Day 5: Just when I thought that the withdrawal symptoms would pass me by this time I got hit with the Sleepy/Crankies. Granted, on Sunday night I stayed up very late to watch all of Downton Abbey and then didn't really get to sleep until almost 1 AM. So, I believe I was breaking a cardinal W30 rule and just didn't get enough rest. But, at our house "the bunny wakes up" (Parker's alarm clock) at 7:30 AM so there is no rest for the weary. The good news is it was the first day back to school and so once the little man was off to school I was able to get some stuff done around the house and only had one toddler to manage. And once I got dinner all prepped (I try to do as much dinner prep as possible at naptime) I was able to take a 30 minute power-nap while the kids rested in the afternoon.
Breakfast: Fried Eggs over veggies and bacon
Lunch: Pad Thai from Well Fed. Recipe here: (http://simplicityofwellness.com/2012/05/paleo-pad-thai/) I was going to try this for a dinner recipe, but decided to give it a shot at lunch first because I had all the ingredients ready. I had to make up a batch of "Sunshine Sauce" but that was pretty quick. It was a good recipe - it assumes you are making for two so I cut everything in half. Even with that though, there was too much sauce on the food. Next time I will use much less of the Sunshine Sauce. It was very good, but rich and sticky when there was too much.
Dinner: While Parker was at school in the morning I got a double batch of Giada's marinara cooking on the stove. http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/giada-de-laurentiis/marinara-sauce-recipe/index.html I originally found the recipe in my Everyday Pasta book, but I also have it saved on my pinterest for easy access. So, for dinner I cooked up some ground turkey mixed with italian sausage and mixed it with a big serving of the sauce. I cooked noodles and garlic bread for Ben and the kids, but used zucchini noodles for myself. When I know I am going to be having zucchini noodles I try to make them early in the day and wrap them in paper towels to get most of the water out. That makes them more "pasta-like" to me. I have also read you can pop them in a warmed oven for a few minutes before you eat, and that sounds like a good idea too so I am not putting warm sauce on cold zoodles. But, that Giada sauce never disappoints.
Day 6: Today was my first real cranky day. It wasn't too bad, but I definitely noticed a change in my mood from the previous days. My attitude was mostly improved by mid-day however, so it didn't end up so bad. It is freezing cold here - Polar Vortex or whatever they are calling it - but we really needed a way to get out of the house. So, for our cultural pleasure we headed out to Walmart in Laurel. I hadn't been in a Walmart for quite some time, so it was just funny to walk around and hang out. Ben had a free day today so he was with us on our adventure. As is so often the case, we didn't really need anything, but still managed to find things to purchase at Wallyworld. I was happy to find Kale, which our grocery store was out of on Monday, and roasted it up later in the day. I haven't tried it yet, but the most shocking thing was how much it shrunk in the oven! If I end up liking it I will definitely do a double batch next time.
Breakfast: Eggs over veggies and bacon. I think on Friday I will get some ingredients for some egg muffins. The everyday breakfast is getting boring.
Lunch: We were out and about so we went to Panera bread. I was pleasantly surprised that they had a Cobb Salad I could modify to fit what I needed. I omitted the cheese and dressing and ended up with lettace, onion, tomato, bacon, and chicken. It was very good and they had EVOO and lemon wedges I used for dressing. It was really good and I might have found a new dressing option!
Dinner: I had started Nom Nom Paleo's Chicken and Gravy (http://nomnompaleo.com/post/4807547385/slow-cooker-roast-chicken-and-gravy) in the crockpot before we left. I made some mashed potatoes for Ben and the kids and mashed cauliflower for myself. Since I was already making the mashed cauliflower I also prepped some cauliflower rice for tomorrow - I am going to try a new recipe to go with our Balsamic Beef tomorrow. I have tried mashed cauliflower a few times and I am not a big fan of the taste, but I did find that with the chicken and gravy with cauliflower mash all in one bite it worked ok. But, as with some other paleo-ified dishes, I don't think I will be making this substitution permanently. Mashed potatoes were one of my preggo comfort foods, and some things can never be substituted. But, I think I could try a half-and-half mixture and see if that works once I am off W30. The other thing I would do differently is add some of the arrowroot powder to the gravy to thicken. I had ordered some from Amazon and it hadn't arrived yet, and the gravy was a bit thin. But, altogether another successful dinner.
