Jan. 1-11.

Posted on January 11, 2016 by HaleyComet

Well, I procrastinated. I’ll condense each day to save the reader from boredom. To really write about my workouts (for myself), I need to not have more than 5 days in a post.

Jan 1!: EPSCAR (El Paso County Search & Rescue) 5k: “rain, snow, or 20 below.”
Huge fans of the search & rescue, saving people from Pikes Peak, the Incline and other areas of the county. And feel sorry for them when saving ill-prepared tourists from tackling our outdoor attractions.

I didn’t feel great about my pace, but then I looked at the elevation profile from my watch.
Screen Shot 2016-01-11 at 2.11.44 PM
2: 30min walk at dog park. Kettlebell: 50 swings, v-ups, presses.
3 & 4: Forgot! Can’t recall, but I *know* I did workout. This is why I need to log…It’s really bothering me that I can’t remember.
Tuesday, Jan 5: CrossFit: 8 rounds: 100m row, 10 squats (w/35lb kb)
Jan 6th : 2mi walk-Garden of the Gods.

Same spot: 1 day difference! Wed walk, Thurs walk.

Jan 7th:1.5mi walk-GoG
Jan 8: Skiing. 3hr. (UGH. Terrible drive through a storm and was really tired. Good snow and no people though.)

9: Yoga: 1hr “active recovery”. It was not as yin as it usually is. Felt hard.
10: 30min walk, dog park. Kettlebell: 50 swings, 20 presses, v-ups, Russian twists.
11: Warmup: airdyne. Workout: Weightlifting (pushpress, front squat), prowler (40kg+heavyassprowler), 20lbs. slamballs.

Push press warmup. It’s hard to get lifting pics when there isn’t anyone to take one!

FOOD! I’m doing Whole30, and I’m not caught up enough to log each thing I eat per day. I’d like to get back to that, but not right now. The first couple days weren’t as hard as I thought, thankfully. Guess I’m used to doing these.
Some notes, new things, & recommendations:
I made my own ghee! It’s not perfect, but my first batch was pretty good. I thought I burned it, but when it cooled, it was a nice buttery color.

1. ghee, 2. furikake (delicious so far), 3. addicting mayo, 4. Grapefruit season!

NomNom Paleo’s spicy tuna cakes are really good-and really easy! I ate on them for 2 days.
Primal Kitchen (from Marks Daily Apple) chipotle lime mayo is better than I expected. I like it better than the regular mayo. (Found at Whole Foods)

1. Eggs w/veggies & tomatillo salsa, 2. spicy tuna cakes w/brussels, kale & spinach, 3. Big tuna salad, 4. carrot & short rib stew

I had seafood 4 days this week. I’ve been craving it lately.

I leave you with this!

2015-2016.

Posted on January 11, 2016 by HaleyComet

Well. I don’t know where to start, it’s been so long.

2015: moved to CO. Bought a house less than a month later (originally unplanned). Did Pikes Peak marathon. Started school a couple weeks later. Fall semester KICKED MY ASS. Didn’t work out. Got ~~fat~~ (ok, how do I strike through here? Oh! Found it.) unhealthy.

Last January I blogged my 2015 “goals”. I didn’t even come close to 365 days of working out. I don’t even know when I quit that, but it was pretty early. Then:
Other goals:
knit at least 5 projects (making my way through my neglected project box)
read 10 books
3-5 new marathon states (Booked: South Dakota, the rest…up in the air)

Reality:
Knitting: 2 projects. I call that pretty decent considering I hadn’t knitted anything since Dec. 14.
Books: more than 17! I have 17 saved on my Goodreads acct, and I know I forgot to put in several. Between driving across the country (Texas) several times to/from CO, I listened to some great audio books as well.
Marathons: 3 (all new states). Whew, just under the wire here. I had planned on 2 more, but new house/K’s work travel cancelled those. I couldn’t leave in the middle of the move (that I mostly did on my own). That’s ok, life things that are more important than races and I’m totally fine with it.

Food/weight/fitness. I fit all the food in my mouth. Gained a bunch of weight. (UGH. Mad at myself but really trying hard to not beat myself up) I know how to fix it. The fall semester was horrible for these things as well. Workouts were very sporadic, until Dec break, I hadn’t been to a CF class since Oct/early Nov. NOT GOOD for my physical and mental being. I was not a happy person. That’s ok….again, other things were more important, but I really suffered.

I did get a 4.0. Whoo! Whew. That will really help later.

