The FASTer Way to Fat Loss

I don't want to be one of those whiny women that complain about feeling fat and gross as she eats donuts, but if the shoe fits... {grin}

Within about 8 weeks of Paige's arrival, I was back to my pre-pregnancy weight - which was about 15 pounds heavier than I wanted to be - but that was largely due to my post-partum anxiety. I was so anxious I couldn't eat. Brent would bring home anything he thought might entice me to eat, but it would take me hours to force anything down. I don't recommend PPA as a weight loss plan since it is the worst experience I've had the pleasure of repeating 3 times, but it certainly took the weight off!

Unfortunately, when I started Zoloft, the side effects caused me to gain weight. I didn't really care when I first started gaining weight because I was so happy to feel better, but 30 pounds later, I wasn't happy anymore!

It's been 9 months since I realized how much weight I'd gained, and I fluctuate between having lost 10-15 pounds. That's IT. Yes, I'm happy to have lost weight, but I'm definitely NOT happy with my weight. 

Food, as always, is my problem.

I've been exercising at Orange Theory Fitness for about the same 9 months and jogging some at home. BUT bad food is my downfall. I honestly believe I know more than the average person about food and what is good for us and what is bad. I just have no ability to execute - I do not know how to teach myself moderation. Alcoholism runs in my dad's side of the family, and I think food, and really sugar, is my vice {and I don't say that in jest}.

All that to say...I've joined a 6-week program - this week is a prep week -  that combines:

• intermittent fasting - I'll eat 8 hours in a 24-hour period
• carb cycling - some days are low carb, some days are regular
• macro counting - I've never done this before and hate tracking food, but I've heard once you get in a habit of it, it becomes really natural. And we're using the My Fitness Pal app which has been really user-friendly and easy so far
• variety of exercise - some days are interval training, some are heavy weight days, all depending on the type of food day we're having - I do plan to continue with Orange Theory, so we'll see how that all works

Yesterday was my first day to follow the low-carb rules, and I didn't hit my categories for anything - too few carbs, too little fat, too little protein - but I know it's a learning curve, and I'll get there. I was really hungry at bedtime which is NOT supposed to be the norm, and I'm excited that there are only 2 low carb days - definitely makes it feel manageable. It's also cool because the creator talks a lot about how there are no foods that are off-limits. There are days you can't have things - like no/very little fruit on low carb days - but if you want a donut on a regular day, you can have it. The saying is 'if it fits my macros' ha. I'm hopeful that this is how I can finally learn balance...eek, time shall tell!

The program ends the day before my 38th birthday, and I hope to see really good results. And that I don't let my birthday derail me, ha! I will probably give an update at the halfway point and the end, so we shall see!

Recipe: Chicken Fried Rice

So chicken fried rice isn't anything new or special, but it's a staple at our house, and I have perfected a really easy and healthy way to make it and thought it'd be worth sharing for any moms out there with picky kids like I've got! We do a 'deconstructed' version so that everyone can get exactly what they want and for the 4 people in our house who eat food that means something different for everyone!

Ingredients:
-Chicken {we do about 1.5 pounds so that we have leftovers}
-Rice
-Eggs
-Frozen peas
-Chopped carrots {I shred using my cheese grater}
-Any other veggies you want to add
-Butter
-Salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder
-Coconut aminos

Instructions:
1. Cook rice according to package instructions. I do about 1.5 cups of brown rice and about 2 cups of water. The great part about this is you can make this super early - even the day, or days, ahead of time.

Do you like my sign? {grin}

2. Cut your chicken into chunks. Season with salt and pepper. Melt butter in a pan and cook your chicken. After your chicken is cooked, move it into a bowl. I also do this ahead of time sometimes. A great activity while on a conference call!

3. Put more butter in your pan, and mix in your frozen peas and carrots. Sprinkle with onion powder and garlic powder. I don't like real onions, but you can always use those!
4. After your peas and carrots are cooked, break eggs into the pan and scramble. The number of eggs depends on how much peas and carrots you used and how eggy you want it to be.

5. Combine the combination of rice, chicken, and egg mixture you want. Pour in coconut aminos for a healthier, tastier version of soy sauce. I use A LOT!
6. Enjoy!

In our house, Trent eats a bowl of chicken, a separate bowl of rice, and a 3rd bowl of raw carrots. Drew wants rice, egg mixture, and coconut aminos. Brent wants everything except the coconut aminos, and I want it all! I love that we can each have what we want without me cooking 4 different meals because I am not a short-order cook!

