Whole30: Day 9

Still no eggs.  Who is to blame?  Me.

So I grabbed some sliced meat to nosh on, along with a Clementine (who really needs OJ in the morning?  Make your body do a little of the work, c'mon...)

It was not a fantastic lunch day for me, because I had been too lazy to cook in bulk last night, so I was scrambling for lunch today.  This is where clear containers come in real handy in the fridge.  You can see exactly what you have, so I grabbed a bunch of things that were within reach and piled them into a tupperware with a chicken breast (I had ingeniously cooked 3 extra after making chicken fauxjitas on Monday night).

Still going strong, but still feeling temptations from time to time.  I think the best thing throughout the entire Whole30 that's made it easier for me to not be tempted is eating by myself.  I've not been going to the teacher's lounge like I normally do.  I know, it's rather unsocial of me, but I get a little time to meditate, eat my food without worrying about smelling other delicious things or really having to explain myself or my new habits.

Don't get me wrong.  I've told (read: complained) to just about anyone that will listen.  But I don't mention it unless someone else brings up food.

Like yesterday, when we had a surprise teacher meeting after school at 3:15.  These are the worst.  Everyone is struggling and would rather go home or do something they constitute as more productive.  And of course, our administration has to ply us with big bowls of candy on each table, and mini fridges full of Cokes.  So of course, everyone passes them all around and grabs handful of candy and pops their cokes, and they ask why I don't want any...  And I tell them, straight faced...

Ladies, I've become a Cavewoman.

Honestly, laughter is the only way to keep them from judging my non-dairy or grain diet, as both have been so driven into our skulls as being necessary for a healthy life.

But really, I feel great.  I don't have spikes or drops of energy anymore (and it's only Day 9).  I don't yawn at work all the time.  I never feel sleepy anymore or have the urge to nap at my desk.  I felt full of energy when we did our WOD on Monday... Not to mention, I'm losing weight, and my face is the clearest it's probably ever been (not to mention my forehead wrinkles that were starting to come up have receded).

I have been lacking the last few days in the veggie department, so I went to the store to beef that up.  Here's what I came back with:

Grapes
Nectarines
Eggs (2 dozen)
Bell Peppers
Mushrooms
Snap Peas
Broccoli
And MEAT (cuz those are veggies, right?)
Drumsticks
Rack of ribs
Hamburger
Pork tenderloin

I know I say I'm doing the Whole30, but a big part of it is buying sustainable things.  They consider the best meats to be grass fed, raised local, etc, which is awesome, but this diet sucked enough in the beginning, so Thank You Very Much, Dallas and Melissa, but I Shall Be Lazy.  At least for my first Whole30.  Maybe next year I'll be able to prepare more and find some local options.  As it is, this is what I'm sticking with.  Now, processed things like the chicken/turkey sausage I ate last week were the good stuff - Applegate Farms.

My meal menu:

Breakfast:
A clementine and some sliced meat

Lunch:
Chicken breast
Pile-o-spinach
Baby carrots
Black Olives

Snack:
Apple, a handful of almonds

Dinner:
Two skinny mini pork chops
Nuked sweet potato
Sauteed Kale (*Note to self, no more Kale until I figure out how in the heck to cook it)

So there's a picture of my dinner.

And here's what I heard in my head as I sat down to eat...

"LAY OFF ME, I'M STARVING!!!"

Whole30: Day 8

Forgot to buy eggs... again.  My fridge is getting slim, and I've not been motivated or had time in the morning to fix breakfast, so two clementines on the way out the door had to suffice (which is bad news bears if you ask me or any other Whole30'er).  Why?   Because there was no sustaining protein.

Which meant...

I was craving by midmorning.  Good thing I had a snack of almonds and dried apricots.  I try not to eat more than one dried apricot at a time because I know they're full of sugars, so I stuck with a handful of almonds.  Lunch was a repeat from dinner (and totally delicious, no dressing required, because the olive oil had blended so well with the flavors from the roasted red peppers and the onions).

I felt much better after that, and then of course, I came home, did my normal thing, and then, still not feeling motivated to 'cook' with Justin gone, I snacked on a piece of chicken breast.  Later, the hunger bug bit me, so it was back to the kitchen to whip up the quickest thing I could think of, the 'fish tacos' that I made on Saturday, I believe.

So my meal rundown...

Breakfast:
Two Clementines (highly unadvised)

Lunch:
Spinach salad topped with shrimp, roasted red peppers, onions, and almonds (all sauteed in OO)

Snack:
Chicken breast

Dinner:
One fish filet topped with a big 'salad' of shredded carrots and shredded cabbage, with my mayo sauce

(Think Paleo make your own Mayo plus dill, paprika, and lime juice)

Whole30: Day 7

Today was bliss....

By far, the best day of the diet.  I felt invigorated (even if it was hard to get out of bed), and I stayed that way all throughout the day.  Even after lunch, no familiar 'brown outs', no need for a nap, no yawning.  Just a plateau of energy.  It was amazing!

And my meals weren't even that fantastic today either...

Breakfast:
Frittata
A banana

Lunch:
Chicken breast
Raw Baby Carrots
Clementine

Snack:
Some Almonds
Dried Apricot

(My snack cravings have become very few and far between)

Dinner:
Shrimp and Spinach Salad

Pretty isn't it?

Cut up some red onion, and add it to a hot skillet with olive oil.  Then add sliced almonds and red roasted bell peppers.  Mix some balsamic vinegar with some light olive oil.  Toss in your shrimp to the pan (I add a little paprika for flavor).  Once all is cooked, top a bed of spinach with the mixture, and then drizzle the balsamic vinaigrette over the top.

Whole30: Day 6

Life will go on...

