robotarmy post whole30

[robotarmy]

I finished my 2nd Whole30 yesterday, and have even more clarity about taking care of myself than before. My first W30 helped me get really well on track eating paleo and this one helped me to really figure out what to eat when and how to fuel myself better for CrossFit and running--pretty much how to tweak the program to fit my own personal needs.

This time around I lost 4 pounds, and I still have some fat to burn. But not much. Physically, I gained strength (boy did I gain that) and speed. Mentally I gained more focus and composure.

Unlike last time, where I wanted to keep going for a little while, today I reintroduced non-paleo foods right away. I ate Mexican after my race today, some nice cheese at lunch, and then some paleo-but-not-W30-compliant things at dinner tonight (things with honey in them, for example).

My goals as I relax my food restrictions are simple: eat well; train well, be well. I know how great I feel eating W30 compliant, so that's how I'll mostly continue to eat. But if a little cheese sneaks in here and there I'll be okay. I won't beat myself up. I mean, I can always reset by eating 100% compliant again--even if not for 30 days...7, or 14. Whatever I need. Because now I know what I need. And I know how to take care of myself better.

Okay, so. Speaking of dinner tonight. I went to a paleo potluck with my meetup group. And, unlike the last event I went to, it was awesome! Everyone was super nice, had some great conversation, and the food...was fantastic. I joined the meetup group because I don't have any paleo friends or family; most of them don't want to hear about it--they'd rather watch Forks Over Knives, become vegans, and call it a day. So it was really cool to chill out with a bunch of like-minded individuals and talk food without being told I'm going to die of cancer or that soy is good for me.

Anyway. Just starting this post W30 log so I can really keep track how things go for me, in the realm of food and beyond. Because it starts with food, but it sure doesn't end there.

[Derval]

Glad you had such a ncie time, sounds great.

Look fwd to following your culinary, fitness....and romantic! adventures

[Nadia B]

I've been reading your log and liked it a lot. Your love for CF is so contagious and box jumps are fun! Ehm..just saying hi I guess.

[robotarmy]

Have been sick as a dog for the last few days. Mostly better today? I think? Can't remember what I ate on Sunday, spent most of the day asleep. Yesterday...some chicken, roast beef + braised greens, and (because I was feeling sorry for myself) chips and salsa. Couldn't taste any of it. Slept 12 hours. Breakfast today? Roast beef + braised greens. Skipped CF yesterday to sleep, but am hoping to go today.

[robotarmy]

Haha Derval, you know there will be some adventures! And hi Nadia B, thanks for saying hello

Still sick :/ taking the day off of work to rest and get better. Tried to push through the last couple of days at work but ended up just prolonging this stupid cold. Do have a conference call coming up, but at least I get to work from the couch.

Have been thinking about what to do with this post-W30 era. I'd like to get rid of this extra fat that's plaguing me and build some muscle so I'm going to do some reading today about how best to do that. It's probably also time to talk more with my CF trainer about nutrition--we haven't talked about it a whole lot since I already ate paleo when I started CF so he didn't have to work with me on starting to eat this way. Plus, I've dropped a bunch of weight and have improved my body composition in the 2.5 months since starting, so he's happy with how it's going for me. And that's good! I'm not saying that I'm unhappy and that "OMG I need to lose more weight!" I just want to make sure that how I'm eating is really helping me work toward my goals.

Anyway. Been chatting with this one guy who seems like he might be interested but he lives like 1.5 hours away. Will see if it ever goes anywhere...in the meantime I'm going to lie on the couch, read Paleo for Athletes, and try to get better. One thing I've decided: no more NyQuil. I've been taking it because I've been congested, coughing, and completely unable to sleep. Ugh. But it makes for a slooooooww robotarmy. Anyway. I'm out. Later!

[robotarmy]

Kind of better (FINALLY!) and made it to work today! NO appetite though. Ate 2 Larabars at work, and then some dates+pecans (heh deconstructed Larabars) before going to CF today. Had a choice of two WODs, and though I'm usually inclined to choose the one that will be harder for me, the trainer and I decided on the slightly easier one. But here's the thing--it's because the harder one would kill me for tomorrow, when we're doing 13.3. 150. Wall. Balls. 150. WALL. BALLS. Gross.

Anyway, I made sure to eat after CF. An ahi tuna steak (topped with tapenade) with roasted romanesco cauliflower. I've never had romanesco cauliflower before, but it came in my CSA box and it's beautiful. Well, it was beautiful. It's also one of those things in nature that reflects a fractal, which excites my inner nerd!

I can tell I'm getting better because I'm already planning what to eat tomorrow Making a curry to get me through the weekend, and planning a really great salad to take to work tomorrow. That's about all. Headed to bed soon...another long day tomorrow and then a working weekend.

