Casey's Whole30 (in Japan)

[KC Sunshine]

Hey all,

I'm going to start logging here (and may eventually start a blog ).

DAY 2

Today I had the following meals:

• Breafkast
  
  • Ground beef + 3 eggs + 1/2 avocado + spinach + mushrooms + salt, pepper, garlic, and oil
    

  [*]Lunch

  • Salmon + avocado + leek + onion salad with a homemade dressing of oil, vinegar, black pepper, and mustard seeds
    

  [*]Dinner (cooked with some friends)

  • Steak with salt, pepper, mustard, and garlic
    
  • Sweet potato + onion + mushrooms + garlic + brussel sprouts with oil, salt, and pepper
    

I had some headaches today, which are relatively welcome (I think that means it's working haha). I quit caffeine just over a month ago and went through something similar - detox isn't pretty

Also, I'm a bit concerned about a few things:

• I think I may be using too much salt and too much oil - how much is average per meal?
  
• I'm not fully planning meals - I'm just grabbing a bunch of Whole30 approved ingredients from the grocery store each morning / evening and then throwing a bunch of stuff together. This has worked for the past 2 days, though I'm not sure it's sustainable.
  
• Portion control - should I worry about it? Is ground beef + three eggs too much for one meal? Should I focus more on greens?
  
• I found out my salt has magnesium carbonate, which seems to be an inorganic salt. Is that okay for the program or no?
  

It would be great if some of you more experienced members could chime in with some advice!

All in all though, pretty pumped to be doing this. It's the first time I've ever really consciously thought about what I ate (except for a week-long Paleo experiment during wrestling in high school), and my mood already feels smoother, even though I'm still in the early headache & difficult to concentrate phase.

It may get worse before it gets better, but I'm gonna keep going, one day at a time.

Will check in tomorrow and will begin uploading food pics soon.

-Casey

PS - any recommendations for spices would also be great - so far I've got black pepper, garlic, paprika, mustard seeds, and just bought a lemon.

[KelBelle]

Personally I am a planner. I am not an experienced member as today is my Day 2, but I know that if I am caught without a plan along with hunger/stress, a Wendy's #6 will call my name so I make sure to have the next 3 or 4 days planned, written and taped to the refrigerator. Also, that helps with not having to go to the store on a daily basis.

Good Luck!

[Tom Denham]

If your food does not taste too salty to you, you are okay. When you are preparing fresh foods yourself, it is unusual to consume too much salt. Where people get into trouble is eating processed foods which often have a high salt content.

If your food is not swimming in oil, you are probably okay. I use enough oil in my cooking to keep my skillet or wok slick, but try not to have so much that I have much to pour off when I am finished.

If I lived in a neighborhood where I could buy meal-size portions of food morning and evening, I might not plan in advance either. I work from home and rarely plan much in advance. I do try to make some things in bulk so I have leftovers. I do lots of roasts in the slow cooker. A 3 or 4 pound roast can last me 4 to 6 meals.

The meal template is your guide to portion control - http://whole9life.com/book/ISWF-Meal-Planning-Template.pdf The breakfast you reported sounded okay to me. I frequently eat 2 palm-size portions of protein at meals, but I have always been a big eater. Back when I ran marathons, I could eat 2 foot long Subway tuna sandwiches in one sitting.

I don't think there is a problem with magnesium carbonate in salt.

[xacerb8]

I like to have a lot of spices on hand:

Add chili and cumin to ground beef and all of a sudden it tastes like tacos.

Add oregano, basil, and garlic powder and it's Italian.

Curry powder: sweet, hot, and Vindaloo

Curry paste: any type, blend with coconut milk, add lime juice and have it poured over chicken, shrimp, salmon, eggs, and any kind of steamed/sauteed vegetables.

[KC Sunshine]

Thanks everyone for the responses!

I cut back on olive oil and salt a bit today and am feeling good. I've also got enough veggies to last til the end of the week, and enough protein for 2-3 meals tomorrow. It feels good to have a full fridge!

Thanks Tom for the advice on portion control - glad it's in the acceptable realm.

Thanks xacerb for the spice advice - picked up some Chili and Cumin today, and will build out the rest of my spice cabinet over the weekend.

