Recipes Top Of My To-Do List!

I am aware that I have neglected you all for a few weeks now! I blame end of term, dissertation stress, revision stress, and the fact that I have eaten A LOT of Lindor chocolate. Oops. I'm looking forward to Easter being over and there are no more of those eggs in the supermarkets. My god they are so damn tasty.
Anyway, a quick update, but I thought I would share some recipes that I have had open in tabs for ages now just waiting to be made and devoured:)

1) Caramelised Figs from Stupid Easy Paleo

2) Carrot, Pistachio and Cranberry Slaw from Fast Paleo

3) A HUUUGGEEE batch of Meat Sauce from PaleOMG that I can freeze

4) Meatza Pie from The Clothes Make the Girl

I have been eating a ton of fish recently which I feel great about. I take Omega 3 supplements anyway and have been trying to educate myself on the whole Omega 6/ Omega 3 ratio. I don't think I have it down yet so I won't write about it now! If anyone has any advice or a summary of this then please drop me a comment on this post:)

How is everyone's Easter plans going? Chocolate is sooo NOT Paleo, though I have been on the look out for some good quality dark chocolate eggs. My family don't buy Easter eggs, not since I was under 10 anyway, but I am interested to see if there is anything out there. I have found this little beauty which will set you back quite a lot both money wise and inches wise.

Off to Berlin next week after a disastorous attempt last week...snow at the end of March in this country ground all planes at my local airport. Luckily I am staying with friends so the only thing I needed to sort out was the flights! There is a Paleo restaurant called 'Sauvage' in Berlin which I am hoping to try as a special treat. Never been to a full-blown Paleo restaurant before so I am a little excited.

Asking Why

I have bursts of inspiration; I can feel fit and healthy and on the right track one day and then the next day, I can feel 30lbs heavier and completely out of control! I have been getting this a lot recently. I need structure to function!
We are coming up to the end of term and I definitely need a change of scenery. Once you get out of a certain routine, a way of eating, or just let something slip, I find that it all can go to pieces, and a big change is needed to get back on track. My diet for the past couple of weeks has been very hit and miss. I have had perfect Paleo days, and then I have found myself gorging on Maoam's and chugging Diet Coke. Why do I do this? It isn't even that I like the taste of these things all that much. In fact, I have now found that fizzy drinks completely mess up my insides. This may get a bit personal but after drinking a can of diet coke, I have to run to the toilet. Anything with aspartame or stevia or any other brand of artificial sweetener is not welcomed in my body!
I have been trying to answer the question of 'Why?' these past few days. Reasons I have come up with:

• Stress- I am very close to finishing my degree so I feel like I have the weight of the world on my shoulders. Dissertation, revision, exams, money, jobs, careers, visas, moving house....
• Convenience- the crappiest excuse. I hate hate hate doing something because it is the most convenient. It becomes even worse when I hear myself justifying the chocolate because I am conveniently feeling stress. This is NOT good.
• Boredom- I love Paleo food. Love it. But there are times when I can't even look at a spinach leaf without wanting to barf. For some reason, I just get massive aversion to a certain food group! This leads me to feel annoyed with my situation, or angry that a friend can gorge on pizza and I can't. It is funny though that when I do feel this, I never act upon it when it comes to my meals. I haven't eaten any bread, pasta, or any other grain/legume/bean food concoction. No, when this happens, I snack and snack and snack on 'Paleo-ish' foods. For example, today my lunch consisted of 50g of Vegetable Crisps, a handful of blueberries, and no less than 10(!) chocolate dipped dates!! Why did I need 10? 2 would have been plenty. None of these foods, except the fruit, are really paleo. They are the more paleo options than say regular crisps, or an actual chocolate bar, yes, but it is definitely cheating.

Last night I made a Paleo dinner for me and my best friend. She has had to listen to me rattle on about Paleo this, Whole30 that for a couple of years now. I have tried to convert her; numerous articles infiltrate our facebook messages, Whole30 books end up on her desk. She appreciates where I am coming from, but she says she loves grains too much! Doing this dinner wasn't an attempt to have her cross over to the meat-and-veg lovers side; she loves all food, it was more a way for me to share what I eat with friends.
I made Juli's, from PaleOMG, pork tacos, and Michelle's, from Nom Nom Paleo, Chocolate pots de creme. YUMMY.
They went down a treat! Definitely will be making those again!
Finding new recipes does get you a bit more focused and renews your faith in the lifestyle. Hopefully when I go home for 5 weeks on Saturday, I will be more focused and more positive.
Lifting heavy weights also helps...I'll try and write a bit about my workout ways soon.
 

Grrrreat Granola

This week has been a mix of successes and failures.
Failure- Ate far too much chocolate with a friend while hiding from all the loved up couples on Valentine's Day and watching various Nathan Fillion films. I love him.
Success- Got a really good plan set up for my dissertation. I now know what I am doing!
Failure- I dropped my toothbrush in the toilet this morning. Fished it out, washed it, about to put it in my mouth when I had a change of heart! I need a new toothbrush.
Success- Made a Ratatouille from my new Paleo Slow Cooker recipe book. Delicioso.
Failure- Got lost on campus, at midnight, trying to get to the bus stop. I have been at this University since 2009.
Success- Managed to up my weights quite significantly in the gym. In particular my triceps and chest press. Woohooo!

