Wrapping it all Up!

So, I am way behind and no, I do not remember everything I have had all week so I won't bore you with the details. Wednesday evening was officially day 30 and I didn't cheat all day until dessert at Chili's with Reed. The following day I didn't cheat either- but Friday, oh Friday!! I was Templeton the rat from Charlotte's Web and I have paid for it ever since. I ate candy, chips, hot sauce, queso, chipotle chicken crispers, fries, a margarita, a hamburger, more fries, and a Sonic Blast. Yep- I have been sick for days! I have not cheated since and don't really plan on it. Maybe sweets here and there or a drink with friends but Paleo is too easy to follow without feeling like poo!

Here are my before and after pictures and as you can tell the before's are old. This is pre Paleo and pre Crossfit. The point is everyone told me I looked great in the before and look at the difference. I cannot believe the difference from behind. I also thought I looked great as you can still see an outline of abs. I thought I was just fine... wow was I ever wrong. Here is what 7 months of Crossfit and 30 full days of strict Paleo did for me.

Before:

After:

Thank you for following me- it means so much! Good luck on your journey! Love yourself today...

Day 24-27

Did you miss me? It has been several days, I know but I have been feeling like the blog is homework and I just didnt want to do it! Sorry! OK, a lot has happened. Ill catch you up. My boss was in the hospital Monday evening through Thursday. She had a kidney infection and kidney stone. Needless to say, work has been hectic, like crazy. She is much better now, however, we got news that her mother is passing away in Ohio so she flew out on Friday and I am not sure exactly when she will be back. Please send your thoughts and prayers her way. I missed my Karolyi reunion this weekend in Houston because I was completely overwhelmed with work and I knew that I would feel as though I worked all weekend if I drove there and came back in a matter of 48 hours. So here is the food list- BTW I have been eating REALLY well.

Thursday
Breakfast:
protein shake
Snack:
boiled egg and trail mix
Lunch:
Chipotle salad with steak, pico, salsa, and guac
Snack:
apple
Dinner:
Post yoga- I had eggs, canadian bacon, and bacon. No veggies lol!

Friday
Breakfast:
Protein shake
Snack:
boiled egg
Lunch:
I didnt want the salad I brought so I took everything I had from the company fridge and made a random lunch- carrots, boiled egg, strawberries, and 2 protein rounds.
Snack:
Ran a 5K at the gym then had an apple
Dinner:
We had people over for orange chicken and cauliflower fried rice. I put too much pepper in the fried rice but I will learn next time. The chicken was not syrupy- it was super orange so be prepared but I loved it! I also made a 2 layer chocolate cake and it was pretty good.

Orange chicken:

http://www.health-bent.com/proteins/paleo-orange-chicken











Cauliflower fried rice
http://nomnompaleo.com/post/3195098303/asian-cauliflower-fried-rice

Chocolate cake

Yep, that one's mine!

http://hyperbolicdiet.tumblr.com/post/3477194284/paleo-recipe-dark-chocolate-coconut-cake

Saturday

Breakfast:

I LOVED making a big breakfast after a short walk this morning! Eggs, bacon, roasted veggies, and mixed fruit.
Snack:
Fruit
Lunch:
Protein shake on the run
Dinner:
We went to dinner for a dear friends surprise birthday at Cantina Laredo. We had steak and chicken fajitas with veggies and guac.
I had some frozen fruit and coconut milk after because everyone was talking about ice cream at dinner.




Sunday
Breakfast:
Reed made Paleo pancakes
Lunch:
At Reeds parent- lettuce wraps with lunch meat, tomatoes, onions, and apples with strawberries.
Dinner:
Grilled pork chops and veggie kabobs (onion, mushrooms, squash, zucchini, and peppers)
Then I made strawberry muffins and completely over-indulged. I tried to use the excuse that I rowed 2 miles this morning but there is no excuse for eating 3 and 1/2 muffins. I still want more. **sigh**

Muffins
http://paleoperiodical.com/2011/05/04/recipe-strawberry-vanilla-almond-muffins/

OK, this blog deleted itself as soon as I was done with it last time so out of total defeat I have no words of wisdom this time. I am almost done! I am loving it though and I am not sure I want it to stop...

