Whole30 - Day 1 Complete

Today is day 1 on the Whole30 program, my weekly meal plan is done, groceries are done and now I'm working on food preparation for my week.

Started my morning off with 1/2 lemon juiced with 1 tbsp. Apple Cider Vinegar and 1/2 cup of water, drank that to get my stomach going and to clean out the body.  Then 1 hour later I drank my coffee with no sugar or dairy creamer, I found a brand called Nut Pod that is Whole30 approved it's a mixture of Almond Milk and Coconut Milk that I used in my coffee and it was not too bad, it will take some getting use too but I think I can handle it.  All my meals were very tasty and filling, I have to say I wasn’t hungry in between like I thought I would be but I also drank lots of water and kept my self busy so I didn’t think about eating.  I did have a nasty headache for most of the day due to the sugar detox my body is going through, this is pretty typical as I have done a few cleanses in the past and the first few day’s are pretty rough from cutting out sugar.  I’m just hoping to get past this within a few day’s as I want to get back into my running as I think that will help.  I’m just very happy that I made it through my first day without any cheats, or licks and stuck with my meal plan and water.  That’s all I can do at this point is just take one day at a time!

My top 3 Non-Scale Victories (NSV)

1. No sugar
2. Drank more water
3. Stuck with my meal plan

Whole30 Day 1 Complete!!!!  

It Starts with Food - Whole30 Challenge

It has been rather tough this new year with the flu season, both my husband and daughter caught the flu and were down for weeks, the whole month of February were a bust for our family.  I was completely terrified that my younger daughter and I would get it, how could we not as there were germs all over my house.  I was taking Airborne daily plus all my vitamins to try and stay healthy but my diet was not so clean and healthy.  After our guests left I really stressed my self out to the point that I ended up making my self sick with a nasty head cold which turned into a sinus infection.  This time my sinus infection stayed with me for about two weeks which made me absolutely miserable but life can't stop as mom, I had to pick my self up and still take care of my daily responsibilities. 

During this time I had done some research about allergies, colds and sinus infections as I seem to get them way more than I should.  That is when I began to read "It Starts with Food" by Melissa and Dallas Hartwig, I had tried this program several years ago but without really reading the book and failed after a few day's.  I just couldn't do it without sugar and all the foods I loved it eat, who in their right mind would cut all their favorite foods for 30 day's I surely was not up for the taste to do this.  So this time around I read the whole book and took the time to understand the background of the program and what I could do to change my view on food.  I have been on many diets my whole life and although many have worked for me I always seem to slip and go back to my old way's I can ever seem to stick to anything for long periods of time.  My issue is that if I don't see results immediately I will jump to the next "diet" and try that out which means I'm not giving my body enough time to adapt or adjust, I'm at a point where I need to reset my whole body cut out all the crap and trigger foods that have gotten me to where I am now and basically start over.  

I decided it was time to make a change for several reasons, it's never easy to admit when you have a problem and figure out how to solve or fix the problem.  I just want to be healthy for my self and my family and not feel like food is controlling my life, my emotions and my body.  I absolutely love running and competing in triathlons but food has always played a huge part in how I train and although I thought I ate healthy I never hit my goal weight I had set for my self and that's cause I was not consistent with my nutrition.   I have done a lot of reading and research on health and fitness, it's a huge passion of mine and has been for a while.  I love to cook healthy meals for my family and enjoy working out but I have yet to combine them together at the same time.  This next 30 day's will be my ultimate test to combine healthy wholesome food with exercise which for me will be focused on my running to see real results.  I know it's going to be a rough road especially that it's a big change but how will I ever grow if we don't challenge ourselves, what I'm doing now is not working and it's affecting many aspects of my life so why not change and try something new.  I have nothing to lose at this point and a lot to gain.  