So, what else? 2016? This is a HUGE question mark. I’ve feel like I’ve been treading water/flailing for 2 years now. Since the end of 2013 (end of my first 365), I had “finished” losing weight, and finished the 100miler. I don’t do well without goals, purpose, or vision. Being unstable in where we were going to move, not having fitness goals…just doesn’t work for me. So, I guess the good news is I have something to work towards: getting healthy. Again. (Ugh. Why is this a pattern?)

Health/weight: 365 days of doing something active! 2 Whole30’s. ‘Easy’ to tackle with my routine. Just takes time. I hope I can do this no matter what. I’d love to do 4 again this year, but I don’t know if that is feasible, (more on that below) so, 2 is a reasonable expectation.

Running: not too sure. Depends on the year. If things don’t change, I’ll get a couple more states this year. Not sure which ones. If they do, I suspect I’ll actually get more running in.

Challenges: There are several big unknowns/events on the horizon that may or may not happen. If they do, it’ll be big changes. If they don’t, then things continue on mostly the same, which is good too. Routine is good for me and I know I can focus on getting my ass into shape, no matter what happens. This possible change would be huge, and amazing, but I’d really be denying myself if I didn’t enjoy the full experience. We’ll see.
Others:
House projects. We have a 3 page running list and have stalled on some things as they snowball. For example: “lets redo the floors!” Great. No problem. Well, now I hate the fireplace (with a PASSION) and it’s not staying. (Fireplace Dr. appt next week! One step.) So, can’t redo the floor before we do the fireplace. Need a new storage cabinet/island in the kitchen, but should get a new stove first…And on. And on. This will also be easier when I’m working again. So, maybe 1 big project and a couple smaller ones are a reasonable goal.
Reading: I exceeded my goal and don’t anticipate this falling to the wayside. Our library is EXCELLENT and it’s much easier now that it used to be. (LA libraries & education system are awful) So, no set reading goal.
Knitting: 2-3 projects. I feel this is more reasonable.

BLOGGING. I need to keep this blog up. 1 post per week, minimum. Should be reasonable as well. I do well holding myself accountable when I write it down, and it’s “out there” for the world. If my life changes happen, I suspect this will be far more frequent to keep it documented.

Side note: so many people are against resolutions. Sure, it sucks when you fail, but making a conscious effort to change, or work on something, usually leads to good things. “Losing weight” “eat healthy”, those things don’t usually get people anywhere. Specific goals, usually do.
What am I doing to keep up my goals?
1. this blog
2. getting strict with my food again. I know I”m not a moderation person, I shouldn’t try to be.
3. Fitness/goal journal. This is new, but I hope that seeing it on my table every day will keep me accountable. I can ignore the computer and this blog. Harder to ignore the physical book.

Update (post day): I wrote this 5 days ago and never hit ‘publish.’ Oops.

I doubt anyone read all of this, but if you did, I leave you with this.
Apparently, one can’t leave boxes, and boxes, of LaCroix and Pelligrino in the garage when living in Colorado. I pretty much blame my Yankee husband for this as he pointed out we have tons of shelving storage in there AND he should have known that they would have turned into frozen projectiles, as he is from the frozen tundra of Ohio and I am from the south (and have never lived somewhere this cold). Thankfully only the garage lights were broken, and not the windows in my car. Whooops. That was a terrible mess to clean up!

Nothing like trying to clean frozen, exploded, water.

Super sad face.

April 2-first week?

Posted on April 4, 2015 by HaleyComet

I kept procrastinating…didn’t feel like uploading pics, then was busy, then was VERY tired…then having tons of fun…I attempt to catch up…

April 2… Weather was less than pleasant this morning and kind of threw off my day.
Nothing special food wise…
Breakfast: bowl of red curry veggies, 2 pieces of bacon
Lunch: big bowl of brussels/broccoli salad, bowl of curry
Dinner: ugh, I’ve forgotten. I really need to type it up after every meal or take a pic.
RUN: 1mi, 9:34.

April 3: early morning into Denver. I forgot to eat breakfast and used the last of my coffee. I was so worried about getting my stuff together, making bone broth for my travel mug, and getting out the door…I was very ‘off’. I even took salad out of the fridge and left it on the counter. Sigh.
“lunch”: stopped at Mmmm…Paleo for a coffee. Saw they had several Whole30 compliant options and picked up a meat stuff, bacon wrapped date. DELICIOUS. I never would have thought of this. Cheese stuffed, almond stuffed, bacon wrapped…yes. Meat? Never crossed my mind. It was great to have a safe option while I was out all day, since I failed to prepare. If you’re in Denver, I recommend stopping in!

turkey enchilada stuffed date wrapped in bacon…

Dinner: RAVENOUS when I got home. Well, not ‘ravenous’, but I was crashing hard.
Big piece of salmon and salad. Sauteed that sucker in bacon grease and coconut oil and it was so good. Wish I had bought more. Oh well.
RUN: 7p, after dinner settled. I was so tired and hadn’t eaten enough, but I did it. Why bother to change out of your fuzzy house socks? No need!
1mi: 10:27

High fashion running

April 4: CF in the morning, then errands and dog park. Didn’t eat enough–again. Sigh.
We tried Skirted Heifer and it was great! What a good option after CF.
(grass fed beef, egg, jalapenos, avocado, etc)
RUN: 1mi: 10:51, even after a hard CF workout and being out all day!

