Whole30: Day 24 – 30 (and beyond)

Meals Day 25 – 30

  • Breakfast: Eggs, eggs, eggs, meat, bacon, sausage, meat, sweet potatoes, carrots, eggs…..
  • Lunch: Left over what we had for dinner the night before or some meat and veggie platter.
  • Dinner: A bunch of meat and some vegetables and most likely sweet potatoes and more meat.
  • Snack: Nuts. Lots and lots of nuts and fruit.

There’s no need to break down what I ate. I have pictures of it, I ate it, it was delicious, and the next day, I ate the same thing with slight variation.

The breakdown

Well, damn. I reckon the wheels really did come off this whole frequent update thing. Here it is a week after the Whole30 ended and I’m just now getting around to making a post about the final week. I mean, that final week was a drag. Regardless I figured I’d make at least one final post about the Whole30 and our experience with it. Like I said, its been a week since the end of the program, and this post is actually supposed to cover the final week. That means I gotta remember two weeks back?! Nah, I’m good. Well, I can recount some of it, but the details will remain tucked away in my paleo brain.

The final week was pretty much like the third week. We stuck to the plan and made approved dishes. We longed for fall beers and pancakes. Jess and I both wanted a Pumpkin Spice Latte and despite the overwhelming temptations we held strong. The gym was on par with all other weeks as well. On Saturday the 14th we participated in the Run For Your Lives.
The race this year was much different than last year. This year was full of rocks and hills and not a whole lot of zombies. Last year was mud, rain, and I didn’t have my wife by my side to fend off the hordes.

UPDATE:
So….. This post got started like 2 weeks ago, and the Whole30 ended like a week prior to that. In fact, this past weekend we had a post Whole30 celebration dinner! With that being said, rather than even attempt to go back and recount details, I’ll give a super high overview. Mainly because at some point I’d like to look back on this and remember how much of a rewarding challenge it was. When the dust settled I didn’t win the whole thing, but I did win the Spirit of the Challenge distinction. This basically means that I was the most involved and did my best to keep the team going. I really enjoyed that aspect of the challenge. I like to motivate people and be as social as I can. I didn’t expect to win the whole thing and was happy to have participated with such a great group of people.

Now that the Whole30 is over, Jess and I have decided to mostly stay paleo. She’s a bit more strict than I am, but for the most part we’re both staying on the plan. Jess has found that dairy gives her a splitting headache and gluten tears up her stomach (maybe TMI, but whateves). Those things don’t really effect me, so I tend to include more in my daily routine.

What we’ve learned since doing more paleo is that this community of people will do what ever they can to twist approved ingredients into food that is ridiculously indulgent. Just do a search and you’ll find recipes for dark chocolate paleo cookies or bacon wrapped…. anything. It’s just crazy the lengths people will go to, to try and recreate a non-paleo food. Luckily, Jess and I are foodies and find that part of the “diet” fun! And if you’re having fun and don’t feel restricted then the chances of success increase tenfold.

So that’s that’s, that. I’m sure there’s a lot I’ve left off. Its been weeks since we’ve finished, we’ve done more workouts and struggled, had beer, ate countless eggs, and many many packs of bacon. I love everything that’s come out of the Whole30 challenge. I feel fantastic and better than I ever have in my life. My wife looks more stunning and beautiful every day. She’s stuck to this thing and continues to improve and keep me honest. I loved having her as a partner and wouldn’t want to go through this with anyone else.

Here’s the pics!

Jess - After front
Jess – After front
Jess - Before front
Jess – Before front
Ben - Before front
Ben – Before front
Ben - After front
Ben – After front

Oh, and please note, that I’m kinda half typing this and half watching the Real Housewives of New Jersey reunion. So I’m sure there are some holes and lapses in thought. But it’s all good. 🙂