Whole 30 (post 1)

Beginning Whole30 on May 1st was kind of a spur of the moment decision. I had gotten back into town from being in Orlando on Wednesday and I began Whole 30 on Friday (oh, and I started a new job on Friday and just began another round of Insanity Max:30, I like to go big or go home, folks). I had been considering doing it soon because I was wanting to become more strict with eating Paleo (and Whole30 is essentially a stricter version of the paleo diet) so what better way to dive right in!? I decided that this is my life and my body so I'll play by my rules, so while I know that Shakeoloy is not included in the guidelines for Whole30, I decided that I still want all of the incredible nutrients that are included in Shakeology, so that was sticking around. However, I won't be adding all of the fun things to my shakes like peanut butter, oats, or extracts.

I thought I'd share a log about my experiences and meals while doing Whole30. I'll be sharing one or two snacks/meals per day...and some days may be really boring, as I'm a creature of habit and tend to eat the same thing over and over. When I find something that's easy and tastes delicious, I tend to hit repeat often.

Meal prep:
I can't stress how important meal prep is! I've already gotten into the habit of preparing meals, which has definitely helped with Whole30. For the last 3 years, I've always brought my lunch to work...so those are always prepared in advance, however, I tend to also fix chicken, cook veggies, and cut up my fruit in advance, that way I'm always ready to grab and go (because I'm constantly on the run)!

Before beginning, I went to www.Whole30.com and went to 'Program Rules' under the 'The Whole30' tab. I wanted to make sure I knew exactly what was in the guidelines AND why! I like to know the reason behind why we should abstain from certain foods. I went to the grocery store the day before beginning and read label after label. I knew there was a ton of sugar in things but man, it's everywhere - yes yes, even at places like Whole Foods.

Day1: New job and new way of eating, let's do this! I started my day with WATER (because every day should begin with a glass of water. I followed that with 2 boiled eggs.

Day2: My Whole30 lunch included broccoli slaw, grilled chicken, Tessemae's lemon garlic marinade, sliced almonds. The broccoli slaw and chicken were already cooked, so I literally threw it together and popped it in the microwave. Find all of the Tessemae's Whole30 approved dressings here. I was home a lot of the day and all I wanted to do was munch. I combated that with some almonds.

For dinner, my friend and I made buffalo chicken stuffed peppers with guacamole wish I shared here.
SUPER YUM.

Day3: I was super nervous about going out to lunch with friends after church because 1. it was day 3, I didn't want to screw up THAT quick. 2. I'm new to the area and don't get say in where we would go. BUT this was way easier than I anticipated. I had a salad with chicken, almonds, cucumber, tomato, and a tad of olive oil. The staff was super accommodating at Hubee D's as I essentially mixed 2 of their salad options.

Day4: Monday, Monday...back to work.  I made tuna salad and put it on a bed of arugula/spinach blend with sliced almonds for lunch. I'm sharing the tuna recipe below on day 7. 

Day 5: Cinco de Mayo! I still had leftover avocados from Saturday, so I made a Mexican style salad for dinner which included sautéed veggies, ground beef, guac, and spinach. No dressing needed!

Want to know the best part about this salad? The veggies were already sautéed. All I had to do was grill the beef and mash up some avocado.  

I enjoyed a favorite new snack of pear slices with cinnamon. Seriously, so delicious!

Day6: Breakfast included eggs with grilled peppers and mushrooms, sliced kiwi, and a side of badass. Peppers and mushrooms already cooked up. Easy peasy. 

Day7: I'm debunking the myth that you can't eat healthy while being a busy person who isn't home all day (and no, I don't just mean away during working hours). This is my Whole30 approved tuna salad with carrots (yes, in the car - parked) that I had between work and an event I had to be at. 

Tuna salad: Canned tuna (from Wild Planet)

Dijon mustard (Annie's organic - Whole Foods)

Dash of lemon garlic dressing for taste (Tessamae's)

Pepper to taste

Breakfast on the run, lunch at work, and dinner on the run. You can do it too!

Day8: I went to do some work at a local coffee shop and I was sure to pack my snacks and meal. I brought a salad with me (with chicken, blueberries, and almonds) and an apple. Having a cute lunch box is always a plus. They were baking something. I'm convinced it was something evil. Because it smelled so freaking good. BUT thankfully, my apple filled my desire to eat something sweet, but oh man, did it smell dangerous.

Day 9: Breakfast on the weekends is always more fun! I made an open omelette with peppers, mushrooms, and spinach. Weekends are harder for me. I tend to do better when I have a plan and keep busy. 

Day 10: Mother's Day! I was so excited my parent's were in town ON Mother's Day that I forgot to snap a picture. BUT my nutrition was on point! My mom wanted pizza, so we went to a popular pizza place locally and I got an arugula salad with salmon and it was very delicious! Happy Mother's Day, Mommas!

I hope you're inspired and continue on this journey with me. 

Find me on IG at @Rootedtreewellness, here or on FaceBook here.