Our Family Whole30 - week 2 plan and week 1 recap

I've got to tell you - we're feeling pretty accomplished for surviving week one of the Whole30. No cheats. No tears (for us or the kids which is huge!)

So what have we eaten this week? What the heck does Whole30 eating look like? 

I'll tell you, I'm focusing as much as possible on cooking with ingredients that I would normally stock in my pantry (like coconut oil), tons of veggies and natural/organic/high quality meats and fish. I did break down and buy a few new things that I wouldn't have otherwise had on hand. Ghee being one of them --------->. I'd heard of it but never knew what it was until now. It's pretty good!

Here's a sampling of our meals over the past week.  
(You can see our menu/plan for week one here if you're interested. Recipes are forthcoming for the ones that were keepers and if you're trying Whole30 and want a link to my go-to recipes shoot me an email and I'll share mine with you.

Breakfast - not Whole 30 recommended to do a shake but I need t
he convenience in the mornings and I miss my Shakeology!

Breakfast/mid-morning snack - again, not recommended to do
5 small meals but I'm not switching to 3 big for 30 days 
(I'd die of hunger!)

Dinner #1: Almond encrusted zesty chicken and zoodles

4 nights of dinners

So give me the lowdown. What's Whole30 REALLY like? How bad was the detox? Are you kidding when you say that you're really enjoying this experience?

Well, I did had a minor headache for part of day 1 and 2 but I think that was more sleep deprivation than a detox headache (I have a 9-year old with nightmares to thank for the lack of sleep.) 

The bigger struggle I had week 1 was that I was food CRAZY. I mean seriously food obsessed. Hyper-focused on what I could and couldn't eat. Grouchy about being restricted with my food options, even the healthy ones that aren't allowed. It wasn't like I was itching for a Cadbury mini egg, but we're talking oatmeal. Anything not on plan I wanted and man was I grumpy about that! 

Thankfully, by day 4 I was past the food craze and feeling good. Andrew says his clothes are fitting better, we both are liking most of the food we're eating and our energy is good. So all's good on that front.

We're starting day 8 today and both Andrew and I are feeling pretty happy with our journey so far. We're already talking about what we'll keep from this adventure after our 30 days are up. ;)

I can also say that I've learned a few things about myself this past week:

• I have zero self-control when it comes to sugar. I think I knew this to some extent but it wasn't until I polished off two whole bags of dried fruit (mangos and apricots - the sweetest of the sweet) in the first 2 days of the challenge that I truly realized it. It was bad. We won't be buying anymore of those babies. Oh, and have I mentioned that there is sugar in EVERYTHING? Seriously, read labels for a day and you'll realize that too. Crazy! What did I miss most week 1? My pre-workout, oh and the mini eggs that I'm seeing everywhere. I will confess that I bought a few bags for when we're done. I'm definitely hoping to cut a lot of sugar from my diet for the long haul but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't going to eat any ever again. So for the next 21 days, those mini eggs are stored away in our basement - out of sight, out of mind!

• It is good to try out new recipes and foods. It is nice to shake things up a bit, because we all fall into a food rut from time to time, and it's pushing both Andrew and I and the kids to try some new things. Who knew garlic mashed cauliflower could actually hold a candle to mashed potatoes? It was pretty good and totally tricked Hayden my mashed potato lover. We also ALL tried kale chips this week. I'm not going to tell you we're converts but we all tried them, there was no gagging and minimal whining about being forced to give it a try. I may even try them again. New horizons!

• I do well with clear rules and structure. This wasn't really a new realization for me - I know this about myself but what I was reminded this week is that I thrive with rules. 
• While the rigidity of the plan initially was overwhelming, the lines are clear - no sugar, no dairy, no grains, no legumes. All I have to do is read labels and if there's anything other than easily recognizable foods and with the same name as the food I'm intending to eat, it's off limits. The fewer the ingredients the better!
• The rules are clear and the explanation of why you're cutting what you're cutting makes sense - this is about cleansing your body of any likely agitators. Even one seemingly innocuous bite of pizza puts them back into your body and undoes the work you've done to purge them. If you cheat with a little pizza on day 20, you have to start the 30 days over since you've effectively undone the previous 20 days worth of work. 

• I can't tell you the number of times I've had to physically stop my hand on its way to my mouth over the past few days! Scooping ice cream for the kids? Lick of the spoon. Making muffins? Licking the batter off my finger. Making popcorn for the movie? Grabbing the stray kernels that fell out of the bowl. It seems small but I can't tell you just how many times it's happened this week - those little bites here and there add up! 
• While it's a total bummer NOT to be able to have a little slice here or a treat there but I'm committed to seeing this program through and I'd be pissed if one of us undid our work on one little bite. So we're staying the course. Even Andrew who took the kids to Oishi, our favorite sushi restaurant, last night. In his words, "I should be allowed to eat rice or else my genetic code will melt" but he did not. 

• It's soooooo much easier to make a change with support. It's probably not shocking to hear this from a woman who's always talking up the magic of challenge groups, but I'll tell you, I am reminded again of just how much it helps. Andrew's on board at home, which is awesome, and my friend, Rachel, is doing it with us too. Andrew eats whatever I put in front of him and is genuinely interested in helping me find new recipes and making suggestions for meals, while Rachel is my partner in crime. She and I are sharing recipes, keeping each other in line at work, and commiserating as needed. It's definitely helping.

So yes, I am enjoying this experience in a lot of ways. I am being tempted (like when my students offered me a slice of pizza last week, my kryptonite) but we're staying strong and testing our willpower and learning a lot along the way.

Bring on week 2! We have a handful of new recipes we're trying out this week and I'm also starting a new workout as well so there's a lot going on. With all of this added food prep, I needed a shorter option to get my workout in the mornings so the timing couldn't be any more perfect if I tried. Interested in hearing more about my new workout? Details are up over here!

Here's our plan for this week:

Have a great week!