April 5: BUSY FUN DAY!! ❤
Garden of the Gods, then the dog park, then after a very quick stop at home to drop off the dogs and grab some veggies for me, we went to Pikes Peak. It was 2p-ish and getting late, but we could see the weather up there was so clear that we took advantage of it.
EXHAUSTING day.

avocado, red pepper in lettuce. Gourmet, right?
(not shown: brisket)

K’s first time up Pikes!

April 6: Today wasn’t great. I was really feeling my dehydration and under nutrition from the weekend. It really caught up to me. I felt really horrible all day. Still ate great though!

smoked chicken leg

April 7: My appetite is really suppressed….not getting hungry until lunchtime.
B/L: BIG bowl of roasted veggies and a chicken leg.
red curry, 1/4 sweet potato
Dinner: broccoli brussels salad
I went to an REI Outdoors class: How to Hike 14ers. GREAT teacher (72 years young, climbed all CO’s 14ers TWICE, Denali, Kilamanjaro, Leadville & Hardrock 100, etc etc etc)
However, a Boy Scout Troop was there as part of their plan to hike Pikes in June. Well, these ‘boys’ were probably 13-14ish years old. They were more interested in texting and talking to each other than listening. I was LIVID. The instructor wasn’t a loud talker and didn’t have a mic (which was fine), but I couldn’t hear over their conversations. What made it worse was their leader didn’t make them shut up! I wanted to walk out so badly, but K said I really needed to go to the class as it did provide great tips and insight. Really ruined what should have been a great evening. Effing uncontrolled kids.

Guess I need more coffee. Now I’m in a bad mood thinking about last night!

In summary (if you’ve bothered to read this far):
Whole30 is going great! Haven’t felt the carb withdrawl, anger, ‘flu’, etc that I was expecting! GREAT news. Guess I wasn’t as far off the deep end as I thought (despite what my too-small clothes and scale says). And, we’re having tons of fun!

On a good note, here is a pic of the eclipse from near my house!

Where I try to establish normalcy

Posted on April 2, 2015 by HaleyComet

Entrance to the dog park. This place is HUGE.

Monday night (after I posted the last blog entry) I was so motivated! I was going to do the Incline the next day! I was going to shop for the Whole30 I want to start tomorrow! Debating a month-long run streak (1mi minimum)…ALL THE THINGS! Then, *someone* (not me) left the bedroom door open and the dogs got restless and I was up many times with them coming and going. Then one dog was upset and kept nudging my arm, his pathetic head on the side of the bed, wanting me to let him up. Why was he upset and needy? Because the other dog was in HIS bed. Nevermind that we have no less than 4 dog beds and several dog blankets. ANYWAY…no Incline today. Maybe I’ll try a 1mi jog.

Guard dog

March 31: 30min walk in dog park. Stayed for at least an hour and read a book. This place is HUGE! Real trails for walking and/or running. Hills. A big stream with rocks going the length of one side. The dogs (and I) love it.

April 1: HERE WE GO! Walk in dog park.
Breakfast: 2 chicken drumsticks roasted w/Paleo Powder. Curry roasted cauliflower. Lunch: red curry (as I work on this post), roasted carrots, lots of hot tea

Lunch2?: big bowl of broth, ‘ramen’ style, sweet potato noodles, veggies + herbs
Dinner: broccoli & brussels salad (delicious!) Note: I didn’t use any dried fruit, and didn’t have an orange either. Used 5tbsp of olive oil and extra lemon. Oh, and more bacon since this was my only dinner dish… Either this salad is that good, or brussels are growing on me. I think it’s a little of both!
I almost made a huge mistake, on day 1. I put honey in my tea travel mug to take to the dog park. Thankfully, I left it in the car. I’m glad I hadn’t even had any! I’ve been using it all week to help ward off any allergies in my new environment. Whew. Close call. Side note: the Yeti travel mug is AWESOME. It stays hot for HOURS. Sometimes too hot and I have to leave the lid off to let it cool off. But, seriously, keeps temperature all day.

