Whole30- The Tiger Blood Days 18 and 19

Here you go, wait for it....my tiger blood video!

Hahahahahha! Thought you'd enjoy that....that was many hours of retakes and editing I hope you know! (jk)

Some of you have asked me some questions about this and that....and I am so excited that my silly little food pictures and commentary is of some value to some of you.  Whether entertainment, nosiness or because you are doing whole30 as well....I am glad to know that my work here is not floating in hyperspace on some alien's Facebook page title "what stupid earth people do...."

First: Here is the almond butter I use:

Got it on one of my first whole30 grocery trips. I got the crunchy.  The crunchy bits are cashews! Remember: cashews, macadamia nuts and hazelnuts are the preferred nuts.  Almonds are suggested not as often. Raw is better because the lack of roasting keeps more of the nutrients in the nuts.  So next time I refill my nuts from TJ, I am getting the raw.  Being a rookie who not fully read the books yet,  I got unsalted, roasted, not raw.  But I use this maybe once, twice a week.  Needs to be refrigerated.

Next- Do not walk, RUN and go buy this....from the gods....Raw Cashew Butter....omfg....

 

So, my friend Jessica went to My Organic Market (MOM's -my new home) one day and found some sampler butters to try. She ripped it open and tried it with me,  her eyes rolled into her head and said it tasted like white chocolate. Now, I had to try.  White chocolate isn't my first thought but is it soooo dreamily smooth unlike the coarseness of the other butters.  Because it is raw, it has such a natural sweetness that you keep looking at the ingredients on the jar, swearing it has some kind of sugar in it. I am afraid during a moment of stress I could sit on the kitchen floor with a spoon and do some serious damage here.  Lovely.  MOM's ....it's not located in the thick of the other butters...it's off up a few shelves and to the left....I don't know why ....but it certainly deserves to not be below with those other peon butters HA!  And it doesn't have to be refrigerated!!! I like this because my sensitive teeth doesn't like cold foods anyway and room temperature foods have better flavor I think.

Next: Sugar-free bacon is hard to find!

 

I think I should keep buying these in groups of FIVE, that perhaps if they think it's super popular they will buy more and always have tons of it.  The bad news...there are only 8 slices per package, maybe nine if you won the lottery this week. But the price is $5.49 but if you are the only one doing Whole30, you will become a miserly witch over each 68 cent slice and give the rest of your family the organic uncured, nitrite-free, OTHER bacons WITH sugar and SAVE this stuff for YOU! Strips of gold.  Okaaaayyyyy, if your whole family is doing Whole30 you better buy five packages at once too! I get out my griddle and do two packages at once, put in a ziploc....good for two weeks. Two package for one family for one meal, easy. Personally, I have no desire to being making bacon every day.  But batch frying makes my soul happy to have days off from greasy messes. I should go buy stock in this company....

Last product review for today: GHEEEEEEEEEE!!!! Hello, lovahhhhh. (I visualize Sarah Jessica Parker saying this while she's oogling designer shoes)

GIANT JAR.  At Mom's the largest jar they have is Organic Valley Ghee, 13 oz. jar is $12.99.  At Amazon.com this baby comes 32 fl. oz ...TWO for 35.00 (free shipping if you have PRIME, like me) for a price of 17.00 buck. *take calculator out* ...Unit price of Organic valley- 99 cents per ounce.  Ancient Organics- 53 cents.  No refrigeration unless been open for over 2 months.  Beautifully packaged, all paper, boxes can be repurposed for holiday time. Can be used as lotion but I am afraid that I'd start licking myself like the cats or they'd start on me....

Day 18:

Breakfast: Nuts and Berries, felt like a light day watching the SNOW fall for 1/2 hour on April 9!!! WTH!
Lunch: Leftover sausage, onions & peppers and fried eggs! Few berries...Love!

Dinner: Chicken Nuggets (organic chicken coated in coconut flour, egg wash , coated with seasoned unsweetened coconut and ground almonds), sauteed Kale and roasted carrots in ghee, raspberries and homemade mayo and Tessemae's ketchup to dip. (note: going to try another time with only coconut, by the end of dinner, the coating falls too easily off the nugget).

Day 19:

Breakfast: Cashew butter on bananas with raspberries & lil bit of cinnamon sprinkle. Coconut cream in my coffee.

Lunch: Spinach, bacon and tomato frittata (with enough leftover for next week's breakfasts!)