I'm finding it hard to stay on track with the eating side of things. I keep reaching for 10p sweets or Lindor chocolate eggs. Eugh Easter candy. I have decided to come up with a list of foods that are 'Worth It' and 'Not Worth It' to help me stay on plan and not feel guilty. For example, artificial crap like haribo sweets are definitely NOT worth it. I don't even really like them! They are just an instant sweetness to pop in your mouth aimlessly. A square or two of dark chocolate with some sea salt is worth it. I'll keep working on it and give you a peek at my list once i'm done.

Tried another new recipe today...Pumpkin Paleo Granola which I found on the fabulous PaleOMG website that I religiously follow. Juli is hilarious and so down to earth! Go check out her blog. You won't regret it. I wanted something a bit different for breakfast that wasn't focused on spinach and eggs in various ways. I am a bit dubious as to whether it will keep me satisfied as there is no protein in it but I shall give it a go. I can always have a side of boiled eggs or something!
Here is my finished product:

Crunchy, pumpkiny, thanksgivingy, lovely. Great with coconut milk too!

Re-adjusting

My first week post-Whole30 has been somewhat of a success and somewhat of a failure! All of my meals have carried on being compliant (why wouldn't they? They are so tasty!) but it is the added extras that haven't. I blame the supermarkets and the massive commercialisation of Easter. Ok, and myself a bit too. I love chocolate. I never used to be a massive fan of it and, to be honest, I didn't think about it for the 30 days, but after that Lindor chocolate egg last Tuesday, my sugar demon reared it's ugly head and force fed me more. A night out with friends also re-introduced me to the delights of alcohol. Though having said that, I didn't feel the need for cheese smothered chips or kebabs. I had one sausage from the kebab shop and it tasted well, not food-like. It was a bit gray in colour too. I was going to ask if it came from organically reared pigs...

So, I am trying to pull my socks up and get back on track! I'm just going to do a Whole7 and then go through the reintroduction phase how I should have done in the first place! Instead of just introducing some dairy for the first few days I jumped in head first with chocolate, frapuccinos and alcohol, so of course I felt like crap. I hadn't missed feeling bloated or groggy that's for sure.

Culinary creations this week include the 'Italian Eggplant Strata' from this book that I don't believe I have mentioned before...'Well Fed';)  It was delicious. Surprise, surprise. Layers of eggplant (aubergine to us Brits), sausage meat, and tomato sauce. Think lasagne, but better. I made a huge batch and it lasted a few days!

Moving wise, took a bit of a break for the past week. I did 3 workouts so not too bad but nothing overly sweaty! Went to Body Pump this morning an upped my weights a little. Ouch. My triceps hurt. Pilates was good again; I can see myself getting in on that. My aim for the year is to be able to touch my toes and I think Pilates will help with that! Flexibility is so important. Perhaps even more important than strength sometimes. Especially on the preventing injury front. I know that my tight hamstrings are not doing my knees any favours.

Happy February everyone! January is officially behind us. Thank God. Now onto Pancake day!

Have you tried out any new workouts this week?

Pesto Pimping

Another 'Well Fed' creation! I am truly obsessed with this recipe book. May I introduce to you Basil and Walnut Pesto. I think we are going to be great friends.
One thing on the Whole30 and Paleo in general, sauces are hard to come by. No BBQ sauce, Hellmans mayo, ketchup, normal pesto has cheese in it etc. So here is the answer to my troubles! Going to roast some chicken thighs and slather them in pesto later, along with some cumin roasted carrots...it will be a 'Well Fed' extravaganza!

Whole30 Round-up

I have finally finished my first Whole30! So I want to take some time and go over the good bits and the not so good bits. Not going to lie, I had to think long and hard this morning about this post. Reflection if you will. But first a little recap of what I have and haven't been eating in the past 30 days.

GET IT AWAY:

• No added sugar of any  kind- including honey, agave, artificial sweetners like Splenda, aspartame
•  No Grains- including wheat, rye, oats, corn, rice, bulgar
• No Legumes- including all peas, peas, lentils, peanuts, and all soy products
• No Dairy- from any source, so no cheese, yogurt, cream, milk etc
• No White potatoes
• No Alcohol

GET IN MY BELLY:

•  Meat
• Seafood
• Eggs
• Lots of vegetables
• Occasional fruit
• Healthy fats- Ghee or clarified butter (i.e. the milk proteins been removed), coconut oil, avocado etc

Whenever I mentioned to anyone what I was doing the usual response was "Well, what do you eat then?!" And the answer is good, clean food. Many people are stuck in this idea of cereal for breakfast, sandwiches for lunch, pasta and potato based dishes for dinner. Paleo is the complete opposite of this, and in my opinion, is the right way to eat. One day I will do a science post about it.

So what was positive about my experience on the Whole30? Using the founders llooonnnggg list of consequences of it, I have compiled my own!

