Whole 30 v.2 retake

Ok so we haven't started our Whole 30 quiet yet as we had planned, but it is coming.  Our youngest's 1st birthday is coming up on July 4th, so we are definitely planning on starting up so that we can end few days before his birthday.  So, I will be back and keep you posted on how it comes along.  I am ready though- it is due time!

Going Strong! and Whole30 V.2

I can't believe it is already May and we are still loving our new lifestyle and doing great!  I am still 20 pounds and 2 sizes down and loving every moment of it.  I have been so afraid to get my pants brought in or buy new clothes but I am at the point where I am going to just have to since everything is falling off of me and I am holding steady.  My husband wants to do another Whole 30 and I am going to join him- I think it is good to do every so often to make sure you remind your body and self what you should be doing (and honestly it feels good)!

So we embark again on another 30- can't wait!  Will try to keep some updates going during this round. Hope everyone out there is doing a great job!!

First Meat Pick Up

As I mentioned in my last post, we found a local CSA through Florida Fields to Forks for our meet.  We received 10 lbs of beef, 7 lbs of pork, 5 lbs of lamb and 2 chickens (total of about 4 lbs each).  Though you can't see it all too well, I have included a picture of what our freezer looks like.  We had some lamb for dinner and it was just perfect.  So far so good.  This is our first round of trying it but we will keep you posted on how we like it- so far so good.  Not only is the quality better than what we have had so far, but having to spend less time in the grocery store during the weekend is also a plus!

I am also adding in a picture of the cookies I baked the other day.  I brought some in to work and they have been a huge hit with even non-Paleo people.

Pancakes....Didn't Nail it! But scored new food sources

So like I mentioned a couple days ago we were planning on trying some pancakes Saturday.  They were eh.  Part of it may be I like coconut but not tons of it and they really had a strong coconut taste, enough to where my husband who loves coconut even thought it was a bit much.  Back to the drawing board with them we go.  I promise if we find a recipe that we end up liking (and we will!) we will post it here.  Now did I mention that we made chocolate chip cookies that were fantastic? :)  Oh yeah maybe once or twice, but seriously they are worth trying!

When we started this change we wanted to do this as best we could all the way- with the best ingredients (meats, fruits, and vegetables) that we could afford on a consistent basis.  I am not going to lie our grocery bill has been shooting up and we are only two adults and then a two year old eating.  We have easily hit the mid $200s easily for one week.  We have wanted to do some sort of farm sharing or direct purchasing of our meat and another way to use local suppliers for our fruits and vegetables.

For our meat we have joined a local CSA through Florida Fields to Forks.  We can pick what kind of meat shares we want and then we can pick them up.  It was only a $35 fee to join and we will be picking up our first round of meat and the price will bring our weekly bill down dramatically and it is all grass fed fresh meat.  I am so excited.  Will definitely update after we pick it up on Thursday.

We also found a local organic fruit and vegetable company that will deliver to your door once a week.  We will be getting our first delivery from Space Girl Organics at the end of the month and again I plan on updating it with some reviews as soon as we get going with it.

So stay tuned, there are a lot more things coming soon!

Paleo Chocolate Chip Cookies

I have lost count of how many days it has been since we started Whole30 and then how many it has been since we have finished and been living "paleo."  We have continued to lose some weight since finishing the Whole30 (I am down about 18 total) and are still feeling great!  We haven't introduced anything back into our diets permanently.  We had yogurt the other night and then felt pretty yucky after so haven't gone back since.  I think that we have done a really good job of continuing our new way of living.  

Before we started this I had the urge and want to have to have dessert every night.  From ice cream, to Frosty's, milkshakes, pieces of cake etc it didn't matter.  Things have become a lot better in that area and I don't find myself wanting/needing something every night and especially to that extreme.  At the same time I am not going to lie and say I don't like to have a little something where it feels like it is bad when in reality it really isn't that bad.  So we took a plunge today and decided to try out one of the recipes I found on Pintrest for chocolate chip cookies.  YUMMY!  They tasted great and were actually really easy to make. The original pin came from The Bite Sized Baker.  The recipe offers an option of maple syrup or honey and we went with the maple syrup.  We may look at some other chocolate chips for the future that are a little more Paleo friendly but we went with the Enjoy Life Semi-Sweet mini ones.  I highly recommend this recipe though- I know it will be one that we continue to use.  This weekend we plan on making some Paleo pancakes.  I can't wait to see how they turn out and will definitely update everyone.  

Whole 30: Complete

What a great feeling!  We did it and I feel like such a cliche now but honestly, I feel great.  I don't have the cravings I used to, I don't find myself snacking on something with ingredients that I can't even pronounce.  The food we are eating tastes good and how it makes us feel is even better.
So the results

So what next?  We plan on continuing to move forward and living a Paleo lifestyle.  Today was Day 1 off of the Whole30 and we plan on attacking each day pretty close to how we have been during the past 30 days.

