Day final.

Notes and Errata:

I tried to stop taking my digestive enzymes (only took at bfast for two days) to see if I was able to digest fully on my own and ended up constipated again.  So I'm back to taking with every meal. 

I made jello with strawberry juice from Max's strawberries, Great Lakes Gelatin, and a tablespoon x2 of raw honey -  not whole 30, but I had some anyway. 

I ate some BBQ sauce on some ribs that Max made yesterday and the sauce had Molasses and Xantham Gum - not whole 30, but I ate them anyway.  Then I had them for lunch again today.  Whatev.

I think everything I did over these days pretty much counts. It's my intention that mattered, because I stuck with it and didn't give in to cravings. A bit of sugar in my bacon because I could never order it on us wellness meats (always out!!) does not make me a failure. 

Aaaannddd... I'm done.  I will continue to have no dairy, no grain, no soy.  Probably no legumes.  Sugar in moderation (and in the form of honey and maple syrup and coconut sugar and rarely molasses) will be allowed, as will alcohol, though I'll aim for Paleo versions of cocktails. 

I can't report big changes measurement wise, though here's the deets:

Weight: 146.4
Hips/Butt: 39
Belly: 38
Waist:32
Bust: 32/37

So... lost 4.4 lbs, 1.5 inches in the hips/butt, 1 in the belly, 3 in the waist, and 2 in the second part of my bust.  Woo!

I'd like to keep at it a little.  Lose a few more inches. Gain a few more too (biceps, baby).  See what it's like to get closer to 20% or less body fat. 

Think I can do it?

Hells yeah. 

Infinite x to the o,

eff.

Really? Almost done??

My digestion had almost resolved itself until last night, when I ate a bunch of raw veggies (with a package of smoked salmon and some compliant baba ganoush) when I wasn't able to prepare in advance for dinner on the run.  However, it's much better after a round of worse and urgent.  :)

I think making it through these last 10 days (which always seem so pointless... must be why I've never completed one) is what has tempered most of the issues.  I imagine spending another 10 days or so being strict would be helpful, but I don't know that I will.  I have decided I really like eating this way after all, and that I'm not missing much and feel pretty good; and doing T25 at the same time is making me feel strong, too.  So we shall see.  Everyone and their brother is waiting for me to finish so we can "go out".  I don't think they get that I'm not interested in falling face first into a pitcher of beer and a sack of gluten free cookies...
Actually, it even sounds gross. 

What am I interested in?  The tequila and white wine urge have passed... I might want a little dairy, but I think I'm going to leave that out for another month.  In the meantime, I want to try experimenting with making my own nut/coconut/gluten free oat milk medley, and I want to make some blender lemon curd (holy crap that's not paleo), and I think I'd like to try making some very decadent paleo treats from my cookbooks.  Obviously my sugar desires were not slain, but I'm not craving it.  Sugar doesn't really get me unless I go crazy with the whole thing.  I'm not planning on doing that.

Day 26... wow.

xoxo
eff.

A digest

So!  Started taking digestive enzymes yesterday morning. Less bloating, less gas, still little go. But I'll give it a couple more days. 

I've still been incredibly faithful with my food - except for the trace sugar in my bacon, it's been 100% whole30 compliant. And then... I'm currently making pot roast. And the recipe called for burgundy wine. So I put it in. There is no substitute for the flavor of a nice red in a crock pot roast. It's done. It's cooking. It's what I will be eating this week. My last week. 

So hell, I said to myself. Self, why don't you make that tequila lime coleslaw for which you've collected the ingredients?  Self said, well... that's a little more blatant. Self replied, yep. Sure is. And?  Self sighed, then started chopping the green onions.  Done. Haven't had it yet. 

End results are eight days away. I have no doubt that I will make it. I don't have any cravings (the tequila is a close one, but not the wine. I want white, not red).  I am not sure what the end will show, though. The night before last I woke up at 2:30 in the morning and could not go back to sleep. I got up at 4 and finally started doing things. No nap either. Last night I woke for about 1.5 hrs around 3... But finally got back to sleep and missed the run today. On purpose as I needed a rest day from my t25, but  if I'd been sleeping better I could have handled a slow short run...

I have lost a little weight, though not like I was in the beginning. Maybe five lbs is my guess?  Inches wise... Maybe an inch or two on the waist or hips... Hard to tell when I'm bloated and constipated all the time. 

I don't think I will do another whole 30. Maybe a specific carbohydrate diet or a 21 day sugar detox or even, cats forbid, a GAPS plan, but the whole 30 did not help my IBS/Candida/whatever the hell my digestive issues are now. (IBS was very old diagnosis... I self diagnosed candida based on some gross photos on the internet that match my.. output.)

And maybe I'll go see a functional medicine practitioner. Once we get closer to the end of the year so I don't have to worry about saving my HSA for my exorbitant insurance deductible...

Anyway. Digestive enzymes. Kombucha. Sauerkraut (so loving the Sonoma brine kraut - especially the smoked chipotle.. twin, you know you gotta buy the raw sauerkraut to get the good effects, right?  No more of this crap in a bag or that shelf stable classic...). Lotsa water. Coffee this weekend (did get some stuff moving), tea during the week.  I'm currently soaking raw almonds from the farmers market so I can make my very first batch ever of almond milk. I'm also planning on making Mark Bittman's almond milk as soon as the whole thirty is over... It includes gluten free oats for creamier texture, and coconut too.

Okie dokie. Hope you are both well. Miss your posts...

xoxo

eff.

update on minutae

My erm, digestion issues are not getting any better.  Let's just say my output is not up to what it should be.  And I'm really gassy and bloated.  I added Kombucha and sauerkraut to my days for probiotics and might start taking an actual probiotic.  I don't think I'm going to add digestive enzymes just yet...

