So I am at the midway mark of my Whole30 Challenge and I am a believer! I know they suggest that you DON'T weigh yourself for the entire challenge, but being a slave to the scale (I AM working on that), I just had to check my progress. All I can say is WOW! I am 9.5lbs down... in TWO WEEKS! Besides that nice weight loss I have also noticed that my blood sugar has stabilized, I no longer get head spins, dizziness, intense sugar cravings, or sluggishness in the afternoons. I also hardly ever snack anymore, I just don't need to. I find that my breakfast (usually eggs and bacon/chicken sausage, or a veggie omelet) holds me just fine until lunch. Lunch usually consists of a small serving of fruit, a side salad with sunflower seeds and avocado dressed EVOO and red wine vinegar, and leftovers of some sort (this week is was paleo chili with lots of veggies added in). There are a few days a week that I don't get home until 7 pm, and even on those day I find my lunch holds me through until dinner. Sometimes I'm not even very hungry at night, so I just have a fruit smoothie. The reduction in my appetite has been mind-boggling. I'm eating a LOT more fat that I used to in the form of avocado, coconut oil, olive oil, grass-fed meats, and nuts/seeds. I've also learned that coconut oil is practically a miracle oil. I use it on my hands and my nails and cuticles have never been healthier, I use it on my face and my seasonal eczema is totally under control and my monthly blemish is gone! I also use a little as a leave-in conditioner for my hair and it's nice and soft and shiny. Seriously, if someone told me this stuff cured cancer, I wouldn't doubt it. Other things I've noticed since my Whole30 started is that I have fewer aches and pains in my joints, and more energy. I was a little worried I messed my Whole30 reset up because I got a cold/sinus infection right at the start of it and was drinking OJ (which I never drink) and taking cough syrup and cough drops (both which have added sugar in them) to get over my cold. But I could tell my clothes were fitting better, so I just HAD to check my progress. It's just amazing to me to see and feel the difference so quickly. I'd given up sugar about a month before I started this challenge, but I noticed I was craving other things that negatively affect my insulin (like dairy and grains) so I wasn't feeling or seeing any benefit from just giving up added sugars. I had to address ALL the stuff that creates a strong insulin response. I think that was the key for me.
I'm excited to continue on with my Whole30 Challenge and my new Whole30 nutritional framework for the future. I don't plan on changing much after my 30 days. I will allow myself 1 non-Whole30 meal/treat per week if I want it.
Showing posts with label weight loss. Show all posts
Showing posts with label weight loss. Show all posts
Friday, March 15, 2013
Saturday, March 9, 2013
Preparation is Everything!
Week 2 of the Whole30 Challenge has begun. My general plan is to do cooking and planning on the weekend for the coming week. This week I made a yummy paleo chili to have for lunches. When that runs out I'll have salad with tuna.
Since my husband and I are worlds apart when it comes to our eating habits I also have to plan for his meals (especially now that daylight savings time is here and I'll be doing my weekday runs after work).
Tomorrow I will make a roasted chicken w/ carrots and potatoes, then on Tuesday I'll do a beef stew in the crock pot while I'm at work. That should give him enough leftovers to get by for the week.
I doubt there is anything terribly special about this chili recipe, but I'll share it none the less. It's quite tasty.
Paleo Chili (serves 6)
1lb grass-fed ground beef (or ground meat of your choice)
1 sweet onion, chopped
2 bell peppers, chopped
4 oz sliced mushrooms, chopped
3 carrots, diced
1 fresh jalapeno pepper, diced (seeds and ribs removed)
1 28oz can of diced tomatoes (no salt or sugar added)
1 15oz can tomato sauce (no sugar or salt added)
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
3-4 Tbsp olive oil or coconut oil
chili powder to taste
your favorite Mexican seasoning to taste
cayenne powder to taste
salt/pepper to taste
In a large pot, add enough oil to coat the bottom and add all the chopped veggies and the garlic. Cook for approx. 4 minutes over medium heat until just past raw. Remove the veggies and set aside. Add ground meat (and more oil if needed), brown the meat, add the spices, tomatoes, and sauce. I like my chili pretty spicy so I used about 2 Tbsp of a local Mexican spice mix from Common Folk Farm, as well as about 1 Tbsp chili powder, and 1/2 Tbsp cayenne pepper. Mix the meat and tomato sauce mixture, add the veggies back in and simmer for 20 minutes.