Dinner: Ribeye steaks, grilled asparagus with ghee, balsamic beets and strawberries (picture to come)

Additional notings: Some of you have asked me "Is K-man doing Whole30 too?" The answer is yes and no.  Kinda, is not a proper answer.  Yes, with me. No, away from home. At dinner he eats whole30 with me and expresses no whining about not having bread/rolls as we used to. During the day away at work, K-man eats what he's craving.  While he is still working his last days before retirement of 35 years from his devoted service to our city, he will enjoy eating what he does with his coworkers at his favorite haunts until the end of this month. 

K-man is a man-boy who likes his peanut butter, sandwiches, oatmeal and ice cream (cakes and cookies too). I'd like him to experience Whole30 to see first hand (not from ME telling him) how food choices (diet) can really have a positive effect and NOT make you pine and crave for crap. (Two hours after dinner he's searching around for treats and snacks- he has a HUGE Sugar Dragon in him and doesn't think it's a problem. 2 hours after dinner I am content and ready for bed. This is still very scary for him because he can't disassociate 30 days of discipline from a lifetime of denial. I try to explain that under Whole30, you go through an amazing change of not CRAVING empty calories foods. But when I start to get on my soap box, he reverts backs to the rebel teen who doesn't want to be told what to do and I begin to feel like that dog owner who is pulling their dog into the bathtub who hates getting wet.

The man who is controlled by his wife either doesn't know it or is okay with it.  The man who free to do whatever he wants, can eat what he wants and has no children to take care of anymore, the moment something new is suggested by their wife they think their freedoms are threatened and they begin to buck. I am willing to admit that I did not help myself at all by having/making tempting things around the house and buying those favorites of my husbands to contribute to his sugar delinquency. I am "fixing me" and when K-man wants to do Whole30 correctly and not partly, I will be here. So all I can do now is keep on truckin'....and me do me!


*clawing gesture* Rawr!

Whole30- The Tiger Blood Days 16 and 17

Tiger Blood! Are any of you familiar with what THIS is in reference to?  Lollolololl. Yes, Charlie Sheen in his whacked out, drug induced manic you-tube posts....WOW....that would be an interesting look on me!  However, I am not sure if I will scare or entertain my middle schoolers with that portrayal. 😸 Sadly, I am not looking, acting or feeling like THAT.  Drat. Maybe I would feel like cleaning the house from top to bottom with THAT energy. But it's all good.  At least I feel good and happy.

Day 16 Menu-

Breakfast: 2 hard boiled eggs and 2 homemade sausage patties (no, I still am not tired of this, it's already made, convenient, I can mix it up on the weekend)
Lunch: Chicken salad, with onions, shredded carrots and peppers with homemade mayo (this was the last of the roasted chicken I made the day before I started-great value of time and energy) and almond butter drizzled banana chunks. Finished a half bottle of kombucha.
Dinner: Leftover chili on a veggie mix, the last of the leftover chicken poppers (sauteed peppers, onions and zucchini in ghee) and orange slices.

Day 17 Menu-

Breakfast: 2 hard boiled eggs and 2 slices of bacon
Lunch: Leftover veggies and chili and romaine salad
Dinner: Sauteed peppers and onions, organic Italian sausages, 1/2 sweet potato with ghee (not seen sliced oranges)

 More notations:

Still no allergy meds. Next, do any of you get those annoying bumps on your upper arms? I did. Gone!  Now, I didn't have the chronic bump problem that were pervasively sand paperish and red....like I have seen or accidentally touched on other girls.  But mine were minor enough, that  I could detect them.  I couldn't loofah enough in the shower or moisturize to get rid of them.  The joint pain is radically diminished but faint disappears over the day. As for the heel pain, it too fades over the day, which I think is more weight related than food reaction. I had this many years ago when I was at my heaviest (365 lbs, yeah, I will own it) although I am not close to that anymore but I really believe the joint and heel pains was my body's way to stop me earlier from getting bigger again.  My body was used to being so much lighter since 2005 that by starting the heel pain again to light a fire under my butt and do something.  And I did, fire lit! Yesterday was the first day that I felt and looked different when I got dressed in the morning and that is awesome.  Nothing worse than getting dressed every morning and by passing the mirror because you don't even wanna look.  Now I do!


 Tiger Blood -Raawwwrrrrr🙀

Whole30 Day 14 and 15

Still no weird dreams but halfway baby!!!

