Jen's W30 Log - April 1

[pjena]

Hi. My name is Jen. I'm 38 years old, married, mother of 2 boys and work full time. I am going to start April 1. I'm using the next week to slowly start eating more meat and less legumes/grains, figure out where my hidden sugars are, clear out the no-no's and stock my kitchen for success. As of now, I'm diong it alone. My husband and kids will not be doing it. So, I also need to come up with some meal ideas that will make us all happy. Luckily, I love to cook and am used to catering to different needs.

My current diet is pretty close to vegan. I don't like meat. I never have. I was totally vegetarian for 8 years until I married my meat loving husband and found it just too hard. Now, I cook meat, but rarely eat it. In fact, I never eat meat by itself. I just don't worry about chicken broth in something or a stray piece of chicken I can't pick out of a soup. I will eat eggs and already try to avoid dairy as it doesn't usually agree with my tummy. Part of the reason I am not starting "today" as recommended in ISWF is that I think that going from almost vegan to heavy meat eater abruptly would be a bad idea. I'm going to work in more meat over the next week as I work out the legumes and grains. I think the transition will be easier on my stomach. I LOVE vegetables, but also love lentils and quinoa and millet and chickpeas and oatmeal. Giving them up will be hard. I have a sweet tooth and my "foods with no breaks" are homemade sweets, cereal and trail mix. I know it will be easier to have none than to keep trying to have them in moderation. I have alcohol very seldomly, so that won't be an issue.

I feel like my diet is very healthy (according to a lot of experts). However, I am slowly gaining weight despite all efforts to stop it, I feel puffy (my sock lines take hours to go away - I think that is weird), I have allergies and asthma, I constantly feel the need to clear my throat, and I get cold sores often. I did a "restart" diet in January that was vegan and relied very heavily on lentils. It didn't help with any of my concerns and I had a stomach ache for pretty much the whole 4 weeks. I was very disappointed as that diet was a cleaned up version of how I already eat. I had high hopes that did not materialize.

I have been hearing about this program via blogs and family members and decided that I am going to try it. It's only 30 days. If it helps, it might be worth eating what I don't like and not eating what I do like (and hopefully my taste buds would change). If it doesn't help, it's only a month and I can go back to eating oatmeal and quinoa and be no worse off than I am now. I am committed to try this program whole heartedly for 30 days.

My son has food allergies, so I'm familiar with elimination diets and the need to be 100% compliant in order to figure out what is causing the concerns. I'm also used to cooking everything from scratch and coming up with meals that address multiple dietary needs. So, I am sure I will be able to make a meal plan that will meet this program's requirements for me and allow my family to eat what they like. If this is the miracle that many say it is, my family may have no choice but to come along eventually, but for now, I am the guinea pig.

That is my story. I will use this log to report on my W30 progress.

[pjena]

For the record (speaking to myself, here), starting my W30 the day after Easter does not mean I will be eating a ton of Easter candy. This week is meant to transition from the things I should not eat to the things I should eat. It is not a "Last Supper." I will not eat any Easter candy.

[pjena]

A few thoughts that I want to get down as I pay more attention to how things make me feel:

I have spent so much time thinking about, reading about, talking about, learning about, logging, etc, about food and diet over the past decade with my own attepts to lose weight and be healthier and my son's food allergies that I'm surprised that I can be surprised.

I had one glass of wine tonight (I'm not in my W30 yet...blah blah blah). I now have a sore throat and feel kind of fuzzy even though it was hours ago. I hope it's the wine, frankly, and not that I'm getting sick. I'll have to pay attention to that next time, most likely after the W30.

If I eat more at meals and include protein and fat, I actually can go for hours without feeling hungry! I didn't quite believe it. A huge bowl of oatmeal (LOVE!) would keep me full for a couple of hours, max, even if I felt stuffed after eating it. Eggs, sunbutter and a banana kept me not hungry in the slightest for almost 6 hours!

