Paleo Shepherd's Pie and Green Smoothie

I never posted the Paleo Shepherd's Pie I made. I looked through a few recipes, and finally ended up using the recipe from Eat Boutique, as some of the recipes I found used peas (not paleo) and Worcestershire sauce (also not paleo, unless you make it yourself), and if I'm going to make a "paleo" dish then it better be all paleo. The only thing I didn't do was bake them individually, I don't own ramekins, in fact I just learned the word ramekin from reading that blog. I definitely recommend trying this recipe. Here's the link: http://www.eatboutique.com/2012/10/05/paleo-shepherds-pie/

The most impressive part of this dish for me was the mashed cauliflower on top, it made me fall in love with my Vitamix all over again, it came out SO smooth!

Looks just like potatoes!!!

My friends and I got together for a girls night last night, complete with wine, chips and salsa, rice krispie treats, bread and spinach dip, etc... basically everything that's NOT detox approved :) But the detox is over so I could freely partake... and that I did. I don't feel terrible today, but I don't feel great, and I slept a ton. I made this green smoothie for breakfast in, you guessed it, my Vitamix, along with coffee with coconut milk and 100% cacao powder... yummy! I added the protein so it would be a complete meal... now I think I am going to head out for a quick run. I have no plans this weekend, and I love it!

1 scoop Amazing Grass wheatgrass
1 scoop Jarrows Whey Protein Vanilla
2 celery stalks
1/2 avocado
1/2 banana
1 cup coconut water
1/2 cup water
a few cubes of ice

I made it to Crossfit 4 times this week. Yay! Yesterday was burpees and deadlifts. I love deadlifts, I hate burpees. The WOD was 5 deadlifts and 10 burpees, 5 rounds. I hate round-based WOD's because I always think I'm going to be last. Which I was, but only by a couple of burpees. The best time from the day had been 3:22, I finished in 7:22. I love Friday evening classes because they are so small, so it was me and 7 others. That's also why I like the morning classes, that and getting it out of the way before work. We played "crab soccer" during the warmup, if you don't know what that is, google it. It was entertaining to say the least :)

21 Day Detox Challenge - Day 21!

I did it! I made it through 3 weeks of no alcohol, no grains, no dairy (and I LOVE cheese), no added sugar. There were a couple of cheats (two Quest bars, one instance of dark chocolate chips, and of course the re-introduction of coffee, which I don't really consider a cheat) but for the most part I pretty much stuck to the program. And what were my results you ask? 7 pounds down and 1.2% reduction in body fat. Not bad! But I'm not satisfied..... so I continue on this grain-free/dairy-free paleo-ish journey.... I've already picked out what I want to contribute to Thanksgiving.... 

I think my biggest accomplishment in the past three weeks was this past Thursday night at the A's game, the deciding game of the AL division series. The only times in my adult life that I have ever been to a baseball game sober is because I was hungover. We also usually get burritos beforehand and bring them in, but this time I opted out of both the burrito and the beer and instead brought my own healthy snacks and a bottle of water, after eating a sweet potato beforehand. I ended up not eating the banana and ate very little of the kale krunch (it tasted weird to me this time). I didn't feel deprived at all, it probably helped that it was an intense and exciting game... no one wanted to get up and get another beer or food and miss anything... unfortunately it did not end well and the season is over for the A's. Until next year...

Baseball snacks: kale krunch, plaintain chips, raw cashews, banana

The night before I splurged and went to In-N-Out after work where I got a protein style double meat mustard fried burger with grilled onions and no sauce (inspired by this blog).

I also asked for chilies but I think they forgot them... but it was still delish!

Today I went on a short hike with my mom. I decided to make my own trail mix with coconut flakes, plantain chips, dried apples, pecans, cashews, and dark chocolate chips. I think next time I will omit the apples as they contained a ton of sugar. Speaking of apples, I just found out that Granny Smith apples have the least amount of sugar of all the apples. I feel like I already knew that though.

Trail mix! Yummy.

I made this amazing shake this morning in the Vitamix. Kale, half an avocado, banana, wheatgrass, coconut water, and a carrot. It was super tasty!

