The Color Run...5k fun!

So today was The Color Run and let me tell you if you want to do a 5k this is it. It is a fun and relaxed run, they do not have time chips, or clocks or even distance markers. You just run, giggle, chat, get doused in fluffy colored powder and have fun. The run is very slow paced and most of the participants were walking. It was nice and laid back...with a bit of crazy.

Lining up at the Start all shiney

Bleach white crowd

Finish Line...high fives all around

Post color battle, can you tell I am hot!

After...mucho dirty

Gamma Radiation Poisoning anyone?

Color Ninja!

My kids thought I looked cool but scary...

Pearly Whites

Razzmatazz all gunked up. 

Purple hair

Gear post run

They even got my ear!!

As I said it was a fun laid back race, not even a race a run. When you got to color stations traffic almost stopped as people tried to get doused, some people were even rolling around in the powered on the street. Sometimes it was hard to get a psh of color but most of the time you have crazy Rambo dousers. All of that being said I ran the entire race and at a pretty good pace as well when not ins color powered traffic. I am super excited especially since my brother-in-law will be here in 2 weeks and I can finally run with him. Yay. 

There were about 7000 runners I think at this race, it was packed. They start the race in waves and we were in the third wave. It was like a fun party, lot of music, dancing excitement. I will definitely do this run again. I am also plotting my next run. There is the Big Hit half coming up but it is earlier this year than last year so I may just do their 1/4 marathon. I am also looking at the Rival Run which is a 5k/obstacle course pitting fans of our colleges against each other. Sounds like a blast! I can't wait to start running more races!

Paleo/Primal Cookathon

Sorry I didn't have a post for yesterday, it was a crazy day that also included me eating something before I checked allergy information. Needless to say I was seriously sick for most of yesterday and my faithful companion was a hot water bottle trying to ease my wheat belly.

Today I woke up somewhat recovered (not very well rested thanks to Fircracker) and ready to eat some good food. For breakfast I had 2 eggs with some sauteed tomatoes, 2 slices bacon and OJ. Okay a mug of chocolate tea while cooking, it is so yummy and hot beverages sooth my wheat belly as well. While I was cooking and eating breakfast I also decided to make bone broth since hubby brought me a fat bag of shanks and knuckles from the butcher yesterday. So I put them in a huge pot with carrots, onions, celery, water, and salt  pepper. I keep it simple. 

Look at those bones!!

I let it cook all day from about 8 this morning until 4 at a simmer. After that I turned it off to cool. 

Golden Elixir

After it cooled I strained it and put it into containers. It will last about 3-4 days in the fridge and longer if frozen. I am planning on drinking a mug a day so I should go through it quickly. It is full of all sorts of amazing things like minerals and such. I am hoping this can replace supplements to prevent illness during winter. 

Yum!!

So while the bone broth was cooking I dragged my kids all over the city running errands while the hubby worked all day. I got some spices from Penzeys for some upcoming delisciousness as well as made another failed attempt at scoring some coconut aminos at Whole foods (I give up I am ordering online). I did however grab another bottle of my favorite Kombucha drink strawberry serenity...it is beyond words good. I also grabbed some organic hard salami and raw cheese since I was starving. When I got home I made a plate of the salami, cubes of the raw cheese, olives, and some star bites burger bites Hubby cooked this morning for me. I didn't get a pic because I was starving and inhaled it. 

So tomorrow I am running the color run. This s my first attempt at a 5k since before I got pregnant with my first child. I have run about a total of 8 min without stopping in my couch to 10k program so I am a bit nervous about making it through the entire thing. Add the linger effects of wheat poisoning and my worry jumps a level. However, it is supposed to be a fun race and I am going to be running with some great people so who cares, they don't even give you a chip for time, it is more of a fun run.  What I do care about is this superfly packet I got!!

I am going to try really hard to get some good photos tomorrow, I will only have my phone so we will see what I can get. I am still in talks with the hubby about bringing the kids down so watch it but I think I may just pull the adult time card. Plus I am running a 1/4 marathon in September they can come ring their cowbell for. 