Recipe: Breakfast Bake

I found this recipe from 100 Days of Real Food a few years ago and my dad started making it for our Christmas morning breakfast. I decided to make it as a freezer meal for after Paige was born because we love to have breakfast for dinner. It's a great meal to make ahead and freeze, it's nutritious, and it tastes yummy.

Ingredients:
-1 pound of breakfast sausage
-1 1/2 cups of frozen hashbrowns
-2 eggs
-1 1/2 - 2 cups of cheese {I use more because we love cheese!}
-1/2 cup whole wheat flour
-1 cup milk
-3/4 tsp baking powder
-salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Brown sausage. {The original recipe calls for chopped onions and bell peppers, cook those too if you like them - we don't, ha.}
3. Pour sausage into an 8x8 or 9x9 ungreased baking dish.
4. Stir in frozen hashbrowns and 3/4 cup - 1 cup of cheese into the sausage.
5. Mix together flour, baking powder, salt and pepper in a separate bowl. Add the cup of milk and 2 eggs. Whisk gently until all mixed together. Pour into baking dish.
6. Cover with remaining cheese.
7. Cook for 35-40 minutes until cheese is golden brown.
8. Enjoy!

I eat it with Chalula hot sauce sometimes, and that's amazing too!

Oven Baked Chicken Goodness

I might have mentioned a time or 10 that I've been on the hunt for new recipes. Well, one I tried earlier this week was GOOD. Like EVERYONE in our family ate and enjoyed it. Let me say that again - EVERYONE IN OUR FAMILY ATE AND ENJOYED IT.

I don't really know what to call this because it has very simple ingredients:

-Chicken breast or tenders {I use breasts and cut into smaller pieces and I used about 1.5 pounds so we'd have leftovers}

-Salt and pepper to taste

-Mayonaise {PLEASE do yourself a favor and make your own using THIS recipe - it is heavenly - or at least don't use Miracle Whip - this needs the real deal}

-Parmesan cheese

1. Mix 1 cup of mayo with 1/2 cup of parmesan cheese {I got grated, not the fake stuff}.

2. Salt and pepper your chicken.

3. Coat with the mayo/parmesan mixture - you don't want it super thick otherwise the chicken won't cook. I did both sides but I'm not sure you NEED to - if you plan to just coat one side, you could half the amount of mayo and parm.

4. Cook at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.

5. Enjoy!

I might be the worst food photographer ever. {grin}

How I Feed My Kiddos

So I got a couple of requests after I posted the Banana Almond Butter Muffin recipe last week for what I feed my kids, since I tend to be a bit crazy particular about what they eat. I would say 80-90% of the time they eat very clean. But do we eat donuts sometimes and stop for a Starbucks treat from time-to-time or get Chick-fil-A on a night where I just can't even think? Of course. I think balance is important, but MOST of the time they eat pretty clean.

My kids are very different eaters. Drew eats almost everything. She will try pretty much anything and loves fruits and vegetables. This girl picks spinach, okra, peppers, and tomatoes straight from her Pops' garden and immediately eats it. BUT her brother...not so much. After many years and many tears {and some help from speech therapy at 3}, he only eats 3 fruits and vegetables - carrots, apples, and grapes. They are very different, and for the most part, I am not a short-order cook. So I have learned to take what I know about my family and craft our meals and snacks around that! I am not a gourmet cook by any means - but I will not sacrifice quality. A recipe that has a million ingredients or steps just isn't going to cut it.

Here are some of my rules:
1) No or low sugar. There are very few things I buy with added sugar. If it does have added sugar, it must be VERY LITTLE. If I put a * by the food below, it does have added sugar.
2) Very few carbs. We eat very little bread, tortillas, and 'crunchy' snacks. Your body treats bread the same way it treats sugar, so I try to limit that. The kids get to pick 1 snack/day and the ones I buy are as clean as possible. Probably half our meals don't have a carb or if they do many times it's rice or potatoes.
3) Water. The kids main drink is water. They do get about 2-4 ounces of juice a day with all their vitamins {Omega 3, Vitamin D, and a probiotic put in the juice}. If they ask for milk, I let them have it, but they probably ask AT MOST once a week.
4) Squirty fruits. We still eat quite a few pouches, but I have cut Trent down from 6-8/day down to 4.
5) Read labels. I am constantly reading labels and making sure I understand the ingredients. I search for added {sometimes hidden} sugar and junk ingredients.

