Sticking a Fork in the Whole30

Well it’s about time I give you my Whole30 wrap up, don’t you think? Only a few weeks behind, but better late than never. Actually, I’m kind of glad I’m writing this a couple weeks after we finished our Whole30 because it gives me a little more insight into the whole experience. (And if everything I just wrote makes zero sense to you, you might want to read Part I, II and III)

The biggest thing for me is that this whole experience has really changed the way I think about food, the way we shop for it and how I’m ok with looking at good, healthy food as something worth investing in, because really I’m investing in my long term health and well being. Oh, and this morning for breakfast, I had a smoothie made from Kale, 1/2 an avocado, goji berries and applesauce. Hello, hippie much?

I can honestly say I loved the way my body, mind and spirit felt during the Whole30. The best word I can use to describe it as is…clean. And the first week or so after getting off the Whole30, and going back to a non-paleo diet,  Joey and I both felt like crap. I’m still getting random headaches here and there and I truly feel like I have less sustainable energy throughout the day.   I’m not saying it’s ALL related to food, because I know I’m more stressed with work at the moment, but a curious coincidence, dontcha think?

Full disclosure: Post Whole30 I’ve totally fallen back down the sugar rabbit hole. I seriously can’t stop myself when it comes to one cookie vs. three, and the fact that we had hot fudge brownie fixings in the house from Joey’s birthday, well it was all over for me. No. Self. Control. I need to get this in check. Like yesterday.

Eating Habits Now: I’m much more relaxed about the things I’m eating, but I am trying to stick to a mostly paleo diet, choosing lean meats, veggies, fruits and nuts as much as possible. We have yet to buy milk or cheese for the house (not to say I haven’t had either outside of the house, but it’s a start). I made a cauliflower rice dish just last week.  After watching Food Inc. again, I’m very serious about only wanting to buy grass fed beef and free range chicken. I’ll keeping going to my favorite local produce stand until it closes for the year. We’re changing. It won’t happen over night, but I feel a conviction deep inside of me.

Whole30 PartII?: Joey, completely under his own influence, wants to do another Whole30 in October. I think he feels bad because of all of those cheat days 😉 We’ll see what happens.

As for all the questions of, “Isn’t it hard to eat like that?” I’ll quote my favorite motivational line from It Starts with Food:

“It is not hard. Don’t you dare tell us this is hard. Quitting heroin is hard. Beating cancer is hard. Drinking your coffee black. Is. Not. Hard.”

So who’s coming over for some Paleo Southwest Meatloaf tonight?

Whole 30: Week 3 In the Bag

Week 3 of our Whole 30 is in the bag (if you’re new, check out week 1 and week 2 recaps), and I’m still going strong. My main feeling after realizing we only have one week left to go is…umm, this is easy! I’m starting to think about what things look like post-whole30, and I can honestly say I think I’ll be making some long term changes to the way we buy our food, what we buy and how we cook. And I’m super excited about all of these things (and yes, that’s in a dorky way just like it sounds).

Full Disclosure: I told you about my breaking the no-alcohol rule for a bachelorette party. Well, Joey broke it too during a recent work trip out of state (cough cough and maybe a few other times too cough cough), and there may or may not have been late night taco bell on said work trip (GASP!!), but I have to give the man credit for sticking to the program even when I know he has been ready to give up and eat a pound of pasta. He’s a guy. He has a (enviously) fast metabolism. And he works out. I think his body seriously craves, and needs, that carb energy to keep him going. He depends on those quick, filling meals and sometimes a can of tuna and a sweet potato just don’t cut it.

I also have a bit of a leg up since I have access to an awesome salad bar/full cafeteria 5 days a week at work, where Joey doesn’t. And instead of ‘cheating’ on the Whole30, he’ll eat a meager lunch of whatever he can throw together quickly. But Joey + small meal + crazy work schedule = Mr. CrankyPants (Love you babe! smooch smooch!).

Moving along.

How am I feeling? My update is much the same as last time. More sustainable energy throughout the day, can forgo my morning coffee without getting a headache, and my body just feels…better. I don’t feel, however, like I have any superhuman, health food induced powers. It’s not like this amazing, SHOUT IT FROM THE ROOFTOPS, transformation of body and soul. I  just simply feel good about myself and my food choices.

Food Discovery of the Week: Cauliflower rice is AWESOME! I don’t have a food processor, so we put ours through the blender a little at a time to break it down into rice sized pieces (see photo above, not my photo but it’s a dish using cauliflower rice). Joey sauteed it with olive oil, garlic and other spices. Added some of this awesome andouille sausage we got from a local natural market, and a green pepper and zuchinni from our favorite produce stand, and holy cow was this dish awesome. I went back for seconds…and thirds. We were so stuffed we couldn’t even think about yonanas for dessert 😉 Need to make this one again asap.

For Your Instant Queue: Some food for thought documentaries if you’re interested in making some changes to your diet, or understanding more about our food industry and food’s role in our overall health. I highly recommend you watch Food Inc. and Food Matters. I know you have to be careful of what you take as gospel, but starting to question, research, and understand is never a bad thing.

Oh, and if anyone is planning on trying a Whole30 (I know Campbell is!), or switching to a paleo based diet, I’d love to hear updates on how it’s going!

Happy Happy Friday, All!

Whole30: One Week Down, Three to Go

High-five to week one of our Whole30 being complete (if you’re not sure what the Whole30 is, read more here)! And I can happily report that we haven’t touched any grains, dairy, processed sugar or alcohol — so far, so good! Since we’re already generally healthy people, I will say that it wasn’t as hard as some of the things I read claimed it would be. Honestly, the only thing I’ve been craving is Pop Tarts, which is especially weird given I very rarely eat a Pop Tart, so that was just my sugar habit talking. Other than that, I don’t feel deprived at all. I do think Joey is missing his pasta and rice though!