So after lunch I kind of passed out, a side effect of wheating, and napped for a bit. I had a really hard time trying to come back to life afterward. Mind you I didn't eat a wheat food, I ate a small amount of sauce that had wheat in it. It was a very little amount but it doesn't take much to bring me down when it comes to wheat. I am just thankful it isn't an anaphylaxis food for me. After some much needed rest I got back to the cooking and made Primal Moussaka from Mark's daily apple. Note...make sure you start early if you are going to feed your family this for dinner. I started on this at 5:15 and didn't eat until 7:40...it was worth the wait but dang!!! My kids had something else because they turned into hungry zombies and were going to eat some manflesh otherwise so I actually cooked them a separate dinner. 

Moussaka is a greek casserole of sorts made from Eggplant and beef ( and other things). It was my favorite dish to get at our local Greek festival. The traditional version is loaded with the enemy wheat, Mark's version is wheat free and just as good. I used eggplant from my garden as well as our swiss chard in place of kale since mine is going kind of crazy {this plant has been growing since last fall it will not die and has huge yields, it is like the giving tree of chard} It was so good I stuffed myself (easy to do post wheat as my belly is so swollen there isn't much room) The top is like a custard made from greek yogurt and eggs (hence primal not paleo). Honestly it is worth the work and such a great way to use the tons of eggplant we are getting from our garden. So for dinner I had this lovely goodness and my kombucha. 

Yummy, creamy, eggplanty goodness. 

So as I write this it has dawned on me I have to get up by 6 to get a good high fat breakfast (not high carb) before my run. I am not a morning person and I will most likely be interrupted 100 times tonight while trying to sleep by Miss I am still getting used to the no diaper thing Firecracker. Before I depart I wanted to share what 5 lbs of ground beef in a bag looks like...

I love our butcher, but this cracks me up. It was even funnier to see my hubby's face when he showed it to me haha. Some of this was tonight's dinner the rest will be in a future post...mwah!

Thors Day

Okay I am running out of titles and am not very creative today. Another crazy day here at the 46. Swimming lessons this morning followed by a hair cut. Didn't seem like much but I feel like I haven't been home all day.

I started today with some leftover sauteed veggies from our garden, leftover roast chicken and an egg. It wasn't enough, I should have eaten more especially since I had a busy day planned. After breakfast I worked until it was time to get the kids to swim. I didn't get a picture of breakfast because I was hungry and my camera battery is dead and my cord has run away. My phone is losing juice ultra fast so essentially I am extremely battery challenged at the moment.


Today is one of those bad days that happen when you don't plan. I never even thought about lunch so of course I relied on the old bunless burger at the pool topped with onion and pickle, no chips this time. It was small and not close to filling. My kids protested leaving the pool so I got home later than planned and had just enough time to shower and get ready for my hair appointment. I didn't realize I was hungry but as I sat waiting for my stylist I bottomed out. I was sick and shakey and seriously considered telling the lady next to me, I was fine if I happened to pass out. Whoa...I have not been like that in a long time. I managed to make it through my haircut without causing a scene and left to go get some shorts for the color run. After running that errand and stopping by Teavana I headed home and about collapsed from hunger. 


Side note...While at Teavana I was perusing the tea pots when I glanced behind the counter at the teas and of course my raging hormones focused on the the perfect pms tea...Slimful Chocolate Decadence. It is a blend of chocolate, coconut, and tea which smells like a brownie with coconut...Okay let's all wipe the drool from our faces. I got 2 ounces of it and ordered and iced chocolate tea to go. It was amazing and I didn't miss the sugar it is so rich. So if you are looking for a relatively calorie free chocolate fix...here you go. You are welcome. 


So for dinner the wonderful hubby grilled some chicken legs and eggplant while I steamed some broccoli and topped with melted ghee and lemon pepper and worked. Dinner was really good and the legs were grilled to perfection. I was starving and ate like I had never had food before. Sorry totally lost out on the picture again. After dinner since the hubbs is off tomorrow he wanted to do something special for the kids. They decided on making cookies and watching a movie. I promptly put on the kettle for some chocolate tea...


While the man of the house ran out to buy cookies I played with my new kettlebell. Did I mention I got a kettlebell today? I have wanted one for a while and have been scoping them out. I almost bought one one day but they were out of the 10 lb which is what I wanted to start with. My good friend Fit Chick uses them with great results and so today was the day for me since it is a weight training day. I bow to my sweet Fit Girl for rocking 100 kettlebell swings...I was tired after 15. Running I am, strong I am not. I played around with different exercises I found on Pinterest (all while in my kitchen mind you) and found that I am going to fast be a kettle bell junkie, yes I am. I am sure Fit Girl and I will end up in a support group for the kettlebell obsessed very soon. 

