Getting Started

While most started their "new year resolutions" on Jan 1st. I decided to get back to a healthy eating lifestyle (I refuse to call it a resolution and/or diet) on the 4th.  Starting on a Monday allowed me to get my shopping and prep done so I could be ready to tackle this round of whole30.

Doing this a second time around, I have more ideas on what will make it easier on me and therefore easier to stick to. The simpler the meals, the quicker the prep. If I don't overwhelm myself with prep then it's just smoother and easier to maintain.

Another thing that I learned is that while some folks are good about making and following recipes to make their own compliant dressings, sauces and condiments, I just don't have it in me. I need some convenience or I'll feel like my day is spent in the kitchen. Do your research, there are options out there if you don't want to fool with making your own.

I also found that there are gadgets out there that can make simple tasks even easier and some that just make it even harder lol. I will write more about this later on. I am also keeping a food diary although this is not recommended for the whole30. I am actually writing on a good log not necessarily to track calories but to have a record of my foods for when I do my next round it will work as meal plans. I found this little book I must have ordered last year and not used, it will come in handy this time around.

Sunday, I received a phone call letting me know that I needed to come in to work an hour earlier. This threw me a bit off because I had planned on having breakfast at home to start my day off well fed. I could not have breakfast at 5 am so  I decided to pack it to go. As things worked out, I ended up being on an empty stomach until 11 which was not good. However, I was so busy that I didn't get a chbscr to even think about until my head started hurting around 10:30.

I think the headache was a combo of lack of caffeine and hunger. It was so late by the time I got a few minutes that I decided to grab something quick in between appointments and just enjoy lunch later. I keep a couple of compliant larabars in my bag for emergencies. I decided one of those and some strong coffee would hold me over until I could get lunch.

Lunch consisted of beef patties with roasted green beans, tomatoes, a halo and some frozen mixed fruit (peach, pineapple, strawberries.) I normally would not have had that much fruit in one sitting and had planned to divy it up between breakfast and lunch. However, I hoped it would help the lingering headache. It did, as it was gone a couple hours after lunch.

For dinner I reheated some pulled beef I had prepped in the crockpot yesterday. I cooked it with some Penzeys and Tessemae's compliant BBQ sauce. Served it over lettuce and added a few cherub tomatoes. I also had half a baked sweet potato with a sprinkle of sea salt. 

So yay for completing not day one and on to the next one. Until next time!

Day 21 & 22

I made it to day 22!! It is so exciting to know I have succeeded so far. I am very happy with how I feel and although I haven't stepped on the scale as instructed I know I have lost weight. I think somehow some of the fat has to have moved as my tummy is a lil less round. 

People have actually noticed a new drop and I feel like my face looks a lot less puffy and round. Yay for the cosmetic stuff but the inside and the healthier I feel is even better.

As I come to the final stretch I am starting to think that o will probably follow a similar food template once I am done. My body seems to do best this way and there's a lot of junk I for sure do not want to reintroduce.

Here's my food for the last two days:

Breakfast was rushed so I had a repeat of banana and almond butter.

Lunch: grilled veggies and chicken Apple sausage.

Dinner: spinach omelet and beef patty. Not pictured was some watermelon.

Breakfast: sautéed green and yellow squash, sweet potato and a chicken Apple sausage.

Lunch: was a repeat from dinner the day before with a spinach omelet and beef patty. Not pictured were some yummy grape tomatoes.

Dinner: beef cooked in ghee, sautéed green and yellow squash and sweet potato.

I have another garden update for y'all!

Big mama and baby cucumbers. That big one is a tad longer than a half liter water bottle!!

Also got the fist beefsteak tomato, a couple of apples and a fig!!! Homegrown food tastes so good! And it's great knowing that no pesticides or anything messed them up :)

I am off the next couple of days and looking forward to it. Until next time!'n

Two days and talking it out

 This post is a couple days behind. It's been a crazy roller coaster for me since Thursday between work and family issues. I have been able to navigate it all without comforting myself the way I used to. 

However, I feel more and more overwhelmed. You know that saying when it rain it pours? Well, it has started to pour! Monday I needed to do something about it. Something that didn't include a big bag of Cheetos and the fast food drive thru. I decided I needed to talk it out.

Because of the setting and nature of my workplace. The hospital officers an in house counselor for employees as well as number of free therapy sessions with some selected providers.  I understand their value but I've always been one of those people who"didn't need it".

Monday, I reached out and ended up talking to her for an hour. I was a bit apprehensive because who enjoys being vulnerable? Certainly not me! 