Day 14

Breakfast: 2 hard boiled eggs, 1 bacon slice, sausage patty
Lunch: leftover chicken and confetti cauliflower
Dinner: Homemade chili, half an avocado, sauteed kale and strawberries.

Easy Sauteed Kale!

2 small bunches of lacianto or Dinosaur Kale
2 cloves of garlic
salt and pepper to taste
ghee or olive oil
juice of half a lemon

Wash and tear your Kale leaves, saute garlic in your ghee or olive oil. Add Kale leaves and stir several times and cook for 5-7 minutes, salt and pepper to taste.  Shut off heat, squeeze lemon all over leaves and stir.  Cover and let rest for 5 minutes.  Enjoy!  This was my first try at eating cooked Kale.  Loved it!

Day 15

Breakfast: 2 hard boiled eggs, bacon slices, banana and blackberries
Lunch: chicken salad in a lettuce wrap.
Dinner: Chicken Poppers, guacamole, salsa, mixed greens salad, strawberries

 

 Noteable Notes:  Still feeling great, I think a lot about this new plan and how it's hard to not call it a diet but I am really committed to eating organic and grass-fed, etc from now on....I've been on so many diets and they were mostly torture but this isn't.  So I visualize always, will I stay on whole30 or will I go Paleo....that kinda stuff. Have you tried Kombucha? I highly recommend it.  I had heard much about it but never knew why people were drinking it.  It is fermented tea and many companies sell it and their own flavors.  This is good because for the same reason we want to eat yogurt for the probiotic effect we knew in our tummies that those who can't eat dairy, should drink Kombucha.  Unless you are going to eat sauerkraut and kimchi....drinking is easier. I have only tried this company so far and I am going to stick with it.  I know I have heard others try others and have been disgusted but these are offset with natural juices which is compliant for whole30.  If you want to get fancy and place it in a wine glass and pretend you are getting alcohol (it does have a certain tang.) Start slow with flavors you know you will like like strawberry, citrus or cranberry....one of my friends tried the one with chia seeds and she said it was slimey.....lol.  I think I may skip that one....

Here's Kombucha in your eye! Ouch!

Whole30 - Days 12 and 13

I dream of junk food? No such dreams here....perhaps my work thoughts are more pervasive? I've never been a food dreamer no matter how deprived I have been in the past. I've been on plenty of DIETs in my lifetime....emphasizing the DIE part....clearly they worked but the same old eating habits kicked back in and the weight fell back on....But the whole30 makes so much sense....how could you NOT want this to be a new way to eat, for real? Other than adjusting to not having beans, rice, bread, dessert around....they just aren't needed, they are just calories!  If you do this plan right, you will not even WANT them. But the plan helps us find how these foods impact how our body works or more importantly how we FEEL.  I want to feel good, I am feeling better and loving how this plan is changing me....go to afterthoughts to see what!

Day 12:

Breakfast: Scrambled Eggs with peppers and onions, 3 organic homemade sausage patties and some blackberries.

Lunch: Nuts, beef stick, Veggies.... bunch of snacks....was busy
Dinner: Leftover Pulled Pork, Confetti Cauliflower, Mixed Green salad, and strawberries.

Day 13: 

Breakfast: 2 hard boiled eggs, 2 slices of bacon, cranberry kombucha
Lunch: leftover confetti cauliflower and roasted chicken, cucumber slices and seltzer
Dinner: Burger Night! Bacon Avocado Burger with a portabello bun and mixed green salad.

Second pic just in case you didn't believe there was a burger underneath those avocado slices! LOL
Please excuse the flashlighting.....We were hungry...

 I swear, I didn't miss the bun at all...I did want some cheese though!😪

Afterthoughts....This morning, I was looking at a candy jar that had a leftover mix of candies in it (about 8, some Mary Janes and two chocolate covered wrapped candies) and after looking at them for the past 13 days with no real feeling about them today I went to the jar- my head said 'Not even worth it" and threw them away. Although I walked by them looking at them all 2 weeks into this plan, like they were going to be some reward at the end of whole30....my brain just prompted me to get rid of them because I just have no interest in them at all. Other than a special night out where eating something like grains, cheese or sugar, I really don't miss having them in the house.

I got this!

Whole30 - Day 10 and 11

The hardest days? Feeling the most deprived?  I see my friends eating foods with gooey cheese and it makes me cranky!  I quit this Whole30 plan......APRIL FOOLS! Hahahahaa Yes, how ironic that day 10 (the first of the hardest day) falls on April Fools day and I had committed to make this for our team's pot luck luncheon....April Fool's Spaghetti and Meatball's...full of flour (cake) and tons of SUGAR (frosting, berries and doughnuts)!