My goals for the next 30 days are:

• Get rid of the sugar dragon for good
• Enjoy what I'm eating
• Gain more energy
• Learn better habits eating better foods
• Share this experience with my family
• Move towards getting healthy and losing weight  
• See positive changes with my running goals
• See results when weight training
• Prove to my self I can stick with something longer than 1 week
• Daily check-in's with my support team
• Build my confidence 
• Not live on a "diet" for the rest of my life

Today begins my 30 day journey, I have many mixed emotions moving forward but I'm excited most of all to see how things go.  I'm thankful for my husband and children for supporting me during this crazy time as well as my sister-in-law Melissa who is also embarking on this journey with me and for all my other family members who will be checking-in with me during the next month.  Having a huge support system will make a world of difference.  Now it's time to walk the talk and get my life back under control feeling happy and healthy....let the journey begin.....

Whole 30 Week 1 Meal Plan

Week 2.28.18 to 3.6.18

https://www.paleorunningmomma.com/

Wednesday 2/28

Meal 1 - Sweet Potato Hash with Kale and Turkey Bacon with 1/2 Avocado https://www.paleorunningmomma.com/sweet-potato-hash-kale-bacon-paleo-whole30/

Meal 2 - Grilled Chicken Salad topped with raw 

Meal 3 - Slow Cooker White Chicken Chili with Sweet Potato and 1/2 Avocado - https://www.paleorunningmomma.com/slow-cooker-white-chicken-chili-sweet-potato-paleo-whole30/

Snacks - Easy Apple Cinnamon Paleo Hot Cereal or Fresh Guacamole with Carrots, Celery and Hard Boiled Eggs 

Thursday 3/1

Meal 1 - Leftover Sweet Potato Hash with Kale and Turkey Bacon with 1/2 Avocado

Meal 2 - Leftovers or Grilled Chicken Salad topped with raw nuts 

Meal 3 - Twice Baked Sweet Potato - https://www.paleorunningmomma.com/twice-baked-sweet-potatoes-paleo/

Snacks - Easy Apple Cinnamon Paleo Hot Cereal or Fresh Guacamole with Carrots, Celery and Hard Boiled Eggs 

Friday 3/2

Meal 1 - Leftover Sweet Potato Hash with Kale and Turkey Bacon with 1/2 Avocado

Meal 2 - Leftovers or Grilled Chicken Salad topped with raw nuts 

Meal 3 - Glazed Sheet Pan Chicken & Butternut Squash  & Apples - https://www.paleorunningmomma.com/sheet-pan-chicken-butternut-apples-paleo-whole30/

Snacks - Easy Apple Cinnamon Paleo Hot Cereal or Fresh Guacamole with Carrots, Celery and Hard Boiled Eggs 

Saturday 3/3

Meal 1 - Leftover Sweet Potato Hash with Kale and Turkey Bacon with 1/2 Avocado

Meal 2 - Leftovers or Grilled Chicken Salad topped with raw nuts 

Meal 3 - Paleo Shepherd's Pie - https://www.paleorunningmomma.com/paleo-shepherds-pie-whole30-dairy-free/

Snacks - Easy Apple Cinnamon Paleo Hot Cereal or Fresh Guacamole with Carrots, Celery and Hard Boiled Eggs 

Sunday 3/4

Meal 1 - Roasted Carrots with Turkey Bacon and Kale Hash with 1/2 Avocado - https://www.paleorunningmomma.com/roasted-carrot-bacon-kale-hash-paleo/

Meal 2 - Leftovers or Grilled Chicken Salad topped with raw nuts 

Meal 3 - Grilled Chicken BLT Salad with Peppercorn Ranch - https://www.paleorunningmomma.com/grilled-chicken-blt-salad-peppercorn-ranch-paleo-whole30/

Snacks - Easy Apple Cinnamon Paleo Hot Cereal or Fresh Guacamole with Carrots, Celery and Hard Boiled Eggs 

Monday 3/5

Meal 1 - Leftover Roasted Carrots with Turkey Bacon and Kale Hash with 1/2 Avocado

