My next Whole30

Hello cupcakes!

I promised I would let you know when I set my next Whole30, so I decided to start after the fourth of July because I want to be able to enjoy as much of the food as I can (still cannot eat diary or gluten due to intolerance/allergy I'm not sure which). I will be starting my next Whole30 on July 6th and it will go until August 6th. I was going to wait a while to do another Whole30 because the approach is not a diet, rather a learning tool and the start of a healthier lifestyle. I realized I still have some food issues that need resolved. This time around I plan on giving up nut butters and nuts because I feel like I eat too much of them. 

Here are some quotes from the Whole30 blog that made me realize I need to break up with nuts for awhile so that I can have a healthy relationship with them.

"We also want to make sure you’re always feeling in control when you’re eating fruit—or any food, for that matter, even Whole30 fare."

"There are some Whole30 foods that are easier to overdo than others—almond or sunflower seed butters, roasted salted nuts, dried fruit (especially dates), frozen fruit (like grapes), dried-fruit-and-nut bars (like Larabars)… we encourage people to include these foods cautiously in their Whole30, as they are as salty/fatty/sweet as you can get while still adhering to the program guidelines."

 Dates: Yes

Dates are a great way to add that hint of sweetness to a sauce (like the Char Siu pork from Well Fed), or stuffed with almonds and wrapped in (compliant) bacon as a fancy-schmancy appetizer.

Tip: These little sugar bombs pack a big punch—they’re as close to candy as you can get on the Whole30. We recommend against using them as a “treat” to feed your sugar dragon.

Larabars: Read your labels, and use with caution

Most (but not all) varieties of Larabars are acceptable during your Whole30, so read your labels. (The Peanut Butter and Jelly bar is out for obvious reasons.)

Tip: We recommend using Larabars as emergency snacks, or fuel during endurance athletics. They’re as close to candy as you can get on the Whole30 (with dates as a binder), so don’t use them to satisfy sugar cravings. Your brain doesn’t know the difference between a Snickers bar and a Larabar!

After reading all of this I know I can and want to complete another Whole30 as soon as possible! I also like the challenge. After this coming up Whole30, I think my relationship with food will be more comfortable and healthier. 

Who wants to start their WHOLE30 journey with my on July 6th? I want to see how many comments I can get on this post... ask your family, friends, co-workers,etc. to try the Whole30 out with you and comment below! Pretty pretty please! I will post everyday and you can all catch up, get motivation, and cheer each other on! 

SO... Who's In?! Who wants to make their life healthier and happier?

Peace!

Later Taters!

p.s. here are my workouts the first from today and second for tomorrow: 

Whole30 is over, now what?

Hello!

Well, today is my first non-whole 30 day since completing my first Whole30 yesterday. The first thing I have had is gum! That is probably the only non-compliant Whole30 thing I will have today. The Whole30 recommends the reintroduction phase, but I have already done this with a different program (ultra simple diet) about 6 months ago to figure out what was wrong with my stomach and digestive system. For this reason, I will mostly be eating Whole30 approved from now on with the exception of occasion gum chewing and celebrations. Here is the link for the reintroduction phase: Step Two: Reintroduction

Instead, I jump to: Step Four: Life After Your Whole30

1. Continue eating Whole30-ish every meal, every day, as long as that feels good to you. (We say “Whole30-ish” because added sugar may creep back in, like ketchup with your burger. That seems reasonable to us. If ketchup is the worst thing in your diet, you’re doing okay.) 
2.When something comes around that is too good to pass up—too special, too sentimental, to important culturally, or simply too darn delicious—make a conscious, deliberate choice as to whether or not you are going to indulge. (Use our Guide to Off-Roading if you need a little help developing your own “worth it” thought process.)
3. If you choose to indulge, take your time. Savor it. Eat consciously. And eat only as little as you need to satisfy the situation, your experience, or your taste buds. Maybe that’s a bite, maybe it’s the whole cookie, maybe it’s 6 cookies—just make sure you don’t fall into automatic consumption. 
4. When you’re done, move the heck on. No guilt, no shame, no remorse. You made a conscious decision to eat something you deemed worth it. Good for you. Now let’s move on back to our normally scheduled healthy meals. 