I wrapped up the evening watching The Biggest Loser with my sparkling water. It is getting down to near the end of the season and I am always amazed at how much these people change in such a short period of time. When I watch I always find myself reflecting on my own health and wellness journey and thinking about the lifelong choices I will have to make to continue to be healthy and present for my family. I tend to find the saddest aspects of the many of the stories on the show involve people who are not able to be active participants in their lives because of their weight and/or health. I could not imagine not playing with the kids and taking them to the park. I am reminded again how lucky I am to be on this journey now and not when I have gotten so far down the road that I have lost so much time.
Wednesday, January 8, 2014
Monday, January 6, 2014
Days 3 & 4 - Uneventful, but happy for Downton Abbey! - Mandy
I have been really getting into a rhythm with food, and that is definitely a change from the last W30. I think I was so resistant last time that I truly didn't WANT anything to be easy or good. But, amazing how a change of attitude can change our results. I have been pleasantly surprised with my change to English Breakfast Tazo tea in the morning. And as long as I eat breakfast pretty quickly I am not hit with too many cravings or crankies. I also have been drinking a large glass of water first thing in the morning - right when I wake up. I think that this has really helped with the early morning blah feeling, so that is good. But, another addition from the last W30, I have been peeing like a crazy person. I guess I didn't know how much water I was retaining! I also read this can be due to all the extra water in the food we are eating, but I don't think it can all be attributed to that! We will see how that tapers off in the future (hopefully)!
I also found this lady's blog which made me laugh out loud about her own W30 experience!
Day 3:
Breakfast: Scramble with Italian sausage and veggies - I don't think I like the Italian sausage for breakfast - a little too strong to start my morning...
Lunch: Large salad with Tyson's pre-grilled chicken and homemade dressing.
Dinner: I found a recipe for Proscuitto wrapped chicken breasts stuffed with artichoke and spinach. It was very good. I few things that I did differently, or would change: I used chicken tenderloins instead of chicken breasts which turned out to be perfect portion control - 2 roll-ups was a great portion for me. However, the stuffing is pretty rich, so I would use less of it next time in each roll-up. I cut the recipe in half and I still had a lot of stuffing. http://ordinarypen.wordpress.com/2013/02/09/onedayatatimewhole30week1/
I made roasted red potatoes with Thyme, garlic, and olive oil. I like these a lot better than other versions I have seen that put cinnamon or cumin on the sweet potatoes. I also have found that I like them best chopped small and roasted a lot so they are pretty crispy. I don't like soggy sweet potatoes.
We rounded it all out with some steamed veggies.
Day 4:
Breakfast: Two fried eggs over Italian sausage with grilled peppers and onions. I did really like the runny yolks and the veggies together, but with this second attempt I have concluded that I do not like Italian sausage for breakfast.
Lunch: Large Salad with homemade dressing.
Dinner: Ben grilled an awesome Tuna Steak - the winner of the Tuna was the sauce which I found here: http://andkathleen.com/2012/08/whole-30-day-23/
I also made some of the cauliflower rice pilaf from Well Fed that is also featured on the Tuna website. It was NOT good. I did not like the cinnamon/cumin seasoning at all. I didn't mind the texture of the "rice" and since I am such a rice junkie I am definitely motivated to try a different recipe. I think next time just some onions, garlic, carrot, and maybe snap or snow peas would be good.
We finished it off with some salad and homemade dressing.
Day 4 was wrapped up with the much-anticipated Season premiere of Downton Abbey! It was insanely difficult to imagine watching DA without a glass (or two) of wine, but I powered through. I started with a large wine glass with sparkling water. About half-way through I made some Peaceful Mama tea (thanks Heather for the recommendation for the Earth Mama Organics tea brand recommendation when we were preggo with the first kids - ah how time has flown). I also toasted up some coconut flakes, tossed them with cinnamon and salt, and sliced up some strawberries - the perfect DA snack!
I also found this lady's blog which made me laugh out loud about her own W30 experience!
Day 3:
Breakfast: Scramble with Italian sausage and veggies - I don't think I like the Italian sausage for breakfast - a little too strong to start my morning...
Lunch: Large salad with Tyson's pre-grilled chicken and homemade dressing.
