Whole30 Day 6

Saturday!

Sleep: about 8-9 hrs? I'm not exactly sure when I fell asleep. I slept in until about 8:30 this morning, though, and it was glorious.

Exercise: no specific activity. Kina didn't get a walk today because I had so many errands to run. :( She did, however, get a car ride to and from my parents' place, and a visit with my parents (her two favorite people... outside of me, of course).

Meal 1:
eggs scrambled with veggies (tomato, onion, broccoli slaw)
spaghetti squash

Meal 2:

I was out running errands when hunger hit, but I wasn't finished with errands. I'm a firm believer in making this work with my life, not letting it change everything about my life. That means I wasn't going to drive home to pull the kalua pork out of the fridge for my meal and then head back out to finish my errands. It would have been a phenomenal waste of time. 

So what's a girl to do? I went to Carl's Jr. for a turkey burger, low carb style, without cheese or any sauces. Why Carl's Jr? I had a choice between In N Out or Carl's Jr. Whole9 recommends going as lean as possible with meat if you don't know where it's coming from so as to minimize your exposure to antibiotics, hormones fed to the animals. In N Out has a commitment to "fresh" beef that comes from a source close enough by that they don't have to freeze the patties. I like that fact a lot, but it doesn't guarantee that the cows are healthy... ergo, I went to Carl's Jr. for a turkey burger: 

Meal 3: 

late afternoon "snack" of kalua pork and some cashews to tide me over until dinner at mom's.

Meal 4: 

beef stir fried with gai lan

chicken breast stir fried with sweet peppers (red and orange)

My mom had guests over for dinner, so I didn't feel that it was appropriate to pull my phone out to take a photo of my plate (my phone was safely tucked away in my purse, nowhere near the table). 

The most awesome part of dinner? The fact that my mom took my "diet" into account, and stir fried separate dishes for me without soy sauce (which, if you know my mom, is a HUGE victory). She tried to find olive oil for me, but didn't have any, so she used grapeseed oil. 

Technically this is enough to have counted as a "fail" on my Whole30. Please see, however, the sentence above about this working within the confines of my life, not taking over my life. Food should be fuel, not my everything, my all-consuming-i-just-ate-but-am-now-worried-about-what-I'll-be-able-to-eat-next-because-I-MUST-be-perfect master. I already felt honored enough that my mom made an Edeline-specific dinner while the rest of her guests ate whatever she made. I was NOT about to stamp my foot and fold my arms in the middle of the kitchen like a petulant child and INSIST that she cook my food with olive oil, not grapeseed or I wouldn't eat it.

I'm also pretty sure it is not a healthy response to food for me to become a recluse and not go out with friends/family/coworkers because I won't be able to eat Whole30 compliant foods.

After dinner, I came home to relax a little bit, but made the mistake of keeping the cashews open. I started mindlessly snacking on them, and ate more than I should have. While these are Whole30 compliant, my compulsion to overeat them is not. I think I should not purchase bags of nuts anymore until I can better manage my "feed" compulsion.

It's about 11:30 pm, and my fuelband reads: 3222. Running errands and doing housework!

Tomorrow is my first social event. Here's to making it work!

Whole30 day 5

Sleep: 7 hrs! No interruptions. I think I woke up a couple times because my legs were so sore it hurt enough when I changed positions to wake me up, but I went right back to sleep.

Exercise:
Crossfit (5:30 am): did not complete the WOD (called it after 30 mins) but did not feel like throwing up. Still scaling a lot of the movements. Awesomeness will come later. For now, I'm just showing up and doing work.
2.4 mile walk with Kina immediately after

Supplements: fish oil, D3

Meal 1 + post WOD bonus meal:
Eggs scrambled with broccoli slaw, tomato, onion (I'm almost out of broccoli slaw, so thus will change soon)
Leftover Kalua pork
Spaghetti squash

Meal 2 @ 12:30:
Cauliflower fried rice (cauliflower, egg, chicken breast, onion)

Meal 3 (not pictured because I ate it before a goal setting meeting at Crossfit. I was starving because it had been 6 hrs since meal 2):
Kalua pork
Kabocha mash

Meal 4 (about an hour and a half later):
Kalua pork (I will be eating this for a while)
Kabocha mash
Spaghetti squash

It's now about 8:20 pm, and I just finished meal 4. I'm feeling pretty good, but maybe because it's Friday and I'm used to splurging on Fridays, I want something carby/fatty. I just set a goal to be down a size in 6 months, though. I tried my "almost fat pants," which are a size smaller than my current pant size just now, and I have A LONG WAY to go! So, even though my brain is saying to eat something else, I'm going to close down the kitchen for the day.