So here's a sample of what we do:

Breakfast:
-Drew wakes up hungry and wants to eat! She loves scrambled eggs, Applegate breakfast sausage*, fruits, and veggies. Once in a while she'll ask for a sunbutter/jelly/honey sandwich which is just sugar/carbs, but I let her have that occasionally.
-Trent is NOT hungry when he wakes up. I might get an apple or a hard-boiled egg in him. 
-If they eat a good breakfast {relative to each kid}, they can have a squirty fruit before we leave.

Lunch:
-Drew gets meat {Applegate hot dogs are her favorite, lunch meat**, dinner leftovers}, a string cheese, a squirty fruit, and either 2 fruits/1 veggie or 2 veggies/1 fruit. She loves grapes, oranges, bananas, apples, watermelon, blueberries, and strawberries for fruit, and she loves tomatoes, bell peppers, zucchini, green beans, green peas, and sweet potatoes as her veggies. See? My easy eater!
-Trent gets meat {lunch meat**, Applegate chicken nuggets, spinach hamburgers - I have been making these for years and switched from zucchini to spinach and now also blend in tomatoes, grilled chicken or pork chops}, a Siggi's yogurt*, carrots, and 2 squirty fruits.

Snack:
-When I pick the kids up from school, they get a snack. Trent usually eats pecans, string cheese, or an apple {or all of the above - he seems to make up for not having a big breakfast by eating a ton after school}. Drew eats raisins, a banana, pecans/cashews/almonds.
-I make my own popcorn using this recipe. I use coconut oil and salt and that's it!
-The time period before dinner is when they usually get their 1 crunchy snack - Mary's Gone pretzels, Nut Thins...as clean as possible!

Dinner:
-I typically cook big meals Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday. Brent golfs on Wednesdays, so that's when I might pan grill chicken or pork chops. I am working on adding a Sunday dinner, but I'm not there yet, ha! The weekends are leftovers, super simple meals, occasional meals out, etc.
-We are big spaghetti eaters. I buy Amy's sauce {I don't buy it through Amazon but get at Natural Grocer} because it's organic with no added sugar. It is HARD to find spaghetti sauce without added sugar. I make spaghetti probably twice a month, and I've recently started sauteeing and pureeing spinach and adding it to the sauce to get more greens into Trent.
-I make 2 'breakfast for dinner' meals. 1 is bacon, eggs, hash browns. I buy Pedersen's bacon - no added sugar. I make sure the hash browns are clean - a lot have crap added. Everyone also adds a fruit/veggie. This is usually when Trent eats grapes. This is our newest fruit for him, so I still have to force it a bit. The other breakfast is a sausage/egg scramble. I have yet to find breakfast sausage without sugar but I buy the healthiest I can find.
-Quesadillas, burritos or fajitas - I buy Stacy's tortillas - 5 ingredients and super clean. Trent and Drew typically just want cheese quesadillas, Brent and I will eat them with chicken and apples inside - yum. I might do one of these options once a month because of the tortillas.
-Chicken fried rice - this one makes me laugh because everyone eats this differently. Trent only eats the chicken and rice, Drew wants the rice, eggs, and veggies, Brent wants chicken, rice, eggs, veggies, and I eat it all PLUS coconut aminos instead of soy sauce - y'all this is a must have - soy sauce is TERRIBLE for you but coconut aminos are GOOD for you and taste AMAZING.
-Bacon wrapped chicken - salt, pepper on chicken tenders, wrap in bacon, bake at 350 for about 45 minutes - flip halfway
-Chicken, green beans, and red/sweet potatoes baked in the oven at 350 - super easy and delicious!
-I make my own chicken nuggets sometimes using this recipe.
-I will make meatloaf but cook in cupcake tins so it cooks quicker and makes little meatballs.
-I don't use our slow cooker a ton but plan to change that because some of our afternoons are getting busy with after school activities, so I'm going to start dusting off my crock pot recipes and seeing what I still consider clean enough to make {grin} and using Pinterest for new ideas!

So that's basically how we eat. The kids know if they've had their crunchy snack and if they have hit their limit of squirty fruit. They know not to ask for food after dinner {unless they want to eat a fruit or vegetable}. They know sometimes we will have treats but that it isn't an every day thing. We talk about what foods fuel our body and what foods don't and why that's important. We talk about things that help our brains and things that don't. I explain why I give them the vitamins I give them, etc. Am I perfect? Of course not! But I view their little bodies as a miracle that I want to cherish and nurture as much as possible.

