DAY 30: I DID IT, I DID IT, I DID IT!

ERRMEGHERD!

Well folks, today is the day. Day 30. Honestly, I hate to say this but I woke up today pretty much feeling like it was any other Tuesday. And do you know why? Well it's because I have gotten so used to eating, drinking, and living this way that I was not in pain and agony waiting for today to come. This may sound super cliche but I honestly think that Whole30 changed the way that I am going to view food and "diet" for the rest of my life. I really don't look at this as a fad that is going to pass. Now, let me stop here and say that the biggest thing I will take away from Whole30 is to stay away from processed foods and stay away from chemicals. So when I say that I have adopted this as a lifestyle I am saying that I am conscience of what I put in my body and I truly want to live a healthier life.


The debate of what is healthy, unhealthy, good, bad, and everything in between is one that you could have with just about anyone. As I have said in previous posts, it gets confusing trying to figure out what in the hell you "should" and "shouldn't" eat. Whole30 does have some help in this department. Once you have finished your Whole30 they have steps for you to take that can help you to not feel completely overwhelmed. They also have a guideline on how to reintroduce foods properly. They don't expect you to live Whole365. They just want you to break your bad habits and feel more in control of what you're putting into your body (my words, not theirs).

I keep thinking about what I am going to reintroduce and what I am going to completely cut out. I think one thing that I am hardly ever going to have are gluten grains. What I mean by this is cutting things like: bread (all kinds), white/wheat flour, pasta, and bagels. I will probably incorporate things like brown rice, quinoa, corn, and couscous every now and then but I have to pay close attention to how my joints are feeling after reintroducing these non-gluten grains. Now dairy is going to be a little bit harder for me to refrain from. I have never noticed my body acting negatively towards dairy (i.e. I don't bloat up like a Macys day parade float after drinking a glass of milk) but I am well aware that cheese holds no nutritional value. So if I have to chose between cheese and no cheese on a salad for example, I will come to the conclusion that no cheese is better - it's not worth it. Now if I am making some zucchini lasagna and I want to use some cheese in that I will probably do so.

In the end it is all going to come down to the big question of "is it worth it?" Is that slice of pizza worth the extra 20 minutes I will have to do on the elliptical? Is that pint of ice cream worth the sugar rush my body will experience and the crash afterwards? Well ya, that second one seems kinda awkwardly framed. But you get the point!

Mhmmmmm - you go girl

The feeling I have today though is indescribable. I feel a sense of accomplishment but I also just feel GREAT! I don't have headaches, I sleep well, I have sustained energy throughout the day, I cook good food, I am in a better mood, and overall I just feel better. It is amazing to me that some people argue diet isn't a big part of health and longevity - that you can eat whatever you want as long as you exercise. I am not sure I buy into that logic because I used to eat pizza, burgers, ice cream, chips, and drink a bunch of beer and I felt sluggish and tired and didn't sleep for shit. All I know is changing my diet helped me feel better - and it could do the same for you!

What's going to happen to my blog? Well I am going to keep it around because I will more than likely do another Whole30 soon enough. I want to say thank you to my family and friends for supporting me in this endeavor. It means a lot to have a great support system around me. I also want to thank my readers and I hope that, if nothing else, my blog inspired one of you to make at least one small change in your lifestyle. Cheers!

(Oh, and for those of you who are dying to know... I lost 8 pounds in 4 weeks with only 3 trips to the gym. Just imagine what you could accomplish if you did a Whole60 incorporating exercise 3-6 times a week. Go out there and do it people!)

Day 27: Cooked, Cleaned, Shopped

Mah stocked fridge

Saturdays used to be so much fun and now they're full of grocery shopping, meal prep, and cooking. I honestly hate when you read a recipe and it says prep time is supposed to be like 15 minutes, because it always takes me twice as long. I mean they have to be talking about robots when they time that shit out. There is no way a normal human being takes 20 minutes to prep/cook a shepherds pie (which is what I made today). Aaaand on top of it taking a while to prep and measure and combine and brown all the stuff it takes like twice as long to clean all the extra bowls and spoons you use. Okay I'll get off my soap box about cooking - but seriously. My hands are all pruney from all the dishwashing. First world problems.

Mashed cauliflower

I went to Sprouts today and bought a good amount of stuff. Some fruit, veggies, almond milk, ghee, and some other random things. My fridge is stocked! I just have to remember when I bought what veggies so that they don't spoil before I cook them. That's the hardest thing is trying to cook all the fresh stuff you buy before it grows mold or little extremities. I've had to throw away some veggies a few days ago because they were all shriveled and nasty. So word to the wise if you're doing Whole 30: either pay super close attention to when you buy your produce so you can cook it before it goes bad or go to the grocery store like 4 times a week. Buuut I guess that's pretty much common knowledge...

Sprinkled paprika on top - yum!

So the shepherds pie I made was out of the first Well Fed cookbook and it came out pretty tasty! I'll put the recipe up on my blog soon, along with the recipe for mashed cauliflower. Mashed cauliflower is actually very delicious. The consistency came out a little wonky - a little too runny. So if I make them again I will have to add a little coconut flower or arrowroot powder to thicken them up. One modification for the shepherds pie would be to double the recipe for mashed cauliflower. I didn't feel like it covered enough of the meat layer. I also subbed ground turkey for ground lamb because I did not have any of the latter handy. The author of Well Fed offers other modifications to change up the flavor as well. My picture doesn't really do the dish justice because it tasted better than it looked. Overall it was a successful, but antisocial, Saturday... really craving a drink right about now though...

Day 25 & 26: Food Groups... What?

A Smörgåsbord of crap

Yet again I have not posted for the last few days... This week has just been a long week for me. And I am NOT finishing up my Whole30 very strong. Still lacking in the veggie department. It really does take a decent amount of prep to keep up with this routine. Yesterday I had extra time and I woke up and made this ground beef, egg, spinach mixture thing. It was okay but I don't think I would make it again. Plus it smelled funny. Tonight I cooked the Taj Mahal Chicken again, just because I really enjoyed that recipe and it was so simple. I need to thaw more meat though, because I am out...