So... that is my plan friends! 

If you have any questions or would like help completing a Whole30, just let me know! I would be more than willing to help!

Later Taters!

last day!! DAY 30 WHOLE30- progress

Hello cupcakes!!

Last day of Whole30! Can you believe it's been 30 days already? So, when reflecting over the last 30 days, I have decided I am going to try a Whole15 next to prepare for my vacation after classes are over.I have not set a date yet, but I will let you know when I start. I think eating this way year round can be very beneficial.

Here are some progress pictures. There is not a huge difference between the two photos, but I can tell I am a less bloated. I have not weighed myself yet to even see if I lost weight. That was not my main priority while completing it. My real goal was to develop a better relationship with eating as far as knowing when I am truly hungry vs emotional eating. I also wanted to feel more confident about my body. I wanted to reduce my sugar cravings. I definitely improved my goals! SCORE!

Here was my breakfast this morning: zucchini noodles! I also had a few bites of homemade nut butter with a few bites of fruit.

I also bought a new flavor of La Croix: Cran-Raspberry. This one is pretty good! I can't wait to try different flavors!

Something crazy yesterday.... my boyfriend's mother and I were driving on I-69 and passed this vehicle on fire! We passed it before the fire fighters were there (there was a sheriff there at the time, but that was it). 

I have some get- togethers coming up and I love looking at Taralynn's blog for recipe inspiration. This is a crust recipe and I think it sounds delicious! Apart from her blog, whole30 recipes on Instagram posts some amazing meals and party foods!

Here is my workout plan for tomorrow: 

Today is more of a rest day. It is important to let your muscles recover. I plan on walking to get my daily step goal (10,000 steps- not that hard!) and also doing these Youtube videos:

Yoga for when you are sore

8 minute bikini thighs

I am hoping to lay by the pool today! Finally we may have a day without rain here in Indiana!

Later Taters!

Day 29 WHOLE30

Hello cupcakes!!

I hope you all are enjoying your weekend so far!  

Here is my workout from this morning 

Here is a picture of my pre-workout breakfast. I like to have a little something in my body before working out. I think I have more energy when I eat. 

Here is a picture of my lunch: zucchini noodles! 

Here is some of the other food I will be eating today: Boiled egg, celery with homemade walnut butter, carrots, and apple slices. 

I will probably eat a little more than what is pictured here, but I don't know what that will be yet!

Enjoy your weekend!

Later taters

Day 28 Whole30- Meal prep

Good afternoon everyone!

You know what day it is!!??? MEAL PREP DAY! WHOOP! 

I really did not know what I wanted to make for this week to eat, so I just kind of went with the flow. I went to the grocery this morning and grabbed things that looked good. The peaches I picked up were soooooo good! I wanted to eat them all! I got some peaches, white peaches, and plums.

Here is some chicken tenderloins I cooked up. I also cooked some chicken burgers. You can see one of them in the bottom left hand corner of this picture. 

Here is some shredded zucchini that I used as noodles. I used my lovely new julienne peeler! 

This is some chopped veggies including carrots, red onion, celery, and green peppers. 

I chopped up some green onion too.

MUSHROOMS! Enough said :)

This is the veggies cooking in coconut oil.

Here are 4 sweet potatoes I cooked in the microwave. I have found this is the easiest and quickest way to make them. 

Now how good does this look? This is the shredded zucchini noodles, tomato paste, and lean ground turkey. 

Here is the finished product of one of my meals. This one is a chicken burger topped with sauteed green onion, kale, and peaches. I cooked it in coconut oil and seasoned with ground pepper and pink Himalayan salt. 

Here was my killer workout from this morning! If you want a good sweat try this out! Also, if you do not have access to a gym, just do the workout and take out the gym equipment exercises and substitute with some other exercise. For example, if you do not have access to a cable machine for the tricep exercises do some tricep dips. 

