Whole30: Self-Care Edition 10/25/12

From October 2 through at least October 31, I’m documenting my Whole30 and autoimmune protocol, including the when, what, where, and how much of my sleep, activity, food, and mood. Although I follow the Whole30 guidelines 90% of the time anyway, I’m going all-in for the next 30 (or maybe 60) days to give my body a chance to stabilize after enduring adrenal burnout and a thyroid medication experiment.

As Melissa and Dallas of Whole9Life are good at reminding us, context matters, so if you’re not familiar with my checkered past, you might want to read these previous posts:

• A Healing Experiment: to deal with adrenal and thyroid issues
• The Thyroid Experiment and Update on the Experiment
• Weight & Body Image Stuff: I Love My Body and Why is Thinner Better?
• N=1: or why self-experimentation is a pain in the butt but the only option

Not familiar with the Whole30? Learn all about it here and get extra help with the Whole30 Daily.

Not interested in the Whole30? Don’t sweat it! I’ll be posting other stuff like recipes, workouts, and other adventures, too.

Whole30: Day 23 (Wednesday, October 24)

Sleep
9.5 hours

Activity
8:00 a.m. Zombie’s Run! 5K Training App, Workout #2. There was a fun surprise in this one.  No spoilers here, but if you use the app, there might be something that triggers one short, unexpected sprint.

Food
I’ve found my appetite is less ravenous, and I feel better if I eat in a 12-hour window — usually between 10:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m. so I can stop eating about 2-3 hours before going to bed — and don’t snack between meals or before bed. Because I’m on a mission to lose weight/body fat, I’m measuring and tracking my food right now; all quantities are cooked unless otherwise specified. I’m also following the autoimmune protocol. I train in the morning, so breakfast is right after my workout.

Breakfast, 10:30 a.m.
I had a half-and-half breakfast of leftovers. There wasn’t enough of one thing to make a full meal, so I ate both!
2 ounces orange chicken + 1 cup cauliflower rice w/ snap peas
2 ounces braised short ribs + 1/2 cup roasted sweet potato

Lunch, 3:30 p.m.
4-ounce grass-fed beef burger w/ 1 tablespoon avocado
1/2 cup fresh pineapple
a big pile of kale chips (made w/ coconut oil)
1 cup snap peas

Dinner, 8:00 p.m. — Takeout from Firebowl Cafe
4 ounces chicken + shrimp
veggies: broccoli, carrots, water chestnuts, snap peas
pink grapefruit

Mood
My mood was fine, but I was tired from that monster strength workout on Tuesday. Good Tired, but mildly sore and tender… yay!