Nike fuelband points: 3954. Crossfit day.  'nuf said. :)

This weekend will be a test for me. I have a baby's birthday party to go to on Sunday (my first social event since starting the Whole30). The plan is to eat before I go so that I'm not hungry, and to arrive a little later so that the food will already be picked over. I also need to find some time to prepare meals for the next week. Wish me luck!

Whole30 day 4

Sleep: 7 hrs + 1hr of "snoozing." I meant to get up to take Kina for a walk but couldn't drag my butt out of bed. Poor Kina! :(

Exercise: none. Recovery day! My legs are still sore from Tuesday and Wednesday --> I'm still walking funny.

Supplements: fish oil and D3

Meal 1:
Eggs scrambled with broccoli slaw, tomato, onion (used coconut oil because I'm out of avocado for fat)
Spaghetti squash
Coffee

Meal 2:
Chicken cacciatore
Green beans
Kabocha mash
Treat: cuties!

Meal 3:
Pulled pork (modified from Nomnompaleo's recipe) -- omg. SO GOOD. So. Good.
Kabocha Mash
Spaghetti squash

Feeling pretty awesome today. This is supposed to be the start of the Kill All the Things phase, but I was actually in a pretty good mood today. Not super lethargic in the morning like I have been (although I did still miss taking Kina out for a walk in favor of sleep), and not easily annoyed with people! 

My skin is starting to clear up, and my head feels pretty clear (or at least it feels like that... maybe I'm reading into it?). I got hungry mainly because of the length of time between meals, but it's not all-consuming. I had a small craving in the afternoon for something carby and sweet which I blame on a little bit of work-related stress (patient almost fainted on me), but that passed.

Nike fuelband (at 8:40 pm): 2530. I probably won't make it to 3000 today, but that's ok. Today is rest and recovery day!

Whole30 day 3

Sleep (last night): 6.5 hrs.
I started watching a documentary on PBS? called "my big fat diet" that kept me up past my bedtime. I finally dvr'd the rest and went to bed. It was about Native American people in Canada and the prevalence of obesity, diabetes, etc since European influence and a doctor who recommended that they return to their native diet to reduce these diseases. He started a yearlong study with about 60 of them. I'll fill you in on the results when i finish it. What did their diet sound a lot like? I'll give you one guess...

Exercise: 5:30 am crossfit. I scaled the shit out of the WOD, but felt waaaaay better.
Took Kina for a 2.4 mile walk

Meal 1 + postWOD bonus meal:
Eggs scrambled with broccoli slaw, tomato and onion (becoming my default brekkie)
Leftover lemon dill salmon
Leftover butternut squash purée
1/2 avocado
Coffee, black

Meal 2:
chicken cacciatore (it is very sour, and too much liquid! Need to modify that for next time)
braised green beans
kabocha squash mash (it's green because I actually mashed the rind into it too. I used ghee and a little chicken stock. H'oh man, it's YUMMY)

Meal 3: happened at 9 pm (that's when I got home from work), so it was leftovers I had prepared this weekend. I am so thankful that I prepped ahead of time and made this, because the last thing I wanted to do when I got home is make dinner.

Cauliflower "fried rice," modified from Everyday Paleo and Nomnompaleo:

As I was pulling this out of the fridge, I realized that I only have enough protein prepped for lunch tomorrow (another long/late day). I wanted to punch myself in the face. So... even though I'm pretty tired (and very sore from yesterday and this morning's WODs), I put pork tenderloin in the slow cooker. I'm attempting Kalua Pig a la Nomnompaleo. I'm a little apprehensive because lately everything I've thrown into the slow cooker has turned out dry. 

It's about 10 pm and I am just sitting down to rest for the first time today. According to Whole9, I should have worked another meal into my day, but the patient schedule was just too tight this evening and I wasn't able to take a snack break. I ended up going from meal 2 at 12 pm to meal 3 at 9 pm. My hunger level wasn't too bad when I got home, though, so I'm hoping I might already be fat-adapted!

