Previous updates: week one / week two

Day 15

Breakfast: three fried eggs, banana/blueberry/coconut flake mix, cold-brew coffee with coconut milk

Lunch: leftover Dijon chicken thigh (it was not that great reheated), broccoli, fruit salad

Snack: nuts and a few pieces of dried apricot

Dinner: I had a church book club to go to so I didn’t have time to cook. I put some seasoned ground turkey (leftover – ate it cold) and diced apple on a bunch of salad greens and used olive oil + raspberry balsamic as dressing. It was so good! Also had more fruit salad. At book club I tried a peach/pear flavored carbonated water. Yuck – couldn’t do it.

I felt: my cold has been lingering for a week now, but I think it’s starting to see its way out. I did a light yoga flow after work. Overall I’d say it was an easy day. :)

Day 16

Breakfast: three fried eggs, banana/blueberry/coconut flake mix, cold-brew coffee with coconut milk

Lunch: same salad as last night (still good), plus baby carrots dipped in dijon mustard and an orange

Snack: nut mix

Dinner: Moroccan chicken and a big salad with strawberries. After pan-frying the chicken I deglazed it with chicken broth, added 1 1/2 tsp cumin and 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, 1/2 cup coconut milk, and 1/4 cup raisins. Bring to a boil then simmer until it thickens. I got this from the book It Starts With Food and I loved it.

I felt: blah blah blah I still have a cold. I’m so tired of being stuffed up! But other than that things are great. I’m feeling so energized all day and hardly struggling mentally at all. We took a family walk tonight and I surpassed my Fitbit step goal.

Day 17

Breakfast: three fried eggs, banana/blueberry/coconut flake mix, cold-brew coffee with coconut milk

Lunch: leftover Moroccan chicken, salad with strawberries, a peach

Snack: dried apricots and nuts, a Larabar. I was so snacky today!

Dinner: we went to my in-laws’ house and my FIL grilled me a steak and made me a salad and fruit. :)

I felt: my cold is definitely getting better but is lingering. Today I started waking up 30 minutes earlier, at 5am, in order to guarantee myself a bit of alone time. I’ve been sleeping great and it really wasn’t hard at all to pop out of bed at this time.

Day 18

Breakfast: three fried eggs, banana/blueberry/coconut flake mix, cold-brew coffee with coconut milk

Lunch: leftover Moroccan chicken, salad greens, fresh berries

Snack: nuts

Dinner: skillet sausage & apples with cinnamon, baby carrots dipped in Dijon mustard

I felt: I still have a cold and it was hard to wake up early. Nothing really new to report, except that with it being Independence Day weekend coming up I was REALLY craving a full burger and ice cream.

Day 19

Breakfast: three fried eggs, banana/blueberry/coconut flake mix, cold-brew coffee with coconut milk

Lunch: skillet burger with tomato “bun”

Snack: random fruits, a few nuts

Dinner: two burger patties with tomato and pickles, fruit salad, baby spinach with olive oil & balsamic

I felt: I’ll be honest, this was probably the hardest day for me so far, mentally. It was July 4th and I felt very grumpy and deprived. We had a family gathering and there was all kinds of stuff I wanted and couldn’t have. I even felt like crying a couple times! I’m glad I held out strong though. I know the weekends are hardest, and this will be over soon. I don’t want to cheat myself out of the benefits.

Day 20

Breakfast: three fried eggs, banana/blueberry/coconut flake mix, cold-brew coffee. I ran out of coconut milk to mix in it, and I missed it.

Lunch: burger patty with tomato

Snack: banana

Dinner: my mom made stir fry chicken and veggies with coconut aminos (this is a soy sauce alternative, a little sweeter but still a good substitute!), cinnamon apples, banana “ice cream” (which really was smooth and creamy like ice cream, although obviously banana flavored. I added cinnamon and cocoa powder, yum!)

I felt: Today was much better than yesterday, mentally. But I didn’t time my meals very well because I was out and about most of the day, so I was pretty hungry in the afternoon and not happy about it. I do continue to feel excellent physically. My cold is almost completely gone now. I treated myself to some new clothes in my regular size (ie: pre-pregnancy) and that was very encouraging. :)

Day 21

Breakfast: three fried eggs, banana/blueberry/coconut flake mix, cold-brew coffee with coconut milk

Lunch: two burger patties, a big salad with strawberries

Snack: fruit salad

Dinner: we went to Chipotle! Apparently the only meat they have that isn’t cooked in soybean oil is the carnitas, so I got that on a salad with pico and mild salsa. It was really good!

I felt: I’m fine. Energized. I admit I’m so over all the planning and trying new things that I’ve done up to this point. For the coming week I didn’t even really plan meals or do a lot of shopping. I had a bunch of stuff left over and I cooked some ground beef and shredded chicken and I plan to do a lot of easy meals with this. I guess this could just be a sign that I’m getting used to this style of eating…I don’t need to spend forever planning anymore. That’s a good thing!

With only one full week and a couple days left to go, I am definitely ready for more variety in my food and I am looking forward to a splurge. My friend (who is doing this with me) and I already have an ice cream date for day 31. But I also really want to stick to the reintroduction rules and to continue eating mostly paleo and with very little processed foods and sugar when this ends. I have to keep reminding myself that this is a lifestyle change and I didn’t put myself through this just to go back to my old ways! Anyway, the end is in sight and I’m pretty excited. :)

I plan to do one more post like this at the end, and then I’ll follow that up with some more thoughts I have about the process. Thanks for following along!