Whole 30 Results

Thirteen pounds y'all. 

No measuring, no calorie counting, no unhealthy obsessions. Just plain old fashioned real food. 

The benefits of the Whole 30 are innumerable. A thirteen pound loss is just the icing on the cake. Or shall we say the tomatoes on the spaghetti squash. That wasn't funny? Sorry.

xoxo

Sara

Whole 30 in Review

 

 

Would you believe me if I told you that those 30 days flew by? Well darlings, those 30 days did sure fly right on by. Cravings? Not really. Carb flu? Not really. Motivated? Damn right.

The timing of my first Whole 30 was perfect. January 1. The cliche date for new beginnings, new you, new everything. Post holiday bloatfest was also a great frame of mind to start this "challenge". December 2013 seemed like our personal "No Carb Left Behind Tour". That wasn't just me was it? Okay good. I ended December feeling guilty, moody, bloated, and all around gross. I was ready for a challenge, ready for a permanent change. My body was craving protein, veggies, and fruits. Like for real y'all.

Whole 9 recommends doing an AAR (After Action Report) to retrospectively analyze your experience just like any project manager would do. What went well? What could have gone better?

What Went Well

• Signing up for the Whole 30 Daily. I looked forward to receiving the emails. They were the first thing I read before getting out of bed. Perfect combination of science, motivation, and humor.
• Meal Prep and planning, planning, planning. I prepped one week at a time for lunches. Eating the same thing for the whole week. Two weeks were grilled chicken and roasted vegetables. The other two weeks were Paleo Zucchini and more roasted vegetables. Planned dinners a week at a time, shopped weekly and cooked nightly for that.
• I fell in love with vegetables again err probably for the first time if I am being honest. I have always tolerated vegetables, but I now see them as the total rock star of the dinner plate, the perfect partner with protein.
• Consistent work outs. Dallas and Melissa recommend going light on your workouts in the beginning. I found the complete opposite of that to be what was best for my body. I craved cycling, body pump, and body step. Listen to your body.
• Speaking of body pump, I love it. It is a great atmosphere to fall in love with strength training. It is a welcoming environment where you get an outstanding full body workout. You work each muscle group to fatigue. It is choreographed, planned, and there are no missing gaps.
• Working out with a partner. I worked out with my best gal Jennie (freshman roommate!) and it helped with accountability and enjoyability (is that a word?) Working out is even more fun when you're cutting up and making inappropriate jokes with your best friend.
• Water water water. And black coffee.
• No paleo "recreations" of carb-like foods.
• Amazing, nutrition label reading abilities. There is some scary shit in "foodlike substances" in the interior of the grocery store.
• Shopping the perimeter only of the grocery store (Meat, Produce, boom)
• Purchasing my Vitamix. That will get it's very own post later.

What Goodness Did I Experience?

• Rock star sleep
• Amazing nails
• Glowy skin
• Weight loss (more on that tomorrow)
• Athletic gains at the gym
• Stable moods
• No afternoon "slumps"
• No hunger in between meals
• I am sure there is more that I am forgetting, but am happy to report that these are all a "new normal". I sure am using a lot of " "s in this post. Hmmm...

What Could Have Gone Better

• I need to reserve Lara Bars for emergencies only. They are too sweet and candy like when you are trying to "slay the sugar demon" as Dallas and Melissa say. I was sure to only pick the ones that were Whole 30 compliant, but they were just too sweet to be a mainstay.
• I need to bond with eggs for breakfast. I feel like I am missing out on something awesome here. They are just too much to deal with in the mornings when I am heading to work (late, always late). I will focus on them during my upcoming track out. (Track Out Day is February 14, but who's counting?!?).
• More exeperimenting when it comes to lunches and dinners. I played it safe (which is totally fine), but want to flex my culinary muscles in the next few months.
• Less fruit next time. Not no fruit, let's not be dramatic. I just said less.

