Whole30 Recipes {Week 1 Recap}

Cue the confetti — I made it a full seven days on the Whole30 program without a single cheat. NOT A SINGLE CHEAT! Hooray! Here’s a full recap of what I’ve been eating.

Day 1:
B: Chicken sausage egg casserole topped with fresh salsa, a few plantain chips, and green tea
L: Salad club salad (shown below) with a hardboiled egg, black kalamata olives, banana peppers, red wine vinegar and extra virgin olive oil. I also snacked on carrots and cashews throughout the day.
D: Organic fuji apple and almond butter / guacamole and plantain chips

Day 2:
B: Chicken sausage egg casserole topped with fresh salsa and avocado (same as the day before) with an unsweetened chai tea
L: Salad club salad with rotisserie chicken, a hard boiled egg, red wine vinegar and extra virgin olive oil (shown below). I snacked on hard boiled eggs, almonds and carrots throughout the day; also had a few strawberries and my first cup of black coffee!
D:  PaleOMG Chicken Bacon Alfredo

My first sip of black coffee was awful! (It’s so bitter!) But, after I let it cool awhile and then sipped it again, it wasn’t as bad. At some point I read that Melissa Hartwig, the Whole30 founder, said something along the lines of …

I’ve been telling myself that and it’s helping! 

Day 3:
B: “Monkey salad” (bananas, cashews, and coconut flakes — I LOVE this salad!; I added a handful of raisins, too) / Second breakfast:Chicken sausage egg casserole topped with fresh salsa and avocado with a side of red bell pepper (shown below).
L:  Salad club salad
D: Leftover PaleOMG alfredo / After dinner – small bowl of strawberries and grapes

I’m so glad I discovered the Monkey salad – it’s creamy and sweet, and great paired with black coffee. It doesn’t hold me over for the entire morning but it’s perfect in a pinch when you need something quick!

Work WOD

Day 4:
B:  Monkey salad and two hardboiled eggs; black coffee / Second breakfast Chicken sausage egg casserole and the other half of my red bell pepper (are you noticing a trend??)
L:  Leftover PaleOMG alfredo with  a side of carrots; snacked on almonds and a green apple.
D: Trader Joes chile lime chicken burger topped with spicy mustard over top a bed of fresh spinach, bell pepper, banana pepper, and sweet potato chunks (doesn’t look pretty but it was so, so good!)

PS: The PaleOMG alfredo doesn’t look pretty either! In fact, it looks totally gross, but it doesn’t taste bad. I will say that I like a lot of her other recipes better. I mentioned the others I’ve tried here. 

CrossFit and a new hang squat clean PR of 125! Woo hoo! 

Day 5:  
B: An apple /  Three eggs scrambled, bacon, a half a Larabar and diced sweet potato (shown below).
L: Finished off the PaleOMG alfredo; also ate the other half of my Larabar.
D: Chipolte bowl: Just carnitas, salsa, lettuce and guacamole (I had to tell the man to give me more lettuce… no more lettuce… no more… more please. He definitely hated me!)

I had packed Trader Joes plantain chips in my purse earlier that day when I went to run errands, but they came in handy when we were at Chipolte for dinner! They were the perfect side “chips” to go with my meal. I left feeling full and satisfied!

Day 6: Moving day! 
B: Mini Monkey salad first thing in the morning / Second breakfast: Omelette with leftover salsa and a half a Larabar.
L: No lunch (we were moving) but I did treat myself to a Venti unsweetened iced green tea and the other half of my Larabar.
D: Ruby Tuesday’s: Petite sirloin (no butter, oil, or seasoning) and a plain baked potato with the salad bar (I used extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar for dressing)

Day 7:
B: Silver Dinner: Western omelette (ham, green peppers and onions) with a side of roasted potatoes and strawberries.
L: No lunch and I was starving by 6! I went grocery shopping and shelled a thing of Wholly Guacamole and carrots (and a pickle) in my mouth when I got home.
D: Boston market: A chicken breast and a wing with green beans and a side of mixed vegetables (the veggies were bleh but the chicken was good!)

And, phew!!!!!! I made it!!!! Only 23 more days to go!

Here’s what I’m liking about this program: 

+ I feel good! I feel happier, actually. More energetic and positive. I think sugary foods have an affect on my mood. However, there is a flip side to this. I feel happier when I’m eating throughout the day. On the weekends, when I go long stretches without eating or snacking, I am the opposite of happy. I am irritable. Watch out!

+No more mindless eating. I’ve had to stop myself from so much mindless eating!  I never even realized how much I grab food for food when I’m bored or tired, out of habit, and during transitional times of day like when I come home from work. I’m glad I noticed this and got it in check!

+I don’t feel as groggy in the morning or in the afternoons. I have a very consistent energy level, which is nice! We moved over the weekend, which takes a lot of energy, but I felt good! I also have had an easier time waking up in the mornings and powering through the afternoon without feeling sleepy.

+Will power. It’s a beautiful thing. There’s something really affirming about being able to exhibit will power! I like being in control and making decisions based on my intentions, not out of habit, laziness, or apathy. (This mug says it all!)

Here’s what I don’t like about the program…

+My social life is awkward. I’m supposed to host Girl’s Night this month but I’m dreading it! I’d been looking forward to having some friends over to my new place and checking out the nearby salsa bar for weeks — but now that I’m doing this, I don’t want to… (salsa sober??) Uggggh! It’s definitely a downer and it has me asking myself WHY I’m doing this and just how important it is! I’m pretty sure I can manage 30 days without a social gathering (maybe postpone the get together?) but it’s a bit annoying nonetheless.

+My acne hasn’t cleared up. I was really hoping to see my skin improve and it hasn’t. I don’t have bad acne but I do tend to breakout around my chin and neck, and that doesn’t seem to be getting better at all; worse, maybe? Is that even possible? I guess it’s still too early to say!

+It’s expensive. I spent $60 at the grocery store last week and another $60 last night. Cashews are high as the sky – $8 a pop, but essential to my monkey salad!! Spending so much money on the food (compliant bacon and deli meat is pricey too) again has me questioning why I’m doing this!

Here’s what I couldn’t live without on this program… 

+The help of my friends! I have a Whole30 support group on Facebook and they’ve been great! Hey ladies!!!!

+Fresh salsa. Thank God grocery stores prepare fresh salsa! I don’t think I could survive this without it. I put it on my eggs, in my salad, mixed with guacamole or just spooned out with plantain chips and it’s so flavorful. I also love the convenience of it.

I also couldn’t live without Greek kalamata olives, coconut chips and coconut milk; extra virgin olive oil, balsamic and red wine vinegars, banana peppers, and salad club!!! Not having to worry about lunch it’s such a life saver!

 On the menu for this week! 

• Cinnamon Apple Turkey Stuffed Acorn –> Time to use my crockpot!
• PaleOMG Roasted Red Pepper and Avocado Soup —> This is so good, I’ve had it before.
• I also bought romaine lettuce and turkey deli meat to make lettuce boats; wholly guacamole and grapes. I plan to make turkey taco bowls with lettuce and avocado this week, too!

This was a mega post!! Thanks for reading if you got through all that! 🙂

Have you ever done the Whole30 Program?

What was your first week like?