Whole30 – Day 1 (Again)

Yep, Whole30 day 1 .. again. Like I said yesterday I’m starting my new year off right with another Whole30. Waited until today to start since I was on the road for most of the day yesterday.

My day started off with a sore throat, some major sinus congestion and an internal moral dilemma about whether or not it would be ok for me to take some Emergen-C on Whole30. (It contains artificial ingredients and sweeteners). Once I woke up and got my head on straight I decided that would definitely be a “no”.

I thought I might feel better once I got up and got moving, which is often the case when I’m feeling a little puny. So I threw on my running clothes and headed out for my scheduled 7-mile tempo run. The cold symptoms didn’t bother me too much during my run, but my left hip starting complaining about halfway through the run. I’ve had this same pain off and on since I started running, it’ll bother me for a while and then it will go away. Today it was in full effect.

I was able to finish up my run, mostly because it was an out and back so I didn’t have any other choice, but I decided I need to take a few days off and re-assess. It happens.

Breakfast after my run was some Puerto Rican beef that I made before I went out of town for New Years. Usually I don’t eat leftovers that have been in the fridge for more than a day or two, but I made an exception today. Puerto Rican beef is definitely becoming a staple in my Paleo recipe book.

Lunch was super simple; chorizo sausage with roasted cauliflower and wilted balsamic spinach.

I debated with myself all day about going to CrossFit tonight. Because of the holiday and traveling I haven’t been able to go since last Thursday. On one hand I figured my body could use the rest and on the other hand I was thinking things like, “but what if I’m really sick tomorrow and can’t go then? Today might be the better day” … and “I’m paying for it, I might as well go”. Ultimately I decided it wasn’t a good idea. So instead I stayed home and cleaned out my fridge, freezer and pantry.

I couldn’t believe all the absolute CRAP I had in the house.

Just about every sauce and seasoning I had in the pantry had to go because of either artificial ingredients, soy ingredients or sweeteners.

Now my kitchen is officially Whole30 compliant!

For dinner I made a quick chicken stir-fry with a homemade paleo-friendly sauce and a side of avocado. Any excuse to eat avocado.

The sauce consisted of:

• 1/4 cup Coconut Aminos
• 1 tbsp orange juice
• 1 tsp sesame oil
• a couple drops of spicy Chili Oil
• 1/4 tsp of Crushed Red Pepper Flakes

It was about enough for 4 servings. Mmmmmm, sweet and spicy!

I’m doing things a little differently this time around on my Whole30. Firstly, I didn’t weigh myself before I started and I won’t weigh myself at all during the process this time. No cheats!

This is part of my resolution to accept myself unconditionally right now! Because I know that I’m eating healthy foods, controlling my portions and getting plenty of exercise the number on the scale doesn’t define me.

I am however logging my food in a food diary in order to be aware of my portions, snacking, cravings, and overall nutrient intake. I’m not strictly paying attention to calories, but I’m being aware of them.

I’m planning on branching out more in my cooking this time around. I’m considering doing a Meal Plan from Practical Paleo to incorporate some different dishes in my rotation so that I don’t fall back on the same ones over and over again. I already see myself relying too heavily on a few things (sweet potatoes, anyone?).

More on that tomorrow. Have a great night!

Whole30 Done.

Daaaaaaay 30. I survived. I might even dare to say I thrived.

Although I won’t know the official scale results until tomorrow I already outlined the great benefits I’ve noticed. Tomorrow I’ll give you the results and talk about what I’m going to do from this point. Today I’ll just talk about today.

I woke up this morning with some pretty gnarly bruises.

The clavicle bruise I totally understand. I have a really prominent left clavicle and yesterday’s Clean & Jerks were the devil on that. I’m kind of concerned that my shins bruised so easily. Must remember to mention to a doctor.

Anyway … my schedule today called for an easy 6 mile run. I wore my heart rate monitor and made it my mission to keep my heart rate just below 140.

The first couple miles were awesome, but the longer I ran the more my heart rate increased and the more I had to slow my pace. Super frustrating on a day my legs were ready to GO! I fought the urge to sprint out my last half mile.

9:06, 9:04, 9:13, 9:21, 9:28, 9:33

I ended up finishing with a average heart rate of exactly 139.

Breakfast was the last of my leftover Puerto Rican Beef. I’m sad to see it go.