I hope this post wasn't terribly boring!! {grin}

**What I wanted to say about lunch meat is it is hard to find good quality stuff. I always buy organic and nitrate/nitrite free and where possible I buy without added sugar. At our main grocery store, I can't find it without sugar, but it's very low.

Banana Almond Butter Muffins

I have been trying to find some recipes that would freeze well and be easy breakfasts for the kiddos after Smoochie gets here. But you guys know I'm kind of nuts about ingredients which can make it kind of challenging for me when I'm looking online. Well, I think I found a winner! Paleo! Gluten free! Dairy free!

Banana Almond Butter Muffins

Ingredients:
-2 eggs
-2 ripe bananas
-1 cup almond butter {check your ingredients for hidden sugar}
-1 tsp. baking soda
-1 tsp. vanilla
-1/8 to 1/4 c. honey {optional}

1. Mix all ingredients together using either a blender of mixer. I used my mixer since it seemed less messy.
2. Pour into lined muffin tins - fill about 2/3 full. Should make about 15 muffins.
3. Cook at 400 degrees for about 15 minutes.

When I found this recipe on Pinterest, it didn't have the honey, but I thought it would need a little something. I did 1/4 c. which would be less than 1 tsp./muffin which is an additional 20 calories and 5 g of sugar. Given my kids get almost no added sugar in a day, I am comfortable with this, but next time I make this recipe, I'll probably do less and experiment with what makes them a little sweeter without going overboard.

Bottom line: They were delicious! Drew loved them, Trent still hasn't tried one {anyone else shocked by this?}, but I'm working on him!

Whole 30 Round 2 - The Halfway Point

I'm currently on Day 17 of my second round of Whole 30. I had all these smug ideas after I finished my first round. I had kicked my bad habits and could totally rock 'Life After Whole 30'. 

Then we went away for our anniversary. Then the holidays started...Thanksgiving, trip to NYC, Christmas, New Year's, Drew's birthday. And all my smug ideas came crashing down. So I knew I needed to jump start myself again and decided to do another round of Whole 30.

That brings us to now - I'm at the halfway point and feeling amazing {but a little less smug}. So how has this round been?

• Overall, it has been very easy to slip back into Whole 30 eating.
• I did a better job of not binge-eating the week before I started, so my first few days weren't nearly as painful this time.
• I found a way I can tolerate eggs! I hate the way hard-boiled eggs smell, but I can actually eat them without dying. That's been huge. 
• Eating out still sucks. It's so hard to find anything compliant, and it's usually a salad with grilled chicken and oil/vinegar. Boo.
• I'm experimenting with coffee - I just get so bored drinking water all day! I think I like ghee coffee but think I'll like it better with some honey it it. {Shocking}

So here's hoping I can finish strong and find a balance this time when I end this round!

DITL: Winter 2016 {January 26, 2016}

Nothing like waiting until the last possible day to get my DITL post in! But I think today will be a good day to document - it's been a while since I've done a weekday {because usually that's me working for 7 hours in my living room} because today I needed to be in our office downtown for a meeting.

********Tuesday, January 26, 2016********

Allena and Brent are 35.
Trent is 6.5.
Drew is a newly minted 3.

3:35 - Unexpected wake-up call from both kiddos. Drew has gone into Trent's room to try and sneak into his bed and woken him up. He comes to tattle, she follows to try and get into our bed.

5:15 - Brent's alarm goes off. Ugggggh.

6:00 - My alarm goes off. Double uggggggh. Time to rise and shine! Check my FitBit stats for sleep - shockingly not great given Drew's visit. I also realize it isn't quite accurate because I didn't go to sleep when it said I did, but I guess my IG perusing before bed made it think I was asleep! Head to the bathroom and chat with Brent while he showers and I wash my face/bangs. I wasn't going to wash my hair today but my bangs were looking rough! He's out the door by 6:10. Realize as he walks out that I wanted to get a picture of us and didn't get it {not that he would have done it willingly}. Boo!

6:15 - Start working - check email, do a few things I didn't finish up yesterday. I've started doing this to get in another 30-45 minutes a day since it's so hard to get all my hours in every day. Also deal with some drama with our school's library.  I am the volunteer coordinator for the library, and one of our long-time volunteers had to back out, so now I need to replace his remaining 12 shifts for the year.