Meal 2 - Leftovers or Grilled Chicken Salad topped with raw nuts 

Meal 3 - Walnut Crusted Turkey Cutlets with "Honey" Mustard - https://www.paleorunningmomma.com/walnut-crusted-turkey-cutlets-paleo-whole30/

Snacks - Easy Apple Cinnamon Paleo Hot Cereal or Fresh Guacamole with Carrots, Celery and Hard Boiled Eggs 

Tuesday 3/6

Meal 1 - Leftover Roasted Carrots with Turkey Bacon and Kale Hash with 1/2 Avocado

Meal 2 - Leftovers or Grilled Chicken Salad topped with raw nuts 

Meal 3 - Leftovers from the week 

Snacks - Easy Apple Cinnamon Paleo Hot Cereal or Fresh Guacamole with Carrots, Celery and Hard Boiled Eggs 

Weekly Food Menu 2.19.18 to 2.25.18

It's another week of clean eating, I have chosen to use another one of my favorite websites for this coming weeks food menu which is brought to you by Paleo Running Momma.  I'm excited to try some new dishes with the family and see how they like them.  https://www.paleorunningmomma.com/

Monday 2/19

Breakfast: Leftovers 

Snack: Banana Apple Almond Butter Bowl

Lunch: Leftovers 

Snack: Berries with Coconut Milk and Shredded Coconut

Dinner: Paleo Burrito Bowls with Cauliflower Rice - https://www.paleorunningmomma.com/paleo-burrito-bowls-whole30/

Tuesday 2/20

Breakfast: Sweet Potato Has with Kale and Bacon - https://www.paleorunningmomma.com/sweet-potato-hash-kale-bacon-paleo-whole30/

Snack: Ants on a Log (Celery, Almond Butter and Raisins)

Lunch: Leftovers or Chipotle Ranch Ground Chicken Burgers - https://www.paleorunningmomma.com/chipotle-ranch-chicken-burgers-paleo/ 

Snack: Apples and Cinnamon with 2 Hard Boiled Eggs 

Dinner: Paleo Sweet Potato Noodle Lo Mein - https://www.paleorunningmomma.com/paleo-pork-lo-mein-whole30/

Wednesday 2/21

Breakfast: Sweet Potato Has with Kale and Bacon - https://www.paleorunningmomma.com/sweet-potato-hash-kale-bacon-paleo-whole30/

Snack: Banana Apple Almond Butter Bowl

Lunch:  Leftovers or  Leftover Chipotle Ranch Ground Chicken Burgers

Snack: Berries with Coconut Milk and Shredded Coconut

Dinner: Grilled Paleo Pineapple Chicken - https://www.paleorunningmomma.com/paleo-pineapple-chicken-whole30/ and Crispy Loaded Potato Skins - https://www.paleorunningmomma.com/loaded-potato-skins-whole30-paleo/

Thursday 2/22

Breakfast: Sweet Potato Has with Kale and Bacon - https://www.paleorunningmomma.com/sweet-potato-hash-kale-bacon-paleo-whole30/

Snack: Ants on a Log (Celery, Almond Butter and Raisins)

Lunch: Leftovers or  Leftover Chipotle Ranch Ground Chicken Burgers

Snack: Apples and Cinnamon with 2 Hard Boiled Eggs 

Dinner: 30 Min Sheet Pan Chicken with Veggies - https://www.paleorunningmomma.com/sheet-pan-chicken-veggies-paleo-whole30/

Friday 2/23

Breakfast: Sweet Potato Has with Kale and Bacon - https://www.paleorunningmomma.com/sweet-potato-hash-kale-bacon-paleo-whole30/

Snack: Banana Apple Almond Butter Bowl

Lunch:  Leftovers or  Leftover Chipotle Ranch Ground Chicken Burgers

Snack: Berries with Coconut Milk and Shredded Coconut

Dinner: Open or Leftovers 

Saturday 2/24

Breakfast: Paleo Pumpkin Bread with Chocolate Chips - https://www.paleorunningmomma.com/paleo-pumpkin-bread-chocolate-chips-nut-free/