With gas please (Euro style)

I feel like my experimenting in recipes and my blog have both been slacking. I started off funny, or at least roused up a little smile from those of you who read this, and now I it's just sad. I would hate to have my blog be boring as shit - but I feel like we've already reached that point. Like honestly, the most exciting part of my day was trying flavored sparkling water. La croix grapefruit. That was the most exciting part of my day? What in the hell is wrong with me? I enjoyed it so much that I seriously contemplated, and am still contemplating, going to Target to get some of the new summer release flavors. Yup. This is my life.

So lately I have been doing some research about Paleo and the Paleo diet, which is pretty much what the Whole30 is... Minus the Paleo approved desserts and snacks and stuff. The more and more "research" (if you can call Googling educational research) I did the more confused I was as to what is good/healthy for you. Eat meat because animal protein is great. Don't eat meat because there is no evidence it's beneficial to your heart. If you cut out grains and dairy you don't get the right vitamins. Cutting out carbs is bad. Cutting out carbs is good. Eat only lemons. Kale all day every day. Milk rocks. Milk rots your soul. Whole wheat is great, but it slowly eats away at your small intestine. At the end of the day it all makes my head spin. All I know is that the information and the way it was conveyed in It Starts With Food made sense to me.

Is this true?

You can live your life consumed with what you are consuming. But in the end it is ultimately up toyou what you decide to put in your body and why. I don't want to live my life constantly thinking about what foods I can or can't have. But at the same time I don't want to fill my body with chemicals and overly processed foods. It's a balance that I am struggling to figure out still. Once my Whole30 is up on Tuesday night, what am I going to start eating again? Cheese? Brown rice? Creamer in my coffee? Ahhhh. I wish the scientific community (aka nutritionists, doctors, the FDA, dietitians) got their shit together and just agreed on something. Oh, and that they would ban fast food restaurants because they're causing immense health problems in America and the rest of the world. But that conversation is for a different time.

*Day 24: Get to Know Your Hormones People (Please Read)

Okay, so since today wasn't very exciting food-wise for me I thought I would take the time to talk a little bit about one of the things I read in It Starts With Food that really stood out to me. It is kind of a long passage but if any of you are like me, which I am assuming at least some of you are, this scenario applies to you:

Not So Healthy Hormones: A Bad Day

Your alarm goes off at 7 a.m., and again at 7: 09, and 7: 18, at which point you head straight to the kitchen, ready for that first cup of coffee. Your cortisol levels are abnormally low in the morning (a dysfunctional situation created by an overly stressful life and worsened by unhealthy eating habits), which means you’re not feeling very bright or perky. You grab a low-fat blueberry muffin, a banana, and some orange juice on your way out the door, and stop at your favorite coffee shop for a large soy latte. Since your breakfast is almost exclusively fast-digesting carbohydrate (and sugar!), it quickly raises your blood sugar and insulin, aggressively driving energy into your liver and muscles. The high levels of blood sugar give you a kick-start, but by 10 a.m . lots of insulin has pulled too much sugar out of your bloodstream— which means you’re now experiencing the crash that often follows a sugar spike when you’re insulin resistant. This stressful blood sugar crash prompts a cortisol response, which uses glucagon to get your blood sugar back to normal. Glucagon breaks down liver glycogen and increases blood sugar, but since you’re metabolically overreliant on glucose for energy, you can’t use fat efficiently for fuel. Your brain translates these events as, “Need energy now!”— so you have another cup of coffee, plus half a bagel with peanut butter. Since you’re generally sedentary , your liver and muscles are still full. Some of the carbohydrate from the bagel is used for fuel, but the excess fuel is stored (or remains circulating in the bloodstream). At noon, you grab a small turkey sub (whole-wheat bread , turkey, low-fat cheese, and mustard), a small bag of baked potato chips, and a diet soda from the deli next door. Again, your carb-dense meal drives blood sugar and insulin levels up, and the caffeine in your soda also prompts a cortisol (stress) response, both of which serve to give you a short burst of energy. Even though there is some protein in the turkey, glucagon’s attempt to releasing stored energy is overshadowed by elevated insulin levels, so once again the sugar is used as fuel, while fat is stored and blood (and liver) triglycerides accumulate. A few hours later, all of that insulin has driven blood sugar levels too low— again— which means that by 3 p.m. you’ve hit the midafternoon trifecta: you’re tired, hungry, and mentally foggy. Luckily , you’ve stashed some healthy snacks for just such occasions and come up with a granola bar and a low-fat strawberry yogurt. Once again, your carbohydrate-rich snack serves to temporarily prop up your energy levels and mostly stave off your hunger. Work is busy, and you’re totally brain-dead by 4, so you grab a small iced coffee (with skim milk and a teaspoon of sugar) to get you through the rest of the day. The caffeine in the coffee provokes another cortisol response, which increases blood sugar to give you some energy. That works for a while, but by the time you head home at 5: 30, you’re stressed, exhausted, and cranky. You resist the urge to call for pizza delivery and make chicken parmigiana, with low-fat cheese and whole -wheat pasta, and a side salad. To help you deal with the stress of your day, you also have a glass of red wine. Thanks to leptin resistance, you eat more than you really need, feeling stuffed when you finally put down your fork. Just two hours later, however, you find yourself craving something sweet. You forage for a pint of frozen yogurt in the freezer and settle in front of the television. By 9, half the pint is gone. You’re exhausted from your day, but because of your blood sugar volatility and caffeine intake (all provoking a stress response), as well as your poor sleep habits, your cortisol is higher than it should be. You can’t seem to wind down, so you stay up until 11: 30, watching the news and sending a few emails. You don’t sleep well, tossing and turning for hours, until your alarm blasts you awake again the next morning... But even though the day we just described wasn’t so great, it wasn’t that bad, right? You still ate pretty “healthy” food, you still feel pretty good overall, and maybe you’re just a few pounds overweight, so things must be OK. Or maybe not— because the hormonal disruptions are invisible. Due in large part to your diet, they are occurring beneath your radar. You aren’t necessarily aware of their effects today, but that won’t be the case forever. Let’s see how this eating scenario plays out over months or even years. After all, this is a “typical day” for most of us. (Hartwig, 55-58)

PLEASE GO OUT AND BUY THIS BOOK!! If this small passage doesn't speak to you, then fine. Maybe Whole30 is not for you. Buuuuuut if you saw yourself in any little part of that you should do yourself a favor and go purchase It Starts With Food. Yes, maybe you don't do each one of these things on a daily basis but this was me before I started Whole30. And if you read the rest of the book it explains what happens to your body after 3 years of eating like this... So this should act a teaser and make you that much more intrigued to at the very least go read the book.