Improvements/worsenings I've seen thus far:
1.  I think my skin is a little clearer - I have a lot of redness in my cheeks, not quite rosacea, but more like ruddy red dots all over my cheeks.  I think that's reduced.  However, I think my skin has become more dry.
2.  I think my chin hair (I have about five) is growing more slowly or disappearing.  I've only had to pluck one in the last 20 days.  Usually it's two or three by now.
3.  My hair... no idea.  I forgot to wash it last week, so ended up going about 12 days without a wash.  Though it may have been another extra week, so maybe 19 days...  Oops.  It's possibly healthier, but no way to tell after that.  It definitely seems to be holding its natural curl better, though that might be the new drying method.  whatev.
4.  I *think* my side muffins have reduced a little.  A little.
5.  My breasts have *definitely* gotten back to normal. No more boob bulge over the cup.
6.  Is this TMI yet?  My energy is so so.  When I drink coffee, I'm fine.  When I drink black tea, I seem to slump.  If I don't drink coffee, there's very little output in the poo department.  Coffee seems to be necessary.  Maybe I need more fat in my diet.  Will that make me go?
7.  My sleep is... who the f#$* knows?  On/off, sleeping better, sleeping worse, now waking up and staying up... it's not leveling out.
8.  I'm finding it easier to get up in the morning though.  Regardless of the sleep issue.  Maybe I'm also excited about t25 - I'm totally digging the only 25 minutes thing, even though it's hard.  Though I think I'm not working quite as hard as with Insanity?  I'm still working, though... maybe it's because I'm so out of shape...
9.  so.  so.  bloated.  no (almost no).  poo.

okay.  Day 20.  here's a food log for yesterday:

bfast: black tea, 3 eggs, half large sweet potato, all cooked in 1 or 2 tablespoons coconut oil, with a 1/3 cup sauerkraut.
lunch: left over sausage and butternut squash stuffed tomato, extra left over chorizo/sweet potato stuffing from the pork chops thing, beet greens with bacon, roasted beets/carrots/cauli/broc.
dinner: two artichokes with about 4 tbl homemade mayo, 1 cup leftover stuffing from the tomatos (meat/squash).  some jiggly jello I made.  sparkly water.  magnesium supplement before bed.

and... that's it.  Too much protein?  not enough fat?  too much fat?  what gives?  WHY AM I NOT POOING DAMNIT!??!

xoxo
eff.

Whole Foods

My sister-in-law just sent this to me. It is hysterical! Wanted so share it with y'all. :)

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/kelly-maclean/surviving-whole-foods_b_3895583.html

Tomorrow I hope to give a detailed update on the disaster that is my Whole30. :/

Until then,
Z

Day 18? How did that happen?

Okay, still on track.  getting some things figured and worked out... added some Kombucha (classic) to get some probiotics and enzymes to help with digestion.. will see from there.
Eating right, though snacked on Monday night a little, and Sunday.  Still have some old habits to break, but food choices are pretty easy right now.  Maybe just cutting down on the nightshades... maybe go with a FODMAP elimination if it doesn't help...

Anyway.  My mood is still on and off grumpy, though I wake up pretty cheerful.  I started my Focus T25 (another Shaun T invention) yesterday and did it again today, so that's a 25 minute intense workout in the morning - but it's only 25 minutes, so I have no excuses.  That actually makes a difference to me (Insanity was 40-50 minutes).  My grumpiness may be strongly related to going back to work, though it's been four weeks (this week) so I should be adapting.  But... it's rather stressful and different this year.  I can easily leave the work mind when I go home, but I'm here for most of my awake time - so I need to find a way for it not to get to me, shift my attitude.  I'm taking the attitude home, unfortunately.  Managed to curb my shortness with Max, but am not having a pretty strong reaction and jealousy about something.  Me.  Jealous.  Not something I'm familiar with.  It feels really gross...

So.. food is the same, though I got a couple of new cookbooks (Primal Cravings and Against All Grain) and am excited to try new things.  I made the Chorizo Stuffed Pork Chops (from PC) last night and got to have one for lunch today... *that* was damn good.  I made the Shaved Brussels Sprouts Leeks Bacon and Pomegranate Seeds (from AAG) and that was... different than I expected.  Tasty, but a little bland.  I think I put the bacon in too early though. 

I also made fruit juice gelatin (though couldn't find grass fed gelatin, so am ordering on the internet for next time) and that turned out quite jiggly - and tasty and sugar free (well, you know, except for the cherry juice itself).  I still have four recipes earmarked to make this week, so will let you know how it all goes.

So far, my only thing I crave is sipping tequila (Zan, I want to get a bottle of your parents' Hotel California Blanco... how do I do that?).  And maybe a glass of really good white wine.  I think I will probably stay pretty whole30 once my days are up other than a little alcohol and honey/maple syrup (so I can make coconut milk yogurt).  The only problem I forsee is how exciting it will be to make all those delightful paleo deserts in my cookbooks... especially since one of the cookbooks uses practically no nut flour at all (a concern of mine) and instead uses potato flour and tapioca flour and coconut flour.  Also, with one of my favorite holidays coming, I may indulge in a few pieces of candy.  But I won't buy 20$ worth the day after halloween as I used to.  See?  My habits have changed.  :)  Also, when I told Max about all the delicious recipes, he seemed excited to make them.  He's been pretty supportive for most of it, though we hardly eat together this month. 


I leave you with gel-lo.  BTW, don't put it on waxed paper.  PITA to get off.

xxoo
eff.

Sorry for my absence....

A promotion at work resulted in a schedule shift and overtime.  As a result my sleep/feeding schedule has been totally out of wack.

I have managed to stay on the whole 30, but I have had recently suffered a serious lack of Veg, as I haven't been to the store in a few days, and I actually ran out of green beans (gasp!)