Willpower exists, but only in absolutes. My kids have a 6 man sleepover going tonight. Sleepovers involve Miss Jen's famous popcorn. I usually have good intentions and make myself a small bowl with no butter and then proceed to pick at the popcorn I make for the kids until I feel stuffed and gross. Tonight, because I'm really trying to not snack and because I truly am not hungry (not that that stopped me before), I decided that I would have none. And I didn't even have one kernal. I will feel much better in the morning because of it.

[pjena]

More observations:

Eating meat is going ok. I've only had fish and chicken so far, but I'm making an effort. I am trying to eat fats and protein at each meal and am cutting way back on my grains and legumes. Actually, I don't think I've had any legumes, but I am finishing up some grains I had in the house - my beloved oatmeal, some buckwheat mufffins, some leftover barley fennel soup. I'm trying to switch the proportions, though, to make the grains smaller (or non-existent) and the protein larger. I have to admit, I kind of want this to not work because I really don't enjoy meat and I really enjoy quinoa!

I get hungry faster if I don't have any starch. I need to remember to add a sweet potato or banana or something to my meals to hold me over.

This week of preparation is good, I think. I'm reading a lot of old forum posts and figuring out some common pitfalls. It never would have occurred to me to check the ingredients in tuna. Luckily, mine is fine.

I think I am going to avoid nuts during my W30. I have noticed that they cause my stomach to bloat up and they also invite me back for more over and over. It would be better to just not have them. That means no almond butter, either. Dates with sunbutter are also going to stop.

Regardless of how this turns out, I will probably not bring back cereal. It's good not having that temptation in the house.

[pjena]

I'm looking forward to starting this thing.

Eating three meals a day and not snacking is good. I admit I have been roughly counting calories in my head. I've done it so long that it's automatic. It will be difficult to stop. But, I have found it useful. When I feel hungry 3 hours after a 500-600 calorie meal, I am able to tell myself that I had plenty to hold on another hour or so until the next meal. Then, I distract myself and, sure enough, I can make it. In fact, the hungry feelings I felt go away. They aren't real. I'm not sure I'd have the confidence to push through if I didn't know for sure that I had plenty at the last meal. My brain believes math. I'm hoping that my body will get used to this and I will reach the promised point of not even thinknig about food for hours on end. That would be a nice change.

It is hard to bake a cake and boil maple syrup without tasting, but I did it. I am the baker in the family and was assigned to bring birthday cake to Easter I made the cake part last night and didn't lick the bowl. It helped that I wasn't hungry after eating a big protein and fat packed meal. I also boiled down maple sap (we make our own syrup from our backyard) and also didn't taste it. I'm sure pure maple syrup from my backyard will be on the worth it list when this is done (especially since it's definitely a once in a while thing and not an every day thing), but for now, I am trying to get to no sugar in preparation for my W30, so it wasn't hard to resist.

I ate ground beef last night. Ick. Just not a fan. I'm hoping my tastes will change if I'm going to do this long term.

[pjena]

I had some tummy upset last night. I'm not sure why. I ate ground beef for the first time in years - that may be part of it. My son had a stomach bug on Sunday night, but it doesn't seem to be that. I ate a few cashews with coconut flakes, but earlier in the week that was just causing bloat and not actual upset. In my old age (ha ha), I seem to be getting more indigestion that I never got before. That is part of why I am doing this. It got way worse on the vegan/lentil "restart diet" I did in January, which is why I decided to keep an open mind and try this completely different way of eating.

My husband and I are going out for sushi tonight - my "Last Supper" of sorts. I'm not allowing Easter to be my "Last Supper" because I know that if I start with the candy, I won't stop until I feel ill and I don't want to start off the W30 that way. No candy. The rest of the meal won't be a problem. I don't like my in-law's food anyway. LOL I usually bring sweet potatoes and salad and dessert to every get together and that is all I eat. This year, I'll put some hard boiled eggs on my salad and call it good.