Dinner: I found a recipe for Proscuitto wrapped chicken breasts stuffed with artichoke and spinach. It was very good. I few things that I did differently, or would change: I used chicken tenderloins instead of chicken breasts which turned out to be perfect portion control - 2 roll-ups was a great portion for me. However, the stuffing is pretty rich, so I would use less of it next time in each roll-up. I cut the recipe in half and I still had a lot of stuffing. http://ordinarypen.wordpress.com/2013/02/09/onedayatatimewhole30week1/
I made roasted red potatoes with Thyme, garlic, and olive oil. I like these a lot better than other versions I have seen that put cinnamon or cumin on the sweet potatoes. I also have found that I like them best chopped small and roasted a lot so they are pretty crispy. I don't like soggy sweet potatoes.
We rounded it all out with some steamed veggies.
Day 4:
Breakfast: Two fried eggs over Italian sausage with grilled peppers and onions. I did really like the runny yolks and the veggies together, but with this second attempt I have concluded that I do not like Italian sausage for breakfast.
Lunch: Large Salad with homemade dressing.
Dinner: Ben grilled an awesome Tuna Steak - the winner of the Tuna was the sauce which I found here: http://andkathleen.com/2012/08/whole-30-day-23/
I also made some of the cauliflower rice pilaf from Well Fed that is also featured on the Tuna website. It was NOT good. I did not like the cinnamon/cumin seasoning at all. I didn't mind the texture of the "rice" and since I am such a rice junkie I am definitely motivated to try a different recipe. I think next time just some onions, garlic, carrot, and maybe snap or snow peas would be good.
We finished it off with some salad and homemade dressing.
Day 4 was wrapped up with the much-anticipated Season premiere of Downton Abbey! It was insanely difficult to imagine watching DA without a glass (or two) of wine, but I powered through. I started with a large wine glass with sparkling water. About half-way through I made some Peaceful Mama tea (thanks Heather for the recommendation for the Earth Mama Organics tea brand recommendation when we were preggo with the first kids - ah how time has flown). I also toasted up some coconut flakes, tossed them with cinnamon and salt, and sliced up some strawberries - the perfect DA snack!
Saturday, January 4, 2014
Blog Launch - Better Late than Never - Mandy
So I sat here this morning and was eating breakfast, going through recipes and just generally reflecting on the difference between Whole 30 #1 and Whole 30 #2. I have been trying to figure out why I feel completely different this time around. I realized it was for one reason: I did the first W30 for the wrong reasons.
I was trying to lose weight and look better before heading to Oregon for Sean and Dana's wedding. I wanted to look nice in pictures and I wanted it to be a "quick fix". For me a month sounded like a quick fix compared to the MONTHS of time I spent with Weight Watchers and the gym a few years ago. They all say that W30 is not about weight loss, but I didn't believe it and I just wanted that to happen. So, I broke the cardinal rule - I weighed myself, a lot. And I was discouraged, a lot. I was truly only doing it to lose weight and it wasn't working as quickly as I wanted. I mean seriously, no wine? I should drop 30 pounds in a week. Ok, not really, but that is how bummed I was about missing wine.
I also think that the summer is the worst possible time for your first W30. There is so much going on that it is darn near impossible to stick to plan. We went away for a few days and I completely fell off the food wagon. It just didn't seem worth it. And then I thought, well I am just going to have a glass of wine if I am already going to eat the bad food. Fail. When we got back from our trip I went back to the W30, but it was half-hearted. And I was a horrible battle buddy. Heather had jumped on the challenge with me and I was not living up to my side. AND I knew that I was only really doing a W25 - because we were going to West Point for Labor Day and I sure wasn't going to deprive myself that weekend.
So, big fail. Not the right mindset AT ALL!
Why did I decide to try again? After the epic fail of the last time why would I do it again? Because I am tired of being complacent. I move through my food (and beverage) choices without being conscious of them. I snack because I am bored and I drink wine because the kids are in bed and I want to relax and watch TV. Why can't I relax with a glass of sparkling water or tea? Because wine had the emotional connection. Right? Isn't that what It Starts With Food talks about? I really don't see too many emotional connections with my everyday food. But the habit of relaxing with some wine? Absolutely.