So, I raided bobs veggies today, and while the Peas aren't ideal, the peppers and asparagus are.

(Oh and grilled chicken.  If I haven't mentioned lately how much I love my Foreman grill, allow me to do so now.  I love my Foreman.  A lot.)

Oh, and it's proof that I *do* have more than one plate.  (just one more though.)

<<Edit>>  Holy crap, those peas were sweet!

Still Here!

I'm still here! Been away at a 4 day training in San Jose and away from my computer for the most part. I didn't hold up so well while attending the workshop in terms of Whole30 compliance. I will get into that at some point. I WILL talk about what I was able to maintain - to focus on the positive. :) I have been completely away from Diet Coke for 16 days now! I'm craving it less and less. I've also been totally off coffee. Woohoo! Bowel movements are still doing good even though I had some foods that generally upset my rhythm. I think having eliminated the coffee is really helping. Instead I've been opting for a light jasmine green tea.

In relation to exercise, I've been really trying to figure out how to incorporate it into my daily life in a functional way. So, I've decided to try walking to work. It is a little over 2.5 miles away and according to map quest it will take me about 50 minutes. Gonna try it tomorrow with extra time to spare in case it takes me longer. Walking has always felt so good. Hopefully this will bring some gentle movement back into my life. This way I won't have to rush home to go workout or wake up early to get myself to the gym. I will have no choice but to move my body if I find myself at work at the end of the day and no car to cart me home. :)

Well, that's all for today. I will try to post more tomorrow about getting back on track and how the walking thing goes!

<3 Z

Anybody out there?

Twin?  Zan?  How you guys doin on this?

I'm still good. Energy back to normal. Did a four mile run without crashing. Eating same old same old. What about you?

xoxo

eff.

Still on track

And feeling a lot better came home Thursday night instead of working and slept fitfully from five pm on, but woke up yesterday morning feeling much better. By afternoons my energy was back to normal. SO.  Not sure what that was all about. 

Eating same old same old. But ordered two more cookbooks from amazon so I can spice it up (Against all Grain and Primal Cravings). No slips no fails. Did two days without coconut so far... Or it could be my magnesium supplement. Or not eating nuts yesterday. Feeling better in the erm, movement department too. :)

Fighting with max like crazy. Think I'm maybe extra irritable from being back at work after ten weeks of glorious outside, and with a sort of new workload/role that sometimes makes me want to pull out someone's else's hair. I keep finding flaw and pushing button, which is not who I am, and certainly not in line with my CDFs.  I'm going to realign this weekend so that I can get back to my happy place. Wholehearted, radiant, ease, potent, and divine - that is how I want to feel. So I will make choices that yield that. Starting with remembering my adoration and love for Max. 

I'm having my coffee and ghee this morning and yesterday. Will have tomorrow too. It's a weekend thing and I feel better if I can pretend my weekend starts on Friday. I'm also adding bacon to my regular breakfast today. 

I've been doing pretty well not snacking, but I have the sense I'm still not eating enough. I might or might not weigh myself tomorrow to check. I'm going on a bike ride today and if I end up exhausted by six or seven pm, I'll check tomorrow and if my weight is down another three plus, ill add a full fourth meal somewhere in my day. Not at night. 

Ok. Hope y'all are doing well and feeling good...

xoxo

eff.

exhausted

Where did I leave off?

Dinner on Tuesday: shredded cabbage with a couple of tablespoons homemade mayo and half a can of chicken all mixed together.  A handful of olives, some coconut manna.

Wednesday breakfast and lunch was the same as Tuesday, though I switched from coffee to tea, plain.  No coconut at all yesterday to see if that helps with the regularity (also took my magnesium supplement last night to help).  Last night for dinner I ate a bowlful of mashed cauliflower, a large handful of walnuts, some sauerkraut, the last of the dried pineapple, and some green grapes.  Then I went to bed at six pm and slept, not soundly, until six am. 

It's not possible to have the carb flu on day 11, especially when I wasn't eating that much junk to begin with.  But I sure feel like I'm under the weather.  I've been 100% faithful to the whole30 foods (though my bacon is cured with a little sugar) and principles (I will be weight checking each Sunday, that's not whole30) - not really snacking, breaking bad habits, eating till I'm full, following the structure for macronutrients.  I'm drinking tea instead of coffee, but it's still caffeinated.  But even after 12 hours in bed yesterday, I am so tired, and my brain is foggy, and my mouth doesn't say the right words, because my brain isn't seeding them properly.  And tonight is back to school night, so I've got to stick around work until about 9pm. 
yech. 

I have no intention of falling off any wagon, but I might lighten up on the strictness of no pills/medicines at all.  Though there isn't really a pill to take for exhaustion.  I'm not achy, I'm not feverish.  I'm just really tired with brain fog. 

Maybe I have a brain cloud.

xo
eff.

Day 11 !!

Hey Y'all

So yesterday's food was nothing special. Hash browns & bacon for breakfast (I ran out of greens, bummer). Lunch was another tasty salmon nicoise salad from Sweet Pea's & dinner was a big salad with all the usual toppings + my remaining lamb burger. Ended the day with frozen blueberries & coconut milk.

I have more leftovers to nom today...for lunch I plan on eating another salad topped with leftover roasted chicken. Dinner is undecided. But I do have some ground round & some zucchini, so maybe I will make a zucchini pasta with a beef/tomato sauce or something. For breakfast I had sweet potato with these really tasty breakfast sliders that I just received from US Wellness Meats (along with summer sausage & sugar-free bacon ends - they were out of sugar-free bacon)

Haven't been taking probiotics the last couple days (ran out), but my bowel movements have been ok. I did receive my order of probiotics yesterday, so will continue my regimen form here on out. I'm shocked that I didn't become completely constipated without them. I'm sure it's because of the Whole30 dietary support.