That's kind of been the mood today.  Yesterday = doom and gloom.  Today = sun peaking around the clouds.  I still have stormy moments, like right after CF tonight, on the drive home, really hungry, just thinking of having to go to the store, and then prep, and then cook, and then FINALLY getting to eat.

Taco Bell just sounded sooooo much better.

The snackings have become fewer and more far between.  Just two almonds, a dried apricot, and a Clementine (which is a record for me... I've been a munch a holic these last 5 days).  Today was my first day back at work, and I was so worried I was really going to miss my lunch time Coke (yes, the sugar and such, but also just having something easy and handheld... I'm a basket case I know).  Once I ate a good part of my lunch, the Coke craving subsided completely though.  It was amazing!

Here was my meal run down for the day (and sorry for the limited photos, things are getting hectic):

Breakfast:
Anyone wanna guess?
Frittata with spinach, onion, and bell peppers
Half a banana

*Yes, another frittata.  But honestly, they're so easy to make and they feel like a more substantial meal then doing scrambled eggs.  That, and I have less of a stigma with frittatas (I didn't eat them pre-Whole30, unlike scrambled eggs, which I felt had to have cheese on top).

Lunch:
(Repeat from dinner)
Meatloaf
Green beans/carrots/mushroom stirfry

Dinner:
Chicken Fajitas with green peppers and onions
An apple

*there was supposed to be butter lettuce to wrap it all in, but Walmart was out.  Either way, it was delicious, and I didn't need a huge portion to make me feel full.

Whole30: Day 5

I'm hitting the wall.  I'm getting pretty depressed by the limitations of this diet.  I feel like I can't leave my house without being not only tempted, but also feeling horrible surges of guilt because now that I've gotten into this diet and read the research, I know just how bad those tempting things are.  They're not 'real'.

I wish I could go back and decide to take the blue pill instead...

(Yes, that was a Matrix reference)

Breakfast Day 5:
Ham slices
An orange
Some olives

Lunch Day 5:
SHOULD HAVE BEEN A DELICIOUS ROASTED PEPPER SOUP (Paleo Fail)
But instead -
Turkey sausage
Baby carrots
Almonds

Dinner Day 5:
(Probably the most normal meal so far)
Meatloaf
Green beans with carrots and mushrooms

No pictures tonight.  I'm still really tired, and now I just feel really depressed and stifled (and dammit I want a coke).

Whole30: Day 4 cont.

So I had to get out of the dang house to stop thinking about food.  I stupidly suggested we go to Sam's and pick up some more detergent... Mistake.

We left Sam's with a bag of Cutie's, a bag of almonds, a big bag of spinach, a bag of brussel sprouts, and detergent.  Sigh.  I passed the baked goods section and almost had a conniption fit.

So, in a second attempt to get my mind off of food, we decided to go to Ozark Natural Food Store... We really weren't thinking straight.

It's a neat store, and I've really enjoyed actually reading labels and seeing just exactly the abundance of food options that are out there (most not Paleo sadly).  But we made some great finds (much better than when I was shopping there by myself and starving).

We bought:
Dried apricots
Mustard
Balsamic Vinegar
Ghee (sweet baby Jesus!)
Portobella mushrooms
And some Naked Coconut Waters

I've also found that if I keep everything I can use out on my counter, it makes me a lot more effective and less likely to crave things.  I've not emptied out my pantry, because I feel like I'll never want to totally quit baking or making battered and fried yummy things, but it keeps me from having to look at those DARN CRACKERS!  I'm full and happy with dinner, so I'm not currently needing a cracker, but who knows how I'll feel tomorrow.  Here is a picture of my counter of usefulness.

Dinner wasn't as pretty when cooked today, so I'll just show you my prep station. 

Day 4 Dinner:

Hamburger patties

Portobella Mushrooms

Roasted brussel sprouts

Whole30: Day 4

Today has been the worst by far... we came home to a house filled with the perfume of natural gas... Our brand new stove that had been installed by amazing technicians was leaking the fumes all throughout the house.  Awesome.  That meant that last night at 10:30pm when we rolled in, we had to call the gas company (waking up the poor people) and having them come out.  The gas company found the leak and cut it off, so by midnight, we were able to go back inside and FINALLY go to bed.

Fast forward to this morning at 8:30am, we finally get out of the bed (exhausted), and the actual plumbing company comes back out to fix the leak.  That meant we had to wait until almost 11am to finally eat breakfast.

Justin had gone to CF, and I honestly have no idea how he made it out alive.  I was starving and shaking (and kind of woozy) from lack of food, so once the plumber left, I whipped together a frantic frittata (with some awesome Applegate chicken/turkey sausage).  It filled my belly, but my mind still wanted more (and not more of the same).

So today is the worst so far.  I've spent the whole day feeling like I should either be napping or eating (despite being full).  And to top it all off, I dread going back to work on Monday, because I honestly don't know how I will last like this all day and not fall on my face...  I'm really hoping I get an upswing in energy soon.  Remember, I've had no caffiene whatsoever since Tuesday...

So our meals, keeping in mind that these are Justin's plates :) Mine were cleaned before he could sneak a photo...

And if I'm being honest... Before breakfast, while Justin was at CF I had:
sliced ham
honey crisp apple
spoonful of almond butter

Breakfast Day 4:
Frittata with onions, mushrooms, red bell peppers, and chicken/turkey sausage
Clementine :)

Snack:
Half a banana

Lunch (late) Day 4:
Fish tacos (without the taco) - I cooked up some tilapia filets with minimal seasoning in olive oil, then I topped the filets with a salad of crunchy cabbage and shredded carrot, with a spicy sauce I made with homemade mayo, dill, lime juice, and a touch of cayenne.  It certainly hit the spot.  I should have included another veggie dish, but well, I was hungry right then and there.

Dinner Day 4:
TBD