So what is different this time? First, ever since my first W30 I have actually been more mindful of my food choices. Not all the time, but much more often. I make my own salad dressing almost all the time because it tastes better. I don't ever really eat sandwiches or a lot of fried food. I have even noticed that I eat A LOT less sweets. I actually threw away the Oreo balls and chocolate covered pretzels this year because they didn't get eaten - that is unheard of. So, my withdrawal has not been nearly as bad. By Day 2 last time I was dying. I had a horrible headache and my cravings were out of control. I was the textbook Whole30 Timeline ( Whole30 Timeline 2.0 ). I had the headache for at least the first week. And I was CRANKY! But this time, no headache, and no huge mood swings. I think that I am a slave to hormones, as the first few weeks after the birth of both babies can attest. I can be a crazy b*tch when I am hormonal. Probably another reason the first time didn't work for me.
So, I decided the best way to stay motivated is to try to write down what I am feeling and what I am eating. And get my W30 buddies to do it with me (if they want) and post any helpful/funny websites I find. That way everything is in one place and if I decide to go on this crazy journey again I will know where everything is (besides just Pinterest). I am a little behind the ball, but I figure it is only Day 2 so I can still catch up. And I don't imagine I will post every day, only when I feel "inspirational"
Day 1 -I think I made the decision to do another W30 about 48 hours before I started. I had been contemplating it, but after the epic failure of the first attempt I wasn't sure if I wanted to take it on again. Also, there was SO MUCH WINE in the house! How could I have a 30 day challenge of no wine with so much in the house? Willpower is not my superpower. But, I knew that wine was one of the main reasons I needed to embark on this challenge in the first place. So, down to the basement it went. Also, because it was a short-notice kind of decision I did not yet have a lot of W30 food in the house - quite the opposite - I still had a housefull of Holiday Food! So, I purged a lot of the holiday food and off to Costco we went.
Breakfast - Scrambled Eggs with onions, asparagus, and bacon. (I never thought I would eat asparagus for breakfast but it was delicious.
Lunch - I had a late breakfast so lunch was more of a snack. After Costco I made a quick trip to Whole Foods for some Ghee and Coconut Flakes and picked up a Larabar. It was very good. But I can also see why they say to not eat them regularly. It was a blueberry muffin bar and even though it was compliant, it could definitely trigger the sugar demon.
Dinner - Ben grilled up some awesome salmon and we had a big salad with it. I made my own ranch-ish dressing, It was amazing.
Day 2 - Snow Day for everyone but we needed to go to the Commissary so we actually made a trip down to VA to got to Ft. Belvoir. We picked up some nice groceries because their commissary is much larger and nicer than the one by us. But, it is always funny to see what the commissary does and does not stock. Like any form of squash? My commissary usually has 3 or 4 types of squash, but all Belvoir had was zucchini. Oh well, they did have a lot of other compliant things I was looking for, and we loaded up on some more fruits and veggies.
Breakfast: Scramble with leftover steak from New Years Eve and veggies.
Lunch: Lunch was a challenge because we were out at Ft. Belvoir and we went to the food court. I ended up getting a chopped salad at Subway which was actually really large and good. I had them dress it with a little bit of oil and vinegar.
Dinner: Deconstructed Taco Salad. The family loves tacos so I made all the stuff I usually make, but added some sauted peppers. They ate tacos and refried beans, I had a taco salad with lots of veggies, salsa, and guacamole.
I was trying to lose weight and look better before heading to Oregon for Sean and Dana's wedding. I wanted to look nice in pictures and I wanted it to be a "quick fix". For me a month sounded like a quick fix compared to the MONTHS of time I spent with Weight Watchers and the gym a few years ago. They all say that W30 is not about weight loss, but I didn't believe it and I just wanted that to happen. So, I broke the cardinal rule - I weighed myself, a lot. And I was discouraged, a lot. I was truly only doing it to lose weight and it wasn't working as quickly as I wanted. I mean seriously, no wine? I should drop 30 pounds in a week. Ok, not really, but that is how bummed I was about missing wine.