Other than that stuff is good. Four days of work still completely tires me out. My hours are anywhere form 9 - 6 or 10- 8 and sometimes 9 - 9. I've seen 17 patients this week & I feel super fatigued. I rally for each session, so it's nothing that a patient would notice, but I'm completely thrashed when I get home. Thank god today is my Friday. I *really* would like my energy to adapt to work. I think I'm handling it better than I was when I was eating crap, but I want to feel vibrant!

Getting IV chelation today to continue the process of cleaning out all the toxic heavy metals in my system. I am booked to receive chelation for the next 3 weeks. I think after that I can get retested & hopefully my numbers will be way down! *fingers crossed*

hugs,

Z

Return of the Noms

Sorry constant readers, I had a long weekend, full of fun, but not a lotta time to snap pics of the food.

So here is my brunch!!

Burger patties, Sauerkraut, olives.  Simple, delicious, whole 30 compliant.

Brought to you by Snow Lion and his brother, King Koichi.  Seen in their natural habitat, sleepily awaiting the human to try to eat lunch at his desk.

Today marks one third of the way through!

I've been snacking a little at night before bed the last two nights - a couple spoonfuls of coconut manna, a couple pieces dried pineapple, and a handful of walnuts.  I seem to still be a little hungry before bed, so it's not mindless snacking.

All is well so far.  I'm eating the right stuff.. breakfast as usual yesterday and today, with single 16 oz cups of coffee with coconut milk in it.  Lunch yesterday was the last meat on an eggplant with tomato sauce, all of those beet greens with bacon, and the last of the lime coconut cauliflower, maybe 1/3 cup.  Dinner was part of the roast chicken with half the green beans and bacon and a heap of mashed garlic herb cauliflower.  I had a few olives too, the past couple of days.
Lunch today will be roasted chicken, brussels sprouts with bacon, and some roasted beets.

I'm having an interesting experience.  My energy is not up - a 6 mile run knocks me down, whereas just a few months ago I was doing nearly 20.  Of course, I haven't done much in the past few months, but I can usually ramp up pretty fast - never had to walk so much.  Also, my sleep is not better... I had hoped it was, but I still keep waking up in the night, and last night my mind started to take off on yearbook stuff and I couldn't get back to sleep for a while.   Also, I can't tell if giving up dairy is making me less mucousy or not, since I'm sneezing and having some allergy stuff.   Finally, my regularity is not regular.  If I take my magnesium supplement, I go in the morning, but it's not fun.  And I can't seem to regulate otherwise.

More time?  Well, I'm not exactly quitting, and I'm trying to figure out how to make this more of a lifestyle and less of a give in to the gluten treats after.  I'd like to loosen up, but I think instead of thinking I can buy any of that junk, if I want a treat, I have to make it from the recipes I have in my paleo cookbooks.  That will slow me way down, and keep me from the processed food cycle.  I'll probably add back a little dairy, but maybe not.  I'll probably add some rice and maybe quinoa, specifically to address the loosing weight issue (if that continues, and as I ramp up my training again).

I think over the past year and a half, since going full on paleo, I've become pretty healthy and able to function pretty well.  The last six months, though, have been a gradual downslide into unhealthy behaviors.  I am aware of that and am making these shifts with permanent change in mind...

okay, back to work!
xo
eff.

PS: chocolate

I miss it. That sorbet from 2 days ago definitely boosted my cravings back up. It's amazing how powerful sugar and chocolate are!

Happy Monday

I have recovered from the burnt almond incident. Sigh. I did try to eat them...but they were beyond consumption.

Breakfast today was yum: sweet potato hash browns (I'm addicted), 3 pieces of bacon & sauteed chard with yellow onion, topped with chopped tomato.

Lunch: Went to Sweet Pea's during my lunch break and got a salmon nicoise salad. I picked all the hardboiled egg pieces & potato bits out. It was pretty darn good. And filling. I stayed pretty satiated till dinner.

Dinner: Simple salad of lettuce, tomato & avocado chunks w/a lemon, garlic & olive oil dressing. Oven roasted chicken breast that had been marinading in balsamic vinegar and chopped rosemary. Super tasty.

Running low on veges. But I still have a lamb burger to finish & leftover chicken from tonight. And also a little flank steak. I will shop tomorrow. It was really handy preparing & freezing the chicken breasts for dinner tonight. All I had to do is come home & turn on the oven. I should find more recipes like that.

Energy is pretty good throughout the day. No major dips. Still a little slow in the morning, I would like to be perkier...

Hopefully I will have some photos to post mañana.

BURNED!

GAH! My almond snack that I was making. Totally ruined! SO SUPER BUMMED! I soaked them. I peeled every little one. Dressed them in olive oil, salt & fresh chopped rosemary. Followed the recipe exactly. Walked away for a few minutes and BAM! - burned. I want to cry. So much work and money down the drain.

I'm grumpy.

Breakfast - bacon, a little bit of sweet potato & sautéed kale with yellow onion.

Lunch - Salad with tomato, bell pepper, capers, red onion with a lemon/olive oil dressing. Topped with a chopped up lamb burger.

Dinner. Lettuce wrap stuffed with salmon & blueberries with coconut milk.

Blah.

XOXO Z

Yesterday and beyond

It was day seven, and a successful one.  Same breakfast as usual, then for lunch meat on an eggplant with tomato sauce and an artichoke with homemade mayo. Dinner was a burger made by Max, served with lettuce, tomato, and avocado. Also had coffee with ghee yesterday. And I forgot, the night beoe that I had a couple spoons of coconut manna.  Today was breakfast as usual with coffee and ghee. Only the coffee before my run. Lunch is yet to be had. 

So it's going well.