Vitamix = Greatest investment ever

Sooo... what's next for me after this detox? The gym is putting on another one in January, I think I am definitely going to be doing it again. I was thinking of doing Whole30 in January, but doing something like this with a support group is a must. Knowing that other people are doing it alongside you keeps the motivation level high. Although I'm not planning on straying too far from the basics of the plan, I'm sure there will be red wine and goat cheese in the near future, also I miss greek yogurt. Plus the holidays are coming up and I am in love with pumpkin pie and that sugary cranberry sauce in the can with the ridges. Everything in moderation ;)

21 Day Detox Challenge - Day 16

If drinking coffee is wrong then I don't want to be right...

Yes... I cheated. Yesterday I gave in and drank a cup of coffee and you know what, it was amazing. I made my own creamer using date paste and coconut milk (although it was wayyy too liquidy... I will use less hot water for the date paste making next time) and drank a cup around 12:30 pm and for the rest of the afternoon I cleaned, did laundry, went shopping and cooked (beefy mexi cauli rice, avocado dressing, and omelet muffins) and felt motivated and content all at the same time.

I had been feeling blah the past few days (sometimes borderline depressed) had less energy, and my brain didn't feel as sharp... I felt slower. I feel like I gave it a good shot. 14 days without coffee is a long time for me. And it's not like I was ever a heavy coffee drinker or needed it multiple times a day. Just one cup in the AM and I'm good to go. I'm sorry I couldn't make it the whole 21 days, but I'm really not. I think there's worse things I could have cheated with. I haven't touched a piece of cheese or dark chocolate or had a glass of wine in two weeks. I went to Sonoma Chicken Coop last Friday and my friends ordered the chocolate fondue plate (which looked soooo good) and fries and beer while I ate my half chicken plus extra grilled veggies and lemon water.

Tangent: Someone had the great idea of freezing the banana nut porridge and turning it into ice cream. 

Mmmmm.

It was amazing a few hours after putting it in the freezer, but today it's rock solid... Next time I'll separate it into separate containers and thaw a little bit at a time.

I went to Crossfit at 6am today. Go me! Hopefully I can keep this up!

21 Day Detox Challenge - Day 9

I know I haven't been keeping up with this but I wanted to post some pictures of food I've been eating over the past week. Also I have to confess that I cheated on Friday and had a Quest bar...oops.

I got a Vitamix last week, and I love it! So far I've used to make carrot juice, a spinach/wheatgrass/fruit smoothie, banana nut porridge, and to grind some chicken to make Sweet Potato and Kale Chicken Patties courtesy of Multiply Delicious. I miss coffee, and when this is over I am going to make my own coffee creamer now that I have something to make date paste in :)

I have actually been feeling a little "blah" the last couple of days, and occasionally experience "brain fog" (one of the reasons I miss coffee). Another thing I've noticed is how full I get, I can barely get 1400-1500 net calories a day. I guess that is a side effect of eating more vegetables and nutritious food.

This weekend I made Beefy Mexi Cauli Rice (without sour cream) and Chicken Bacon Alfredo for my main food for the week, I might whip up the chicken patties again during the week (they were soooo good!). A Chipotle salad is my fall back plan in case I run out of leftovers.

Anywho, here are some pictures in no particular order:

Carrot Juice

I made this carrot juice in my Vitamix today, it was one of the recipes in the book that it came with. The first time I made it I put way too many carrots and it came out super thick, I watered this batch down (and yes that is a Miller Lite pint glass I am drinking it out of)

Beefy Mexi Cauli Rice (recipe from Healthy Living How To)

I made the Beefy Mexi Cauli Rice last night for dinner and it was surprisingly delicious and filling, as was the chicken bacon alfredo I made today (I cooked and prepared the squash last night):

Chicken Bacon Alfredo (recipe from PaleOMG)

Banana Nut Porridge (recipe from Against All Grain)

This I have to talk about. Mine doesn't look anything like the picture on the Against All Grain page, maybe it's because I used light coconut milk and not the full fat kind. But even with light coconut milk it was really rich and kind of liquidy. It was weird, but it filled me up until lunch.

Mish mash of other pictures:

Chicken and Kale Sweet Potato Patties (recipe from Multiply Delicious)

A random breakfast of leftover chili, eggs, broccoli and avocado

Chicken salad with guac from Chipotle (no dressing)

Another random breakfast

Fruit and wheatgrass smoothie

Good night!!!

21 Day Detox Challenge - Days 3 & 4

I knew once I went back to work it would be hard to keep up with this but I'll try my best. I took yesterday off to spend time with my dad and take him to the airport so he could fly back to the land down under.