I couldn't even eat the mashed raspberries because they were macerated in sugar. Did this absolutely kill me? Was I drooling? Was I squeezing my eyes in pain over this task?  Nope! If anything I hated getting the stuff on my hands because they were sticky and normally we lick them to get rid of the sugary substance off our fingers from time to time. And out of habit, I did once. I had finished a part one of making this cake and had leftover cake batter. When I filled some mini muffin cups a tiny splash of batter hit the muffin tin whose size actually resembled a ! Slightly bigger but small and I usually wipe this away so they don't burn on the pan and in went the barely battered finger onto my tongue!  I FROZE! I was expecting some pulsating pleasure to course through my veins as heroin addict feels as they release the rubber band to allow the forbidden liquid to flow on.  It didn't, so I quickly went over to the sink to wash out any of the .009 grams of sugar on that tiny dot before it had the chance to sink into a taste bud.

However, the oohs and ahhs I got from my co-workers was reward enough than any sugar rush I needed....my bowl was returned to me with only one cake slice and few meatballs left which indicated they enjoyed it!  I took the leftovers and divided it up to my little quartet of sixth graders who adoringly come to hang out with me after school any chance they get...Their eyes became big as those meatballs when I showed them the before picture here.  They were proud that they were able to help with the cake and the spaghetti part but the sauce and meatballs were done right before I left for the lunch so they couldn't see the finished product.

Day 10

Breakfast: 2 hard boiled eggs and 2 slices of bacon
Lunch: Slow Cooker Apple Cider Pulled Pork  and frozen spinach, a few raw carrots and good handful of fresh strawberries.
Dinner: "Bangers and Mash" organic, sugar-free sausages (andouille and bratwurst) mashed potatoes and orange slices (Whole30 guest, my friend Jessica- who didn't REMIND me to snap a picture of dinner for my blog!!!)

So yeah, this is the leftovers heated up before my Brunch transformation.

Day 11

Dark and rainy this morning. I must have been exhausted from the week because my eyes did not pop open until 11:30 this morning!?!?!? That is fine, if sleep is what my body wants and not sugar...I will give in to it.

Br-unch: Dinner leftovers with two fried eggs on top and black coffee.

Dinner: Slow Cooker Apple Cider Pulled Pork (recipe link above), sauteed zucchini, cilantro and dried tomatoes and sliced avocado.

Notations: A long week it seems, always after a vacation from school AND acclimating to a new food plan with work...AND a major milestone birthday....spells STRESSED....and that spelled backward is DESSERTS! Luckily I didn't feel the need to go there, no did I miss having cake on my b-day....(montone mantra...cake will not fall from the earth....it will still be here when you complete the plan Jenny....have faith, there is no last day of cake where it will cease to exist....even the stupid Twinkie reappeared after Hostess closed down -eww).

I figured, making it 1/3 through and not wanting to quit after a long week.  Treat myself with non-food.  It was time to transition to spring by getting the pedicure so I can wear sandals, etc.  So, I talked Jessica into getting the SPA pedicure, which is longer, with massage and special scrubs, etc.  Her legs were hurting....my were feeling tired....we've been doing a great job on this....why not? We deserve it!  BTW, still no allergy medications being taken.

Feeling cheery, deary!

Whole30- Day 8 and 9

NOOOO! my pants are tighter? Due to our body adjusting to new intake of meat and vegetables and the lack of easy-access sugar I am bloated? Since my ankles were looking like grapefruits before Whole30 and they became normal again....I look down to my ankles now at the end of a long day and see that my ankles are a little bloated.  But they aren't the old grapefruits at least. Seems like I am on target then....well, at least for this day.

Day 8-

Breakfast: 2 hard boiled eggs, 1 1/2 pieces of bacon and 1 banana and black coffee.
Lunch: Chicken salad and spinach leaves, some leftover poppers, a few strawberries.
Snack: Nuts, carrots
Dinner: Oven Barbecued Chicken with Tessemae's Barbecue Sauce, sweet potato hash with peppers and onions.

Day 9- Happy Birthday to ME!

Breakfast: 2 hard boiled eggs, 2 pieces of bacon and about 8 cantaloupe pieces and coffee with coconut cream.
Lunch: Leftover sweet potato hash and chicken.
Dinner: Night off from cooking and had a burger from Elevation Burger. Organic, Grass-fed Double burger with tomato, onion, guacamole and mushrooms in a LETTUCE wrap.  Ordered it carryout, so I could use my Tessemae's Ketchup and homemade mayo and add my own side of squash at home.

