Amy's Food Freedom Log

[NoneOtherThanAmy]

I did my first Whole30 back in May and made it through, but had to cut the reintroductions short due to a work trip in June. I had a ton of great NSVs such as more consistent energy, better confidence, I've got a better handle on emotional eating and the triggers, clearer skin, better GI functioning (this is HUGE for me; I used to have such embarrassing symptoms throughout the day), learning that I can cook even when I'm tired and don't "feel" like it,  etc. I also had a scale victory -- I lost 15 lbs in the first 6 weeks (including the pre-whole30 I did) and I find I'm now less reliant on the scale.  I just weighed myself again this morning and I've lost another 5 lbs, so total of 20 lbs and 2-3 pants sizes since starting the Whole30 about 4 months ago. My weight loss has been slow and steady since the initial water weight shedding and I'm happy with that. It makes me think that I'll be able to keep this weight off. 

I enjoyed the food I ate while on the whole30 wanted to make a commitment to continuing to eat close to the plan. So, since finishing the whole30 I've been eating mostly compliant foods and meals, but in the past few weeks, I've started to let off-plan foods sneak in more often than I'd like. I can tell that my health is suffering...my GI system is getting wonky and my energy levels aren't as steady as they used to be. I'm starting a new Whole30 on September 1st with the masses and I'm looking forward to the excitement of the group Whole30. I'm wanting to get back to where I was with my gut and energy levels and see additional gains in other areas. I'm hoping to get to tiger blood this time, but I'll definitely take steady energy. I'd like to start some cross-training and perhaps do some strengthening workouts in addition to making gains in running. I'm also looking forward to doing a full reintroduction this time.

So, here are some things I've learned during my reintroductions and food freedom:

I reintroduced non-gluten grains after the last whole30, but confounded the reintroduction that day by going for a run before going to work. I was exhausted all day, but that could have been from the run or the grains. I found I really don't miss them much, so I haven't been including them in my food freedom diet.

I reintroduced gluten grains and found that they didn't seem to affect me much. Or at least not until I ate A TON of gluten one weekend while I was moving. 5 donuts + sloppy joes on buns + pot pies = major gluten consequences. What seems to happen is that I'll get a little achy, get constipated for a day or two and then my gut will go the other way and my poop will get all loose. It seems like gluten irritates my gut so that it doesn't function properly, it builds up a protective layer and then sheds it a few days after I stop eating gluten. Since that weekend, even small amounts of gluten seem to affect me, so I'm thinking I'll need to steer clear of all but the most incredibly worth it treats during food freedom.

I skipped dairy and legumes as formal reintroductions, but have had them in various forms here and there. Let me just say dairy is not worth it. I'll come out the next day completely stuffed up, ache all over, have major GI issues, and generally hate my life for about 2 days. Even small amounts of dairy are not worth it for me. Ghee? Not worth it. Mashed potatoes made with milk? Not worth it. And NEVER combine dairy with gluten. Pizza is NEVER worth it! Unless I'm willing to chain myself to a bathroom for the next few hours and have 2 days to recover from the other symptoms. 

I have yet to eat any beans, so I don't know how I'd do with those, but I've had some Chinese food takeout (soy + NGG + sugar + gluten) and while I don't feel my best afterwards, I don't notice terrible days worth of symptoms afterwards. I think dairy is really my worst enemy. 

I tried wine and white wine was ok. Red wine was not my friend. 

Sugar. (That should just be a  cuss word or something ) So, I've learned a lot about my relationship with sugar while on this food freedom journey. I crave sugar when I'm hungry or stressed. Since learning these things (through some experiences, like the aforementioned 5 donuts in 24 hours ) I feel like I've gotten better control over my sugar dragon and I am building a list of "worth it" items. I can still get major chocolate cravings, but I know if the sugar dragon is just roaring for seemingly no reason, it's most  likely because I'm hungry. If I eat something, the craving will go away. Even when I do give in and eat sugar, I have better control and don't eat an ENTIRE package of whatever sweet thing i bought. 

[NoneOtherThanAmy]

Ate Whole30-compliant yesterday:

M1:  1.5 mugs of coffee, 2 eggs, ~1/4 lb of ground pork, peppers, mushrooms, onions + an excess (oops) of Tessamae's Ranch. I think this is about 1.5 palms of protein for me and it held me well for about 6.5 hours.