Here's my meal log for the day:

• Breakfast - eggs, scallops, garlic, spinach, avocado, mushrooms, sweet potato, lettuce, onions, oil, salt, pepper
  
• Lunch - salmon, spinach, onion, avocado, oil & apple vingar, black pepper, mustard seeds
  
• Dinner - ground beef, mushrooms, onion, peppers, sweet potato, lettuce, spinach, leek, oil, chili powder, cumin, salt, pepper
  

Feeling pretty good at the moment - gonna try to get in 7.5 hours of sleep tonight and be prepared for tomorrow. Had headaches & brain fog for most of the day, but nothing major yet. I quit caffeine about 1.5 months ago, so that prepared me a bit for the current detoxing - no pain no gain

Also, I've been mostly just throwing random stuff in a stir-fry and seeing how it turns out, but I'm going to cook up a massive pot of Chocolate Chili this weekend. I'm hoping it'll last 3-6 days and will take away some of the pressure of having to cook something new every meal. Looking forward to some variety!

Here's the link for anyone that's interested:

http://www.theclothesmakethegirl.com/2009/02/22/my-favorite-chili-recipe/

Glad for the support on the forum and glad to be working the program!

-Casey

PS - pics coming soon

[KelBelle]

I'm making Chocolate Chili on Sunday! We can compare notes.

[KC Sunshine]

Oh, it's ON! Let's do it!

[KC Sunshine]

Day 4:

Feeling better than yesterday, still a bit of brain fog. Had ADD on the train today flipping through songs, but for the most part feeling pretty good - I'm excited to see what happens when the detox wears off.

Also, took a 30 minute nap around 1:30pm & had some ginger tea (home-made from fresh ginger) for nausea around lunch, per the Whole30 daily advice. I'm not sure about the nap (I may have been foggy, not tired), but the ginger tea worked WONDERS for my nausea - going to drink some again tomorrow.

Here were my meals:

• Breakfast
  
  • Eggs, ground beef, mushrooms, onions, garlic, and jalapenos in a stir-fry with a side of spinach and 1/3 roasted sweet potato
    

  [*]Lunch

  • 6 sauteed scallops, mushrooms, garlic, oregano, parsley, basil on a bed of spinach with 1/2 an avocado and 2 sunny-side up eggs
    

  [*]Dinner

  • Taco salad - ground beef with garlic, cumin, chili powder, black pepper, jalapenos on top of spinach with 1/2 an avocado and about 10 cherry tomatoes
    

Here are some lessons I've learned over the past few days:

• Don't throw everything together and cook it in one big stir-fry - separate things like sweet potatoes that have strong tastes, otherwise they will overpower everything - make them side dishes
  
• Ginger tea helps immensely with nausea - just cut up / mince some ginger root into small pieces and put in a mug with boiling water
  
  • Pro tip: If you're off caffeine and looking for a pick-me-up, a spoonful of ginger flakes is a pungent way to get the brain moving
    

  [*]When you look at recipes online, the food you make tends to taste better

  [*]Cooking is actually a lot of fun. That being said, it takes a lot of time, and this weekend I'm going to make the transition to making large quantities of food 1-3 times a week and eating a lot of leftovers.

Also have been taking a ton of pictures and will find time Sunday to post them somewhere - perhaps a food/Whole30 blog.

-Casey

[melbournegirl]

Welcome Casey and congrats on your efforts so far.

Cinnamon is my new favorite spice... For eggs and ground beef especially

I add salt to my cooking now, and occasionally have a sprinkle on a spoon of ghee after a sweaty workout.since I no longer have stock cubes or any tinned food with salt, I often feel I need it.

[xacerb8]

I made this salad the other day, and I have been nomming on the leftover Sweet Apple dressing ever since. It's good on steamed broccoli, scrambled eggs, and on ground beef, too.

http://idreamofprotein.wordpress.com/2012/09/11/apple-olive-spinach-salad-with-sweet-apple-dressing/

Last Saturday I roasted three turnips and about 5 carrots, plus three beets. I'll finish them up tonight, just in time for tomorrow's big cook-up!

Sauteed cabbage with ground beef is pretty darn heavenly, too.....and I agree, looking at recipes online and picking out a few to try turns this whole thing into a luxury and not a tyranny.

[KC Sunshine]

Thanks - I'll have to try adding some cinnamon! And I'll check out the cabbage with ground beef - cabbage is easy to come by over here.

