Whole30 is OVER!

You guys. I don't think I've ever been happier for it to be February 1, and that's really saying something given my historic hatred of January. Throwing a Whole30 and complete cold-turkey caffeine break on top of my least-favorite month was probably a crazy decision, but here we are on the other side and I'm feeling awesome. 

Quick stats: 

Weight lost: 10lb

Inches lost: 7 (mostly arms and stomach) 

Feeling: really good

Missing: the texture of bread, CHEESE ALL THE CHEESE, and alcohol!

Excited for: coffee every morning again, and a week in Miami and Puerto Rico to get all that up in my face again!

So that's the big caveat here: I'm not doing the "slow reintroduction of taboo foods" thing that was recommended by the program, due to a family wedding I leave for tomorrow. Instead, I'll be hitting the beach, the open bar at the reception, and a plethora of restaurants that we're super excited to visit. What's my plan to avoid undoing all the good this January has done? 

Two-fold: first, on this vacation, I'm planning to try to stick to as compliant a diet as I can...salads, chicken, and of course all the fresh seafood I can! That said, it's a VACATION and I'm for sure going to chow down some mofongo in Puerto Rico and at least a few delicious cheater-ish meals. As far as alcohol goes, I'm going to have fun and not worry too much about it (while being aware that such a drastic change in my drinking habits probably killed my tolerance...eek!). 

In the longer term, I think that following a "Whole30-ish" approach to life is going to be really good for me. I'm not saying I'm going to deny myself everything fun and delicious by any means, only that I'm going to focus on keeping things as whole and healthy as possible at least 80% of the time. I've found a ton of breakfast and lunch options I really love, and it's so easy to make at least 10 of my weekly meals at work Whole30 just by relying on those recipes. Cooking dinners at home has gotten much easier, and is such a better alternative than ordering takeout...eeek, that habit is one I hope stays dead! 

I will certainly not be turning down happy hours, brunches, or pre-show dinners/post-show cocktails...but I'm proud of myself for thinking that those events will be pretty much the only place I cheat hard or don't worry about what I'm eating being Whole30. Hopefully this will represent a major turning point in my relationship with food and dieting...and if that's the best thing I take out of this month of mostly-torment, that's a great thing! 

A no-excuses healthy January - part 2

Continuing the summary of my Whole30 from here...days 11-22!

Day 11 (1/13): I'm realizing quickly how much easier it's become for me to skip coffee in the morning. My a.m. coffee was always my 100% vice...after cutting out "designer" coffee cold-turkey last year, I thought I'd never be able to survive without my daily Keurig brew or 99 cent cup from the company Quick Stop. Instead, I'm pounding through several cups of herbal tea every day, and I'm noticing the benefits of increased water intake daily in clearer skin and dramatically reduced bloat. Favorite blends so far: Be Well Red Tea's Get Lost, Get Clean, and Get Matcha, Celestial Seasoning's Honey Vanilla Chamomile, Caribou Coffee's Mint Verbena, and Cuppa Cake's Red Velvet. 

Day 13 (1/15): Food boredom is very much a thing, I'm finding - and I have a terrible habit of making giant batches of recipes and then eating them til I'm sick of them. It's hard to cook for one person, but I'm kind of forced to do so...so I've been relying on the excessive amount of Lunds/Byerly's salad bar takeout containers to portion out single servings of recipes. They're the perfect size for a meal, they are so easy to grab and go with every day, and they're perfect to throw things in the freezer. Lifesavers. 

Day 14 (1/16): Wearing a dress to work today that barely zipped in November/December...and it's roomy everywhere but the bust (ugh, story of my life). Such a great feeling - although it's got me dying to jump on the scale, and that's a strict Whole30 no-no...ugh!

Day 16 (1/18): For the first time, I made a recipe that was a total meh fail...and unfortunately made a lot of it. I'm going to suck it up and deal, but needless to say I'm not pleased. On the bright side, I have the most gorgeous honeydew from Lund's cut up and waiting in my fridge...it's so freaking good. 

Day 18 (1/20): I went to The Lumineers' concert with Hannah last night and had a really hard time with the fact that I couldn't grab a beer with her or hit up happy hour before the show. I don't know why that was psychologically so irritating...it felt like I was compromising on having a fun night because of the program, and that annoyed me. On the flip side, I'm really realizing how much my social life centers around drinking...like, too much...and thinking about other ways to socialize with people instead. Can't wait for the weather to turn so I can add lake walks and sunrise yoga back into my life!

