Prepping for my first Whole 30! Starting October 1

[Mary, Elsie's mon]

DINNER!

[ShellyM]

@Mary, Elsie's mon wow!  that sir fry looks awesome.  I adore roasted sweet potatoes and winter squash.  But... what is hiding under the mountain of sprouts?  

@KatieWo This is my 3rd W30. I did my first 2 with my husband.  This time he didn't feel the need, but since I do 95% of the food shopping and cooking, he kinda has to come along for the ride anyway.  He's pretty good about not bring ing non-compliant foods into the house (the other night he popped a bag of microwave popcorn that was on the "non-compliant" shelf and I wanted to smack him! ). 

Last night my husband went out to meet up with some of his HS friends and I was not up for cooking.  I finally realized that the Las Vegas shooting has been weighing on me all week.  Although I got through the week without eating something non-compliant, there were a couple of times where I had to pull myself back from the cliff!  Went I got home last night I was just mentally exhausted.  Luckily there were some leftovers and i pieced together something that got the job done, but it was devoid of positive energy. One of my take-aways from completing a W30 is the positive energy that flows, not only from the healthy nutritious food, but from the time and effort I put into taking care of myself.  The mental well-being magnifies the physical well-being.  This week chipped away at that link.  It's a good thing I don't really drink...so instead of a glass of wine I watched 13 innings of baseball (that was more mind-numbing that alcoholic beverages) and slept for 8 hours.  

I feel better today and did a BIG cook-up!  

Green bean salad with Italian vinaigrette, roasted sweet potato slices, BBQ shrimp, sautéed broccoli rabe,  pineapple salsa, and this crunchy chicken: http://acalculatedwhisk.com/crispy-chicken-salad/ featuring a crust made with pork rinds.  It was a moderate success.  Not that crunchy but still very tasty!   I took a picture of my lunch! 

The first week is the toughest (I think).... Hope everyone is doing well as we enter week 2, with fewer symptoms and an easier time in the kitchen.  

 

[Mary, Elsie's mon]

Hi @ShellyM

It's almost always eggs under sprouts; I love them fried in clarified butter, and my chickens give me a couple every day.

Your dinner looks a lot like mine! Yummy!

Is next week harder? Oh no!!

 

[Mary, Elsie's mon]

Hi @ShellyM

It's almost always eggs under sprouts; I love them fried in clarified butter, and my chickens give me a couple every day.

Your dinner looks a lot like mine! Yummy!

Is next week harder? Oh no!!

 

[Mary, Elsie's mon]

Hey everyone!

I just made the best thing for lunch and thought I'd share (no photo, my phone was dead). I pan fried a little steak in clarified butter (which browns meat beautifully), then (remove it from the pan first, but leave the fat and meat juices) quick sauteed (maybe a minute --just enough to warm it and brighten it up) chopped kale, grated carrot, a small handful of crushed walnuts, a chopped apple(throw it in all at once and mix it up with rings or a spoon). Add a couple of splashes of white balsamic vinegar to loosen the fond, stir, throw in a pinch of salt. Guess what? It was fantastic, and I almost never say that about my own cooking!

Happy beginning of week two!

Mary

[Mary, Elsie's mon]

Dinner.

 

[Betsie_n]

On 10/7/2017 at 1:50 PM, KatieWo said:

Hey everyone! Joining in for the October rock stars!  This is my 3rd round of Whole30. After vacation at the end of August, I found myself saying "yes" to too many not worth it foods, and starting to inch toward the all-or-nothing eating (all good or all bad) that I've been battling my adult life. Time for a reset! I'm already appreciating the return to normal digestion and not feeling bloated and blech after meals or the "need" to graze. 

For you new folks, are you doing this solo in your house or do you have a significant other or kids? I coached my husband through one Whole30, but this time around, he's opting out of doing it with me, instead just sticking to a strict gluten free, dairy free diet (reintroduction told us those were his problem foods). I have two kids - 8 and 10 - and they are pretty healthy eaters, so they eat what I eat, plus any modifications to their tastes, i.e. tacos on shells instead of as a salad, gf noodles instead of zoodles, cheese and some grains as they seem to tolerate them ok. 

Looking forward to this journey with you all!

@KatieWo - in response to your questions about significant others during W30 - well....my hubs is definitely not doing it with me. He has done a couple of W10s with me but hasn't even considered thirty days. He has lived with me as I've completely transformed my body and lifestyle over the last 4 years as I've learned Paleo, and he knows what I preach is fact, but he's not ready to go all in. So, as I type this there is a half eaten plate of nachos and a slice of chocolate cake sitting on the kitchen counter. Last night he ate spaghetti and had cake (it was from a fundraiser I did with a community organization) and today when his knee started hurting, he said, "Do you think it's because of the pasta and cake?" UMMM....probably!!!