Run: 1mi. 10:14 pace. Starting at ZERO. Moderately hard pace, several hills. I had to walk a steep hill to catch my breath (didn’t bring my inhaler).

Shitty phone pic does this view no justice. Storm rolling in over Pikes Peak, taken at the start of my 1mi run. Beat the storm!

I think I’ll end this post there. If I wasn’t clear, I’m doing another Whole30 AND a 30 day run streak: 1mi minimum. It’s not my plan, or intention, to run a huge amount of miles. Rather, get used to 1. working out every day, 2. get my lungs used to this altitude, and 3. try to get a *little* fitness during this acclimation time and Whole30.
I’ve races to do! And SOON!

Whole day 2 & 3

Posted on June 5, 2014 by HaleyComet

I’m really enjoying being home and not driving around. I have to go to Costco and Whole Foods and get some plants from the nursery…but I’ve been avoiding it all week. See, those places are almost an hour away so it takes a whole morning or afternoon. Blah. Thursday: I will go to Costco and Whole Foods! I’ve got plenty of food though, so I’m not in danger of being without HEALTHFUL options.

Day 2
AM: Tabata Airdyne + Tabata Battle Ropes. Ohsweetgeezus the battle rope was SO MUCH harder than the Airdyne. Now, I didn’t sandbag the Airdyne. It is difficult, but the ropes….ooof. My poor arms. Which means…great workout!
Food:
10 burpees: scrambled eggs & veggies, 2 pieces bacon
30 air squats: bowl of tom kha gai w/extra veggies
10 burpees, mountain climbers, plank: tuna salad (extra greens)
PM: 20 tire flips, practice forward rolls to box (tire) jumps, forward roll pistols (hahahaha, no bueno)
tastes of sesame zoodles (zucchini noodles). Zenbelly recipe.

My body is CRAVING greens. I’ve eaten a whole container of spring mix in 2 days. I’m totally ok with that.

Day 3:
AM: 1hr power walk
10 burpees: tom kha gai, 2 pieces bacon, 1/2 pear
20 KB swings, 2×20 “high knees”: alligator sausage (Yes, that’s right. Eat local! Eat Wild!) w/mustard & kraut, sesame zoodles, 1/2 sweet potato w/ghee & cinnamon. Yum. None of it looked great together, but individually…delicious.

Pre-kruat. Looks better that way.

10 KB snatch, 20 one-arm swings: alligator sausage w/mustard & kraut, carrots

With the kraut. Looks delicious, yes?

PM: National Run Day! 2 mile run. Splits: 9:19, 9:03. OOOF. This was really difficult. It was HOT (I probably shouldn’t have gone in the heat of the day). I had to do postive self-talk the whole way. Everything about this was hard: it hurt to breathe. It was hard to keep the pace…and last year this pace was really easy for longer distance. My legs hurt. I got random twinges. Blah, blah, blah. But, last year I wasn’t carrying this extra weight and I had been more diligent in the spring about my workouts. So. I can only work with what I have TODAY. And today I ran 2 miles and it was really hot. Good training for Pikes Peak!

The lighting in my kitchen is horrid for pictures, so I often take my food outside for photographs. This is the hazard of doing so.

Damn you!

Back home and back on the wagon!

Posted on June 3, 2014 by HaleyComet

We’ve been gone for 2 solid weeks seeing the in-laws, friends, and more friends. It wasn’t a terribly exciting trip of sightseeing or gallivanting to exotic places like Zion NP or the Appalachian Trail. Just, “normal” life things of catching up with people we love. Oh yeah, there was a marathon in there, but I’d really like to forget it.
It’s good to be home, we’ve missed the ~~children~~ dogs. I think they’ve missed us.

Thanks for resting on my bladder.

Maybe one day I’ll add all the miles I’ve driven across the country. Or not. I probably don’t want to know. Anyone planning long haul drives, I’m your gal.
Did you know it’s farther from New Orleans to El Paso than it is to Madison, WI? INSANITY.
(this was just the way back! Doesn’t even count driving to TN, OH, around OH, then to WI)

Too far.

So yes, I’ve missed my self-imposed “one blog post per week” rule, but I never had enough down time to sit at the computer for an hour and compose a post. SO. Busy. The whole trip. Sure, I probably *could* have found an hour or two, but the people we were seeing were far more important.

I have no words. ❤

PERFECT squat. We should all be so lucky.

Whole <30? Dunno. We’ll see. I can’t commit to the 30 days this month since I have a marathon smack dab in the middle on June 14. So, I’ll do it until the day before (I can be compliant the day before, but I’ll be traveling and it’s a small town, so no guarantees there will be anything close to what I deem acceptable). I haven’t decided if I’ll do the race Whole30. I’ve done it before, but I’m leaning towards “no” since I want to keep my stomach somewhat able to tolerate race foods. We’ll see. It’ll be a game-week decision.

