It's Day 33! Reintroduction and Meeting Again for the First Time

It's Day 33, and I have tried reintroducing one thing so far on this journey.  Yesterday I ate a hamburger WITH a bun (GASP).  I decided to have lunch at a place close to my house, and ordered the burger and a side salad (yes...I avoided the fries.) The bun had the appearance of a semi-healthy bun...it was wheaty and had sesame seeds on it and the lettuce was baby lettuce, which somehow changes the value of the bun, right? The bun HAD to be special, right? Wrong.

After eating the bun with a burger on it, I had this insane urge for dessert.  GIVE ME ALL THE SWEET THINGS! NOW!  I went to the grocery store to stock up on food for me and the dogs for a few days, and I kept desperately searching for something that was good enough to justify eating dessert. Almond poppy seed muffin? They were all out.  Candy bar? Nothing could justify eating it. I was like a crack head in a crack box store where all the crack was available, and I kept looking and looking for what would scratch the itch.  I am aware that in the checkout line at the first grocery store I had to visit, I looked like a total sketch-ball because my eyes were darting over the candy bars trying to decide what to do.

In the end, I had to stop at a second store for a few more groceries where I bought a banana and a travel pack of almond butter...maple flavored.  That's right! Flavored almond butter, which means a smidge of added sugar on top of the banana.  It could have been worse or it could have been 50 pieces of cheesecake.  It wasn't.  It was a banana and almond butter.  All that frantic dessert craving, and I totally blame the bun.

Dinner last night and meals all day today were Whole30.  I ended up making the Whole30 recipe for Shepherd's Pie tonight, which is ground beef with sweet potatoes on top.  I like the recipe, but the next time I will use regular potatoes or mashed cauliflower. The sweet potatoes are a little too sweet.

Gigi thinks the Shepherd's Pie smells pretty delicious. 

 
So that's my first attempt at reintroduction. I'm going to have to stay away from bread, especially for the next month or more.  It just makes me have too much of a craving for other bad stuff.    

I really want sushi, actually.  The problem with sushi and reintroduction is that it has soy (legume) and rice (grain).  They suggest one restricted item at a time to be able to determine which food group actually makes you feel different. So, sushi might have to wait a while. Plus, I am kind of wondering if the rice will have the same craving-inducing effect as the bread....  

Day 30 and Tomorrow is Day 31 and So on and So Far

It is 8:45 pm, and I survived Day 30 of the Whole30. I actually survived the Whole30.  Yippeeee!

My celebratory day consisted of:

Omelet with Mushrooms, Spinach, Bell Peppers
Potatoes and Onions

Salad with Pork Loin

Hard Boiled Egg
Cashew Butter

Kale
Sweet Potato
Pork Loin

So, that's that.  I went 30 days eating protein, healthy fat, vegetables, and some fruit.  That's it.  I cooked a lot and learned some things about bulk cooking to make life easier.  I had a few bleak eating out experiences, but I also found some successful things to order and places to go.  I find it easier to want to choose the better options.  I know I love: kale, zucchini, spinach, broccoli, sweet potatoes, asparagus, cabbage, and a whole slew of other vegetables. I dislike brussel sprouts and don't feel the need to eat them again, especially with a balsamic reduction.  I don't like a pork chop, but I dig a pork tenderloin.  Roasted chicken is always good in a pinch.  Salmon is delicious.  Canned tuna can save the day.  Don't freeze raw hamburger patties.  Eat more fish.  (that's on the menu for the weekend, actually).

How do I feel?  I have way more energy.  I wake up feeling good.  I feel good throughout the day, but when it's bedtime, I immediately am tired.  I have had a few nights typing up the blog where I have spent all my energy, and it's all I can do to keep my eyes open.  My moods are way better.  I don't get grouchy from eating too much sugar or sad and sappy from eating junk.  I'm generally my happy, optimistic self.  I handle stress better.  I am physically feeling better.  I don't have heartburn.  I used to have it almost daily.  I am swimming faster and have better endurance. Literally from one week to the next I was swimming significantly faster.  Overall, I just feel more like me and less foggy and not controlled by less-than-stellar foods. 

Did I lose weight?  I did.  I lost about 8 lbs this month (I say about because I don't remember the exact number I had when I first weighed in).  I also didn't have a huge weight drop because I had been busting my butt the few months before this to lose 20 lbs, so I didn't have the beginner drop.  A few people commented that I look different....less puffy somehow.  That's a good thing, I guess.

So, what's next? Well, I will wake up and eat the same way tomorrow that I have pretty much been doing for 30 days now.  I will refuse to buy the foods I am not eating...no sweets or snacks or treats.  I will try to keep home sacred territory in that sense.  If I do eat something not on the plan, I will make sure it only has 1 food group not on the plan so I can see how that impacts me.  So, no burger, shake, refried beans kind of meal.  That's the reintroduction phase.  Try one food group at a time and see how it impacts your body.

I will make decisions based on what is worth it, not on "oh my gosh i need a donut because I need sugar and I haven't had sugar and oooooo, maybe I'll have 2 or 3 donuts instead of one. Silly me eating all these donuts.  I wish I could stop, but I just can't say no!!"

That's the plan anyway...that and also going back to counting my calories.  I still want to continue to lose weight while eating well, and I think I need to do that through tracking my calories as well as eating clean.   