M2: chicken breast, salad greens, Tessamae ranch dressing, cucumbers, red & green peppers, and red onions. About 1-1.5 palms of protein, maybe?

Went for a run after work. Drank some unflavored Propel to help with electrolyte replacement. Always forget to eat pre- and post-WO meals.

M3: Curried shepard's pie with mashed sweet potatoes (includes veggies like carrots and zucchini in pie filling). Probably about a palm of protein? The pound of meat is being split into 4 servings it seems, but this was pretty lean meat, so more protein per pound? There is some coconut milk in the pie filling, but only about 1/2 C split between 4 servings, so I added a handful of Kalamata olives because I was craving something salty to go along with the sweet potatoes. 

Started craving the chocolate pastry on the counter about 30m later. I don't think I ate enough for M3, especially considering the run. Ate a few bites of chicken and drank some more water. Need to get rid of the pastry.  

Food log for 8/29:

It's rainy. I'm tired. I'd like to spend the whole day in bed. I can't tell if this is just from the weather or if it's some leftover symptoms from the chocolate pastry I snacked on over the weekend. 

M1: 1 mug of coffee, 2 eggs, ~1/4 lb of ground pork, peppers, mushrooms, onions. Forgot to add fat and now I'm hungry 3 hrs later   I may have to grab some protein + fat to tide me over until lunch.

M2 plan: Pot roast + veggies (carrots, onions, potatoes, celery)

[NoneOtherThanAmy]

8/29, finished:

M2: Pot roast + veggies and some mayo for fat. I'd guess about a palm of meat? I got hungry again 3-4 hours later, and I think I'm about a 1.5 palm of protein person.

M3: *Not whole30* I've been wanting to try this Greek restaurant nearby, so I stopped and got some food from them. I had a gyro with french fries. It was very good, but there was cheese on the gyro!  I didn't think I had read cheese in the description, but it would not be the first time I missed cheese when reading a menu. I think it was crumbled feta cheese, so it would have been hard to scrape off without removing all the tomatoes, onions, and lettuce on the gyro. I ate the cheese and so far haven't had terrible GI side effects, but I'm definitely a little achy and stuffy this morning. This was a gluten + dairy item so I'm surprised that I didn't have a worse reaction (although the worst could still come ). 

8/30:

Woke up with a little more energy today. The skies are clear and the temps are cool. It's almost like fall is on its way or something. Although from experience, we can get humid 90 degree days all the way through mid-October, so I'm not convinced we're in the clear yet.  I'm running with my group tonight (ARGH! Forgot to pack pre- and post-workout meals again.), so I'm hoping the beautiful weather will hold through the evening. I signed up for the next phase of the running group, so I should be continuing to run through the fall.

M1: 1 mug of coffee, 2 eggs, ~1/4 lb of ground pork, peppers, summer squash, mushrooms, onions + a spoonful of mayo.

 

[NoneOtherThanAmy]

8/30 continued:

Weird day of lab work; I needed to do some prep for an experiment and got off schedule for that, so I ended up doing it over my normal lunch schedule. I ate half my lunch between part of the prep at about 1 PM and then ate the other half after I finished at 2:30. Run went OK last night. We increased up to 5 min running intervals, plus did a hilly run, so it was pretty tough for me, but I made it. Had some GI issues throughout the day (more gas, irregular poop schedule ) which I attribute to the gyro the night before.

M2: Zoodles + Whole30-compliant Vodka sauce with ground turkey + cucumbers and red peppers with ranch. I'd guess at about 1 - 1.5 palms of meat, but I always find ground meat so hard to estimate. 

M3: Ate another serving of the curried shepard's pie with mashed sweet potatoes. About a palm of protein, although this is hard to judge. I added some mayo and a small (1/4-1/2 palm-sized) chunk of pot roast because the last time I ate this meal after a run it wasn't enough food. I was still hungry after I finished all that food, so I heated up the rest of the pot roast (probably about another palm+ of protein) and was finally satisfied after that. But seriously...that was like 2.5-3 palms of meat I ate there, plus at least a fist-sized serving of starchy veggies. Maybe I need to drink more water while eating and add more veggies and or something else to increase the bulk rather than extra protein? 