I spent the day cooking and getting my house/kitchen in order. Roasted a chicken & veggies. Started a broth in the crock pot. Made tom kha gai soup from Paleo Comfort Foods.
Sidenote: I’ve been on a HUGE thai/vietnamese/sushi kick lately. I cannot get enough of it. Even though it’s hot, I could eat pho several days a week–extra jalapenos and basil, please! So, I’m hoping to minimize the cravings for pho and sushi by making paleo-friendly foods with the amazing flavors of the East. Hoping for the best!
Anyone have any recipes they’d like to share? I *NEED* them. Coconut, curry, broth, SPICY. Send it, please!

I’m also doing something “new” this time. I’m doing some sort of body movement/exercise before I eat. Burpees, bodyweight squats, KB swings, etc. Nothing major, just get my blood pumping a little bit.

Day 1:
AM: 1hr power walk
10 burpees: 2 bowls spicy vegetable soup, 3 boiled eggs.
KB push press (10 each arm), 10 squat cleans. Tuna salad. Or tuna on mixed greens. Same thing, right? 2 pieces bacon.
KB swings, cleans, russian twists. Dinner: roast chicken, roast carrots, kimchi. (Love Farmhouse Culture! If you don’t make your own kraut or kimchi, they are the next best thing that can be found in stores.)

Speaking of dogs…they eat just as well – if not better- than I do! Their dinner last night:

Spoiled.

Make the most of this new month! I sure am!

Day 1. #2.

Posted on January 1, 2014 by HaleyComet

Here we go again. It feels a little unoriginal to do this again, but honestly, it wasn’t that bad! The end of the year, Dec. mostly, I really pushed the boundaries of what I considered an acceptable, or ‘valid’ (per my rules) workout. I started sliding to less ‘real’ workouts in Oct & Nov as my marathons & trail runs peaked for 100 training. Dec was spent minimizing damage from the 100miler. So, I’m not too thrilled with my ‘workouts’ for a little under the last quarter of ’13.

Today the weather was gross and the CF gyms were closed. So, just a walk today. I’m fine with it as it hurts to move AT ALL from CF yesterday. I’m so out of shape!
DAY 1: Walking (treadmill) 30 minutes.
20 burpees: I’m doing a 2014 burpee challenge. Averaging about 20 a day, I should be done in April per the ‘challenge’ a friend started on Facebook.

So, I want to do this all over again. I need some specific goals, but I do know this year will include less running (over 800 miles last year, the highest for me ever!) and less races. More weights. More interval (HIIT) workouts. More CrossFit. MORE walking. I want to be more ‘healthy’ and balanced with my physical activity. None of this seems hard to do.

I’m also doing another Whole30 this month. I started today off with 3 fried eggs, some guacamole, 2 pieces bacon, & 1/2 a big Texas grapefruit (the best!). Some days are filled with pretty food. Some are not. Nothing to hide here and definitely not ashamed to show ‘real’ pics. Nothing fake here!
Lunch: hodgepodge of stuff: tuna, celery & Nuttzo, 1/2 grapefruit.
Dinner: zucchini w/ duck sausage, marinara

What’s awesome is having a partner who doesn’t mind doing the errands/shopping. I despise it. So today I get a text, “Do we need anything from the store?” and I reply with, “Spinach would be nice, but it’s not dire.” The good news is he did come back with spinach. The bad news is that he came back with all this too. (I had picked up the bananas and sweet potatoes yesterday, so he doesn’t get any points other than actually getting the spinach) Did I mention Whole30 started today?

Not yum.

Until Day 2, peeps!

May 1: new month, new goals

Posted on May 1, 2013 by HaleyComet

I’m here. I’m not dead. I haven’t quit my 365 workouts challenge. Although, I did seem to “quit” the blog for a while. Then when I kept realizing I needed to blog, I kept putting it off. Oh well, such is life of a procrastinator. I will go back and finish my entries for the past…what, 60 or so days? More? Eeeek.

In the meantime I have been focusing on school (all A’s this semester!), my food, and my workouts. I’m seeing great gains in my body. Now, I’m no low body-fat bodybuilder, or superstar Crossfitter, but I *NEVER* thought my 1 year ago 175lb self would be where I am today. I never would have thought I would be my smallest since high school.

This has been my motivation to blog again. If I never would have imagined being where I am today, where can I be at the end of this year? I still have 8 months to go! That’s TONS of time to change a body.

