Reintroduction Day 7

I can't believe it's been a week already since I've completed "The Whole30"!?!  Honestly, though I could eat anything I want, I haven't and don't particularly want to!  I love French fries yet haven't had that.  I still haven't had real ice cream, just a blood orange sorbet (which was gooood from "Popbar", hahaha).

So here's what I've realized so far since I've been off "The Whole30":
-I can't have too much rice & bread (makes me feel bloated) - this SHOCKS me & makes sad because  I grew up eating both & love both!!!
-I've been eating too much & realize the other day that I need to stop myself before I feel full because it takes about 20 minutes for the stomach to realize that it's full!
-I've become lazy & am cooking less, tsk, tsk, tsk.

I am 75% sure that I'll do "The Whole30" from Aug. 1-31...

Reintroduction Day 3

I had rice at lunch and dinner & guess what???  Rice makes me feel bloated!?!😱 In fact, I feel oh so full that I'm standing up while typing this!  It makes me so sad that 2 of my favorite foods (bread & rice) make me feel bloated!?!  Crazy, SIGH.

I made beef burger patties today (grass-fed beef, salt, pepper, 1 egg, garlic powder, basil, onion powder, cayenne pepper, paprika, cumin) & it was goood but a bit too spicy, ahhaha.  I touched beef with my bare hands for the 1st time!😱

A cashier asked me today if I was a swimmer, hahaah.  It must be because I'm so tan...  If only my upper-back was tan too, ahhaha!

Reintroduction Day 1

Life post-"Whole30" is surreal but in a great way: I feel lighter and my head is clear.  I lost 6 lbs. & I could actually eat whatever my heart desires but it wouldn't be a good idea, ahah.  I'm going to slowly reintroduce food.
Day 1: bread & French pastries, hehe.  I'll go easy.😋 To figure out the triggers, I'll just list the things I hadn't eaten during "The Whole30".
Breakfast: the usual and a piece of bread

Very late lunch: at Springfield Tea Garden - scone, finger sandwiches, mini-croissant with ham and lettuce, fruits

Snack: at Popbar - blood orange popsicle, 1/2 dipped with dark chocolate & hazelnuts

Dinner: enoki mushrooms with lettuce, grass-fed beef & SOY SAUCE!!!  The smell was divine; who knew soy sauce tasted so good after "The Whole30"?!?

Reflection: I have a tiny zit (due to the bread stuff I ate today???) & I do feel a tad bloated...  Flour is not good for me, sigh...

Day 36

LAST DAY, WOOHOOO!!!

Breakfast: almond butter, 1 hard-boiled egg with salt & pepper

Lunch: grape tomatoes, roasted Korean purple potatoes, chicken, blueberries, cherries

Snack: banana, almond butter

Dinner: at "California Fish Grill" - Louisiana grilled catfish with grilled zucchini & kaleslaw, mango

Day 35

Breakfast: my sister came by so I ate well, ahahha - roasted regular & sweet potatoes, over-easy egg, apples with almond butter

Lunch: 2 hard-boiled eggs with salt & butter (I was full!), cherries

Snack:

Dinner:

I bought pork butt today (I know, sounds gross, but that cut actually comes from the shoulder, NOT the butt!?!) & I'm thinking of using one of those recipes & adapting it to "The Whole30", depending on when I make it:
Slow cooker coconut & green curry pork (most delicious recipe but must use broiler -__-)
Best ever slow cooker pulled pork (simplest recipe in terms of handy ingredients)
Slow cooker cilantro lime pork shoulder (simplest recipe in terms of short list of ingredients; will need to use food processor AND marinate for 8 hours)

Day 34

Breakfast: smoothie (celery, strawberries, banana), 1 hard-boiled egg with salt & pepper

Lunch: at "Cheesecake Factory" with colleagues - I ordered the chicken-mango-avocado salad, it was good!  I asked the get cashews instead of wonton strips since I get have that.