Day 22 and 23

Its official- I have one week left! Did you just clap out loud too? So, Reed and I were turned on to a documentary (OK, 1. We LOVE documentaries. 2. Thank you Devon Hood) called Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead. It was about juicing and how fruits and vegetables can save our lives; which I totally believe! Check it out. While we were watching it we noticed that most of the people on the fast talked about temptation and people who were not interested in the fast were this way because they felt they could not stay away from the foods they are addicted to. I want to express to you that I do not live in a bubble all alone with my Paleo food. My home kitchen is cleaned out but I live in the real world with real temptations. Besides the fact that there is fast food on every street corner that I could stop at and no one would ever know; I must face that fact that my wonderful company keeps the kitchen fully stocked with goodies! Is this what you experience too?

My trick is to always bring my lunch and when I choose to eat out with some company friends I make a point to ask if a Paleo friendly place is acceptable to them. Tuesday we ate at Kincaid's Burgers and I was able to order a burger with bacon and all veggies and a whole pickle on the side. I had unsweet tea with lemon as a drink and all was right with the world. The point is not to be perfect, the point is to strive for it. Like I said in an earlier post- I will eat cake and bread again. I just will not do it everyday or even once a week. I am hoping that I have made enough wonderful Paleo items that I can choose them or even a new recipe over pizza and soda. I do not promise it is easy but I promise you will learn a lot and come out better on the other side. PS- you will do a lot of dishes! :)

Breakfast:
protein shake
Snack:
cashews and carrots
Lunch:
Kincaid's Burgers
Snack:
Apple
Dinner:
Almond and coconut crusted chicken and roasted vegetables with bacon.
1 lb chicken

Dip the chicken in coconut milk
Almond meal, shredded coconut, cinnamon mixed up on your cutting board or flat surface
Coat the chicken with the dry mix and then bake
I know cinnamon seems odd on chicken but it was actually very tasty
Dessert:
frozen fruit pureed with coconut milk- this rocked!

Breakfast:
protein shake
Snack:
Cashews
Lunch:
leftover coconut almond chicken and steamed veggies
Snack:
A bank brought us some fresh fruit that I nibbled on a bit
Dinner:
Reed made a frittata- I had 2 eggs, bacon and canadian bacon. I was STUFFED!
Dessert:
Banana nut bread- it turned out very good actually! Here is the link:

http://www.freefitguy.com/2011/01/12/quick-easy-recipes-the-best-paleo-banana-nut-bread-ever/

Remember to spend sometime alone with yourself today! Stay kind...

Day 21 and 22

Wow! We have made it 3 full weeks! I have never, ever stuck to an eating plan for this long and I feel great just to have accomplished this. We had a wonderful lazy Sunday- don't you just love those? I have researched some treats and, just for the love of my life, I made Paleo Reese's and ice cream!

Reese's
Melt 1/2 the chocolate (as close to 100% cocoa as possible). We found some 100% cocoa at Wal Mart that has 0 grams of sugar and 60% which had about 20 grams in an entire bag. Let me tell you there is a large difference! The 100% is very bitter but its doable I suppose.

Pour the chocolate into an ice tray, fill up half way. Throw them into the freezer
Melt the rest of your chocolate while you are waiting for the ones in the freezer to set up or get hard
Take them out of the freezer and put almond butter on them and then pour the rest of the chocolate on top and throw everything into the freezer.
The 60% rocked but its not something we can enjoy all that often

Berry Ice Cream
1 cup frozen mixed fruit (huge bag at Wal Mart)
1 cup coconut milk
1 tbls cocoa powder
1 tsp vanilla

Blend- makes a smooth, yummy treat! You can put less cocoa if you want a fruitier mix or more if you want it more chocolatey! Try it and play with it. Its wonderful!