Here is your warning: there are pictures of me in a bathing suit on this post. They’re not great. I’m not perfect. This is a huge step for me, part of me still can’t believe I’m going to post them. I am not looking to ‘brag’ or show off (far from it!), but rather try to celebrate and embrace the body I have now and continue to work on making myself healthier. And that means mental health too. So, say it with me, “I love my body. I love my body.” This brings me to, Day 1…

This month I’m doing a little photography challenge, that’s fitness related. Disclaimer: I have NO photography skills. My iPhone sucks because it’s been dropped so many times, including submerged in the toilet once. That said, it’s fitness related and will keep me motivated to improve myself and to blog.

What else…I’m at the end of my 2nd Whole30 of the year! It’s going well. I didn’t document the food as much as I did last time. I will do another recap though.

Today for my exercise, SINCE THAT IS THE PURPOSE OF THIS BLOG, I took a walk with my cousin. We went 30min, 2.31 miles. 13:20 pace. Being the beginning of the month, I probably should have done more, but I wasn’t feeling it. Since this month has been food focused and 50miler recovery, my workouts have been much lighter. That’s ok, I’ve got big things coming! Doing a marathon in 2 weeks, then a 50k June 1, probably another marathon in the summer as well. Upping my run mileage!

Back to MAY.

Lets start my food today, Paleo/Whole30 stuff:
I had venison cabbage rolls for breakfast w/sauteed greens. No pic, sorry. They don’t look that great, but they taste good.

Lunch was a kale & salmon omelette with 2 pieces of bacon. Delicious!

Dinner was smoked chicken legs and more sautéed greens.
I’ve had so many greens lately, this has been a staple.

Now, for my May 1 fitness pic challenge. Entries, “BEFORE.”
(be nice people, no photoshop or editing! How many of you are putting non-covered up bathing suit pictures on the interwebs? Not many.)

Unfortunately, I do not think I’ll ever have a complete hard midsection. Being 175lbs a little over a year ago, and also 9 years ago, I think I wrecked my body in that way. Oh well, I guess I’ll always have a little pouch of loose skin around my belly button.
Or, get a tummy tuck when I win the lottery.

I call this, “my tire.” Get it? Heh. I love it. Not my stomach, but the picture.

This, my Photoshop-talented, friend TJ made artsy for me!

And finally, here is a progress pic. My handstands are improving, as is my midsection!

Welcome to May! Kick it’s ass everyone!

FOOD! Since we all love it…

Posted on March 1, 2013 by HaleyComet

Time for another food post. Things I’ve made or eaten the last several weeks…er, month! Oops, another realization I’ve waited too long!
Recipes when available. (Ok, I lied. I only have links to 4 recipes. I usually just throw meats & veggies together! Roasts: I use tons of garlic & onion & spices. Hamburgers. Nothing fancy.) Usually, I just throw things together, or alter recipes to make them Paleo compliant, or just better!

The day after Whole30 ended (Jan 31), we loaded up the car and headed to Houston for my first 50miler. Since I’m originally from the area, I had lots of places to stop. We wanted to hit a museum, Central Market (best grocery store, ever!), see family. My cousins live right across the street—well, dirt road and a short walk–from a raw milk farm! We brought the big cooler and really stocked up. Dairy isn’t Whole30 at all, but if I’m going to have it, it’s going to be this stuff: pastured, no grains, no hormones, antibiotics. Just…love! No dairy from the grocery store for me. Chemicals, hormones, and whoknowswhatelse in that factory stuff. It’s taken a couple years to get to this point of not wanting store bought dairy, but I love this raw stuff. I’m really glad this farm is several hours away.
EatWild is a great site to find local farmers!

When we got home after the weekend, we used the tremendous amount of cream to make our own butter! It’s actually pretty easy, I encourage everyone to try it! You don’t need a big KitchenAid to do it, a hand mixer works fine. It’ll just take a little longer. This is the blog/instructions we usually follow. (her pics are MUCH better than mine) However, the pics & instructions below are all it takes. It’s really simple. I usually divide the butter up and make salted, unsalted and herb varieties. This time was chive, rosemary & thyme.

To start: pour cream in mixer and mix! That’s it. Just mix, mix, & mix some more.

After about 8-10min it goes past ‘whipped cream’ and starts clumping into butter! You’re left with butter and buttermilk. Delicious.
Separate it out with a mesh strainer, squeeze the liquid out, and you’re left with a butter ball. Or log. Whatever shape you like.

Now, lots of food collages! Things I’ve eaten this month.

Lets start with some breakfast.

