Whole 30....the results

My Day 30 was Tuesday. On Monday my house was invaded by nasty germs that pretty much kicked everybody's ass. But The Stewart's are on the mend so it's time to update on my Whole 30 results. 

My skin!! Um hello, gorgeous!! It glows. Like I'm pregnant only I'm not. The redness on my cheeks has lessened and it looks smoother and clearer. Also, the hubs says that my back feels like silk. (I'm blushing)

Breastmilk. My little chunks loves his milk and I love to nurse. But I also am a working mama so that means I have to pump when I'm at work. Pumping keeps my supply up while I'm away from Scot and also means that I don't need to rely on formula to feed him. (This is not a dig at mama's whole use formula, I believe every family is different and you have to do what works best for you and your family!) I had noticed a decrease in my milk supply when I was pumping and even though a jump from 12oz to a consistent 15oz might not seem like a lot to some my pumping mamas know what a boost those 3oz's really are. 

Energy. Like wow. I actually have some now. Whole foods vs. processed foods make a HUGE difference in my energy levels. I noticed I was a lot less sedentary and was bothered by it. Fat girls don't always enjoy the get up and go, fit girls in the making love it. 

Mood. I'm not super vocal about this but after Scot was born I suffered pretty badly with postpartum anxiety. There were days where I wasn't sure I would ever be able to leave the house again. Little things would trigger complete freak outs. It was scary. I had issues with ppd after Briton was born but this was completely different. I talked to my husband and my doctor and things did get better. Being on Whole 30 brought my normal daily aniexty level from about a 6 to a 3. It spikes sometimes, I still have triggers but woah, what a difference!

Oh, maybe the most noticeable result to the outside world:

Can I please get a HELL YEAH!!! My clothes all fit different. I feel more comfortable in my skin. It's amazing. 

Maybe it's just me but I'm pretty sure there is only one chin in that after photo. 

I did not take this journey alone. I don't think I could have done it alone, there was a group of us at work who did it together. Having that support made getting thru those early days a lot easier but also gave me people that I was accountable to. I also did this with my mom, HUGE shoutout to Mama Betsy!! She lost 20lbs!!! Also, my Whole 30 guru, Kiki V, I would have been lost many a times without your guidance. I kinda feel like I just gave an acceptance speech. 

So what's next? I start the 21 Day Fix tomorrow and I'm trying out Shakeology. I'm in an accountability group and I'm working with a coach. I'm excited that I'm really enjoying a healthier lifestyle. I didn't know it was possible. Well I knew it was possible but just not for me. What a difference 30 days make...

Whole 30...Day 16

I have successfully made it past the halfway point. Me! The quitter!! The excuse-maker!! The never-follows-thru-girl!!! And I've started PiYo. (Pilate's and Yoga hybrid) Yesterday was my first day. It was all instructional on how to properly do the moves correctly. And it kicked my ass. I am feeling muscle burns today like I haven't in a very long time. But today is leg day and I am ready to get home, play with my boys, make a Whole 30 dinner, and workout. I actually like the way the hurt feels. For those of you who know me you are probably thinking, "Whaaaa??? Who is this girl who has taken over Rach?? She likes to eat cupcakes and binge watch cooking shows on netflix." This picture kinda describes how I'm feeling:

God, I love me some Tyra.

How I'm feeling besides being a fierce, smizing, bitch like Tyra: I actually have way more energy. It's great because Scot is teething right now and I am getting a lot less sleep. My anxiety has lessened greatly and if it keeps up maybe I can go off my meds. (Please, please, please!!) I'm also not as hungry in between meals. (LOVE!) I feel positive about this experience and everything that I'm learning about food and my body's reaction to food.

So, that's me on Day 16. I've got a few things I'm working on for the next few blogs. If you have any questions about my Whole 30 experience I'd love to hear them.

Whole 30...Day 13

Who has 2 thumbs and is almost halfway thru their Whole 30? 

Have I wanted to cheat and eat one of those giant pieces of Ukrops cake that they sell by the Grill checkout at Martin's? Oh. Hell. Yeah. But I haven't! I found this awesome little thing that I used to know very little about. Willpower. I found out that this bitch can make shit happen. (Thanks Tina Fey) I am currently wearing a pair of jeans (with no, I repeat NO muffin top) that I haven't been able to comfortably wear in over 2 years. The non-scale victories are pretty awesome. But what is also pretty awesome is that I'm actually enjoying this. Not every second but more often then not. I feel less anxiety, I feel more energy, I look forward to eating real food, and I have zero cravings for fast food. This shit is CRAY!!

