Post contains affiliate links.
I’m officially at the halfway point of my first Whole30!
This week was definitely harder, but not in a normal way. Apparently most people quit on Day 10 or 11 because they’re bored and they haven’t noticed any positive effects yet. Days 11-12 were the hardest for me as I dealt with Crohn’s pain. It took all of my willpower not to break out a few crackers to settle my stomach, but I really didn’t want to quit my first Whole30. I powered through with a lot of plain broth and sleep.
I also had my first cheat–sort of. I’m not counting it as a cheat or a reason to start over because it was an honest-to-goodness mistake. I did read the book It Starts with Food before starting my first Whole30. Reading the book helped me understand why I can’t make banana ice cream or banana pancakes.
But I read the book in September, more than 3 months ago. Buried inside the details, not on the brief and easy list of official rules, the authors say no deep-fried food. I’ve done tons of reading on the website this month, and only when I finally came across the list “Can I Have…?” did I read the restriction on deep-fried food.
So yes, you will see in my meals below when Dan and I deep-fried our own food. All this said, I don’t consider deep-fried food to be “Food with No Brakes” (read the Whole30 glossary for details), at least not for me or for Dan.
Even with my awesome immunosuppressants that have done wonders for my Crohn’s and given me a real appetite, I still don’t eat a lot. That’s in large part because for the last few years, I’ve rarely been able to eat without being properly hungry. I can sometimes stuff myself, but the amount of food I consume while stuffing myself is waaaaay less than anyone else in my social circle. That is, except for Dan, who eats less food than I do. We ate about the same amount when I was still pretty sick, but now I eat more food.
I also had a few other accidental cheats. If you follow me on on social media, then you know Dan and I flew into Dallas late Thursday night for a four-day weekend. Have you ever tried to follow a strict diet while on vacation? Yeah, it’s not easy. At the airport, I thought I was ordering safe chicken until I discovered it had gluten in it. Yesterday I twice chose to have fried food. And I didn’t want to send back my salad topped with cheese, so I picked out the cheese as best as possible.
Long story short, my restaurant options are:
- be a total asshole and ask about every single non-compliant Whole30 ingredient
- order nothing but poached eggs, plain grilled chicken, and green salads with no dressings
- make the best choices possible while asking about most-likely allergens
I’ve been going with #3. I do hope to do a “perfect” Whole30 at some point in the future. I knew Dan and I would be on vacation this weekend, but I didn’t want to put this challenge off any longer. For now I’m really happy with my earnest attempt at my first Whole30.
Enough with the preamble! Here’s most of what I ate the during the second week of my first Whole30. I also realized that I haven’t indicated when I drink herbal tea before bed. Sometimes I do; sometimes I don’t. This is true for last week’s recap too, but I forgot to mention it.
Disclaimer: Since at least one blog reader thinks I’m an idiot, I consulted with my gastroenterologist before starting my first Whole30. Since at least one blog reader also doesn’t understand blog titles, this is a recap of my experiences, not professional advice for you to follow without reading the book or consulting your own doctor.
Whole30 Day 8
Breakfast: Fried egg with hashbrowns, hot chai black tea with almond milk.
Late Lunch: Leftover banana nut porridge with blueberries and raisins.
Dinner: Green salad topped with leftover chicken, blueberries, golden raisins, bell peppers, carrots, boiled egg, and a homemade dressing (olive oil, balsamic vinaigrette, lime juice, lemon pepper seasoning), lime water.
Challenges: My sweet husband, in a valiant attempt to clear out the fridge of temptation, ate pretzels and cheese for dinner to finish up the queso. This is one of our favorite comfort foods. He very kindly ate it away from me so I didn’t have to watch him eat one of my favorite meals.
Whole30 Day 9
Brunch: Scrambled eggs with bell pepper and avocado, hot Constant Comment black tea lightly sweetened with cranberry juice.
Dinner: Homemade boneless chicken wings & French fries, lime water. (Yes, this meal was deep-fried. Oops!).
Challenges: A little bloating and a low appetite, but nothing major.
Whole30 Day 10
Breakfast: Leftover boneless chicken wings, pear, hot Constant Comment black tea lightly sweetened with cranberry juice.
Snack: Carrot Cake Larabar
Dinner: Beef stew, lime water.
Challenges: This is the first morning when the thought of more eggs just grossed me out. I’m usually pretty good with repetition, but I just needed a break.
Whole30 Day 11
Food: Pear, applesauce, raisins, pistachios, beef broth, chicken broth, hot ginger peach tea, hot Mint Magic tea, hot chai tea with almond milk, La Croix lemon-lime water.
Challenges: I woke up with the dreaded combination of hunger and nausea. This has been a common occurrence during my Crohn’s journey. I can usually only settle my hunger without throwing up by eating bread, crackers, or cereal, none of which are allowed on Whole30. I eventually threw up late afternoon, which briefly alleviated my stomach pain. A hot bath before bed also helped with the pain. I ate very little during the day and didn’t really keep track of when I ate everything.
Whole30 Day 12
Breakfast: Applesauce, boiled egg, hot peppermint tea.
Lunch: Chicken broth.
Snack: Beef stew, La Croix lemon-lime water.
Dinner: Beef stew.
Challenges: I was still trying to take it easy after the day before. I wasn’t very hungry during the day, but I wanted to make sure I still ate a few things that also wouldn’t upset my stomach.
Whole30 Day 13
Breakfast: Banana, hot ginger peach tea.
Lunch: Green smoothie (apple juice, apple, avocado, almond milk, frozen banana, romaine lettuce), ham.
Dinner: Rosemary-almond chicken (not gluten-free, alas), fruit.
Challenges: My stomach felt better, but I still wasn’t hungry much during the day. Smoothies go against the “recommendations” of Whole30, but not against the rules. It’s easier for me to drink liquids when I’m not hungry than it is to eat regular food. Plus I was trying to use up some produce that was getting old! As mentioned above, trying to find compliant food at the airport is tough! I didn’t discover the gluten-free menu until well after I’d ordered, when it was too late to change my order.
Whole30 Day 14
Breakfast: Fried eggs, fresh fruit, hot Constant Comment tea.
Snack: Raisins, pistachios, sweet potato fries.
Dinner: Green salad (tainted with cheese), house potato chips, the most delicious, mouth-watering sirloin steak, lime water.
Challenges: Three meals, three restaurants. IHOP, Perot Museum cafe, and a local steakhouse. IHOP did not have a gluten-free menu, and they add pancake batter to their omelettes. I ordered two eggs off-menu and requested they not be cooked in butter. I did not go as far as to request no corn oil or soybean oil. I packed the raisins and pistachios for our trip to the Perot Museum. I needed a little more than that, though, and the only real option was sweet potato fries. Finally, at dinner, I did make sure to ask for a dressing with no sugar or dairy, but I forgot to then specify no cheese on my salad. I picked off the cheese as best as I could! I have no idea what was in the steak seasoning, but I was picking my battles.
No exciting new recipes this week, but Dan and I have some ideas for the rest of my first Whole30. If you have any tips for following Whole30 in a restaurant without being the worst customer ever, or eating the same thing each time, I’d love to hear them!