Day 23: Need to Remember to Eat...

This is what I am going to do next week...

One more week to go! Next Tuesday I am freeeeee. But I am not going to go ape shit or anything. I have 6 hours of class the next day so it's going to be a rather calm night. I almost don't even want to treat myself because I feel so good with my progress. Today I joined a gym for the first time EVER. It's only $1 a day with no contract - I pay month by month and can cancel at any time. It's a super great deal and when I pay for things I feel obligated to use them. So exercise + Whole30 = (should equal) GOLD.

I don't have a lot of update today... except for I have been so busy getting used to grad school and all the reading that I honestly sometimes forget to eat. It's like I am not hungry until about 3 hours after I wake up and then if I eat meal 1 at that time the rest of my meals are thrown off. It is also hard not to eat an entire meal in the middle of class. For example, tomorrow I have class from 9-12 and then 2-5. So I should eat before 8, from 12-1:30, and then after 5. Well I am planning on working out early in the morning before class, which doesn't leave a lot of room to eat. And then I have an appointment at 5:30. So I am really going to have to make sure I eat enough and at good times throughout the day. People who say they honestly have time for everything they want to accomplish during the day are full of crap.

My "dessert" = pear with cinnamon 

The lesson here is that eating is important. I know that I should enjoy every meal and not scarf it down. But it seems like my life does not allow for this. Besides, my schedule changes every day so I am constantly on the go, not on the go, at home, not at home. I am not complaining because I enjoy what I do and my hard work is going to pay off. I am just saying there is a delicate balance between eating and my schedule. Sometimes I need to remind myself to eat, which is probably caused by stress but honestly I think that by eating fresh, natural, and unprocessed foods my stomach has "shrunk". Or I am more frequently satiated if you want to put it that way. Either way you put it, I am feeling full more easily and I am forgetting to eat. The good and bad of Whole30 coupled with grad school...

Day 22: I Did NOT Have a Case of The Mondays Today!

Hello all. Or should I say my devote 4 or 5 followers. Haha. But seriously, whether you are reading this or not, I just want to say thank you to all of my supporters. I couldn't do this without my mom, dad, and Kevin. The trifecta of my rocks (if that even makes sense). People who hold it down for me. Whole30 is hard enough, so to have the support of my friends and family means a lot.

Mah Broth

Today was a good day for me, my health, and my food. I had a good breakfast, which was the left overbroccoli mash with some chicken and eggs. I needed the fuel because... wait for it... I WENT TO THE GYM TODAY! Yes people. I dragged my fat lil ass all the way to the gym on campus and worked out. Well, I don't know that you would actually call it a full workout because all I did was 20 minutes on the elliptical and some crunches. Ha! But i'll take it for my first day. I am forcing myself to work out at least 3 times a week starting off. Preferably up to 5 times a week. And I am going to start off slow with basic cardio (aka the elliptical), abs, and push ups. I think this is a good starting point for me. I really want to start exercising because I honestly feel like "It Starts With Food". Meaning the next step is being more active and exercising. I don't need to sit here and blog about the benefits of regular exercise, as I am aware all of you are adult human beings who have sat through at least one health class. Even if it was when you were in 6th grade and it was taught by your old sweaty gym teacher, who awkwardly and almost at a whisper explained the diagram of the female anatomy. Annnyways. Got a little off track there...

Italian style meatballs <3

Some other developments for the day included: successfully making 2 mason jars full of my own chicken broth, cooking up some delicious meatballs, and failing miserably at hard boiling eggs. Okay so first, the overnight chicken broth experiment was a success! (See picture above) I am excited to cook with the broth and taste the flavor it brings to my food. Second, I thawed some ground beef and made some amazingly tasty meatballs in only like 20 minutes (I will post the recipe in my recipe tab). I highly highly recommend making meatballs with ground meat of any kind. Both of the Well Fed cookbooks have some tasty meatball recipes in them. They're so easy to make and you can really experiment with different flavors. Go make meatballs people! Third, I for the life of

Busted ass eggs

me can't figure out how to freakin hard boil a gosh darn (G-rated) egg... I have literally tried everything and I follow all instructions to a tee. Rolling boil, cover, remove from heat, 10 mins, then into ice cold water. If anyone has a "miracle" recipe please share it in the comments below. Because my eggs come out so ratchet. Wheeewie. I lose half the egg in the pealing process.

Overall, a good start to a great month! Let's have a great September everyone. I am sending positive vibes *buzzz buzzzz* <-- those are my vibes. Embrace them.

Day 21: Turning Into a Lifestyle

Broccoli mush

Today marks the 3 weeks! I am proud of myself for making it this far and it's crazy that I only have 9 more days to go. Honestly, the more and more I eat like this the more I feel like it's turning into a way of life. After my 30 days I think that I will keep eating like this with a few modifications. Such as buying almond milk from the store. Yes, it is technically a processed food but I think I can live with myself if that's the worst of the worst of the processed foods I eat/drink. Overall though I will continue to eat a lot of veggies and meats and stay away from sugars. Especially sucralose and all of those "fake" sugars like Splenda. I will also stay away from grains... I feel a lot better not eating bread, pasta, cereal, bagels, etc. I don't feel as sluggish and my energy levels are really maintained throughout the day. But I think there is a level of enjoying life and enjoying food while you're at it.

