Whole 30 and Moving Forward

PREFACE:  I’m writing this on my plane ride back from New York, so I’m sorry if I start ramble, but sitting still drives me nuts, so I just keep thinking of things to talk about!  Give me a break, I had 7 hours to kill!

Alright, so I didn’t make it 30 days of the Whole30 Challenge, but I made it further than 21 days.  Which is apparently the magic number; if you can make it at least 21 days you are usually good to go.  Let me tell you, it is SO true!  I honestly have not felt better since taking out the gluten, grains, and cutting way back on fruit.  I went against everything I thought eating a lot more fats and meat, but man do I feel AMAZING!  I feel like I work harder during my workouts because I’m not worrying about stomach pains or bloating I used to get from eating all those supposed “necessary pre- and post-workout carbs.”  Am I saying that carbs are bad? Am I saying that you shouldn’t eat bread or pasta?  Not necessarily, it all depends on what works for YOU!  Personally, I noticed when I started running long distance my stomach became more sensitive and it seemed like NOTHING I did could fix that.  I tried eating “all natural”, “low fat”, “sugar free.”  It wasn’t until this Whole30 that I truly understood what all those cute little categories meant:

All Natural: “everything we put in our food is natural.”  Does NOT mean it is good for you.  If you check some “all natural” foods it will still have hydrogenated oil or those nasty -lose ending ingredients, which are usually fake sugars that make you bloat.

Low Fat: “low-no fat.”  Did you know skittles are technically “low fat,” but would you eat them? 

Sugar Free: MY FAVORITE haha.  They don’t contain sugar, BUT they contain those pesky fake sugars that can reek more havoc on your body then the real deal.  Sometimes your body has a harder time digesting them and that’s why you end up feeling bloated and gassy. 

So why did I cut the 30 short if I am so pro-Whole30?  Well, in case you don’t follow me on Facebook or Twitter, I went to visit my boyfriend this week in New York for his last home series (yes, he’s a baseball player..love my boy of summer).  Monday-Wednesday  he took me out for really nice dinners after his games.  He wanted me to get some really good hearty meals in since he knows I try really hard to eat “clean.”  Now, before you say anything about “he should be supportive of your healthy eating.” BLAH BLAH BLAH.  He is, but every once in a while he likes me to let loose and just enjoy myself.  I did!  I didn’t go hog wild the whole time I was out there.  I would eat really good during the day, workout (workouts below post), go watch him play, and then indulge at night.  

What I learned the most from indulging?  I no longer have an emotional attachment to food, like I used to.  Don’t get me wrong, the food was DELICIOUS, but I wasn’t all giddy or excited when I ate the food and I didn’t kick myself afterwards.  Instead, I ate until I was no longer hungry and then pushed the rest to the side.  Those 21 days really allowed me to just focus and re-teach myself to use food as my fuel.  I learned how to eat around my workouts, so that I was properly fueled and I wasn’t eating things just because I had a craving for it.  

I know you’re next question: where do you go from here?  What do I do now that I’m finished with my Whole30?  Do I go back to eating like I did before?  NO WAY!!  I plan on staying paleo and just adding some things back in, like the occasional piece of gum, almond milk, and coconut flour to bake with (when I get the initiative haha).  I honestly do not miss bread or pasta anymore.  I don’t crave sugary drinks or my energy drinks.  I actually had one of my favorite energy drinks this week to give me a boost one of my boyfriend’s games and for the first time I realized how AWFUL energy drinks taste.  It tasted like metal against my tongue and I was no longer a fan.  I actually was craving my dark roast, black coffee!  The front desk got so used to me coming down for extra coffee that they had it out before I even asked (gotta love good customer service).  

Moving forward my diet is going to look like this because there are somethings I still want to tweak.  I want to try and keep my fruit intake to once a day, maybe two when I have a heavy cardio AND weight day.  I also want to keep my fruit intake mostly from berries and melons.  I also want to start making my plates half protein, half non-starchy veggies.  Have a cheat meal once a week or every other week.  

