sure I could go without or resist leaning on juices and nuts as I have done in the past.

I'm pleased to say until yesterday I haven't had any nuts unless it was in a pesto. However I have some questions around nuts and wondering if anyone else gets the internal shakes after having eaten a small handful of macadamias or almonds?

Does anyone else experience this? 

[Fiddi]

I'm back from visiting my parents and I was able to remain compliant the whole time! We  ended up going out to eat at: 

Red Lobster - snow crab legs, clarified butter (actually just a little because the crab was so good without it, grilled zucchini and squash and a plain salad with O&V. 

 

A local burger place - I called ahead to verify the meat was clean and what oil and seasonings were used  I just got a patty with avocado and grilled veggies  

 

The Egg & I - the head cook came out to talk to me.  I decided on two poached eggs, avocado and veggies  it was such a good meal.  I'll include a picture if I can  

 

My parents were very interested in hearing about  Whole30 and said they were proud of me for taking control of my health considering our family history.  I'm very glad I decided to go.  It felt good to help my parents out.  And it was a nice surprise to learn that most restaurants are happy to talk to you and make sure they are able to provide you with a delicious, compliant meal.  

 

[Jane3797]

@Shawnni

[Jane3797]

Shawnni, I do not have that experience with those or any nuts.  It sounds like an allergy to me.  Enough of them could cause breathing issues, etc.  In other words, it sounds more like the onset of anaphylactic shock...but I am not a doctor.  Please be careful.

Fiddi congratulations on all your successful dinings out!  And for introducing your parents to this wonderful program idea.  I had the opportunity tonight to tell my grandson (14 years old) a good deal about it and he was receptive, too.  The more we tell others the better off the world will be regarding health, well being, and fighting horrible diseases.  We may only plant a seed but that is okay.  The most important fact in my mind is teaching our brains to use fat for energy instead of sugar.

[Pippin1]

9 hours ago, Jane3797 said:

I appreciate everyone's enthusiasms which renew my own when I get tired of it all.

Today I was pulling weeds and found my pants were really bagging.  If they had a belt I would have to tighten by a few notches.  As it was I just kept hiking them back up.

Here's to a great support system full of good and well-intentioned winners!

 

I echo that.  I too can't always access my laptop and am reading all your posts, desperately wanting to hit the like button.  I think this forum has been particularly helpful for me this time round.

@Jane3797 That's a great image of you hiking up your clothing whilst you were doing the weeding.  Congratulations on the baggy pants.

[Pippin1]

Here I am Day 18 and think it will be Day 5 .  My very helpful wholefood supplier has been scouring the lands for coconut aminos and found some.  The ingredients surprised me so I researched them on the forum, and the internet and added a teaspoon to our evening stir-fry. 

Thanks to @SugarcubeOD I've found the truth that whilst coconut sap and nectar seem to be compliant the coconut sugar is not.  It's my own fault for not waiting an extra day or 2 to check this out.

So, @kalsjourney and @WholeCourtney , with a similar history of issues with compulsive eating, I may well be with you on your extra 15 days if you choose that route.  I've had a handle on things for over a decade, as addressing food intolerances helped - until 2 years ago!  But I've found Whole30 really lessens the urges to overeat. I've eaten too much on a couple of days but nothing major.

[HopingtoHeal]

How frustrating for you @Pippin1! 

I had a bit of a rubbish day yesterday. Just felt lethargic and feel a bit bloated and gassy again - I used to feel like this all the time and it was just "normal" by since experiencing a new normal I am not prepared to settle for it! Not sure if it's something I've eaten although nothing I've eaten in the last few days is wildly new? Or if it's hormonal and I'm coming to "that" time (which with PCOS could be any time hence my not knowing!)

So yesterday i ended up being a total grump yesterday! And I found the barbecue really hard, mostly cause I wasn't feeling as good as I have been and all anyone wanted to ask about was how whole 30 was going. I wanted to rave about it as I was doing for the first 16 days but last night I just felt indifferent. And I found not being able to eat anything other than what I had brought for myself really excluding - the salads were all non compliant some with feta, some with grains. 

Anyway today is a new day and for the first time I have had breakfast as just another meal - I made a turkey burger using just some mince and onion and then served it on a huge lettuce leaf with homemade mayo, some tomato and cucumber and it went down well. We don't have our other meals planned today as today is the day for our fresh produce shop. Going to try and plan foods I'm excited about to get my positivity back!