Coupla Notes: I am hesitant to eat out only because I cannot control knowing what is in the ingredients for something like ketchup.  I had heard from my Whole30 partner in crime Jessica and friend that Elevation Burger was Whole30 compliant by lettuce wrapping their burgers and frying their potatoes in olive oil, that was cool to hear however it's all the things you take for granted like condiments that can contain SUGAR even if they are organic!  We were forced to bring the dinner home because we took off so late that I had forgotten to bring my own Tessemae's Ketchup and homemade mayo with me. I was so distracted by getting my burger order right, that I had forgotten to get a side salad....again, you can't necessarily trust their organic salad dressing unless you go to basic vinegar and oil. BTW, the french fries are NOT compliant. Notice I did not mention that I had any.  The book specifically says that frying a potato stick or chip in olive oil does not make it whole30 compliant just as they say to not blend a banana with an egg to make pancakes.  We are trying to break some of these old habits such as the expectation of when a burger or sandwich happens....then come the fries or chips. My friend Jessica when there last week and ate a burger and fries and was happy how compliant she was....I did this....😳 When you start a plan like this you can just scan a few parts to 'get the jist' you have to commit to reading the whole book to understand how these bad habits start and this plan operates to break them.  I also suggest to also read It Starts with Food because it give all the science background of this plan.  I know I am....my friend Jess, not so much.  I now wear the coach whistle!

Yes, I am experiencing the return of bloating as predicted due to my body adjusting to this different food intake and that is okay only because I am not experiencing any cravings or feelings of quitting.  Especially on a special day like a birthday when I should be drinking wine and eating a big slab of chocolate cake!!! Wine and cake will still be around when I finish the initial 30 days.  I am cool with this.

Tight, ain't right!

Whole30- Day 6 and 7

HI Kids! The book denotes these days as...I just wanna nap.  Not me!

As I return back to work....I began to worry... doing whole30 at home isn't a problem but now I have to eat on my work's schedule  and how will I feel there especially during those times after school when I want to snack???? Happy to report, no problems.

Day 6:

Breakfast: 2 hard boiled eggs, 1 1/2  pieces of sugar free bacon,  1/4 honey crisp apple and black coffee.
Lunch: Kale Salad greens, chicken salad, 1/4 of honey crisp apple, and seltzer
Snack: Rest of apple with almond butter.
Dinner: Leftover dinner! spaghetti squash and ground turkey tomato sauce, slice black olives and mixed greens salad and seltzer water.

Feeling less pain in leg joints and heels.  It's lessening and not debilitating to first walk when getting up from bed or chair.  That is encouraging.

Day 7:

Breakfast: 2 hard boiled eggs, 1 1/2  pieces of sugar free bacon, 1 cantaloupe pieces and a banana  and coffee with coconut cream.
Lunch: Leftover spaghetti squash dinner and seltzer
Snack: Handful of CAM nut mix
Dinner: Turkey Poppers (recipe below), homemade guacamole, sugar free organic salsa, sauteed zucchini and side salad of mixed greens.

 Turkey Poppers (or Chicken)

1 lb ground turkey or chicken (I did turkey only because I wanted to make this recipe badly and the organic market only had ground turkey not chicken.
2 cups shredded zucchini (squeeze out water with dish towel)
3 T. cilantro
1 clove of garlic, minced
3 green onions, chopped
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper

• Mix in a bowl
• Preheat skillet and drizzle olive oil in a circle in the pan.
• Drop with spoon of the size popper you want and flatten slightly with spoon. Cook until golden brown and turn over.  About 8 minutes total.  
• You will have to cook several batches in your frying pan.  I put a piece of parchment paper on a cookie sheet and set the oven to 200 degrees to keep them warm as I kept making them and until dinner was ready.

THESE WERE THE ABSOLUTE BOMB-TASTIC!  Taking a forkful of my homemade guacamole and a piece of the popper...THROW THE ROOF.  I will make these once a week now.  So. Freaking. Awesome.  Well worth the work.

Since I was feeling so ambitious...after dinner I made kale chips.  My organic market didn't have the standard curly kale but they had Lacianto Kale otherwise know as Dinosaur Kale. Long and flat. Washed, dried, stalks removed, tossed with oil, lightly sprinkle salt and baked at 300 degrees for 14 minutes.  Isn't it amazing how this cookie sheet was solid green and they shrink so much? One bunch at the store and five cookie sheets later....