Day 20 (1/22): Workouts have been so much better lately, and I don't know if that's Whole30 or just the fact that I'm finally in a better, more consistent routine. I've been hitting the company gym almost daily, which is great, and I'm doing yoga several times a week. Gotta love feeling bendier...not to mention how much fun it's been to get my old competitive side out trying to beat yesterday's mileage in the gym every day. 

Day 21 (1/23): Did legit three hours of meal prep after work during The Bachelor (omg, this season is such a shit-show!). I made more Whole30 pesto (addicted), cooked up a ton of spaghetti squash to mix into everything, and made my favorite breakfast casserole again...can't wait to have it portioned out and ready to go every morning.

Day 22 (1/24): Today was our Q4 earnings release at work, and we always celebrate with a huge department brunch. Everyone brings something in to potluck it up, and the offerings are anything BUT Whole30-compliant. We're talking, I kid you not, a woman who brings in 20 Egg McMuffins (and two men brought cookies this time). I contributed a cut fruit platter (oooh exciting [NOT]) and ate my breakfast casserole instead of the pastries, cookies, and Sausage McBiscuit things...slightly antisocial, but eh whatever. 

How am I feeling? Generally pretty good! Like I said, I'm finding my clothes fit a lot better...and I wore a dress to the opera on Saturday that I would NEVER have worn a few months/even weeks ago...which is a really nice feeling. That said, I don't know if that's entirely Whole30, or just that I've been working out like a maniac (probably some combination of both). 

I'm sleeping better than I have in a really long time, which is huge for me...I'm used to being up a couple times a night and sleeping very lightly. Additionally, I've only had one migraine this month, which is really rare. Finally, the whole process of shopping and cooking has started to become less stressful...while I still find myself freaking a little over the expense of it all, it's much cheaper than my takeout/eating out addiction, and I'm gaining a ton of kitchen skillz that are kind of fun to have in my arsenal. 

Home stretch! Be back with a final report next week. 

A no-excuses healthy January.

I think January is simultaneously the hardest and easiest month to start a diet. Pros: it's frigid, so I don't want to eat out. Resolutions have me feeling all YEAH I CAN DO THIS. Gyms are running deals, and everyone else is on the healthy bandwagon too. Cons: it's frigid out, and all I want to do is eat all the hot cheese-covered carby things. 

So, naturally, I decided to kick off 2017 with a Whole30. 

What is Whole30? An elimination diet akin to paleo, which restricts (aka prohibits) all gluten, dairy, soy, legumes, alcohol, and added sugar for 30 days. We're talking not even a trace of any of that - it is hardcore. Basically, participants are allowed meat, fruit, and vegetables, a few cooking oils, and spices galore. Oh, and did I mention I decided to be insane and eliminate caffeine too?

This is pretty much me these days: 

Why did I choose Whole30, when it seems so extreme? I'm in need of a serious health re-set. I was sick a lot this fall, my skin has been terrible, and I sleep horribly (as continually chronicled here). Let's not even get into the fact that my December diet of ALL THE WINE and ALL THE CHEESE, capped off with a week in Sonoma and Napa, meant my pants were a little (um, okay, VERY) tight by New Year's Day.

Whole30 promises to remedy these ills and more, leaving its participants with boundless energy, shiny hair, glowing skin, smaller waistlines, and a completely new outlook on diet, health, and life. Sign me up! 

So we'll see how this goes - I'm planning on chronicling it diary-style from January 3 (start day) to Feb 1 (end date). Follow along...and wish me luck, and if you have bright ideas of how to cook eggs (so many eggs), let me know!

Day 1 (1/3): Breakfast of scrambled egg with avocado, pear, sweet potato and natural turkey sausage courtesy of the Whole Sisters. At least I thought it was a sweet potato. I just googled “difference between a sweet potato and yam” and turns out I’m eating a yam. I don’t think I’ve ever eaten a yam in my entire life, and now I’m overthinking the existence and concept of yams because it’s early, I’m missing wine country, and I haven’t had coffee. Speaking of “haven’t had coffee,” I’m starting to think that eliminating coffee, cheese, chocolate, bread and wine all in the same month might actually be a suicide mission. Stay tuned. 