• No bloating
• Feeling stronger
• My knee problems that I have had for a year and half rapidly improved
• A more regular cycle (seriously, with PCOS my cycle is all over the place but this was 4 weeks to the day. NEVER happened before ever.)
• Sleep loads better
• Constant energy levels
• Healthier relationship with food. Not worrying about every calorie going into my body has done wonders for my psyche. I no longer feel a slave to the calorie.
• Fewer cravings for sweet things
• Much more knowledgeable about nutrition.
• I stuck to something 100% for 30 days. 30 flippin' days! I feel really proud of that. 

I can't believe how much better I have felt throughout the 30 days. Not feeling bloated, or guilty, or obsessed. It has been rather stress free on the food and health side. I feel like I have gotten more focused when working out too. I feel stronger and capable of lifting heavier weights. Me and a friend also have started going to a pilates class, something I swore was never for me! I like to sweat and be out of breath, not lie on a floor and breath deeply for an hour. I was wrong. This isn't what pilates is about.

Ok so those were the positives. Now onto the negatives. To be honest, for me there is one big one that definitely overshadowed the achievement I felt when I first woke up this morning. Weight loss. Or rather, the lack of weight loss. I was expecting and hoping for some shift on the scales. I knew that the Whole30 is designed for health and not necessarily weight loss but the majority of people do lose weight. I wanted to be one of them, but I wasn't. I will admit, there were tears. From the age of 12 I have always been dieting, always trying to lose weight, so the scale has been a massive part of my life! I always tell myself that the numbers don't mean anything; I know I am healthy and fit, but deep down the numbers do matter to me! I wanted to have lost around 4lbs. I am great at maintaining a weight between 147 and 150lbs. My goal for the end of the year is to be 140 and I hoped these 30 days would be a good jumping off point, so to have lost ermm nothing. Well. Darn.

I have had a few hours to ponder on this and really take a look back. Just because I haven't lost any weight doesn't mean that this has been a waste of time. If anything it has fueled me on and made me believe in Paleo as a lifestyle even more. High fat way of life? Yes please. The food is gorgeous. But there is the problem for me I think. I took the fat recommendation side of things a bit too liberally. I think I was consuming too much fat for weight loss. I was eating a diet between 1200 and 1500 calories a day, and during the Whole30 I have been eating WAY more than that. So to have stayed the same weight...well that's really interesting. Science works. Cut out the inflammatory and insulin spiking grains and sugars, cut out dairy that we humans are naturally intolerant to, up the fat, protein and vegetables, and you have a perfect lifestyle!

So what am I going to do now? Well, today me and my best friend are going to a Body Pump class then having a spa day; jacuzi, steam room, massage, reelllaaxxx, with a latte from Starbucks of course (that is the only thing I have been craving all 30 days.) Then we are going out for dinner. I won't go crazy though.
Tomorrow, I am going to carry on with the Whole30 principles but just cut back on the fat. I know the science, I know the baseline, now I need to adapt it to my needs. Too much fat? No problem, I can change that. Weight loss needs to be a slow and gradual process to be maintainable. I like this lifestyle; it isn't a diet. It works if you cater it to your needs. Right now my needs are to lose a few pounds. Once that has happened, I know that I can up the fat slightly, introduce the odd latte, and i'll be a mean, lean, fighting PCOS machine.

Radio Silence

I apologies for the lack of updates; essays are kicking my a**.
One week to go on the Whole30! I can't believe that it has gone so quickly. Food wise, I think I need to tighten up a little for the last week. A few too many dried fruit handfuls after lunch!

I went to a PCOS specialist clinic today. What a joke. The basic jist of the conversation was "Metformin is the best solution right now. Losing weight is the best way to help your PCOS so try harder with diet and exercise."
I was this close to punching him in the face! What did he think I have been doing for yyyeaarrrs? My weight was the original reason why I found out I had PCOS; inability to lose anything, rapid weight gain etc led to scans. If I got a penny for every time a medical professional has told me to 'try harder', or eat a 'well balanced diet', or 'take the stairs as opposed to the lift', I would be very rich. I felt a bit patronised when he started to explain that the body releases this hormone called insulin. I KNOW. He even got out the BMI chart thing which is a load of crap. I have had this appointment booked for a few months now and was really looking forward to it. My regular GP doesn't know much about PCOS so I was hoping to be able to talk to someone who did. He obviously knew all about it, but it was not a worthwhile experience.

Self education is so important now a-days. I told him that I eat a clean Paleo diet and he just stared at me blankly. Ok so Paleo is not as big in the UK as it is in America but he should have heard of it! My goal from now on is to find what is right with my body. Doing the Whole30 has helped to regulate my period; 3 weeks early this time...amazing compared to going usually going 6-12 weeks without one! This was 4 weeks on the dot. I have been spending a lot of time trawling the internet listening to podcasts, reading literature, and just generally becoming more educated on both PCOS and Paleo. I feel like I am taking control of my body. And I love it.

Anyone else had any bad experiences with doctors?

Or have you got a doctor or met a specialist that was brilliant?