Whole30 - Day 25

Here we are, just five days away from the end. 

As hoped and expected, though, the end of this strict eating regime will not mean returning to our prior eating habits. Yes, there might be a small plate of nachos now and then, but our eyes are open, and mindlessly stuffing processed "goodies" in will not be happening.

This morning, Pierre hopped on the scale and realized that he's down almost 20 pounds from the week prior to our start date! (We actually started cutting out junk a little before the actual beginning -- eased in to make the transition less abrupt.) He's lighter than he's been in 15 years. Woohoo! My darlin's getting healthier every day!

I've only dropped about four pounds, but then I'm not very overweight, and this diet isn't so different from my usual one. 

Pierre's comment: "I now realize just how efficient my body is at converting simple carbs into fat."  Indeed. :)

I especially like the feeling of knowing that we're building healthy cells by eating almost exclusively whole, real foods.

The only exception we've made to the perfect W30 rules has been a recipe, that I made last week, which the Whole30 group calls a "Sex With Your Pants On" food. SWYPO refers to anything resembling a simple-carb food (paleo muffins or cookies, for example) that will eventually lead you back to the real thing. 

Ours are Coconut Flour Tortillas. They're actually more like crepes than tortillas and act as a grain-free sammich holder alternative to the cold-and-messy romaine. They taste fine, freeze well, and we know that everything in them is healthy (eggs, arrowroot powder, coconut flour, coconut oil, water, and salt). I'll make a second batch this evening. Yep, you could call this a bit of a cheat, but this diet is not supposed to be torture, right? And we've decided that finding something that will keep Pierre off bread is a giant win.

We made the decision to purchase the annual subscription to RealPlans, the meal planning / shopping list / recipe app recommended by Michelle Tam at NomNomPaleo. I've tried a few more recipes from them and we've been happy with them all. The team at RealPlans were totally accessible, answering my "How do I..." questions, as well as starting our lower-priced annual subscription at the beginning of last month. Handy, creative, AND kind!! Gotta love that.

Last week a couple of girlfriends inspired me by introducing the concept of Once A Month Cooking (OAMC). I spent part of a day researching OAMC / Whole30 / crockpot / freezer meals, and wound up with a list of 21 recipes that I want to try! Of those, I've chopped, bagged, and frozen five, and we've already eaten two: Beef, beet, and cabbage borscht, which was yummy, but wasn't meaty enough for Pierre's taste; and last night's scrumptious peppers stuffed with spiced ground beef, grated onion, carrot, mushroom, and cauliflower. Who knew rice-free stuffed peppers could be so good?

This has been a grand adventure of discoveries! I'll write again next week to address our other goals, and fill you in on how this final leg goes. 

Hope you are enjoying your summer. 

If you have a moment and are so inclined, please pray for rain and for the safety of the residents and firefighters in and around my native Washington State.  

Until next week...