I have still a little ways until I reach my physique goal, but for once in my life that is no longer my main goal.  It no longer fills my every waking moment.  It finally hit me, “why am I worrying so much about my physique,” this vacation.  My boyfriend never has anything to say about my physique turning him off or wishing I looked different.  Why shouldn’t I give myself the same respect as he does?  

What I gained from all this?  A challenge for September (and I challenge you all to do the same)!!  

1. Love myself every day!  Whether it is replacing every bad comment to myself with a positive or giving myself a break on a stressful day.

2. Eat paleo 90-95% Why only 90-95%?  Well, we’re not all perfect and damnit I want a cheat meal every once in a while ;)  

1. Plan my meals for the week and cook (as much as I can) on Sundays.

3. Drink more water!  At least half a gallon a day.

Well, I think that’s about enough writing for today and I’m sure you’re trying to figure out when my rambling ends, so here you go....THE END.

PS: here’s my hotel workouts!  Also, you may notice that they’re a little easier than usual and you’re exactly right!  I wanted to back off a little from my intensity, focus on my form, and let my body recover a little so I can (hopefully) ROCK my 5K on Friday night!  Don’t think for a second though that if you do these RIGHT you won’t be sore.  I was definitely still sore, but not the sore that makes it hard to roll out of bed.  Rather the sore that keeps me coming back for more!

SUNDAY: Ran 4.5 miles before getting on my plane

MONDAY: 4 rounds:
20 backward lunges Overhead (2 10# dumbbells)
10 pushups
20 Kettlebell Swings (25#)
15 chair dips
TIME- 9min

Sprints: 30secs on, 30secs off increase incline every minute
TIME- 14min

Tabata: 8 rounds (20 sec on, 10sec off)
Squats

TUESDAY: 4 Rounds:
15 burpees
25 squats
35 situps
TIME- 11:45

Tabata: 8 rounds (20sec on, 10sec off) 3x

Burpees
Situps
Pushups

WEDNESDAY: 5 rounds:
30 Kettle bell swings (25#)
25 squats (2 12.5# dumbbells)
20 overhead lunges (2 7.5#)
15 push presses (2 12.5#)
10 burpees

Arc Trainer: 30min

Bye Bye Trail Mix and Fruit..kind of

HALF WAY!!  I've made it half way through my Whole30..14 days of unprocessed, no sugar gloriousness (yes, that's a word..at least in my dictionary).  I can't believe I've made it this far!  I feel amazing.  I haven't had this much energy since I was a kid!  Plus, I just feel better and feel like I'm moving, thinking, and just living in general in less of a "fog."

Now, I'm on the home stretch into week 3!  I want to keep challenging myself though, so I'm going to cut back my trail mix and my fruit intake.  I think I've started to rely a little too much on trail mix and fruit to get over my sugar/fake sugar addiction.  Honestly, I could sit down and eat an entire bag of trail mix (the brand that's from Lincoln, NE without peanuts or other types of soy nuts and no sugars).  I also realized that my fruit intake is lower than it was in the past, but I know I could still do better.  My new goal is to only buy trail mix every other week and to only eat berries as my fruit.  I'm also going to challenge myself to one serving of fruit a day.  I'll have a cup of berries with breakfast!

The timeline is still SPOT ON!  Here's what it said for week 2 "Hurray! The slump is over! Your energy levels are better than normal – you’re downright Tigger the bouncing tiger!  But something weird is happening.  You’re dreaming. Not crazy nightmare or strange surrealist dreams, either. Incredibly normal and realistic dreams – about donuts. Or Twinkies. Or Snickers.* In your mind, sometimes you get caught and feel guilty. Sometimes you just brazenly eat the contraband. But then, the feelings start following you into the waking hours. Suddenly, you’re craving things you don’t even like. (For me, it’s Diet Coke and Twinkies, for Melissa Hartwig, it was fast-food cheeseburgers!) Your co-workers; heads transform into giant Girl Scout Cookies as you gaze on in disbelief. Seriously, you’ve almost hit the halfway mark, and now this?!