Also, here's a list I just made in Google Translate of foods to avoid - anything ya'll think I should add?

• 
  carrageenan カラギーナン
  
• 
  msg MSG
  
• 
  sulfites 亜硫酸塩
  
• 
  monosodium glutamate グルタミン酸ナトリウム
  
• 
  soy 大豆
  
• 
  soy protein 大豆タンパク
  
• 
  soy sauce 醤油
  
• 
  miso tofu 味噌豆è…
  
• 
  bran ãµã™ã¾
  
• 
  wheat germ å°éº¦èƒšèŠ½
  
• 
  starch ã§ã‚“ã·ã‚“
  
• 
  black beans 黒豆
  
• 
  pinto beans ピント豆
  
• 
  corn syrup コーンシロップ
  
• 
  corn starch トウモロコシデンプン
  
• 
  maple syrup メープルシロップ
  
• 
  honey 蜂蜜
  
• 
  agave nectar リュウゼツランã®èœœ
  
• 
  Splenda スプレンダ
  
• 
  Nutrasweet Nutrasweet
  
• 
  xylitol キシリトール
  
• 
  stevia ステビア
  

-Casey

[melbournegirl]

Gosh, and we think reading labels in English is hard enough!!!

What about sorbitol, bean thread, dairy? Lactose, milk solids, whey, peanut...

[30Canandaigua]

My brain just exploded. (*$^#@$%)

You can add pictures to this log. Click more reply options instead of post and you will be able to choose he file to attach.

[KC Sunshine]

Will do that - they're all on my iPod at the moment - gotta transfer them over.

Is there a comprehensive list of additives that aren't allowed? I'm allergic to dairy, so I'm already pretty good at catching that, but wouldn't have know sorbitol or bean thread off the top of my head.

Today was pretty well. I had more energy, felt great, and had minimal brain fog. On the down-side, I woke up later than usual (decided to sleep in due to the weekend), and thus ate my first meal of the day at like 10:30-11:00am. I had a busy day afterwards, so ended up having to eat lunch during a meeting (I think this is against the distraction rules?). Then, later on, I saw a movie with friends, meaning my dinner came at around 11:40pm standing up in a train station waiting for a train to come. I didn't want to eat during the movie, and I was super hungry by the end, so I didn't want to wait to get home to eat.

On the bright side, I went with friends to a cafe and burger king today, but I stayed the course. I cooked lunch and dinner in advance and carried them around with me until I was ready to eat - glad to know I have this option.

Here's what I ate:

• Breakfast
  
  • Leftovers (egg stir-fry with scallops, ground beef, sweet potato) - from the past few days all thrown together
    
  • Spinach & 1/2 avocado with oil & vinegar, pepper, mustard seeds
    
  • Some new egg stir fry made from 2 eggs, mushrooms, onions, jalapenos, salt, and pepper
    

  [*]Lunch

  • Leftovers from the morning's egg stir fry
    
  • Ground beef / pork stir-fry with brocoli, onions, garlic, cabbage, salt, pepper, cumin, chili powder, and allspice on a bed of spinach
    

  [*]Dinner

  • More of the ground beef / pork stir-fry with 1/2 avocado
    

I want to make more of a conscious effort to eat meals sitting down either at home or at work. In the future, I also want to try and keep my sleep schedule as normal as possible.

Lessons learned today:

• Don't mix leftovers from different meals - if the flavors don't mix, it'll be tough to eat
  
• Instead of chopping up veggies before every meal, chop up a bunch at the beginning of the week to save time when cooking meals later on
  

Keep on keeping on.

-Casey

[Cavegirlmegan]

Casey, sounds like you are doing great and I commend you for attempting this in a foreign country. I would be eating tons of sashimi!

What do your Japanese friends think of your way of eating? Is grass fed and organic meat/dairy easy to find there? How much does Kobe beef cost there?

I'm already on day 7, it's going fast and I feel really good. Here's my recap if you're interested. http://forum.whole9life.com/topic/7526-cave-girl-megan-whole-30-log-week-1-recap/

Good work!

[KC Sunshine]

Crazy tired - gonna keep this short.

Today was pretty good - had minimal brain fog & felt really energetic and in a good mood for most of the day. Here's hoping it lasts!

