Day 30: What I learned

What I learned from my first Whole30

I don’t do the official weigh in and before/after photo until tomorrow, day 31, but with or without drastic results there, I have learned some important lessons.
• My experience confirms the habit research. It is easier to go cold turkey on sugar, dairy, etc. than to just cut back. And I did it. I really did it.
• Grains/bread/rice are not necessary to fill out a proper meal and get full. Eating good fats (olives, coconut, avocado) and lots of veg can fill you up. The protein wasn’t an issue for me, but getting enough veg can be.
• Check ingredients. Soy and sugar are super prevalent in even the most innocent looking things like salad dressing, marinades, seasoning packets, rubs. So unnecessary and not good for us.
• Though it took work, especially lots of planning and lots of washing dishes, the Whole30 and eating well is entirely worth it for the sake of my health. I recommend it to anybody interested.

Day 27re: filling up and other things

I've discovered I graze too much. The Whole30 template says 3 full meals and when I do it, I really don't need the snacking in between.

Another notion debunked: that only grains are filling. Like I need bread or rice to balance out a meal and fill me up. Nope. The good fats are a must. And adequate amounts if veg, too. Truth be told, I still think I need to keep upping my veg, it's the part if my meals I have to work at hardest. There's a good long term goal: learn more variations and flavor for adding more veg to my life.

Read the reintro chapter tonight. Fun to think about. On my non-gluten grain day I think I'll get a Chipotle bowl w brown rice and tortilla chips. Heh, oh wait... The meat has soy. Gotta think this through....then how bout the legume day and get the salad w black beans? heh, fun.

On a different note, I'm nervous about hidden oils or small mistakes I've made that didn't allow my body to get full benefit. The scallop w butter and 4 grains of rice... Did they keep my body from really getting full benefit? The dates... Was it too much sugar? I'm not seeing drastic changes. Wish I had measured. Hopefully my before and after photos will help me see change. Maybe my skin will clear up on day 29? Sigh.

Day 25 Random thoughts

Just had this for breakfast...yummo! what a treat! http://paleomg.com/s...akfast-patties/ They crumbled apart, but I still loved it.

I used to judge those photos of bento lunch boxed with 6-8 different kinds of food for lunch. But wow, it really helps and makes a difference to have a variety of textures, not just colors. and variety in all forms, just really makes a meal more fun. Shame on me for judging.

Day 24 Cranky town again

I think I'm grumpy because while I like the effects of the Whole30, the effort it takes is getting to be a pain. I sound so lazy. I do the cook up on Sundays, but most of my meals require sauteing which requires a pot to clean. Blah blah Blah, forgive my complaining.

Also, I ate some dried dates at a friends house and they were AMAZING and I want them so badly. Bring me all the dried DATES!

Doh! and I tested a few grains of rice today for my mom who was feeling ill. Booo!!

(somebody later suggested that the sugar in the dates might have made me cranky. oh boy.)

Day 21 Beach Trip Summary

I survived our beach trip being compliant. well, a few snags, but moving forward trying to not get bogged down by them.

Snag #1: ate a scallop sauteed in butter. forgot the ghee at home, the local store didn't carry it. husband separated out the butter when cooking fish but not the scallops. felt terribly guilty after eating it. felt a lil funny but wasn't sure if it was the dairy or the guilt. I think my husband finally "got it" that I'm trying to get all of these foods out of my system, so no, I can't have just a little even one time.

Snag #2: one family member seemed to question my eating through most of the trip. the family in general didn't like how much I questioned the waitress when we were out getting seafood. I was gracious and she was trying to be, too, but didn't get my order right (fish cooked in butter instead of olive oil)

Snag #3: did some grazing, eating with family. compliant foods like almonds and pistachios and blueberries.

We planned all of our meals ahead of time, so I had good food and the family was helpful about separating out portions for me (hamburgers w/o bbq sauce mixed in, kebabs w/o dressing marinade).

I guess I'm still a bit frustrated at how hard it is to get food when at a resteraunt. I know there are some restaurants that make it easier, but I just don't trust em. Even the double portion of green beans that were supposedly "just boiled" came out with bacon on them. I had a few then gave up.

Day 15 Half way mark

Half-way there! Day 15 is done and I'm still compliant!

I won't bore you with the update of all of my meal plans. But I'm very happy to report that I'm on track with no cheats.

It hasn't been as hard to pass up food. My mind has been made up, I don't waver about it. But the hardest part has been just wanting more variety in what I eat.

So here's one thing that's working for me: Try to get at least 5 different textures/colors/foods on my plate at each meal. For example, sauteed ground pork, mini sweet pepper cut in half (like a boat or shell to fill), sweet potato, lettuce pieces, cherry tomatoes, green olives. The variety of flavors and textures makes this incongruous selection of foods work quite well together.

I made it through two days of 8-hour meetings, with junk food on the side. My dad grilled up a bunch of fajitas another night and was kind to find seasoning that worked for me. Plus he grilled lots of veg too, yum! Soon I'm headed to the beach with family. We've planned all of our meals and I'm hoping my in-laws are careful with seasonings after I already had to turn down lots of their food earlier this month because of sugar in things like salad dressing.

I'm less tired, ready to roll when I wake. hoping my tummy deflates now that it's done using sugar and grains for fuel. Hopefully the fat supplies will be put to use.

Day 9 missing more fruit

Day 9: Tuesday July 9
 

1: 2 eggs over easy + sweet potato (should have added a fat, i missed it, was hungry late morning)

2: Packed lunch: 2 chicken thighs + salad + several sugar snap peas + carrot + homemade ranch dressing +1/2 can olives + cherries

snack: sugar snap peas, carrot, mini sweet peppers

3: ground beef + string beans + tomato + 1/2 avocado

snack: unsweetened coconut flake, 2 small cubes watermelon
 

-i miss more fruit so so much. i could leave dairy behind, even cheese. but fruit I adore.