As awful as I make him out to be, he has improved his diet in many ways over the last four years and I've learned that I cannot make him do what I do. He eats what I feed him for dinner and we do breakfast and lunch separately so it's fine. I've come to realize that if I don't want to eat his junk food, it's on me to say no. It's not his responsibility to ensure that only compliant food is around me. I'm an adult and can choose to snag some cheese crackers out of his box while he's munching or not. I usually move things out of my line of sight and that's usually enough for me. If something really causes me difficulty, I have have him store it in the garage so I don't have to see it. Currently, the cake is under a piece of tin foil so it's not bothering me, but those damn nachos are just out there in the wide open daring me to have just one. I know it's just chips and cheese and I won't miss it if I don't have any. I need to learn how to be this dedicated when I'm not in W30 mode - and that's on me, not him. Learning...

[Betsie_n]

@ShellyM - I was going to try that chicken recipe this week as my hubs is a big fan of pork rinds, so I was disappointed to hear it's not as crispy as hoped. Do you think baking in the oven would improve the result? Also, I agree that the positive energy I get from taking time to care for myself is a huge takeaway from these 30 days that I hope to keep in the forefront afterwards this time.

@Mary, Elsie's mon - your food photos are fantastic! Thanks for sharing them - it's always interesting to see what others are eating to get new ideas. Your lunch sounds like it was quite delish!

I'm on day 7 and feeling ok. Was feeling a bit irritable earlier and wondered if it was W30's fault or if it was due to the windy weather that annoyed me when I wanted to be outside - after I spent all day yesterday inside making a vat of spaghetti meat sauce, then serving spaghetti at a fundraiser for a local organization, when it was a perfectly beautiful day here in SW Colorado. I ate some of my leftover sauce with some black olives and an avocado with Primal Kitchen Ranch on the side and felt better. Increasing my fat intake has seemed to help with my moods and hangriness

Onto week 2 tomorrow! Remember, keep it simple - food doesn't have to be complicated to be compliant!

[Betsie_n]

@Mary, Elsie's mon - I forgot to say congratulations on upping your water intake, too! I'm certain all that water is helping me avoid the worst symptoms and staving off my sugar cravings. It's getting easier, too!

I'll have to look into yin yoga - so far, I'm just doing super simple 10 minute sessions for beginners using an app. I work from home so I use as a break during my very sedentary workday. Thanks!

Betsie

[Mary, Elsie's mon]

@Betsie_n

10 minutes is great! You don't have to do things in any particular order, though  sequences tend to start standing, work their way to seated poses, then to floor and back, ending in savassana. Just focus on what your body needs (just like with food, and rest) and give it that. After a while, you'll start to recognize where you are tight, places you're holding stress that day or week, or poses that help calm your whole system. It's nice, too, to understand that some poses build balance, some strength, some flexibilty, some slow your parasympatheic nervous system down. And you can then decide what you want to focus on from there. It has changed and saved my life; I think you'll love it!

[ShellyM]

@Betsie_n The directions say to put the cover on the pan and let it cook for a bit.  I was really afraid the chicken was going to burn so I added a bit of water to the pan before covering.  That made the crust not as crunchy.  If I  make it again, I will probably bake it, ala Shake and Bake.  The pork rinds were interesting. I never had them before and I did like the texture and flavor.  

Have you tried zoodles or spaghetti squash for your meat sauce?  I like spaghetti squash but not a zucchini fan.  

[Betsie_n]

@ShellyM - I was thinking the same about the chicken recipe - good ol' shake and bake method. I'll let you know if I give it a try. 

Yes, definitely tried zoodles and I do like them, but not so much with my spaghetti sauce, oddly. I prefer them with something lighter, like pesto or something. It's been about 4 years since I had "real" noodles, so I'm pretty much over them and don't miss them - which is really big coming from someone whose go-to meal used to be spaghetti!

Betsie

[Mary, Elsie's mon]

I just bought a zoodle maker! Good to know!

[Betsie_n]

@Mary, Elsie's mon - so much fun! I need to use mine more often, but I have enjoyed making roasted spirilzed sweet potatoes and white potatoes the most - and cucumbers for salads. There are tons of recipes on Pinterest under "spirilized" - check them out and have fun!