Peaches minus the cream

Because my day was lacking of veggies yesterday I tried to incorporate more of them in my meals today. However, I ate a lot more fruit than I should have today... My breakfast was this experimental broccoli egg mush thing. I took leftover broccoli and grilled some onions and sautéed them together. Then I whisked 3 eggs and poured them over top. Season with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. It actually tasted pretty good. I am used to doing that with spinach but not broccoli. 

Chicken broth stewing...

I had a peach and a banana as an afternoon snack. And again I only had 2 MEALS?! Ugh. I am not sure if it's stress or what but I am having to force myself to eat 3 whole meals. For my last week my mission is to eat 3 good meals. I started Whole30 off strong and now I feel like I am failing. But hey, I am doing my best and I really do feel better. I hate to admit it but I am looking forward to taking the after pictures and getting on the scale. I know it's not about weight, but I am excited to see some of my hard work pay off. I feel my hard work paying off on the inside but it will be nice to see physical changes. In other news I am making my own chicken broth in my crockpot. It still has like 15 hours to go but I'll let you know how it turns out...

Day 20: Football, Franks, and Burgers

The eyes of TX are upon you!

Today was a great day for my personal life, but not so great for Whole30... I had a great Saturday because I ran some errands, got some reading done, and WENT TO MY FIRST UT FOOTBALL GAME! I was really excited but I have to say - the tailgate was not as fun without drinking. It's just such a social part of tailgating. Ice cold beer in one hand and a burger in the other. I did not experience this and I cried a single tear because of it. Someone had to pour some champagne on the ground and dedicate it to me (aka their homie). It's sad because I have not gone 30 days without alcohol since I turned 21... But to be honest the upside to that is I am not going to be hungover tomorrow. And I need to accomplish a lot tomorrow so I can't afford to be hungover.

SO DELICIOUS

Anyways, I got off to a great start this morning with meal 1: sweet potato hash browns with 2 fried eggs on top. I took the sweet potato and peeled it and then julienned it into tiny little strips. The latter was very difficult - well more difficult than I thought it would be. A sweet potato is not the softest and squishiest of vegetables. It was manageable though and the end result was fabulous. I seasoned the hash browns with salt, pepper, allspice, and some cinnamon. Sooooo tasty! I recommend them to anyone who loves sweet potatoes.

#selfie

I had some fruit and cashews halfway through the day, like a few hours before I left for the football game. I was expecting BBQ at the game and thought I could just snack on that. Well there were really only sausages. So I ate two of those with some yellow mustard... and no veggies. Today was a very veggie-less day. Sadly. It's strange because the longer I have been doing this the more and more I enjoy eating vegetables. Meal 1 is still the hardest time for me to eat vegetables, but I have become accustomed to it. I didn't eat anything at the game because I wasn't hungry after those sausages, which was probably for the best because I am not sure what I would've eaten. Let's just say that sporting events are very conducive to eating like a rabbit.

After the game I went bowling with my friend Tyler and I got a hamburger without the bun, with lettuce, pickles, onions, and mustard. It was actually quite pathetic looking. But it did the job. However, yet again I didn't have any veggies. You can't count the little pathetic scraps of white colored "lettuce" on top of my hamburger patty. Hopefully tomorrow will be a better day for good 'ol veggies. I hit the 3 week mark tomorrow!! Woo hoo!!

Day 18 & 19: Major Slackin Goin On...

My post-work snack

I apologize for not posting for the past few days. I have been busy busy busy. Trying to get through
my first week of school and last week of my internship. It is going to take a while to get used to my new schedule, which is going to change next week when I go back to working part time at the law firm. Needless to say, and will probably come as no shock, my Whole30 has really been lacking this past week. I know i've said this repeatedly but I really need to plan. I have this Monday off and it is going to be devoted to meal planning.

Olive oil infused with lemon!

So over the past two days I have been sticking to Whole30, except I really struggle in the mornings to eat vegetables. I have been snacking on some meat and fruit in the morning, which I know is not good. I had broccoli and steak this morning for breakfast so that was kosher with the Whole30 program. Went out to lunch and got a cobb salad with turkey. I have found that it isn't super difficult to go out and eat on Whole30 - except I feel like I constantly eat cobb salads. And I modify a lot of things when I order them. I also find eating out kind of a waste of money because I struggle paying $11 for a burger when all I am really going to eat is the patty. Plus, what am I supposed to do about condiments? Bring my own homemade ketchup? Eh... I don't think that's possible unless I carried around a little cooler in my purse. So after my Whole30 I might go back to eating regular condiments every now and then.

Fruit > Cake

Today was the last day of my internship and the lovely people I worked with decided to get me and the other intern a cake, cards, and a certificate. BUT the best thing that happened was a lady named Bonnie, who knew that I was doing Whole30 and couldn't have cake, went out of her way to cut up a bunch of fruit and make a fruit plate! It was amazing. Strawberries, watermelon, cantaloupe, kiwi, and pineapple. Soooo tasty and I didn't really crave the cake. Well scratch that - I wanted a piece. But after it was all said and done I felt just as satisfied with my fruit. It is very refreshing to know that there are people who support you and what you're trying to accomplish. I am blessed to have such a supportive network of friends and family to help me on my Whole30 journey. And if any of you are going to start Whole30 and need a buddy to do it with I would be glad to join you! It really has changed the way I view food, and I can't ever see myself going back to the way I ate before this...

Day 17: I Got 99 Problems and Grad School IS ONE

Today was the last first day of class... unless I miraculously decide to go get my PhD and be Dr. Mullins someday. Pssh. I only had one class today but I am seriously going to have to get used to my new schedule. I will especially have to get used to sitting in one classroom for 3 hours at a time. Wednesdays, except for today, are going to be hellacious because I have class from 9-12 and then 2-5. That's a good amount of sitting on my ars. I gotta get to exercising and soon.