 ....One bag of snacks. I could so easily consume this whole bag!!!  A light and crispy.  I am thinking of making these for some of my classes one day....I wonder how many children will have actually tried a kale chip?

Note of interest:  It is the beginning of spring when everything is trying to bloom and the pollen is starting to coat our cars and I have no taken my usual allergy medication for 5 days now.  I have two reactions from my allergies, I either am sneezing and my nose is running and blowing my nose until I take my Zyrtec D to stop it OR, My sinuses are just plain congested.  I feel like I can't breathe because my nose is clogged and I can't blow anything out because it's just my sinuses are swollen.  I was taking a allergy pill at night so I could breathe at night.  Nope.  No pills for 5 days and awake being to breathe just fine.  Remember now, we have cats so with fur and dander about...this also can exacerbate my allergies too.  So nice!

Feeling on the mend....

Whole30- Day 4 & 5

Day 4- Feeling lucky.  As I read the book for the transition into day 4 and 5, I feel grateful-  It's titled "kill all the things" Yikes! I am glad I don't feel that way today especially on K-man's birthday!  Happy Birthday Sweetheart!

Speaking of birthdays I have a pretty significant one arriving on the 31st of this month, the big 5-0! Kinda sad that I won't be have a big blow out like I did for my 40th but....things happen for a reason and this opportunity to start Whole30 when I did was a jump start I needed. You feel awful, hate your body, can't look in a mirror, look forlornly at the clothes in your closet you can't wear...all the while you know what you need to do but the fight is the same....what diet plan am I going to do this time? when should I start...blah, blah, blah....
When my friend at work talked about doing Whole30 (and I'd had never heard of it) and it made such sense and I was on board.  I didn't even think about my b-day coming up and start the plan after and when I had committed by buying the book and all the food...that is when I decided:

NO! Time to stop dillydallying about this.  I have so many aches and pains that I can't even exercise to lose weight.  Anyone with a brain knows that pains that appear out of nowhere in your back, knees and ankles/heels are their way of saying "YO! Weight overload. Back the EFF off" I know the pain isn't going to go 'BOOP'....and disappear like a switch was flipped. Patience is of the essence here.
Impatient people do not fair well on organized plans sometimes....perhaps someone needs to do a study on sugar intake and it's effects on gratification and patience?

Day 4 Menu: Sorry no pix, they were either a repeat of what I had snapped before or eaten too quickly....

Breakfast: Last Egg Muffin, (shared the last one with K-man) a fruit salad of strawberries, banana & cantaloupe and  drinking black coffee.

Lunch: Leftover carnitas, cauli-rice and sliced avocado.

Dinner: Grilled ribeye steak (omg, that steak marinated in Tessemae's southwestern ranch was awesome) and a Sweet Potato

Day 5: Happy Easter! Still feeling good...no killing vibes.  Two things noted thus far....

1. I was having swelling of the ankles for the past months (I am not a huge salt eater) but since I've started Whole30 my ankles have returned to normal and not taking OTC water pills. YAY!

2. Joint pain when walking...it's starting to diminish!  Getting up in the middle of the night or morning is not as slow or as painful for me to walk down the hallway to the bathroom. This morning I noticed that I walked down the steps normally one step, one foot, not one step, two feet, one step, two feet. This is promising!

Easter Brunch: Fried eggs, sugar free bacon I got at MOM's (My Organic Market), strawberries and black coffee.

Snack: Cantaloupe and a closed handful of CAM's
Dinner: Ground turkey and chicken sausage tomato sauce over roasted spaghetti squash (had Jessica over for dinner and got distracted by her visit and said "OH SNAP! I forgot to get a picture! She told me to snap a pic of what I had.  LOL). Mixed greens with Tessemae's Cracked Pepper dressing. 👍🏼👍🏼

My resolve will be tested next week once I get back to the grind of work and be exposed to more non-compliant foods. Bah, I have done Paleo at school, nutri-system....this shouldn't be any different.

INTERESTING NOTE! So I am preparing my 'sunday sauce' (as I call it because it goes into the crock pot to cook all day) and go to season it up with Italian seasoning, etc. I go to use some garlic salt and read the label...SUGAR? REALLY? You can't just put salt and garlic powder, you have to add freakin' sugar? No wonder we have such issues giving up foods to eat....the sugar just hooks us and reels us in to buy more.  This issue is covered in the documentary movie Fed Up.  The added sugar to all our foods.  I need to watch it again.

