whole30 challenge, day 21 -- wishing for some comfort

i checked the "paleo comfort foods" cookbook by julie and charles mayfield out from the library, and found some really great recipes.  i had to return it today (it was really overdue) but i am going to purchase it because it has lots of ideas that fit with the way we eat.  not just paleo eating, but the kind of stuff we like all the time.  for example, i have been searching and searching for a breakfast sausage that we liked and was paleo (meaning no sugar or preservatives among other things) and have just been coming up short every time.  this cookbook has a recipe for a homemade breakfast sausage, and i made it recently and it was really good.  i liked that i could tweak it for our own taste.  i used 2 lbs of ground turkey and 1 lb of ground pork, and seasoned it with the likes of sage, basil, salt, pepper, chili powder, a bit of cayenne pepper, and some others that i cannot remember.  my husband suggested for the next batch that i add fennel seed, which i plan on doing.  when this cookbook comes in, i will be posting the recipe.  if you can't wait, you can see if your local library has it for you to check out.  it also has recipes for tortillas made with coconut flour, a paleo bbq sauce and ketchup, paleo chili (no beans!) spiced mixed nuts, and lots of other yummy dishes.  eating paleo is not boring, but sometimes i just wish some of those "comfort foods" that i relied on for so long were still available.  with this cookbook, some of those dishes seem within reach while still being healthy.

on thursday, day 19, i did my exercise and walk in the early evening before dinner.  i didn't keep track of my meals, but it was pretty much the same as almost every other day -- eggs, veggies, fruit and chicken.

for friday, day 20, i did my exercises (arm day) in the morning and went on my walk with my husband -- in the rain. got soaked, but at least it was warm!  for breakfast i had two eggs and an egg white scrambled with some veggies, and an orange.  then i was so sleepy i took a nap!!  didn't really have lunch, just snacked on some almonds, cut up raw veggies and an apple.  for dinner we had chuck roast in the crock pot, veggies and some salad, and some really good cantaloupe.  that night we went to our son's college (also our alma mater) for his jazz band concert.  he plays the string bass and bass guitar, and he absolutely rocked it.  he has become a very talented musician, and we are very proud of him.

today, day 21 -- for breakfast i had a link of chicken/apple sausage (purchased from costco and legal for the whole30 challenge) along with a couple of eggs and an egg white scrambled, and some pineapple. the pineapple was really, really sweet.  i think my taste buds have definitely become more sensitive over the past month.  since my breakfast was late i just had some almonds and an apple for lunch, then later i just had an orange.  for dinner i had oven baked chicken (a thigh and a leg) and some roasted veggies. my total calories for the day came to just over 1600 (too much!).  fat totaled 50% of calories (91.5 grams), protein came to 22% (88.6 grams) and carbs totaled 28% percent of calories (121.6 grams).  in there was approximately 21.3 grams of fiber. i do think the past couple of days i have had too much fruit -- tomorrow i will have to scale back a bit.  i have lost weight, and i want to keep that momentum going.  too much fruit will raise my blood sugar, which will in turn raise my insulin levels, which will then make it harder for me to lose weight.  alas, i did no exercise today -- i did keep busy, but i will be back to the exercising tomorrow.

on to tomorrow -- goodnight all! off to the comfort of my bed!

Whole30 challenge, day 18 -- over halfway there!

wednesday -- day 18! i can't believe we are halfway done with the whole30 challenge. it has been interesting, hard in some ways, easier than i thought it would be in other ways. i have definitely missed chocolate, but i am surprised that the cravings i always had have so greatly diminished. in fact, my craving for sugar in general is way less than it used to be. it is like a fond memory, something in my past that used to be the most important part of my day but is no longer necessary to my existence. i guess you could say i was addicted? lol!! i am almost a little scared at the prospect of dessert -- even a paleo dessert! these days when i want something sweet, i have fruit. i may be having more fruit than most people who do the whole 30, but i don't think i am overdoing it. i am feeling good, i no longer have acid reflux and the exercising is getting easier. and my clothes are fitting looser every day!!

