My Whole30 Diary. Part 4.

This was the final push - the 4th and final week of my Whole30 experience. You can read about why I'm doing Whole30 here.

Day 22.
I went into this week knowing it was going to be a big one. Really busy with writing stuff and really busy with mommy stuff, because Stevie was going to be out of town for the week. There was also an emotional component of losing my Whole30 buddy, because I gave him my blessing to stop eating Whole30 before his trip. This was the beginning of a slew of business trips he was going on, and we didn't really want him to be put in a position where he's the awkward guy on the team not eating anything normal because of his "diet". He didn't want to be that guy, and I really didn't want that for him either. So he prepared to break the Whole30 commitment a little early, but still eat super clean until I was finished. All that being said, I went into this week with lots of feelings...

Breakfast: Quick egg scramble. Black Coffee.
Lunch: Chicken salad with Greek toppings (kalamata olives, marinated artichokes, sundried tomatoes and sliced avocado).
Dinner: Leftover Spaghetti Squash Spaghetti.

Day 23.
Breakfast: Egg scramble with random veggies thrown in. 1/2 grapefruit and black coffee.
Lunch: Chicken salad with Greek toppings.
Dinner: Pulled beef with homemade ranch dressing (recipe in the Whole30 book), kale chips, cauliflower mango rice, and 1/2 sweet potato.

My sister came over and had dinner with me, so I wasn't such a lonely lame eater. Also, I resumed rewatching Gossip Girl. Because I was missing New York and Stevie was having slamming amounts of fun somewhere without me and I just needed a little indulgence.

Yeah, I was pouting a little. But the sweet potato tasted like pie and that was the jam!

Day 24.
Breakfast: Frittata with diced onion, tomato, chicken sausage and spinach. Hot tea.
Lunch: Chicken salad with Greek toppings. (You might get bored doing this same lunch everyday, but I finally found one that I love so I just kept making it :)
Dinner: Sweet potato and kale chips.

I'm telling you. The breakfast frittatas are delectable.

Day 25.
Breakfast: Frittata, sliced apples and hot tea.
Lunch: Mexican salad (ground beef, salsa and avocado on a bed of spinach, drizzled with homemade ranch dressing).
Dinner: Pulled beef, cauliflower-mango rice, sweet potato, kale chips.

As real food continued to taste better and better during the course of Whole30, cauliflower tasted increasingly worse. It's probably because it's a broccoli cousin. I kept trying to cook with it (like in the above cauliflower-mango rice) but I just kept hating it more and more. Ugh. So cauliflower-y.

Day 26.
Breakfast: Egg scramble and 1/2 grapefruit. Black coffee.
Lunch: Chicken salad with Greek toppings.
Dinner: Baked salmon with lemon-herb mayo, sweet potato, steamed kale.

Again, I was eating so many sweet potatoes because PIE. They tasted like pieeeee.

Day 27.
Breakfast: Egg scramble, sliced plantains pan-fried in coconut oil and dusted with cinnamon. Black coffee.
Lunch: Leftover salmon with homemade cream dressing, capers, olives, diced cucumber, sundried tomatoes and avocado.
Dinner: My homemade Grandma Soup (no noodles, but add diced red potatoes).

Dressing up my usual lunchtime salad with leftover salmon instead of chicken was so fancy. It tasted SO GOOD. I loved the leftover salmon times. As much as I could love anything, with all the lack of chocolate in my world.

Also, salmon felt fancy and celebratory because Stevie was home for two days before resuming more travel. We partied so hard. With our sparkly water and early bedtimes and church in the morning. Are you getting the sense for our wild life? Like the JUNGLE.

Day 28.
Breakfast: Church day, so this was an early, busy one. Breakfast was a banana and a Lara Bar. I hunted for coffee in our new church location until I found it. And then I had a lot of it.
Lunch: Grandma Soup!
Dinner: Don't judge. Stevie was out of town, so I had soup again for dinner. Hallelujah for not having to cook again. Good times had by all. But mostly by Everett. Because he was blissfully eating waffles every single day.

Day 29.
Breakfast: 2 fried eggs and 1/2 grapefruit.
Lunch: Chicken salad with Greek toppings.
Snack: Lara Bar. My favorites are blueberry and key lime :)
Dinner: Leftover pulled beef and a sweet potato.