Stay tuned for pictures of the completed meals when I eat them!

Later Taters!

Whole30 4th of July recipes

Hello everyone!

With 4th of July fast approaching, I wanted to give you guys some healthy Whole30 approved recipes to make to still enjoy and celebrate.

These are cute patriotic fruit Kabobs! I think it is cute that the person made them to look like an American flag. You could also just do the color scheme and use red, white, and blue fruits!

You could also not use the Kabobs and just place in a pan like this one!

It's hard to see these in the picture, but these are sweet potato fries with avocado sauce. The recipe can be found here: Recipe

Sticking with the Kabob theme... how about some veggie and protein kabobs on the grill? These look and sound absolutely amazing to me!

If you are not on the Whole30 plan, but would like a healthier dessert to bring... this one looks BOMB! Click the link for the recipe: Chocolate Coffee Caramel Bars

You cannot go wrong with a nice delicious burger! This one has grilled pineapple, onion, and smashed avocado.

Here is a cute, healthy patriotic "cake." The recipe can be found here: Clean eating Watermelon Cake

This is such a cute drink idea!I like that they used mason jars! 

Lastly, here is a link to Whole30 approved party foods: 70 Whole30 recipes

I hope you guys are feeling as excited for fourth of July as I am! I just wish I could spend it with my boyfriend in North Carolina. We both like to go all out and be very patriotic! Last year he was so sweet and drove us to a great spot to watch the fireworks from the bed of his truck!

Later Taters!

Day 24 Whole30- Last week!

Good morning cupcakes!

I cannot believe it is the last week of Whole30 already! Where has time gone? Anyways, I am feeling great and I can see changes in my body (I will post my progress photo on Day 30!). This weekend was a little rough on me. It was that time of month.... so along with the cramps and bloating came the negative body image thoughts. I think this is pretty common for most women during their time of the month. So, what do you do when these thoughts enter your mind? What I like to do is tell myself 3 things I love about my body right when I am having negative thoughts. Stay positive! I also normalize the situation for myself. I tell myself, "this is only a few days out of my life and I know that my hormones are going crazy right now. This is only temporary and my body doesn't normally look or feel like this!" It is sooo important to not let these thoughts get to you and your emotions. Negative thoughts can give way to emotional eating too, so..... Love your body!

Here is a picture of my morning workout:

Breakfast was hot lemon water followed by 2 scrambled eggs, berries, 1/2 a banana, and homemade pecan butter.

Lunch: unstuffed peppers with avocado.

Dinner: zucchini/ sweet potato noodles

Snack: carrots with homemade almond butter

Do you want some amazing WHOLE30 recipes!??? Click this link below and see some awesome and delicious creations:

The Best of Whole30 Recipes

There you go!

Later Taters!

Day 27 Whole30- stress relief

Good morning cupcakes!

This morning was recovery day! Everyone needs rest days from working out. So, I did this Yoga video: Yoga for Stress Relief . This summer with grad school has been very stressful for many reasons. It is important for me to take care of myself both physically and mentally. Yoga helps with this! I also will walk to get in my daily step goal. On my rest days, I still like to do something to get my body moving (it is just not as intense).

Breakfast: blueberries, banana slices, homemade walnut coconut butter and 2 eggs
Lunch: unstuffed pepper with avocado
Dinner: zucchini sweet potato noodles with chicken, green onions, and a little Whole30 homemade mayo
Snack if hungry: carrots or fresh fruit with homemade cashew coconut butter

I'm sorry my food has been boring this week. I plan to make something new and exciting this weekend. (my Whole30 journey ends Sunday... I cannot believe that!) Since I have already completed an elimination diet back last December, I am going to continue to eat by the Whole30 rules, but allow myself a to loosen up a bit for special occasions. I feel my body  and mind responds best to this way of eating. I would recommend the Whole30 to anyone. I think physical and mental illness are tied to health and nutrition. I could go on and on about this, but I will not bore you with that.