[pjena]

Despite my good intentions (see post #2 above), I had quite the sugar bender yesterday. Sigh. The bad news is that I have a sugar hangover complete with belly ache, tight pants and headache. The good news is that it reinforced why I am doing this - I am, indeed, addicted to sugar.

I was doing very well last week eating mostly on plan, avoiding snacking and eliminating desserts. I was thinking I can do this and maybe I can just do Whole30'ish and don't really need to do it 100%. The weekend smacked me upside the head and set me straight. I started telling myself one wouldn't hurt - one cookie, one candy, one whatever. But, I cannot have just one. One leads to many. And now I feel pretty awful. But, I have a plan to follow and am committed to follow it 100% starting today.

I must be a glutton for punishment. In addition to everything else, I have stopped coffee. The belly ache I had Thursday/Friday (don't know the cause of that one, unlike the one today...) was still around Saturday morning, so I didn't make any coffee. I had a slight headache that day, but it passed. I decided that since I'd done the hardest day (day 1) of no coffee, I'd just continue.

So, onto Day 1 of my Whole30 sans coffee and nuts.

Day 1

M1 - massaged kale salad, 3 hardboild eggs, 1 teeny sweet potato

M2 - chicken vegetable coconut curry, vegetables, avocado

M3 - meatballs, marinara and zucchini noodles, green salad, spoonful of coconut butter

[pjena]

Good morning.

Random observations:

I like hardboild eggs and massaged kale salad better than the fritatta I was eating last week.

I needed fat for my dinner so had a spoonful of coconut butter - it's pretty good. I had never had it before.

My "fat" pants are tight. They were not tight at the end of last week. Bad sugar binge.

I am tired becasue I woke up at 4:30 and couldn't get back to sleep. I would like coffee.

I felt hungry last night before bed, but couldn't think of anything quick that fit the rules so I just went to bed. I did not feel like I was starving when I woke up, but I wonder if that had something to do with waking up early.

My new spiralizer is so cool! I made zucchini noodles to provide a base for my meatballs and sauce and you counld't believe how much zucchini my 8yo ate! He kept stealing "noodles" and thought they were great. Who knew that's all it takes to get kids to eat veggies! I think the 8yo and my husband would have been happy to eat just the zucchini "noodles" and skip the actual pasta. The 11yo, not so much.

Day 2:

M1 - massaged kale salad, 3 hardboild eggs, 1 teeny sweet potato, 1/2 avocado

snack - banana

M2 - chicken vegetable coconut curry, vegetables, 1/2 avocado

M3 - salad with tuna, 1/2 avocado, sweet potato, 2 dates

[pjena]

I'm hungry. I had the same (actually bigger!) breakfast as yesterday, but I'm hungry. Boo. I ate a banana. Not the best choice, but it's what I had with me.

[Beets]

I was thinking I can do this and maybe I can just do Whole30'ish and don't really need to do it 100%. The weekend smacked me upside the head and set me straight. I started telling myself one wouldn't hurt - one cookie, one candy, one whatever. But, I cannot have just one. One leads to many. And now I feel pretty awful. But, I have a plan to follow and am committed to follow it 100% starting today.

Yeah, that voice that says, "just be whole 30-ish" is the demon voice that tells me it's really not that bad to feel a little bit sick all the time. I always think of this Michael Eades post about "listening to your body." I don't totally agree with his positions on food or think I'd like him (he comes off here as a major misogynist) but he does make a good point that we wouldn't "listen to our body" if we were quitting smoking or we were alcoholics.

I wrote this elsewhere but in the past I've quit sugar mostly and it was way way harder than quitting it altogether. Night and day difference. My big worry is what happens when the Whole 30 is over. I give myself an inch and that demon in my head takes a mile!

[Pea]

I'm way curious about your noodle maker! Can you tell me about it, please?