I broke a whole30 rule this morning and weighed myself. I wasn't going to care if I hadn't lost any, but was more concerned about losing too fast. And yep, that's true. I don't feel like I've lost weight, but it that could explain why I don't have as much energy as I'd hoped. 

I find it difficult to eat as much as I might require in three meals. I upped my intake at the end of last week since I was hungry in the night, but I still lost 3.4 lbs since starting. Sure, that could be regular fluctuation, but I haven't dipped below 148 on my scale in months, even when fluctuating. 

How to eat more?  I'm eating lots of fat and protein. Lots of veggies. What now?  Maybe I'll start putting coconut milk in my coffee every day?

I do want to lose weight, just not at a rate that leaves me bonking in my training.  I had that happen pretty severely when I was trying the sugar detox and training for my 50k - same rate of weight loss, couldn't keep up with my training. 

I know I promised s body function post soon. Promise it's coming. Still trying to see if there's nothing more... regular about it. :)

Cooking for next week right now too. More green beans (from my garden) and bacon, beet greens and bacon, Brussels sprouts and bacon, and all with onions. I've got a thing for bacon flavored veggies right now.  Also roasting some beets and making more tomato sauce. The chicken I'll roast for the week is still thawing. 

See? 

Yesterday I went for an easy (for the old me) bike ride to the cement ship and back (from near bottom of my road. Could not add the extra 35 minutes to ride back up... and maybe didn't know if I could handle it anyway).  Today I did six miles in the forest - again had to do some walking... I always said I'd never be a runner who walks. 

Eating my words. That ought to fill my ego up. Or shut it up. Whatever. 

Pretty beets. 

Ok. Back to the cooking spree. 

Oh, I also canned some peppers from my garden and pickled them. Yum!  And I still have a few eggplants and tomatoes that the deer did not get... my grocery bill has been very low last week and this. Unusual for the whole30, but perhaps it's the meat I already have in my freezer. :). Being Paleo to begin with makes this pretty easy...

la la la. 

xo

eff.

Engagement Celebration

I celebrated my engagement this evening with my brother & his wife. We went to a local Pleasure Point restaurant: Suda. I had a grass-fed burger (no bun) with bacon & avocado. Greek salad on the side (feta cheese removed). I did great except that I had a glass of wine. I made the decision to have this glass of wine prior to arriving at the restaurant. It was a celebratory dinner in our honor, so I allowed myself to indulge. No wine from here on out.

After dinner we went to the Penny Ice Creamery where I had one scoop of chocolate sorbet - dairy free. Not Whole30 approved. I did ask about the sugar they used in their sorbet - the guy said "raw sugar." Sugar nonetheless. So in a sense I "fell off the wagon." However, I did remain very conscious of my choices. I am proud of this. Yet I still feel as though I failed today...sigh.

For lunch, I had leftover Korean noodle bowl, strawberries & an apple.

Breakfast was leftover ham & sweet potato concoction.

To make up for my dinner indiscretions, here of some photos of awesome tasty bites on tomorrow's menu:


Tulsi Gelee - strongly brewed tulsi tea with grass fed gelatin (chilled to perfection & cut into cubes). Awesome for the bones & joints & also very balancing for hormones & emotions. (Just tasted one! SO good!)

Soaking almonds (bought at the farmer's market today!) in preparation for a delicious snack of oven-roasted almonds with rosemary, salt & olive oil:

                                (I will have to peel each & everyone of those suckers)

Not the most Whole30 day for me. Ugh. Will do my best to continue on tomorrow. I will NOT revert back to old habits just because one day was "off-ish."

XO Z

Lunch

Had time to cook lunch today.

Diced red/green bell pepper, onion, and celery.  And delicious grilled pork chops.

Dinner

The picture sure doesn't do it justice, but it was really good. I love Danielle Walker of Against All Grain. She is a fantastic cook. I made her Korean Beef Noodle Bowl:

The noodles were made with zucchini, but she recommends that you salt and sweat the zucchini noodles prior to cooking them to reduce excess moisture. Brilliant! They remained slightly crunchy and very noodle-like. Spicy little dish with onion, garlic, ginger (which I omitted - allergy), apple cider vinegar, coconut aminos, red pepper flakes, shiitake mushrooms, spinach, & shredded carrots. And a tad of honey...which I did include to balance out the spice. Sigh. Topped with flank steak. Totally gonna make this again.

Cheers!

Z (after noticing that Faith signs off as "eff" - I'm tempted to sign off as "zee." Haha. :) 

Picnic

Breakfast!! Sweet potato w three eggs in coconut oil. And... 20 effing ounces of coffee. WITH ghee. Yum. 

Lunch!!  Meat on an eggplant on an spaghetti squash pile with tomato sauce.  An bowl of celery/ broccoli soup. Too much. But enough. 

Dinner: cooking it. Prob another pork chop, the rest of the green beans, and some lime cilantro coconut cauliflower (thanks for the recipe, Zan! Cooking it now... Are we going to the farmers market tomorrow?).

Oh, today was the back to school picnic. I ate nothing. I didn't care. Felt no deprivation, no need. Good stuff. 

xo

eff.

Oh, and tomorrow I'm doing a TMI post about my body's deposits. Stay tuned!

A lack of pictures

No pictures today - my tablet got knocked behind my bed by a mischievous kitty.

Breakfast was 3 hardboiled eggs, gobbled as a I prepped for work.

Lunch was 2 big juicy pork chops, and a heap of green beans with some macadamia nuts.

Dinner was two burger patties, green beans,and a handful of olives.

Oh, and here is a picture of the culprit.

Lunch

I had to rush out the door this morning, so I had 1/2 lamb burger for breakfast with leftover Greek salad (what I was hoping to have for lunch). For lunch, I had what was supposed to be for breakfast:

Browned sweet potato with rainbow kale & cubed ham chunks. Cooked in grass fed lard.