Day 2 (1/4): Woke up this morning with a dull, steady headache that I 100% attribute to the fact that I haven't had coffee for over 48 hours...possibly a new record for me? I'm chugging naturally caffeine-free cinnamon rooibos tea to try to compensate, and downing water like it's a lifeline. 

I also spent a lot of time on Pinterest last night and started a Whole30 board...because I can already tell that I'm going to burn out on eggs in about a week. There are so many different, crazy options that I'm excited to check out!

Day 3 (1/5): I am so CRANKY. I don't know if it's attributable to the lack of caffeine, the cleanse, or the fact that it's a -30 windchill today, but I woke up and have been grumping hard ever since. I forgot to put avocado in my eggs this morning, too, and that seems like a tragedy of the first order. 

(I've averaged an avocado a day since I started this thing. God help and save my bank account.)

Day 4 (1/6): I made homemade pesto tonight and it felt like I deserved a freaking Michelin star. That said, it was incredible. Other foods I'm loving: onion in everything, lots of spice (red pepper flakes), and lemon ginger tea like three times a day. 

Day 6 (1/8): I've eaten that pesto on just about everything this weekend...eggs in the morning, with carrots as a dip, and spaghetti squash with chicken for dinner. It's so good. I also made a chicken salad with homemade mayo...I made homemade mayo. Who am I?! 

Special shout-out to band friend and Whole30 veteran Catherine for sharing her meal-planning spreadsheet and favorite recipes...she is a lifesaver, and I can't wait to try some of her faves! 

Day 7 (1/9): I was so crabby today - it took me two hours to get home from work in a snowstorm, and I was hangry and had to pee the entire way. Thankfully I had a LaraBar in my purse...the list of which ones are Whole30 compliant saved my life. I also had this great spaghetti squash and beef casserole for dinner...I used up the last of my pesto on it and it was so good. 

Day 8 (1/10): Worked from home due to ongoing snowstorms pounding Minnesota, and took advantage of being able to multitask to put together this breakfast casserole. It smelled so amazing that I couldn't resist having it for lunch...and it tastes as good as it smelled. I never would have thought I'd be the kind of person who buys nutritional yeast as a cheese replacement (what the F is nutritional yeast?! WTF?!?!!), but for the first time in this whole process, I started thinking that changes like this could be sustainable for me in the longterm. 

Day 10 (1/12): Not gonna lie, today has sucked. (And apparently that's normal?) I've been legit having filthy fantasies about Hell's Kitchen grilled cheese, Papa John's pizza with extra garlic sauce for the crust, and Parlour burgers. And I'm cranky and my skin looks terrible. Again, all of which is normal. 

I also turned down a guy who asked me if I wanted to go out for drinks this weekend, and that's adding to the crank factor. BOO. The only bright sides to today are the carob-rooibos "red velvet cake" tea I ordered from Republic of Tea...and the fact that I'm 1/3 of the way done. 

So here we are...Day 11, and here's hoping I get over the slump! 

The weekend update

When it's hovering around 70 degrees in Minnesota in November, one gets out and does things. This last week or so has been no exception...I have barely been home! 

Thursday was the second Open Call of the year, "The Parchman Hour" at the Guthrie...which Matt, AJ and I pregamed at Freehouse. 

The show closed this weekend, but it absolutely blew my mind - the fusion of digital effects, soul, gospel and popular music, and an unbelievably talented cast conveyed the message of the show so powerfully. The programming the Guthrie is putting on continues to leave me so excited for its future under new artistic director Joseph Haj! 

On Friday, Jodester and I made a pilgrimage to the lovely Saint Genevieve in south Minneapolis - a beautiful little French café in the old Lynn on Bryant space. Their champagne list is comprehensive...so we built our own flights! 

After running into multiple people we knew, including one of my favorite high school English teachers and the wife of a college friend of my father's, we settled in to savor the creamiest rosé...

...along with a perfect-size-to-split croque Madame and a butternut squash dish that I'm still fantasizing about. 

Naturally, nothing pairs better with champagne than perfect French fries and bearnaise! 

Having snacked ourselves silly and gotten completely champagne buzzed, we headed off to Orchestra Hall to hang with my bff Alan Page, who was narrating Copland's "Lincoln Portrait" that evening. The pre-show discussion featured Page and new associate conductor Roderick Cox, discussing the power of American music to influence perception and open social dialogues. It definitely got interesting...and sure feels topical in the light of this week's events! 

