Category: whole30

It’s been about a month since I completed my first whole30. I thought it was a good time to check in and share what I’m eating + how I’m feeling nowadays. Whole30 was so good for me, and I got immediate results, but the goal was to change my life for good – so if I went right back to my old habits it wouldn’t have been worth it.

So far, though, it definitely has been! This is what I am eating lately:

Breakfast

I have the same breakfast now that I did while on whole30. I fry or scramble five eggs (Meredith usually eats about two of them, but if she doesn’t I eat them all – I love eggs!) and I cut up a banana, a few strawberries, and toss in some blueberries. If I can find unsweetened coconut flakes I’ll add those to the mix.

One change that I’ve made is that if I am drinking hot coffee – which I have been lately because it’s cheaper (I grind it at the store and make it in a French press) – I add a splash of creamer. I never found the taste for black hot coffee. I use the Natural Bliss brand, so while it does have a bit of sugar, at least it contains all real ingredients. But if I am drinking cold brew coffee I just add coconut milk.

Lunch

At the beginning of each week I cook about two pounds of chicken breasts in the crockpot (season with salt, pepper, and garlic powder, cover with about two cups of chicken broth, cook on low for 8 hours) and shred it up. Almost every day for lunch, unless I have good leftovers from dinner, I make a salad and add some of this chicken and strawberries. For dressing I use olive oil & raspberry balsamic vinegar. This is whole30 compliant and I love it!

In addition to the salad I eat a cup of Greek yogurt. One day I would love to try making this myself but for now my favorite brand is Chobani. In my research I found that dairy in general isn’t too bad for your health, and yogurt in particular has benefits because of its fermented nature. I do notice slight bloating after having it, but it doesn’t last long and it’s worth it to me to keep it in my diet.

Notice that my breakfasts and lunches are still very healthy. They are also easy to make and I find them delicious. I’m grateful that I’m the type of person who can eat the same thing almost every day and not get sick of it. (My junior year of high school I ate a hot pocket and small package of Oreos every single day for lunch. I cringe to think about it now!)

Dinner

I have been a little more lenient with dinners for a few reasons. One – lately I’ve begun to enjoy trying new recipes and having the freedom of variety. Two – my family is more likely to eat what I cook. Three – it gives me something to look forward to! In general, though, I am still trying to cook real, healthy food.

Side note: I cannot say enough good things about the blog Don’t Waste the Crumbs. It is all about eating real food on a budget and her meal ideas are simple and yummy and things that even kids and picky husbands will eat. She is also inspiring me to try to make more things from scratch, and I am getting really excited about it. I think I’m going to try my hand at sourdough bread soon!

So anyway, when I make my dinner meal plan every Saturday, I pull from a list of go-to ideas and then I’ve begun looking at the above website to fill in the gaps with a couple new meals. Three meals per week are already taken care of: one for leftovers, one for dinner at Mom & Dad’s, and one is breakfast for dinner. Usually we end up having another meal at my in-laws’ house as well.

Here are some of the meals that we’ve eaten recently: crustless quiche, tacos, egg salad with bacon lettuce wraps, southwestern salad.

I do want to mention that if we eat at someone else’s house I will just eat whatever they serve, even if it isn’t too healthy. Moderation, right? :)

Snacks & Desserts

This is where I have to be honest. I have become kind of addicted to dark chocolate covered almonds! They are technically paleo-approved, but I’m sure I’m eating way too many. Right now I’m okay with it, though.

I have also been having ice cream several times a week. It’s funny, because when I was pregnant with Liam I ate whatever I wanted but ice cream was one thing my body couldn’t tolerate. I didn’t eat it for almost a year and I didn’t miss it. Now that I’m eating healthier though, I want it all the time! Maybe because it’s summer? Anyway, I don’t buy it for myself but my husband loves to treat me. And my parents always have it. So…I’m working on it. :)

I haven’t been eating many sweets or desserts other than those things. However, I discovered the cafe at work (which serves Starbucks) accepts our name badges for payment, meaning it comes right out of our paycheck. So I’ve had a few too many mochas lately as well. I think the solution to this is to bring my own K-cups and creamer to work (we have a Keurig) so that I can have a good second cup of coffee without all the extra sugar and expense.