Thanks!

Pea

[pjena]

Beets - Good point that doing this 100% is going to be easier than 90%. I've tried moderation and it hasn't been working for me!

Pea - I got this one

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0007Y9WHQ/ref=oh_details_o00_s00_i02?ie=UTF8&psc=1

It's inexpensive and worked so well on the zucchini. It was way faster than boiling pasta! I suppose if pasta were my "thing" that making zucchini "noodles" would be SWYPO, but I don't care about pasta at all and really just wanted something to put my sauce on and I thought the kids would get a kick out of it. I can't wait to see what else I can get them to eat just by making fancy cuts!

[Pea]

Thanks!

[Emma]

Moderation doesn't really work for me either. It does if I'm eating well and exercising, but as soon as I get stressed or under the weather or dip into some frosting, I have a hard time. I just looked up your vegetable peeler on amazon. Oh, it's tempting! I put it in my wish list in an effort to not be impulsive.

[pjena]

EandK - I had it on my wishlist for well over a year, from back when I was dabbling in a vegan raw diet. Funny that it is a "meat diet" that made me finally order it! LOL

[pjena]

Good morning. So far so good. I don't think I've had any negative side effects. Maybe it's yet to come or maybe easing into it last week (with the large exception of Sunday) helped.

Random observations:

I slept well last night. No early wake up.

I had some tummy upset last evening, but it was short lived and not that unusual for me.

My allergies and asthma have been pretty bad for the last week or so. I wonder if it could have something to do with eating more meat, eggs or avocados. It's probably from the snow mold (bet you didn't know there was such a thing) that's out now that we're finally coming out of winter. I kind of wish I'd done the W30 in January when we were under a deep freeze so I would know for sure. I had food allergies as a child, my son has food allergies and they run in my family, so it's not impossible that I could be mildly allergic to eggs or fish and just didn't notice because I didn't eat them often. Just something to watch as the spring progresses.

Until this program, I can't remember the last time I ate an egg yolk. My son is allergic to egg whites, so usually, he eats the yolk and I eat the white. It worked. Now, I am eating my egg yolk and his whites - more eggs are good, right?

Day 3 Plan:

M1 - massaged kale salad, 3 hardboiled eggs, 1 teeny sweet potato, spoonful coconut butter

M2 - leftover meatballs, marinar and zucchini noodles, vegetables, coconut flakes, banana

M3 - salad with tuna, 1/2 avocado, sweet potato

Snack - hardboiled egg, spoon coconut butter, carrots (I didn't feel like dinner was big enough to carry me through to bed)

[pjena]

Still doing fine. I'm not noticing any hangover symptoms or cravings. I'm happy about that.

I don't think I needed the snack last night. I didn't feel hungry this morning. I need to trust that I can go a while without eating and that I won't die if I get hungry. I've always been a snacker/grazer, so this is a big change for me. I realized the other day that I look forward to my afternoon snack more as something to do than for the nourishment. If I'm bored or stressed, either one, I get snacky and snacks help distract me. I'm hoping that the Whole 30 helps me break that habit.

I really wanted coffee today. Not because I wanted coffee, but because I was in places I usually get coffee. I usually drink the office coffee, which is so-so, but my special treat when I'd stop for gas (every 2-3 weeks - I drive a hybrid) was to buy a Hawaiian coffee from the gas station. It was a special treat to not have to wait until I got to work to have my morning coffee. I got gas today and was sad that I couldn't get my treat. I also liked to sample whatever coffee was out at Trader Joe's when I'd grocery shop and I missed that this morning, too. But, I didn't really want the coffee itself. Just the feeling of getting a treat.

Day 4 plan:

M1 - massaged kale salad, 3 hardboiled eggs, 1 teeny sweet potato, spoonful coconut butter

M2 - salad with tuna, avocado, vegetables, banana

M3 - crock pot gumbo

Try not to snack!