Day 21
Breakfast:
Paleo pancakes
Lunch:
Ok, we took a long nap after church so when we woke up I snacked on an apple and some watermelon
Dinner:
Zucchini/squash spaghetti with turkey meat
Then I made some berry ice cream

Day 22
Breakfast:
Protein shake
Snack:
carrots and cashews
Lunch:
Salad with egg, bacon, and avocado
Snack:
Trail mix- peanuts, cashews, raisins and an apple
Dinner:
Leftover spaghetti and watermelon

I am going to get up and make some protein rounds (Reed doesn't want me to call them balls anymore). Any names for these? Rounds is the only thing I could come up with- super creative tonight! My hands are healing up just in time for Reed to get two rips tonight... the Bag Balm continues to be used in this house! We are focusing on finding balance in our lives. The balance between our love of all things food and our love of aesthetically pleasing bodies. The balance between our love of Crossfit and that of the rest of our lives. We are finding balance in our spiritual lives and emotional lives. Eating clean reminds me of all the cleaning I need to do figuratively in my life. Do you have any cob webs laying around? Have you forgotten to balance out a few parts of your life? Well, think about it and make an effort to find some balance. My advice: try some yoga- it forces you to be quiet and in touch with your body for an extended period of time. Hard to do but totally worth it! Stay healthy and happy!

http://www.oprah.com/home/Do-You-Feel-Balanced-Peter-Walsh-Quiz

Day 19 and 20

Due to the hurricane I laid on my hands Thursday, today's blog is going to be about taking good care of yourself. As a former elite level athlete I suffered through many injuries but, luckily, I was never down for long. My siblings were also elite level athletes and some of this prevention comes from them and/or their coaches. Food first:

Breakfast:

Our favorite protein

Protein shake
Lunch:
Reed woke up and thawed out my other bacon-wrapped filet for me and I threw it on the Foreman as I got ready for work. I had it, green beans, watermelon, and a couple left over apple cinnamon cookies.
Snack:
Watermelon and 1 cookie
Dinner:
Turkey burgers and roasted veggies (broccoli, cauliflower, squash, and zucchini). This all comes in a HUGE bag in the frozen vegetable section in Wal-Mart.
Pre heat oven to 400
Take the veggies and thaw them in a strainer.
Foil wrap a baking sheet and spray with non-stick cooking spray
Dump veggies in a bag with oil (coconut oil, olive oil, bacon fat, whatever you want). I used EVOO. Put this in there along with bacon- I used bacon bits because I didn't have bacon. Next time I will slice bite sized bacon pieces (uncooked) and put them in the bag too.
Lots of S&P and shake the bag vigorously- do the hokey pokey and turn yourself around.
Dump onto the baking sheet and throw in the oven
Keep turning the veggies every 10 minutes for a total of 30-35 minutes.
OMG- these rocked- best way to eat vegetables hands down!

These are not my vegetables but I need to add onions! This was taken from:
http://townie.wordpress.com/2007/11/06/oven-roasted-vegetables/

Breakfast:
Protein shake
Lunch:
Mi Cocina salad- we went to a wedding this morning. We then went to Ikea which we forgot smelled like giant cinnamon roll that everyone is walking around eating while they shop for Swedish furniture.
Snack:
We snacked on some dark chocolate on our way home. Not exactly Paleo but we remained positive that we walked out without a cinnamon roll or ice cream cone.
Dinner:
Leftover turkey burgers and roasted vegetables
Went to a late movie and packed some strawberries and bananas and apple cinnamon cookies. Not bad to walk past the popcorn and candy boxes.

Ok, on to prevention and what to do if you get hurt! First off, I have learned that it is best to warm up with light jogging or a row or some air squats. Get a thin bit of sweat on you before a workout. If you are sore, stretch out a little then do the cardio needed to sweat. Do not stretch like a gymnast for 30 minutes before a mile run; stretch after your workout. Stretch very well; it not only helps with soreness it also helps your flexibility so you will be able to perform your lifts, runs, cycling, etc better. Some people love to roll on foam rollers (ie my brother and my friend Candace). I like it for my IT bands and thighs but don't like it much for anything else; would rather get a massage. Try it and see what you think. Soak in epsom salt in the bath tub- also helps with relieving soreness. It relieves bloating too which is just a bonus for us women!