The program, in addition to "Lincoln Portrait," also featured 22-year old violinist Esther Yoo making her Minnesota Orchestra debut on Bruch's violin concerto, and closed with Dvorak's stunning "New World Symphony." I can honestly say it's probably one of the most stirring programs I've ever seen there...superbly conducted by my silver-fox crush Osmo Vanska, and just incredibly moving and passionately performed. So grateful to live in a city with such a superlative symphony! 

I had a sleepover in Lakeville with Papa Bear and Jodester, mostly so I could check out their new bathroom renovation...that floor ahhh! 

After much deliberation, we headed to Glam Doll Donuts for a "light breakfast." Funny how a light breakfast gets so much heavier when one member of your group can't pick a flavor...cough...RICHARD. (My personal favorite is the blackberry Hennessy donut, closest to the camera in the photo above. Get it! You won't regret it.)

Then off to Lake of the Isles, for one of the most stunning fall walks ever! 

Temps hovered around 65-70 degrees, the sun was shining, and it felt like everyone was smiling. If Minnesota was always like this, nobody would ever leave! 

Sunday found me at a different lake...Harriet this time, to play with my favorite pup, Molly! Kelsie is kind enough to borrow her and share her with me whenever she likes...and we took her on her first 5k as we walked the whole lake! 

Miss Molly was having none of it. She wanted more attention than she was getting, and crapped out, naturally, right around the halfway point. It took us almost two hours to get all the way around with a capricious, hyper and then exhausted pup! 

So we rewarded ourselves with beer, naturally. First at Indeed, then down the block at Able! Molly was her cuddliest, most snuggly exhausted self. 

And I, being a Molly fiend, was in heaven. 

Nothing better than an Internet full of adorable puppies, right?! 

101 in 1001 #51: Throw a dinner (BRUNCH) party.

Doesn't throwing a dinner party sound all grown-up and lovely? I thought so, so I added it to the brunch list. Then I realized that I'm not a stellar cook, at least not of the traditional "meat and potatoes and a side dish" variety. Then I further realized that most of my friends aren't, either...we're much more along the lines of a "takeout and Bitesquad and quick-and-easy meals for one" type crowd. 

Then...I realized that I am EXCELLENT at brunch. (See: Eva's bridal shower, this summer) And my friends? They looooove brunch. So when Notre Dame played Syracuse with an 11am kickoff on October 1st, I decided, along with Hal, that we should turn that oh-so-grown-up dinner party into a good old-fashioned gamebrunch rager. 

And we did! Starting with the bar: 

Iced coffee, plus major champagne with three different mixers for mimosas (pomegranate, blood orange, and peach Bellini)...or harder options in the back for those who preferred it. Please note the stylish presentation in Hal's beverage bucket along with the football napkins and fall-appropriate pumpkins and mums, because we believe in aesthetics at the House of Hal and Lizzie. 

I went a little nuts at Party City on blue, green, and gold serveware...although with a crew of 17 coming, we couldn't really class it up beyond paper plates and napkins and plastic utensils. We just don't have enough dishes! Something to aspire to, I suppose. 

On the menu, clockwise from top left: 

-Hillary, a friend of Hal's and a new friend of mine, brought absolutely precious "breakfast pigs in a blanket" and they were as delicious as they were adorable. 

-spinach-and-artichoke egg bake, as served at Eva's shower, recipe here. 

-Gruyere-and-sausage egg bake, also as served at Eva's shower, recipe here. I stuck with tried-and-true crowd pleasers for the main dishes...nothing like playing it safe with a crew this size!

-pumpkin coffee cake with brown sugar glaze, recipe here. You guys. THIS WAS SO GOOD. It was gone before the party was over, and I made it again for a brunch at work where it similarly vanished insanely fast. It is absolutely decadent. Make it. Everyone will be impressed and you won't be sorry. 

I'm still impressed we managed to cram the crew we did into our space. The couch and every chair in our apartment (including Hal's piano bench!) ended up doing duty during the game. I'm not sorry. 

Creeper shots abounded. 

My favorite bros in action discussing Iowa losses and Notre Dame victories! 

And finally, most of the crew assembled! (There are a few more miscreants off to the side that I couldn't fit in the frame!) Hal and I had so much fun hosting...and, if the 12+ bottles of champagne we went through are any indication, hopefully our guests had fun too. 

Here's to being better at hosting brunches than we are at looking normal in photos! 

For more 101 in 1001, head here. And if you want to come over for brunch, let me know! I'll baaaaake!