Whole30 Weekend & Day 8

Whole30 Weekend & Day 8

Well, I officially completed my first weekend (& week) doing Whole30. I have to admit, it was a little tough. I am also noticing that we frequent the grocery store. I think every night since I’ve been doing Whole30 one of us has swung by Publix on our way home from work to pick up one or two things we forgot or need for a recipe. I think once we really learn how to cook with these delicious whole foods, that won’t be so much the case.

A few weekend favorites:

Friday night Matt and I made some DELICIOUS stuffed peppers. The ground turkey was cooked with green pepper, onion and eggplant and was seasoned with rosemary, oregano, basil, garlic, and S&P. We found a brand of already prepared spaghetti sauce that is a-okay for me to eat so we mixed some sauce into the meat before stuffing the peppers and sticking them in the oven. It is my favorite meal yet. I got smart and made a double portion of meat SO if I am feeling hungry and need a little protein, I just heat up a scoop of it with a dollop of tomato sauce and wall-la! A tasty snacky snack.

Saturday I fully discovered the love of my life when it comes to healthy shopping and eating – Whole Foods. YES, I have been in there several times before but Matt and I took our time to browse the entire store and see what it has to offer. If only I could live at whole foods. Here’s something great – they have a hot bar and families literally eat dinner there (who knew!) BUT they list every single ingredient in every entrée. Love it. So I found some wings that I could have and man oh man were they TASTY. I also got some delicious smelling soap made from goats milk, some coconut aminos which are supposed to be like a soy sauce substitute, and had a strong urge to buy more TOMS (which I resisted – but ohhh the sparkly pink ones) – if only I knew where my TOMS were hiding. Such a sad day when I can’t wear them!

A few weekend not-so-favorites:

Mother’s Day was a toughy. I stuck to the ham and green beans with a small side salad (don’t worry, I grilled my dad about the ingredients of every dish) while the rest of my family loaded their plates with Mamaw’s amazing squash casserole, homemade mac & cheese, and hot buttered roles – Mmmm! The smell of the deliciousness was KILLING me! Oh, and for dessert? Ice cream cake. My dessert consisted of a little thing I like to call H2O. They took a bite of their delicious, Butterfinger ice-cream cake and took a giant swig of my H2O – it’s basically the same, right? Let me answer that for you – no, it’s not.

BUT needless to say, I am proud that I stuck to it.

Day 8:

Yesterday was day 8 of Whole30. I spent my evening having a little quality time with our Magic Bullet (LOVE that thing – thanks, Grandma). I have been making breakfast smoothies for the mornings. I have discovered that making them all at one time is better than making one every night before or morning of. But how, you might wonder, do you keep them at the delicious smoothie consistency? Well, let me tell you. You put them in separate quart size zip-locks and stick them in the freezer. Easy Peasy! The night before, say…right after dinner, just stick one in the fridge. When you are rushing out the door the next morning because you slept to the very last second, dump it in a cup, grab a straw and ta-da! Perf. What I really need is a crazy straw that is big enough to slurp up smoothies. How fun would that make my ride to work?

Changes to my body:

I have been paying close attention to my body to see if it changes and how so. My whole goal with this is to become aware of what I am eating and how my body responds to it – and to jump start a much healthier life style by restricting my diet to only meat, veggies and fruits for 30 days. It’s just a little adventure.

1. One thing I noticed is that I had some wild dreams over the weekend. So many of them, too. That wasn’t so much the case the last two nights, but man when I woke up I was just like “Whaaaat?”

2. I was trying to describe the difference that my body feels to Matt and here is what I said: I just feel lighter. Not in a weight kind of way (I have no idea if I weigh less or not because I am not weighing myself until it is over). I just feel airy, breezy, bouncy, floaty – am I painting a picture? So in other words, I don’t feel groggy or “weighed down” or just icky (and you know what else? I don’t feel greasy – you know the way you feel after you eat something that is so delicious but just SO gross? Yep, that. It doesn’t exist when you eat like this) I don’t know if that means more energy but I DO know that it’s way more fun.

3. I am realizing that I only eat when I am hungry. Before, I would eat just because I had a craving or was bored or just wanted a little somethin’ somethin’. Now, I only eat when my body needs food – I am concluding that is a good thing. Because I am eating a lot of the same foods, I am not constantly thinking “Oh my gosh, what I wouldn’t give to have a bite of that summer squash!” – Now, replace “summer squash” with “raspberry elegance cake” or a glass of Dr. Pepper and that was me two weeks ago. I will still get that feeling where I am like, “man, I really want something yummy/a little treat” but then I start considering my options and I realize that I am actually not hungry at all and carrot stix won’t really hit the spot. It’s kind of nice and obviously healthier.

So there you have it, week one down. You may applaud.