[PurpleLadyMN]

On 10/3/2017 at 10:05 AM, Betsie_n said:

@Mary, Elsie's mon - the withdrawals can be hard, but they are temporary so just keep plugging! Try to get more water  and more fats in your system to counter the yucky feelings your body is experience. I'm starting my new yoga practice today - going to keep it short and simple so as not to get overwhelmed by too much, too soon.  Have you had a regular yoga practice in the past? I've only ever dabbled, but have always enjoyed it and thought that the mind-body connection would be ideal right now. 

@ShellyM - I actually managed my 110 oz yesterday, but it was a lot harder than I expected because I thought I was already pretty good with my water intake - apparently, not so much  My nutritional therapist says to halve your body weight and drink that many ounces per day, but if you drink non-water drinks like coffee, caffeinated drinks, alcohol, etc., you have to add 10-12 ounces per non-water drink you have. However, I think you start where you're at - and setting attainable goals, like get those 16 oz in, is the best path to success. I did download a water drinking tracker app and it's helping me stay on top of it - it reminds me hourly to drink  

@PurpleLadyMN - I hope you survive the box lunch at the conference! Those are so hard, but it sounds like you have a plan! Maybe there will be some salad or veggie trays, too. 

Yes, the conference was good! They had plenty of healthy options that were compliant, so I was full both days! I had reached out to the lady managing the conference before I went, so I knew ahead of time and didn’t have to bring much with. Just brought a couple stand by snacks with me.

[PurpleLadyMN]

Also, I signed up for the Real Plans meal planning tool off of the Whole 30 website and it’s amazing!  So far everything I’ve made has been delicious!  Even my boyfriend and our kids have loved them!  I highly recommend it!  Here are a couple pics and recipes! Delish!  I really love the egg muffins. I’ve made them a couple times and makes more than 12 muffins.  Great for breakfast & meals on the go! Heat up great in the microwave too!  

If you are missing cream in your coffee, try Nutpods Non-Dairy Creamer.  I haven’t been able to find them in the grocery store, but they sell them on Amazon. Made from almond and coconut.  I think they are better than just almond milk. Also, come in vanilla and hazelnut flavors. They are Whole 30 approved - even have it printed on the packaging.

Day 9 and still going strong. Already noticing some positive changes.  It’s been hard at work. Had a United Way drive and lots of food around, plus a bake sale. One of my bosses bought a plate of Chocolate Chip cookies and put them out on my counter in front of me for people to eat!  Today another coworker brought in banana bread and muffins!

Stay strong everyone!  Have a great day! #whole30strong

[Mary, Elsie's mon]

Oh my gosh! Stephanie @PurpleLadyMNthat frittata looks especially fantastic! I might make that for dinner tomorrow night. THANKS for sharing the recipies.

Today has been my hardest day so far, but it's because I'm home sick and feel rotten, which makes me crave comfort food. My lymph glands are particularly swollen and sore, but I'm telling myself it's my body fighting both a bug, and getting healthy. 

I'm hanging in there, but look forward to feeling better. 

 

 

[PurpleLadyMN]

30 minutes ago, Mary, Elsie's mon said:

Oh my gosh! Stephanie @PurpleLadyMNthat frittata looks especially fantastic! I might make that for dinner tomorrow night. THANKS for sharing the recipies.

Today has been my hardest day so far, but it's because I'm home sick and feel rotten, which makes me crave comfort food. My lymph glands are particularly swollen and sore, but I'm telling myself it's my body fighting both a bug, and getting healthy. 

I'm hanging in there, but look forward to feeling better. 

 

 

Mary, sorry to hear you’re not feeling well. Maybe try this Chicken soup recipe! I haven’t tried it yet, but sounds good!   Hope you feel better soon!

[Betsie_n]

@PurpleLadyMN - thank you for sharing samples from real plans. I've been curious about them. It seems like it's taking a lot of guesswork out for you, which is tremendously helpful! I also like to make the egg muffins when I need grab and go breakfast. Agreed on Nut-Pods - I got some pumpkin spice for my W30 round to have something fun. I typically use coconut milk with some pumpkin pie spice in my coffee - which was a huge change after drinking that non-dairy scary creamer for a decade or two.

And High-Five on staring down those chocolate chip cookies!!! Winning! Isn't it amazing how much crappy food is just hanging around our every day lives? Is it any wonder we're all struggling to regain health? 

@Mary, Elsie's mon - sorry to hear you're not feeling well. Ditto on the chicken soup above - or just some bone broth. Drink lots of water and herb tea to keep flushing your system. I hope you get to feeling better fast! It's so hard to avoid comfort foods when you're feeling icky. 

