Whole30 Day 4

Ugh! Soooooo tired... Soooooo sleepy... Humph!

Day 4... Day 4 was like any other day. Except everything minutely annoying seemed amplified tenfold. Except how the smallest amount of physical exertion caused me to want to lay down on the floor and cry. Except how I could smell the sugar through the packaging of the candy bars while waiting in line at the store.

The girls and I went to Chipotle for lunch as a treat of not having to pack lunch. I meant to take a picture before I mashed it all to oblivion, but I got a chicken salad bowl with pico de gallo and guacamole. It was good, but next time I think I'll get one if the spicier salsas too.

After work I stopped by the house to paint the trim in the bedroom and that is when said wanting "to lay down on the floor and cry" happened.

Bryan and I headed for my place around eight to watch a movie and eat some dinner. He got Chinese take-out... It smelled soooooo good and fried and... 

I had some leftover chicken, veggies, and tuna from the day before... Still good and hit the spot!

On to Day 5!

I need strength and determination today. I have a baby shower in the morning and a grad party in the afternoon. Chances of finding Whole 30 approved food might be slim, but I've got a bag if cashews and an orange in my purse as security measure! :)

Whole30 Day 3

Totally forgot to post last night due to exhaustion? Or I was distracted by the TV. :)

Day 3 went well without much in the way of headaches, though some of the grumpiness did start to show itself. Drama with appliances, another Lowe's trip, and a long, stressful day at work compounded with a rather annoying cricket that decided to sung for the whole office for 2 hours at the end of the workday may have been the driving force behind my attitude.

Lunch was tuna on lettuce with homemade mayo, green olives, and red onion. It was great, but I forgot the "no onion" rule for the office due to the owner's distaste and got lightly scolded.

For dinner, Bryan and I went to Shish Tawook, our local middle eastern place and I got the half deboned chicken and grilled veggies and went nuts on it. 

A lot of this is in my fridge now waiting to be lunch or dinner next week! 

That's it for now. I'll post later on about the events of today's Whole 30 journey.

Whole30 Day 2

Day 2 is under my belt and I'm luckily not experiencing the headache I was promised yet... Though, maybe yesterday's migraine was a part of after all. 

Anyhow, today went well and I finally made it to the grocery store to stock up on good stuff. 

Lunch today was done chicken and this wonderful dish my Aunt Lorrie introduced me to call Imam Bayildi (layered eggplant, peppers, tomatoes and bit but of a spice kick). Very good. I felt an extreme need for sweet so I had some golden raisins too.

Dinner... Oh dinner!

I got a fresh cut of Angus steak while shopping and grilled it in my cast iron skillet in Ghee... aMAHzing! Sides were roasted sweet potato and a sliced orange. I couldn't finish the steak so now I have a future lunch already done! :)

I'm feeling fine, though looking at all the packages to see if there is added sugar, MSG, nitrates, or sulfates is a bit disheartening. Every package of Bacon or lunch meat had sugar added... Every single one... Even the "uncured" bacon. I need to find a bacon that I'm allowed to eat!!! 

Does anyone know of a brand of all natural, no sugar added, uncured bacon and where I can find it? I'd greatly appreciate it! 

My Whole Life - Whole30 Day 1

So I ended up waiting until today to start my first Whole 30. With the holiday weekend and beginning the preparations to paint the new house it was much easier to go with faster food like Jimmy John's and Potbelly...

I have had a migraine all day, though I don't think it's related to the challenge as it hasn't yet been 24 hours.

I made some delicious chicken soup with onions and carrots from the remnants of a roasted chicken and had some for lunch. I was a little amazed at how filling and satisfying a big bowl of homemade soup could be. 

For dinner I'm having an omelet made with 2 eggs and 1 egg white and some onions grilled in Ghee. Very good.

I didn't have much free time to prepare and plan meals, but I didn't want to wait to begin, so I'm winging it until I get a few hours on a Saturday to get things made, packed and frozen.

For now it'll be a lot of soup and eggs. :) 

I may have to make a special trip to the market to get some nuts fruit and veggies to get by until then.

That's it for today. I'll post again tomorrow! 

Countdown

Two days left until I begin my first Whole 30. I'm both nervous and excited. I've made and frozen a couple soups so far; chicken, carrot and onion and cabbage with mixed vegetables. I have a menu planned out and know which days will be harder due to events I can't miss.

I'm still hoping someone will do this with me, but I'm ready to get this brain re-wired and I'm ready to remember what food, real food, tastes like. 

The long journey is going to take about a year. This will be a good head start.

New Start and Preparation

The new start date for my first Whole30 is September 1st. It just made more sense to use the entire month, plus I am hoping to go to a wedding in Chehalis, WA on Oct 5th and don't want to end up shocking my stomach with wedding cake. :) 

I'm making a big pot of chicken soup this weekend, along with pre-cooking a bunch of veggies, sides, bacon and a whole roasted chicken to cut up and freeze for salads later.

I also printed the Time Line to help me recognize the phases of the withdrawal from processed foods.

You can look it over here. It's pretty funny: http://whole9life.com/2012/06/the-whole30-timeline/

Whole 30

I'm hopping on the Whole 30 bandwagon beginning September 4th.

I plan to log my meals, some photos and my reactions/progress each day on this very blog.

I have read up on the likely side effects of breaking the addictions that processed foods are known to cause (e.g. headaches, mood swings, initial fatigue) and I'm hoping for a swift passing through all of the stages.

I hope to see a benefit in the form of better sleep, better alertness, weight loss, and a reprogrammed set of taste buds.

I have planned a menu ahead of time and made grocery lists of the items I will need to buy/make for each week.

Beginning stats will be posted the morning of Day 1 along with the day's meal plan and some photos.


If anyone wants to do this with me, I will send you my menu to give you an idea and that you can tailor to your liking and we can call/text/email to keep accountability and encouragement going day to day.

Send me a note if you want to be my accountability buddy! :)
meldamico@gmail.com