8/31

More GI issues this morning. (I know, I know...the gyro. 2 days later and I'm still paying for it ) Woke up earlier than I have done in a while. Strange because I went to sleep later than normal due to the run, shower, and eating late because of those things. I'm moving a little more slowly today than yesterday though. My muscles are rebelling against those hills and the run. Need to do a good foam roll when I get home.

M1: 1 mug of coffee, 2 eggs, ~1/4 lb of ground pork, peppers, summer squash, mushrooms, onions. ARGH! Forgot extra fat again!

[NoneOtherThanAmy]

8/31, continued:

M2: Zoodles with Whole30-compliant vodka sauce. Yum. I didn't eat it all though. I forgot fat AGAIN (2 meals in a row, not a good thing) and wasn't hungry for all the protein. I think I managed about a palm of protein and a decent amount of veggies

M3: I was very hungry when I got home and since this was the last day of food freedom before starting the September Whole30, I thought about what I wanted. I decided to walk to a little local Mexican place that I've seen in the neighborhood and try it out. I got steak and chicken tacos (no dairy, yay!), and then chips, salsa, and guac (finally some extra fat for this day! ) Of course, the tacos and the chips were all corn based, but that was ok. I ate WAY too much though and felt over full and icky the rest of the night, which is even carrying over through today

Hopefully this will be my last post in this thread until 9/31! Starting my September Whole30 today. 

[NoneOtherThanAmy]

10/1

Completed my September whole30 on Saturday 9/30. Hah! Looking at the post above, I realized that 9/31 is a date that doesn't exist.  So, I'm right on track with my next post in here on 10/1. I'm keeping most of my food compliant for now, but I may add back some things with small amounts of sugar (like bacon that I don't have to hunt down at WF) or some SWYPO-type things. Maybe even a paleo apple crisp or pumpkin pie one of these days.  I love fall baking! So that means I'll just log my food over here so I don't confuse anyone over in the Whole30 log section. I did buy some rice and quinoa while out shopping in case I get the urge to reintroduce those items. I have some dry kidney beans in my pantry that I may need to turn into chili one day too. I tried whole30-compliant chili during this last round and was not impressed. Chili really benefits from the beans.

M1: 2 eggs, 2 applegate beef hotdogs, salad greens, carrots, and mayo? I can't remember if there were any other veggies involved...maybe a mini cucumber. I was scraping the bottom of the veggie bin yesterday. I was out out out of everything.

I went out grocery shopping at about 12 and didn't get back until 1, then I had to cook something, so M2 was late again.

M2: Apple cinnamon pork chop. I somehow made these pork chops dry and tasteless even using apples and cinnamon. I'm pretty talented, I tell yah. I've made a few good pork chops, but I keep thinking I under cook them, so the last few batches have been tough and dry. Only veggie here was onions...I was busy cooking, K? A few hrs later, I ate some sweet potato + apple + eggs + coconut milk + raisins + cinnamon + nutmeg + pecan SWYPO-y type thing. According to the blog I got the recipe from, it was supposed to be a breakfast bake, but it definitely doesn't have enough veggies or protein to be a full meal on its own. I figured it might make an interesting side to a meal, but I wasn't impressed with it. It was kind of flavorless, but I still have 3/4 left. I'll keep adding it to meals that need a little extra starchy carbs.

M3: Pad thai from Well Fed...also somewhat of a disappointment. It definitely needed lots of salt, extra coconut aminos, extra red pepper flakes and lime to make it taste good. It could have been that I subbed almond butter for the sunbutter, but IDK... 

I'm super jealous of Mel Joulwan's kitchen prowess. She wrote in Well Fed that she completed an entire week's worth of cooking and chopping in just over an hour  one day. I was in the kitchen for nearly 7 hours on Sunday.  But, now I shouldn't have to do much cooking for the rest of the week!

 

[NoneOtherThanAmy]

10/2

M1: egg bake - the equivalent of 2 eggs, 1 aidelle's chicken sausage, zuchhini, summer squash, onion, mushrooms + mayo

M2: Pad Thai - spaghetti squash, bell peppers, mushrooms, onions, chicken + sunshine sauce. Again, needs lots of salt, coconut aminos, etc.