#selfie

Another thing that I am really going to have to get used to is my eating schedule. I failed today, yet again, to prep anything. I also somehow lost the icepacks that I bought so that's a bummer. Six bucks that i'll never get back. So I scrambled this morning to eat a little chicken with BBQ sauce and an apple. That was at like 9... and I didn't eat again until a little after 4?! Holy shit. It was intense. I don't even know how I made it through the day. I guess I was running on adrenaline. Meal 2 was better than meal 1 because I ate green beans instead of fruit.

So tonight I redeemed myself by grilling up some steak on ze George Foreman and boiling some broccoli. I didn't eat a meal 3 because by the time I got home and settled it was already like 8:30 pm. Ugh. I feel so out of whack. I really need to get my meal prep in check! I need to cook a ton of stuff on Sunday and Monday night so that I am prepared for the week. I also did a bunch of dishes tonight. Ran the dishwasher and did some by hand.

Okay - I apologize that this post is more boring than watching an old person try to eat corn on the cob without their dentures...wait that sounds actually kind of exciting, no?... but I am tired and it's been a long and hectic day. I have not been doing so well during week 3 of my Whole30 but I am hanging in there... by a thread.

Day 16: The Day I Saved One Life... And Took Another

Wellp, today was the first and hopefully only day that I will ever break the Whole30 program. Before you start gettin' all judgmental and shit you must know that I broke my program in order to save a life. I don't know whose life, but a life nonetheless. I donated blood. Yes, that is how I saved a life. An entire pint of blood was drained from my body today. And what's funny is when I asked the lady how much she took out and she said a pint all I could think about was fucking ice cream. Go figure.

More like death newtons

So here's how it went down. I have O+ blood and there is currently a shortage. As any good citizen would do I decided that it was my turn to give blood - at any cost. The last, and only time, I attempted to give blood (which was 6 almost 7 years ago in military technical school) I passed out in the chair almost immediately after the needle went in. Not because I am a pansy and am afraid of needles, I was just an emaciated little stressed out 18 year old. Anyways, because of this the lady was extra cautious and made me chug, yes chug, an entire can of fruit punch flavored gatorade before even giving blood. Boy was that a sugar rush. After giving blood she made me sit in a chair and eat a snack. Snack - the death word. Out of all of my choices I decided a Fig Newton was the best way to go. It's Fig flavored and a fig is a fruit, right? Cool. Needless to say I felt ashamed and proud all at the same time. The downside was that about 5 hours later I had the worst stomach ache of my life. Sugar overload and my body didn't like it.

Cobbbbbbbb Salad

On the flip side, I went out to lunch today and was treated to a very tasty cobb salad - without the cheese of course. Chicken, avocado, egg, bacon, lettuce, onions, and lemon/oil as the dressing. Twas quite delicious. I was full for the rest of the day and came home feeling like cooking would be the death of me. So I ran over to HEB and got one of those already made rotisserie chickens without any seasoning and ate some of that. I paired it with some of my homemade BBQ and lemme tell you, that ish is good. Side note: if you're going to attempt to make the BBQ sauce (which probably none of you ever will) go a little easy on the cider vinegar. It comes out rather strong if you use the recommended amount. Overall, my day was eventful and I now look like an addict of some sort because both my arms have puncture wounds in them - oh, because I also got vials of blood drawn at my doctor's office this morning. Ya, anyone say heroin-addict-look-alike? I only kid. I only kid.

Day 15: Monotonous Hell

Okay, well maybe hell is too strong of a word. I don't really feel like I am in hell but I don't really feel focused on Whole30 this week. I am halfway through and I am just so overwhelmed with other crap going on in my life that I am kind of giving the cold shoulder to the program this week. I stopped taking pictures of my food, I still haven't made the mayo or any type of dressing, and I haven't cooked 1/4 of the meat that I have in my freezer. Needless to say I am really slacking here people.

Shout out to Haley Calhoun!

Today I ate leftover hard-boiled eggs and green beans for breakfast. Leftover pork loin and brussel sprouts for lunch. By the time dinner rolled around I wasn't even hungry! I forced myself to eat some chicken and a pear - no veggies!! Ahhh. I am literally falling apart at the seams. I am starting my second and final (thank God) year of grad school on Wednesday and I am just trying to wrap my head around the fact that I am not going to have a life (click the link, it is hilarious) until approximately December 12th or 13th... That's ages away. I am taking more interesting, yet more challenging courses this semester. Which on the one hand is great because this is probably the last year of education that I'll ever receive (via a university), but bad on the other because my ass is about to be grass. I will probably have between 200 and 500 pages of reading to do - per week! FML. At least the topics are interesting to me.

Hokay, but back to my diet. I am just not preparing the food the way I want to be. I desperately need to do dishes because shit do you go through an ass-ton of tupperware! I mean jeez Louise people. I go through plastic containers like it's nobody's business. And my tiny little dishwasher can't keep up. Plus I am lazy. So word to the wise - if you're gonna do Whole30 get your container game in check. I am determined to finish the last 2 weeks of my Whole30 strong. Like I mentioned in my previous post I am more than likely to extend because I am just not getting the desired results after 30 days. I need to get my ass on a stair master and quick...

(To all my G-rated readers, I apologize for all the profanity in this post. I am tired and cranky and that turns me into a sailor...)

Day 14: Sex with Your Pants On...

I don't know if this is the 14 day slump or what but I am feeling stuck. The second week is over and I am just feeling so monotonous. According to the Whole30 timeline days 12-15 tend to be described as:

Days 12-15: Boundless energy! Now give me a damn Twinkie.

