I'm Getting Ready!

I am starting another Whole30 on Monday!  Believe it or not (considering all the restrictions on what I can and cannot eat and drink), I am really excited.  BBG and I completed a Whole30 in October and I planned to keep eating the same way on day 31 because I felt so good--not only was I sleeping well and feeling full of energy, many of my stomach and skin issues began to fade.  Then San Diego happened.  I won't blame it on the most delicious pizza on Ocean Beach or dining and drinking with great friends or the beautiful weather--I will admit to having absolutely no willpower.  My intention was to slowly and carefully (using notes and charts and calendars and all that) reintroduce foods so I would know what was triggering some of my problems.  That went out the window on the first night.  Add in the holidays and the most delicious cookies ever (which happen to be both gluten and casein-free), and I have fallen back into some bad habits.

So, along with almost every other person in this country, I have resolved to make some changes.  The Whole30 is at the top of my list.  The Whole30 is hard, though.  It isn't just counting calories or points.  It isn't just cutting out soda or fast food or junk food.  While it does cut these things, it eliminates so much more from your diet.  Never have I looked at ingredient lists so much. Never did I realize how much sugar is added to absolutely everything!  The key to the Whole30 is planning; without planning it is way too easy to call the husband on the way home from work and ask whether he wants me to grab Chinese or Mexican or Sushi on my way.

And when I plan, I visit Holly Would If She Could!  When I was first researching the Whole30 in September, I found her blog and read it all.  She wrote some tips and included so many recipes that I found myself going back to her blog all the time for food ideas!  Reading her posts about her Whole30 experience made me realize that if I wanted to succeed, I needed to plan ahead!  So I am back at it again!

Last time, breakfast was easy because I relied on eggs many mornings.  Things wills be different this time as I am limiting, if not eliminating, eggs.  I will just think of breakfast as another meal, not as breakfast.  Bring on the sauteed veggies and meat :)  I see myself eating a lot of this sweet potato, apple, and sausage concoction (minus the eggs, of course)!  I'm also looking into different recipes to satisfy my cereal craving--this one isn't Whole30 compliant but I am going to try to tweak it a bit so it is.  PaleoKrunch is super-awesome (thanks for the samples, BBG) but it costs more than I'd like to spend.  Lunch will probably be the easiest for me.  I can eat the same thing for lunch each day so I will just rely on salads with some kind of meat on top--grilled chicken or salmon or steak, maybe even shrimp.  Salsa makes the perfect salad dressing!

Luckily, my husband is on board and will cook and eat whatever I buy (yep, he does most of the real cooking in our house!). He takes leftovers for lunch so he is following the Whole30 with me (except for the fact that he won't give up his Diet Dr. Pepper ;)  This means that my 7-year-old son is also following the plan for the most part. His breakfasts and lunches are actually the most challenging part of the whole thing.  I still allow him to buy lunch at school but have been spending more time reading Paleo Parents and some other sites for lunch ideas.

And, with some planning, dinner is actually not that bad.  I love throwing stuff in a crockpot in the morning and having a meal ready when we all get home.  If I don't crockpot, then L will cook dinner.  So, here is what he'll/we'll be making this week:

Monday, 1/7:  Crockpot Pork Green Chile  I'll start the week off easy.  I am sure that I will be cranky from caffeine withdrawals!

Tuesday, 1/8:  Thai Green Curry.  This is one I found linked on HWISC.  I love this so much that I could eat it once or twice a week :)  I tried to make cauliflower rice but it was a horrible failure.  I'll just serve it over steamed cauliflower!

Wednesday, 1/9:  Chicken and Zucchini Pasta.  I just shred zucchini on the mandolin, cook some chicken on the George Foreman (blast from the past, eh?) and add some spaghetti sauce.  I'd like to say that I make my own, but I have found a few really tasty pasta sauces at Sprouts that don't have sugar.