Went for a run this afternoon and took the pupper. She did quite well and I think she enjoyed it. She's half German Shepard, half CRAZY DOG (probably some type of hound mixed in there...she's independent, stubborn, and super friendly to all humans and dogs - none of which are common GS traits). Whatever her other half is, she's very high energy and requires a minimum of an hour of exercise each day. I'm glad I'm not responsible for her (she belongs to the humans I rent a room from) and she reminds me that a commitment to take on a dog is not so much about what the dog can do for you, but what you can do for the dog. When I move out for my postdoc, will I have an hour to devote to walking a dog, plus time for playing and distracting a pupper? Probably not. Wonder if anyone would hire me as a dog exerciser. I'd be totally happy to take a dog out on a run 3x a week.  

Anyway...Pre-WO: chicken + mayo; Post-WO: chicken + sweet potato and a grape, which I accidentally ate before remembering that fruit isn't a good post-wo snack

M3: Protein salad - chicken breast, mayo, grapes, green onion - bell peppers, cucumber, salad greens (blend of romaine and "power green" mix...I've missed these greens, they're so good for me and I haven't been eating them a lot lately)

Had a craving for potato chips and french fries. Maybe not so much potato chips, but definitely for french fries...I know I've made some borderline SWYPO for these sorts of items, so I'm wondering if I need to cut out the baked fries and the things like crispy potatoes. 

10/3

M1: Coffee (I haven't been logging my coffee intake, but maybe I need to start again). I added apple pie spice to the grounds to make it interesting, but I checked the label on the spice container and it has soy.  Luckily, I'm in food freedom, so not a big deal, and added it anyway but why soy? There was no need for soy in my apple pie spice!  + Egg bake - the equivalent of 2 eggs, 1 aidelle's chicken sausage, zuchhini, summer squash, onion, mushrooms + kalamata olives

[NoneOtherThanAmy]

Just for a record, I'm going to add some of my measurements and changes as I've been tracking them throughout the whole30.

Started eating Whole30-ish Mid April 2017, with first formal Whole30 starting in early May.

Pre-whole30 4/17/17: Weight - 175, Full bust - 39", waist - 35.5, lower stomach, or "belly" area - 42", Hips - 44", wearing sizes 14-16 depending on the day

Post-whole30 6/6/17: Weight - 160, Full bust - 38", Upper bust: 36.5", waist - 33.5", belly - 36"* , Hips - 41.5, size 16s starting to be comically too big, 14s loose

*that number may be suspect...I measured it again a few weeks later and came up with 39", although the difference could be coffee. I did not drink  coffee during my first whole30, but I picked it up again when I went to a conference right after. I've heard the cortisol increase could be problematic in keeping weight at the belly area. I want to try again without coffee, but the place I'm living right now would make that hard.

Pre-whole30 August 29: Weight 154, didn't take measurements, went shopping and bought pants in sizes 10 and 12. The 14's are now getting comically large. I'm also down a shirt size.

Post-whole30 10/1/17: Didn't weigh. Full bust - 37.5, Upper bust - 35.5, waist - 32.5, belly - 38.5, hips - 40.5, Not much change in the way the 10s or 12s fit, but that's not surprising. I'm starting to need new running clothes though. Larges aren't a good size for me while running. 

So, total progress after about 6 months: At least 20 lbs down, 2-3 pants sizes down, 1 shirt size down. 3.5" off belly and hips, 3" off waist, and 1.5" off full bust (and down a band size, but not a cup size, which I am thankful for ).

Other progress: I started running right around the same time I started Whole30. I struggled a lot. I could *barely* run 5 mins without completely exhausting myself. Clearly my cardiovascular system was in need of some good exercise. Now in October, I can run 3 miles straight. I'm still not exactly where I'd want to be, but this is excellent progress for me. 

I'm also doing better in the food as a reward area. I've learned a lot about my sugar cravings and am developing better treats and rewards for myself. 

 

[NoneOtherThanAmy]

10/3, continued

M2: 2 pork chops with cooked apples and onions + salad greens, raw bell peppers, and 1/4 cucumber. Oh, and some sweet potato-bake thing. Hm. No added fat...that's important, I think

Snack:  I haven't had to snack in forever, but about 3:30 PM I wasn't feeling so hot...sick to my stomach, hungry, shaky, etc. It felt like a blood sugar crash...potentially because of all the apples and no fat in M2? Anyway, I had some delicious protein salad: chicken, mayo, green onions and grapes. 

M3: Pad Thai - spaghetti squash, bell peppers, mushrooms, onions, chicken + sunshine sauce. Again, needs lots of salt, coconut aminos, etc.