See my fancy spreadsheet! {grin}

6:48 - Time to make the donuts...I mean breakfasts and lunches for my minions. I open the fridge and remember Drew didn't go back to school yesterday after her well-check, so her lunch is already made. Say out loud 'Drew's is done. Yes!' #dork Decide to turn on some music while I work. I won't be super quiet so that hopefully the kids will start stirring on their own. #yeahright

6:50 - Start to boil some eggs. My kids LOVE hard-boiled eggs. I hate eggs in all forms and I hate the way hard-boiled eggs smell, but I can actually eat the egg white without wanting to die. So that's a win for convenience foods on Whole 30.

7:00 - Trent comes out into the kitchen unprompted which is rare but then decides he wants to go back to bed.

7:05 - Lay out Drew's outfit that we agreed to the night before. Girlfriend has flare today.

7:10 - Try to wake up the bear aka Drew. She has been a disaster at bedtime {due to her new freedom} so she is awake way too late and mornings are super rough.

7:15 - Get my clothes on and do my make-up. Spoiled by almost never having to wear make-up, so it's kind of a pain on the days I need to put it on. Trent gets up again and heads to the couch to read.

7:20 - Peel an egg for Trent and finally get Drew up, but man is she grumpy!

7:25 - Bring Trent his clothes, his MTHFR meds {his prescription and his 'red cream'}.

7:30 - Start to dress her - she's pretty resistant at first but finally lets me dress her and then starts to eat her breakfast {hard-boiled egg, watermelon, and strawberries}. Whines that she wants squirty fruits. Trent is looking at a Harry Potter Lego book and eating his breakfast {a spinach hamburger patty, a hard-boiled egg, and 2 squirty fruits}.

7:40 - Remind T that it's time to get dressed. No way will we be in the car when I want to be {7:45}.

7:50 - Start corralling everyone to get in the car. Pause to take a selfie. It's going to be cold today in ATX {Yankees, don't laugh at me!} so I had to find tights to wear under my dress.

7:55 - Everyone is strapped in, now I run in and take all my pills {MTHFR vitamins and DHA - getting a stye is super fun but reminds me that I haven't been good about taking my DHA regularly}.

8:01 - And we're off!

8:14 - Arrive at school. Trent hops out and walks to class. Drew wants me to walk her to class, but I can't since we've arrived during normal drop-off time, and she BAWLS as the school secretary walks her to class. She still hasn't adjusted to drop-off since moving classes. Breaks my heart to leave her crying like that, but I know it's better to just walk away - I know she'll calm down super fast.

8:16 - Back in the car, talk to Brent for a few minutes and then head into Austin. Listen to a replay of the Bobby Bones Show. Traffic is way lighter than a normal day. That doesn't mean I don't hit any, but it's a lot better!

9:00 - Just as I'm exiting the highway, I have to get on a conference call.

9:15 - Arrive at Picnik for a little Whole 30 approved coffee {ghee coffee with MCT oil and a shot of collagen protein - yay!}. I'm trying to find new drinks that I will enjoy to break-up with that damn chai latte. I'd say the coffee was okay but could easily grow on me. And after this round when I can put a little honey or maple syrup in it? I think we'll be besties.

9:30 - Get to our office, walk up {it's freezing}, have to borrow an ID badge {mine is somewhere in the house...}, and get set-up in the conference room we have for today's meeting.

10:00 - Talk to my co-worker Risa, and my co-worker Lauren walks into the conference room and immediately hops on a conference call of her own.

10:30 - Now we're both off the phone and we catch up. Lauren and I've known each other for years. She's the sister of one of my closest friends {Jenna, who I do oils with}, so she works for Deloitte in the same job as me, loves essential oils, also has an MTHFR mutation, so you know we get along!

11:07 - Call from school - Trent is disturbing other kids and not listening and needs to be picked up. I say a few choice words to my co-worker before calling Brent. His dad is in Georgetown messing with our golf cart at the golf course, so B thinks he can probably pick T up. Call said father-in-law and he is done with the cart and can get T. Whew! Of course this would happen on a day when I'm downtown. Suuuuper frustrated. He had a nasty meltdown yesterday afternoon. As B and I text about it, I realize we forgot his pill yesterday morning and I didn't watch him take it this morning - I wonder if this is part of the issue. Hmmm...