Thursday, 1/10:  Crockpot Carnitas  Did I mention I love the crockpot?!?  Plus, this was one of my favorites last time.  Add a salad and some avocado and I am a happy girl :)

Friday, 1/11:  If it isn't raining, I'll have L bbq some little tri-tip steaks (I'll broil 'em if it is raining).  I think a baked sweet potato and some other veggie (whatever they have at the store that looks good) will be on the side.

Saturday, 1/12:  After the day I know we'll have, I am thinking some Chicken and Apple sausages and veggies will be the way to go.

Sunday, 1/13:  Roasted Butternut Squash Coconut Curry Soup.  What is better than a warm soup on a lazy Sunday afternoon?  I recently discovered my love for butternut squash because of this unWhole30 meal so I need to try it some other way.

Week 1 planning is done.  All I need to do now is shop!

New Year. New Resolutions

I didn't accomplish as much as I wish I had in 2012.  In fact, I pretty much stalled or backtracked on all fronts.  Aside from completing my first Whole30, 2012 was a wash in terms of bettering my habits when it comes to my health.

As I look back over my resolutions for 2012, I will continue working on those for 2013!  I will continue trying to be the best I can be--twice the girl!

I'll leave you with some words to live by.  It is a quote that was posted by a friend on fb that sums up how I want to live my life.  Thanks, A!

Pancake Dreams

They said it would happen.  I didn't believe them.  Dreams of food so real that you could taste the deliciousness of the maple syrup and feel the utter disappointment that you failed.

I woke up this morning sad that I would have to restart the Whole 30 that I have been doing since I am two weeks in.  (It actually turned into a Whole 37 because I restarted at the end of the first week because I ate out a few times and can't be sure that the chefs followed my directions since the steak and broccoli tasted pretty buttery.) 

I ate a plate full of gluten-free pancakes (at least I was trying to stay near the food rules) loaded with butter and maple syrup.  Those were the best damn pancakes I have ever had!  Then I realized that they weren't Whole 30 compliant and I cried because I was so far into the 37 days.  I couldn't start over!  My last day perfectly coincides with a trip to San Diego.  No!  I can't restart!  And then an annoying buzz starting going off and I woke up.

Thanks god!  I still feel a little twinge of disappointment in myself for eating those pancakes.  I feel as though I really did--the dream was that vivid.  You know those dreams you just can't shake because they feel so real?  This was one of them.  Now that I think about it more, I wish it were ice cream or caramel that I ate.  Pancakes aren't really a favorite of  mine.

On a related note, I am sleeping amazingly well.  I fall asleep quickly (no more tossing and turning!  no more insomnia!) and stay asleep all night.  I haven't felt this rested in a really, really long time.  If nothing else, this Whole 30 experience has shown me the importance of getting enough sleep and seems to help me get more sleep.  Who knew the power of good, clean food?  This girl is a believer.   

I made a freakin' mess last night!

Eating well is hard.  Especially the cooking part.  No more drive-thru or delivery.  No more dumping packages into a pan.  Ugh.  I had to do some many dishes last night and I had to clean the stove.  What is my life coming to?

Here is proof that I am a mess in the kitchen (don't even ask about the counters!):

There was minced onion and little pieces of cauliflower everywhere!

But I stepped out of my comfort zone big time!  Not only did I eat and enjoy cabbage (one of my most detested foods), I tried curry and coconut aminos for the first time!!!  I may be snacking on brussel sprouts next!


I am doing a trial run with some recipes this week to prepare for the Whole 30 that I start on Monday.  I made rice out of cauliflower and a surprisingly tasty green curry chicken with mushrooms and cabbage. The cauilflowerrice will need to be tweaked but I like the idea (and I love, love, love cauliflower in any form).

My goal for the rest of this week is to plan out my meals for at least two weeks.  I also plan to spend Sunday shopping and prepping for the week.  I did this last week and it worked wonders for our household.  No more "What do you want for dinner?" "I don't know.  What do you want for dinner?" moments.  I hate those conversations like I hate Tuesday morning traffic during the first couple weeks of classes each semester.  Planning and prepping made the week painless and I wonder why I didn't do it again for this week.  Here's to one last week of 'What's for dinner?"!