Day 9 for me and I feel pretty good! I decided that this week I need to get out of my snack habit. I work from home so it's easy to wonder to the pantry and graze on nuts and such, which may not be horrendous, but when I'm not in W30 mode, this is when I might stick my hand in my husband's chips or crackers and have just a few....which adds up to too many. I have also enjoyed a mid-morning banana but I don't need those carbs, so I'm not going there anymore. Yesterday was surprisingly easy - all of a sudden, it was like 1:30 and I wasn't starving for lunch. I am convinced that upping my fat and water intake is really helping with hungriness and snacking. I did have an apple with coconut butter and almond butter after dinner because I didn't love my dinner so I didn't eat that much and was hungry. PS - coconut butter is my newest discovery. It's a little weird, but mixing with my almond butter makes it taste pretty decadent...and good fats! I'm also liking black olives more than I used to - still don't care for green ones, but that I like the black ones more now is another testament to how our tastes change over time as we change our eating habits. 

I have a quick and easy recipe to share that's been in my rotation for quite awhile and is definitely husband approved. I use it for nights I have meetings and don't have time to cook. It's a simple chicken drumstick and veggie crockpot meal. http://www.creativelydomestic.com/2009/10/slow-cooker-sticky-chicken-drumsticks.html. I do a couple of modifications: 

1. See the "update" in the recipe where she describes using cut veggies instead of foil - that's what I do. Potatoes or sweet potatoes, onions, carrots, parsnips, etc. Use veggies that will hold up to longer cooking, like root veggies, and leave them in larger chunks so they don't get mushy. You can cut them down later. You really don't need liquid so don't add any! The chicken makes juice that drips down over the veggies. 

2. I also put all of the spices in a ziploc baggie, and toss in the chicken (rinsed and patted dry) and shake it around to coat. You can adjust the spices to whatever you want, also. I've done Italian seasoning, honey mustard, etc. 

3. Mine is usually done after ~5 hrs on low. 

Cheers! Betsie

[PurpleLadyMN]

@Betsie_n, thanks for sharing the recipe! it’s nice to have the crock pot meals!

Mary, hope you are feeling better.

I thought I’d share more on the Real Plans meal planning tool as it really is such a great tool! You tell it how many meals you want it to populate and on which days and how many servings.  Then you can check what restrictions you want like whole 30, foods you don’t like or don’t like you and it will only select meals that have foods that meet your selections. (I’m including a screen shot)  So it will pre-fill any days you want and you can change the servings on days when you have more or less people, swap out any recipes you want. Once you get your weekly menu the way you want it, you just click on the grocery list tab and it generates your grocery list.  Then you can go in and modify your grocery list if you already have some items or want to add items.  So you can either then print your grocery list or you can use the app on your smart phone.  It really is very cool!  It just makes it so much easier to plan meals and then grocery shop.  You can also upload your own recipes on the site too, but I haven’t tried that.

You can subscribe as long as you want.  I just did 30 days for now.  Anyways, I really like it and feel like it is a good tool to keep me on track.

Also a couple substitute condiments I’ve discovered are Primal Kitchen Ranch Avocado Oil/Dressing and Coconut Aminos (Soy free seasons sauce) - replaces soy sauce.

have a great night everyone!

#whole30strong

 

[ShellyM]

@PurpleLadyMN Real Plans looks great! I can see how many people would love it.  I think I like having a little less structure, especially this time of year.  I go to the farmers market and buy what catches my eye and then figure out how to cook it!  I do try to plan meals for 3 days at a time.  I tend to prep and cook on Wed and Sun, and that usually gets me through 2 or 3 days. I love cook books and will use them for my planning, so not dissimilar from Real Plans.

@Mary, Elsie's mon How are you feeling?

Feeling better overall, back to work today after a 3-day weekend. I find the work week is easier to stay on plan, less opportunities to stray. Yesterday I made Mexican beef in the Instant Pot, had it tonight, very good!  http://nomnompaleo.com/post/76137606724/pressure-cooker-mexican-beef.  I was careful to use a mild salsa so I was sure it wouldn't be too spicy hot for me to eat!  

My arthroscopic knee surgery is scheduled for this Friday. Trying to stay on plan to reduce inflammation pre and post. 

 

 

[Betsie_n]

Hi all - got bogged down in work and haven't checked in for a spell, but we're past the 1/3 mark! YAY! 

@PurpleLadyMN - thanks for sharing how Real Plans works. Like Shelly, I plan differently but I sure know a lot of folks who would really benefit from this. I am asked all the time how I stay on track (well, sorta mostly stay on track) and it seems like one of the biggest issues folks have is planning and knowing what to cook that is compliant. I don't have to think hard about it anymore, but I know that when're first making the transition, especially, it's hard to come up with ideas and know what to buy, etc. I think having something customize-able like this service will really help people, so I'm going to recommend it. 

