Just. Breathe.

[Not even lying that I started this almost two weeks ago and am finally going to finish and post...] I'll skip to the end first: Whole30 ended at about Whole21. It wasn't a failure though. I was reminded of quite a few things during the three weeks.  It's called Whole30, not Whole365 for a reason -- it is just next to impossible to maintain that level of strictness every single day. Getting sick was just the first part -- when nothing tastes good or sits well, you eat what you can. Next, an anniversary deserves to be a celebration! I was not going to feel "deprived" by not having a glass of wine or a breadstick.... These things came up during the month I'd had planned, and that's just how life works.  But I was reminded of how I feel when I choose certain foods over others. I can't eat cheese and feel good. Period. I can't eat much bread/flour and lose weight. Just can't. It's also a trigger food for me -- once I'd broken that af...

This week didn't turn out exactly as planned.  Monday's bootcamp was ridiculous: 50 mountain climbers 20 squats 20 push ups 50 lunges 100 high knees 20 sumo squats 30 moving push ups 40 step ups (20 per leg) 50 run lunges FOUR TIMES THROUGH We made it through three times -- and my hatred for push ups stands. Ridiculously sore on Tuesday and Wednesday, which made what happened Wednesday even more difficult to figure out.  Monday's dinner was the lovely chicken and lime soup I wrote about here , and on Tuesday we took chicken and beef fajitas to Bug. She's house- and animal-sitting this week for friends -- and by animals, I mean 11 dogs, 14 horses, some number of rabbits, chickens, pigs, alpacas, and goats. It's been cold this week, so she's having fun feeding animals at 6am when it's 26 degrees. We fed her, then went and visited the animals. That adorable baby pig was fast! He didn't want to be held, obviously. Around 2pm Wednesday...

I totally intended to post this on Tuesday, and then stuff got all in the way. So here's a new Tasty Tuesday-ish.  I stole this recipe, I'll admit. Actually, I steal most of my recipes. But I try to give credit! This was on Pinterest as Chicken & Lime soup from budgetbytes.com. It was Paleo without even trying. But I made some adjustments, and it really reminds me so much of a chicken tortilla soup (without the tortillas) and is one of my new favorites. I didn't know it was going to be, so I didn't take step-by-step photos...Go to this link  if you need to see that kind of detail. It's really easy. As with most of my recipes, the amounts here can be scaled up or down depending on how much you want. I love leftovers, so I keep that in mind when I'm making soups.  Okay, what you need: chicken breasts - I used about a pound, and they were frozen when I put them in 2-3 stalks of celery, diced onion, diced, about a cup 2 cloves garlic, minced 1 ja...

The last time I started a Whole30, I quit after four days. I'm at the end of Day 7. Here's how it's going. I'm back to drinking my water - yay! I make this up every day in the big pitcher, and refill my glass every time I get up. Lemons, cucumbers, and oranges go in mine most of the time.  I have gotten in a very bad snacking habit, especially when I'm stressed. This week has definitely tested my determination, with a lot of work and long hours, and just that craving to grab something crunchy or chocolate. Instead, I'm making do with this: These raspberries are some of the best I've ever tasted. Those are walnuts on top.  The meals have gone according to plan this week. Chicken salad for lunch on Monday and shrimp/chicken stir fry on Monday night. Tuesday was grilled pork chops... ...with butternut squash and kale saute, with pecans. Why yes, that IS a "K" branded on top of my pork chop. RDub was playing with his Christmas present....

Over the last month, I've reread most of my blog postings (I'm hilarious, btw), especially for 2012. That's when I was most successful at weight loss and exercised most consistently. I was reading to try to figure out what I did right, and of course, when it started not working for me. I've debated the pros and cons of Weight Watchers, Paleo, counting calories, workouts, etc.  It's been a while in the making, but tomorrow it begins -- Whole 30. For real. There will be one day off -- our anniversary is in a couple of weeks -- but otherwise, I'm in this until February 25th (31 days, to make up for the day off).  There's a bit of prep involved, even when I know what I'm doing, so I've spent the week trying to figure out menus, plan what's most important for me to do this successfully, and just get my head in the right place.  This weekend has been pretty busy... I don't care what anyone says. Meal planning is not  easy. I feel like I ...