[Beets]

I am having similar troubles moving from grazing to three big meals. In a way this is more of an adjustment than what I'm eating.

I also was longing for coffee today. No, it wasn't a longing. It was just this knee-jerk reaction of I'm in X store. I will buy a coffee. And then I thought, no I can't. And then I wanted it.

I wish I liked zucchini. Just never have. Maybe I'll learn to. But I wish I was someone who would enjoy a bowl of squash with marinara sauce. Maybe my kids will eat it.

[pjena]

I am very full from breakfast. My sweet potato was bigger than the past few days. I hope it holds me over for a long time.

I've been making 3 breakfasts at a time and keeping them in the fridge. This time, they got pushed to the back of the fridge, which must be a little too cold. Frozen eggs are hard to eat. LOL

I boiled sap and canned maple syrup again last night and didn't touch a drop! Yay me! I also "unpacked" the Easter baskets and plastic eggs so that I can put them away and didn't eat any of the candy or other treats. Yay me! I did notice that if it weren't for the W30, I would have thought nothing of grabbing a couple handfuls of the candy and that probably would have lead to more and more. So, I'm grateful for the rules. 100% is easier than 90%!

What was harder was my husband eating ice cream. He eats ice cream right out of the gallon bucket every night. Horrible habit. He is so sweet and eats around the big pieces of cookie and gives those to me. Out of habit, he ate around the big pieces of cookie and I could see them and it was hard not to eat them. But, then he ate them and they were gone and the craving, if that is even what it is, passed. I hope that if I have great results from this program that I can convince him to try it and kick the ice cream habit. It would make it a lot easer to get the kids to eat less sugar if Dad wasn't the worst offender.

I'm worried a bit about the weekend. That's when I usually trip up. Luckily, we don't have anything planned that is likely to tempt me so it's just a matter of sticking to the rules and not allowing myself to even consider diverting from them. Next week will be harder. I am having people over for lunch after my son's First Communion and that will be tough. I'm hoping that I'm feeling great by then and that will keep me motivated to stick with it.

Day 5 plan:

M1 - massaged kale salad, 3 hardboiled eggs, medium sweet potato, spoonful coconut butter

M2 - leftover sausage gumbo with zucchini noodles, vegetables

M3 - fish, sweet potato fries, asparagus

[pjena]

It's been 4 hours since I ate breakfast and I'm still STUFFED! Usually, I'd still eat lunch for something to do, but I'm going to wait until I'm hungry and see how long this breakfast holds me.

update: I felt ever so slightly hungry after 6 hours and decided to eat part of my lunch so that I'd have time to get hungry for dinner (with 2 kids, I can't push dinner too much later just because I'm not hungry). Now, I'm super stuffed, to the point of being uncomfortable, again. Weird. This happened last Friday, too, when I was trying to be Whole30'ish to get ready to start on 4/1. I wonder if it's a coincidence or if there's something about being 5 days into eating better and my body is either realizing it needs less food or bloating up and holding on for dear life (that's my bet). LOL. This time, I won't dive head first into the Easter candy and will keep on keepin on and see what comes tomorrow.

[pjena]

Happy Saturday! I did end up being hungry for dinner and didn't feel that overstuffed feeling afterwards, which was nice. I was even a little hungry by bedtime, but just went to bed. I slept well, but am kind of tired today. Yoga helped.

I went to an early yoga class this morning and ended up splitting my breakfast, eating part before and part after. That seemed to work. Eating it all before would have left me too stuffed to do yoga and eating it all after would have left me hungry at yoga and with a big breakfast too close to lunch. Hopefully, my split breakfast will hold me over.

I canned maple syrup again last night and kept my fingers out of the bowl except when I instictively put a finger in my mouth after accidentally touching the hot pan and tasted the sweet. I immediately drank some water and tried to put all thoughts of sugar out of my mind!