We have sautéed veggies & bacon frittata. Then, my usual, scrambled eggs (usually with some type of veggies) w/salsa, and home cured bacon.
Marks Daily Apple has some good frittata recipes, but they’re just like scrambled egg: throw whatever you have in there! I had yellow squash, red pepper & spinach. Garlic and onion too, of course. Then bacon on top.

Lets get to lunches! Usually some type of salads or leftovers, that I eat at school. Hence the leftover containers. Here we have kale salad w/apples, radish, pine nuts & almonds, yellow beets, mint & parsley, olive oil & lemon. Delicious. Top right is roast hog and salad. Bottom right is salad with buffalo burger, I think. And then a plain ‘ol salad.

Here I wanted to show some portion sizes. I try to get a TON of volume of veggies. The top left is an egg salad. Veggies piled high with egg dumped on top. I forced myself to eat it all! (the plates are huge) Then roasted veggies w/deer & regular salad. Oyster happy hour (YUM!), I ate 3 doz. Finally, sometimes I get desperate. I *NEEDED* to eat something, and I had an orange. I was in the car. Nowhere to let the juices drip & to put the peel….
SO, an orange in a shoe box it is!

Got my first sack of crawfish for the season (it’s still a little early), and the dogs were VERY interested in them. They thought the mudbugs were delicious, btw.

Let’s address eating out!

Went out several times, especially when we were in Houston. My dining partner got some scallops over risotto (I did not try). When we were leaving the Museum of Fine Arts, the food trucks were parked outside! I was so excited. I got some kind of meat wrapped in bacon. It came with a wonderfully spicy guac. I also got some kind of taco, sans shell. Both were delicious! Finally, some BBQ in a cup.

Now, some dinners!
Fall off the bone crock pot wild hog. (no recipe)
Hog & asparagus
PaleoOMG bacon ‘alfredo’. I altered this and added tons of brocoli, lots of spices. It was really good. I’ll probably make it again.

Here’s more meat pictures.
I think this is deer or hog with caramelized onions & garlic.
On the right, is sausage stuffed pork chop and steamed broccoli. YUM.

And finally, the roast chicken I made this week. I adapted Thomas Kellers Ad Hoc recipe. I used rutabaga, turnips, carrots, leek, onion, garlic, sweet potato. Used some homemade raw butter, rosemary, thyme and tons of S&P. It was so good, I wanted to give you three views. The veggies were out of this world. I love roasted vegetables.

And, there you go! Things I’ve eaten this month! I’d like to do a food post once a week, but I don’t think I have the variety for that. I make 2-3 ‘bigger’ meals a week, and the rest of the time it’s either eggs, big salad or leftovers. The leftovers go pretty far. I’d like to try a new recipe every week, but I don’t think I’d actually take the time for that.

Finally a food post!

Posted on January 30, 2013 by HaleyComet

I’ve said many times this month I’d write a food post, what and how I eat, etc. Then I realized that I should wait to see how this month went before committing to put my, what conventional people call: crazy, out there for everyone to see. I’m going to show you WHAT & WHY I eat what I do! This is probably my most wordy post yet, but there will be pics, promise! BEFORE & AFTER pic at the bottom, if that’s all you care about. I will be doing this each month (or I plan to) this year!
(I will say, this works FOR ME. If you think it’s crazy, that’s fine. But, I’m HAPPY with my choices, my body and my athletic performance. I don’t have health problems. I did when I was training for Ironmans on SAD: standard american diet. I think this speaks for itself)

Since 2009, I’ve mostly eaten a Paleo or Primal diet. It’s not a “diet” in the (wrong) definition of a fad way of eating with the goal to lose weight. “Diet” does mean the types of food you habitually eat. Anyway. I do not eat this way to just lose weight (although it usually is a nice side effect). The problem is, during various times of my life since 2009, I’ve fallen off that way of eating. Usually during stressful or major life changes: breaking my femur, leaving the military, moving, moving again, moving again…you get the picture.

So, back in Sept. I went back to my beloved way of eating and started getting myself healthy again. Then in Dec I realized I needed another challenge, thus this 365 project was born. AND I realized I needed to clean up my eating habits, and how I look at food, again.