My Body

The weight that I lost while on whole30 has so far stayed off, mostly. I have been weighing in about 1-2 pounds higher, with clothes on in the middle of the day. My clothes have become even looser, I think, although I haven’t done any more measurements.

I’ve started half marathon training and I’m feeling stronger. My energy remains high for most of the day, still no afternoon crashes.

My mood isn’t quite as high as it was the last week of whole30 (I think I felt the best I ever have in my life that week), and I do notice a correlation between eating a lot of gluten and irritability, but in general I’m in good spirits!

Overall I am still eating soooo much better than I did before. My outlook is different, I feel better, I’m happier with my body, and I have an excitement surrounding healthy, real food that I never had before. I used to dread cooking and planning meals, but now it’s kind of fun. Things that seemed impossible before are now no big deal!

If you have ever thought about trying whole30 for yourself, I highly recommend reading the book It Starts With Food. And let me know if you have any questions!

Today I’m going to share with you the results of my whole30 experiment, plus a bunch of other thoughts and things I learned along the way. I hope that this will encourage anyone who is thinking about it to consider giving it a try! And if you are planning your first whole30 and, like I was, are searching online for success stories and tips, I urge you to reach out to me and I will help as best I can! I want you to know up front that it was definitely not as scary or as hard as I expected it to be. Now for the rundown!

What my life used to be like:

So, I wasn’t a total mess. I didn’t have medical conditions or a lot of pain or anything like that. I also wasn’t really “overweight,” but I was about 10-15 pounds above what I consider to be my personal ideal weight, and what I weighed for many years prior to having kids. I didn’t hate my body but I could no longer fit into many of my clothes, which bothered me. I got headaches on a weekly basis and an energy slump every afternoon. Before bed each night I was just completely drained.

The way I was eating was out of control, and I knew it. During pregnancy and for many months afterward I ate whatever I wanted. That included a LOT of sweets. We are talking multiple per day. My meals also consisted of a lot of carbs and my veggies were limited. A typical day would start with coffee (+ cream and a bunch of sugar) and refrigerator oatmeal. I might have a snack of a granola bar or pretzels midmorning. For lunch I’d have leftovers, maybe something like spaghetti (or if no leftovers I’d have a sandwich), along with yogurt and fruit. As soon as I got home from work I’d look for a snack and if there was any chocolate to be found I’d eat it. Dinner was something easy and cheap – tacos, spaghetti, burgers, etc. – and we might have some fruit along with it but almost never a vegetable unless our parents were cooking for us. Thankfully I don’t drink soda, but I frequently enjoyed mochas from Starbucks.

I knew this way of eating was terrible for me and I could see myself continuing to gain weight unless I took action. I tried limiting my desserts to two a week, but I had a hard time with the indecision and didn’t really have any accountability. I tried counting calories, and those two things did help me lose a few pounds but I could tell I was still very much addicted to sugar.

How I found the Whole30:

I had heard of the whole30 off and on over the years through different blogs, but I was never in a place where I was mentally ready to take it on. In fact I would just glaze over it and think to myself that I’d never be able to do something like that. I don’t know what happened this time, but I had been thinking a lot about my health. I had begun running again, and the way I was eating was just weighing on me, yet I couldn’t seem to stop myself. Then I read this blog post and all of a sudden I was interested. I even bought the book It Starts With Food and as soon as I read the first few chapters I was sold.

During my Whole30 experience:

You can read my food diary updates, as well as how I felt each day here: week one / week two / week three / week 4. Basically though, the first couple weeks had some ups and downs, but the last two weeks were pretty much amazing. Although there was a lot of planning and prep at the beginning, I used the adrenaline of starting something new to get me through that. Then, because I was committed, I was able to make it through the day 10-12 slump and soon enough it was becoming second nature to me. Let me cover some details.