I also had a few cravings while at work, but went for a walk and chatted with a coworker, and they went away. Here's to burning new circuits in the brain!

Today's meals:

• Breakfast - Steak & eggs, mushrooms, cauliflower, onions, spinach, avocado
  
• Lunch - the same thing - IT WAS DELICIOUS.
  
• Dinner - 2 eggs scrambled with some pre-simmered chocolate chili from TCMTG (I didn't realize it would take so long to simmer...), spinach, and avocado. The chili was also DELICIOUS.
  

Today's lessons learned:

• Eating paleo / Whole30-style can be freaking fantastic.
  

[KC Sunshine]

Only got 5.5 hours of sleep last night, but today had more energy than expected - getting the gift!!

Still, I know that's unhealthy and am aiming for 8 hours tonight. It was actually kind of ironic, I read the daily e-mail about sleep at about 1:30am when I had to be up at 7:30am.

Today's meals:

• Breakfast - chili + eggs + spinach + sweet potato on the side - only ate about 1/2 - 2/3 of it - may have still been full from the previous night's dinner
  
• Lunch - steak + eggs + mushrooms + onions + spinach + 1 avocado
  
• Dinner - chili + leftovers from breakfast + spinach + 1 avocado
  

I think I'm relying too much on red meat, and I need to switch it up with some seafood & poultry. Also, I want to start adding cauliflower to more of my stir-fries, because I'm beginning to get sick of sweet potato ;;

Also, I ended up eating dinner later than I'd like because I decided to wait until I got home, instead of eating a quick meal before or after going out to a restaurant with friends. I think I need to better prepare on days I'm planning to go out with friends (although I managed to stay strong while just drinking ice water).

On a side note, I've been feeling awesome - lots of energy and in a great mood. I think I talked my friends' ears off about the program at dinner! Haha.

One of my friends is going carb-less tomorrow, but he wasn't down to do the Whole30. Most of the people were spouting the normal stuff about how "Red meat is bad, carbs are good, just restrict calories!" I think instead of trying to persuade them with science, I'll just let the results show for themselves

Lessons learned:

• Prep for meals out with friends so that you can eat at a leisurely pace before or after, and not mess up your meal times
  
• Steak and eggs is an AWESOME meal that can be made really quickly
  
• Don't try to convince people to do the Whole30. Live well, show results, and if they ask you, offer help. People need to make their own choices.
  

[melbournegirl]

I used to worry about too much red meat, especially when my digestive system was playing up but ironically determined it was the nuts and fruit that cause the most problems. Variety is good. Pumpkin (squash) and carrots make good alternatives to sweet potato too.

Hope you get a good nights sleep tonight. I was able to catch up a bit last night finally.

[KC Sunshine]

Nice! Tried some carrots today and they were great - will add in some Pumpkin soon.

I actually haven't had any fruit or nuts since I started - think that's a bad thing? Part of me thinks I should vary it up, maybe eat some oranges for vitamin C, but part of me is fine with the way things are (meaty and quite sugar-less).

Got some sleep last night, going to go for 7-8 hours again tonight.

Today's meals:

• Breakfast - steak & scallops, mushrooms, onions, spinach, avocado, carrots
  
• Lunch - chili, spinach, carrots, olives
  
• Dinner - steak & scallops, mushrooms, onions, spinach, avocado, carrots
  

I managed to get in some seafood today for variety, and toned down the portions a bit, as I think I'd gone a bit over the top the past few days. Also, I ate at more evenly spaced intervals, and am already feeling tired and ready for bed.

Questions:

• On days when the meat-mix contains fat (chili, curry, etc.), is it necessary to add avocado/olives or another fat source on top of it?
  
• What do people order at restaurants? I've been bringing meals with me and eating before or afterwards, which works pretty well, although tonight it meant that I chilled outside the restaurant on the curb eating my dinner for 5-10 minutes before heading into the restaurant and joining the group. Doable, but not ideal. Thoughts?
  

Week 2 - let's do it!!

[KelBelle]

I didn't make Chocolate Chili...My weekend cooking plan was thrown off when it took 3 hours to install a door. I was supposed to be cooking during 2 of those hours.

I'm glad to know your liked yours! I have all of the ingredients on hand except gf ground beef.