I am wondering if any readers have any questions about my journey or anything they would like to see more of? I plan to start taking more pictures because people seem to respond well to those. Comment below!

Thanks!

Later Taters
<3

Day 26 Whole30- meals, workout of the day, & my experience

Good morning!

Day 26 already! I am feeling great. I used to come home after a long day of graduate school stuff and eat whatever I could find. Now, when I get home after a long day I feel satisfied and usually don't eat anything after 6 or 7pm. It feels great and I feel so much better!

Pre-workout meal consisted of fresh fruit and homemade pecan butter.

Breakfast will be 2 eggs with zucchini and mushrooms.

This is what I will be having for lunch: unstuffed peppers with avocado on top.

This will be dinner: zucchini/ sweet potato noodles with chicken and green onions topped with a little Whole30 homemade mayo (just egg, olive oil, pink Himalayan salt, and dried mustard- made in a food processor- look up the recipe because you have to follow it directly for it to turn out).  

If I am still hungry I will probably have carrots with homemade nut butter or some more fruit. 

Today's workout was shared on yesterday's post: workout plan

Stay tuned.... I will post a progress photo on Day30! :D

Some people say... " but I don't have time for the Whole30" or "I don't have time to workout" or "I don't have access to a gym." Those are all excuses. If it is important to you, you will find a way! HOW TO DO THE WHOLE 30 IN COLLEGE. You can make Whole30 approved meals pretty quickly. How long do eggs take to make? Not long at all! Pair them with carrots and an avocado... boom! You have a meal you can make in about 3 minutes. You can also prep your food on weekends like me! You DO have time to workout. Do you have 30 minutes a day? You can do a killer HIIT workout in 30 minutes. You may have to get up before work and do it or do the workout when you get home from work, but you will feel so much better if you take this time for yourself. Working out is my self care! You DO NOT need access to a gym to get a good workout. I have posted many YouTube videos that do not require any equipment or gym machines. You can also use what is around you. For example, go outside and do jumps on stairs, jumping jacks, squats, lunges, sit ups, pushups, burpees. You do not need "things" to get a good workout!

Well, that is all I have! Any questions?

Later Taters!

Day 25 Whole30

Hello!

I wanted to give you today's workout and tomorrow's workout in case you workout early in the morning like me! If you haven't noticed, I am loving the HIIT style workouts I have been creating. If you do not know what some move is, google it!

Here is today's workout:

Here is tomorrow's workout:

Food for today:

Pre-workout- blueberries and apple slices with homemade coconut walnut butter
breakfast- 2 eggs with mushrooms and zucchini
lunch- unstuffed peppers with avocado
dinner- zucchini/ sweet potato noodles with chicken
snack if I am still hungry- carrots or fruit with homemade nut butter

Later Taters!

Day 23 Whole30

Good afternoon!

This morning I slept in for once and it felt great! This was breakfast: berries, a few slices of banana, homemade pecan butter, and 2 scrambled eggs.

Lunch was my unstuffed peppers!

Dinner will be zucchini noodles that I prepped Friday. 

I had a pretty killer workout this morning. I planned it last night. I must say... I am loving the HIIT style of working out the last two days. If you are trying to read this picture it may be a little confusing. I took a screen shot of the notes in my phone, so start on the left. It ends with 6 pushups so then go to the right photo and find where it says 6 pushups and pick up there! I like to try to give people workouts they can do at home with little equipment. If you don't have a bench to use for this workout, find something you can use a a step up. You could use stairs or a chair. For the bench jumps, you could use a bench in the park or get creative and think of something else to use. If you do not know what some of these moves are, refer to yesterday's post!

After my workout, I decided to soak up a little sun since it has been rainy here for over 2 weeks. Once I got to the pool the sun only stayed out for about 30 minutes. I was pretty bummed, but some sun is better than no sun at all.

The rest of my day will be spent watching netflix and looking over notes and lesson plans for this week of classes.

Peace!

Later Taters!