Noms.

Oh - and here comes some TMI about bowel movements. I've struggled with BMs since my diagnosis. First it was IBS (gluten intolerance). Then is was constipation (side-effect of Hashimoto's). I have to do so much to keep things moving. My usual routine is taking a VERY large dose of probiotics in the evening & drinking a cup of coffee in the morning. And I never get the "nudge" until after I eat breakfast. This can complicate a morning, esp. if I need to be somewhere super early or am meeting friends for breakfast. I have to plan ahead and make sure I have enough time *every day* to have my coffee & breakfast with time to spare to feel the nudge and actually go. If I don't go in the morning...there's no movement till the next day. It's just how it goes. BUT today I got the nudge before I even had breakfast! The past several days have been a bit - hesitant- without my morning coffee. But today was great! Way to go body!!

I Cooked!! And it felt GOOD.

I am marinading a flank steak for tomorrow evening:

I am also marinading some chicken breasts. I put those in the freezer to be made another day for when I'm too tired to throw anything together.

For tonight's dinner I grilled some super freaking tasty lamb burgers with mint, shallots, S&P. To go with my tasty burgers, I made a Greek salad (mixed greens, green bell, cucumber, tomato, capers, olives) dressed in olive oil & lemon juice:

I got some ground round for breakfast sausage. And I ordered some meaty goodness from US Wellness Meats this morning. Feeling really good about all the changes. Energy starting to improve. I got a B12 shot today which also helped. I need to start doing that regularly again.

Until tomorrow...

<3 Z

Training wheels

Day five. Breakfast was a sweet potato with three eggs in coconut oil as usual!  One sad cup of black coffee. I might need some ghee in my coffee tomorrow. 

Lunch was the last of the BBQ pulled pork. More puréed celery/broccoli soup, and some spaghetti squash with tomato sauce. 

Dinner was a rather large and delicious pork chop with green beans and some homemade apple sauce with a side of sauerkraut and a spoonful or two of coconut manna. 

Oh, and last night I had a couple of pieces of cold bacon (that's for you, Will Manuel).

I think I might not be eating enough, so I tried to eat more today. I remember when I first tried the whole30 and was feeling tired - Melissa (one of the creators of the whole30 plan/website) looked at my food log and told me to eat way more. So since I keep waking up hungry (in the night, though I don't get up), I think the same thing might be happening this time. So I ate more. I am definitely full tonight.  And I'm going to try to eat a lot more vegetables instead of protein... 

So. Day five done. Feels a little daunting, don't feel like my body is changing at all. I guess I wasn't bloated after all, because that hasn't disappeared. I think maybe its called fat. 

Sigh. 

If I can stick with it, and I think I can this time, maybe I'll get back to my happy shape and size. But I have no motivation to exercise. Work is sort of exhausting... Maybe as the weeks progress and normalize I'll feel better?

Look. Pretty tomatoes. 

xo

eff.

Busy Busy

Horrible headache last night.  Just crippling pain.  So no pics of the 3 hard boiled eggs I ate.

Woke up this morning to UPS pounding on the door - at long last, Bobs tablet has arrived! No more shall he labor under the oppression of his ipad and its closed/clunky os!  Android to the rescue!

So naturally I threw the boxes in the saddle bags, and took it to him so he could have something interesting to do at work.

Came home just in time to start work, so had to wait till later for a meal, which was no great loss, as I wasn't terribly hungry.

So, lunch time!

Pork chops and green beans.

Not pictured, 1tbsp of coconut oil.

Day Off

Haven't gone grocery shopping yet, but definitely feeling more energy.

Breakfast - greens & sweet potato with salmon today. And tea with coconut milk. Fig really wanted some:

For lunch - same as dinner last night. Hoping to switch things up after grocery shopping.

Just had a McTimoney adjustment (similar to non-force chiropractic) and am feeling pretty darn good.

<3 Z

A little bit of red wine never hurts...

...J/K! Although, I REALLY wanted some. Today is my Friday & I just wanted to come home from work, chill on the couch and enjoy a nice glass of red wine. I opted for a probiotic drink instead.

My meals today were nothing new. Hoping to cook up some awesome stuff on my days off (thurs-sat). For breakfast I had sweet potato hash browns, bacon & kale. Same as yesterday. With caffeine free black tea.

Lunch was tasty & I resisted getting sweet potato fries! Went to Burger during my lunch break and got a grass-fed burger with avo, onion, tomato in a lettuce wrap. No sauce. Instead of the fries I got a side salad that was meh. Note to self: An extra 2.50 for a side salad is NOT worth it at Burger. I also resisted the bubbling goodness of a Diet Coke.

Dinner was another lettuce wrap (well 2 actually) with chicken, tomato, avocado and MORE bacon. Never enough bacon. I did add more store-bought mayo. Definitely need to make my own tomorrow. My bacon isn't quite legal either. Will order some Whole30 compliant bacon from US Wellness Meats tomorrow. I also nibbled on some grapes & roasted almonds.

Even though some of the foods I've been consuming are not 100% compliant, I still feel improvements. My energy sustained throughout the day without an afternoon snack (although my dinner was quite large perhaps to compensate), my headaches are gone and I'm feeling more alert in the morning and more able to face my patients. Woohoo!

Will add photos tomorrow when I start cooking stuff up! I really appreciate what everyone has to share too! I find myself checking in throughout the day to see what new posts might be up. *Love it*

Night!

Z

Fourth

Breakfast today was a little different - spaghetti squash instead of a sweet potato, one strip of bacon, and three eggs. One cup black coffee. These are small cups. Much smaller than my old twenty ounce mug. 