Regarding restaurants, I have yet to go to one for dinner. Tonight I am taking my aunt out, however, so I'm going to research their menu and see what options I have. I know they have a big salad menu. I will keep you posted. I'm a little nervous because I know what I've eaten at this restaurant in the past and it was certainly not compliant.

Congrats to making it to Week 2!

[melbournegirl]

A bowl of salad, plain steamed veges or fresh fruit is what I order when I have eaten before or going to eat after. Once I found a pork belly entree that was okay too.

I don't put much fat in my cooking, probably two tablespoons for a three to four serve dish so I usually add a spoon of ghee to the bowl or have some olives in a side salad. Of course if you are cooking pieces in fat most gets left behind so in this case you should defiantly add more. If you are eating more than you would like at the moment it may be because the fat level isn't high enough to provide satiety... Could also just be adjusting to the whole30 too. Experiment a bit to see?

[KC Sunshine]

That's too bad about the chili - I'd highly recommend it!! It's made dinners super easy this week.

Thanks for the advice Juzbo - I've been adding 1/2-whole avocado or some olives to it, and I think I'll keep going with it for the time being.

Today I had a rough spot at work. I think my lunch salad was too small or didn't have enough protein, and I was feeling really crappy between 2-5pm. I had dinner around 5:30pm though and immediately felt better.

Today's meals:

• Breakfast - scrambled eggs with mushrooms, 4-5 salad shrimp, onions, peppers, cauliflower, spinach, jalapenos, and 1/2 avocado
  
• Lunch - salad shrimp on cabbage, spinach, 1/2 a chopped carrot, 1/2 an avocado, some olives, and some onions
  
• Dinner - chili with some egg with spinach, cauliflower, and onion
  

Today's lesson learned:

• Throwing some scrambled eggs in with your meat or other meal (ex. chili) can make it last for more meals.
  

Today's question:

• What are ya'll thoughts on fruit? I haven't had any since I started the Whole30, but bought an apple today and may mix it in with a meal tomorrow. It seems like the Whole30 perspective is to be wary of fruit due to the sugar, but I could be misreading that...
  

[melbournegirl]

My response to fruit has been quite varied. If I have it with a small meal it makes me hungry / crave more food. Having a piece right before breakfast seems to work the best. I also often throw a big handful of berries nad sometimes currants into meat and egg breakfast meals. If my meals are well balanced and contain enough protein and fat adding fruit doesn't seem to cause any problems. The last few days I seem to have had a piece of fruit with each meal without any issues... Maybe I can do that when coffee isnt messing with my blood sugar?

I don't think you need fruit and Tom rarely has it but I like it to add some variety especially since there are lots of complant items I can't eat. People with sugar dragons need to ensure they aren't using fruit to replicate previous poor eating habits (snacking and dessert)

[xacerb8]

I have eaten fruit cautiously during my whole 30. (day 21 today, I think) I added a closed handful of raisins to a chicken salad once. I will eat about 1/4 cup of berries with a meal. Sometimes I do frozen blueberries after a meal. Used some home-made unsweetened applesauce in a dressing.

I don't feel like it's feediing a sugar dragon, but who knows. I definitely eat less fruit than I used to, but I used to eat it in between meals when I was starving. Of course, it never really satisfied my appetite.

[KC Sunshine]

Thanks for the feedback guys - it's good to know I can do without. I didn't have any today, but I may add some in soon.

Had some ups and downs today, but overall still feeling calmer and more energetic than before. I just need to get my sleep back on track now....

My meals today:

• Breakfast - steak & eggs with mushrooms, onions, cauliflower, spinach, garlic, salt, pepper, and 2/3 an avocado
  
• Lunch - chili, 1 whole carrot chopped, 2 eggs fried, spinach, onions, 2/3 avocado
  
• Dinner - steak & eggs with mushrooms, onions, cauliflower, spinach, garlic, salt, pepper, and 2/3 an avocado
  

I'm nearly done with the chili, and am considering making a curry of some sort this weekend to last for next week.

Today's question:

• Is it bad to rely on one meal or protein source a lot during the Whole30? I freaking LOVE steak and eggs and could probably eat it everyday, but am trying to mix it up due to worries about whether or not that would be healthy... Salmon tomorrow, going to experiment with a new recipe.