Favorite meals:

>My fried egg breakfasts with banana + fruit mix. I am planning on continuing to eat them as-is.

>Salads. Basically any kind: with taco meat, ground turkey + apples, shredded chicken, just strawberries, just tomatoes. Olive oil + balsamic vinegar (or a flavored balsamic like raspberry) is all the dressing I need, truly.

>Italian chicken

>Moroccan chicken

>Steak

>Baked chicken tenders

What I missed:

>Dark chocolate. No amount of detoxing will kill my love for it.

>Coffee with cream + a little sugar. I still don’t love black coffee.

>Ice cream. I missed it more than any other treat, which surprised me. Maybe because it’s so hot outside.

>Socializing over food. July 4th was the HARDEST day for me by far. It was the only day we had a really big family gathering and all the typical summery foods were there in abundance and I could hardly have any of it. I also only went out to eat twice the entire time because there is so little I could have at most restaurants.

>Variety. I did learn to love many of the compliant meals, but sometimes I just wanted a little something different.

What I didn’t miss:

>Cheese. I thought this would be one of the harder things to give up! But no, I barely thought about it.

>Most grains. I love having eggs rather than oatmeal or bagels in the morning now. And for the most part I could really live without bread.

>A lot of things I just felt indifferent about. I didn’t particularly find myself fantasizing about yogurt or beans, but they are two things that I am planning on incorporating into my new diet for variety.

New foods I’ve fallen for:

>Broccoli. I liked it okay before, but now I’m obsessed.

>Coconut oil. It’s so good and healthy for cooking!

>Plain, cold-brewed coffee. I actually prefer it with coconut milk! Although I wouldn’t mind a little flavor to it, when I tried it sweetened it was too much for me.

>Steak. I can’t believe I used to claim to not like it!

>Salads as a meal. They never “counted” for me before, but now they are a go-to.

What I learned:

>How to cook fresh vegetables. Game changer.

>How to chop produce correctly. Anytime I had to prepare something for the first time I watched a “how to” YouTube video.

>That avocados don’t agree with me. I don’t like their taste, and they leave my stomach churning. It’s too bad, because they are a great healthy source of fat.

>To throw basically any kind of leftover meat & veggies or fruit on a salad, drizzle some olive oil + vinegar on top, and you have an easy, yummy meal.

>Sugar is in EVERYTHING.

>Broiling is not scary, it is super easy and awesome! I had never used the broiler on my oven before.

What went well:

I finished! I made it through all thirty days with no slips or cheats. I didn’t have any sugar cravings. I learned a lot about cooking and feeding my family healthy meals. Meredith’s sugar intake at home has also reduced dramatically. By the end I was able to throw together meals pretty easily without a lot of stress or preparation. I had the support of everyone around me and even encouraged several people to try their own whole30.

What could have gone better:

I ate a lot of fruit. More than was probably best. I have always been a fruit lover and I just let myself go in that area. I also allowed myself to snack since I am still exclusively breastfeeding, even though it was “healthy” snacking of nuts, dried fruit, and Larabars. Speaking of breastfeeding, my pumping output did decrease. Not dramatically, but noticeably. I don’t think I was able to eat enough carbs since I don’t like starchy veggies like sweet potato and squash. (Side note: white potatoes are now whole30 compliant! Not chips or fries though. That would have helped me, I think, but the announcement was just made last week.)

Now that I’ve finished my Whole30 experience:

Here is the best part. By the end of my thirty days I was feeling amazing!! No more headaches. Constant energy all day long with no crashes. Happy all the time. One week in and I could already fit in my pre-pregnancy clothes, and by the end they were even a little loose. Do you want to talk numbers? Okay!