Hurray! The slump is over! Your pants fit again! Your energy levels are better than normal – you’re downright Tigger the bouncing tiger! But something weird is happening. You’re dreaming. Not crazy nightmare or strange surrealist dreams, either. Incredibly 

Fluffy gooey goodness

normal and realistic dreams – about donuts. Or Twinkies. Or Snickers.* In your mind, sometimes you get caught and feel guilty. Sometimes you just brazenly eat the contraband. But then, the feelings start following you into the waking hours. Suddenly, you’re craving things you don’t even like. (For me, it’s Diet Coke and Twinkies, for Melissa Hartwig, it was fast-food cheeseburgers!) Your co-workers’ heads transform into giant Girl Scout Cookies as you gaze on in disbelief. Seriously, you’ve almost hit the halfway mark, and now this?! All joking aside, though, this phase gets really intense and for some people. This is the part of the program where our minds try to drive us back to the comfort of the foods we used to know. Our food relationships are deeply rooted and strongly reinforced throughout the course of our lives and breaking through them is really big deal. Journaling can be especially enlightening and helpful during this phase, and helpful for reflection later. Take some time to jot down what you’re craving, how you’re feeling and what tools you’re using to work through the cravings.
 *The cravings people get, and the dreams they often have, rival those of pregnancy. One person told me they craved pickles and Doritos (together) during this phase! 

Okay - so my pants are fitting a little differently, and I am having a more steady energy pattern. But all in all I feel strong cravings. Mainly for one thing and one thing only - pizza. I don't know what it is but I love pizza. I never really thought I had an unhealthy relationship with pizza but I apparently do. I want to try to make a "healthy" version using cauliflower crust or coconut/almond flour. Buuuuut you can't do this on the Whole30. This is called having Sex With Your Pants On (SWYPO).

I want this...

Apparently cauliflower crust pizza is like a gateway drug for the real deal. And I get that, but it's hard. I feel like this unhealthy relationship I have with food, mainly salty hot greasy food, is something that may take longer than 30 days to "deal" with. Today has been a day of contemplation. I am contemplating extending my Whole30 to Whole45 or possibly even Whole60. I am not feeling the results I want inside and not achieving the physical results outside. I know it's not about weight loss, but let's get real people - of course I want to look better. This also means I need to start going to the gym. Something that I am going to add to my routine 1 September... So today may have been a low point in my program, but there is always tomorrow, which just happens to be my halfway point!! That is if I decide to only stick to 30 days. Just gotta push through it!

Day 13: Such a Saucy Saturday

Did some more experimental cooking today. I made the BBQ sauce from the Well Fed 2 cookbook. So far this cookbook has pretty much been my bread and butter (so to speak) when it comes to cooking. I have really enjoyed all of the recipes I have made thus far and am looking forward to making more!

Po lil' joey...

I had to go to Sprouts to get some last minute ingredients that I didn't have: dates and sunflower seed butter. I have never had a date. I've been on plenty of dates but I've never eaten one. Ha. Ohhhh, get it? I couldn't find any fresh ones so I just got dried Medjool dates and they were reasonably priced, surprisingly. Come to think of it I am not sure I have ever seen a fresh date. Is that something people eat? I tried one on it's own before putting it in the BBQ mixture and I thoroughly enjoyed it! It was like a little healthy candy. If you haven't tried one then you should get on that. They also actually had sunflower seed butter, which I wasn't expecting. It's kind of a greyish/greenish color and tastes just like a bunch of ground up sunflower seeds - obviously. I am not sure I would make a SB&J with it or anything but it was good. OH they also carry ground kangaroo meat, in case anyone is interesting in being super exotic. Tastes like chicken?

I also got some Kombucha and tried that. I didn't get the one with the chia seeds though. I wasn't ready for that. It was pretty good actually. Just like a carbonated tea drink thing. Not bitter because it was sweetened with fruit juice. Speaking of fruit juice, I bought some organic unsweetened cherry juice to drink and to put in my tea. It is really tasty and it's nice to drink somethings besides water. Cherries are my favorite and I can have them every which way. I was going to buy some dried black cherries but they were too expensive. I was used to buying the ones in the bag but those have an ass load of sugar. I'll have to just splurge and buy the ones at Sprouts or go without those sweet lil' treats. Technically I am not supposed to be buying anything to "snack" on. That goes against the Whole30 program...

Speaking of which... I actually did something today that I am not supposed to do. I only had meal 1 and meal 2. I woke up at 0600 to feed the dogs and fell back asleep until about 1000. Didn't eat meal 1 until like 1130 and then I didn't eat again until like 1730. Soooo that's bad. Maybe I'll have a late night small small meal 3. But we'll see. I can't be perfect every day ;) My meal 2 was really good though because I got to use my new BBQ sauce on my leftover pork loins. I was pleased and now I am content. Go checkout my recipes tab for the BBQ sauce recipe. Next sauce is going to have to be the mayo. I've put it off for way to long.

Day 12: Grillin & Chillin

Cute lil' guys

Friday. Thank God for Friday's. When you work 5 days a week Friday has such a different meaning. It's fabulous. Fabulous Friday. Food wise today was a good day. Nothing special or out of the ordinary included in my diet. I have a good amount of leftover and thawed meat that I need to eat so I keep eating the same things over and over again. I have been slacking on recipe experimenting and sauce making. I still have yet to make the mayo! Something that I am dying to make. And I want to make the BBQ sauce so I can make BBQ pulled chicken in the crockpot (you know who you are). Won't be the exact same without a bun and some cheddar cheese but it'll still be dee-lish.

Breakfast was scrambled eggs with some of those small red, yellow, and orange sweet peppers. Those are so convenient and I think they have a better taste than bigger bell peppers. I would recommend experimenting with them because they can for sure go in more things than just eggs. An added bonus is that when you cut them they sometimes turn out like cute little flower things (see picture above).

Lunch was a salmon salad because I still have some of that sockeye and it's still good, but I have to eat it fast. It's strange how much flavor and satisfaction I can get from a gown of kale mix, spinach, salmon, olive oil, and lemon juice. Before Whole30 I would've added nuts and cheese and some heavy low-fat dressing that I thought was semi healthy because it had zero calories. It's amazing how much healthier you can be if you make your own sauces and dressings. Salads become so unhealthy once you douce them in Ranch dressing. Or even fat-free or low-fat balsamic vinegar, which contains a good amount of sugar in it. It does take more effort to make your own stuff but once you make a jar it can last you. Bottom line is that I need to get on that shit. Get off my lazy butt. Especially with classes starting next Wednesday. I won't have a ton of free time...