I'm starting to plan life after my 30 days are up. Do I want to keep a paleo diet? Do I want to do an 80/20 type thing? I know that I won't say goodbye to treats forever but I do know that I want them to be just that, treats. Not snacks, or lunch. So I'm still doing this. And I love it. 

Whole 30...Day 5

Well, today was hard. I had the day off from work and it felt like bad food choices were flaunting themselves to me all day. I said no to them each time they reared their ugly heads. (I'm pretty sure that food is alive to me right now) I may have even told the pop tarts to go eff themselves when I hurried past that aisle at the grocery store. 

I made it to dinner. Delicious, delicious dinner. Dinner made saying no to those bitch pop tarts so worth it. Dinner tasted so much better then that processed crap I craving all day. This was dinner:

Pork loin that slowly cooked all day in the crockpot seasoned with tomato sauce, cumin, cayenne, oregano, sea salt, cracked black pepper, and just a dash of cinnamon. I topped it with homemade guacamole and pico. Oh my. It was heaven in my mouth. 

I'm feeling pretty ok. Is that a real thing? I still miss coffee creamer. I still have cravings. But it's day 5 and I still don't want to cheat. If I did, I would have. I also had my first non-scale victory yesterday. It's almost embarrassing to share but IDGAF. My husband asked me if I was wearing one of my girdles. I wasn't. Mama was feeling herself after that. Another plus is that I've noticed a slight increase in my milk production when I pump at work (YAY FOR MAMA'S MILK) So cravings suck but the positives are outweighing the negatives. 5 days in, I've still got this.  

Whole 30...Day 1

I really think that I am a fit girl trapped in a fat girls body. And I'm done with that. I'm tired of feeling uncomfortable doing simple tasks like carrying the car seat outside. I'm tired of having 30 different sweaters so I never have to show my arms and can cover my stomach. I'm tired of hearing, "but you have such a pretty face." I'm tired of the swollen ankles, the sore back, the weak core. I'm angry that I get so freaking tired having a dance-off with Briton.

That's the one that did it. The anger. The anger sparked something in me. I am a strong fucking woman. I've had two vaginal births for goodness sake, I can make the change. So this is day 1. And I'm rocking it. I'm ready to drop some pounds and get in shape. I'm ready to do a mud run with my girlfriends because are some fierce-ass bitches. I'm ready to fuel my body instead of feed my feelings. I'm ready to have a dance off with Briton and dance until he drops.

I'm going to try to use this blog almost like a diary, an outlet for my sugar withdraw symptoms and caffeine headache bitch fests. And a way to make myself accountable. I'm ready to change my relationship with food and I am ready to make a change within myself and really make my health and wellness a top priority. I want to be that example for my boys.

How I'm feeling:
Pretty good....a little hungry but I will get used to not overeating. My head is killing me because my usual 3 huge cups of coffee filled with delicious creamer has been 1 cup of black tea and one small cup of black coffee. (YUCK) My morning pump looked good, I got 10 ounces of breast milk which is what I aim for everyday so I'm happy with that. I made a motivation board and that actually does help. I'm feeling ready for this change.

If you are confused as to what the hell this whole 30 program that I'm talking about is, please take a look at http://whole30.com/whole30-program-rules/.

PS-there will be before and after pictures.

I would hold you for a million years

Dear Briton,
The first words out of my mouth to you when I got home from work tonight were, "No, I need a minute." You wanted to play, I wanted decompress. And right now I'm sitting in the glider that still sits in your bedroom, quietly begging you to go to sleep as I write this. I almost hope you never read this, but then again, if you have kids...I hope you do.

Here it it, my confession: Being a parent is hard. Sometimes I cry in the shower. I lie to you. I'm not really as excited as you are to play guys. I'm scared of thunderstorms too. I think the medicine tastes yucky too. Shots hurts. I wish I could sleep in. I miss being able to go out. I really don't like dealing with wet sheets. I worry about money all the time. And Spongebob, yeah, he's annoying but he makes a great babysitter.