Snack: Ants on a Log (Celery, Almond Butter and Raisins)

Lunch:  Leftovers or  Leftover Chipotle Ranch Ground Chicken Burgers

Snack: Apples and Cinnamon with 2 Hard Boiled Eggs 

Dinner: Open - Go out for dinner or use this for leftovers 

Sunday is a free day to use any leftovers or to celebrate due to special family gatherings or any fun occasion.  Have a HAPPY and HEALTHY week.

Run The Year 2018 Challenge - Team Heart and Soles

I got into running about 9 years ago after my oldest daughter was born, my goal was to lose the baby weight I had gained during my pregnancy with her.  I had really gotten into it and signed up for my first half marathon, 15 weeks into my training I had injured my knee and was not able to race the event I signed up for.  It was a very heart breaking moment for me as I had worked so hard and I was very excited for all that I had accomplished along the way.  I changed my eating habits and with all the running I was doing I had lost a significant amount of weight, I was very proud of my self and how far I had come.  Then after I got injured I was unable to workout for months and although I didn’t have surgery on my knee it was a long road to recovery for me.  I had gained most of my weight back and was back where I started.  I was not in a good place with my self confidence, I knew I needed to get back into running and healthy eating again.  

I did some searching on the web for some local races and training plans and came across Run the Edge which was an awesome running website that had tons of valuable information.  Within the site I came across their yearly challenge called Run The Year, which meant that every year you would have a full 12 months to run those many miles, it was a fun way to get people motivated to workout with an awesome support system.  This group was amazing, not everyone in the group ran, there was a nice mixture of marathon runners all the way to walkers.  I decided to give it a shot and join the group as a solo runner, I had no idea what I was getting my self into.  It was so much harder than I expected, running over 2000 miles in one year was insane especially by my self.  At one point I felt very overwhelmed and felt like I was playing catch up all the time and it made me very stressed out but then when I went to our support group and read other people’s posts that were struggling just like me I didn’t feel so alone.  I took a deep a breath and keep pushing along, it wasn’t about completing the full miles it was about setting goals for myself to become healthier and learning from others.  I loved reading other people’s stories, their victories, their triumphs, their weakness and their failures it make me realize that we are all human and things always happen in our lives that are out of our control.  It’s never easy to get back on a horse once you have fallen as it’s much easier to walk away and say “I’m done” and give up.  This is my fourth year doing this challenge, the last three years I did it solo and have yet to complete the full miles of that year. 

At the end of last year I reached out to some family members to see if anyone would be interested in joining me this year for 2018 as a team and support system, I received a positive response and created our "Team of Heart and Soles" which consists of my self, my husband Richard, my mom Gale and my auntie Rita.  I was so excited to finally have an amazing team to get this year going, we all have different personal goals and a nice mix of running and walking in our group the best part is that it’s with family.  We have created a group in Facebook messenger for all of us to talk daily by posting motivational quotes, daily check-in’s, support, encouragement and positive conversations, it really has made a difference for all of us.  The year started off amazing for my husband and I until he caught the flu and was out for two weeks and then I have caught two nasty head colds, the weather here in Dallas, Texas is like nothing I have ever experienced before.  I have not been running now for over 3 weeks which has really set me back.  I'm finally on the road to recovery as I'm starting to feel better each day but that means I'm back to the beginning of my running program again.  I have a few upcoming races that I'm interested in doing over the next few months but I'm nervous to sign up for anything due to my past with allergies and colds.  I will also be reevaluating my nutritional plan to help get me back on track.  I'm still hopeful and excited for a good running year with my team!!!

Life is about making positive changes...