I found a notebook where I'd drawn out some ideas for the blog, made plans for new/different exercise programs, and jotted down recipe ideas, and decided I should get back to it. When I first started blogging last year, I had a goal (weight loss) and used this forum for accountability. I now have another few goals, so let's see if it will work this time. Losing the rest of this weight is of course a goal. I've been stuck here for about a year (some down, some up in the last 12 months, but generally the same place). On the one hand, that tells me that maintenance is something I CAN do -- good to know. OTOH, I don't want to be at THIS weight! I'm working through what that means for me - I don't do well with deprivation, counting calories makes me feel deprived, and this is almost completely about what my brain says. I know that no amount of exercise will make up for a crappy diet - but I'm still struggling with the changes that will stick. A few things I...

I woke up in the mood to write today. It's been a while since I've even wanted to start a new post, and I wouldn't let myself consider why. But, here it is: I've got 7-9 pounds that have come back on since Christmas and they will. not. leave. I don't want to make changes, therefore, I don't want to write about it. If I write about it, I have to admit it out loud, and then I'm committed. When I look back at my weight loss chart, I was this weight back in July. It's like a 9-month maintenance plan, but I don't want to maintain this weight! When I consider what I've done (and not done) in those months, it's somewhat easy to see why I'm not losing, and why, for a long time, I didn't gain. Paleo is not a weight loss method. That's right out there on any reputable Paleo expert's front door. It's clean eating, it's staying away from sugar and unnecessary foods, but it's not designed for weight loss - our ancestors we...

Recipe post! Whoop! This is a very simple pork chop recipe that I've made a couple of times now. RDub has added it to the top 5 list, so it'll stay in rotation. Credit goes to Sarah Fragoso at Everyday Paleo -- it's from her cookbook. Apologies in advance for the picture quality - until I start using a real camera, the settings on my phone will continue to make weird colors. I'll get better eventually. Okay, here we go. Thinly slice an apple (I used 1-1/2 because mine were pretty small) and about 1/2 an onion. Melt 3-4 tablespoons of coconut oil over medium heat and add the apple and onion. Cook them for about 5 minutes -- the apples should still be a little firm. For the chops, all you need is salt and cinnamon. Just sprinkle both sides -- and don't skimp on the cinnamon. It may not sound like the right spice, but trust me (and Sarah) that it's tasty. Remove the apples and onions from the pan and add another tablespoon of coconut oil. On med...

It doesn't take long to fall out of a habit -- as long as it was a good one...which I consider blogging to be. Let's just jump right back in, shall we? The Monday after we got back from our cruise (SIX weeks ago! How did that happen???), I started boot-camp style training with a personal trainer. I haven't worked with Jen in a couple of years, but I knew it was time to shake things up. Jen trains out of her home, and is a Pilates instructor from way back. I always felt good when I was doing Pilates regularly, so that had appeal. She also does weight training, and we talked about a crossfit-style approach (maybe), and setting me up to do other sessions on my own. I made her agree to one very important ground rule once we settled on three times a week: I don't get makeup sessions. In the past, she's been generous if you had to cancel a session. For me, it gave me an excuse (cramps, headache, tired...) and I needed to suck it up. Money talks, and I wasn't going t...

  [It's not actually that hot, but I say it in Mrs. Doubtfire's voice.] I've been visiting a new Paleo recipe site and this was one of the first recipes I tried. Given that it had snowed and not warmed up above about 45 for almost a week, I was looking for warm comfort food! This was extremely easy and very tasty. PaleOMG dot com  is the site and you really need to get out there if you're looking for recipes. The specific link to this one is http://paleomg.com/jambalaya/ . The recipe is straightforward: andouille sausage, chicken breast, onion, green pepper, cauliflower, spices, tomatoes, and chicken stock. You can also use shrimp for more authentic jambalaya, but I didn't want to clean it that night. Maybe next time. Anyway, the link gives the specific recipe, but here are a few notes from me. 1. I used a bit more (maybe 1/2 cup) chicken stock than the recipe called for. Since the exact amount of meat isn't specified (2 breasts -- is that a pound?)...

I'm back in blogging land after a little while off. Please pardon the randomness of this post. Christmas was excellent, and yes, we had snow in Texas on Christmas Day! I'm sure it wasn't the first time, but I definitely can't remember a specific time it happened. And COLD. Like 19 degrees cold. I literally sat on the couch all day and watched the traditional Christmas movies: A Christmas Story , Miracle on 34th Street , Die Hard ... We'd already watched Holiday Inn and White Christmas . I played with my new tablet (!) and completely vegged out. Perfect Christmas day. Our backyard, photo courtesy of Bug. Poor plants. Poor basketball. I did make a chicken soup that day. I've got a favorite chicken tortilla soup recipe, but I've never converted it to Paleo -- it had corn and beans in it, not to mention the tortillas, sour cream and cheese that tops it. We'd gone to a party where one of the guests brought a soup that was very close to Paleo - it onl...