Hey! Can we have some?

I am dog sitting for Jim and Marianne this weekend. Bully #1: Simon. Bully #2 Barkley. They're my pals. Bonus - they have a nice gas grill that I grilled some pork loins on. I must admit that today was the very first time I have EVER grilled on a real grill. I mean, I own a George Foreman but let's be real people - it doesn't compare to a grill. My pork loins turned out good for my first time. They were a little dry because I think I might've left them on the grill a little too long. But hey, I'm learning. Simon and Barkley sure looked like they wanted some pork! Just look at those faces. Adorbs.

Day 11: Quite an Eventful Day

Today was a very interesting day for my Whole30 experience. Only the second day since I started that I went out to eat, and boy I went out to eat. I met some friends for lunch at a taco place and instead of getting a taco without the tortilla I decided to get a jicama salad with a side of grilled chicken breast. Sadly I didn't take a picture of it, but it was essentially some jicama sticks, cucumber, and mandarin oranges on a bed of carrots... Needless to say it had no lettuce or spinach and it was pretty pathetic looking. More and more I am feeling like a rabbit. So I failed at lunch at being really creative with my Whole30 because I could've gotten away with eating a taco minus the cheese and tortilla with sauce on the side. Oh well - you live and you learn.

One of these things is not like the other

After work I met up with my friends to hang out for the evening (how old lady did that just sound?). I took
some leftover chicken and carrots in my lunchbox, so that I could have that for dinner. I was around alcohol more than usual today and it was tough to not partake - not gonna lie. Going to a bar and sitting there drinking water isn't as fun as sippin on a nice cold one. And sometimes people ask why I am not drinking. But there are many reasons people don't drink. Medicine, pregnancy, other health reasons, religion, personal choice. Whatever the reason may be, not everyone drinks. But it is a VERY social thing to do and it was hard to not join in tonight. We went to Top Golf and the group ordered some chips, guac, quesssssso, beer, and wings. I decided to enjoy some rabbit food (aka carrots and celery), while every once in a while being super adventurous and dipping it in the guac.

Overall it was a tough but good day. I feel confident that I can finish the rest of my days out strong. I am feelin good but it will be nice to have a glass of alcoholic drink every now and then.

Day 10: Double Hump & Double Digits Day

Today I hit double digits and I am almost halfway there... I am almost to 15 that is. I have to admit I get really confused with the whole "30 days" thing. This may sound super blonde (don't get offended all you blonde people, this isn't your first rodeo) but I feel like 30 days should just be 1 month. I started August 11th and I want to finish September 11th... Wait now I am rethinking that. Okay I am just typing as I go people. So technically I will be done September 10th. But that's a wednesday and I don't like that. So I am going to be done September 12th, which is a Friday so I can have a celebratory alcoholic beverage. Don't judge me. Now that we got all of that cleared up, I know you
guys were super concerned with when my stop date was...

Today was a good day for food. I enjoyed my meals and I felt like I was satiated all day today, which is what matters. Breakfast was some chicken and carrots that I slow cooked in my crockpot while I was sleeping. It was quite simple to prepare. Last night I cut up some carrots, celery, and onion (into big chunks) and tossed them in the bottom of the slow cooker - oh and 1 lemon quartered. I then covered the whole chicken that I got from Sprouts in a rub made from paprika, chili powder, garlic powder, salt, pepper, and some thyme. Then I just plopped the chicken into the crockpot, turned it on low for 8 hours, and slept. Now I've read a few places that you're only supposed to cook chicken for 6 hours. But this came out juicy and flavorful and I was quite pleased with it. I think next time I will try different spices so that I can get a different kind of flavor. Overall it was a success. I love my slow cooker.


Lunch was a salmon salad. I took some of the leftover sockeye I baked the other night and laid it on a bed of kale mix and spinach. Drizzled some olive oil and squirted some lemon over top for the "dressing" and it tasted really good. Simple but filling. Dinner was the crockpot chicken and carrots with some applesauce and cinnamon. I did snack on some fruit today... possibly a little too much. I had cantaloupe, raspberries, and blueberries. They were really good and probably only 2 servings, which I think for the entire day is fine. I also bought some Rooibos tea and some magnesium (powdered form). Rooibos is an herbal non-caffinated tea that has antioxidants, and magnesium is supposed to be the "anti-stress" drink... I am about to take some before I go to bed so I will let y'all know if I am feeling less stressed. HAHA - ya right ;)

One more random note... I had some random cravings today about having whipped cream and gum and little things like that. It's only day 10 but sometimes it feels like I've been doing this for forever. I wouldn't say I am a person that has a crazy sweet tooth either. But I really really miss lattes. Like a lot. And it's fall and Starbucks is about to release the PSL on 25 August... it's going to be so hard not to get one. I think after Whole30 I will indulge on PSLs every once in a while. Shit happens. Pumpkin spice happens.

Kimchi, Kombucha, and... Sauerkraut?

Yummm cabbage

Today I did some research and figured out some possible solutions to my... issue... I am going to try a few things and hope they help. First, I am going to start eating naturally fermented foods such as kimchi and sauerkraut. According to Whole30, " raw fermented vegetables, like sauerkraut and kimchi... provide a rich source of nutrition and digestion-enhancing enzymes. The fermentation process also provides natural probiotics, helping the intestinal tract maintain a healthy balance of bacteria by increasing the “good guys.”" (It Starts With Food p.157) And they recommend including these fermented veggies in your diet a few times a week. 

Doesn't look as glorious now does it?

Second, I am going to try Kombucha - even though Wikipedia says: Drinking kombucha has been linked, in rare cases, to serious side effects and deaths, and improper preparation can lead to contamination. Seems legit... All the health nuts are drinking it so why the hell not. It is approved on Whole30 as long as it doesn't have any added sugars. So I am gonna give it a try. If it'll help get my regular, by all means let's do it.