This is also the week before the TOM for me, so it's possible I need more food. I'm feeling hungry again, but I think I'm really just thirsty right now. I'll drink some water and tea and see how I do before grabbing another snack...

[NoneOtherThanAmy]

10/4

M1: egg bake - the equivalent of 2 eggs, 1 aidelle's chicken sausage, zuchhini, summer squash, onion, mushrooms + kalamata olives and coffee (no spice)

M2: pork chop, salad greens, apples, onions, bell peppers, cucumbers + some more of that sweet potato bake thing. I brought an extra pork chop, but wasn't hungry for it. I'd guess that each pork chop is about a palm of meat? Maybe I'll have it as a post-wo meal.

Had a headache this morning, took ibuprofen and it went down, but then it came back with a vengeance at about 3 PM. Took another dose of ibuprofen and it's back down (but not completely gone). It is nearly TOM, so the headaches could be related  to that. Interesting. I don't think I've had many headaches lately. #NSV

Pre-WO: chicken salad (mayo, ~1/2 palm chicken, green onions, grapes) I know the grapes aren't great as a pre-wo snack, but the rest was good.

So, I've been dreaming about pumpkin spice things and ever since I saw a recipe from paleorunningmama, I want her layered chocolate + pumpkin pie cheesecake (totally not Whole30, but it IS dairy free and that's nice 'cause I'm pretty sensitive to dairy). Sounds so good! OK, but looking at the ingredients, it would be a TON of work, I would not be guaranteed to like it, AND I'd likely eat one piece and be done (or need to throw the rest out so I don't eat the whole thing in 24 hrs). So I've been debating a lot about what to do. Should I attempt to make the recipe? Or should I find another way to enjoy the pumpkin pie spice craze? I'm thinking I'd have to find out for myself if paleo treats would be worth it or not worth it for me. For example, do they taste just as good and have fewer consequences? Or are they really SWYPO-pale-imitations-of-the-real-thing and will still give me sugar crashes without satisfying my craving for the thing? The paleo cheesecake also had a lot of nuts in it, so I could see it being something that could have some major digestive consequences as well. 

[NoneOtherThanAmy]

10/4, continued

Run with the group went really well. We went for 3 miles yesterday at a little bit of a faster pace than normal. (~11:45/mile, my group is usually closer to 12:30). Felt way better than last Wed. when we ran 2.5 miles in the 90 degree heat and humidity. It's possible that the good pre-wo meal helped quite a bit with this as well. Wednesday evening runs I usually forget pre-wo meals, so I haven't usually eaten in about 6 hrs. Got home and ate a few bites of the sweet potato bake and a pork chop (as post-wo) and walked the dog.

M3: Some Pad Thai, but wasn't super hungry. I'd already had a palm of meat with the pork chop, so I probably only ate another half-palm's worth and some veggies (spaghetti squash, peppers, onions).

10/5

M1: egg bake - the equivalent of 2 eggs, 1 aidelle's chicken sausage, zuchhini, summer squash, onion, mushrooms. Had coffee with coconut milk. Probably not enough coconut milk to count as the fat for my meal, but it's all I've got today.  

In thinking more about the post I put up yesterday about paleo cheesecake vs "normal" treats, I realized that I'm not really actually craving any treats right now. The food sounds like it would be good, but not in a "I must eat this right now or the world will end" sort of way. I think that means I'll keep doing my thing until something comes along that is too good to pass up.

[NoneOtherThanAmy]

10/5, continued:

M2: Salad greens, pad thai, pork chop, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, cucumbers, bell peppers

M3: About a palm of steak, some peppers and onions, mashed cauliflower, roasted potatoes. 

[NoneOtherThanAmy]

10/6

M1: ground pork (~1/4 lb), an egg, zucchini, bell peppers, onions + coconut milk in coffee (I know, not enough to really count as my fat for the meal, but the ground pork is pretty fatty, so I'm just going with it)

M2: about 1.5 palms of chicken? roasted potatoes, steamed broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, mayo for fat and whole30-approved ketchup for the potatoes

So, yesterday was a weird day. I didn't leave home until just after 11, and I forgot to grab food for lunch on my way out the door. I could have grabbed something on campus because I'm in food freedom now, but I just didn't feel like it. So, I relied on my fat adaption again and did some work until about 4:15 and ate meal 2 around 5:30. I wasn't as hungry as I thought I would be and only ate about 1-1.5 palms of meat. It left me pretty full and I wasn't hungry again for the rest of the night. 