Lunch was more leftover Paleo pulled pork BBQ and some of my puréed broccoli/celery soup. Dinner: meat on a eggplant with homemade tomato sauce, a heart of an artichoke with some mayo that froze and separated (yech.  Have to make more), and some of the green beans from yesterday. 

Ok, and now I'm having a little sauerkraut. Hey, it's not dried fruit. 

I can't tell if I'm still hungry before bed (maybe not eating enough during the day?) or if its habit. 

I'm feeling pretty good otherwise. No cravings or deprivation. No carb flu. No withdrawals. Mostly, I'm trying to find my rhythm. 

Oh, and Zan and Rich, I'm so glad to have you blogging here too. It's that extra support that makes me feel like I can really do this - I've not succeeded at a whole30 before. Thanks for sharing every day. It makes a difference to me. 

Pictures of food are not that common.  So here are some bunnies. 

Another successful day, in all ways. 

xo

eff.

A Whole 30 breakfast.

     I arose from my deep slumber in time to make breakfast today.  3 delicious eggs, and a heap of sauerkraut.

Last night after work, I nommed a couple hard boiled eggs, did some laundry and passed out.  For 12 hours.

Looking forward to some days off...

...so I can cook up a storm. Too tired to go to the grocery store tonight. This made my dinner a bit weak: raw/vegan sesame seed cracker topped with 1/2 avocado, tomato slices & leftover chicken. With a bit of salt. And olives. :) I finished dinner off with some blueberries in coconut milk and tea.

Lunch was tasty. I went to New Leaf and threw together a big salad with mixed greens, peas, carrot shreds, beet shreds, artichoke hearts, olive slices & shredded chicken. Dressed in balsamic vinegar & olive oil.

I ate some almonds (roasted with olive oil, salt & herbs) here & there during the day for a snack. They made me VERY thirsty. Must be VERY salty. But yummy.

Looking forward to breakfast tomorrow. I do like the sweet potatoes in bacon grease.

I think I made a Whole30 mistake last night when I used an organic store-bought mayo. It has soy in it. WHAT!? I will have to make my own, I guess. It's a good practice reading food labels.

Night y'all!

Z

It works!

Last night I snacked a little - couple of pieces dried pineapple (think I'm not supposed to have dried fruit... Will have to look that up), some coconut flakes with trail mix - maybe four tablespoons. 

But then I stopped that old behavior. Yay. 

Today was typical weekday bfast - sweet potato with three eggs done in coconut oil. A cup of black coffee. Lunch was leftover Paleo BBQ pulled pork and a lot of sliced tomatoes. 

Home from work and I had some trail mix while I cook up a storm. I made meat on an eggplant - a signature dish. :). Is what it sounds. Also made tomato sauce, still working on spaghetti squash, pureed broccoli/celery soup, and green beans with bacon, shallots, almonds.  

So for dinner I'll eat some of that. 

Here's a picture of the meat on an eggplant with sauce. Yum. 

I shall be set for the week!  No failure! 

N workout today though. :(

One thing at a time maybe?

xo

eff.

Brunch

Skipped breakfast, so a hearty lunch-ish meal.  Delicious pork chops, green beans, and olives.  I wanted macadamia nuts, but apparently I left them in the car, and my Bob took the car to work...

  Delicious!!

Inspired Breakfast

No headache this morning! Still a bit groggy. My last couple breakfasts have been less than inspired, so I haven't even bothered to mention them. BUT, today I cooked up something tasty. Mmmmm.

Inspired by Faith, I made bacon and cooked both sweet potato & kale in the bacon drippings. I really wanted egg, but I resisted (allergic) :( I am allowing myself some mayo every now and again though...
I washed my breakfast down with some caffeine-free tea with a splash of coconut milk:

Detoxing

Yup, I'm definitely detoxing. I decided to go off coffee during this Whole 30, so starting yesterday I've had a headache. I only ever drink about 1/2 - 1 cup of coffee per day in the AM, but apparently that's enough to make my head hurt. Also feeling fatigued & groggy in the morning...

My meals were nourishing today. For lunch I had leftovers from last night with a green salad tossed with tomatoes & cucumber in balsamic vinegar and olive oil:

For dinner I had a simple lettuce wrap stuffed with chicken, bacon, tomatoes & mayonnaise. Washed down with a probiotic drink (which I'm not quite sure is legal). I worked today & was pretty darn tired when I got home, so it took all I had to throw that together:

I plan to savor some blueberries in coconut milk as a post-dinner snack.

Along with detoxing from the coffee, I think I'm also detoxing from diet coke: my absolute achilles heel. It's been my hardest addiction to break. I've gone off it many times and always seem to start slipping it back in sooner or later. Hopefully this time I will break my habit completely.

Hoping to start feeling like a million bucks soon!

Laborless and well fed

Breakfast was my standard - sweet potato and three eggs.  Today I added bacon again. Weekend thing.  Black coffee.

Lunch was with the boys at ESE. I managed to make it work, a garden salad with oil and vinegar, and bacon wrapped prawns with an aioli sauce that was gluten, soy, and dairy free. Woo!  Lucas' sangria did look good though. 

Dinner is here at Max's, and will be a second meal of fish - more bacon wrapped prawns and scallops (He did not know about my lunch when grocery shopping :).  Also some grilled portobellos and tomatoes. He's drinking wine.   I had some iced tea made especially for me.  

I dig his support. 

No pics today. But lunch tomorrow at work should be exciting...!

Day two, with its drinking, and I survived and did not need a margarita. Who knew I could get through a holiday without one?!!

xo

eff.

Oh!  And today I started the alpha round of Focus T25 (Shaun T workout, similar to Insanity).  That was hard. Time to also get back in shape... 

It's all so exciting. Stay tuned!

Labor Day, meal 2

Return of the noms.  Pork chops, green beans.  Not pictured, 1 tbsp of coconut oil.