Movie Fartleks

No, this is not what happens when you eat beans then go see a movie...Fartleks is a training method that blends continuous training with interval training. I read about these often and try to figure out fun ways to add them to my run to improve my time. Enter Movie Fartleks, or Rocking Fartleks...still working on a title.

So here is the idea...you add songs to your playlist from a movie, I am going to use Hunger Games as an example, then when you go out for your run put your playlist on shuffle. When a song from said movie comes up run like you are a character in the movie. In Hunger Games run like you are Katniss being chased by careers. It is a fun a playful way to do speed drills without thinking about it.

Do research on your soundtracks, use Jog FM to look at pace times and BPM. Have fun. Another great idea is Twilight, great songs on their soundtracks. Add some intense ones (vampire baseball anyone) and then run like you are being chased by the Vultari. The possibilities are endless. I am going to make up and post more charts like below for ideas. Try to stick to action films which tend to have faster songs and well crazier characters to run from.

Don't think that this is only for running, you can Fartlek walking too to help improve your time. Speed drills can work for anything.

Hump Day

Happy Wednesday, look at that, I know what day it is. During the summer I tend to not have a solid idea what day of the week it is or the date for that matter. I love routine and structure but tend to lose it all during summer break. Anywho...

Welp I did exactly what I said I would. Got up and cooked. Nothing elaborate, the kids wanted a simple breakfast so I had time to cook something. I went with sauteed spinach and tomatoes with 2 fried eggs. While that was cooking up I made my first batch of Ghee or clarified buttah. Butter is not Whole30 but ghee is because the milk solids are removed and you just have a sweet buttah flavored oil. It can be used for all kinds of things like frying my eggs. I use bacon grease a lot but ghee will lend a flavor that is more mild when I don't want the heavy bacon flavor coming through. I also had a nice fat glass of OJ.


I have worked most of today and needed to keep my kids entertained so we zipped around trying to find borax powder and glue to make slime. Make this stuff (even if you don't have kids it is fun) it kept my kids entertained while I worked a report all afternoon. Geeps even discovered he could transfer air from a balloon to blow a huge bubble into the slime.  It was good entertaining and slimy (yet not messy) stuff. You can see the tutorial on making it here.

Geeps with his slime...green of course

Firecracker unsure if she wants to touch hers, even though it is pink

So last night I made the mistake of not stressing my allergies to JJ...I got a hefty dose of cross contamination which has left me feeling pretty nasty today. I just couldn't eat lunch. I was so sick and my tummy really hurt. It felt really good this morning but as soon as I put it to work with breakfast, it began to gripe. So I had a handful of nuts, 2 slices of deli turkey, and an avocado...this was over about a 2 hour span so I didn't get any pictures. I also had some not whole30 fat free greek yogurt to try to sooth my belly. I got better as the day went on so I was able to tolerate cooking and eating dinner. 

For dinner I made taco soup...caveman style. 

Here is what I did...

1lb ground beef

1 onion

1 large can tomatoes

1 can green chilis

I large zucchini

3 cup bone broth

2 Tbsp homemade taco seasoning

2 cloves garlic

Lime

Brown the beef with the chopped onion, salt and pepper to season up a bit. Add chopped garlic and chopped zucchini. Cook until zucchini is soft, drain any excess fat. Add bone broth, tomatoes with juice, green chilis and taco seasoning. Cook about 20 min to meld flavors. Squeeze half a lime at the end to lighten up. Serve with fresh avocado (cheese and greek yogurt can be added if desired but it won't be paleo)

This is a meaty but light soup typically made with beans and corn. I left both out to keep it Whole30 but added zucchini to have more veggies. Using a homemade taco seasoning is such a great idea because most packets have tons of additives and even my favorite taco seasoning from Penzeys has gluten in it. Plus you can customize it to your liking. 

My dinner, family opted for no avocados

The warmth of soup soothes my sore wheat belly so I am always looking for soups you can eat all year around. This one is a favorite, but I never make it the same way twice. It may have corn, it may have some other vegetable. I can typically make it at any time because I almost always have everything on hand to do so. I personally like mine with cheese and a bit of yogurt but not tonight. I kept it clean...I did of course add my husbands amazing escabeche jalapenos. Yes I hear you asking now, sore belly and jalapenos, say what??? When I get wheated my actual stomach only hurts for the first hour then it moves to my small intestine which cramps and writhes in pain. Plus capsaicin works wonders for my body, when I am sick I actually crave hot peppers...I am part atomic bomb I think. But look...the jar is getting low :(...he needs to get cracking on the next batch...they never last in this house. 