I'm so embarrassed I only had four posts in September! What is wrong with me? Work has been crazy busy, so maybe that's my excuse. I think it's more about not feeling I had anything new to share. People with toddlers are way funnier bloggers. Anyway, today I start again with the weekly weigh ins. Last week was actually the end of my 30-day (abandoned) experiment, but I did manage to (mostly) stay off the scale. Right now, I feel fat -- but that's temporary, I'm sure. Here's the deal. I'm not counting calories or points, so I can't report on how I've done with that. I eat Paleo -- that's either a do or a not-do thing. I need to reset my expectations - for this blog, for what I measure -- because otherwise I'll never have anything to write about. What I have done: Tried some awesome new recipes -- Paleo baked apples, zucchini noodles, salmon patties, bacon-wrapped meatloaves, butternut squash,  and homemade creamer for my coffee, ...

I've been procrastinating writing this post. Like, I'll clean the entryway light fixtures if it will keep me from blogging. I bailed on the Whole30. I'm sort of mad at myself, and then I'm not. I've had 100 conversations with myself about it, both before and after I caved. Monday morning, R-Dub and I went on a long motorcycle ride, and that's some good thinking time (for the passenger). I think it finally boiled down to this for me: The entire summer -- vacations, mission trip, weekends -- I've really not stepped out of Paleo world if I had any control at all. No buns on hamburgers, no bread on sandwich meat, no sugar/dessert. Wine and creamered coffee are pretty much the only exceptions I make to what is "true" Paleo when I can make choices. Then I throw myself into this Whole30 and I realized I was very close to that completely deprived feeling, where I slip into the "poor me" mentality that has derailed me so many times in the p...

The crankiness is setting in just a smidge. Or maybe that's just my brain telling me to take advantage of it while I have an "excuse." Drinking iced tea instead of coffee in the morning. I tried hot green tea, but it was nasty without honey or sugar. I'm fine with unsweet tea -- that's all I've had for years -- so it's a little bit of caffeine to keep the headaches at bay. I've tried some fun new recipes, mostly from Well Fed by Melissa Joulwan. Last night was Pad Thai. I took a picture but apparently it didn't look very appetizing, so I'll use Melissa's instead. That way you can get the recipe, too. Melissa's pic. Mine tasted great, but I'm no food stylist! Tonight was an easy frittata, because I thought I would be leaving the house tonight. I planned an easy meal with beef I'd already cooked earlier this week. It turned out good, too. Basic recipe from It Starts With Food . I just grabbed some frozen Californ...

I've mentioned the Whole30 Program I'm starting today. The creators of the program explain it way better than I ever could over on their site . I got Dallas and Melissa's book, It Starts With Food , and devoured it in two days. (See what I did there? Ha.) They give the science behind their philosophy, which is very much Paleo, with a little bit of other stuff thrown in. The Whole30 Program is basically a "reset" of your system -- designed to heal, "restore metabolism, and end unhealthy cravings, habits and relationships with food." Reading their research and experiences further convinced me that Paleo is right for us, and now I know a bit more about why. Here are the rules, and they are non-negotiable for these 30 days: YES : Eat foods that make you more healthy (what the first half of the book was about) - meat, seafood, eggs, lots of vegetables, some fruit, healthy fats. NO : Do not consume any added sugar, alcohol, grains, legumes, or dairy. NO...

I really am not good at meal planning. I thought I was, but I've spent about 4 days thinking before going shopping and looking through recipes and trying to figure out what I could buy that I'd cook before I had to freeze it, blah blah blah... Anyway, it took me FORever to get to an actual menu. This should not be that hard, but I have a new respect for all those bloggers who put together menus and shopping lists for their readers. This is not that blog. I said a couple of days ago that I'm getting ready for a "Whole30" experience. That's what is all about -- for the next 30 days I'll be strictly meat, veggies, and fruit (Paleo). I know my success will be based on a lot of planning, and very little wiggle room in what I have around the house to eat. I'm technically not starting until Monday, but today was shopping day, so cooking started today. In planning what to cook when, I was trying to consider the fresh meat and veggies I just bought -- I...