Fig pre & post Whole 30

Haha! Well, not exactly. But in kitty food terms he did eat grains before he got feline diabetes. Now he is pretty much grain free. And weighed in at 13.6 pounds today! WHAT!?!?!?!

Fig pre-paleo @ 21 lbs:

And now @ 13.6 lbs:

GO FIG!

Day 2, a Labor day story.

    Today is a beautiful Labor day, full of tasty Whole 30 noms.

   So yeah, my meals aren't terribly varied in terms of fats/veg.  Although I think I will have pork chops for lunch.

What I didn't eat for dinner

Here is what I resisted on the dinner menu -

Instead, once home and a bit peckish, I opted for some delicious hard boiled eggs.

Day 1 Success!

Honestly, I'm not even sure what the Whole 30 guidelines are yet, but I'm hopeful that sticking to a whole food/paleo diet with zero sugar or dairy will suffice. And I will learn as I go. :) I am very strict about being gluten free, as my health 100% depends on it. When exposed to gluten I get asthma (and need to go on steroids for about 6 weeks) and IBS. Ewww, sorry guys. But I will most likely speak of bowel movements several more times before this cleanse ends! I have an autoimmune diagnosis (Hashimoto's) that has been linked to gluten intolerance. There's belief that I may also have Celiac's disease. The awesome thing is - I believe in my heart that I can live a healthy & joyful life supported by the food I eat.

The not-so-awesome thing is that these days one can buy complete junk that is certified "gluten-free." And I've been eating that shit up. Poor body. I've gained between 15-20 lbs this past year and now weigh 156.6 (wearing only a t-shirt. in the morning. after peeing. :) I like that you're not supposed to weigh in during the Whole 30. I have an awful habit of weighing myself every day. Not the healthiest pattern. So, goodbye scale! No measurements from me. I will measure by what jeans I'll be able to fit into. Can't find a measuring tape anyway. (Thank goodness)

Dinner tonight was awesome! I made roasted chicken thighs (from Make It Paleo) stuffed with garlic & onion, lime & cilantro cauliflower "rice" with coconut milk (from Against All Grain) & green beans tossed with a ghee/coconut oil blend. Noms. Brian approved the cauliflower rice. I've stopped explaining the food I make to Brian so he can have an unfiltered opinion upon tasting. He's my guinea pig. :)

Day 1 success! I'm so excited to be going through the Whole 30 with y'all!

Z

Dinner

Tasty. With Max, so even better. 

From the Make it Paleo cookbook - BBQ pulled pork. Also had an artichoke with homemade mayo. Yum. 

Goodnight!

Snack/lunch from devastation

After the deer decimated my garden last night, I salvaged a few tomatoes. Snack: tomatoes, olive oil, balsamic vinegar. Salt and pepper, some fresh basil. 

A fortifying meal.

   As is my habit, I attend a pen and paper role playing game every Sunday, and each of the members takes turn cooking/providing dinner.  This is not my week to provide succulent sustenance.  So, I shall no doubt be faced with delicious provisions, which shall be sadly outside of the Whole 30 guidelines.  I have fortified my appetite with a delicious meal ahead of time.

   Delicious green beans, a pair of hamburger patties grilled on my constant and faithful foreman grill.  And of course a handful of olives.

    Fantastic!

Bring this sh#t on!

So... Whole30...

I too have fallen off the Paleo wagon. Gluten free treats and dairy galore. Not too bad otherwise, except for a lot of emotional eating and drunk eating.  Thus the whole30 in particular - I need the structure to become conscious of my choices in this.

This time I'm actually freakin excited about it though. Woo!!  I know how good I feel when I eat clean, so I think about that and get all psyched up... My training has also suffered due to the summer season, so I'm ready to get that back on track, too.

I'm also going to post all my measurements from this morning. No more measurements till the end of the thirty days.  But I'm aiming for transparent...
Weight: 150.8 (with my running shorts on. :)
Height: 5'9" (this is the one I want to change most - woo for tall ladies! - but I have a feeling that at 35 I may be done growing vertically)
Hips: 40"
Belly: 39"
Waist: 34"
Boobies: under:32" over:39"
Biceps: 11.5"
I don't care about the rest.
Okay!  I have no specific measurement goals. Just want my feeling strong and fast to come back!

Ran this morning - met coach and pals at 7:30, had black coffee, ran at 8:30.  6 miles with the too fast crew - I kept with them for the first 5, then dropped. Whew!  After only a handful of runs all summer...
Then shopped for this week... Breakfast is a little late today, but always is on sunday run days.  Though I know I should make time for three meals on instense days, Sunday never fits more than two. So breakfast today is 3 pieces bacon, 3 eggs, 1 large sweet potato. All cooked in the grease from the bacon. Yum.

A picture?  Uh...
I like to mix it all together in a bowl, so it isn't photogenic. :)

But while it was cooking: 

K.  Bring it....

In the beginning (A Whole 30 Genesis)

     So, it has come to this (I love using that line).  I did a Whole 30 over a year ago, and I felt great.  The changes were nothing short of amazing.  Sadly, over time, I fell off the wagon, and I fell hard.  The result?  Worse than ever.  Overweight, feeling like crap.  So with the support of my wonderful twin, I am embarking again upon a Whole 30, although this time I plan to extend my goals to a Whole 120.

    So it begins, as any day should, with breakfast.

A delicious breakfast, 3 eggs, a heap of sauerkraut, and a handful of olives.

All Whole 30 approved.  Not pictured, the Coconut oil I used to cook the eggs, and the half gallon of water I shall wash it down with.

Today is Sunday, which is game day.  This means I get to turn my nose up at what ever delicious concoction my fellow gamers cook up.  I will eat dinner before game to fortify myself.

Hopefully my twin will post up pictures of her noms as well.