April Whole24: Days 6 - 12 Highlights

Today is Day 12!  Ooooh I'm halfway there (cue the Bon Jovi)...

• On Friday, I brought my own food to the Phillies game and felt like a total freak.  But then after watching almost everyone around us eat the grossest looking pizza (like the cheapest frozen pizza you could find cooked in a microwave), I wasn't that sad.
• That same night I knew we were going to be out late (and I had been up since 5:15 that morning) so I chugged ALL the coffee!  I ended up staying up till 3 am and I woke up feeling like crap, thinking why am I hungover, did I accidentally drink last night?  The answer was no, but I don't think I'll be drinking that much coffee or staying up that late any time soon.
• Avoiding an open bowl of jellybeans, a basket of chocolate (including cadbury cream eggs), and a bunch of mini eclairs on Easter was SO hard.  I may or may not have taken some home and put them in my freezer...
• I made this Quick Beef Pho and it came out so good!  I wasn't sure if it was going to compare to any pho that I have had out at a restaurant, but the final result tasted like the real thing.  I did find myself missing the rice noodles, but I added some broccoli slaw and scallions in addition to the bean sprouts, onions, jalapenos, mint, cilantro, and basil that the recipe already suggested as toppings.  And one tiny sliver of a red chili pepper, this dish got pretty spicy!

• I also made Krista's Stuffed Mushrooms but subbed pork for the crab.  If you have a food processor, this recipe comes together in a flash!  Last time I made them, I wished that I had made some kind of condiment.  So this time I whipped up a batch of Homemade Paleo Mayo (my best batch yet!) and mixed in some garlic, scallions, and fresh parsley and it was a perfect topping.

• I've been trying to get into a little bedtime routine.  Instead of spending my final minutes before bed with a bright screen in front of my face, I've been putting down my phone, getting cozy in bed, and reading my book (It Starts With Food).  It really helps me wind down and I'm sleeping like a rock!
• I hit the gym 3 times this week, for the first time in a month or maybe longer.  I feel like when I do a Whole30 and really focus on my diet, it encourages me to address other aspects of my health like working out and sleep.

• I've been trying not to dwell on the scale.  I've dropped a few pounds, but I really haven't seen my stomach deflate yet.  Either way, I know I need to have a tighter grip on my diet year round to have the stomach that I dream of.  A few of my friends from the gym have started counting their macros.  It's a flexible dieting program where you can eat whatever you want as long as it fits your macronutrients, hitting a certain percentage of carbs/fat/protein daily based on your goals.  So if you want to eat pizza for dinner, you just have to plan to keep your carbs low enough during the rest of the day to accommodate it.  It's pretty obvious that I'm never going to give up certain foods, so this may be something I check out after I finish my Whole24.

For the most part, I feel like I've been on cruise control.  Meal plan, cook a ton of food, repeat!  I can't believe I have less than 2 weeks left.

Happy Friday!