11:30 - Start discussing lunch options. Lauren's pregnant {with baby girl #3}, and I always love to talk about food! She's also building a new house, so she shows me her floor plan. So happy we aren't building anymore, but it's super fun to see what others are doing.

12:00 - Start the Talent 2020 webcast - the whole reason for being in the office! Work on this post.

12:20 - A new hire comes into the conference room for us to verify his employment and review his citizenship paperwork. I always feel like I am going to screw this up!

1:00 - My Whole 30 friend {Veronica} happens to be getting her husband lunch from Picnik and bringing it downtown and asked me if I wanted something. Made my day! I was about to be eating a house salad from Texadelphia - was NOT excited about that. Continue working...

1:35 - Check my mail - the receptionist might have hinted that I needed to - and get some water. Chuck all said mail in the recycling bin.

1:50 - Veronica is here with my green beans and chicken lunch and a cup of bone broth. Yum!

2:00 - Talk to Brent and he says traffic is a mess {it's raining AND cold}, so I go ahead and shut down and head out to get Drew. While I'm thankful my father-in-law was able to get Trent, I have to pass their house to get Drew, then turn around to get Trent - going to be spending a lot of time in the car! Eat my lunch while driving - it is so good!

2:49 - Arrive at school! The drop-off line is super long! Pick up my best girl. She surprisingly wanted to sit in her own seat and not her brother's. She had an accident at school {this NEVER happens}, so she's in outfit #2 of the day {spoiler alert: this number will continue to grow}.

3:15 - Have to take a detour to get gas. Eek!

3:20 - Now Drew wants to be in Trent's car seat, so I go to switch her around. She is sassy, of course.

3:30 - Start another car conference call. Luckily this one is with 2 of my team members, so we're always taking calls together with kids in the background or out and about - I love my team!

3:35 - Arrive at Brent's parents house. Brent's dad bribes Drew with marshmallows to get her into the kitchen so I can finish my call. Thanks Papa!

3:45 - While still on the phone, Drew comes into the room I'm in {used to be Brent's} and wants to change clothes {outfit #3}. I help her change clothes AND potty while still on my call. 

Too busy to show off her new outfit

4:15 - Head home. Decide Trent will help me clean out my trash can on wheels car when we get home as part of his punishment for getting in trouble at school. We hit rush hour traffic which is super fun with 2 kids in the car.

5:00 - Get home, and begin cleaning out my car. Start a load of laundry for Drew's wet outfit from school.

5:05 - Brent attacks! {Cameo of our new table! Still debating chairs...sigh.}

5:10 - Drew wants to wear her leotard. This would be outfit #4. She pairs it with my tennis shoes. #stylish

5:15 - Trent is still working on my car, and Drew adds a tu-tu and her princess heel.

5:30 - I unload the dishwasher and reload it with everything from my car. There were A LOT of dishes in there {plus a bunch that had accumulated already} in the sink. Needs to be restarted again! I should be embarrassed to show this, but this is real life!

5:45 - Kids are hungry, so Brent makes them turkey sandwiches, and I read to them {The Day the Crayons Quit and we added The Day the Crayons Came Back}. Trent's semi under lockdown, but I'm a sucker for reading to the kids.

6:35 - I have a Finance Council meeting at church, so Brent gets the kids in the shower, and I jet to church!

6:58 - Arrive at church. Our meeting lasts just about an hour, and I will be presenting some financial information at both masses this weekend, fun-fun!

8:25 - Arrive home! Brent has all the lights blazing for me. That's love!

8:45 - Eat dinner - leftover chicken and potatoes made with ghee. Yum! Check IG and veg for a bit.

9:00 - Play on the computer for a little bit. Get ready for bed. Brent and I look at chairs online and don't come to any decisions. Too.many.choices!!!

10:15 - Being silly! Lights out and we both play on our phones a little.

10:36 - Good night!

In case you were curious, Drew stayed in her bed that night, but 6:00 AM still came too early!

Whole 30: Results and Now What?

Sick of my Whole 30 posts yet? I hope not! I officially finished last week but hadn't shared my results yet or where this journey is taking me. Since it has been really amazing {dare I say life changing?} I wanted to talk a little bit about the future as well.