It gets better with time, so the next day it'll be even more fabulous!
If you try this recipe let me know how you like it!
Since my husband and I are worlds apart when it comes to our eating habits I also have to plan for his meals (especially now that daylight savings time is here and I'll be doing my weekday runs after work).
Tomorrow I will make a roasted chicken w/ carrots and potatoes, then on Tuesday I'll do a beef stew in the crock pot while I'm at work. That should give him enough leftovers to get by for the week.
I doubt there is anything terribly special about this chili recipe, but I'll share it none the less. It's quite tasty.
Paleo Chili (serves 6)
1lb grass-fed ground beef (or ground meat of your choice)
1 sweet onion, chopped
2 bell peppers, chopped
4 oz sliced mushrooms, chopped
3 carrots, diced
1 fresh jalapeno pepper, diced (seeds and ribs removed)
1 28oz can of diced tomatoes (no salt or sugar added)
1 15oz can tomato sauce (no sugar or salt added)
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
3-4 Tbsp olive oil or coconut oil
chili powder to taste
your favorite Mexican seasoning to taste
cayenne powder to taste
salt/pepper to taste
In a large pot, add enough oil to coat the bottom and add all the chopped veggies and the garlic. Cook for approx. 4 minutes over medium heat until just past raw. Remove the veggies and set aside. Add ground meat (and more oil if needed), brown the meat, add the spices, tomatoes, and sauce. I like my chili pretty spicy so I used about 2 Tbsp of a local Mexican spice mix from Common Folk Farm, as well as about 1 Tbsp chili powder, and 1/2 Tbsp cayenne pepper. Mix the meat and tomato sauce mixture, add the veggies back in and simmer for 20 minutes.
It gets better with time, so the next day it'll be even more fabulous!
If you try this recipe let me know how you like it!
Friday, March 8, 2013
Revamping Old Favorites: Spaghetti & Meatballs
It's Friday night, I've been sick (with a cold, not Whole30 related), my car is in the shop, I haven't been able to run, so it's been a long week. I'm feeling better, but the last thing I want to do when I get home from work is make a big fuss for dinner.
I saw a really cool thing on Pinterest about how to cook spaghetti squash in the slow cooker... whole! This site says to add water, but I omitted that. Seriously, you just turn that bad boy on and plop the squash in stem and all. So this morning I did exactly that. My plan was to have spaghetti squash and meatballs for dinner.
One thing I've noticed so far on Whole30 is that it is very hard to find "convenience" foods that are compliant. While this didn't exactly come as a surprise, there are certain things, like pasta sauce, that I just haven't had time (or local tomatoes) to make my own and freeze it yet. We'll be purchasing a small chest freezer very soon and I'll be freezing goodies left and right in no time. Anyway, I was really fortunate to find a bottled pasta sauce that is completely compliant! Seriously, Bove's Marinara has exactly what I would put in sauce, nothing more, nothing less: crushed tomatoes, extra virgin olive oil, onions, fresh garlic, salt, and spices. I'm in LOVE!
So now that I had the spaghetti squash cooking itself while I was at work, a Whole30 compliant bottled sauce, the next step was to create a paleo meatball. I made the meatballs with a pound of local, grass-fed ground beef from Little Alaska Farm. I kind of made the meatballs recipe up as I went along (see recipe below). I rarely make meatballs but I'm really happy with the way these came out! Even my very picky husband liked them!
It took 35 minutes from the time I came home from work until I sat down to enjoy my spaghetti squash and meatball dinner. It was VERY good!! It's nice to know I can still enjoy the flavors of some of my favorite meals and still stay paleo! If you try this recipe out please let me know what you think!
Paleo Meatballs (makes approx 22 meatballs)
preheat oven to 350F
1lb grass-fed ground beef
1 pastured chicken egg
1/2-1 cup almond meal (enough to bind the mixture)
3-4 cloves garlic minced (I like garlic)
1Tbsp dried basil
salt/pepper to taste
Beat the egg with a fork, add the ground beef and spices, mix well (I just use my hands). Once mixture is thoroughly mixed (it will be kind of loose at this point), add almond meal until mixture will hold a ball shape. Use a tablespoon measuring spoon to make evenly sized meatballs. Place in a single layer in a shallow casserole dish. Bake, uncovered, for 25 minutes.