I went in thinking I'd try to hash out my feelings  about the intense and emotional last few work days and nothing more. I ended up with a big case of verbal diarrhea and hearing myself admit out loud to food binges and mom issues.

My word! The weight I felt got  lifted off

Off my chest allowed to feel that I wasn't underwater anymore. To actually voice what I have been trying to to try to stop hurting myself with food allowed me to be proud of myself. Because I am proud of myself but I'm not always kind to myself. 

Every day we try to be kind to others but yet we end up being our own harshest critics. We most likely are not as unkind to others as we can be to ourselves! That is just not right! I am a newbie to talk therapy and always get it would make me weak to admit I needed help. It didn't matter how obvious it was to others. In my deluded brain I can fix it all. But it turns out I can't. I am a key part of it but it's ok to reach out and get help. Whatever kind of help it is you need to compliment what you are doing for yourself already.

All that heavy but now a tad less so stuff aside, here's my food for the last two days:

Breakfast: chicken Apple sausages, lettuce, strawberries and grapes

Lunch: chicken, avocado and raw veggies

Dinner: chicken and a big salad

Breakfast: one egg omelet with power greens, chicken sausie, half a boiled potato and coffee!

Lunch: ( I was truly on the go lol pack the second half of breakfast in a Baggie and ate while driving!) egg with greens, half a Prato and a chicken sausie.

Dinner: zucchini noodles ( from my garden!!! Mixed with a little ground beef with a fried egg on top ( from my friends chickens!!) and sweet potato.

I hope y'all are having a good week. Until next time, Stay strong!!

Day 4: Give it your all!

I have made it to day 4 pretty much unscathed! I was really worried about feeling yuck and tired as I had read so many people experiencing online. I guess all these months of cleaner eating helped since my diet was not totally wrecked. 

Today I felt pretty good and energetic. I had another hectic day at work but I was able to keep going without feeling like I needed a snack. Note to self: increased protein and some good fats may hold the key to no drips between meals. I had two situations today where I was faced with 'temptation'. It was not too hard to walk away even though the donuts ( which I normally wouldn't give a crap about) looked fresh and inviting. Like the picture above says , I am doing this and I am giving it my 100%. After all it is not donating blood ;)! 

 Here is my food for the day: 

 Breakfast: scrambled eggs with mixed power greens ( swiss chard, spinach and other greens), an apple chicken sausage, half an avocado and 1/4 apple. 

Lunch: Mixed greens dressed with some fresh lime juice, a hard boiled egg, grilled chicken and half an avocado. 

Dinner: Diced up compliant hotdogs cooked with some compliant hot and tomato sauce served on butter lettuce with a baked sweet potato. 

 I hope y'all had a great weekend. I am looking forward to my Friday ( Monday for the rest of the world) since I have a huge to do list to get through during my "weekend". Until next time!

Day 3 is here

Hey everyone! I made it to day 3! I have to say Day 2 and so far Day 3 have been much much nicer to me than Day 1. No sugar dragon or anger on my part. No mood swings(yet ;) ). I haven't had any headaches and my head seems pretty clear. 

Yesterday, I actually felt more energized than usual. I was shocked that I wasn't yawning and ready to pass out by 9. I wake up super early so I also try to get to bed early. 

 Here is my food for Day 3: 

Breakfast: Prosciutto, hard boiled egg whites and a quarter avocado with fresh blackberries and grape tomatoes.

Lunch: tomato, cilantro and onion salad with fresh lime juice, chicken and avocado.

Dinner: compliant chicken Apple sausage  sliced and served over butter lettuce boats and baked sweet potato.

 Day 3 has been good because I have had no headaches at all. It has been crazy busy at work today and I had clocked at 10,000 steps before 1 pm. That's more than my usual workday. 

I know that while doing the whole 30 you are not supposed to snack but I felt like I needed a little something to pep my step since I was already starting to get tired. Not sure if this was due to the "hangover" timeframe or just a busy hectic day. 

 I caved around 3 and had a cup of coffee and a tablespoon of almond butter. Probably not the best choices but truly all I had that was compliant around me. To keep myself from snacking, I am only packing my meals and no extra snack stash. I was glad I had the almond butter I had purchased the other day. I went to our little market and other than fruit, I couldn't find anything else that was compliant. I really didnt want to do the fruit for the sugar. I knew the almond butter would keep me going for the next few hours. 

 How is your weekend going? I hope you are enjoying some rest and relaxation with your loved ones. Until next time, Stay Happy!