for my breakfast this morning i had scrambled eggs made with two eggs and one egg white, cooked in ghee (clarified butter) and an orange. i was able to eat my lunch at about 1:00 pm. it wasn't much -- i haven't had a chance to cook ahead and there wasn't anything in the fridge to grab. i had an ounce of almonds, about 3 ounces of baby carrots, and an apple. this held me for a couple of hours, and then i was HUNGRY!! i had planned to exercise before dinner and didn't want to have problems like i had previously. so before i did my exercises i had another scrambled egg and about 4 0z of applesauce. that was just enough to let me exercise without issues. i did several variations of leg lifts with a 5 lb ankle weight on each leg, ran up the stairs and through the house 10 times, and i did 10 sit ups. and then my husband and youngest son and i took a 4 mile bike ride. when we got home we started dinner.

dinner consisted of taco seasoned ground meat (combo of ground beef and ground pork), guacamole, salad and cut up veggies. the kids also had some fruit salad. it was really good and i had a lot! i didn't measure exactly how much meat i ate, so i am estimating my calories at somewhere between 1600-1700. my protein content for the day was 23% (100 grams), carbs came in at 17% (83.7 grams) and fat totaled 60% (130 grams). fiber totaled 21 grams.

so now it is time to do dishes and get some food ready for tomorrow. i have one more day of my part time job this week, and i need portable food. this weekend i will be prepping some food ahead of time, especially protein. it has been a challenge for me to keep up on that.

have a great thursday. thanks for reading!

Whole30 challenge, day 17 -- what's happening?

hello again -- sorry i have been awol for so long. i can't believe we are on day 17 of this challenge. my only excuse is i have been working a lot and up late and really tired. things are going well, however. i have definitely lost weight, but i don't know how much yet. one of the rules of the whole30 challenge is that you don't weigh yourself for the entire month. you are not supposed to let yourself get distracted by what you weigh. you are meant to concentrate on getting healthy. when this month is over, i will definitely weigh myself and let you know how much i lost. i will say that last night i tried on a pair of jeans that is one size smaller than what i have been wearing, and i was able to get them buttoned and zipped. they aren't comfortable enough to wear (yet!) but last month i couldn't even come close to buttoning them. this is keeping me motivated!

i have been exercising regularly and eating properly, but i haven't been writing it down for the past week. i have been eating a lot of chicken and eggs and lots of veggies!! i will get back on track with recording everything starting tomorrow. i did do a total of 10 sit ups tonight though!!!

i did want to mention what we did for Easter. we were invited to my sister-in-law's house for Easter dinner, and i mentioned to her that we were doing this challenge and would not be able to eat her ham and the other fixin's that our family traditionally has on that holiday. i asked her if she would be offended if my husband and i brought our own food to eat and she graciously replied that she would not. i thought about what to fix and after talking about it with my husband, i settled on pork tenderloin. i gotta tell you -- much to my surprise, i TOTALLY rocked it!!! i rubbed it with a mixture of spices, including finely chopped fresh rosemary, salt, pepper, cinnamon and . . . i can't remember what else. i found the recipe online, but didn't write it down, and now i can't find it again. i am sorry, because i want to use it again!! anyway, i rubbed the tenderloin with the spices, and browned it on all sides in a skillet with a couple of tablespoons of coconut oil. when the tenderloin was browned, i put it in the oven at about 400 for approximately 20 minutes. at that point, it was time to leave for my sister-in-law's, so i took the tenderloin out of the oven and wrapped it in heavy duty foil. our drive took an hour, and when i unwrapped the tenderloin to serve it, i was amazed. it was the MOST tender, juicy tenderloin i have ever made. it was perfectly cooked and was delicious. we put it on the table with everything else and after my hubby and i had our portions, the rest of the family devoured the remains. we also brought a green salad and some oven roasted veggies that were shared with the rest of the family as well. i can't forget to mention that i also took my traditional green bean casserole (yes, the one made with campbell's cream of mushroom soup) but i didn't have any. in our family, though, that dish is expected at holiday meals.

so, the main things i have noticed over the past week are: i am sleeping better, thank goodness. i have been getting up early and going to bed late though, so i am really tired. i think if i were getting more than 5-6 hours of sleep a night my energy levels would go up. staying up late is a lifelong habit for me -- one i don't think will soon be broken! some days i am not very hungry, other days i am famished all day. i haven't really taken the time to figure out what is different on the days i am hungry.

another thing i have noticed is that even though i really like meat, i am getting tired of trying to figure out how to fix so much protein. some days i just want something that is easier to cook and eat. that's just my lazy side coming out though. i don't want to go back to feeling the way i felt a year ago. this is a lifestyle change. and besides, i can't really complain at all -- my husband has been great through all of this, and he is doing a LOT of the cooking. thanks mr. b -- i love you! you are a great cook!