Don't hey look amazing! They are SO good and were grown in our garden. 

So after moving forward with the cleaning house wild hair I have, I went for a run. Typically when Flow is knocking on my door my runs feel like I have cinder blocks for feet and am trying to breathe underwater. Not tonight, tonight I was like Hermes with wings on my feet. It was one of those moments when everything seems to align perfectly in the universe. It was 96 degrees, there were plenty -o- neighbors willing to share their sprinklers and hoses, there was a cool breeze, my playlist was shuffling perfectly and I was getting cheers from some facebook peeps via my Nike+ app. All of that said I killed my personal mile record by a minute and my personal pace record by nearly a minute. It was a great run which I am sure was enhanced because I said a small prayer and thanked God beforehand. Gotta love that omnipotent being.  

Post run I drank...let's all make a shocked face...Gatorade. The yellow kind too, made for me and placed in the fridge by my love. Love that man, it was cold, nostalgic and I needed it. Yes it is full of sugar and it is extremely controversial for anyone outside of a grand arena but there are times when I do drink it, because I feel better. I have been drinking vitacoco which is rich in electrolytes but is also expensive. My huge container of powdered Gatorade is much cheaper and I only drink post extra hot or extra long run. It isn't something I sit around and drink or drink at every workout. It is a fuel when needed. 

That said I also ate another bowl of taco soup, I was starving y'all and that soup is really good. 

Whole30 day 2, take 2

Okay I need to get over it I had to start over big deal. I am strapped in right? This morning I was really missing my cuppa tea. I like a good tea with cream and a cube of sugar. It is perfect I don't like it any other way, so I have just given it up. But today it is a bit cloudy and with my monthly bill looming on the horizon it is a perfect cup of comfort. The Whole30 really talks about changing your relationship with food but this is something I will not give up indefinitely, but they also say if there is something you really love...anyway enough about that.

Day 2 of not feeling cooking for breakfast, not sure what my deal is. I think tonight I am going to make some egg "muffins" to have in the fridge to grab, but then again tomorrow I may be all about wanting to cook something. So for breakfast this morning I ate leftover cauli-rice stir fry with Whole30 legal hot sauce. Orange Juice and water. I didn't get a picture because while I didn't want to cook I was pretty hungry and I am trying this eat within an hour of waking which would work fine if I woke before my kids but if I get up with them it is hard because as I have mentioned they are ravenous beasts in the morning. So after I finally cooked for them and fed them I was a beast myself.

Tuesdays are busy days for us this summer we have Taekwando in the morning and Gymnastics in the evening. Lunch is usually something while we are out and dinner is left to the hubby. Today I decided my seriously bored and whiney kids needed to have some open gym time after Geeps' TKD class. For and hour and a half they jumped, they ran, they danced, the flipped.

He has always been my little monkey

Practicing for the 2022 Olympic Games

The kids had various, not so stellar, but sustaining snacks. My kids eat about 60% paleo by proxy, but they do get a fair amount of wheat and added sugars. I always try to balance this with protein to sustain them. They endlessly try to test me but I always say no go on the sugared stuff if they don't eat protein. For example they had organic bunny grahams and apple squeezies but had to eat their cheese first. My kids thrive on protein just like I do (and my hubby if he is honest) but I don't want them to ever feel like they are the odd kid out with food. At the same time I don't want them eating a SAD diet either. They are really great in that they aren't really picky eaters. We have an eat it or wear it go hungry policy. Actually it isn't that bad but I do refuse to personalize meals for my kids. Even with my allergies I don't make them one meal and me another. At most I will just eat something sans bread or pasta but mainly we have paleo dinners. We also have a you don't have to like everything but you have to try it policy. It is amazing how easy it is to get a kid to try something if you tell them they have to try it, but they don't have to eat it if they don't like it. Nine times out of ten they will end up eating it. So essentially they eat what we eat with the exception of snack foods. 

