Happy Whole30!

Happy Sunday and day 2 of our Whole30! Things are going well so far, but it’s only been one day. The hardest part for me is definitely going to be dealing with dessert cravings. Michael and I are masters at eating Paleo-ized treats every night after dinner, so our brains are hard wired to expect it. The desire to have something sweet last night was excruciating, but a huge reminder as to why we need to do this in the first place.

As I mentioned in my last post, I wanted to talk a little bit about our strategy this time around. Our last experience with the Whole30 was more like a Whole21, so in order to make sure we make it all the way through I’m going to be doing the following:

1) Keep a Food Journal – I’m going to write down every bite I take throughout this Whole30. I feel like writing it down makes it concrete, and gives me motivation to keep it up. Plus it’s cool to look back and have an archive of everything you’ve eaten for 30 days, so get ready to read a lot of recaps!

2) Sunday Food Prep – This is really the most important item. Last time I just got tired of preparing food, especially after a long day at work, so I plan to take the edge off by preparing at least one large dish every Sunday. For week 1, I’m going to be making chili, roasting a spaghetti squash, and preparing some Paleo mayo to use throughout the week.

3) Variety – There’s nothing worse than being in the midst of the Whole30 and bored with the food you’re eating. I’m planning to mix it up with some new meals from a few of my favorite bloggers, as well as utilize some of the awesome Paleo recipe sites out there like The Foodee Project and Chowstalker. I also have a few recipe ideas of my own, so look for those in the days ahead.

4) CrossFit – There’s not much to be said here other than I want to kick some CrossFit ass this month. This is the first time in my life that I’m doing hard exercise regularly, so I’m excited to see how eating clean effects my performance. Plus, exercise helps keep me motivated and boosts my confidence – the perfect pairing to the Whole30.

And that’s it, my Whole30 strategy for this go around. I know there’s some tough days ahead, but I’m sure we’ll make it through them. I just can’t let my guard down – that’s when mistakes happen. Okay, enough planning talk, let’s move onto what’s really important here, the food. Before we get to the menu, I have to tell you about our delicious dinner last night. We made Slow Cooker Chicken & Gravy (Nom Nom Paleo) with Mashed Cauliflower and Roasted Asparagus.

This meal was phenomenal, you must try it. The chicken was cooked to perfection, but when paired with that smooth creamy gravy, it was AmAzInG! Talk about starting the Whole30 off right, Yum! I love when trying new things pays off, so I’ve added a couple of newbies to our menu below:

Sunday
B: Egg Scramble
L: Hot Dogs with Roasted Broccoli
D: Leftover Chicken with Gravy

Monday
B: Egg Scramble
L: Chili with Avocado
D: Ground Pork Spaghetti Squash Stir Fry

Tuesday
B: Egg Scramble
L: Leftover Stir Fry
D: Tandoori Chicken (Nom Nom Paleo) with Roasted Brussels Sprouts & Leeks

Wednesday
B: Egg Scramble
L: Leftover Chicken
D: Broiled Shrimp with Salad and Squash Puree

Thursday
B: Egg Scramble
L: Chili with Avocado
D: Spaghetti Squash with Meat Sauce and Salad

Friday
B: Egg Scramble
L: Chili with Avocado
D: Leftover Spaghetti with Salad

Saturday
B: French Toast Breakfast Scramble (Minus the honey)
L: Leftovers / Wing it
D: Something made in the Slow Cooker

Wish us luck!