I honestly wasn't feeling pouty about food at this point. It was all sort of routine and not heartbreaking anymore. Because I got to have my sweet potato, so I was pretty good with life.

I know what you're thinking. WEIRDO. Well I would have to agree with you.

Day 30.
Breakfast: 2-egg scramble with diced tomato, chicken sausage and spinach.
Snack: Clover coffee at Starbucks and 1/2 bag of dried apple crisps. The clover was my treat to myself for being such a GOOD GIRL for thirty days.
Lunch: Chicken salad with Greek toppings. Hot tea (Trader Joes Harvest Herbal Tea!)
Dinner: Grandma Soup (minus the noodles, add diced red tomatoes) and some pineapple.

Overall Recap:
Honestly, this last week wasn't hard. It was challenging in other ways - I felt extremely busy and didn't have time to really pine away for treats. I finally had my cooking/meal prep routine down, and I needed to be in autopilot in order to keep our lives running smoothly while single-parenting it with my husband out of town. So those emotional and time-management components were challenging - but the Whole30 had become an almost fond way of living.

"Almost" is the key word in that phrase.

I still obviously was excited to have wine and chocolate and, you know, breaded stuff.

In fact, I was anticipating the end of this Whole30 experiment with glee.

And, my friends, it ended. With glee. More on that next week!

P.S. Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3 of my Whole30 diary :)

My Whole30 Diary. Part 2.

This is the continued documentation of my Whole30 experience. You can read about why I'm doing Whole30 here.

Day 8.
Breakfast: Omelet. Coffee. Fruit.
Lunch: Chicken Salad, greek style.
Dinner: Salmon cakes, roasted red pepper sauce, sweet potato.

Day 9.
Breakfast: Frittata (you can see the recipe here). Coffee. Fruit.

This is a strange day, because I actually wake up craving black coffee. Just black. No intense craving for the sugar in it. And it almost tastes good today. WHAT IS HAPPENING IN THE WORLD.

Lunch: Greek chicken salad.
Snack: Apple with almond butter.
Dinner: Pork Chop with Spiced Apple Sauce and Kale Salad.

This dinner meal has quickly become one of my favorites on Whole30. And really - it's that spiced apple sauce. It's so surprising and so RIGHT on a pork chop. Plus, I feel like June Cleaver cooking up a pork chop in my kitchen. I mean, where are my pearls. Where are my heels.

Day 10.
Breakfast: Frittata. Coffee. Fruit.
Lunch: Roasted tomato soup (without the white wine - everything else is Whole30 compliant!) and a Greek chicken salad.

I have my friend Kathleen over today and I am somehow talking her into doing Whole30. I'm not even sure if I mean to be evangelizing the Whole30 gospel, but I hear myself talking her through all my reasons for doing it - and she is excited.

I suddenly realize I'm hooked. I might hate the pain of this wellness experiment, but I am hooked.

Dinner: Herb Chicken Meatballs and Tomato sauce. I forgot to make the spaghetti squash. Oops.

Day 11.
Breakfast: Frittata. What else as this point.

I do find myself longing for toast. Just a simple piece of toast would really mix up the boringness of eggs every.single.day.

Lunch: Leftover Roasted Tomato Soup. An apple with almond butter. A handful of sunflower seeds, which I'm convinced is not for filling up humans.
Dinner: Baked Chicken with roasted red pepper sauce. And something green.

Day 12.
Breakfast: Frittata. Fruit. Coffee.

I almost like Whole30 today. And I'm sort of actually craving black coffee again.

Lunch: A bowl of tomato soup, a sliced apple and a handful of sunflower seeds.
Dinner: Roasted spaghetti squash with herbed chicken meatballs and tomato sauce.

This strange thing happens after dinner - neither of us is craving something sweet. We ALWAYS crave something sweet after dinner, but tonight, nope. It's so weird. We watched an old episode of The Office and went straight to bed. Because there's nothing else fun to eat and drink.

Day 13.
Breakfast: Egg scramble with avocado, chicken sausage and tomatoes. Half a grapefruit. Black coffee.
Morning Snack: A sliced green apple with almond butter. Note: I am getting really, really sick of almond butter.

I am suuuuuuper hungry today. Like, so hungry I could eat a bus. I am hungry every hour around the clock and it dawns on me that I might need to be drinking more water. With all this meal prep, I'm forgetting to drink as much water as usual.