So after lots of bouncey fun we headed home and I was mucho hungry. I grabbed the rest of my leftover cauli-rice and whipped up a quick and simple tomato salad of tomatoes, olive oil, and seasonings

The afternoon took a darker turn when Geeps started complaining about feeling bad and not wanting to eat anything but toast...one slice of toast. Firecracker was ultra fussy I think from over exertion at the gym this morning. After deciding that packing them back up in the car and toting them to the gym again was a bad idea we stayed home using or summer flexi-schedule at the gym. I also chose a quick dinner option, take out (actually delivery) I am just exhausted from today myself. There was a brief moment where I felt like having a melt down. So at the cheers of fussy/sick kids I ordered Jimmy Johns. While I know their meats aren't preservative free I did my best with a Vito unwich minus cheese. For whatever reason JJ cheese is not gluten (aka wheat) free.  Dairy is almost a safe staple in the world of the wheat challenged but apparently not theirs. No sweat off of my brow cheese is off of the plate for the Whole30 anyway. I will say however, that even though I am allergic to lettuce, I can eat an unwich with the lettuce and not hash out in some weird reaction. I may have had a hint of one before but nothing I don't mind. It is the big life threatening debilitating ones I hate. 

So after dinner (sorry failed to take another picture) I went out with the kids to jump on the trampoline and try to just have time with them. I am feeling really tired and ultra cranky (pms anyone) and I feel like I have been griping at them all day. We bounced and ran and giggled for about 30 minutes until we heard thunder and Firecracker went into panic mode. It wasn't a huge workout but it is what I am claiming today. I am just spent, between today's running around, pushing 20 kids on the rope swing at the gym, potty training and the trampoline...stick a fork in me. I don't remember potty training with my oldest being so exhausting but Firecracker wears me out. I guess it is because I have two now instead of one and it is never ending the up and down, up and down cycle of catering to their needs. I wouldn't give it up for the world! But I will go to bed early ;)

Whole30 Day 1...again

So after I bungee jumped from the Whole30 wagon this weekend what else do I do but start over. I got through the tough love portion of the book last night and let me just say I was shamed and shamed. In all honesty this really isn't that hard. It does take planning and will power both of which I can be a champ at/with but it isn't hard. So waking up sort of refreshed (fircracker climbed into our bed at 5 and I ended up in some odd contortion) I decided to climb back on the wagon and strap in.

For breakfast today I just wasn't feeling cooking and my kids were ravenous beasts who were completely obsessed with  the color change Ariel Firecracker got for not having any potty accidents yesterday. Once they finally unchained me from their command and let me feed myself I had 2 hard boiled eggs with lemon pepper, 4 slices deli turkey and some almond stuffed olives. I also had OJ (not whole30) but I live in an area with the worst fall allergens and Vitamin C really helps me not be miserable. August 1 we start downing the stuff daily and taking a supplement, I also add zinc and Echinacea when school starts to combat the nasty germs brought home by Firecracker & Geeps. I'm starting early ;)

So today is national Hot Dog day yo and I wanted to take the kids out for dogs. We ended up heading to Homerun Burgers because it is close, fast and in the middle of our other errands. They were sort of busy today and apparently the cashier pulled a no show so it took longer than usual, but I scored a decent meal option. 

Yes this is what they chose to go out in...

Geeps with his Army Armie bear (yep that is his official name) 

I'm hungry where is my food 

oh he is kicking me in the eye... 

Bring me food now or I stab you!

This place has not been particularly friendly with special requests in the past. The first time my husband tried to go there and ensure I wasn't acked from allergens the girl was a total beast (I hope it was the aforementioned now jobless cashier.) Also, they only have fries,cole slaw, and onions rings as a side. I did have the fortune of being waited on by the owner, who was very accommodating. I decided on a double burger with a fried egg, dressed with lettuce, tomato, raw onions, pickles and mustard, with a side of guacamole, hold the bun...it was the best allergy free burger I have had so far and while it was seriously lacking vegetables, as a meal it filled me up.

For dinner I planned on putting a chicken in a crock pot but I decided to roast one instead. I always crock pot chicken because after having Salmonella and not knowing where it came from I am ultra squeamish about touching raw meat. With the crock pot I can just throw it in, sprinkle some seasoning on and let it go. Today I put on my big girl panties  squealed like a granny and actually handled it. I also put the fear of God in my children to stay back as not to get splashed with salmonella juice. I know dramatic...I used Julia Child's roast chicken recipe from nom nom paleo with a few changes.  I love her site and wish I had an iPad to get her new app...one day?