I have found that rotating ice and heat helps relieve my soreness in a matter of 24 hours. Take a large Ziploc bag and a dish towel. Wet the dish towel thoroughly, put some peppermint oil on it and pop it in the microwave for a minute and a half. Put the towel in the bag and place on sore area. Make your own ice pack! Its awesome, cheap, and super easy! Take a large Ziploc bag and put a bottle of rubbing alcohol and equal part water. Throw this into the freezer and let freeze about 2 hours. When you pull it out it will be moldable like the reusable bags you buy at the store.

If you rip up your hands, like I did ice them first. Ripping your hands is a burn. Friction is created between your hand and the bar or weight. This friction creates heat and, along with the repetitious movement, causes your skin to pull away from the other skin or muscle. I found the ice cools the burn, go figure. It is important to use cuticle scissors to cut excess/ripped skin away from the rip! Do not leave the skin on as it is dead and hardens anyhow. Then I hit it with BagBalm (green can at Walgreens) and/or HandEBalm (you can buy online). This is something gymnasts use like crazy. I put it on with socks over my hands and go to bed. I eventually put New Skin or Second Skin on it when I can handle it. I used to put Iodine on them as a gymnast or "Monkeys Blood." I am not sure what this did but it burned like crazy. Last tip: stay off your hands until fully recovered.

Stay healthy- my hands are tired... Treat yourself and soak in the bath or get a massage! You earned it!

Day 17 and 18

Perseverance is the hard work you do after you get tired of doing the hard work you already did.  ~Newt Gingrich

Yesterday I quit Paleo. I cursed it and Crossfit and everyone I know (yep, even you). I was so sick of reading success stories and hearing how excited everyone was. Man, it sounds stupid when I actually say it out loud. I started this to inspire and motivate my friends and family and now that people are motivated I wanna quit. WTH right? So, honestly, I have not seen the scale move an ounce- I bet you think I am kidding. Everyone is saying they are seeing results in me but having a history of body image issues is keeping me from appreciating such subtle changes. I didn't go to Crossfit; I came home to throw myself a pity party. Do you just love those? Well, it was my turn. Reed came home too and he said, "You just wanna order a pizza?" I shook my head up and down as my heart sank. I couldn't very well type the word pizza with shaking hands onto this blog. So, I didn't. I didn't cheat either. I grit my teeth and I made dinner. It is hard sometimes but man, I wasn't sick all night from pizza.

I may not be there yet, but I'm closer than I was yesterday.  ~Author Unknown

Breakfast:
leftover smoothie with some protein powder
Snack:
cashews and boiled egg
Lunch:
Company ordered Pappasitos for monthly birthday lunches. I had chicken, guac, pico, and salsa on a bed of lettuce. Because I was cursing Paleo let me pause to say chips and queso are "my thing." I could out eat your husband on some chips and queso. So I watched, feeling sorry for myself. All the while I am guessing the people at work were wishing they had will power to stop eating them lol.
Snack:
apple
Dinner:
I made squash and zucchini noodles (hot) with cherry tomatoes (cold) and baked tilapia with almond meal crust and salt-free Mrs. Dash spices.
Dessert:
Ok, I tried to make brownies but the recipe called for coconut cream and I didn't have that. Everything I looked up on the internet said do not think that coconut milk is a good substitute for coconut cream... So, I used coconut milk because thats all I had :). Yep, they smelled amazing but they were not all that great. When I perfect them I will put the recipe up.