I've been wondering about portion sizes. It seems as if mine have been changing lately. When I did my first Whole30, I swear I was about a 1.5-2 palms of protein per meal type of person. It seems like that has been slowly changing and if I eat just a palm of meat I'm good to go for a meal now. I wonder if my body is self-regulating? I've lost at least 20 lbs in the past 6 months, so I wouldn't need as much energy to sustain myself, right? The other thing I wonder is if I'm finally recovering some sensitivity to leptin. I just read an article that pointed out that leptin and insulin insensitivity won't recover in the 30 days of a whole30. It'll take months for those to recover. Well, I've been eating mostly whole30 for the past 6 months now, so perhaps I'm starting to see recovery of some of my body's natural satiation signals? If so, that's pretty exciting! 

[NoneOtherThanAmy]

10/7

M1: ground pork (~1/4 lb), an egg, zucchini, bell peppers, onions and mayo

Went for a run with the group. We ran about 4 miles, which was longer than I've run before. We did have some breaks in there because we ran to a local middle school, waited for everyone to catch up, did some sprints and jogging on the track for a mile, waited for everyone to finish, and then jogged back from the school. It felt  good, but it was very humid and I kept running with the group that was a little faster than my normal pace group, so I was pretty exhausted by the time I got back. Then I went grocery shopping right after the running group and forgot about eating a post-wo meal. After running further than I ever have in the humidity.  While grocery shopping, I bought all the starchy carbs. Seriously, ALL OF THEM! OK, maybe not all, but butternut squash, 2 types of sweet potatoes, and regular white potatoes. Plus I still have an acorn squash at home. Fruit I could mostly resist, but the call of the starchy carbs in the fall? Powerless.  

M2: chicken protein salad (mayo, green onions, grapes), broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, roasted potatoes. Ate about a palm-1.5 palms of protein. 

Got hungry again about 4:30, but not surprising because I didn't eat a post-wo meal. I'd been craving something pumpkin spice, so I bought a 4-pack of pumpkin spice cupcakes with cream cheese frosting when I ran to a different grocery store to pick up some items I couldn't get/forgot the first trip. I realized later that this was partly a hunger-inspired sugar dragon moment when I had the urge to sit down and eat the entire package (always a sign that I'm actually hungry for real food and not sugar). I ate one cupcake and had 2 realizations: 1) the pumpkin spice cake part was delicious. Exactly what I was craving. SO good. 2) The cream cheese frosting was just getting in the way, so I scraped off the frosting and the cream cheese filling (how much cream cheese did these cupcakes really need??) and ate the rest of the cake. I threw out the last 3 cupcakes because I know from experience that if I leave a package of sweets sitting around, I WILL eat it, even if it isn't worth it. Side note: this morning I am stuffed up and achy. I suspect the dairy in the frosting as the culprit.  I know dairy is not worth it, but sometimes it sounds too good to pass up.

M3: steak (about 1.5 palms) peppers, onions, mashed cauliflower, roasted potatoes, sauteed collard greens

[NoneOtherThanAmy]

10/8

M1: ground pork (~1/4 lb), an egg, zucchini, bell peppers, onions and mayo

Ran some errands, didn't start cooking until 12 or so

M2: Ate some of the extra filling for the stuffed acorn squash from paleorunningmama. Meh...it was a weird combination for me for some reason. I thought it would be really good. Pork, apples, cranberries (not whole30, I couldn't find juice sweetened ), but the sweet seemed to clash with the savory (Italian seasoning, pecans, salt, and garlic)  and I wasn't a huge fan. We'll see if it'll be any better as I eat the actual stuffed squashes through the week. 

I meant to continue cooking yesterday afternoon, but I was tired, cranky, and had a headache, so I decided to relax the rest of the evening. Turns out my TOM started while I was cooking, so it's no surprise I was feeling so crappy. Later, I watched the Packers play and it was an excellent game! They won, of course, but in a  dramatic fashion.  

M3: Protein salad with chicken, mayo, green onions, celery, grapes. Steamed broccoli, cauliflower, carrots. Pretty basic meal because I was feeling so off. Serviceable, but not something I'd want to eat every day. 