So after seasoning the chicken and bringing it to room temperature I massaged that baby with some buttah (not whole30) and filled the...gulp...cavity. Sorry I am a total dead animal wimp, did I mention I was vegetarian for over 4 years...Since I have been to the grocery TWICE and forgot onions I just filled the cavity with lemon, onion powder and thyme. Did I also mention I will macGuyver a recipe in a heartbeat if need be ;) 

Chicken post massage...looked nice and relaxed doesn't it?

So after feeling like I had thoroughly violated my chicken I put it in a cast iron dutch oven and placed in the oven. The recipe calls for a roasting pan with rack which I have but I love roasted meats in my dutch over. It is really old and well seasoned and since I am chronically anemic I need any iron I can get. Doesn't it look gorgeous!

post oven...purty ain't it?

While I let it rest I roasted some asparagus and cooked some zucchini from our garden with olive oil, garlic and tomatoes (also from our garden). I would typically put parmesan cheese on it but alas...I have to draw the line somewhere right? Here is what I had for dinner!! I will say this chicken was delish. Even when I crockpot a chicken with broth in the bottom it always dries out while I let it sit. This was ultra juicy and the skin was nice and crispy, Julia and Michelle know their stuff. 

My hubby is one good gardener! Can't wait to cook some eggplant. 

After dinner we had some adult time while we cleaned the kitchen and I waited for magic hour to hit (8:00) to go out for my run. I also tried not to make myself sick on the leftover roasted chicken, it is a problem for me. I could down a rotisserie chicken by myself. 

Post run...whew

I went out and crushed week 5 day 1 on my 10k training finally breaking an 11 min mile even with my walking intervals. I felt amazing and ran like a champ. I felt like I had good legs and lungs tonight. I am running the Color Run on Sunday and I am really worried about not being able to run the entire 5k. Regardless it will be a good time but I would like to complete it psychedelic and having run the entire time.  Post run I drank a vitacoco, chugged some OJ and grabbed a handful of macadamia nuts. I know again with the OJ but I was a sneezing fool and I am telling you Vitamin C is allergy magic. Now it is time for a hot shower, Warehouse 13, a snuggly hubby, and some sleep. 

Sunday, Sunday...

After my son decided to ask his daddy to have a slumber party downstairs I spent the night tossing and turning. I barely slept all night and kept having wicked dreams about Botulism and macadamia nuts. I also keep having this dream that the Hartwigs are checking up on my Whole30 progress...

So I woke up tired and hungry this morning. After getting the kids fed (they are ravenous beasts in the morning) I took the time to make my husband and me a rolled Omelet stuffed with a Philly cheese steak mixture. It was big and delicious. I laid a piece of provolone in his before adding the meat mixture. I was out of onions (crap!) but it was still good. I added some hot sauce when I beat the eggs and then more on top. I think this will be a repeat. While I was cooking I snacked on a fermented pickle and macadamia nuts...I was starving.

The Whole30 is all about 3 meals a day, one snack at most. Their science behind this recommendation is pretty sound and I had just read an article recently about how American children snack too much. Since I am used to 5-6 eating times a day my body is having to adjust. I am not necessarily hungry between Meal 1 and 2 but my mind is. It is kind of bonkers how much my mind is like feed me Seymore and I am not even hungry. So I have been downing water during this time because it is all mental, there is no hunger going on here. Still it is a bit of a transition.

Apparently deciding to detox your body leads to detoxing your home. I got some sort of weird hair up my you know what and started purging our Master bedroom. It is the worst room in our house next to the office.  The main reason for this is I always tend to clean the rest of the house and think psht, mine isn't important just close the door. I am completely over it. It is mentally draining to even be in my room and I am starting to think it is contributing to my restless nights. Not to mention the air quality can't be good in there because it is so cluttered mainly with clothing waiting to be put somewhere. Today it is going there.

Because I was all gunho on cleaning it out before our trip to the pool I just ate a mix of stuff for lunch. Macadamias, cucumbers, sea snax, and deli turkey. I also ate it on the fly while surfing the net which is a whole30 no no but today is a busier than usual day for me. Forgive me Hartwigs ;)

The pool is always a thing for me.. There is almost nothing for me to eat and while the cook has been awesome about making me a meat plate I just wish if I could have a veggie plate too. I didn't really plan on eating while there but ended up with a cheeseburger (no bun) which was served with a pound of chips and a tequila tonic. Both pretty big whole30 no nos. I didn't eat all of my chips but downed that drink like a money in a desert.