I saw a really cool thing on Pinterest about how to cook spaghetti squash in the slow cooker... whole! This site says to add water, but I omitted that. Seriously, you just turn that bad boy on and plop the squash in stem and all. So this morning I did exactly that. My plan was to have spaghetti squash and meatballs for dinner.
One thing I've noticed so far on Whole30 is that it is very hard to find "convenience" foods that are compliant. While this didn't exactly come as a surprise, there are certain things, like pasta sauce, that I just haven't had time (or local tomatoes) to make my own and freeze it yet. We'll be purchasing a small chest freezer very soon and I'll be freezing goodies left and right in no time. Anyway, I was really fortunate to find a bottled pasta sauce that is completely compliant! Seriously, Bove's Marinara has exactly what I would put in sauce, nothing more, nothing less: crushed tomatoes, extra virgin olive oil, onions, fresh garlic, salt, and spices. I'm in LOVE!
So now that I had the spaghetti squash cooking itself while I was at work, a Whole30 compliant bottled sauce, the next step was to create a paleo meatball. I made the meatballs with a pound of local, grass-fed ground beef from Little Alaska Farm. I kind of made the meatballs recipe up as I went along (see recipe below). I rarely make meatballs but I'm really happy with the way these came out! Even my very picky husband liked them!
It took 35 minutes from the time I came home from work until I sat down to enjoy my spaghetti squash and meatball dinner. It was VERY good!! It's nice to know I can still enjoy the flavors of some of my favorite meals and still stay paleo! If you try this recipe out please let me know what you think!
Paleo Meatballs (makes approx 22 meatballs)
preheat oven to 350F
1lb grass-fed ground beef
1 pastured chicken egg
1/2-1 cup almond meal (enough to bind the mixture)
3-4 cloves garlic minced (I like garlic)
1Tbsp dried basil
salt/pepper to taste
Beat the egg with a fork, add the ground beef and spices, mix well (I just use my hands). Once mixture is thoroughly mixed (it will be kind of loose at this point), add almond meal until mixture will hold a ball shape. Use a tablespoon measuring spoon to make evenly sized meatballs. Place in a single layer in a shallow casserole dish. Bake, uncovered, for 25 minutes.
Monday, February 25, 2013
Making Mayo... sort of
If you haven't figured it out by now, I'm a foodie. I love everything about food; where it's grown, how it's grown, the history of regional favorites, nutrition, and especially HOW TO MAKE STUFF!
Starting this Friday, March 1st, I'm doing a Whole30 challenge. Whole30 is a dietary approach based on a paleolithic framework. The Whole30 Challenge is a kind of cleanse to reset your metabolism, flush your system of toxins, and discover what food(s) may be to blame for some of your "not so good" feelings (bloating, gas, chronic inflammation, headaches, constipation/diarrhea, fatigue... you get the idea). I am doing the Whole30 Challenge to get my insulin resistance in check. Assuming I feel as fantastic as others who have tried this feel, I will continue following a paleolithic diet.
In preparation for my Whole30 Challenge I bought a paleo cookbook (and bookmarked a BILLION paleo recipes and blogs). The cookbook I chose is Everyday Paleo by Sarah Fragoso. I like that she has a nice introduction with some basics and an easy, no-fuss approach. One thing she suggests is to make some of the staples ahead of time, such as mayonnaise, ranch dressing, and BBQ sauce, as these will be used in recipes during the week. And thus my adventure into homemade mayo began...
I LOVE grocery shopping. Truly. If it were a profession, I'd do it. If I could find people to hire me to shop for them, I would. One thing I love to do while shopping is READ LABELS (what can I say... I'm naturally curious). Have you checked out the ingredients in mayonnaise? The jar in my fridge lists 20 ingredients... TWENTY!! Sure, it has eggs, oil, vinegar, and salt, but it also has modified food starch, sugar, beta carotene, lactic acid, potassium sorbate, phosphoric acid, water, soybean oil. No thank you! There is a nice easy looking recipe in Everyday Paleo for homemade mayo (I also happen to have a few friends who've made their own and they swear by it).