Dinner: 1 hard-boiled egg, balsamic chicken, mushroom, my sister's homemade "Whole30" ketchup, Korean purple sweet potato Korean sweet potato, which I've been calling "Japanese sweet potato", oooops, until I was forced to look it up last night, hahaha.  I had dinner before 6 P.M. so by the time it was 8:45 P.M., I was hungry so I had one of my sister's Lara bars & I also had cherries.

Day 33

Breakfast: almond butter, protein-style grilled chicken with egg whiles at Chick Fil-A (free, merci, "Cow Appreciation Day"!)

Lunch: sweet potato, jerk chicken (spice galore, lime, olive oil) & Mexican chicken (olive oil, lime, salt, cumin, garlic, vinegar, oregano, pepper, paprika, onion powder, chili powder), green & black grapes

Snack: almond butter, green & black grapes

Dinner: balsamic chicken (garlic, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, rosemary) & Italian chicken (mustard, garlic, herbs, vinegar, olive oil, salt, pepper), green & black grapes, cherries

I have a problem with almond butter, I can't control myself.  The next time I do "The Whole30", I'll have to do it without almond butter!!!

Day 32

Breakfast: smoothie (celery, strawberries)

Lunch: cauliflower "rice" with grass-fed beef, carrots, sweet potato, papaya with lemon

Snack: 1 hard-boiled egg with salt and pepper

Dinner: sweet potato, jerk chicken (spice galore, lime, olive oil) & Mexican chicken (olive oil, lime, salt, cumin, garlic, vinegar, oregano, pepper, paprika, onion powder, chili powder)

I realized today that bananas are important in smoothies; I didn't have bananas this morning & the smoothie wasn't the same...  I've procrastinated long enough about the reintroduction of food for "The Whole30" so here we go.

Because I'll be going to a bridal shower on Saturday, I have to modify the schedule:
Day 1 (Saturday): bread, pastries
Day 4 (Tuesday): rice, corn, chips
Day 7 (Friday): ice cream, yay!!!!<3
Day 9 (Monday): gluten (bread, pasta)

It's going to be bizarre being able to eat those foods again, I'll to PACE myself & CONTROL myself!!!

Day 31

Breakfast: grapefruit juice, Japanese sweet potato with almond butter and green grapes

Snack: banana

Lunch: my sister's chicken with some sauce (Dijon mustard, thyme, etc.), Japanese sweet potato, kale salad

Snack: almond butter, plantain chips (we finished the bag!!!😭😭😭) - I'll have to figure a new snack for next week!

Dinner: baby back ribs, sweet potato, over-easy egg, papaya with lemon

FRANCE!

I often get asked what to do in Paris, where to go, what to eat, etc., so here it is!:)  But unfortunately, I can't be of any help on where to stay.:(

WHAT TO DO IN PARIS

La Tour Eiffel

L'Arc de triomphe

Les Champs Elysées

Notre Dame de Paris (cathedral)

Le Louvre

Le musée d'Orsay (museum that was once a train station)

Le centre Georges Pompidou (modern museum)

Montmartre (best view of all of Paris)

Le Sacré Coeur (cathedral on top of a hill)

WHERE TO RELAX

Le Jardin du Luxembourg (garden, free, perfect for picnic)

Le Jardin des Tuileries (garden, free, perfect for picnic)

Les galeries Lafayette (shopping)

Le quartier latin (college town, best place to get the sandwich called "grec")

WHAT TO EAT

une baguette (cheap, breakfast, snack, French bread, can be bought at any "boulangerie" - bakery)

un croissant (cheap, breakfast, snack, can be bought at any "boulangerie" - bakery)

un pain au chocolat (cheap, breakfast, snack, can be bought at any "boulangerie" - bakery)

un pain aux raisins (cheap, breakfast, snack, can be bought at any "boulangerie" - bakery)

un chausson aux pommes (cheap, breakfast, snack, apple, can be bought at any "boulangerie" - bakery)

un éclair (dessert, can be bought at an "pâtisserie" - pastry shop)

une tarte aux fruits (dessert, can be bought at a "pâtisserie" - pastry shop)

une crêpe (cheap, snack or lunch, sweet or savory)

des macarons (the best ones are from "Pierre Hermé" but if you want to check out "Ladurée", go fot it)

une glace (ice cream, cheap, try flavors you don't usually go for - e.g., pistachio, raspberry, passion fruit, hazelnut, coconut, etc.)