I found an Easter egg the kids had missed. It had cookies in it. I did not eat them. I would have if not for the W30. I hope that when this is over, I can thouroughly enjoy a piece of cake at a birthday party, while avoiding the mindless sugar bites and benders that seem to happen every day. We'll see. I know moderation isn't possible for me now, but that is my wish.

I was very irritable and tired last night. I just wanted to be left alone. I was kind of cranky again this morning. Maybe my first detox symptoms? Or, maybe just my natural sunny personality.

Day 6 Plan:

M1 - split in 2 parts - massaged kale salad, 3 hardboiled eggs, banana, glob coconut butter, 2 prunes

M2 - leftover fish and asparagus and maybe a sweet potato depending on what time we eat

M3 - chicken and vegetable stir fry, cauliflower rice

[pjena]

I made it through the weekend!

Saturday turned out to be a difficult day, timing wise. The split breakfast didn't hold me over and I ended up having a split lunch, too, because of an awkwardly timed Pinewood Derby race. So, I ended up having 5 small meals, but I still made it through the day on plan food-wise. Next time, I'll have a mini meal pre yoga and a full sized breakfast post that would have held me over until after the PWD.

Today, the boys talked me into the pancake breakfast after church (so really lunchtime). I was already pretty hungry, but I managed to wait through the breakfast until I could go home and have my avocado tuna salad (which was VERY good, BTW. I got the recipe in the forums here somewhere). In the past I would have been miserable to be hungry and to have to wait, but it wasn't so bad.

Sriracha has sugar! Grrr. lLuckily, Tabasco doesn't, but in stir-fry, it's just not the same. So sad. On a good note, everyone ate the cauliflower rice and liked it. Last time I made it, my husband told me that he likes it better than rice, so I think that will be a regular subsitution. He also spontaneoulsly mentioned tonight that he liked the zucchini noodles and would be ok skipping the regular pasta next time. That is a huge step! He's very resistent to food changes.

Spiralized sweet potatoes are really good. The 8yo loved them. The 11yo, not so much. He could still tell it was a sweet potato.

I've been wanting different foods more - potato chips, candy, chips, jelly, etc. Not cravings, really. I mean, the thought comes and I let it go and don't dwell on it. I just think it's interesting because I didn't have any of that earlier in the week. It's REALLY hard not to lick the sunbutter knife after I make my son a sandwich. If that's my biggest challenge, I'm in good shape.

I did a big food prep today - made kale salad, hardboiled eggs, grilled squash, baked sweet potatoes - all to make choosing the right foods very easy. We have a super busy week, so I want to be prepared. Oh, and I figured out a way make coconut butter easier to use. I melted it and spread it out and let it cool and then broke it up and put it back into the jar. Way better than having to melt it each time I wanted to add a drizzle to a sweet potato.

Day 7

M1 - egg and greens frittata

M2 - avocado tuna salad on spinach, sweet potato, coconut butter

M3 - pork chop, spiralized sweet potatoes, big salad, 2 dates

[pjena]

One week down, 3 to go. So far, I have not noticed many changes. My pants don't feel looser. My allergies/asthma/throat clearning are as bad as ever. I don't mind the food, though I'd rather have oatmeal and quinoa than eggs and pork chops. It's nice to be able to eat just three meals a day and not always be hungry an hour after a meal. I will keep going and see what the next week brings.

I woke up at 4:45 this morning and couldn't fall back to sleep. That is something I hope will get better by the end of this program. It only happens every once in a while, but it makes for a tough start to the week, especially on a Sunday night.

Pork chops are better than ground beef. Still not a food I like, but not so icky.

My goal for this week is to have no dates. I didn't eat them too often, but they are as sweet as candy and fill in for that little something more after dinner. That would be a good habit to break.