Spring Break is over😭wahhhhhhh

Whole30- Day 3

The Whole30 book says that I should still be in the hangover stage for day 3....I didn't have a headache as it predicted but part of my back was aching but I attribute that to sleeping in too long.  Should have gotten out of bed earlier but I was mad that Scooter kept stomping on me 5:30, 7:30 and 8:30am to feed him...so instead of staying up after I fed the kitties I belligerently went back to bed because I could on a Friday. Dammit. Do I sound cranky? I hope this is not a forewarning for tomorrow...lol

Breakfast: Warm egg muffin and bowl of small banana, honey crisp apple and handful of frozen blueberries and black coffee.

Lunch: Chicken Salad Lettuce Wraps (Tessemae's Lemon Pepper dressing and my homemade mayo on roasted chicken, chopped onion and poblano, shredded carrot and small handful of chopped CAM nut mix. Two perfectly hard-boiled eggs (the book directions were not how I normally do it but tried it, yum! no dry center or a green ring!)

 

Dinner: Chipotle Pork Carnitas with peppers and onions on Cilantro Cauliflower Rice! Orange Seltzer to drink.

Whole30 Day 2

Those of you who are saying "who cares that JennyMac is going on a food plan for 30 days, Meh!"

Let me tell you why...this book's author (Melissa) has a great sense of humor (like me😜) and she took the time to include in the book a timeline compiled of thousands of the physical and emotional challenges of people who had underwent the Whole30 plan.  I wanted to blog my journey to see how I compared to those people.  Do I have a big bad sugar dragon lurking within me or is it just a eensie-weensie one?

The book says that most people will be either excited or overwhelmed on day 1 and some people may ask 'what have I gotten myself into?'  My first day (I am on spring break) was uneventful emotionally and physically although I was preparing more foods than normal.

Day Two:
The book says some people will feel headache-y, sore or foggy. Like a hangover.  I don't.  I am more anxious for all my body pains to go away....what day will that start?  I think for a food to really get out of the system will take at least 3-4 days.  I mean, I did eat some chocolate cake 11:45pm the day before I started...lol.  My motto has always been "life is uncertain, eat dessert first." Technically eating that cake at before midnight wasn't first...but it certainly was the last thing I was eating before my big day...

Breakfast: Just a few cantaloupe cubes, small grab of roasted, unsalted CAM (cashews, almonds and Macadamia nuts) mix and black coffee.

I got up late because I can, whilst on spring break....I didn't want too much because I will have to eat lunch earlier due to K-man going to the eye doctor today at 3 and he wants me to go so I cannot have a late lunch (this is probably better because I don't eat a late lunch when I go back to school- we have to gobble it down between 11:30-12 noon!)

The cool thing about this plan is that many of the meals can rollover unto the next day for another meal and that means LESS cooking!

Lunch: On a bed of spinach leaves is my leftover sausage and peppers, and another egg muffin (sauteed peppers and onions, garlic, herbs in ghee placed in a Texas-sized muffin cup with scrambled egg and unsweetened coconut milk) cut up with shredded carrot.

Tonight's dinner will highlight one of my purchases that I purchased beforehand on Amazon.com (same price but I get free shipping from Prime) as an approved product of Whole30 - Tessemae's All Natural (from Baltimore).

From left to right: Buffalo, Lemon Chesapeake, Ketchup, Lemon Garlic, Cracked Pepper, Balsamic, Southwest Ranch, Matty's BBQ Sauce.

Dinner: Bed of mixed organic greens. Drizzled Tessemae's Southwest Ranch onto greens. Added chopped poblano and onion (we always have this chopped in a container in the fridge 24/7) into roasted chicken.  Tablespoon of homemade mayo mixed with tablespoon of Tessemae's Southwest ranch mixed in chicken. Half and avocado and a few black olives. Lemon squeezed all on top and drank lemon water with dinner.

Late night note: So it's been an hour after dinner and you know you are NOT hungry.  You start to listen to your insides and you say things...."something sweet would be good right now"  Just a little candy, a cookie, a COFFEE WITH TRUVIA AND CREAM!  I immediately go look how to stave off a sugar craving....says to eat fruit.  However the Whole30 book says "why are you eating it? If you're reaching for a banana or grapes to prop up your sugar cravings, we'd ask you to rethink that strategy. You don't want to end up with the same cravings after your program, and continuing to feed your brain the sweetest stuff allowed every time it pitches a tantrum isn't really changing your habits." 