un jambon-beurre (cheap, French ham in a baguette, perfect sandwich for quick lunch or picnic)

une quiche lorraine

un steak-frites

un boeuf bourguignon (beef stew)

un coq au vin (chicken)

un croque-monsieur (grilled cheese sandwich with ham)

un croque-madame (grilled cheese sandwich with ham topped with an egg)

Day 30!?!

Breakfast:  smoothie (celery, banana, strawberries), Japanese sweet potato, over-easy egg

Lunch: cauliflower "rice" with grass-fed beef, red & green grapes

Snack: plantain chips

Dinner: chicken, vegetables, papaya with lemon

Though it is Day 30, I am continuing the challenging until next Friday.:):)

Day 29

Breakfast: almond butter

Lunch: cauliflower "rice" with grass-fed beef, pineapple

Snack: green & red grapes, plantain chips, 1 beet chip (NOT my thing!)

Dinner: my sister brought dinner, praise God for her - over easy egg, avocado, chicken shwarma, roasted yam and potatoes, red & green grapes

Day 28

Breakfast: smoothie (celery, banana, strawberries), almond butter

Lunch: cauliflower "rice" w/ grass-fed beef, red & green grapes

Snack: plantain chips, smoothie (celery, banana, strawberries)

Dinner: dinner at "Myun Dong" - ordered bibimbap with no rice (beef, veggies), pineapple

Day 27

I cannot believe it's already Day 27!  It has gone by FAST!!!  I'll continue "The Whole30" until July 14th (5 extra days, just because).  I'll do the reintroduction (skip the 1st 5 minutes) on July 17th-21st.  IDK what I'll eat during the reintroduction but I'll do my research...

Breakfast: almond butter, smoothie (celery, banana, strawberries)

Lunch: chili (sister's husband's), spinach purée (mom's)

Snack: green & red grapes, plantain chips

Dinner: my friend's chicken and vegetables soup, red and green grapes

Day 26

Oooops, one day late!  Happy belated Independence Day!

Breakfast: with sister & her husband - Japanese sweet potato, almond butter, strawberries, omelette

Lunch: at California Fish Grill (fish, zucchini & kaleslaw)

Dinner: rib eye with "Whole30"  BBQ seasoning mix for grilled steak (ah-ma-zing!!!  My mouth is still salivating just thinking about it!), bell peppers, rosemary berry mash (not as good as I had imagined)

Day 25

Breakfast: almond butter, Japanese sweet potato w/ almond butter & strawberries

Lunch: cauliflower rice w/ grass-fed beef, chicken, cherries

Snack: organic apple chips

Dinner: a friend who's also doing "The Whole30" dropped off some delicious soup (a tong of veggies with chicken, tomato soup based), my mom's spinach purée, a "fried" egg, a ton of cherries

Day 24

Breakfast: Japanese sweet potato toasts with almond butter, strawberries, and blueberries.  It was divine & pleasing to the eyes!

Snack: apple Lara bar

Lunch: protein style double-double burger at In-N-Out.  I could've eaten a triple, I'm pretty sure, hahaha.

Snack: red grapes

Dinner: at friends' house - we made zucchini "spaghetti" with tomoatoes, mushrooms, turkey ground meat.  Yummy!  When I got home, I ate my sister's baked French fries too, hehe.

Day 23

Breakfast: grapefruit juice (courtesy of my friend Angela's tree), hard-boiled egg, almond butter

Lunch: shrimp, broccoli, failed mayonnaise, cherries

Snack: grapefruit juice, almond butter

Dinner: cauliflower "rice" (used a better recipe) with grass-fed beef (my mistake last time was the absence of meat!!!), cherries