Yes! Primal Kitchen is awesome, right? I buy their mayo all the time so I don't have to make it. I found that I didn't use it fast enough when I made it so it would go bad, so it's better to buy a jar of PK brand to have on hand. My hubs claims to be a Best Foods purist, but he never knows when I sub in my stuff  Same with coconut aminos for soy - never knows but would swear that he would know

@ShellyM  - Surgery on Friday??? Yuck! I'm sorry you have to go through that, but yes, lowering your inflammation will help recovery times. I've had to do oral surgery during a W30 and the key was that I had some easy things prepared in the fridge to eat afterwards that didn't require much prep. I'm so sorry about all that smoke. That situation is truly dire. My friends in Santa Rosa lived 2 miles from one of those devastated neighborhoods. 

@Mary, Elsie's mon - are you still feeling sick? I hope you're ok!

I'm sleeping well - but I usually don't have issues there. I had a few nights of feeling like I was sleeping lighter or waking up more, but last night felt normal again - probably because I was tired from the day. 

I'm doing well with my no snacking between meals pledge. I have allowed an apple with almond butter and coconut butter after dinner for dessert. IDK if that's a bad thing since the extra fat is good to help with sleep. I may try to skip it next week and see how I feel. 

I haven't gotten my yoga habit going as well as I'd hoped. I work from home, which is a blessing and curse - sometimes I just don't find the time to do things because I'm not always in control of my schedule: last second meetings, etc. I got it in today for the first time this week - and really enjoyed it. 

Cheers! Betsie

[ShellyM]

HI folks, happy Friday the 13th.  Would you schedule your surgery for Friday the 13th?  

Well, everything went really well.  My doctor said everything went exactly as planned.  I have very little pain, I can put weight on my leg and get around the house without any difficulty.  

I did hit a small W30 bump in the recovery room.  I hadn't eaten since 9:oo pm on Thursday, and when I was in the recovery room at about 12 noon, they wanted me to eat and drink something to make sure it was going to stay down. Not to mention I was hungry! They offered me cookies, crackers or a roll.  I may have had a larabar in my bag but that was in the car in the parking garage.  I decided this was not the time to get all uptight about going off plan.... So I ate a small buttered roll. I must admit it was delicious, and I can see how slippery the slope can be!  So I suppose that should be considered the end of my W30 which was actually a W43.  But since it was a small digression in a medical situation, I have decided to put an asterisk next to today in the record book, and stay with it.  

Going into the surgery, my knee felt better than it has felt in almost a year.  Not ready to sabotage that. 

@Betsie_n I could do better with after dinner snacks too!  

Made this Wed: https://againstallgrain.com/2016/11/29/well-fed-review-sticky-orange-sunflower-chicken-sesame-broccoli/  

A winner!  Used almond butter, served it over roasted spaghetti squash (didn't make the broccoli). 

[Mary, Elsie's mon]

Oh my gosh! congratulations @ShellyM on successful surgery. I agree, you can have a pass for the buttered bun. I'm sure the Whole 30 folks would agree.

And hello @Betsie_n!

I'm sorry to have been away again. My days at work have been really crazy and long lately, and getting home, taking care of my pets and myself and getting ready for the next day has taken up most of my energy. I haven't written, but I've enjoyed your news; thanks for keeping in touch.

I AM feeling much better. It was just a bad bug that's been going around. I work on a college campus, and the past few weeks there's been a brutal virus on campus. All my colleagues have been out so it was just my turn.

I am SO SOLD on the W30 though! I feel great. I feel like I never want to go off of it. AND I have a nice story to share: I did a big favor for a couple of colleagues, who offered to bring me a ton of the campus bakery's cookies (which are delicious) in thanks. When I said I couldn't do cookies right now, because I was doing W30, Louis went, "OH my gosh! That's great! CONGRATULATIONS! Maggie (his wife) and I have done it twice!"

It was a great pick-me-up.

Here's another nice thing: about once a week, after a really stressful day, I come home and make myself a vodka tonic. Boy, on Wednesday I wanted one. It was a rough day. Instead, I made myself a club soda with lime, and you know what? It was perfect! It was exactly what I needed. I posted a photo on FB and a couple of friends said, "oh! how about a summer version with muddled mint?" "Or a winter version with crushed fresh ginger root?" 

I don't think I'll ever drink a cocktail again. This is better. 

Shelly: good luck with your recovery, and EVERYBODY, have a wonderful wonderful weekend! By Sunday, we will have hit the 1/2 way point!

hugs! Mary

[ShellyM]

Cephalexin with a side of Shakshuka. OMG so good!  Didn't have a can of tomatoes so used mild salsa.