Lunch: A salad with avocado, sliced tomatoes, sunflower seeds, olives and chicken.
Dinner: Oven-baked Salmon with roasted red pepper sauce, sweet potato and kale chips.

I really can't lie. These dinners are all delicious. There has maybe been one that has only been so-so. I am just going by the book here, and preparing recipes that are on the plan. There are a zillion different dressings, vinaigrettes and sauces so you shouldn't get bored finding something to top your dinner protein with. It just takes some extra prep to actually make a dressing from scratch. It's not a big deal, but it's a deal. I find myself making 1-2 per week and that seems to work out well.

Day 14.
Breakfast: Quick eggs scramble and a banana.

Church day! Busy busy busy. The three of us are out the door before 7:30 and that feels like a miracle in itself. Then we have to figure out how to sustain the next few hours outside of the comfort of our own kitchen.

We help volunteer at our church before the service by hosting a breakfast bar for the other early morning volunteers - which means we provide Panera bagels and Chobani yogurt to the team. Everett happily gobbles up a half a bagel with honey-walnut cream cheese and I find myself very jealous of my son's good fortune. To not be on this wellness experiment. I almost drool.

Snack: Black coffee and a Lara Bar.
Lunch: Salad with leftover Salmon and random vegetables I rummage up out of the fridge.
Dinner: Slowcooked Beef with homemade ranch dressing and green onions, sweet potatoes and kale chips.

This beef is incredible. It's so good I swear I've made a mistake and accidentally added something non-Whole30 into the crockpot. I check my recipe like three times, but no, I've done everything according to the book. It's moments like these when I am convinced it's totally possible to eat delicious food on this plan. And then I like Whole30 again. (Seriously, this one is so good that I will share the recipe next week - I am only going to share my favorites with you!)

Overall Recap:
The anger from last week has subsided, although I still feel a steady amount of annoyance pretty much all the time. The sugar cravings have dramatically decreased, although I still have them from time to time. Having Stevie help take the lead on breakfast and lunch (when he could, according to his work schedule) really helped lighten my load and made this week feel more sustainable than last. My energy levels don't seem to have increased, although I am waking up three times a week to hit the gym early in the morning. Not sure if I could have done that a month ago, although I am making some adjustments to my sleep schedule, and trying to get into bed much earlier these days. There's nothing fun to munch on at night anyways. Overall, I am really glad I'm doing this, but it still feels hard. Really really hard. Like, really really hard.

What am I dreaming of? Going out to eat Mexican food that somebody else cooks and drinking a margarita.

P.S. Part 1 of my Whole30 diary.
 

My Whole30 Diary. Part 1.

Day 1.
Breakfast: 6-egg Frittata (shared with Stevie) with chicken sausage, spinach, tomatoes, avocado, onion. Sliced fruit. Black coffee. Water with lemon.

Um, I should feel excited. I just feel annoyed. Why is this SO MUCH WORK. I've been in the kitchen all day - meal prepping, eating, then cleaning up from the meal. Then doing it all over again. This just doesn't make sense for real people with real lives.

 Lunch: Big spinach salad with shredded chicken and chopped green apple, celery, slivered almonds. Olive oil and balsamic dressing. La Croix with lime to drink :)

Dinner: Spaghetti Squash Spaghetti. Which tastes pretty good. But I'm too annoyed to give it accolades.

At the end of the day, I really want to unwind with a glass of wine. And I really want to eat dark chocolate and watch Madam Secretary. Tea Leoni's performance just isn't quite as impressively dynamic with a lame cup of tea in my hand. Ugh.

Snack (which is totally off the Whole30 plan but seriously, this plan sucks, so I'm allowing it): Baked apples and pears with slivered almonds, dusted cinnamon, a scoop of almond flour, coconut oil.

Day 2.
Breakfast: Frittata. Fruit. Coffee with coconut oil and cinnamon.

I tried something new to jazz up my coffee - adding a tablespoon of coconut oil and cinnamon, which I immediately regret. Too oily. It coated my throat in a weird way. I find myself almost wishing for black coffee. Almost.

Lunch: Big spinach salad with shredded chicken, chopped cucumbers, kalamata olives, artichokes, red onions, tomatoes and slivered almonds. Lemon juice, olive oil and balsamic dressing. La Croix with lime.

This salad is officially delicious. It's the first thing I can actually say that about while on Whole30. I decided that if I have to eat this every day for a month for lunch, I can do so happily.