Day #3

Yesterday was a much better than Sunday but I still had a dull headache in the morning. I gave in an took an Advil because I am a big baby when it comes to pain. I then proceeded to make a shitty smoothie with no protein powder (we're supposed to only have protein powder after workouts IF absolutely necessary). I mixed berries, wheatgrass, half a banana and some coconut milk I had leftover in a Mason jar that I have no idea if it was full fat or "lite" as I have both in my cupboard. So I either consumed 420 calories and 42 grams of fat  in one sitting or 150 calories and 13.5 grams of fat. I hope it was the latter, but whatever it's over now :) The smoothie itself didn't taste bad but it left me hungry probably due to the fact there was only 7 grams of protein in the drink. An hour later I was downing a can of tuna and a hard boiled egg and I felt much better. Then I went to lunch with my dad and cousin at a Mediterranean restaurant and tried to order as paleo-ish as possible. After barraging the server with question after question I finally settled on a salad with some chicken on top with no dressing (just some lemon). However, the chicken may or may not have been marinated in a yogurt and lemon sauce (don't tell anyone). I avoided the pita bread and hummus and downed like 4 glasses of lemon water.

My second attempt at eating out

For dinner I had leftover pork tenderloin, collard greens in coconut oil, and half a yam. I cooked 3 yams on Sunday night in preparation for this week.

Monday's dinner

Day #4

I woke up too late to make a decent breakfast so I brought half a sweet potato and a hardboiled egg to work. It did the trick but I also had to eat a banana and some almond butter a little while later.  At 12:30 or so, I ate my bean-less chili for lunch as slowly as possible and tried to enjoy all the flavors. I wished I had a piece of cornbread but instead I focused on the sweet nectarine I was going to have for dessert instead. Another thing I've realized about this detox is that it forces you to stop eating food "just for fun". You change your mindset so it's more like you're eating to live, not living to eat. I used to walk in to the kitchen at work and think "Mmmm, a rice krispie treat sounds really good". Now it's more like, what does my body actually need and want? Not to say that I don't still enjoy delicious food but I don't feel as though I'm depriving myself if I avoid the rice krispie treat and eat an apple instead.

After work I went to Crossfit, I haven't been since I started this program. The warmup and the WOD were both killer, although I enjoyed the workout (I love kettlebell swings for some reason), I didn't feel particularly strong. I was actually pretty hungry. Immediately afterwards I had two scoops of whey protein and then went home and had leftover chili with avocado and cilantro. Now it's time for bed. Good night!

Tuesday's dinner! I <3 avocado

21 Day Detox Challenge - Day 2

Not gonna lie, today was rough. I wanted to read about other people's experiences on similar programs and I found this: http://whole9life.com/2013/08/revised-timeline/ It's basically a timeline of how one typically might feel throughout the course of a Whole30 program. Days 2-3 are the hangover phase, and that's exactly how I felt today... Hungover. I woke up in the middle of the night with a slight headache that never really went away. I woke up a few hours later and all I wanted was a cup of coffee and a bowl of oatmeal. Instead I made eggs and broccoli, bacon, avocado and green tea but still felt foggy most of the morning.

Since my dad is in town, my sister came down for the day. After breakfast, we decided to go to the Tech Museum for the day. If you live or happen to be near San Jose and have never been it's a pretty interesting place. Before we left I decided I should eat again if we were going to be walking around for a few hours. So I heated up the pork tenderloin I made and ate it with a side salad of just greens and lemon juice.

Sometime during the day the headache got worse. I bought a bottle of water and noticed that walking around felt better than standing or sitting still. We stopped after the IMAX movie and had a snack. I had brought an apple and some almonds, and at this point I was feeling terrible, but after eating I started feeling better and we continued on. The rest of the day was okay, I was obviously not feeling 100% but I still enjoyed myself, and I didn't feel like I was going to pass out or anything. Then we left and on the way home is when I started feeling worse. Holy headache batman, I wanted to throw in the towel right then. At home, I drank some water, and ate a banana and some almond butter and laid down on the couch with a blanket and watched my A's celebrate their division championship. I was freezing, which was ironic because a few hours earlier my sister was making fun of me and asking me if I was going through early menopause because I had been super hot. At this point I also took 2 ibuprofen because I couldn't take it anymore. Once it kicked in I was feeling a lot better... but tired. I don't know if this is caffeine withdrawals or carb withdrawals (or both)?

For dinner I had some more pork tenderloin and some asparagus with olive oil that I roasted this morning.