Weight lost: 9 pounds

Inches lost:

• arms – 0.25″
• thighs – 1.25″
• hips – 2.25″
• waist – 1.5″
• tummy – 2.25″

I decided to remove the before & after photos for modesty’s sake but email me if you’re really curious. I am definitely leaner, especially in my tummy, where my constant bloat and pooch are drastically reduced.

Since I finished whole30 a week ago I have followed the reintroduction schedule decently (although I haven’t been perfect by any means. I made cookies to boost lactation & have eaten too many of them. They worked though; just in time for Liam to catch a virus and cut way back on his nursing!). So far, this is what I’m thinking regarding the foods I’ve tried:

• Dairy: a little bit is fine, and I will probably keep having some cheese every now & then and cream in my coffee. Ice cream, though delicious, really bloats me so I will only indulge every once in awhile.
• Gluten: I’m more irritable when I’m eating a lot of gluten. I am also not sure, but it may be contributing to my headaches. This week I caught Liam’s virus and a terrible, constant headache has gone along with it, so I am not sure what is really the causing factor there. But I definitely want to limit.
• Other grains: I seem to be able to handle them well physically, but I still plan to limit them overall. (We are talking oats, rice, corn, etc.)
• Legumes: I actually haven’t really tried these yet. I suppose since I don’t miss them too much I’ll continue to limit them. I’m sure I’ll have beans every once in awhile though unless they do make me feel horrible when I get around to trying them.

So I am going to try my best to keep a clean diet. It won’t be totally paleo, but that will be my standard to return to if I notice things slippling. As far as sweets go, I’ll allow myself to have dark chocolate in moderation, and then if I want to splurge on a really delicious or really meaningful dessert, I will do so with no guilt, shame, or regrets.

This has also really gotten the ball rolling as far as healthy living, and I am excited to start my half marathon training at the beginning of August. Now that I have leaned out I want to get stronger and more in shape physically!

So, that’s my whole30 experience! Let me know in the comments if you have any more questions and I’ll be happy to answer. For anyone who encouraged me along the way: thank you!! It meant so much to me! And thanks for following me through this!

Previous updates: week one / week two / week three

I’m here with my last food diary update for the whole30! In this post I’m going to finish detailing what I ate and how I felt day to day, and then next week I’ve got a big recap for you about my thoughts on the entire experience. This is a bit longer than usual because it has nine days to it.

Day 22

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

Lunch: salad with shredded chicken and strawberries with an olive oil + raspberry balsamic dressing, and a fruit medley

Snack: Larabar

Dinner: baked chicken tenders dipped in mustard, a salad with tomato and olive oil + balsamic dressing, and a peach. Omg those chicken tenders were so good I ate six. SIX! But at this point I never overeat. I didn’t feel stuffed afterwards.

I felt: It was a really great day. I loved all my meals and felt awesome.

Day 23

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

Lunch: salad with shredded chicken and strawberries with an olive oil + raspberry balsamic dressing, and a fruit medley (I made a batch of shredded chicken so this is a really easy & yummy lunch right now.)

Snack: dried apricots

Dinner: leftover veggie & chicken stir fry with a scrambled egg added, fruit salad

I felt: I realized that I am just happy all the time right now. I feel great. I am excited about this ending soon, but I am not dissatisfied with the food I am eating currently.

Day 24

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

Lunch: salad with shredded chicken, tomato, and olive oil + balsamic dressing, strawberries, and a peach

Snack: Larabar

Dinner: my father-in-law made us strip steaks. I never liked steak all that much in the past but now I love it. Also had salad and fruit.

I felt: Another awesome day! My kids came to visit me at work and it made me so happy. One hard thing was that there was a birthday celebration at work and since our unit is under construction and we don’t currently have a break room, the food (barbecue and homemade cake) was served in our office and I got to look at it and smell it all afternoon.

Day 25

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

Lunch: salad with shredded chicken and strawberries, olive oil + raspberry balsamic dressing, a peach, and a few grapes

Snack: Larabar

Dinner: the same baked chicken tenders dipped in mustard I made earlier in the week because I am now obsessed with them. Would it be normal to make them every night until I get sick of them? Anyway I also had a salad with strawberries.

