Week 2

Week 2

This week is the second week of Mcdougall plan, and I am feeling great about it. Again, I did not lose weight since last week, but I’m surprised that at the amount of food I’m eating (compared to Eat to Live) I am not gaining any weight. I am determined now to continue the Mcdougall plan!

Day 5 (Monday):

Breakfast: ½ c. oats w/apple, cinnamon, dates, coconut sugar

Snack: few pieces of pear, 2 pistachio nuts (if I’m completely honest about everything I’ve eaten)

Lunch: Chili w/brown rice, salad w/tahini dressing and sprouts

Snack: rice puff

Dinner: ½ c. lentil stew, 1 potato (wedges) w/organic ketchup, broccoli

>> Today I feel great! Was a little disappointed that my quinoa salad was spoiled (that’s why I ate pears for snack), but I wasn’t super hungry anyways. I love my chili and lentil soup so all my meals are wonderful. Potato wedges are also the cherry on top, so I feel like every meal is a treat! My single rice puff tithed me over for my insanity workout, and I feel completely satisfied. [Incase you’ve noticed, I have shifted the focus of this blog from Insanity to nutrition, just because I feel more passionate about my diet and could also use this as a source of accountability. I will, however, try to recap my insanity “feelings” at the end of each week.]

Day 6 (Tuesday):

Breakfast: 2 rice puffs, 1 microwaved potato, 1 apple

Snack: 1 mini sweet potato

Lunch: Lentil stew, salad w/sprouts and soy sauce-vinegar-garlic-ginger dressing

Snack: sprouted grain cereal, coconut milk

Dinner: broccoli, potato

Snack: acai bowl - coconut milk, strawberries, acai packets (2), granola

>> Again, today I loved my food! I built a cardboard boat for my physics project and had so much fun! Only problem with today was my snacking. I ate about four servings of fruit, probably too much sugar, coconut milk (has a lot of fat), and pumpkin-flax granola (also has tons of fat). I haven’t been craving them, but I am having a hard time controlling myself so I am going to really work on this!

Day 6 (Wednesday):

Breakfast: Granola, coconut milk, oatmeal w/banana, coconut sugar, cinnamon, some banana w/cacao powder

Snack: mochi, granola w/coconut milk

Lunch: Lentil stew, salad w/salsa

Snack: potato wedges w/ketchup, cacao-banana

Dinner: broccoli, potato wedges w/ketchup

Snack: Apple w/cinnamon

>> I started off today pretty bad by eating the fattening granola and coconut milk right when I woke up. I might need to give that granola away just so I won’t eat it! Today I was not very disciplined when it came to “cheating” so tomorrow I need to start fresh. Didn’t necessarily feel hungry, just temptation (and I gave in). These past two days have been very different. Building a boat and a day off from school to watch youtube videos and netflix gave me a pathway to eating unhealthily.

I did, however, have time to watch “Earthlings,” which made me sad, grossed out, and a little disturbed (not with the gore, but with humans). I don’t want to become a preacher for veganism, because I’d much rather be preachy for Jesus not animals, but I am so disappointed in humans at the moment that it’s hard to keep it inside. I do not think eating meat is a sin, but I do think that the way that we, as Americans, capture, breed, treat, cage, slaughter, and then eat meat is just wrong. During biblical times, people did eat meat, yes, but they did not make killing institutions for their animals the way we do now. They killed animals for sacrifices to God (which is fine to me), and thereafter ate the meat. Then for long after,  animals were killed and eaten for special occasions and it was a special privilege to eat the meat. Today, those who eat meat think of it as a “normal” meal...to eat another once-living being is normal. Nobody is thankful that a cow was killed to be our beef jerky snack. No one cares that these animals spend their short-lived time only to be later slit in the throat alive and hung upside down so blood can drain out (while they’re still alive), and then sent to be butchered. No one seems to even know where their leather comes from is not from a cow that was eaten, but an indian cow that is killed merely for our clothing, even though we have other material to use as clothing… I am not saying that eating meat is a sin, because it most certainly is not. I am saying that I choose not to promote the unethical killing of billions of animals so I can have a (not needed) piece of dead flesh on my plate. I am not going to eat animal products ever, but for someone who has not made that decision, I do think that there is nothing wrong with eating turkey on thanksgiving or drinking milk with cookies on Christmas. There is no reason why we have to force animals to be birthed to die for a meal. I don’t want to sound preachy, and other vegans would understand, but it would be impossible for me to keep it all in. (Once vegan, always a vegan)