I’ve learned that the key is to be prepared! As in, stock the kitchen with tons of healthy options, hit up the blogosphere for Whole30 approved recipes and know that you will be spending a lot more time cleaning pots and pans. I put up this little chalkboard menu in our kitchen on Monday to help plan our dinners for the week, and it was a huge hit.  It keeps us both on the same page with what the expect and helped us plan for a variety of meals/flavors so things don’t get boring.

It also helps that Joey and I are doing this together. And we’re both so competitive that we would LOVE to see the other person be the first to break the Whole30 and drink a beer, or eat a noodle :). I just realized that sounds like we have no interest in the other person succeeding, which isn’t entirely true. However, we have been known to make the Dentist determine whose cavity is worse than the others in order to win some hygiene-bragging-rights. (Mine was wider, his was deeper, Dentist said that meant it was a tie. I think it means I win.)

So how am I feeling? I would say after 7 days I don’t feel like I can jump tall buildings in a single bound or anything, but I also haven’t gotten any, what I’ve long suspected are dairy related, stomach aches. I do feel a sense of confidence though that we’ll be able to make it through the 30 days. Stay tuned!

It Starts with Food Part III: The Whole 30

So now that you understand the premise behind It Starts with Food, as laid out in Part I and Part II, it’s time to talk about the final piece of the pie — the Whole 30. It’s a 30 day dietary challenge to strip all the less-healthy and/or overly processed foods from your diet in order to learn first hand how the foods we eat affect your daily and long term health.

Here’s how the brains behind the operation lay it out:

Certain food groups (like sugar, grains, dairy and legumes) could be having a negative impact on your health and fitness without you even realizing it. Are your energy levels inconsistent or non-existent? Do you have aches and pains that can’t be explained by over-use or injury? Are you having a hard time losing weight no matter how hard you try? Do you have some sort of condition (like skin issues, digestive ailments, seasonal allergies or fertility issues) that medication hasn’t helped? These symptoms may be directly related to the foods you eat – even the “healthy” stuff. So how do you know if (and how) these foods are affecting you?

Strip them from your diet completely.Cut out all the psychologically unhealthy, hormone-unbalancing, gut-disrupting, inflammatory food groups for a full 30 days. Let your body heal and recover from whatever effects those foods may be causing. Push the “reset” button with your metabolism, systemic inflammation, and the downstream effects of the food choices you’ve been making. Learn once and for all how the foods you’ve been eating are actually affecting your day to day life, and your long term health. The most important reason to keep reading?

This will change your life.

In a nutshell, no alcohol, grains, legumes, dairy or white potatoes for 30 days (the entire program is outlined here if you want to give it a read). And starting August 1 the hubster and I are pledging to give it a go, which means you’re along for the ride too! Want to try it with us? Print out this grocery shopping list (because there are plenty of awesome food choices on the YES list), hit the store tomorrow and lets go! Oh, and let me know too so we can cheer each other on.

Class dismissed.

It Starts With Food: Part I

“The food you eat either makes your more healthy or less healthy. Those are your options.”

That’s the theory behind It Starts With Food by Dallas and Melissa Hartwig. And I admit, since I started reading this book a few weeks ago I’m totally drinking the Kool-aid. Figuratively speaking that is, because literally the nasty chemical powder that is Kool-aid is definitely not one of those things that makes you more healthy.

I should also disclose that this book is very science-y and a thousand times less sexy than 50 Shades of Grey. Sorry ladies. That being said, this stuff is also important seeing as we only get one body and one chance to make the most of it.

Ok, so what is “It Starts With Food” all about?

I’ve been struggling with this post because the book is about so much, but at its core it’s about encouraging you to eat real food — fresh, natural food like meat, vegetable and fruit. It’s about learning how to choose foods that are nutrient-dense with lots of naturally occurring vitamins and minerals rather than foods that have more calories, less nutrition, and tons of ingredients you can’t pronounce.

Why eat like this? As I mentioned, the book is very science-y and if you want to learn about brain signals, insulin, leptin, glucagon, cortisol and your gut barrier, you’ll have to read, but to sum it up, I’ll pull directly from the authors’ website:

 Eating this way is ideal for maintaining a healthy metabolism and reducing inflammation within the body. It’s good for body composition, energy levels, sleep quality, mental attitude and quality of life. It helps eliminate sugar cravings and reestablishes a healthy relationship with food. It also works to minimize your risk for a whole host of lifestyle diseases and conditions, like diabetes, heart attack, stroke and autoimmune.

Interested in more? Hang tight for Part II soon on the “good food standards”, and Part III on what they call the Whole 30. Like I said, I’m drinking the Kool-aid people!

My Dog Eats Better Than I Do

I came to this realization as I reached into the fridge for a piece of chocolate for me and a carrot stick for Moose. Hmmm…what’s wrong with that picture?! Moose does in fact eat better than I do. His diet: 2 cups of high-quality dog food twice a day and outside of that he gets baby carrots, frozen green beans, frozen broccoli, apples and if he’s lucky, maybe a little peanut butter smeared inside his kong. That’s about it. I’m 99.9% sure the dog has more vegetables and fruits in his diet than Joey and I combined.

I’m sure my fellow pet owners would agree that we often treat our four-legged family members better than we treat ourselves when it comes to diet and exercise. It’s funny how we spend so much time training them when in fact they should be the ones training us. I’d be a much healthier person if I slept like Moose, played hard like Moose and ate like Moose – well, minus the socks and christmas ornaments of course! Just a little food for thought. Pun intended.