Breakfast:
cereal no fruit
Snack:
baby carrots and boiled egg
Lunch:
Mi Cocina salad no tortilla strips and no cheese. Say what you want about my addiction to this salad but you haven't lived until you have had a Mico Rico.
Dinner:
salad with ham, egg, bacon, and avocado. I was not in the mood so I only ate half.
Dessert:
I made the cinnamon apple cookies from Civilized Caveman on the nomnom blog. You can look up either of these for directions but...

preheat over to 350
2 apples peeled and cored
2 cups sliced almonds
2 tsp coconut oil
2 tsp vanilla
1 tbsp of cinnamon
1 cup shredded unsweetened coconut
pinch of salt
2 eggs beaten lightly

shred apples in processor and remove
pulse almond, cinnamon, oil, and vanilla
combine all into bowl and mix
make into cookies and cook 25-30 min

We found these to be more like granola bar flavored cookies, but if you are trying to sell your home I say bake these before your open house! They smell AMAZING! They were good and I had two! I cut up some watermelon that I will enjoy throughout the week

When you come to the end of your rope, tie a knot and hang on.  ~Franklin D. Roosevelt

Off to the garage to row 1000M for time, 100 pull ups for time, then easy 1000M row. Have a wonderful night and when you feel like giving up just know everyone feels that way every once in a while. Feel free to call me if you wanna cry or vent :)!

New polls out about obesity:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/43670705/ns/health-diet_and_nutrition/?GT1=43001


Don't let the fear of the time it will take to accomplish something stand in the way of your doing it.  The time will pass anyway; we might just as well put that passing time to the best possible use.  ~Earl Nightingale

Got only 68 pull ups and go these- they are really much worse than they appear!

Day 16

Me: "See ya later! I am outta here for a long weekend!"
Office Buddy: "Have a great weekend..."

Text some hours later.
Office Buddy: "Just now leaving work... All I want is pizza and wine."
Me: "Well, you deserve it!"

Ok, todays post is about gifting ourselves with food. Why oh why would I ever tell her she deserved sugar on top of carbs with sitting oil on top!? Do I not care about this friend?! My question to you tonight is how many times have you said- I deserve this while eating something terrible? How many times have you said its been a really hard day, the only cure is a cake? How about Reed and I- we give each other candy and desserts as gifts! How about, if you're good you can have McDonalds? Or eat one bite of vegetables and you can have ice cream! Does any of this sound familiar?

We have a connection in our brains with food. This connection creates an addiction much like a drug or alcohol addiction. Don't believe me? Look it up! I did:

"Like many pleasurable behaviors—including sex and drug use—eating can trigger the release of dopamine, a feel-good neurotransmitter in the brain. This internal chemical reward, in turn, increases the likelihood that the associated action will eventually become habitual through positive reinforcement conditioning. If activated by overeating, these neurochemical patterns can make the behavior tough to shake—a result seen in many human cases, notes Paul Kenny, an associate professor in the Department of Molecular Therapeutics at The Scripps Research Institute in Jupiter, Fla., and co-author of the new study. "Most people who are overweight would say, 'I would like to control my weight and my eating,' but they find it very hard to control their feeding behavior," he says."
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=addicted-to-fat-eating


This chemical reward becomes habitual because we like/crave/need the feeling. You always hear- I eat because I am sad and I am sad because I eat... Well, yeah!  The only thing that cures drugs is more drugs or a complete break off. This is an addiction and you are NOT alone. Not even close. *** Side Note- whenever my AC turns on these days it smells like toast. Do you think I am going crazy? Reed confirms this.***

My goal today for myself is to begin to re-train my brain that food does not have to be my only reward. In fact, I bought a 75 minute massage today for my 31st day. Reed chose running shoes. I am not saying go broke to gift yourself with something other than 99 cent fries or Dunkin Donuts but maybe a 30 minute time-out or a long bath can be your gift. How about a new kitchen tool or a cooking class? Guys, how about a BBQ with friends or a game night? (This sounds dumb, but I am not a guy so cut me a little slack!) Just think about it. I am not saying I wont ever enjoy a piece of cake again, I will, its engrained in me now, but I will no longer tell myself I deserve it. It will simply be something I enjoy.