I had a late lunch of Tuna Salad before heading to CrossFit.

Tonight’s WOD was:

20 Minute AMRAP Teams of 4
a. 200M Run
b. Pullups
c. Weighted Situps
d. Rest
*There will be a team member at each station posted above. Each member will work on the movement they are stationed at until the person running returns. Once the runner is back everyone will rotate to the next station.

We only had a team of 3, so it made it a little bit confusing. Not my favorite WOD of all time, but still a good workout.

I rushed home afterwards to meet my friend Drew, who came over for dinner tonight and to keep me company while the hubby is out of town. Stand-in hubby, if you will. I even made him take out the trash.

We made: Mustard Sage Baked Chicken Thighs from Practical Paleo, roasted butternut squash and asparagus.

I had a banana later for “dessert”.

And with that, my Whole30 is done. See you tomorrow!

Whole30 – Day 24

Every single week just about I swear that I am the most sore that I’ve ever been in my life, but I really think today might be the real thing. The funny part is that I can literally run for 3 hours straight on Saturday, feel perfectly fine and get up and run again on Sunday with no problem … but that 18 minute WOD we did at CrossFit last night has me TORE UP!

2 Rounds:
2 min. Max Rep Front Lunges (95/65)
100M Run
2 min. Max Rep Burpees
200M Run
2 min. Max Rep Sumo DL HP (95/65)
2 min. Rest

I was moaning and groaning like a wild animal. It was ugly. Oh, and I was only using 35 pounds for the lunges and Sumo Deadlift Highpulls.

That’s 71 lunges, 44 burpees and 90 Sumo Deadlift Highpulls!

My sweet hubby got up early and made me breakfast before I went to work this morning.

She ain’t pretty but I think this is my favorite Paleo breakfast I’ve had so far. Leftover roasted butternut squash with pork breakfast sausage and 2 perfectly over-easy eggs. It kept me full for atleast 5 hours!

After work I headed out to tackle my 7 mile easy run for the day. I started off nice and slow, my quads and butt cheeks are killing me afterall. About halfway through the run I realized if I didn’t pick it up some I was going to be in the dark soon on a deserted creepy road.

8:53, 8:40, 8:35, 8:37, 8:27, 8:26 … and then I realized I was going to be ok … 8:40.  Finished just in time.

The rest of my eats have been pretty mediocre today. Lunch was leftover beef stew which you saw on Monday and dinner was Chicken Cabbage Curry from the crockpot that I’ve posted a couple of times before. It’s becoming a regular.

A very successful day 24! Only 6 days to go.

20 Miles for Day 20

I thought I’d celebrate Day 20 of my Whole30 with a 20 mile run.

Just kidding! That was a total coincidence, pretty fitting though.

My day started at 4:45 am preparing for my first 20 mile run of this marathon training schedule. It’s been a while since I’ve run this distance, and although I didn’t feel as amazingly spectacular as last weekend it was still a really really good run.

Kaitlin, Barbara, Chad, Mike and I started without a specific route in mind and made split decisions as we went along for the first several miles. It was pretty fun for a while and then we finally decided on a route. I feel like we ran around the entire east side of Montgomery!

Before our run I had a Banana Bread Larabar and a Banana … yeah, that was kind of weird. I didn’t plan it that way, it just happened.

Instead of carrying Gu with me during my Whole30 I’ve been carrying an extra Larabar in the pouch of my water bottle. Last week I didn’t end up needing it, but today I was glad to have it. I never bonked energy-wise, but I got HANGRY at about mile 14. I believe that’s the first time I’ve ever actually eaten something while running.

After the run I headed home for a quick breakfast of fruit and scrambled eggs, before heading off to yoga.

My energy has been through the roof today! After four and a half hours of exercise I’d normally spend the rest of the day either on the couch or in the bed. Today I went out to lunch, went shopping, cleaned my entire house including sweeping and mopping and doing laundry and cooked dinner. I like it!

Dinner tonight was a simple one: baked chicken, roasted asparagus and balsamic mushrooms. Nothing fancy.

A couple of my friends have shown interest in doing a Whole30 of their own and have specifically asked about what to buy at the grocery store. Of course everyone’s taste is different but I thought I’d list a quick breakdown of what I’ve been buying and where.