[Pippin1]

I'm glad to hear about your 'new normal' and it is pesky when you have to attend an event littered with non-compliant foods when it could have been easy for you.

Breakfast sounds great.  Enjoy meal planning and let me know of any exciting meals I might have missed:  personal faves so far - no fuss salmon fish cakes with salsa, sausage patties with onion and sweet potato mash, chicken hash, silky gingered zucchini soup (all but the soup are in the whole 30 start up book)

[HopingtoHeal]

3 hours ago, Pippin1 said:

I'm glad to hear about your 'new normal' and it is pesky when you have to attend an event littered with non-compliant foods when it could have been easy for you.

Breakfast sounds great.  Enjoy meal planning and let me know of any exciting meals I might have missed:  personal faves so far - no fuss salmon fish cakes with salsa, sausage patties with onion and sweet potato mash, chicken hash, silky gingered zucchini soup (all but the soup are in the whole 30 start up book)

I think the disruption to the new normal has been caused by past their best sweet potatoes! Glad to have a sense of why I was feeling not so great! Aw I know, it was a pain, but I guess it is a one off, and shouldn't be a problem in the future because a wee bit of feta once in a while won't kill me!

I've attached my week's meal plan. The sausage is the "perfect sausage" from the book and the sweet potato home fries as I am calling them are also from a recipe in the book (as written it comes along with sausage and eggs). Some things we have in the freezer already: the coconut curry sauce, butternut squash soup (both from book) and the chilli (our usual recipe with substitutions). And a couple of recipes are from Lorraine Pascale's Eating Well Made Easy. And others still are just made up!

I think the fishcakes look good but my husband is not a fishcake fan! Perhaps I could try them for a lunch? I have heard so much about this silky soup, where is that recipe from?

 

I am glad to report that I am doing much better this afternoon/evening. I was very emotionally fragile this morning and cried most of the way through church. The last 18 days have been amazing and I have seen such huge progress so yesterday feeling back to my old normal I had a small panic that things weren't going to be better after all. So much of my journey with this is linked to trying to help my fertility and so the whole thing is just very, very emotional. I am so glad to be feeling back on top of things today and to have got perspective back. Planning new meals for this week and mixing things up a bit has helped too and I have got my sausage and sweet potato "home fries" prepared for the week ready to be heated up each morning.

How's everyone else getting on? Good weekend for everyone?

Meal Plan.docx

[Ginsky]

23 hours ago, Shawnni said:

However I have some questions around nuts and wondering if anyone else gets the internal shakes after having eaten a small handful of macadamias or almonds?

Does anyone else experience this? 

What do you mean by internal shakes?  Is that in reference to digestive upset or do you actually feel like your body is vibrating out of sync?  

[Ginsky]

HI everyone, it's been a busy week and weekend but I have managed to stay on track.  I actually had scrambled eggs and spinach for breakfast.  I'm normally not so traditional about breakfast but I was in the mood.

And in spite of the heat and humidity, I found myself wanting hot soup for lunch so I threw some green onion, carrots, celery, zucchini into a pot of broth then when it was all done added chicken.  Ahhh, chicken soup!  Sometimes the oldies are the best.  

I was going to try grilling salmon tonight but, yep, rain again.  So I baked it wrapped in lemon slices and whipped some fresh lemon juice, zest, and cashews together in a jar with my immersion blender to go on that.  Simple green beans and a scant few kalamata olives with that since I noticed the weather shift before I prepped veggies for grilling.  I've really got to play around with cashews more, they're pretty interesting.  

 

@Pippin1, so sorry to hear about that.  Some ingredients are so sneaky, it's amazing how many things we ingest without even realizing it, even when we think we are so sure we know.  

@Jane3797 sounds like a victory, even if it means you need to get a new belt, or new pants.  lol  

@Fiddi, who knows, maybe your parents will try it after they see your success.  it's wonderful that you were able to enjoy going out while staying compliant.  

@HopingtoHeal, I am glad you got to feeling better today.  The silky gingered zucchini soup is Well Fed 2 but also http://meljoulwan.com/2012/11/05/silky-gingered-zucchini-soup/.