All joking aside, though, this phase gets really intense and for some people. This is the part of the program where our minds try to drive us back to the comfort of the foods we used to know. Our food relationships are deeply rooted and strongly reinforced throughout the course of our lives and breaking through them is really big deal. Journaling can be especially enlightening and helpful during this phase, and helpful for reflection later. Take some time to jot down what you’re craving, how you’re feeling and what tools you’re using to work through the cravings." (Whole 9) 

It was so true because during that time (this weekend especially) I went to a wedding reception.  Before the wedding party arrived there was popcorn, candy, and all sorts of sweets to indulge in.  There was also an open bar and I'm not a big drinker, but for some reason a big, tall cold beer sounded amazing.  The dinner was a BBQ/Buffet style.  There was salad (with all sorts of toppings), potato salad, beans, bread galore, shredded pork, and BBQ sauce.  Let's not forget the cupcakes and cakes after dinner!  I was so proud of myself though because I stayed away from ALL OF IT!  I had some salad (without toppings and dressing) and a good portion of the shredded pork without BBQ sauce.  Did I miss the beginning snacks or the decadent desserts?  Maybe a little, but man it felt great to leave knowing I hadn't let my cravings or eyes takeover what I ate!  

I've also gotten into cooking (I know, weird).  I've cooked chicken in my crockpot, sauteed vegetables, baked vegetables, combined vegetables, and eaten them raw!!  I feel pretty awesome since my idea of cooking was the microwave!

Here's to week 3!!!  

Whole30 Week 2

I've made it 11 days so far!!  The timeline I attached to my previous post on my Whole30 Challenge: Wholly What Challenge??, is pretty much spot on!!  I felt the withdrawal symptoms during the first week.  Literally, if you did not have coffee in your hand and weren't giving it to me; I wanted to punch you in the FACE!  I can't believe how addicted to sugars and processed foods I am.  Then, after I made it through that hot mess; I was EXHAUSTED!  I'm not sure if that was from the change or if it was from not getting sleep during the 36 hours of Ragnar (either way it was TOTALLY worth it).  I slept 12 hours on Sunday night.  Yesterday, I finally made it past the exhaustion and now I feel like an energizer bunny!

I got SO much done yesterday including a schedule for my semester.  I scheduled in my work schedule, school/studying schedule, and workout schedule.  I even made sure to write-in "going out" time and nap time!

I did CrossFit in the morning, biked to and from class, and took a Pilates Reformer class.  I've been teaching it recently, but haven't taken it and it was an amazing feeling to remember why I love it so much and why I love teaching it.  Today I biked to and from class, did CrossFit, and plan to bike to and from class again!  Usually in the morning I never WANT to workout, but I pull my a$$ out of bed and do it and about 5 minutes into it I NEVER regret going.  

I'm not only gaining more energy, but I feel SOO much better.  I feel "clean", my face has started clearing up, and my running has improved.  I usually have TERRIBLE intestinal/bowel issues when I run over 5 miles and during Ragnar two of my three runs were over 5.  I was very nervous going in because there were no porto-johns on the course, but to my surprise I didn't have ANY issues.  My stomach never hurt and never had to rush to the nearest bush or anything that resembled a bathroom.  After 4 years of having these issues while training for endurance events it feels great to finally feel "normal" and not worry about using the bathroom during a run.  

Also, this challenge has made me get creative with food and I actually enjoy making up recipes or tweeking recipes I find, especially on Pinterest, to make them Whole30 approved.  Here are some recipes/ dishes I have done so far (I know I need more pictures)...

squash, cucumber, peppers, small amount of sweet potatoes and chicken

Sweet Potato Skillet and Kale on the side

I'm also in the process of making squash chips (the timer actually just dinged).  In my slow cooker is chicken cooking in tomatoes, cilantro, and hot peppers.  I'll make sure to take pictures of these!  I discovered an AMAZING app on the IPhone called, myKitchen.  It's a database of paleo recipes for everything from meat to desserts!!  I haven't made anything from it yet, but I plan to make "Paleo Tacos" this week!  Another great resource has been Pinterest.  I have searched for paleo recipes, Whole30 recipes, and then just found other delicious recipes that I plan to make paleo by exchanging ingredients or just taking out ingredients. I'll be sure to post these as well!

