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.

Day One: Embarking on the Adventure of The Whole30

Yesterday, June 4, 2012, marks the first day of my new “cavewoman” lifestyle! I am adopting a new, simplified way of eating and hoping that it will carry over into many more of my life’s decisions. I have begun the Paleolithic (Paleo) Diet, more specifically, I’m embarking on the Whole30 journey.

You might recall from Sixth Grade Social Studies class that “Paleolithic” refers to the Stone Age. You know, cavemen and women sporting their Wooly Mammoth hides accompanied by their clubs and spears adorned with Saber Tooth Tiger teeth inlays. Yep, that Stone Age-- back before the Agricultural Revolution, before the abundance of grains and flours, before the availability of year-round strawberries, before the development of monosodium glutamate (MSG) and carageenan. Well, anyhow, the Paleo diet draws on the “hunters and gatherers” or Stone Age mentality. What can be hunted or gathered (meat, seafood, eggs, vegetables, and fruits) are all that is to be eaten. It is ideal to eat a lean protein with complex carbs (from veggies and fruits) and healthy fat (oils, seeds, nuts, avocados, etc.) at each meal. That’s it!

Yes, you read correctly! No dairy (not even cheese, much to my chagrin), no grains (including all kinds of grain flours, cereals, and corn), no legumes (including soybeans and soy products as well as peanuts and peanut products), no processed junk (those products with lists of ingredients that go on for days because they’re composed of 18-letter words that only scientists can pronounce), no added sugar (the real stuff or the wannabes—honey, agave, maple syrup, stevia, Splenda, etc.), no additives (like the carageenan, sulfites and MSG sorts), oh yeah, and no white potatoes.

As I understand it, these products on the “forbidden” list are known to cause inflammation which leads to migraines, general aches and pains, and bloating. This diet of whole, unadulterated foods is intended to return one to the way one was originally intended to feel after eating—satisfied, without the baggage of bloat, blood sugar spikes, migraines, GI discomfort, etc. According to the Whole30 testimonials, a LOT of folks have had a turn around of some serious and some not-as-serious health problems after embracing this new way of life (See the website for full details. I don’t want to steal someone else’s glory and there really is SO much more than I could tell in one simple blog post!). And on top of all of this, making better food choices might lead to weight loss and better stamina to handle the daily tasks of life and athleticism. These food choices are supposed to be ideal for supporting athletic endeavors from every day tasks like bludgeoning a mountain lion to training for the Crossfit competition. While I don’t intend to have any run-ins with mountain lions and I’m not even close to being about to compete in the Crossfit competition, I am trying to be more purposeful about being active and kicking my own butt into gear!

I think that you probably get the point by now, so instead of continuing to beat a proverbial dead horse (I bet cave people didn’t beat horses after they were dead), let’s just cut to the chase. After much research and planning, I composed a menu for the week, went grocery shopping, and prepared myself for my adventure. Only problem was that I had planned to eat leftovers all week for lunch, but didn’t consider that on the first day, there is nothing to be leftover because nothing has yet been made! Oops! So, here’s what I ended up eating on Day One of my thirty day journey:

Breakfast:

2 eggs with fresh spinach and fresh mushrooms

1 bundle of grapes

1 bottle of water

Lunch:

Blueberry Muffin Larabar

3 oz of baby carrots

1 bottle of water

Dinner:

Ground turkey tacos in lettuce leaves instead of taco shells

Homemade pico de gallo

Sauteed zucchini and onions

1 1/2 bottles of water

Snacks:

1 banana

1 Apple pie Larabar

More water!

Notes: I know I should not have had two Larabars in one day. While it fits into the plan, the bars in conjunction with the grapes and banana probably added up too much sugar for the day. Better planning for tomorrow will equal less Larabars (And thank goodness! I can see how those could possibly get costly! If you ever find them on sale somewhere, please tell me!) and less sugar.

In spite of the fact that I was craving macaroni and cheese all day (pasta… no, cheese… no, milk… no) and the fact that everywhere I looked someone was telling me it was National Cheese Day (rub it in my face, why don’t you?!), Day One is now behind me! I have fought the battle and come out victorious. Now only 29 more days to go and a lifetime of wise food decisions thereafter.

Here’s to becoming a modern cavewoman!