Day 8 plan

M1 - hb eggs, kale salad, sw pot, drizzle coconut butter

M2 - l/o chicken stir fry with cauliflower rice, squash, larabar (l/o's weren't enough to fill me up and a larabar was all I had with me at work - need to remember to bring extra veg or hb eggs)

M3 - fried eggs, salad, salmon, bacon, avocado, melon

[pjena]

It's Day 9 and I seem to be experiencing Kill All Things, I Just Want a Nap and Give me the Damn Twinkie all at the same time. Unfortunately, no Boundless Energy. After waking up at 4:30am yesterday, I went to bed nice and early to make sure I got a good night sleep. Then, I woke up at 2:30 and couldn't fall back to sleep. I am so tired and ANGRY. For some reason, it's making me MAD that I can't sleep and that I'm so tired. And, I have a super long day today (work dinner will keep me out until 10) and a super busy week of evenings (scouts, middle school orientation, eye dr and dentist appts for the kids, soccer x 2, me out tonight, husband council meeting tonight, husband out tomorrow night - way too much!). This is a week I need more sleep, not less. GRRRR! And, while I was sleeping, I was dreaming about red wine and chocolate cake. The over achiever in me must feel that by not having any of the timeline symptoms that I was faling behind so decided to catch up all in one day. I'd laugh if I weren't so tired.

I was hungry when I finally gave up and got up at 3:30 so I had a banana with almond butter. And Throat Coat tea. My asthma is NOT getting better. That makes me mad, too. And my pants aren't getting looser. That makes me mad. Just a mad day, I think. I'm committed to give this thing 30 days, though, so I won't quit on day 9 just because I'm not feeling better yet. That time of the month is just about upon me, too, but I don't usually have PMS, so I don't think that is causing my issues, except maybe part of why my pants aren't feeling looser.

I had coffee this morning. Just a small cup. I needed it and wanted it. I did not stop and buy a big gulp sized coffee like I wanted, though, so that is good.

I have a work dinner tonight. Dinner isn't until 7, so I'm trying to make my M1 and M2 a little bigger so that I am not so tempted by the appetizers or bread baskets. I now have a good excuse not to drink. If anyone asks, I'll just tell them the truth - I haven't been sleeping and, while I love a glass of wine, it makes me sleepy and then makes me sleep awful at the same time and I can't deal with that tonight. It's an Italien place. I checked out the menu and I think I am pretty safe getting a big salad with salmon or chicken and olive oil and vinegar for the dressing. I'm sure they'll have awseome desserts, so that will be the challenge. Wish me luck!

Dinner last night was very greasy. It was good, but for this normally (unintentially - just the way I ate) low fat girl, it was too much. I only had a little of each, but eggs, salmon, bacon and avocado in one meal was a lot of fat. I had some melon and a ton of spinach to tone it down, at least. I think I'll stick to 2 fat sources per meal from now on! LOL

Althought I am avoiding nuts/trail mix during my W30, I'm ok with having had almond butter (and the LaraBar yesterday). Those things don't seem to upset my stomach like too many handfulls of raw nuts. It was an easy middle of the night / too sleepy to figure out a better option snack.

Day 9 plan:

wee hours of the morning - banana, almond butter

M1 - hb eggs, kale salad, sw potato, drizzle coconut butter, melon

M2 - tuna salad with greens/veg, squash

M3 - dinner out - tiny salad, a few tastes of tomato sauce, huge piece of fish cooked in olive oil, tiny bit of kale

[pjena]

Kind of bloaty today - coffee? almond butter? greasy dinner? PMS? no sleep? No idea.

I have tomorrow's breakfast of kale and hb eggs already packed, but after that, I'm going to try going egg-free for a bit to see if that helps with my asthma. I have found some good breakfast ideas in the forums and just need a night to prep (which won't be tonight, unfortunately). Unlike meat, which I rarely to never ate, I did eat eggs. I just didn't eat them often enough to notice if they gave me a problem. I think wheezing might be part of what has been waking me up and keeping me up, so this could cover two issues.