[NoneOtherThanAmy]

10/9

M1: ground pork (~1/4 lb), an egg, zucchini, bell peppers, onions and mayo

M2: one of the stuffed halves of an acorn squash. It didn't look like enough protein or veggies, so I added chicken and sauteed collard greens. And maybe mayo for fat? I ate at about 11 before heading to campus. Total probably about a palm of protein.

Snack: chicken (~1/2 palm). I was hungry at 4:30 when I got home (still 5.5 hrs after I ate), and I ate the last of the chicken I had left. 

Cooked most of the evening. Made turkey burgers, bacon, ground turkey with zucchini, summer squash, and eggs, plus baked potatoes. I'm glad I could get more cooking done because I didn't do a lot of cooking Sunday like I normally do. 

M3: Deconstructed burger salad: home baked french fries and homemade ketchup, turkey burger (about 1-1.5 palms), some romaine lettuce, red onions, pickles, slice of bacon, mayo, mustard. SO good! I was having a craving for a meal like this and it turned out so good. I do think sometimes the cravings are related to convenience. It would have been nice last night to just pick up some takeout food and plunk down and not worry about food. 

TMI ALERT! Monthly whine: I really hate tampons, migraines, extra tiredness, crankiness for no reason, cramps, backaches, having to worry about leakages, and having to remember to grab a little bag of supplies every time I run to the bathroom while on campus. I know I need to appreciate having periods, but UGHHHH, they are just so inconvenient. 

[NoneOtherThanAmy]

10/10

M1: ground turkey, 2 eggs, zucchini, summer squash, bell peppers, mushrooms, 1 slice bacon

M2: stuffed butternut squash + steak, mayo and collard greens

Went for a 2 mile run. Had a few bites of a turkey burger and a little mayo before heading out and a little more turkey when I got back plus a few bites of butternut squash. 

M3: Deconstructed burger salad: turkey burger (about 1 palm), red onions, pickles, slice of bacon, mayo, mustard, ketchup. + collard greens and baked potato.

Felt a bit better yesterday. Not so whiny, anyway.  Runs always help.  

[NoneOtherThanAmy]

10/11

M1: ground turkey, 2 eggs, zucchini, summer squash, bell peppers, mushrooms, 2 slices bacon

M2: stuffed acorn squash + salad greens, bell peppers, cucumbers, balsamic vinegar and oil

Brought steak for pre-wo meal, but forgot to eat it. Run with group yesterday was tough. It seemed much worse than usual for me and I'm not exactly sure why. I got a stitch or cramps in my side/gut area for the first half of the run, which I attribute to GI issues rather than oxygen flow. I think the GI issues have been from the bacon I've been eating; I remember reading somewhere that increased fat can lead to GI issues. Not sure I 100% believe that, but it does seem to hold true for bacon for me. The 2nd half of the run was mostly uphill and my legs felt like jelly most of the time. I just didn't have the energy to keep going. I walked after the hills, but I kept to my rule of running up hills. I can't decide if my body just wasn't used to running 2 days in a row or if it was something else. I was thinking it might have been low glycogen stores because it felt like my muscles just ran out of energy, but I ate a baked potato yesterday post-run and nearly half an acorn squash for lunch today, so that should have been enough, right? The other thing I've been thinking is maybe it was low electrolytes. It has been incredibly humid lately (no exaggeration, it was 100% humidity this AM, and probably 60-80% humidity while I've been running the past 2 days). With all the humidity I've been sweating up a storm any time I go out for a run, so it's possible I didn't get enough electrolytes or fluids between runs. 

M3: Deconstructed burger salad - turkey burger (just over a palm of meat) + the steak I meant as a pre-wo meal. Probably 1.5-2 palms of meat total. Pickle, red onion, mayo, slice of bacon, ketchup, romaine lettuce, mustard, baked potato.

[NoneOtherThanAmy]

10/12

M1: ground turkey, 1 egg, zucchini, summer squash, bell peppers, mushrooms, 2 slices bacon

Had a long day of work, didn't eat M2 until about 2:45

M2: About a palm of steak, peppers, onions, chunk of butternut squash (about a fist's worth), salad greens, bell peppers (raw), and cucumbers.

M3: Stuffed butternut squash (ground pork, celery, cranberries, apples) and, of course, some squash and mayo. About a palm of protein total, I think.