Shhhhh...I have a secret!

So I have been thinking a lot lately about what goes into my body, trying to view food as fuel instead of comfort.  I have decided to eat as cleanly as possible.  And while I admit that I still have a few processed go-to foods (like my flat pretzels and my shakes) I have been trying to only eat things that were once roaming the land and sea or growing from a tree, a bush, or the ground.  If I can't pronounce it and know where it comes from, I don't know that I want it in my body.

These decisions about what goes in my body have led me to think about what goes on my body. Have you ever looked at the ingredient list for your favorite shampoos, lotions, soaps?  Most of what I saw were ingredients that I could not pronounce or tell you what they were.  Then I read about the harm caused by some of the chemicals commonly found in most of the products we slather on our bodies and in our hair each day.  Maybe the chemicals are fine.  I don't know.  I am not a scientist and I do not plan to research each ingredient in all of my products.  Instead, I will stop using them.  And stop using them I have done.

I am not, nor have I ever been, a high-maintenance girl. I can get up, shower, and be ready in under 30 minutes.  My hair and make-up routine takes less than 5 minutes.  But now, I am even lower maintenance.   Except for make-up when I decide to wear it, I do everything with 4 products:  my new "magic" hemp soap, conditioner, almond oil, and crystal deodorant.  On a special day, I might throw in my homemade almond oil and sugar body scrub.  So my secret could be any number of things.  Before this switch, I was using shampoo, conditioner, body soap, face soap, antibacterial soap, various scrubs and masks, leave-in conditioner, frizz-reducing serums, face lotion, body lotion, antiperspirant/deodorant, zit creams, etc......  Now I have 4 items.  I feel kind of bad:  I ended up throwing a bunch of stuff away.  But my shower is much less cluttered.   So, did you guess my secret?  Did you guess that I have become a hippie?  A neo-hippie?  Environmentally friendly?  Green?  Nope.  I don't think I have gone that far.  TMI Alert!!!  I have yet to resort to reusable, washable feminine products (but I will shout my love for the diva cup from the highest mountain--it has changed my life!), I will continue to shave my legs (unless it is winter when my legs do not see the light of day) and I still use toilet paper and all those modern conveniences.  So, I haven't gone too far from where I started (despite the Humboldt influence!).

Did you notice anything else?  Anything missing form my new product list?  Does the lack of shampoo disturb you?  Yep, that is right.  I no longer use shampoo.  It has been 2 months since I used shampoo.  Ewwwww, say you.  But let me explain.  While I no longer use shampoo, I still wash my hair.  I either scrub/massage it with water alone or use conditioner to wash.  My hair has never felt better!   It is isn't as dry as it used to be.  It isn't as oily as it used to be.   It is not oily or dry but just right.  It is my own Goldilocks story.  When I was using shampoo, I was stripping all the oils from my hair which left it dry and brittle.  At the same time, since I was stripping all the oils from my scalp, it decided to produce more to keep up with the loss.  So I had oily scalp and dry hair. Ugh.  It is now soft, still a little dry at the ends because it has been months since I have seen the wonderful, amazing Erin, but it feels amazing.  And I think it is much better for my curls!  I was turned on to the no-poo idea years ago but couldn't stick with it because I felt like it would be dirty.  Not anymore!  I clean, soft hair that I love.  I do need it to grow out, though.  It is way too short for my liking!!!  And I am not loading a bunch of useless chemicals on my hair.  Maybe Humboldt influenced more than I like to admit.  I just feel more natural.  Cue Carole King!