Documentaries You Should Watch (Thank you, Netflix)

• Food, Inc
• Food Fight
• Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead
• Food Matters
• King Corn
• The World According to Monsanto

Books You Should Read

• It Starts with Food by Dallas and Melissa Hartwig
• Well Fed by Melissa Joulwan (of "The Clothes Make the Girl")
• The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan
• In Defense of Food by Michael Pollan
• Food Rules by Michael Pollan
• Healing Spices by Bharat B. Aggarwal, PhD

Blogs You Should Read

• The Clothes Make the Girl
• Nom Nom Paleo
• Whole 9 Life

I will be continuing my Whole 30 experience to make it at least a Whole 60, possibly a Whole 90. I am loving this new normal and want to delve deeper to see what other improvements are in store.

Weigh in is tomorrow. Report back. Same time, same channel.

xoxo,
Sara

Paleo Zucchini Lasagna

This was yumm-o, to die for, so perfect. Bon appetit! 

Paleo Zucchini Lasagna

4 zucchini (or 5, if small)

1 onion, diced

1 pound grass fed ground beef

28 oz can diced tomatoes, drained

6 oz can tomato paste

1 Tbsp parsley

1 tsp kosher salt

1 tsp ground black pepper

1 tsp oregano

1 tsp or more garlic powder

Preheat oven to 350. Slice your zucchini, thinly. I used my mandolin and didn't slice my finger off. Win win. Set aside.

Brown ground beef with diced onion and garlic powder. Once cooked throughout, add tomatoes, tomato paste, parsley, oregano, salt, and pepper. Let those flavors mingle and get happy together, approximately five minutes. You are now ready to start layering.

Start with one layer of zucchini at the bottom of a 13x9 Pyrex. Top with meat mixture. Continue alternating until you are out, ending with meat on the top layer.

Bake for 30 minutes. 

Serves six big portions or eight small ones. Trust me, you'll want a big portion of this!

Mashed Cauliflower

Tonight was my first foray into mashed cauliflower, what seems like a Paleo right of passage. Here is how my method went...

You will need:

1 head of cauliflower 

4-5 cloves of garlic (peeled)

Olive oil

Salt

Pepper

Chop up the cauliflower and toss it into a saucepan with the peeled garlic cloves (leave them whole, no mincing please). Add about 1 inch of water. Bring water to a boil and cover. Steam for about 5-6 minutes, until tender. Drain off water.

Put cauliflower, garlic, a hearty swirl of olive oil, a dash of salt, and a dash of pepper into a food processor. Whirl that around until you get your desired texture. It should look like mashed potatoes.

Here was my finished product, served with London broil

Mashed cauliflower has the comfort factor of mashed potatoes, but with a different texture. I LOVED them. Give 'em a try and let me know what you think.

Xoxo

Sara

Week in Review

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Today marks Day 5 of my January Whole 30. I am starting to feel the good vibes the book talked about, but am cautiously optimistic as some people have reported carb flu onset closer to Day 8. The worst I felt all week was 3 pm on Day 2. It was the headache of all headaches, cold rain, and the end of my first day back from Winter Break. Kill all things kind of a mood. What did I do about it? "Suck it up, buttercup". Chugged some water, cuddles with Scout, and then straight out the door to meet Jennie for Body Pump.

"It Starts with Food" mentioned going light on exercise and allowing yourself small power naps for the first week. For me, I found the complete opposite to be true. Going strong at the gym made me feel 1000% better. This week I did a mix of Cycle, Body Pump, and Pilates. It felt great. I am rinsing and repeating for next week.

Other thoughts from this week? There is no way in hell you can be successful with this without preparation. I make a weeks worth of lunch on Sundays (today) and have a game plan for dinners this week. Eric has been fine all week with dinner. He really will eat anything I put in front of him, bless his heart. The meat is high quality, the vegetables are fresh (and local if seasonally possible), and the spices are on point. Up until now, I have really underestimated the power of spices. Some nights I make things that I know he can easily modify. For example, Paleo Turkey Chili the other night. Mine was simple, he covered his in cheese and sour cream. Does that bother me? Not really. I am not really missing dairy as much as I thought I would. Tonight's dinner is ground grass fed, local beef. Seasoning with mucho garlic and fresh tomato sauce. I will have it alone with some roasted vegetables, while Eric is planning on boiling up some pasta to have with his. Little changes, big impact.

Some images from the week...

 And whose day would be complete without a little love from Scout?

Xoxo

Sara