Nike fuel points: 3894! Phew! I knew I was tired!

Day 3 is done! I'm off to bed. I've managed to acquire a few more readers, which actually really helps with accountability (knowing I have to blog/photo everything I put in my piehole makes me think twice before putting it in, heh). Thanks for reading!

Whole30 day 2

Sleep (last night): 7 hrs total. Woke up 3 times (drank too much water before bed I guess), once for kina
Exercise: crossfit (5:30 am). Felt HORRIBLE. I've never come this close to throwing up after a WOD

Supplements: fish oil, D3

Meal 1 + post WOD bonus meal in one:
2 eggs scrambled with tomato, onion and broccoli slaw (I bought it and then discovered I didn't know what to do with it... So into my eggs it goes!)
boiled Kabocha squash
Chicken cacciatore (modified from nomnompaleo's recipe)
1/2 avocado
Coffee, black

Meal 2:
Spaghetti squash and homemade spaghetti sauce (tomatoes, tomato paste, peppers, onions, broccoli)
(it tasted a lot better than it looks)

Meal 3:
Chicken cacciatore
Kabocha squash mash (yum!)
Braised green beans

Thus far have not felt hungry at all. Had a little mid-afternoon craving for something to snack on, but was able to distract myself with work. If my clothes don't start feeling looser I may have to cut back on the portions. 

Small headache this afternoon and this evening. Probably the carb hangover that Whole9 describes here. I can't wait for the Kill All the Things phase (had a small urge to snap at one of my coworkers this afternoon already, heh).

It's about 8 pm, and my nikeplus fuel points total is 2968. I've set a goal for 3000 each day. Phew... Day 2 in the books!

Whole30 Day 1

Starting another Whole30 after holiday debauchery and just letting myself slide over a few months.

It didn't occur to me until I'd finished dinner that I could post pics of my meals here. I will try to keep this as interesting as possible with photos, but I mainly want to keep myself accountable and share my struggles experience here.

Day 1:

Meal 1 (breakfast):
2 eggs scrambled with broccoli/cauliflower slaw from trader joe's, tomato, onion. Used olive oil.

Meal 2 (lunch):
cauliflower fried rice (cauliflower, egg, diced chicken, onion)

Meal 3 (dinner):
lemon dill salmon (baked with olive oil)
baby broccoli (sauteed with garlic in olive oil)
butternut squash puree (butternut squash, ghee, chicken stock)


Off to a good start! Made chicken cacciatore from nomnompaleo's slow cooker recipe for tomorrow. Wish me luck!

Just Keep Swimming

You know that part in "Finding Nemo" when Nemo's dad gets really depressed and wants to give up? Dory comes along and pulls him out of his funk. here's the video clip if you can't remember

I feel like Nemo's dad. The past couple of weeks have been pretty rough (back-to-back 12 hour days), and I'm starting to lose the mental toughness that I need just to get through. My energy level has been pretty low, and I haven't been sleeping as much as I would like to because I have a hard time going straight to bed when I get home from a long day at work. I end up spending a few hours farting around on the internet or watching something mindless on TV to unwind, which probably keeps me up later than I should be considering I have to turn around and do it all again the next day. It's a downward spiral.

I need a Dory to come tug me along. Since I don't have a personal Dory (aside from Kina) to keep that happy "Just Keep Swimming" attitude alive, I've been focusing on automating work outs. Giving myself the opportunity to even consider not working out is opening up Pandora's box, which will ultimately lead to fatness and guilt at letting myself go. Signing up for classes ahead of time each week has really helped a lot. Knowing that Coach Rob is getting up at the butt-crack of dawn (when he has a baby at home who is less than a year old and probably isn't getting much sleep himself) just to coach me because I said I would be there keeps me showing up.

The Crossfit Irvine website used to have little sayings like "because I want my name on the board" posted, explaining why people not only do Crossfit, but why they push as hard as they do. My "why do I Crossfit?" lately has been "because Coach is waiting for me."

I haven't necessarily been kicking ass in the WODs, but I'm giving myself points for just showing up. I'm hoping ass-kicking will come later. I'm also learning to be ok with that. I'm used to giving my all, and expect to kick ass each time I work out, but sometimes you just gotta keep swimming.