Dinner was my time to recover. After stopping by Target to get training pants and a "prize" for Firecracker's monumental potty antics we headed home to make Stir fried cauli-rice. I took chicken diced it and cooked it in some oil and Chinese 5 spice, then added chopped veggies and some tamari sauce (tamari is not whole30 because it contains soy but no wheat, both of which I am allergic to. But since the entire city is out of Coconut Aminos it was all I had) I also scrambled and fried up 3 eggs to add more protein and then I added the cauli-rice to the pan and cooked until everything was tender. You can get a great recipe for cauli-rice here. It had more liquid in it than I like so I let it cook until it was gone.

To plate it I added red rooster sauce on top (yes it has sugar but I have already screwed the pooch today...)
It was really good and super filling.

After dinner we walked up to Baskin Robbins to get Firecracker her birthday cone with a gift card she was sent. When in Rome...I got a scoop of chocolate almond. Honestly it wasn't even good to me. It was sweet but I mainly picked out the almonds and promptly gave it to Firecracker when she asked. It was a nice evening and we love to walk to BR and have a cone. Since I had fallen off jumped willingly off of the Whole30 wagon I decided to join in. It honestly wasn't worth the time to put the spoon in my mouth and I had a funky taste in my mouth for about an hour after. Alas, we had a good time, so much so I carried my camera all of the way up there and never took a picture as we were too into the moment. I did grab this cute photo of Geeps at the last minute. 

Isn't he the sweetest? No added sugar needed!

Food Grief, Day Four Round-up

I really didn't feel like posting this but I won't have track of what is going on without it, plus I stumbled upon an article which was perfect for today's post.

So first the nitty gritty.

Wake 6:35 (went back to sleep outta bed 7:30)   Wt. 167.8

Breakfast - Blueberry, Banana smoothie made with coconut milk and catie's vitamin c powder
                  1 egg fried, 2 german sausages, 5 jalapenos

Lunch - Grilled chicken breast & hamburger topped with red onion, pickles and mustard

Snack - 2 slices bacon, 2 sweet banana peppers.

Deal breaker - 1 inch block extra dark chocolate

Dinner - paleo chili, jalapenos, unsweetened tea

First I want to say that at 6:35 this morning my eyes popped open, like cartoon popped open. What I should have done was get out of bed but I didn't, I realized the time and justified to myself I needed the hour of sleep until my alarm went off because I was mid detox. I didn't, I could barely sleep and ended up getting up before my 7:30 alarm. While I thought I had somehow cheated and was over my detox my body tricked me. I felt great this morning up until about an hour after we got home from the pool. Speaking of the pool, I rarely eat at the pool, all Whole30 aside I just don't risk it for my allergies. They have 2 safe foods for me there, chips and regular coke. Not Whole30. After ordering my kids lunch I asked John the ever so helpful and super great cook if he could whip me up a meat basket, essentially the grilled meats they offer with no seasonings and give me some toppings (sans lettuce). He was excited to oblige me, I think typical pool food gets boring when he would rather be in the main kitchen whipping up his masterpieces. It was quite tasty when I cut it all up and added some mustard (would have loved some paleo mayo)

I did have a deal breaker moment today where I ate a 1 inch square of dark chocolate I keep in my fridge. It is not Whole30 but paleo legal. I only ate one and it was divine, it is an allergen free chocolate so it is essentially cocoa and a slight bit of sugar, and I mean slight bit, it is more bitter than sweet but the cocoa flavor did it for me. 1 was all I needed.

I settled on a paleo chili for dinner because 97 degrees outside or not. I wanted comfort food. I added green peppers & zucchini from our garden to veg it up a bit and of course couldn't eat it without my husband's nearly famous dirty muchachos pickled jalapenos. They are unmatched (even in Mexico) so you will see them a lot on my food list.

So now to the Food Grief part of this post (and the explanation for the yummy picture)

I was browsing pinterest when I came across a pin from the Whole9, the creators of the Whole30, about food grief. I found it horribly interesting since I am myself in a detox which after reading this may also be a version of food grief.