I typically shop at 3 different stores: Costco, Earth Fare and Publix.

At Costco I get: Frozen Wild Alaska Salmon, Frozen Tilapia Filets, Chicken & Apple Sausages, canned wild caught Tuna, avocados, sweet potatoes, onions, eggs, bananas, coconut oil, clementines, organic apples, spinach, bell peppers, pre-cut butternut squash, mushrooms, asparagus and a fruit bowl.

At Earth Fare or HealthWise Foods (local) I get: Organic Grass-Fed ground beef and steaks, organic pork breakfast sausage, bacon, chicken legs, breasts and thighs, Larabars and sunflower butter.

Any other random ingredients or vegetables that I’m not buying organic I get from Publix.

Those have pretty much been my staples for the past 20 days.

Now I think its couch sittin’ time. Have a great night!

Whole30 – Day 14

I’ll make this short and sweet tonight.

7 mile run with the hubs and friends, veggie omelet and lots of coffee, Sampoorna Yoga, salad bar, grass-fed local beef …

Sunflower butter, Food Network, hot tea.

Day 14 done.

Whole30 – Day 10

Today was my first day at work since I started the Whole30 program. I knew that I needed to pack PLENTY of food so that I wouldn’t get hangry and make bad decisions.

THERE.IS.PEANUT.BUTTER.EVERYWHERE.THERE.

Seriously, the hospital has tons and tons of those individual size peanut butter containers. It’s like a minefield for me up there.

I was strapped for time before I left the house this morning and didn’t get a chance to cook anything for breakfast, so breakfast was 2 bananas and a Cashew Cookie Larabar. Not the highest quality Paleo breakfast, I definitely need to plan better for tomorrow.

I had a boiled egg and an apple for a snack mid-morning.

Lunch was leftovers from dinner last night. Moroccan Meatballs from Well Fed, Roasted Normandy Mix veggies and collard cabbage slaw.

All of that definitely held me the rest of the day and kept me away from the evil PB. After work I headed to the gym to knock out my interval run that was scheduled.

1 mile warm-up, 3 x 1600s in 7:42 w/ 800 jogs between each, 1 mile cool down. (6 miles total)

Surprisingly, I had enough energy left over after the run to go to CrossFit and do the Core WOD. I definitely need to work on my core strength, so I’m going to start trying to incorporate those workouts as well. I just need more days in the week!

Tonight’s workout at the box was:

Find 1 rep max for Push Press (10 minutes) – Mine was 85 lbs today. I tried and failed at 90 lbs.

400m sprint x 2 for time (2 minute rest in between) – I initially tried to get out of doing this since I had just run 6 miles literally minutes before, but ultimately decided to man up. My first sprint was in 1:42 and my 2nd was 1:44.

Core WOD: 3 Rounds of 10 Knees to Elbows, 20 Russian Twists (each side), 30 Crunch-Ins.

I think I’ll sleep good tonight.

I was glad to come home to dinner ready in the crockpot. I made the Cabbage Curry Stew from last week again and added a little spinach salad with avocado, grape tomatoes and balsamic vinaigrette.

I’ve been having irrational fears the last couple of days of pulling my scale out on day 31 to find that I’ve gain some god-awful amount of weight.

I’m highly considering doing a little no-no and weighing myself on day 15 just to get a half-way point idea of where I’m at. My goal in this process isn’t necessarily to lose weight, but I definitely don’t want to get headed in the wrong direction.

More on that later.

My 1st Paleo Day

Today kinda rocked, I have to say. I was worried last night after eating steak for the first time in forever that my stomach would be upset. No problems whatsoever though. And actually I have to say that I felt great afterwards, I wasn’t sickly full after I ate like I normally feel but yet I ate enough volume that I felt completely satisfied. I’m a volume eater for sure. I don’t care what I’m eating, as long as there is a lot of it.

I got up before the sun this morning and headed out for an easy 5 mile run at Fort Toulouse. It was beautiful and chilly. I was almost too cold the first couple of miles, but I dare not complain. I finished my 5 miles in just over 43 minutes and then headed home to make breakfast.

I had lofty plans to make sweet potato hashbrowns, bacon and eggs for the family for breakfast but Lincoln had already eaten and Tim was too busy to eat. So I made a quick breakfast for myself …

2 Chicken Sausage Links, 2 Scrambled Eggs and Sauteed Spinach w/ liquid amnios. Scrambled eggs are so un-photogenic, don’t ya think?