I promise I didn't cheat today but this turned into a pretty long blog so no food today. I did, however, put bacon and chives on the cauliflower potatoes last night and man what a difference that made! Have you tried them yet? I also got unsweet tea from Sonic and they squeeze the lemons and put them in there for you! It was great and I didnt have to do a thing!

Day 15

The baby- ASPEN!

All about kiddos! I hope you are having a wonderful 4th of July. Reed and I took our niece to the park this morning. It was a good 20 minute walk, hour outside, then 20 minutes back. We wore her out and vice versa. I then did a WOD really quick in my garage that consisted of 200M row, 20 squats, 10 push-ups- 10 rounds of that. It got hot real quick!  This upped my water intake. Reed did a total of 100 push ups and 130 pull ups! I love my husband! I made some sugar free, pink lemonade popsicles for later and I have pork chops thawing. So far I have had cereal with no fruit then apples and oranges after the workout. I will have a smoothie later with pineapple, banana, strawberry, and coconut milk (if I get hungry or some nuts). Pork chops and veggies for dinner- I may do beans if I feel like I need to. I hope you have a wonderful start to your week! Here are tons of kid-friendly Paleo sites for all of my buddies out there with Cave Kids! XOXOXO

From everydaypaleo.com

http://everydaypaleo.com/2011/04/08/paleo-kids/

http://robbwolf.com/2010/04/16/kids-paleo-and-nutrient-density/

http://thepaleodiet.blogspot.com/2010/02/paleo-diet-q-2-february-2010-paleo-diet.html

http://www.kidspaleodiet.com/

http://robbwolf.com/tag/children-paleo-diet/

The woman from nomnompaleo.com has small children that she makes great snacks and desserts for.

Try those out and see what you think! I hope this helps you help your children. Be kind to yourself and keep the questions and ideas coming! I cannot express to you how much your support means to Reed and I. I told him yesterday I am finally starting to see a difference- after 15 days! I cannot wait for the next 15 days!

Day 13 and 14

Can you even believe its been two weeks? Today, I can- if you would have asked me yesterday it was easy-breezy!  Today, was rough! Ok, lots to say today so let me do my food real quick. I had family in town so lots of non-paleo mouths to feed including: my sweet, baby niece Aspen.

breakfast-

Paleo pancakes

Mixed fruit

Snack-

mixed fruit

Lunch-

leftover spaghetti stuff

Dinner (by Reeds parents pool)-

Sausage and guac

mixed fruit

Snack-

cereal with 1/2 banana

breakfast-

frittata and sausage

snack-

apple and some brisket

lunch-

burger with guac, lettuce, tomato, and onion 

green beans

***Pause. Reeds parents had 5 desserts (banana pudding pie, peach cobbler, blackberry cobbler, chocolate on chocolate cake and ice cream) at their house today and chips and cheese dip with Rotel. Normally we would gorge ourselves on all of this. I am telling you we seriously struggled today. I came home in a bad mood with a headache and I think it was because I was straining so hard not to cheat. We both made it through but it could have been our toughest yet.***

Dinner- 

lunch was late so watermelon and a smoothie

Reed made a Paleo frappacino today for all of you that care about coffee. I tasted it and its not bad at all and I loathe coffee. 

1/2 banana

1/2 cup coconut milk

1/2 tsp cocoa powder

1/2 cup coffee

1/4 tsp vanilla

ICE

Ok, men tune out of the rest of this if you do not wish to know anything about sports bras. I care about this because I spent MANY a year in a "real" bra and 3 sports bras. I used to run with Reed and cry (yes, for real) about how I couldnt breathe and it didnt matter I still hurt. Reed bought me a sports bra from Luke's Locker on Valentine's one year and I could not believe the difference it made. I am not kidding, I literally cried when I put it on, jumped up and down and didnt feel a thing. Hmmm, I cry a lot huh? I did full on gymnastics in high school by taping my breasts down then putting a sports bra on top then my leotard. I know so many women struggle with finding the "right one" and since this blog focuses on health I found this to be a vital part. I feel no shame in telling you I am a 34 DD and I can Crossfit, powerlift, run, and do cartwheels because of this bra and a little determination. My brother now works for Luke's Locker in the Woodlands and he gave me to top 5 sports bras.