Two things I have observed so far:

The amount of meat that is involved is more than I am used to. I'm more of the mindset that a whole foods (mostly) plant-based diet is ideal. I've seen the health benefits a vegan lifestyle can give a person. That being said, I've never been a vegetarian but I try to at least not eat meat once or twice during the week. Also, I miss my oatmeal and my sprouted grain bread.. and my coffee of course..
Another thing is that I realized I need to eat more. Since starting this program I decided to start logging my food in MyFitnessPal again. I barely had 1250 calories today, and my goal is 1800. I ate more yesterday, but it was still only 1500. I need to up the calories or I'm never going to have enough energy to work out. I miss Crossfit and strength training! It's only been a week but that is a week too long!

Nighty night... 19 more days!

21 Day Detox Challenge - Day 1

Wow! It's been 7 months since I last posted. Work and life kind of just got in the way, but not to worry I have been working out, eating and repeating ;) But honestly, I haven't been extremely diligent with it, which is part of the reason for my latest challenge, a 21 day detox program my friend's gym is doing. I was intrigued when I heard about it because I wanted change things up a bit, and it being only $21 I decided to take the plunge.

This past Wednesday I went to a meeting with about 50-60 others who had signed up and the gym owner stood up in front of us for an hour and explained why we were doing this and went down the list of what we could and could not eat during this detox. No grains, no sugar, no alcohol, no dairy (except eggs), no caffeine/coffee.... wait, what? You could hear the exasperated sighs and groans all throughout the room. I'm not sure how many people decided to drop out at that point, I know I almost ran for the door but then he said we could have green tea, so I decided I could live with that and sat back down. I guess the benefits of green tea outweigh the detriments of caffeine (although I don't believe coffee is terrible for you). He also says we should have 3 meals a day and allow between 4-5 hours in between meals to allow the digestive system to function properly and to keep leptin levels normalized. But I don't know if that will work for me. I had about 5 meals today, including my snacks. I feel like I can't keep going without a small healthy snack in between the bigger meals.

The plan reminds me of a Paleo or Whole30 type diet, basically you can have vegetables, fruit, healthy fats, and quality protein for 21 days. So I perused some recipes provided by the program as well as some found on the internet and went to the grocery store and dropped a bunch of cash on organic fruits, veggies, and meats. And here we go...

Day #1

Weigh-in day, I drove down to the gym to get my weight and BF% measured and also have a before picture taken. I might share those results with you later if the final outcome is to my liking. Then I went home and ate breakfast along with a cup of green tea. Breakfast was egg whites and one whole egg cooked in coconut oil, broccoli, half a yam, and avocado.

Meal #1 10:00am

Then I sat down and made my grocery list and went out and ran my errands. Before I left I had meal #2, half a banana and a tablespoon of almond butter. Then I was out for about 4 hours and when I got home I was starving. I bought this kale snack at Whole Foods, I read the ingredients 5 times and I think it is acceptable: Organic Kale, Organic Pumpkin Seeds, Organic Lemon Juice, Organic Chia Seeds, Organic Extra Virgin Oil, and Himalayan Crystal Salt.

I snacked on that while I prepared my next meal, leftover crockpot chicken (made with chicken, all natural salsa, organic chicken broth and garlic powder), over a bed of greens, avocado, yellow tomatoes, lemon, olive oil, and balsamic vinegar.

Meal #3, aka lunch at 4:00pm

My dad is here from out of town for a couple more days and he had wanted to go to Sweet Tomatoes (also known as Souplantation in some states) which is one of those all you can eat salad buffets. Before we went I did some googling to figure out what other like-minded people ate there and came across this blog which did not inspire confidence but was definitely entertaining: http://paleojen.blogspot.com/2009/08/poop-plantation.html 

I ate a boring salad with olive oil and vinegar and watched as my sister and dad and the rest of the restaurant ate croutons and wonton strips on their salads, pasta, cornbread and other starch-filled options. In retrospect not all the ingredients on the salad may have been "detox-friendly", who knows where those beets came from, but I refrained from eating any bread or quinoa or cheese today so I think I still win.

Meal #4, 7:00pm

I also cooked some pork tenderloin with pineapple in my crockpot today, tomorrow I'll be making ground beef chili (sans beans). I'll post the recipes later....

Overall I felt okay today, besides being mildly hungry all day and a bit foggy probably from lack of my usual cup of strong AM coffee... also Aunt Flo is in town... energy level was about medium to low.

20 days to go...