Day 1 of the Whole30

I've done it, y'all! I've made the leap and am doing the whole30 challenge for the next 30 days. No sugar, processed foods, beans, rice, etc. Here are all of the details about the whole30 incase you're curious. 

Many of you know I was able to get off my pain prescriptions last September after years of taking them for fibromyalgia. Going into this year, a goal of mine has been to continue on my wellness journey, doing good things to support my body. I've read for years that sugar is bad for autoimmune conditions, and experts say to exclude sugar with fibromyalgia. The thing is though, I like sugar. ;) I usually eat it each day - I love cookies after my lunch! I saw friends getting ready to do this challenge and just felt right and want to try this for my body. 

I haven't eaten gluten for the past 3 years, and dairy for the past 3.5 years, but this is not going to be easy! I think eating out will be the biggest challenge really. Though I have been used to asking questions about the menu, this will take it to another level. I have seen helpful guides about eating out on the whole30 too, which I appreciate. 

My breakfast today - my first official whole30 meal:) 2 hardboiled eggs, 1/2 tomato, 1/2 avocado with salt & pepper. It was so delish! Adding onions would be great too (though I wouldn't love onion breath all day..). 

Chocolate chili was my lunch & dinner (recipe here! I couldn't find whole30 compliant beef broth, so I used vegetable broth). I prepared the chili Sunday to help myself get through the first few days easier (I'll be eating chili for a few more meals which I love - leftovers are my fave). Plus, cooking mid-week can be a challenge for me! I did sauté kale tonight to add some greens. I caramelized onions first in olive oil, added the kale with garlic (powder since I'm out of minced), salt and pepper. What a great meal. So delicious too! This has been the most delicious day I've had in a long time - and no cookies were even involved ;) 

For extra foods throughout the day, I had 1/4 of a cucumber sliced with salt & some almonds a little bit before lunch, a handful of cherries and a kiwi this afternoon (I'm trying to adjust to stop snacking during this challenge since it's preferred to not snack if it's not needed - maybe I need bigger meals?! I'm such a snacker.). Such delicious foods! Feel free to pass any recipe/meal ideas my way! 

Stay posted. I'm sure I'll be sharing more throughout this journey! I'm posting to my instagram and Facebook page too. 

Today's Pinspiration (about the Whole30):

Source

Loaded Bacon & Kale Salad

This is my favorite meal right now. It's SO good! There are all kinds of ways to experiment with it, adding what you like and taking out what you don't. I think massaging the kale is key, and bacon takes it up 10 notches. The peanuts make it awesome too!

Wash 1 bunch of kale & massage it for 1-2 minutes to soften it- the green will get brighter as you massage it. 

Bake 1 lb of bacon. 

Let it cool & chop it. 

Core and chop 1 apple, 1 tomato, and chop 1/2 or 1/3 of an onion. 

Add everything together into a big bowl, and add 1 or 1.5 cups of peanuts, and salt & pepper to taste (add lemon juice for a bonus!). 

Then add your fave dressing (mine is balsamic vinaigrette), toss and let it cool for a little bit in the fridge. 15 minutes or so is good for me. Yum! Nick says this is a man's salad 😉 but it's my fave too. I love the leftovers too! We usually have 4 servings from this meal, so we eat it for dinner one night and lunch the next day - it's just as great for lunch the next day in my opinion :)

Enjoy!

Today's Pinspiration:

Pinterest Source