I'm always looking to find new way's to improve my overall health, for those who really know me I have struggled my whole life with being over weight and finding a balance between eating healthy and working out.  I have been on many programs from Weight Watchers, Vegetarian, Vegan, Paleo, Low Carb and Clean Eating.  They all have worked for a period of time but then I slip back into old ways and whatever I lose I end up gaining right back.  I can be a very driven person when I set my mind to it, however I always feel like life gets in the way and I get sabotaged some how or some way.  I'm a very organized person who loves to make and follow plans, I create my own weekly food menu using spreadsheets and posting on my blog and I love following workout training plans to help keep me on track but then something comes up where I miss a workout or I eat off my plan and feel so guilty so instead of jumping back on I completely go off everything.  It's sound weird and unusual I know but this is what I have been struggling with my whole life. 

I have been dealing with bad allergies and constant head colds that usually turn into Sinus Infections since late last fall, every time I get sick I have to take time off my training and usually my nutrition is not good which means I have to start all over again when I'm better.  I can't seem to figure out what is triggering my bad allergies or getting sick all the time but it's draining and really frustrating to say the least.  During this last cold (that I'm still fighting) I have been doing some reading and research as to why I'm more susceptible to getting sick, I thought I ate healthy but something is causing my immune system to break down.  Ever since I have moved to Texas I have never in my life dealt with allergies or this many colds, most people who have moved here have all told me this is normal and it can take time for the body to adjust to the weather swings here along with all the different types of trees, flowers and grass that comes along with fall and spring allergy seasons.  I do believe that is true however I also believe what I'm putting in my body can also affect why and how I'm getting such bad allergies but I haven't really looked at it too closely until now.  

I started reading Dallas and Melissa Hartwig's famous book "It Starts with Food" who Discovered the program Whole30, I had skimmed through it once before but never really gave it any thought after that to be honest, not because I didn't care but because I thought the program would be way too hard.  Giving up sugar, dairy, legumes and grains for 30 day's sounded impossible and outright crazy, who in their right mind would do such a thing plus those were all the things I loved to eat.  I'm not a huge meat eater so the fact of eating lots of meat, vegetables, fruit and healthy fat's didn't exactly sound appealing to me at the time.  It wasn't until I had done some more reading recently which talked about resetting your body and going back to basics, after reading that article a member from one of my running groups happen to post at the extract time about how she completed her first Whole30 program and absolutely loved it.  She needed to reset and wanted to improve her overall running during this time.  She had nothing but amazing things to say, which then lead me to the Whole30 website and reading the entire "It Starts with Food" book (which I'm half way through at the moment).  At this point I'm looking for a  reset from all the things that have trigged me to go off my previous meal plans sugar, bad carbs, cheese, sweets, pizza and ice cream no matter how I tweak them to try and make a better version it still comes down to the fact that these foods have done nothing good for me, they have only made me gain weight and feel guilty which is why I call them "trigger"  foods.  What I need to do is eliminate them all together for a period of time and see how I feel.  My passion for running and training for triathlons is a huge part of me and I need to learn how to balance my workouts with my nutrition in order to maximize my full potential.  

I'm ready to change and step out of my comfort zone, I'm ready to try something new as what I'm doing now isn't' working and the only person who can change me is "ME".  I sometimes read too much and listen to others too much which makes me question my self and if what I'm doing is correct or the right way, I just need to trust my self and focus on what I'm doing.  I need to make a commitment for 30 day's to get my body reset and my life back on track in the right direction, my goal for this next week is to finish reading the book and learn everything I can from the Whole30 website, print out the program, the Whole30 Approved food list and start creating my program.   I have one week to get prepared and ready as I will be starting my journey next Monday February 26th, I will take a few before pictures and weigh my self to see my overall stats, I will also post on my blog my weekly food menus, workouts and journals of how I'm doing during the program.  The best part is my sister-in-law Melissa has also committed to doing this with me so having her along for the ride will be awesome to help keep us both accountable and in check during the program.  I'm excited for the experience and to see what changes my body, mind and soul will go through.