It's possible that I've been sick lately. Apparently, the dog's kennel cough can be caused by a virus that can be transmitted to people.  

[NoneOtherThanAmy]

10/13

So I was having a bad day yesterday dealing with other stresses and that caused a flare in my body image issues. I didn't feel like I'd made enough progress, I still have this belly fat that I wish I didn't have, and my runs haven't been going that well lately.  So...I decided to weigh myself. Yeah, smart, right? Anyway, I'm down 10 lbs in ~6 weeks. Which on a normal day I'd be thrilled with, but yesterday that still wasn't good enough. So with all the down-ness and stress, I only ate 2 meals yesterday and didn't get much done.  I feel much better today after going for another run, even though the run still didn't go as well as possible. I think I may have some respiratory thing going on that's affecting my runs right now. 

M1: ground turkey, 2 eggs, zucchini, summer squash, bell peppers, mushrooms

M2: 3 chicken legs (skin on), baked potato, green onions, bell peppers, red onions, salad greens, mayo

[NoneOtherThanAmy]

10/14

M1: ground pork, 2 eggs, zucchini, summer squash, bell peppers, mushrooms (I ate about 3/4)

Post-wo: ate the rest of M1

I need to do a better job of fueling myself for these runs. I come back on Saturday mornings and just cannot get anything done the rest of the afternoon because I'm still exhausted from the run. I'm going to need to be more thoughtful about getting in a good post-wo meal, hydrating enough and making sure my electrolytes are replenished. 

M2: steak (about 1.5 palms), peppers, onions, salad greens, cucumbers, olive oil and balsamic vinegar, butternut squash

M3: 2 chicken legs, baked potato, green onions, bell peppers, red onions, salad greens, mayo

 

10/15

M1: ground pork, 2 eggs, zucchini, summer squash, bell peppers, mushrooms and mayo

M2: sloppy joes, baked potato, green onions, bell peppers, mayo

No meal 3 yesterday. I was working on my writing all afternoon and completely forgot to eat lunch. By the time I ate supper I was so hungry I was considering fast food or walking to a place for takeout food. I battled against it and made myself the sloppy joes, but in food freedom it's a bit harder to resist. The thing I kept thinking is that I absolutely cannot go back to eating out every day. I refuse to sacrifice my health for graduation. But I also really need to graduate...

[NoneOtherThanAmy]

10/16

M1: ground pork, 2 eggs, zucchini, summer squash, bell peppers, mushrooms and mayo

Uhhh...So today was not exactly a great eating day. I finished up my work right before I had to start getting ready to go to campus (right around noon). I grabbed a bite or two of my sloppy joe meat before I left, but it definitely wasn't a full lunch.

Stopped at the grocery store on the way home from campus. I added some convenience foods like Applegate hot dogs, aidelles chicken sausage, and some lunch meat. The lunch meats all have sugar, but I avoided carageenen (or however you spell that word...). I hope the convenience food will help with making it through the next few weeks. 

M2: Before I started anything in the evening, I ate some fried chicken bites covered in BBQ sauce from the grocery store plus some bell pepper sticks. I couldn't do any prep at that point because I was so hungry and that food just sounded too good to pass up. In reality it was convenient but I didn't enjoy it. - this is gluten, tons of sugar, probably some soy? I didn't check...

I cooked a 1/2 pork loin in my pressure cooker when I got home and turned half of it into a stew of some sort with a quick bag of frozen veggies (potatoes, carrots, pearl onions, and celery). I went for a run while that was cooking and really enjoyed it. I've gotta be honest...I kinda like running on my own as opposed to in a group. I struggle so hard with running that sometimes I just want to struggle on my own. I went at a pretty slow pace 12-13 min/mi, but I still had some discomfort in my lower gut area. Almost like a stitch in my side, but not. I tend to think of that sort of pain as related to GI effects and I definitely had an overactive GI system that morning, so I'm guessing it's all related.

I also made some egg salad (bacon, mayo, celery, green onions, pickles, mustard...we'll see how it tastes.  I didn't follow a recipe of any sort.) Sauteed and steamed some more veggies. Ate a few bites of pork loin and a piece of bacon. All of a sudden it was 9:30...and I wasn't about to eat at that time, so again only 2 meals yesterday. Sigh. Maybe today I'll get it right?