I felt: Really good again! These days I am pretty much happy, energized, and inspired all the time. I don’t get headaches like I used to, I don’t feel tired in the afternoon or even wiped out before bed.

Day 26

Breakfast: three fried eggs, banana/strawberry/coconut flake mix (we ran out of blueberries!), cold-brew coffee with coconut milk

Lunch: leftover chicken tenders dipped in mustard, salad with strawberries, banana

Snack: dried fruit

Dinner: my mom made us stuffed burgers (mine had peppers, onions, & pineapple inside) with a big salad on the side

I felt: I was a little bit tired by the end of the night (lately I have been energized all the way until I lie down in bed, but I still go to sleep easily) but otherwise still great!

Day 27

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

Lunch Second breakfast: a few hours later Meredith and I wanted more breakfast…so we repeated our entire meal (minus the coffee). So then I didn’t really eat a “lunch.”

Snack: dried fruit

Dinner: I met a friend at a restaurant and got a big veggie salad and had them add egg. I couldn’t even have grilled chicken on it because it was marinated in canola oil (so annoying) and I brought my own dressing from home. Later at home I made cinnamon apples for “dessert.”

I felt: I am still feeling amazing, but mentally I am kinda over this. :) I made out the next week’s grocery list and it was great to add regular bacon, cheese, and yogurt to the list!

Day 28

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

Lunch: a few bites of leftover chicken apple sausage, but I wasn’t into it. So I made a salad with ground beef, paprika, tomato, and olive oil + balsamic dressing and had two clementines.

Snack: none

Dinner: we had our church life group and the meal was nachos, so I had a taco salad instead with a fruit salad for dessert.

I felt: awesome! The end is SO CLOSE and the last weekend is over.

Day 29

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

Lunch: baked chicken tenders dipped in mustard, salad with tomato & olive oil + balsamic vinegar, fruit salad

Snack: nuts

Dinner:

I felt:

Day 30

Breakfast:

Lunch:

Snack:

Dinner:

I felt:

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!

Read about week one here.

Day 8

Breakfast: three scrambled eggs, banana/blueberry/coconut flake mix, black coffee (I liked it better this time)

Lunch: leftover chili, salad with tomatoes

Snack: none

Dinner: a fake chicken marsala with local (no-sugar-added) bacon, and a side of broccoli. My husband liked the chicken but I was disappointed in the whole thing. I bet it’s a really good recipe if you use wine (I subbed chicken broth), regular bacon, and butter, so I’ll try it again when I can have that stuff. This was my first time cooking this kind of bacon and it was really different. I had an apple for dessert.

I felt: pretty tired after work again. I did a 20-minute fairly easy yoga session, and my muscles felt drained. I was stressed out making dinner because I was trying new things and there was a lot going on with the kids, but it turned out okay. I think I’m gonna stick to what I know during the week and try new things on the weekends.

Day 9

Breakfast: four small fried eggs, banana/blueberry/coconut flake mix, black coffee

Lunch: leftover chicken marsala, salad, strawberries

Snack: Larabar

Dinner: taco salad, broccoli, and cinnamon apples (yum)

I felt: I woke up feeling mildly sick, like I was getting a cold. Not surprising since Meredith had been coughing on me for days. So after work I was exhausted again.

Day 10

Breakfast: three fried eggs, banana/blueberry/coconut flake mix (can you tell I’m a person of habit? And I’m not sick of eggs yet! Thankfully I love eggs!)

Lunch: broccoli, cinnamon apples, a few bites of taco salad (wasn’t very hungry)

Snack: nuts

Dinner: slow cooker Italian chicken soup (it was fine, needed salt). That’s all I ate because I wasn’t feeling well.