Day 6 (Thursday):

Breakfast: oatmeal w/banana, coconut sugar

Snack: apple w/cinnamon

Lunch: Lentil stew, brown rice, salad w/peppers and oil-free, tahini-free hummus

Snack: a few multi-grain crackers, date-walnut bread, 2 rice puffs

Dinner: broccoli, baked potato, cacao-banana

>> When I woke up this morning I noticed that my stomach is more bloated than normal. Normally in the beginning of the day, before I eat anything, my stomach is pretty flat, then throughout the day, after my meals usually my stomach begins to expand a little. I went on google and looked for people who have experienced the same bloating as me and turns out there are a lot. The difference is that some people choose to give up at this point, but I won’t. I’m going to stick it out at least for a few months and then see how my body is adjusting to the cooked foods I’m eating. Honestly though, I don’t want to go back to low-calorie leafy foods, bloat or not. Ugh and I’m still having trouble controlling my want for bad food. I’ll work on it though. There’s always a new day tomorrow.

Day 7 (Friday):

Breakfast: oatmeal w/banana, coconut sugar, cacao powder

Snack: apple w/cinnamon

Lunch: Lentil stew, brown rice, salad w/peppers and oil-free, tahini-free hummus

Snack: Potato Chips

Dinner: Broccoli, potato fries w/ketchup, Banana-Oat-Carob cookies

>> Oh my, I am so full! I haven’t been this full since I can remember. Good or bad, I don’t know, but I did learn that I can make healthy baked potato chips! (pic below). I’m excited to make curry or something for next week, and I am excited for my last week of the first thirty days of insanity. Now for some bad...as you know, this week I’ve felt a little (no more than a little) bloated, and I still don’t know what that’s from. I’ve been drinking 3-5 liters of water a day, and I’ve eaten more potatoes this week than I have ever eaten in my life! I know my body still has to get used to eating high carb meals, so I’m giving myself more time to adjust. I tend to get hungry halfway from breakfast to lunch, so I’m still trying to come up with some nice healthy snack to take to school with me rather than a fruit (may be a cause of my tiredness in the middle of the day). I am able to concentrate pretty well, but I feel tired a lot when I get home around 3:30, not sure why that is either. But I’m hoping that throughout the next week or so, I’ll be able to find the instigator of my symptoms. I still love the foods, and I am excited for my grocery run tomorrow!!!

Day 8 (Saturday):

Breakfast: ½ c. oats, apple, banana, cinnamon, coconut sugar

Snack: roasted corn w/salt, pepper, chilli powder

Lunch: brown rice, lentils, tomato paste, mixed greens (corn, edamame, green beans, carrots, peas)

Dinner: brown rice, lentils, potato (2), jalapeno, tomato, spinach, onion, pomegranate

>> I have found a new love in pomegranates! (I do think they are expensive though). I think today went very well and I feel completely satisfied by all of the food I ate today.

Day 9 (Sunday):

Breakfast: potato (2), jalapeno, tomato, pepper, onion, corn

Snack: pomegranate

Lunch: (continuation of breakfast since I had a concert)

Snack: white and red bean mochi (4)

Dinner: rice, chili, potato fries w/ketchup, butternut squash soup, cornbread, apple

>> I found the cause of my bloating! It was not the amount of potatoes I’ve been eating; it was pms. I got my period today and I am so happy to know that I was not getting fat, I was just bloating. I felt pretty good today considering what a rough week I’ve had so far. I think next week will be a lot better just because I won’t be on my period, and I am more familiar with the foods I need to eat.

Recipe of the week #1: Banana-Oat Cookies

2 bananas (overripe)

1 c. oats

Toppings: carob chips, cinnamon, fruit, nuts, cacao powder

1. Mix bananas and oats until “cookie-dough consistency”
2. Fold in toppings
3. Bake on 400 degrees for 10 minutes

Recipe of the week #2: Potato Chips

1 Russet potato (or however much you want to make)

Pepper, salt, herbs

1. Slice potato thinly (with slicer or knife)
2. Place slices on parchment paper
3. Add pepper, salt, and herbs
4. Bake on 400 for 10 minutes, flip, and bake for 5 more minutes (make sure to check every once in awhile - everyone slices their potatoes differently)
5. Let cool and enjoy!

"So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God." ~ 1 Corinthians 10:31