First up, the results! During the program, you are not supposed to weigh yourself. The scale can be a fickle beast {lose 2 pounds then frustratingly gain 3 even though you feel like you are hungry all the time...}, and Whole 30 wants you to focus more on how food makes you feel over what the scale says. It is allowed to do before and after measurements, pics, overall scale results, etc. which I did. {Before and After pics will not be posted on the blog - yes, shockingly, there are things I consider private, Brent!}

Weight lost: 6 pounds
Inches lost:
-Arm: 1"
-Thigh: 2"
-Bust: 1.5"
-Hips: 1"
-Waist: 2"

Y'all, can you believe that? I was floored! I can really see the difference when I look at the before and after pics and my clothes fit SO much better!

So...now that I've finished the official 30 days...what now?

There are 2 ways you can choose to reintroduce food {if you didn't immediately eat pizza and donuts on day 31, which I didn't, ha} - 1 being to reintroduce only when you really want to with no timeline and the other being to follow a 10-day plan to reintroduce 1 food group at a time {for example, non-gluten grains on day 1, whole 30 eating days 2 and 3, dairy on day 4...etc.}. I opted for the second approach because Brent and I are taking a getaway soon and I wanted to know how each food group made me feel before I potentially binge on all the things over that weekend. I don't think I have any food issues, but I don't want to waste 30 days of clean eating and not find out.

I ate whole 30 complaint for 34 days and yesterday, I ate 2 meals with non-gluten grains - spaghetti with quinoa and chicken fried rice. Everything else was compliant food. I already have noticed that I felt groggier after each of those meals. I honestly felt like on day 31 I was going to be so excited to eat bread or pasta again, and I really had no desire to eat it yesterday {but did for the experiment}. Pretty amazing, huh? I'm not even that interested in dairy on Thursday when 2 weeks ago I was really jonesing for some cheese!

So we'll see what these 10 days bring in terms of increased awareness of how certain foods treat me, I'll go on my trip with Brent and enjoy myself 100% guilt-free, and then I'll come back and jump right back into what I really REALLY really to be a lifestyle for me.

Today also had a little mini-adventure packed into it. {Yes, I realize this post is a mile long and that I am STILL talking about Whole 30. I'm sorry. #sorrynotsorry If you want to really feel sorry for someone, think about Brent who lives with me and gets to hear this all day long!}

Veronica, whose Whole 30 journey inspired and encouraged mine, has been telling me about a cute food trailer in her neck of the woods {the hip, cool part of Austin, you know, not the 'burbs} called Picnik. I follow them on Instagram {@picnikaustin} where they show pictures of all their paleo food {Have I ever mentioned that Whole 30 and paleo are pretty much fraternal twins?} and teach about the health benefits of MCT Oil and bone broth. It is my new favorite IG feed and totally revs up my love-of-learning geekiness to a whole new level. So anyway, today Veronica took me!

See my totally overly excited smile?

I had a marshmallow chai {dairy free} with MCT oil and collagen.

Starbucks who? Can't believe I haven't had a SB chai in 35 days and don't care! #canstopdidstop

I also had a paleo blueberry muffin - my first 'baked good' in 35 days. {Another rule of Whole 30 is to not create non-compliant food with compliant ingredients.} It was amazing and did NOT create any cravings for more treats. Can I get an Amen?!

I asked Veronica if I could share a little bit of her story because it truly is inspiring, and she agreed.

This is Veronica in May 2015. We've known each other for close to 10 years.

I am blown away comparing this picture to the one above.

She embarked on her Whole 30 journey after watching Fed Up {she's the one who told me about it and That Sugar Film}. She told me that this was a lifestyle change that she needed to make as a family {she and her husband have the most precious 4-year-old}. She wanted to be a better role model to her son and thought she was feeding him 'healthy' foods but some were counteracting the process. During her Whole 30, she lost 17 pounds and has continued to lose weight with the Whole 30ish lifestyle. She has more energy, more stamina, and her son knows what the 'sugar dragon' is and how to say no to it. Total success! 

She and I spent a lot of time today talking about how great we feel and how much we've noticed in changed without incorporating much exercise in...yet. She and her husband continue to lose weight while eating out because they are making the RIGHT food choices. We are both so fired up!

This post is beyond long enough, but I just wanted to share my results and where this journey is taking me now. I want to do another post soon about the new recipes I've tried and how I survived thrived during Whole 30. Stay tuned!

BOOM!

Cue my victory lap! Warm up the band! I did it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

{Results and my thoughts on how I survived to come}