I was really surprised at how long I stayed full, or maybe un-hungry would be a better word. Normally I get hungry at about 11:00, and I might can hold off until 11:30 if I push it. Today I didn’t make lunch until almost 1:00.

I made a simple Tuna Salad that ended up rocking my whole world.

I ate it as lettuce wraps.

In the mix:

• 5oz can of Wild Caught Albacore
• 1 whole avocado
• Diced Red Onion
• Cherry Tomatoes – Halved
• Capers
• 1 tbs olive oil
• Salt
• Pepper
• Garlic powder
• Fresh Cilantro –chopped

Stir and stir and stir until the avocado becomes smooth.

I used the Pinterest method for halving the tomatoes.

How come I never thought of that?

Anyway, the tuna salad lettuce wraps were ridiculously delicious. I definitely impressed myself with that creation.

I took Lincoln to the playground to get his wiggles out this afternoon and while he played I practiced my box jumping. It was bad.

That tiny thing is what I practiced on. And it was major scary. No wonder my 4 year old was making fun of me. This just straight up terrifies the shit out of me.

This is just not something that I’m going to easily overcome. But I’ll keep trying.

Our WOD tonight at CrossFit was definitely the most intense one I’ve done so far:

Warm-up: 400m run, 10 ham swings, 10 air squats, 10 PVC passthrus, 10 KB swings (26#), 10 KB DLHP (26#) and 10 burpees. I was sweating already.

Skill: Head/Handstands Walk-ups – I almost turned around and walked out when I saw this. If there is something that (I thought) scared me more than box jumping it would be handstands. Turns out it wasn’t so bad. Whew.

Strength: 5 x 4 Deadlifts – I did 125# tonight.

And then … the WOD …

AMRAP (As Many Reps as Possible) in 6 minutes – 10 Push Presses (35#) & 200m run —  I completed 4 total rounds in 6 minutes.

then …

AMRAP in 6 minutes – 5 Sumo Deadlift Highpulls (35#) and 6 Lateral Burpees. Kill me now. I did 7 rounds. That’s 42 burpees if you are like me and can’t math.

I ripped my shorts. I grunted and groaned like a wild animal, or a woman giving birth for all my L&D friends out there. It was intense. And awesome.

I’m sure in 6 months this will (hopefully) seem like not much of anything, but tonight I’m proud of myself. 🙂

Dinner was Sesame Salmon (is sesame oil Paleo? .. I don’t even know), Bok Choy and Roasted Rainbow Carrots.

What a great day! It’s the little things that amuse me.

Tempo, Clothes and Muffins

Hope that didn’t scare you.

That’s just the face of a happy girl that ROCKED OUT an awesome 7-mile tempo run this morning! Ye-ah!

My tempo consisted of a 1 mile warm-up which I completed in 9:10, 5 miles at a 7:45 pace … which I hit exactly to the second, and a 1 mile cooldown in 8:55.

Sweaty arms!

A great start to the day considering the last time I did the exact same workout (2 weeks ago) I had to stop 3 times during my tempo portion to catch my breath … for 5 minutes.

I celebrated by buying myself a ton of new running clothes.

Ok, it wasn’t really to celebrate … I really just needed them. When you’re getting friction holes in the crotch of your shorts, it might be time to drop a couple bucks on some new ones.

Speaking of friction … unfortunately I wasn’t blessed with the genetic code for thighs that don’t rub together when I run. Or maybe I was, but I’ll never know since I screwed that up years ago. Anywho … these thunder thighs need a layer of protection to keep them from catching fire.

I found these cheap babies today on clearance that I’m hoping will do the trick.

Can’t beat 5 bucks.

So I bought every pair they had.

On principle I also had to buy this $50 Brooks brand running top that I found for $10.

I won’t be wearing it to run in though, not enough chest support with the built in bra for these bitties. But a nice yoga top 🙂

I had breakfast on the go this morning while Lincoln went to school for 1 hour for his meet the teacher day. I was craving a spinach feta wrap from Starbucks, but as usual they were out and I had to settle for the “Veggie Artisan Sandwich”. I use quotations because …

Who stole my veggies?