And now for the results so far:
I weighed in this morning at 140 lbs- that is 15 lbs down!  My clothes are big and I am back in some pants that I have been holding on to.  Clothes wise I am now comfortably between a 6 and 8.  Feels so good :)  As for my husband he lost 15 lbs as well and is almost 2 sizes down in his clothes.

I am hoping to keep up this blog with the progress of how we are doing and want to help share some menu ideas and recipes as well.  I encourage anybody who is on the fence about this to give it a try- fight through the first week and really try it out.  I believe you will be amazed with the results.

Believe it or not- Day 28!

So I know I haven't exactly done a great job of doing my daily updates as we continue on with the Whole30 plan.  Things have just been really crazy with work and the kids that I haven't had much of a chance to get around to getting on here and updating.  The good news though is that we have been doing a good job and keeping up with this.  We are on Day 28 today and feeling great and looking great!  We have both noticed a change in our clothes with how they fit and even noticed physically changes with us both.

We are so happy that we have done this and plan on continuing on with the Paleo lifestyle after the 30 days is complete on Sunday.  We definitely have a new outlook on food and how we live our life.  We had a couple instances where we went out for dinner with family and going out for dinner didn't even seem as much fun as it used to be and not by the fun of the company as that is always good- but fun as how I know I used to like going out to eat and now it's just whatever.  I am excited to take the final results this Sunday and we look forward to sharing them with you.  I promise to work on updating more as well!
Till then!

Whole 30: Day 8 and 9

Oops! I forgot to update yesterday.  Things were a little crazy being a normal weekend again.  We did well though...still feeling good and really enjoying this new lifestyle change.

We did our first attempt at making our own Mayo.  It isn't perfect yet, but definitely edible. I don't have much else to report so here is just the brief summary of our meals for the past two days.

Day 8
Breakfast- Scrambled eggs, parsley, and apples
Lunch- Shrimp salad (with our homemade mayo)
Dinner- Tilapia, grilled squash, and sweet potatoes

Day 9
Breakfast- Srambled eggs, parsley, and little bacton
Lunch- Bunless turkey burgers with spinach salad
Dinner- Mustard chicken, green beans with oil, garlic and sage

We have an egg casserole ready to go for the week, this week's has eggs, spinach, parsley, tomatoes, and little bacon.

Whole 30: Day 7- Week 1 Down

Yay! We are one week in!  Feels good.  Had another really good day and I even found myself full at dinner before I ever would have before starting the Whole 30.  Feeling good and not feeling the hunger I used to.  I am ready for week 2 :)

Today's Meals
Breakfast- Same casserole, side of avocado with small amount of salt and lemon
Lunch- Leftover dinner from last night (Pork and cauliflower)
Dinner- Pork, baked squash, and mixed veggies

Whole30: Day 6

Oh what a much much much better day today!  I never felt hungry and never had a desire to want something off the plan (even when I carried in two containers of cookies into work today!).  This little burst is perfect in timing and I only hope it continues!

Breakfast- the same casserole we had yesterday, side of avocado (with a splash of lime and salt)

Lunch- Last night's leftovers (just the pork), small salad (lettuce, eggs, cucumber and balsamic vinegar), and a couple small pieces of fruit

Dinner- Pork with a pomegranate and orange salsa (super good!) and then steamed cauliflower

Looking forward to 1 week in tomorrow :)

Whole30: Day 5

I am not really sure why but today has been a tough day. I have wanted to throw in the towel but have stayed strong.  I am not sure if it was an adjustment to being back at work.  Our eating times have also changed since Day 1 since we have to get up early again for work, lunch times remained the same, but dinner has also been pushed later to accommodate us getting home and getting it ready.  Headaches are still pretsent but seem to be continuing to decrease.  My husband seems to be doing really well with it though which is great and definitely even helping me out.  I can say that at the end of the day I feel really good making it through another day and feel like I really can do this! So day 5 is now about done, and I can look forward to another day.  We will make it!

Today's meals:
Breakfast- Egg, ham, spinach casserole that my husband made
Lunch- Leftover salmon and asparagus from last night's dinner
Dinner- Port and green beans

Whole30: Day 4

I think the "detox flu" is starting to kick in.  I just feel blah today, runny nose, and my legs started hurting last night. My head still is hurting off on and on, I am missing my diet coke.  Regardless of all this, we are staying strong and moving forward.  We will make it past this part- we were at least prepared and heard that it would happen.  It is pretty scary and gross to think that this is how our body gets rid of items that are so bad for you!  Even just thinking about that makes me happy and even more willing to push through this and make it.

So what did we eat today?
Breakfast- Fried eggs with sweet potato has browns
Lunch- Left over turkey lettuce wraps from the other night and sliced tomatoes
Dinner- Orange flavored salmon with Pomegranate Asparagus.

We start back at work tomorrow from the holiday and I would be lying if I didnt say that I wasn't a little nervous to see how we do with lunches and then fighting the temptation of our lunch meetings and all the candy and snacks that people have and always try and give you.  We started this plan days before work resumed just for that reason.  It is a lot easier for us to say no after we have already invested time into it rather than starting day 1 today or tomorrow and not having much invested.
Fingers crossed!!