[robotarmy]

Food yesterday: no breakfast, still no morning appetite. But lunch was a spectacular salad: beautiful local lettuce, carrots, beets, fennel, all kinds of stuff. A tin of salmon. Dressing: olive oil, ACV, garlic, honey, dijon mustard. This morning, as I'm frying a duck egg to eat over a small bowl of curry, I snacked on some dates. I'm actually hungry this morning, which is unusual. My eating has been so out of whack since being sick, that I'll take it. And I'll eat some darn fine food.

Working until 3 today. Lame. But then a glorious day and a half off, during which I will hopefully catch up with friends and definitely get in a run at the lake.

One thing I noticed, adding back in some cheese last week: bloated right up, gained 5 pounds. Now it could be some of that monthly lady bloating that some of us get. But I stopped eating the cheese and the bloating and weight went back down. I didn't feel gross or anything, just noticed that a noticeable change happened when I reintroduced cheese (which is the only dairy I eat). I'll keep the dairy cut out completely and maybe try reintroducing cheese at a different point in the ol' cycle, just to see if the weight gain thing happens again. If it does...bye bye cheese. For extra special occasions only. And not when I need to look good.

All for now. Off to the shower and a great work day!

[robotarmy]

Still so tired! I have the day off and I intend to try to rest as much as I can to prepare for the week ahead--being sick last week really drained me. I do have a long run on my schedule for today, but I can do it much later. Body says rest right now, so I'm resting. Heart and mind say run later, so I'll do it.

Now, about that man that lives 1.5 hours away. Been chatting more, he's been more interested, I've been more interested. The problem is the distance...but we'll see where it goes!

Goals: even though I'm off W30 right now:

-keep eating compliant (but if bacon shows up on a salad, okay I'll take one for the team)

-work HARD at fitness this week (this is a tough one: I can only get to CF one day this week, due to my work schedule. And this isn't work I can rearrange. It's set in stone. So I'm going to the Tuesday workout, will stay a little late for skill practice, and run, run, run the rest of the week. One of the places I run has things to jump on and over, so I'll incorporate some of that in my running workouts. I can also do some bodyweight stuff at home--weighted situps, burpees, single/double unders, push-ups, HSPU practice, etc.)

General demeanor: TIRED. That's why I'm going to lie around all day until I run. Emotionally: stable, but frustrated with the residual bloating/weight gain around my middle. It's like 3 pounds so it's not a big deal. It's just noticeable. Professionally: awesome. Romantically: will keep you posted

[robotarmy]

First run since last Saturday's 5k: 5 miles. Felt okay, not great. Harder than I wanted it to be. Still kind of congested and coughing. I'm sure people could hear me sniffling from a mile away. But my pace was okay, pretty much what I was going for. If it hadn't gotten dark I would have done another 5 mile loop, but I was alone and didn't want to go around this loop alone in the dark. I'm glad I went. After all, I'm fueling myself to accomplish my goals! And getting a PR in my next half marathon is a goal!

I ate some really great hot wings today. Now I'm having some leftover curry stew and watching some TV before bed.

8 hours of blissful slumber await me, and I'm ready to tackle a stressful day tomorrow.

[robotarmy]

First day of big work week finished! The rest of the week will be so busy but at least I'm working with people I love.

Food: Weird eating day. Breakfast: no. Lunch: leftover curry stew + Larabar, Dinner: sardines, olives, almonds. I feel good though, so no complaints. Before W30 I was eating about 2 (larger) meals per day, and I'm kind of going back to that. It works well for me and I feel good doing it.

Tomorrow is the one day I get to CF this week, and I'm going into full on beast mode tomorrow. Awesome, because coach always programs really hard Tuesdays.

General demeanor: happy Romantic news: maybe soon? Social: super happy I love my friends, the ones I've met in real life and the ones I've only met online.

Bedtime

[robotarmy]

Second day of big work week finished! Yes! Tomorrow: meetings (ugh), weekly management duties (ugh), and some evening freelance work are going to make for a long day. But it's okay. Thursday is the last day of real work this week at my day job--Friday I have to go in, but it's a half day (because of Good Friday) and I don't have any actual duties on half days.

CF: rough. Hard. But. BUT. I did 20 assisted pull-ups (with the bands) today. My previous record was 2. And I did 20 today. The workout was for time, so they slowed me down A LOT. But here's why I love CF and here's why I love my trainer: everyone else has moved on to the next portion of the workout. I'm still doing my pull-ups. Have finished 10/20. Trainer comes by and asks how I'm doing. "I've done 10," I say, resting in the middle of the set. I thought he might tell me to finish up with negatives if I needed to, but he said, "Cool. Just 10 more to go." And I stepped off the box I was standing on and did 10 more.

Super bummed that I can't go for the rest of the week. But it's not the end of the world.

Food: Breakfast: tin of sardines. Lunch: leftover curry stew. Afternoon: Larabar. Post-WO: roast chicken. Then I had to work until 8:30pm and then chatted on the phone with a charming, nice, good looking man. I may have forgotten to make dinner and then food for tomorrow. I'll throw together a tasty slaw in the morning.