There is always a voice in my head that thinks, "Oh, it's just a matter of time until you lose momentum and go back to old habits and old ways of eating and living.  This won't last. Enjoy it while you can, because it will be business as usual in a few day."  That's something I think all of us deal with in one context or another, not just food.  So, I will have to keep reminding myself what it means to me physically and emotionally to eat well and take care of myself.  I will also have to remind myself of the price of eating food that doesn't work well for me...the physical and mental implications.

If you have any questions about the process and what my experience was, feel free to ask.  I would highly recommend it to anyone.  I really do feel so great, and I also feel free from cravings, which is also an act of God, Congress, and the Pope.  Thanks for reading along everyone.  Tomorrow I'll go back to complaining about my leaky roof. :)  

Day 29 and Weird Meat Sticks, Cashew Butter, and Kale

It is 8:00 pm, and I survived Day 29 of the Whole30.  Tomorrow is my last official day on the Whole30.  What does that mean?  I'll probably talk more about that tomorrow, but I have been thinking about life and what it looks like after tomorrow.  Frankly, it will look pretty similar to how it looks now with the occasional regular ketchup.

Today started early, 3:45 am.  I was meeting my friend Tracy at the pool by 4:45 am to swim before work since it has been so stormy after work lately.  It was early, and I needed to make sure I ate something before swimming so I didn't get way hungry during the morning.  I considered frying an egg, but I opted to try one of my Epic bars instead.  Epic bars are made of meat and other ingredients.  The one I grabbed from the variety pack was lamb and currant, but since I threw away the packaging, I picked up the pork bar to illustrate the Epic bars in a picture.  You can see the consistency on the photo.  It is almost like a slim jim mouth feel with less snap. 

A week or so ago I ate the chicken sriracha variety, and it was fine.  I wasn't blown away, but it was edible. The lamb and currant....gag-a-rific. I put one bite in my mouth and my jaw refused to chew because chewing would lead to tasting and swallowing. I struggled to eat that bite and tried to force myself to eat another bite.  It wasn't happening.  No way, no how. So I ended up eating almond butter and rushing out the door. 

After swimming, I reheated pork loin and also reheated the brussel sprout/onion/butternut squash roasted veg with balsamic.  The more I tried to eat it, the more I couldn't.  It was getting more and more disgusting as time when on, so I threw the rest of those leftovers away.  Goodbye.  Life is too short.  

I had leftover pork loin for post-swim breakfast, for lunch, and for dinner today.  Unlike the pork chops that were gross, the loin was really flavorful and didn't dry out.  I didn't mind eating it for all three meals today, and I will have it for at least one meal tomorrow. 

I also sauteed kale for dinner in a bit of olive oil and low sodium chicken broth.  It was really good....way more delicious than the brussel sprouts and butternut squash from last night.  I finalized the dinner menu with some sweet potato and cinnamon.

All in all it was a good day.  It felt natural and comfortable choosing to eat what I ate.  I feel myself further and further away from instances where I crave something not on the plan.  That's very nice.  Oh, I had an afternoon snack of apple and cashew butter today.  Man...cashew butter is delicious.  Super delicious.  Eat more cashew butter! 

Day 28 and Dinner Is Late!

It is 8:01 pm, and I survived Day 28 of the Whole30.  However, I still haven't eaten dinner because it is still in the oven.  I made the roasted butternut squash, brussel sprouts, red onion, balsamic reduction thing, and I'm waiting on the walnut crusted pork tenderloin to finish cooking.  The vegetables taste good, better than I expected.

Before we get back to the review of dinner, I will say we had a board meeting at work today, and that involved chicken alfredo pasta, lasagna, pizzas, and a mango tres leches cake.  So yeah....I made a grilled chicken salad with really good balsamic vinaigrette and had a side of apple with pecan butter.  I was satisfied and had plenty of lunch to tide me over without feeling like I wanted to eat the Italian smorgasbord.  The pizza did smell really good, though.  Really, really good.

Ok...the dinner bell is ringing.  I'll go check the pork loin and let you know how it goes.  I will also discuss coconut oil.  Yes.  It merits a discussion....  (chew, chew, chew.....)

...Dinner is over and the dishes are clean at 8:48 pm.  It's a little late for me for dinner, especially since I like to be asleep by 9:30 or so.  The pork loin was delicious.  I ended up broiling it in the oven for the last 5 minutes or so, which made the walnut crust kind of crunchy.  I will be eating pork loin for days. 

The vegetables started off tasting good, but the more I ate them, the more I didn't like them.  The brussel sprouts were bitter, the butternut squash was blah, and the red onion was ok but the whole dish just didn't do it for me.  I would rather eat just straight up cabbage or asparagus or just about anything else. So, that was a bust, but at least I know.  Now I have to decide if I want to choke down mediocre vegetables for another 3 meals or if I can try it one more time, become disgusted, and throw the leftovers away.  Maybe tomorrow I'll like them for some reason. 

Another problem with the vegetables is that they have a little bit of coconut essence.  I used coconut oil as the fat for roasting them, and somehow the essence of coconut lingers.  I am trying to find out when best to use coconut oil so that it compliments the food and doesn't turn me off with the smell or essence or whatever it is that I detect.  Months ago I attempted to fry eggs with coconut oil in the skillet.  Something about it made me gag.  Ick.  No coconut oil with eggs. I can't explain it. Anyone else have a good reason why sometimes coconut oil is gross? And what types of foods do you use it with that you really like the results?

Tomorrow is a new day, and I will be waking up at 3:45 am to get to the pool by 4:45 am for a swim.  Ouch.  It's early.