And what about that crystal deodorant?  I thought about going the homemade baking soda route but I am not that far gone.  I'll use the weird crystal stuff that I can buy at the grocery store!  I have always used the extra strength or prescription strength antiperspirant/deodorant because I was super paranoid.  But you know what?  The crystal works just as well.  I remember my dermatologist telling me (many years ago) to stop using antiperspirant/deodorant to help with another issue (maybe I'll share even more about this issue in a later post when I get the nerve and get to know y'all a bit better) and I laughed at her.  She didn't like that I was using the antiperspirant.  But there was no way I was going to give it up.  Ever.  And then I did.   If only I had given the crystal a chance then.  I would have found that it works.  I don't offend everyone when I walk by and I can survive without the prescription-strength, pore-clogging crap that invaded my skin for years. 

When we strive to get healthy or healthier, I think that we focus much of our attention on what goes into our bodies.  Maybe we need to think also about we put on our bodies.  Oh, God.  I can't believe I just said that.  Damn granola!

PS:  I'll leave the title even though this morphed from my shampoo secret into something else :)

A Year Ago...

I saw a picture of myself from my cousin's baby shower in May 2011.

I tend to avoid cameras, preferring to be behind the lens rather than in front, but my family is pretty shutter-happy.  I am horrified to admit there may even be pictures of me in the swimming pool from that weekend, but I will pretend they don't exist.  I'll just deal with the fact that my eyes are closed in this one and know that this is pretty representative of how unphotogenic I am.


I don't know why this photo struck me so much.  But it did.  I knew I needed to make a change.  I knew I was tired of being uncomfortable all the time.  I was heavier than ever and those numbers scared me.  So on June 1, 2011, I went on a "diet" and starting moving.


By December, I was down 40 pounds and finally liked a picture of myself (Nathaniel is pretty darn adorable, too!).    

And then there is the flower dress again!  I put my arms inside to show what I lost in a year.  When I wore it last year, it was a bit snug.  Now I could fit Nathaniel in with me if I tried (and for those of you who are curious, I did try.  I wanted to show what 50 pounds or so looks like but then figured he might not want pictures of himself in a dress with his mother floating around the net.  He might have issues with that when he gets older ;)).

I definitely have not completely met any goals I set for myself in January yet but I am on my way. I still want to lose another 70 or so pounds.  Ideally, I want to lose another 50 by December 2012.  20 by September is my smaller goal.  If I do that, I will be what my license says I am!  For June, I'd like to drop 7.  2 pounds is my first week of June goal.  Small steps, folks.  I didn't gain all this weight quickly; I won't lose it quickly.  I have to remember that.  The first 40 seemed to come off pretty quickly and easily, but I have fought for the last 10.  I have been at a standstill for the past couple months, gaining and losing the same 6 or 7 pounds.  I am going to change that this summer!!!

Now that I have completed my 5k a day in May challenge, I am starting a TurboFire/Chalean Extreme hybrid that will take me through the summer.  I'll also be spending each night in the pool.  If you are free weeknights from 8-9pm, come join me in Galt for watercise!

Summer, here I come!

22.5% Complete

Guess what?  Seven days of May have passed and I have completed 7 5ks!  I will be doing #8 tonight--think of me around 9pm!

I have to admit that I am pretty proud of myself.  Granted I have only completed 7 or 31 days, I am still pleased that I have stuck with it this long.  I think a friend or two was skeptical about my challenge to myself (not because I couldn't do it, but because life can sometimes get in the way and they didn't want me to let myself down by not meeting my goal of 31 5ks in 31 days), but everyone has been super supportive and I have even convinced one friend to take on a similar challenge.

I almost always dread getting on the treadmill.  But I always feel better after my walk/jog/run.  Knowing that I will feel good keeps me coming back.  Knowing it will help me reach other goals keeps me coming back, too.

I feel like I fell off the wagon for a while there.  School--grading, prepping, etc.--was my excuse.  I just wasn't moving as much.  Plus, I got a little cocky.  Once I reached my first 50 pound weight loss, I celebrated a bit too much and gained a few of those pounds back.  My next goal is not just 50 pounds, but 54 pounds!  I am hoping that this challenge will jump-start my loss again.

If you aren't doing anything tonight, join me for my nightly 5k!