Dinner: Pork chop with spiced apple sauce, sweet potato and cabbage slaw.

Snack: Baked fruit.

I felt like a grown up because I MADE pork chops. It was good. But still - I just felt too mad about this annoying "wellness exercise" to enjoy it. Stevie on the other hand, was RAVING. Of course he would be liking this. Of course.

Day 3.
Stevie needs to be punched. It's a need. He wakes up and says, "I am just feeling SO GOOD. Like, we always eat healthy, but the fact that I feel this good after eating healthier for a few days is really compelling. This plan works!" Which leads to my need to punch him. I don't do it. I just stare at his pretty face and imagine it a little bit.

Breakfast: Frittata. Fruit. Coffee.

I feel TERRIBLE. So tired. So mad. I feel like I'm walking around in a fog. This is the worst day yet.

Lunch: Greek chicken salad (same as yesterday).

Dinner: Salmon with lemon-herb mayo. Broccoli + roasted potatoes.

Snack: Baked fruit.

Day 4.
Breakfast: Frittata. Fruit. Coffee.

Lunch: Greek chicken salad.

Dinner: Baked chicken & green beans.

So today I've made a discovery. If I have no positive taste expectations from my food, and it's consumed for the basic reasons of nourishment, then I'm fine. If I don't expect to enjoy or savor the tastes in my mouth, then I am fine to just go through the day without looking forward to my meals. I don't dread them, but I don't look forward to them. I know how morbid this sounds to foodies all over the world (and the one who lives in my head), but I've spent the past three days disappointed at every meal, and I don't want to live another 26 days that way. I just need to have low expectations. Food is for nourishment on this plan, not for fun. Not for joy.

Okay, so I didn't make this discovery. My attitude has been so bad that my Dad has to give me a talking-to. He said something along the lines of, "Soldier up. You made a commitment, so just do it." And he's totally right. So I'm doing it. And trying to whine a little less.

Day 5.
Breakfast: Eggs scrambled with spinach and onion. Fruit. Coffee.

This is the day I texted my sister-in-law, "I might actually die."

Lunch: Greek chicken salad.

Dinner: Slow-cooker beef brisket with onions and carrots.

I didn't die. But I almost quit today. Really and truly. If it weren't for Stevie, I probably would have caved on this very day.

Day 6:
Breakfast: An egg. Fruit.

This was an interesting day to be on Whole30 because I attended a brunch at an awesome brunchy restaurant (Sun in My Belly!) honoring my pregnant friend. There was no way I was going to skip it just because of Whole30, because I love her and she is so fun to celebrate and our kids will one day marry, so I just checked the menu ahead of time and formulated a plan. I also decided in my heart that I didn't want to be "that person" at the restaurant, asking high-maintenance questions about the oils and sugar content. I just decided that I'm going to order the cleanest I can and not worry about the rest.

I thought it would be hard, with mimosas and croissants being passed around me, but it really wasn't. At this point it was just decided: I'm doing Whole30, and I can't have that right now. So yeah. Stoic is perhaps the word I would use to describe it. I felt stoic to the food, not the company (obviously!)

Lunch/Brunch: Two fried eggs. Turkey sausage. Fruit. Coffee.

Dinner: Salmon cakes with roasted red pepper dressing. Arugula salad.

Day 7:
Breakfast: Scrambled eggs. Fruit. Tea.

Snack: Lara bar.

Lunch: Leftover salmon cakes with roasted red pepper dressing.

Dinner: Leftover brisket with onions and carrots.

Sunday is church day, which lately means an earlier morning for all of us, but we love it! We had to be careful to plan our breakfast and snacks so that we wouldn't be hungry and/or lust over the cinnamon bagels and yogurt. But we actually did okay!

Overall Week Recap:
I felt angry most of the week. I wanted to quit, and I'm not a quitter. I was surprised by how badly I wanted some of my old favorite foods - Ezekiel toast, sweetened coffee, wine at night, chocolate. The meal prep was an enormous project, and I honestly don't know how I would do this plan if I had a full-time job. But at 7 days in, I didn't feel like I wanted to quit anymore. So I will keep going!

Who else is doing Whole30 right now? Any of this sound similar to what you're going through?

P.S. - I'm sharing the Whole30 frittata recipe I've been making almost daily on the blog tomorrow :)