I also think that the summer is the worst possible time for your first W30. There is so much going on that it is darn near impossible to stick to plan. We went away for a few days and I completely fell off the food wagon. It just didn't seem worth it. And then I thought, well I am just going to have a glass of wine if I am already going to eat the bad food. Fail. When we got back from our trip I went back to the W30, but it was half-hearted. And I was a horrible battle buddy. Heather had jumped on the challenge with me and I was not living up to my side. AND I knew that I was only really doing a W25 - because we were going to West Point for Labor Day and I sure wasn't going to deprive myself that weekend.
So, big fail. Not the right mindset AT ALL!
Why did I decide to try again? After the epic fail of the last time why would I do it again? Because I am tired of being complacent. I move through my food (and beverage) choices without being conscious of them. I snack because I am bored and I drink wine because the kids are in bed and I want to relax and watch TV. Why can't I relax with a glass of sparkling water or tea? Because wine had the emotional connection. Right? Isn't that what It Starts With Food talks about? I really don't see too many emotional connections with my everyday food. But the habit of relaxing with some wine? Absolutely.
So what is different this time? First, ever since my first W30 I have actually been more mindful of my food choices. Not all the time, but much more often. I make my own salad dressing almost all the time because it tastes better. I don't ever really eat sandwiches or a lot of fried food. I have even noticed that I eat A LOT less sweets. I actually threw away the Oreo balls and chocolate covered pretzels this year because they didn't get eaten - that is unheard of. So, my withdrawal has not been nearly as bad. By Day 2 last time I was dying. I had a horrible headache and my cravings were out of control. I was the textbook Whole30 Timeline ( Whole30 Timeline 2.0 ). I had the headache for at least the first week. And I was CRANKY! But this time, no headache, and no huge mood swings. I think that I am a slave to hormones, as the first few weeks after the birth of both babies can attest. I can be a crazy b*tch when I am hormonal. Probably another reason the first time didn't work for me.
So, I decided the best way to stay motivated is to try to write down what I am feeling and what I am eating. And get my W30 buddies to do it with me (if they want) and post any helpful/funny websites I find. That way everything is in one place and if I decide to go on this crazy journey again I will know where everything is (besides just Pinterest). I am a little behind the ball, but I figure it is only Day 2 so I can still catch up. And I don't imagine I will post every day, only when I feel "inspirational"
Day 1 -I think I made the decision to do another W30 about 48 hours before I started. I had been contemplating it, but after the epic failure of the first attempt I wasn't sure if I wanted to take it on again. Also, there was SO MUCH WINE in the house! How could I have a 30 day challenge of no wine with so much in the house? Willpower is not my superpower. But, I knew that wine was one of the main reasons I needed to embark on this challenge in the first place. So, down to the basement it went. Also, because it was a short-notice kind of decision I did not yet have a lot of W30 food in the house - quite the opposite - I still had a housefull of Holiday Food! So, I purged a lot of the holiday food and off to Costco we went.
Breakfast - Scrambled Eggs with onions, asparagus, and bacon. (I never thought I would eat asparagus for breakfast but it was delicious.
Lunch - I had a late breakfast so lunch was more of a snack. After Costco I made a quick trip to Whole Foods for some Ghee and Coconut Flakes and picked up a Larabar. It was very good. But I can also see why they say to not eat them regularly. It was a blueberry muffin bar and even though it was compliant, it could definitely trigger the sugar demon.
Dinner - Ben grilled up some awesome salmon and we had a big salad with it. I made my own ranch-ish dressing, It was amazing.
Day 2 - Snow Day for everyone but we needed to go to the Commissary so we actually made a trip down to VA to got to Ft. Belvoir. We picked up some nice groceries because their commissary is much larger and nicer than the one by us. But, it is always funny to see what the commissary does and does not stock. Like any form of squash? My commissary usually has 3 or 4 types of squash, but all Belvoir had was zucchini. Oh well, they did have a lot of other compliant things I was looking for, and we loaded up on some more fruits and veggies.
Breakfast: Scramble with leftover steak from New Years Eve and veggies.
Lunch: Lunch was a challenge because we were out at Ft. Belvoir and we went to the food court. I ended up getting a chopped salad at Subway which was actually really large and good. I had them dress it with a little bit of oil and vinegar.
Dinner: Deconstructed Taco Salad. The family loves tacos so I made all the stuff I usually make, but added some sauted peppers. They ate tacos and refried beans, I had a taco salad with lots of veggies, salsa, and guacamole.
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