General demeanor: happy. Romantic news? Making plans for next weekend? (Not Easter weekend, I'm super busy--weekend after) Everything else? Happy. Feel awesome. Being awesome.

[Derval]

Love it Go you!

[robotarmy]

Energy: gone. Today was a long day. My job is physical, and I was on my feet and/or moving from 7:30-6:00. Have a training run on my calendar but I can't do it tonight. Going to bed at 8/8:30 and doing my run in the AM. I also miss CF a lot right now. May email the trainer and see if I can come in a little bit late on Saturday morning and do a workout.

Food: breakfast? Can't remember--something scavenged from the fridge whilst I cooked food to take for lunch. Lunch? Salmon and Swiss chard. Afternoon? Larabar. Dinner? Spaghetti squash with meat sauce. I'm going to do a facial, drink a kombucha, and go. to. bed.

General demeanor: good but very tired. Romantic news? Will keep you posted

[robotarmy]

What a great day today was. I had a really fantastic morning. Got to drive a Lamborghini Gallardo and a Ferrari 430. Simply amazing. Got to take them both around a track, which was incredible. Only got up to about 100mph in each but that was enough. What incredible cars.

Then got hair cut and colored. Then watched the new Doctor Who. Then worked with really good friends. Along the way I flirted with cute boys

Food. Breakfast: ate a few dates and pecans. Lunch: eggs, salmon, spring garlic. Dinner: sweet potato fritters and scallops sauteed with spring garlic, lemon juice, and tomatoes (dinner was very good).

Considering getting up earrrrrrrrrrly tomorrow for a run, but it would have to be like 4:45. Ugh. Easter week just kills me because I'm so busy. Maybe Monday I'll just hit up CF hard and start my training runs again.

General demeanor: happy

[robotarmy]

Easter: over. Got up early, worked, went to Easter dinner, and now home watching Mad Men.

This morning I saw the lowest number on the scale I've seen in a long time: 186.6. Rad!

Food today was off plan: Easter dinner included ham and potatoes au gratin, which I'm generally not eating right now, but were really good! It's best to eat well if one is eating off plan. Ate some chicken and dates when I got home. Definitely feeling full from such great food today, but it's cool. Food plan for the rest of the week is to eat a lot of protein and green stuff. And I have some killer sweet potatoes from my CSA this week!

Tomorrow's Monday again. This weekend certainly flew by, with so much work. Instead of moaning about Monday, I'm going to focus on the positive things: I have time to work independently and focus on professional improvement before I begin my work day. I have time to go to CF tomorrow evening. I have time to get 9 hours of sleep tonight. This is all good.

General deameanor: happy. Goals for the week: eat W30 style--I have to stay super focused on work this week, and I like the parallel with how I fuel myself. Romantic news: I inadvertently flirted with a Mormon and now he's trying really hard to get me to go out with him because I think he thinks I'm Mormon too Sorry, that guy.

Bedtime.

[Derval]

[robotarmy]

*snort* hahahahahahahahahaha amazing.

[robotarmy]

Monday: pretty good day. Work: good. CF: holy crap.I missed it.

Food: good. My lunchtime salad had honey in the dressing but I think that was the only non W30 type thing I had today. I'm doing laundry now and need to eat something for dinner.

Tomorrow will be an interesting day...suddenly I have a post-work date with this lives-1.5-hours-away man(!). Should be interesting

[robotarmy]

Quick check in to say: date was AWFUL. AWFUL AWFUL AWFUL. It was a blind date, really. I'd texted the dude and we talked on the phone once, but that was it. And the pic I'd seen he looked NOTHING like. Tried to talk about myself a lot to be boring.

Ughhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.

[Derval]

Did you tell him all about phytates in legumes?

Sorry to hear it didn't work out!

[robotarmy]

Hahahahaha oh man. If paleo ever does come up on these dates and they want me to explain why/what/how/etc. their eyes do glaze over...

[Nadia B]

Have you ever done a "paleo" date?

[robotarmy]

Do you mean with a guy who's already paleo? Or take someone who isn't paleo for a paleo experience? I joined a paleo meetup group, but never any kind of paleo date...where are all the good looking single paleo dudes?!

[Derval]

.where are all the good looking single paleo dudes?!

Crossfit!

Or the grassfed meat counter

[Nadia B]

Do you mean with a guy who's already paleo? Or take someone who isn't paleo for a paleo experience? I joined a paleo meetup group, but never any kind of paleo date...where are all the good looking single paleo dudes?!

My paleo meet up group is 70% families (oh nooo) and the rest are weird dudes (oh nooo #2), but I haven't gone to the official meeting yet. I hope you are more lucky with meetup paleo crowd.

I am actually worrying how's it working with non-paleo guys. They probably think it's a strange way to eat. On the other hand I really really can't look at people chewing junk in McD for example. Hmm.

I really hope Derval is right I will know soon, CF here I come.