The 5 stages are as follows:

• Denial
• Anger
• Bargaining (where I am right now, see comment above about chocolate)
• Crying
• Acceptance & Adjusting

You can read a deeper detailed description of these stages here but I think they are pretty accurate and while most of my symptoms are physiological I have a good deal of mental stuff going on too. I am totally in the bargaining stage, especially at the pool today, that was a fun time in my head. I am not sure about the crying part. I did go through this with my allergen foods. I think what I lamented the most was just simple eating. I still go through phases where I think I can't just grab this and eat it, or I can't eat that ever...again. Starbucks anyone? I hit all of the stages with the allergen foods though if I think back. I think I have only hit bargaining this time around and will obviously hit the last stage. I don't feel really deprived on the Whole30 because it is basically what I eat anyway just minus dairy and sugar. Mmmm sugar, legal crack I tell ya!

So I am still in the throws of detoxing and feeling like I have a weird flu but I dropped 3 lbs from my morning weigh-in until this evening even though I ate lots and drank tons of water. So I think my system is starting to move again. We will see. 

Day 3 Whole30 challenge

I won't be doing a total round up today, I have hit the detox hard and heavy and right now I am just resting. My mind is on fire so it is hard to concentrate, so it is best I don't try to post. I did want to share this...

 Blueberries, raspberries, bananas with coconut milk

even treat trying to stave off my sugar detox, these sugar demons are evil little....you fill in the blank. 

Day 2 Round-up

Here is today's round-up

Wake time - 8:30  Weight - 167.2 (-1.6)

Breakfast - 1 fried egg, asparagus, 2 slices bacon, banana
                   water

Snack - 1/4 cup almonds

Lunch - Chik-fil-a...8 grilled nuggets, cup fruit, unsweetened tea

Snack - 1/4 cup almonds, apple

Slump snack - 5 wings (not breaded, no skin)

Dinner - Chicken sausages, peppers, & onions. Hard boiled egg topping.
              unsweetened tea

Post workout snack - 1 cup blueberries, water

Water totals - 4 liters Supplements - Vitamin D, Omega 3, Probiotic

So today went better than yesterday haha. I got up and had time to cook breakfast which is pictured. Tuesdays are busy we have Taekwando and Gymnastics. Today after TKD I needed to run an errand so we ended up at Chik-fil-a. I love chik-fil-a, the chicken is real and though it is still fast food, it is a safe place for me to eat. I get their grilled nuggets with a side of fruit ( I give the mandarin orange slices to my kids because they are typically canned in sugar) and an unsweetened tea. I wanted to take a picture but I didn't think about it again until I was almost done, I was hungry.  It was basically paleo, & sugar free. In a pinch it works. Then we ran a few errands and came home. I was kind of hungry again so I had my leftover nuts from this morning and ate an apple with it. If you take a bite of apple and throw a couple of almonds in your mouth and chew it together you can imagine you are eating a caramel apple...just sayin. At 3 I left my house to go get my fabulous new glasses and found myself hungry again at 4 and on my way to gymnastics. After racking my brain for available paleo whole 30 food I came up with plain wings at Zaxby's. They are deep fried but not breaded, I am sure the oil used isn't whole30 approved but it was better than nothing or something totally off of the list. I ate 5 of them no skin and for the little scant amount of meat there was I was sated. I was perfectly hungry again at dinner (6 pm) and after my husband made this amazing chicken sausage concoction, I added a hard boiled egg on top for an extra protein kick and filler. It did the trick and I have been satisfied since.

My evening workout was heavy weights. I will say 1, I don't have anything heavier than 10lbs in my house at the moment 2, I don't want to get injured and 3, 5 lbs is really freaking heavy for me right now. So using my 5lbs weights I did 5 min each of arms, legs and glutes on my your shape xbox...er um game. Then I tried to follow that with 6 week 6 pack by Jillian Michaels but I was so tanked from the xbox workout I couldn't get through the warm up (ps...her ab workout doesn't really involve laying down it is a full body workout). After ward I chugged some water and ate a cup of blueberries to fill that glycogen window. Well a scant cup my hubby kept stealing them.

I have to say that I feel the storm coming. Randomly today some strange evil voice kept telling me to eat sugar or candy or stuff I don't even eat. It was funny I told it to keep it's damn mouth shut. At one point it was even telling me to get a candy bar at the concession stand at the gym...really I can't tell you the last time I had a candy bar. Sheesh. The mind does crazy things when you start to detox. I assume tomorrow it will start hitting harder. On the other hand while I  am feeling withdrawal to an extent, I am energized. I even had a clean-a-thon and cleaned my entire main floor of my house in about an hour and a half including purging and organizing my daughter's dresser. I have lacked energy to tackle that lately. So I say...hey you Detox...bring it because I know there is energy and feel good times on the horizon!