I recently found at the grocery store homemade trail mix.  It's made by a farm somewhere in Lincoln, NE!!  It has no sugars (other than what's in the fruit naturally) and no salts.  It has raisins, bananas, apricots, pineapple, dates, walnuts, almonds, and coconut shavings.  This definitely helped me during the first week when I was having those awful withdrawals.  The coconut shavings helped SOO much.  Just gnawing on a few of those when I got a craving and they were gone within seconds.  

Num Num..I'd eat this screen if I could!

I'm really enjoying this experience and finally getting why putting natural food (meat, nuts, eggs, vegetables, and fruit) is the only way to go!  Almost two weeks down and two more to go :)

Well, I'm going to get back to my documentary, "The Loving Story" about a couple that is a "mixed" couple and were arrested for being married!!  Another reason as to why I'm so glad I grew up in this age.  I can't believe people really thought "mixing" was bad for the races (boggles my mind)?!?  

Wholly What Challenge?!?

Strict Paleo for 30 days!  Yep, you read that right...I've dumped my processed foods, my dairy, and I've locked up the alcohol and sweets.

One of the ladies that works out at my CrossFit gym, who is pretty much the most beastly person I have ever met, sent me some awesome documents to help me on my own Whole30 Challenge.  In a nutshell here's what eating "Paleo" means:  eat what humans used to eat before we started processing and making it in bulk.  My meals have consisted of: eggs, green veggies, turkey, lean beef, chicken, some fruit, and nuts (NO peanuts, unsalted).  I know it sounds bland, but I'm going to do it.  I'm not doing it for the weight loss or fat loss.  I'm doing it because I know that I have become WAY too attached to sugar and grains.  Even those pesky sugar alcohols and "fake" sugars are off limits!!  Approved drinks are: black coffee, unsweetened tea, and water..lots and lots of water!

Here's some simple charts that explain the nuts and bolts of Paleo:

I've told just a few people I'm doing this and their response has been (mostly because they've never done it or heard of it), "That sounds too hard."  "That's a lot of dedication."  That's when I started to re-think this decision before I started, but I did anyway.  Then today I got a real nice reality check.  I was looking up on the internet tips to getting through the Whole30 with sanity left and similar topics.  That's when I ran across what the woman, Melissa Hartwig, who started this program said, (just a summary) "It's not hard..Fighting cancer is hard, losing a child is hard."  I then thought WOW she's so right.  This isn't hard.  It's 30 days, that's it!  This isn't even that much dedication.  Dedication is training for 4 years for a 15 second race that you don't even know if you'll win!  

I'm on Day 2 and so far so good.  I found this great article written by Whole30 Challenge: The Whole30 Timeline.  It's spot on these last two days- Day 1 I felt amazing and thought, "Wow this will be great.  I feel awesome, hello walk in the park!"  Day 2- REALITY CHECK!  The author wrote, "the suck is proportionate to the amount of crap you put in your body before the program."  It's so true, I ate pretty healthy, but I did eat a lot of things (including endless amounts of gum) that had sugar alcohols and other fake sugars.  I woke up this morning for spin class and WOW!  I somehow put a smile on my face and was energetic during class, but the minute I stopped the music I wanted nothing to do with human interaction.  The only motivation I had was food and COFFEE!!  Coffee has literally saved my life people's lives...by me not wanting to KILL them.  Today I wanted nothing to do with conversation until I had coffee and once that one wore off I needed another one.  I'm not too worried though because the timeline said that after a while this phase will fade away.  I also noticed that WATER (imagine that) helps SOO much with my energy levels.  When I start getting exhausted I just guzzle down a glass of water and I'm good to go.  

To help curb a little of the sweet tooth I have half a handful of dried fruit (organic, natural AKA no sugars or salts) or a spoonful of this amazing organic almond butter I found..all it is is crushed almonds- NOTHING ELSE.  I think I may have died and gone to heaven!!

I'll be sure to update on how this awesome timeline pans out and I'll post some pictures of the meals I eat.  Here's the first one from Day 1: breakfast after CrossFit, so I added a banana for a little help recovering.  Of course, I had a big cup of black coffee on the side :)  I just keep thinking..less than 30 days; I can do anything for 30 days!

5 eggs and banana