Wednesday, June 6, 2012

Day Two: Hurdles and Victories (and some tasty pork chops)

Yesterday presented me with some unanticipated struggles.
 

Struggle #1: I felt like I had been drained of all of my energy all day. Well, not all of it, I’m still able to function, but maybe what is equivalent to an electrical “brown out,” where the energy is just grossly diminished. PHEW!
 

At first, I wanted to blame the new diet... not enough carbs (i.e. pasta!), not enough calcium (i.e. cheese!), etc. But, that was silliness! I’m still eating carbs, they’re just complex carbs (which are better for long-lasting energy) and I know full well that calcium doesn’t have anything to do with energy levels.
 

So, then I decided that I’d blame it on the weather. It was rainy this evening, so that’s a good excuse, right?
 

Finally, I had an epiphany! I hadn’t worked out in THREE days! I find that I have so much more energy when I’m actually applying myself physically. So, after some serious pep talks, I convinced myself to don the workout garb and get to sweating. UGH! Worst workout of my life? Probably. But I can tell a difference in my energy level since then. Problem solved! Now to just stick with it.


Note: Today's workout was Supreme 90 Day: Cardio Challenge. If you live in Lynchburg and are interested in this program for yourself, you might find the DVDs at Ollie's for about $8. The Mr. and I really enjoy them. They're challenging, but not impossible. It's something akin to P90X, but MUCH less expensive.



Struggle #2: The String Cheese Monster has been chasing me all day long! You need to know that I have a “thing” for cheese. I love it in almost any form. The Whole30, however, does not allow for dairy in any form, so the SCM has been taunting me. Luckily for me, I have a Person! You know a person you call when __________, fill in the blank as you see fit. She knows how badly I want to stick to this so, she made up lies to make me feel better. For instance, “They stopped making string cheese because kids were choking on the strings,” and “Monsters aren’t real, therefore, you don’t really want string cheese!” My Person is the best, even if she's not a good liar! Problem solved, though (at least for the time being).


Struggle #3: Up until now, I had been tracking my food with myfitnesspal. It’s a great tool for personal accountability! You can keep a running log of the foods you’ve eaten, exercises completed, and measurements, among other things (forums, blogs, etc. with others who share similar goals). So, I’ve been trying to keep track of the foods I’ve eaten while doing the Whole30, even though tracking is not required for the program. Only problem is, I’m having a hard time (both on Day One and on Day Two) eating enough calories, based on the amount that the program says I'm supposed to eat. I'm not starving myself, honest! I'm not even hungry at most points in the day. This is a foreign problem to me. I'm used to eating way too many calories and trying to figure out how to eat less, but now I have to eat MORE? Really?! Cave people must have done nothing but eat to get enough calories! I guess this goes back to the principle of "Eat to live, don't live to eat." As long as I am satisified and getting a smattering of nutrients I should be okay, right? Even if I don't make my calorie quota for the day? Problem still under review.


So, here's the breakdown for what I ate today (Please note, that with my sleep/work schedule, my meals are very much abnormally scheduled, in that I typically eat dinner as my first meal of the day.)


Meal 1:
Pork chop with herb pesto (Recipe follows, I used boneless chops!)
Steamed broccoli
Sweet potato oven fries




Meal 2:
Banana bread Larabar (NOT my favorite flavor thus far)
Raw, unsalted pecans
Banana


Meal 3:
Leftover taco meat
Pico de gallo
Guacamole (shared with me by my wonderful Person)
Zucchini and Onions
Red grapes


Snacks:
Leftover sweet potato fries
Baby carrots


Still trying to make it as a modern cavewoman. No quitting yet!



Here's that recipe, as promised, from the Taste of Home magazine, 2012 Grill It! Edition:


Pork Chops with Herb Pesto

4 bone-in pork loin chops (3/4” thick and 7 oz ea)
1/4 t salt
1/8 t pepper
2 T water
1 T each minced fresh rosemary, sage, thyme, parsley, and basil
1 T olive oil
3 garlic cloves, minced


Sprinkle salt and pepper on pork. In a small bowl, combine the water, herbs, oil and garlic. Rub over both sides of chops. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.


Moisten a paper towel with cooking oil; using long-handled tongs, lightly coat the grill rack. Grill chops, covered, over medium heat or broil 4” from the heat for 4-5 mins on each side or until a thermometer reads 145°. Let stand for 5 mins before serving.


6 comments:

  1. I'm proud of you for not giving in to the string cheese monster! He attacks me all the time, but I always give in to his master tricks. Your dinner sounds scrumptious and I hear from a reliable source that it was indeed! Don't give up :) I have faith that you'll kick this cave woman lifestyle's butt ;) Love you!

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  2. Wow! Way to overcome your obstacles, Tara! Stick with this! You ONLY have 28 days left! It's great that you're blogging, so you can look back when you're all kinds of thinner, less addicted to dating the Cheese Monster, and abounding with energy! I'm rooting for you!

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    1. Thank you so much for the encouragement and your vote of confidence! Also, thanks for viewing my blog from Ireland... it makes me feel so special. :)

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  3. Way to go on getting back into the exercise routine to boost your energy levels. For even more energy you should try a half cup of red grapes right after your workout..just a thought. Proud of you and keep up the good work!

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    1. Thanks for the tip about the grapes! I'm going to try that today! I'll let you know how it works out. Thanks for the encouragement! You're the best!

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