I felt: woke up feeling a bit more congested and it got worse as the day went on. Nothing terrible, but I didn’t have much energy and I kinda lost my appetite for awhile. For me it was one of the harder days because I would have reached for comfort food in the past. There was a lot of mental struggle but mostly it went back to my lack of energy.

Day 11

Breakfast: four scrambled eggs, banana/blueberry/coconut mix. One of the eggs was for Meredith but she actually scarfed down half of them before I could take a bite.

Lunch: leftover chicken soup (it tasted better to me as leftovers), cinnamon apples, baby carrots

Snack: nuts

Dinner: omelet with onions, green pepper, and tomatoes. Grapefruit.

I felt: I was even more congested today, but ironically I had my energy back! It made such a huge difference in my attitude. So maybe my malaise wasn’t related to the sickness, maybe it was just a hump that I had to get over with my body adapting to this new eating pattern. This day I also noticed that I think my milk supply is dropping overall. It’s hard to tell what is really causing that, but I’m going to up my water intake again and snack on nuts daily. (Technically they tell you to try not to snack, but I think with breastfeeding it might be important.)

Also to note, I got my first Greenling delivery which was exciting. There were a couple things in it I can’t have (sweet corn, Yukon potatoes) and I don’t have it in me to make those things for my family, so I passed them to my mom. But the majority of it looked great! Pondering if this is a good deal for me financially and how often I’d like to do deliveries.

Day 12

Breakfast: three fried eggs, banana/blueberry/coconut flake mix, Chameleon cold-brew coffee (so smooth!)

Snack: nuts

Lunch: leftover Italian chicken soup (not much appetite)

Dinner: My in-laws grilled steak for us and I ate two. Also had a salad, green beans, and fruit salad. Making up for my light lunch. :)

I felt: Still sick, but energized. The cold-brew coffee had more caffeine than I usually have and I’m not complaining one bit.

Day 13

Breakfast: Three scrambled eggs, banana, cold-brew coffee

Lunch: taco salad, apple

Snack: dried fruit & nuts

Dinner: Dijon chicken thighs, broccoli

I felt: Physically I felt good, except for still having a cold. But mentally I was weary of scrutinizing every meal and the extensive planning (I plan my meals on Saturday and I just wasn’t in the mood) and ready for more variety. I don’t even crave the bad stuff, just something different! Hoping that once my cold goes away I’ll be more motivated.

Day 14

Breakfast: Three fried eggs, banana/blueberry/coconut flake mix, black coffee

Lunch: three pickles wrapped in sliced turkey, leftover chili, applesauce

Snack: banana

Dinner: ground turkey seasoned with cinnamon & nutmeg mixed with diced apples, fruit salad

I felt: Reaching the end of two weeks is exciting. Almost halfway done! And another pair of pants that didn’t fit me previously just slid right on. I do feel like it’s time to start adding more workouts. That’s a goal for the coming week. I also realize that I’m still not eating enough vegetables and probably too many fruits. But you know what? Even so, this is a huge change and improvement for me. So I’m not going to worry about it and just do my best.

Overall I’d say that things are going well so far. I am so glad that I found an easy, delicious, and filling breakfast that I love to eat every day. I look forward to it and it sets a good tone. Meredith eats at least one egg and some fruit with me every day even though they serve breakfast at her daycare, and I hope that maybe she doesn’t eat as much there (because it’s probably carby and sugary) as she used to. Although I do feel like I’ve broken my dessert habit, I do rely on fruit and I’d be struggling hard without it.

During week two I had some mediocre meals that I had put effort into which was disappointing. For the upcoming week I planned mostly easy stuff. I’m looking forward to this being over with, but at the same time I kinda feel like I’m cruising along. Weekends are definitely harder because meals are more up in the air and planning can overwhelm me. Because I wasn’t that experienced in the kitchen prior to this, I am having to learn a lot about how to cook things along the way. It’s a good thing, but can be hard too.

Anyway, I feel pretty good about the coming week because my planned meals are simple. I expect my cold to go away within a few days, and just to be in the second half of the challenge is a great feeling!