So I caved and had a really small banana cut up with a small drop of almond butter on each.  Even though I fed the sugar dragon, I am proud that at least I was compliant. There is chocolate around, Kirk isn't on the plan....he needs to eat up that stuff.  LOL. 
So now I know....although I don't feel hungry or stark raving mad for sugar....THAT was definitely my sugar dragon calling.  I gotta train him to go.....that dinner was huge....I didn't even finish it....Eating when you aren't even hungry is soooo stupid!

I've got this!

Whole30 Plan

So have you heard of this?

I hadn't until a friend mentioned it a few days ago.  Have I been so immersed in my grad studies that I am out of the loop? After all I am studying Health and Wellness so I feel a bit ashamed.

Let me tell you in a nutshell what it is. First of all it is NOT, I repeat, a DIET. It is an eating plan for you to follow for 30 days to help RESET your body.

Why would I need to reset my body, you ask? Because you may have any one of the afflictions listed:

fatigue, joint pain, migraines, asthma, high blood pressure, diabetes, allergies, sinus infections....just to name a few from the book, these issues may disappear if you eliminate the triggering foods from your diet.  The removal of certain foods can and will change your life.

The plan is simple but your reserve must be great.  For those foods like bread, candy and sodas may have such a grip on you that you may experience some 'grumpiness' from the withdrawal.

Bare bones: You eat organic, grass-fed, antibiotic free meats, fresh organic fruits and vegetables.  That's it.  See? Simple.

Of course what makes this hard plan for the typical American eater, is the convenience foods, fast food, snack foods and unhealthy beverages.  This plan is not a HUGE good bye to hearty beans, ooey-gooey cheeses, heart-healthy oatmeal, or crusty, chewy breads...

You are temporarily isolating those foods from your eating for 30 days, including sugar, all processed foods, most food additives and alcohol. For an added bonus you are allowed to eat fat and some salt, you do not need to weight yourself (only once in the beginning if you want to) or count calories.

This book is a great read. It's honest and true.  To quote "it is not hard. Don't you dare tell us this is hard. Beating cancer is hard, birthing a baby is hard, Losing a parent is hard Drinking your coffee black is. not. hard. You've done harder things than this, and you have no excuse to not complete the program as written. It's only 30 days, and it's for the most important health cause on earth, the only physical body you will ever have in this lifetime."

So, I am turning 50 next week.  Yup no cake for me.  Cake is overrated. You never seem to get the really good ones actually on your birthday....so who cares? I don't look fifty but why do I feel like I need a walker? I have all these little things I can list that seem almost annoying to tell a doctor:

"I have knee pain" - Dr. response: so do 80 million other arthritic people....
"I have this pain in my heel" -  Dr. response: read from the long list questions of "acquiring an injury"
"I have back pain" - Dr. response: lose weight

So I decided let me go through the science experiment of testing these foods....see how I feel.  I know I will definitely lose some weight since I will not be eating any crap whatsoever....and my 'sugar dragon' will not be roaring at me to feed it since it will be removed from my eating...I don't plan to wake it either.

Ok, so big deal.  You are going on a PLAN JennyMac....blah, blah, blah.  Good Luck!  Thanks for your vote of confidence but in my 30 days I am going to write each day all 30 days of my journey.
I am going to take pictures of my food perhaps some recipes, tell you how I feel and share with you all how it goes along the way!

Day One: Feeling Excited to something really good for my body.  Hopeful, not surprised but not too scarred from weighing myself this morning.  I envisioned worse...

Breakfast: Black coffee and a terrible gala apple with chunky almond butter (I think the rest should be made into applesauce-went out to get my favorite honey crisp)

 Lunch: Made Homemade Mayonnaise to use for my salad: 1 egg, organic mustard, avocado oil and olive oil and salt

Here is my lunch with two large handful of organic mixed greens, generous cupful of the roasted chicken I cooked last night. The part of the 'closed handful' of roasted unsalted almonds, cashews and macadamia nuts that had in my bag to snack on that I didn't finish. Added a teaspoon of vegan cilantro pesto to mayo to jazz it up. Drank seltzer water with lemon slices.

Dinner: Egg Muffins, sausage and peppers and canteloupe (I didn't finish it all either)

 Day one almost done....not bad at all, I didn't die!