So....I feel like a horrible mommy tonight, but tomorrow when you open your sweet brown eyes, we both get a whole new day. We get a day where maybe I don't want to play guys but I sure do love watching your imagination at work. We get a day where you fall asleep holding my hand. We get a day where you see I'm a little sad so you give me a Briton cuddle that takes all the yuck out of the medicine and all the fear out of the storms.

Briton, I am not ever going to be perfect. But when I'm wrong, I'll say I'm sorry. When you're scared, I'll hold you tight. When you're brave, I'll encourage you. When you're sad, I'll wipe away your tears. And when your happy, I'll share in the joy. I'll cry a little bit at every stage, you went from baby to boy in a blink. I'm listening to your soft breathing now as you're drifting into sleep and I'm just so grateful for all you have taught me in humility and compassion.

You may not always get what you want but I promise, you'll always have what you need. You'll always get my heart.
As long as I'm living, my baby you'll be.

Love,
Mommy
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:Home

A change in seasons

Fall. My favorite season. I can't wait to eat and drink pumpkin everything. I have recipes galore to test out this Fall and a few fun crafts for Briton and I to create together, but before we dive into the deliciousness of the season lets back up and discuss the first 3 weeks of September.

On September 4th my sweet boy started Preschool. Sigh. How the hell did that happen? I'm pretty sure he was just wearing a "Mommy's new man" onesie a few weeks ago...but back to reality, Briton is growing up. It's such a fun journey to be a part of, I love seeing things thru his eyes and learning life all over again with him as my guide. So far, he can remember one of his classmates names, Henry, but not his best friend Henry, a different one. I take this as a victory, that he's slowly climbing out of his shell that goes up when Mommy and Daddy (or Grandma) aren't around. He's learned the cutest prayer ever (that maybe I have him recite for EVERYONE like it's some kind of parlor trick) and he's finally figured out how to hold a pencil, 2 more victories.

Also this month is my moms birthday and because she is AWESOME my mom celebrates her birthday on the first day of Fall. Briton loves to have pretend birthday parties for his family...pretty much daily so when he found out that Grandma's real birthday was coming up he couldn't wait to start planning her REAL party (they are best friends after all and you need to plan you best friends party). His party venue of choice was Chuck-E-Cheese. Thankfully after some mommy manipulation he was convinced that his 2nd choice, Stevie B's, was a much better choice. My younger sister drove down and joined my Mom, Dennis, Briton and I and we had a great night. I don't know the last time I saw my Mom as happy as she was at her birthday party. It was silly and fun but so is our family so it worked out perfectly.

For her cake my mom requested and almond cake with chocolate buttercream. Briton wanted to help so I looked for a recipe that was simple enough to really involve him. I'm so excited that he enjoys baking, he questions each ingredient and takes a real pride in what he's doing. It's pretty awesome to have this shared hobby. So after some tweaking this is what I came up with, the almond flavor was light and worked well with my go-to chocolate buttercream recipe.


Cake:

2 cups all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled, sifted after measuring
1&1/4 cup white sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1&1/4 teaspoon almond extract
2 eggs

*Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease and flour 2 8-inch cake pans.
*In a large mixing bowl sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.
*Add milk, butter, and vanilla and almond extracts. Beat with a hand mixer for about 3-4 minutes, scraping the sides of the bowl occasionally. Add the eggs and beat for another 3 minutes.
*Pour the batter into the prepared pans, dividing equally among both. Bake 30-35 minutes until your cake tester comes out clean.
*Cool in pans on wire racks for about 10 minutes, flip out cakes and cool completely on racks before frosting.

Chocolate Buttercream Frosting:

1 cup unsalted butter, softened
3&1/2-4 cups powdered sugar
3/4 cup Hershey's cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon table salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon almond extract
4 tablespoons heavy cream

*Cream the butter for a few minutes in a stand mixer with the paddle attachment on medium speed.
* TURN THE MIXER OFF! Sift together 3&1/2 cups of the sugar and all of the cocoa powder into the mixing bowl. Turn mixer on lowest speed and mix at this speed until the dry ingredients are absorbed by the butter.
*Increase speed to medium and add extracts, salt, and heavy cream. Beat for another 3 minutes.
*If the frosting is too thin add more sugar, if it too thick add more cream 1 teaspoonful at a time.



Now, frost that cake!!! I hope you try this recipe and enjoy it with your loved ones. Any day can be a special occasion and a special occasion needs cake!










Until we eat again,
Rachael


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:My couch