I bought an immersion blender (aka stick blender) because I thought it'd be the best tool for the job. Not sure if the one I bought was 1) cheap, therefore crappy 2) too powerful, therefore overheats or 3) not the right tool for the job. The first problem was that I have to hold the button on the stick blender (versus just pushing a button to turn it on/off), so my finger literally got a cramp and I couldn't hold the button long enough. The second (and more serious) problem was the issue of overheating. You have to blend this stuff for close to 30 minutes and this stick blender was HOT to the touch... no good. My oil and eggs did not emulsify and I ended up wasting a bunch olive oil and eggs... FAIL. I was also out of eggs and olive oil.
Little did I know, I could have attempted to save this batch. After my failed attempt I looked online to see if I could find a demo... and voila. I also discovered you can save "failed" mayo by re-emulsifying it.
The following day, I restocked my supplies and tried again. This time I used a hand blender, you know the kind you use to mix cake batter. I also made sure my eggs were room temperature. I started the process again, this time my eggs and oil did emulsify, however, the emulsion never thickened. Instead of tossing, yet another, batch of failed mayo I attempted to re-emulsify the batch. It got thicker, but more like really creamy dressing, not spreadable mayo. I saved this batch, if nothing else it'll make yummy salad dressing.
I also made a date with my friend, Cindy, who has been making homemade mayo for a while now and won't ever go back to store-bought.
Wish me luck on my Whole30!! I'll be making homemade beef jerky next week:)
Starting this Friday, March 1st, I'm doing a Whole30 challenge. Whole30 is a dietary approach based on a paleolithic framework. The Whole30 Challenge is a kind of cleanse to reset your metabolism, flush your system of toxins, and discover what food(s) may be to blame for some of your "not so good" feelings (bloating, gas, chronic inflammation, headaches, constipation/diarrhea, fatigue... you get the idea). I am doing the Whole30 Challenge to get my insulin resistance in check. Assuming I feel as fantastic as others who have tried this feel, I will continue following a paleolithic diet.
In preparation for my Whole30 Challenge I bought a paleo cookbook (and bookmarked a BILLION paleo recipes and blogs). The cookbook I chose is Everyday Paleo by Sarah Fragoso. I like that she has a nice introduction with some basics and an easy, no-fuss approach. One thing she suggests is to make some of the staples ahead of time, such as mayonnaise, ranch dressing, and BBQ sauce, as these will be used in recipes during the week. And thus my adventure into homemade mayo began...
I LOVE grocery shopping. Truly. If it were a profession, I'd do it. If I could find people to hire me to shop for them, I would. One thing I love to do while shopping is READ LABELS (what can I say... I'm naturally curious). Have you checked out the ingredients in mayonnaise? The jar in my fridge lists 20 ingredients... TWENTY!! Sure, it has eggs, oil, vinegar, and salt, but it also has modified food starch, sugar, beta carotene, lactic acid, potassium sorbate, phosphoric acid, water, soybean oil. No thank you! There is a nice easy looking recipe in Everyday Paleo for homemade mayo (I also happen to have a few friends who've made their own and they swear by it).
I bought an immersion blender (aka stick blender) because I thought it'd be the best tool for the job. Not sure if the one I bought was 1) cheap, therefore crappy 2) too powerful, therefore overheats or 3) not the right tool for the job. The first problem was that I have to hold the button on the stick blender (versus just pushing a button to turn it on/off), so my finger literally got a cramp and I couldn't hold the button long enough. The second (and more serious) problem was the issue of overheating. You have to blend this stuff for close to 30 minutes and this stick blender was HOT to the touch... no good. My oil and eggs did not emulsify and I ended up wasting a bunch olive oil and eggs... FAIL. I was also out of eggs and olive oil.
Little did I know, I could have attempted to save this batch. After my failed attempt I looked online to see if I could find a demo... and voila. I also discovered you can save "failed" mayo by re-emulsifying it.
The following day, I restocked my supplies and tried again. This time I used a hand blender, you know the kind you use to mix cake batter. I also made sure my eggs were room temperature. I started the process again, this time my eggs and oil did emulsify, however, the emulsion never thickened. Instead of tossing, yet another, batch of failed mayo I attempted to re-emulsify the batch. It got thicker, but more like really creamy dressing, not spreadable mayo. I saved this batch, if nothing else it'll make yummy salad dressing.
I also made a date with my friend, Cindy, who has been making homemade mayo for a while now and won't ever go back to store-bought.
Wish me luck on my Whole30!! I'll be making homemade beef jerky next week:)
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