Fiona

1. Moving Comfort- Fiona (this is mine)

2. Moving Comfort- Juno

3. Moving Comfort- Maia

4. Nike- Victory Compression

5. Enell Sports Bra

He also says women are raving about the Lululemon racer back tanks but, I can't do a tank alone. Also, Lululemon Tata Tamer. Check them out and see if they make a difference in your workouts! Good luck!

Tomorrow I will have posts about feeding your Cave Kids! Although I do not have children I find this comes up a lot. You don't want to make food just for yourself and you do not want to feed your kids crap all the time either. I hope this is just a jumping off point for those of you with kiddos. Stay tuned tomorrow as I will research tonight. Consider it your 4th of July gift! :) 

Day 12

Hey guys! Ok, let me start off by saying that I have noticed that I wake up before my alarm goes off and I feel great in the morning. It has only been 3 days of that and only 12 days of eating clean but I do see a correlation. My moods are very balanced. There are no big up or down shifts throughout the day and I think that is something major people deal with when they reduce their carbs and sugars. Speaking of that, I Googled "sugar withdrawals" and you would not believe how many websites are dedicated to helping people and educating them on what to expect when withdrawing from sugar and the likes.
While reading I saw that most people experienced extreme headaches and tiredness. Although I felt this on many diets before, I cannot say that I have had concurring days of headaches or sleepiness. I am not saying "my way is the only way or the best way" I am simply stating that has not been my experience. I think it is because I have allowed natural sugars like fruits and honey to be entered. I try to eat them sparingly but looking at my previous posts you will see I love my fruit. How do you feel when you take out the sugar? One friend said she is crabby and moody but is very early into her clean journey. I told her to see if it continues or eat a banana (lots of sugar) and see if she feels better. That way she can bring in natural sugars (lower in glycemic index than a banana) but you get the idea.

Breakfast:
Protein shake
Snack:
Protein ball (recipe to follow) and a boiled egg, what a combo!
Lunch:
Salad from Freebirds with lettuce, tomato, salsa, guac, chicken, and veggies. It was just so-so. Nothing to write home about
Snack:
Apple
After workout:
Protein shake
Dinner:
Turkey Spaghetti with squash and zucchini noodles. Ok, the pasta sauce is high in sugar so I used half the jar and got the one with the lowest sugar I could find. I will research making my own next time but let me say this was, by far, our favorite meal yet!




Protein balls (Reed raves about these)- take 4-6 pitted prunes and put them in your food processor until it makes a paste ish substance then take 1 Cup almond (can use chopped, sliced, or almond meal) and 1/2 walnuts and hit that with the processor, next 2 TBLS coconut oil, and I put about 1 TSP honey and mix it all together. I then diced strawberries and dumped out my pastey mixture on top of them. I started rolling them into little balls. The first batch I put my avocado chocolate pudding on and then rolled them in coconut shreds. The second batch no pudding, just shreds. Next time I will experiment with apples or bananas. Come over, have some! *Recipe from Nomnompaleo.com

I bought a Julienne peeler from Bed Bath and Beyond today with a wedding gift card. It is in the dishwasher- picture to follow. I peeled the zucchini and squash with it and it makes noodles. I am not kidding. No cutting or dicing. This thing does the work for you. Popped it in a microwave safe bowl with a little EVOO and garlic salt and voila! Noodles! *Also form Nomnompaleo.com- told you she was the shiz!

Reed and I rocked a Crossfit workout that included Muscle Ups, 165 (his was much more weight) lbs deadlifts, and burpees tonight and felt great. Now I am just waiting (in my clean house) on my sweet baby niece to get here. Have a wonderful Friday evening/Saturday morning. This weekend I will have information on the perfect sports bra (sorry guys) and the best homemade ice pack.