To coincide with my new 365workouts project, I started the year off right with Whole30. What’s Whole30? You can read about it HERE. The short version is that it’s a nutritional, emotional & habitual reset by eating REAL FOODS: meat, fish, eggs, fruit, healthy oils, some nuts! Think you’re addicted to sugar? This is for you. Addicted to junk food? This is for you! I’ve never been a big junk food, soda, fast food eater, but I do enjoy nice rich meals, decadent desserts and, as a native Texan, my beloved chips and queso on occasion. (swoon)

Since today is the last day, yes I know I’m technically posting this about 12hrs early, I thought it would be good to put it out out here for you to read. As expected, I hit the typical withdrawal (not too bad), the anger phase, then it was smooth-sailing for the rest of the month. The only challenges were my 2 marathons (WHICH, is NOT recommended on Whole30 because you’re resetting your body nutritionally, not focusing on working out/weight loss, as outlined in “It Starts With Food” <—link. BUY it. I have no financial interests in it either!). However, this is my 2nd or 3rd Whole30 and I’m not new to this general way of eating, so I wanted to try it. PLUS, if I want to continue this way of eating (and I do/will), I need to see how I can incorporate this into my Marathon Addiction (Marathon Maniac #674!). AND, if you’ve read the other posts…I executed them in perfect Whole30 form! Major props to myself on that.

Ok, who is ready for food? I’ll take you through some of my meals this month!

(preface: I do not eat meals in any particular order. If I feel like having a salad for breakfast or eggs and bacon for dinner, I eat it)
Typical breakfast: Coffee (no cream or sugar!), leftovers of meat/veggies, eggs: boiled, scrambled, salads. Yes, salads for breakfast! Delicious.

I try to make my food as colorful and varied as possible! No brown processed foods.
What we have here (clockwise): black coffee (coconut milk is allowed in Whole30, but I like my coffee black), 2 fried eggs, morning salad, 2 pieces bacon for ‘dessert’, sautéed kale under 2 eggs w/hot sauce, 2 boiled eggs, bacon, Texas Rio Star Red grapefruit (the best grapefruit!).

Lunch: meat and veggies. Or usually a BIG salad, which is usually meat and veggies.

(What we have here: salad w/sautéed shrimp, shrimp hot pot from a restaurant, ground beef & veggie stuffed poblano peppers, another big salad!)

Sometimes I’ll have 2 smaller meals. A smaller breakfast, then something after a hard CrossFit workout. Sometimes, if I’m traveling, I just have to eat what is available. It might just be a piece of meat.
(sausage, chicken & mashed cinnamon sweet potato, pre-marathon steak & shrimp!, bacon wrapped chicken & sweet potato: both chicken & sweet potatoes were post-CrossFit workout)

MORE SALADS. And my dinner last night! Which, I have to say, was SO good. The sauce was a reduction of the pork juices & marinade I made. Out of this world!
(fresh veggies from the CSA, a 3lb container of salad–you will NOT be hungry after that, and my dinner last night, Day29: sausage stuffed pork loin w/broccoli)

Dinner: more of the same as what my lunch looks like. But, here’s some pics of meat! A pot roast I was searing before putting it into the crock pot and a pork belly about to be cured for homemade bacon, and the finished product!

BENEFITS.
I guess I could go through the typical Whole30 benefit list. It reads just like all the others you may have read:

IMPROVED ENERGY! (I wish I could have this flashing!) I rarely have a need for a nap anymore. Sometimes I’ve tried when I know I could use the sleep, but I just can’t. I don’t wake up groggy in the mornings. I *HAVE* to get up and out of bed.
HAPPY. I’m generally happier. Less mood swings. I don’t think this is 100% directly related to the food I’m putting into my body, but important to the whole: I’m happy to be eating good-for-me real food, I’m seeing benefits & results, I’m energetic = HAPPY!
Clearer skin. My skin isn’t perfect, and I can’t out-eat genetics, BUT, I’ve minimized my breakouts (ugh, even in my 30’s) and I get compliments that my skin looks “good.” (meaning ‘better’ than it used to be)
No big cravings. Sometimes I really crave salads. Or boiled eggs. But never deserts.
Body Change. This is what most people usually want to know/see. But, that’s not what Whole30 is about. Sure, it’s a nice side effect, but this is about being HEALTHY. And for some of us, that means needing to drop a few lbs. I have dropped a few pounds (UPDATE: -7.8lbs on Jan. 31). I know my body has changed. My loose belly is dramatically reduced, my boobs are smaller. Just yesterday, my formerly “skinny” jeans that I had to *SQUEEZE* (and not flattering) into last year, were much looser yesterday! As I instinctively went to puullllll the waistband to button it, I was floored to see and feel that there was an extra inch or two of room where my belly used to be. WHOA. What a great feeling! ………

CUE POSITIVE FEEDBACK LOOP = Happy!
I think I would have lost a few more pounds had I not done 2 marathons this month (much added stress & metabolic disruption), but I still saw progress.

So. There it is. If you have any questions about Whole30, I’d say go to their website for more info, as I am no expert. However, I can share with you MY experiences that I’ve had the last several years!

haleycomet365

365 days of workouts, Food, and hopefully some fun!

Tag Archives: Whole30