Third, I am going to order some fish oil from this website (I am getting the starter kit). In liquid form. Yes people, liquid (flavored) fish oil. Yumm. This is supposed to, for lack of better words, lube up my system. Ya, shit just got real. No pun intended. Third and a half, I am going to start taking super enzymes, or digestive enzymes. These are supposed to help with digestion. Duh. Whole30 has a supplement evaluation checklist that you can use to see if the supplements you take are Whole30 approved. They also have a list of specific supplements they take and why they take them. But supplements are a topic for another post.

I hope mine turns out like this...

Of course I am not going to do these things all at once. Especially because I probably won't purchase my fish oil until I get paid, and I may not even like the taste of Kimchi. I am going to trythis recipe (omitting the sugar - obvi) and see. It's kinda creepy though because you have to store it in a dark place for like 3 days. I guess when you personally pickle or ferment something it's different than just grabbing a jar of pickles off of the shelf. Or out of the 'frigerator if you're Kevin and love your Claussens. But something's gotta happen soon, and I am willing to take dire measures (aka ferment cabbage in the crevasses of my apartment) in order to get my gut bacteria in order. Guess my body is just getting used to changes like anything else...

Day 9: Spice It UP!

Spice-adise... get it?

Today after work I found my new favorite place. The spice aisle at HEB. No I am not talking about
the one with all the little red caps and random Mexican spices. I am talking about the Mecca... well the Mecca of plain 'ol grocery stores. It's really neat because they have all of these fresh and organic spices and some spice mixes in these big jars and you can get baggies and put as much or as little as you want. Okay, now I am sure you all have seen these types of things before and just kind of walked by because it looked expensive. Well it's actually cheaper. And you can control how much you want. I bought like 10 spices (half of the names I couldn't even pronounce) for like $5. 'Twas amazing. One huge plus of Whole30 is that it is forcing me to try new things that I would've never tried before. Like the spice arrowroot. It's in a few of the recipes I am going to try and I still have no idea what it is. My advice to all of you is pick a new recipe with some new and exotic spices! It really does make a difference.

My breakfast was something that I used to eat almost every day with Kev (minus the chicken). Good 'ol spinach and eggs with some garlic powder and basil. They sometimes get a little soggy because of the water in the spinach, so you have to be careful. But it's a great way to get your green veggies and your protein. I put it in this neat little cube thing I got from the Container store. Sistema makes them and I love them. You can also find them at Target and Bed Bath & Beyond. They clip in place so you don't have to worry about them opening in your bag. They carry a bunch of different types and microwavable ones and soup bowls and ya. Check 'em out on Amazon as well. My next investment is going to be in one of their salad containers. They're neat but they're like $15 so yaaaaa.... not really rolling in the dough at the moment.

Colorful, tasty, and healthy

If there was an award for most Ghetto Whole30 dinner tonight's dinner would probably win. I got some of the leftover ground turkey, tomato paste, and green chile sauce and put it all together in the microwave. To me, that is pretty ghetto for some reason. I just didn't feel like cooking tonight. That's one thing that the Whole30 will do to you - force you to cook like a madman. I am constantly cooking and dicing and chopping and stirring and washing and frying and sautéing and sizzling and drizzling and scooping and plopping and freezing and... well yea you get the picture. My hands are so

pruney from washing them that I desperately need some hand salve or some straight up vaseline. Ew. Overall though, I am very pleased with how I feel on Whole30. I definitely have more energy and it's sustained energy. Meaning I don't really feel the 3 o'clock slum. The one complaint I do have (stop reading now if you're a pansy or embarrassed easily) is that my bowel movements are just not as regular as I thought. What is up with that? I eat so many veggies and it's like nuh'in. Ok that's enough TMI for the day. That's all folks...

Day 8: One Week Down...Three To Go!

Dear readers, (all 6 of you) I apologize for not posting yesterday... I was lazy and tired and I failed you. Forgive me... or don't. No matter, I will keep posting when I have time. Speaking of time, I am starting my second year of grad school next Wednesday so posts may begin to be shorter and more sporadic. Hang in there with me though.

Snack time <3

Alright, so yesterday I hit the one week mark! I would say the first week was the hardest... I am not sure if it
was the change in diet or change in my life that caused it, but my stomach was all over the place for the first 3 or 4 days. It's gotten a lot better over the last few days, but what's still really hard is eating. That sounds weird but I honestly have to force myself to consume breakfast still! What is that? I think it might be that I am eating too late. Since I am not starving throughout the day I will almost forget to eat and that's bad. I am doing 100 million other things and then I look at the clock and its 7:30 at night and I haven't even started cooking dinner. Another side effect of eating too late are these crazy vivid dreams I've been having. Not all of them are bad, but I wake up remembering them almost to a tee. It's very strange...

Hokay, so I pretty much had ground turkey and leftover cauliflower rice for two meals yesterday. With some added green chile, which I am very pleased is Whole30 approved. It feeds the New Mexican inside of me. Leave all jokes about that one at the door please. Plus, HEB (the TX supermarket) has Hatch green chile everywhere right now. And it's cheap. Like 78 cents a pound or something like that. I need to cook some green chile chicken stew with approved ingredients. I'll get right on that.

Freezer section at Costco

I went to COSTCO yesterday and bought like 15 pounds of meat. Haha. My freezer seriously looks like a mini meat market. I bought sockeye salmon, pork loins, ground beef, chicken breasts, ground turkey, and a small child. Kidding on that last one. Obviously. Needless to say I am set for at least 2 weeks! Protein, protein, protein baby. I made the sockeye salmon with an olive oil, lemon, and dill sauce on top. Came out pretty tasty. I had that for dinner last night with some leftover sweet potatoes. I also splurged and bought a big ass container of cashews. Mmmm mmmm. Gotta love me some cashews!