Whew … crisis averted. I found them.

Bastards.

Thankfully lunch was spectacular. Speck-tack-you-lar.

Taco salad.

Lettuce, brown rice, black beans, corn, … toppins.

For some reason growing up in the Seventh-day Adventist church we called these Haystacks. I have no idea why .. and I haven’t thought of that in approximately 13 years.

Now I’m working on making a shitload of Toddler (I mean Big Boy) Muffins for the freezer.

Speaking of big boys .. and muffins. Here’s my muffin on his first day of K4.

Poor poor Mrs Holston.

A Few of My Favorite Things

I planned to wake up at 5:30 this morning and get an early 7 mile run in before the hubby had to start working. I was sleeping so well that I did something I rarely ever do, I turned the alarm off and went back to bed. I woke up an hour later feeling very well rested and realized that I still had time to get my miles in. Win/Win.

Today’s run wasn’t anything particularly special. I was alone, nothing interesting or funny happened, I didn’t see any wildlife or get chased by any dogs. But I did have one of those rare runs where I can just separate myself from everything else in my life and even the act of running itself and just zone out.

Thoughts came and went but I didn’t concentrate on one idea, I didn’t make to-do lists in my mind, do math about my run, pace, distance, worry about anything in my personal life, nothing. It was AWESOME!

After my run I was starving! I’ve been really digging on avocados lately and buying them in bulk at Costco. For lunch yesterday I made this falafel pita creation …

Oat Bran pita with hummus, pre-prepared falafels, tomatoes, avocado, cucumber. I topped it off with a dollop of tzatziki and some fresh spinach leaves. Yum!

I found 2 random English muffins in the bottom of my freezer this morning, egg whites (the kind in a carton) and this Roasted Eggplant Spread.

I knew I could work avocado into this scenario somehow. I could have probably made it a little more photogenic by adding in some tomatoes, spinach, something … but like I said … I was hangry.

Our recent avocado obsession sparked a conversation over breakfast about our Top 10 Favorite Ingredients. The rules: no alcohol, no sweets. My list so far:

1. Goat Cheese
2. Avocado
3. Peanut Butter
4. Cashews
5. Cilantro
6. Pickled Okra
7. Olives
8. ….
9. ….
10. ….

Gotta work on those last 3. It’s alot of pressure. 😛

Better Late Than Never

I just decided, within the last 2 weeks that I want to run the Mercedes Half Marathon again this year on February 13th! Less than 4 weeks away, like almost 3 weeks away! Aaack!

I always feel better when I have a plan, even this late in the game. Atleast it makes me feels like I attempted to prepare. One might say I prepared to prepare.

As usual I am loosely following Hal Higdon’s Intermediate Training Plan.

I can’t lie, when I mapped out the plan and realized that my first real week of training called for 9 miles, I was scurred! With my knee injury I hadn’t run more than 6 miles at one time since the Montgomery Half Marathon on October 2nd.

I forced myself to get up early Sunday morning (I’m usually an afternoon runner) and get it out of the way first thing. I wasn’t feeling too optimistic after my awesome 5K on Saturday. My body was tired! But I forced myself to atleast attempt it. This would be the run that would determine if I should go ahead with the training or if it was just “too much, too fast” for a half marathon next month.

I headed out to my favorite running spot equipped with my iPod, which I have been leaving behind on my non-treadmill runs. I figured I could use the extra incentive that day though. I made up my mind that I would run easy and not worry about my pace or how long it took and I set my iPod to my “chill music” playlist which is basically my “anything but rock or rap” list.

Before I knew it I had already run 7 miles! I was absolutely amazed that I had already been running for an hour. I wasn’t tired, my body wasn’t aching, I wasn’t cold (or hot) even though it was 27 degrees outside. I felt awesome! I didn’t even feel like I was exerting any energy at all. I finished up my 9 miles with no problems.

I, of course, immediately updated my Facebook status to say “I feel pretty badass!”

There is nothing like a great run under your belt to make you feel on top of the world.

It was almost the perfect run except that I lost my favorite running hat along the road and was never able to find it. I tucked it between my Spibelt strap and my body and the next time I looked down it was gone. I drove up and down the road a couple of times searching for it, and even sent Tim out to search for it a couple of hours later to no avail.

R.I.P buddy.