Barry White muffins were a big success with my husband. Oddly, I somehow neglected to tell him the magic ingredient is beets. SHHHHH we will just keep that between us, okay? Daughter says that I should work on a banana walnut version next. I can’t decide: banana-carrot, banana-beet, banana-zucchini? The batter needs the veggie component for body; banana by itself isn’t bulky/firm enough. Maybe sweet potato? Hmmm that is an idea with some merit. Parsnips? Also I have located some recipes for paleo shortbread, or rather primal because butter mmm butter. I think I’ll make the shortbread with date sugar. See if that works for my face.
Also, happy parenting moment. My son finished his breakfast while I was puttering about upstairs. From downstairs he shouts up, “Hey, are we doing a WOD? What’s the WOD?” I shout back down, “It’s kettlebell swings and jumping jacks!” (I make his WOD pretty easy so he doesn’t get discouraged.) And he shouts, “I like that!” Oh yeah. That is what I like to hear.
Went to the food court. Got this awesome meal featuring lots of veggies and chicken and plantains. The left is before. The right is after my meal. And my daughter ate some of the plantains. How long will it take me to eat all that?! I can remember eating the whole plateful by myself. With ease. ‘Course I was reading then… damn this is a weird experience.
This morning I somehow managed to teach BOTH of my kids the kettlebell deadlift. My son got a CF-style workout with DLs alternating with sprints. (He loves to run if someone chases him, preferably while shouting loudly. You can imagine us doing this at 7:00 am.) Son is not very strong and has very little endurance. So I always focus on keeping it fast, fun, and not too hard for him; the goal there is to just manage to do a bit of something at least 5 days/week. Daughter is stronger than son and managed to DL my brand-new 53-lb bell with very good form. (Yes, I admit it. I couldn’t wait any longer and I bought that sucker and I am so happy.) The centrifugal force of the swings was a little scary for her though. But she has a strong, solid lower body and I fondly imagine great things in that department. Here’s another one of those things you never think you might say: “I can’t wait to see my daughter’s snatch.” LOL oh so gross, brb I am going to hell. But she is so tiny and adorable and it would be so fun to see her fling that big weight around.
I made Khow Tom Pat, Thai sticky rice & banana treats, for my son to take to an ethnic food event at his school. My pathetic little steamer get-up wobbled and danced so much (due to its warped bottom) that my daughter said it was “like something out of Disney.” Here is a clip for your entertainment. I wound up having to steady it by hand for 25 minutes! All worth it. The treats were a huge hit and not one made it home in son’s bag.
The bad news about artichokes is that it turns out they take about 35 minutes to steam, which I was not aware of. The good news is, it turns out my daughter really likes them. She gnawed her way happily through a whole one and then halfway through another one, until she polished off all the dipping sauce. We lingered at the table together more than an hour, laughing and enjoying ourselves. Artichokes: the vegetable that turns a mere meal into a dinner party.
My daughter is astonished at the economy package of pads in the bathroom.
We sold our old house finally. RELIEF. I celebrated by making my family a paleo fruit crumble. Sweetened it with coconut palm sugar. Crust had almond flour, mac nuts and pepitas, a touch of cinnamon. And of course lard. The fam was completely thrilled with this. And I was entertained to see that I have worn them all down so far with this Paleo life that they think a fruit crumble is ambrosia now. WINNING!
Food Accountability Post
No time to work out today, SAD PANDA. Took the kids to the Lincoln Memorial and then we had a doctor’s appt. in the afternoon.
Breakfast: Beef-n-brussels fry-up and half an avocado, finished of with a chunk of coconut snack bar
Lunch: A small bowl of chili at Potbelly in DC and also a fruit cup.
Dinner: Grilled salmon and misc. veggies at Great Eggspectations. Very tasty.
Snacks: none.
Dessert: maybe some snack bar but I dunno yet.
Notes: nothing much to say. A nice day, everyone had fun.
Grade: B only because of the beans in the chili. It was not a lot of beans at all; I would really characterize that chili as “soupy” overall, but still. Beans.
Food Accountability Post
Breakfast: Chili and a chunk of snack bar
Lunch: Went to Friday’s with my BFF. 8 oz flatiron steak and a big wad of squash and a big wad of broccoli.
Dinner: Took my son out to Romano’s Macaroni Grill. I had some sort of salad thing that was made of spinach dressed with some crispy-fried prosciutto and some roasted garlic and olive oil and lemon, and there were 4 big scallops. Not enough protein. I had actually ordered another whole dinner so’s to get enough food, but they had such a lack of professionalism there tonight and took SO DAMN LONG that ultimately I just cancelled the second thing (shrimp) and we got out of there. It was delicious but wow they had their head up their ass tonight. But seriously. I must learn how to make that spinach because it was the shit. Oh, and there was a dish of olives. But I didn’t eat many of them. They were only okay.
Notes: a good day. I wish it would’ve been warmer. I could have tried to get a bike ride in.
Grade: A+. Not much snacking, all very keto.
Snacks: A few pieces of Kale chips.
Dessert: a couple bits of coconut snack bar upon returning home at like 10:00 pm. Long day.
Last night I was so grateful for the benefits of my lifestyle. Even though my husband was coughing horribly and I was also coughing a little bit, I still went to sleep really quickly. Thank goodness.
This morning I feel thickness and a little soreness in my throat. I can feel a lot of stuff in the lymph nodes under the jaw there upon palpation. So I think this will be another day of working the Creeping Crud out. I will cook some swiss chard with bacon this morning and try to get in a nice walk or bike ride.
At lunch time I have to pick up my son for an appointment and we will also hit a grocery store because remember, I need coconut butter to make my snack bars and also we’re completely out of fruit. Unusual for us!
Afternoon, make those damn bars already and also, make Choco Kale Chips because I want them.
Food Accountability Post
Did not sleep well last night. Not sure why. A combination of factors. My son got sort of active right when I was trying to wind down, which was detrimental. I was also trying hard to be in bed on time, which paradoxically meant I spent less time unwinding and relaxing… something’s not right there. Also it was a bit warm and I tend to not do well in a warm bedroom. Had minor difficulty falling asleep and woke up during the night. But I feel fine this morning.
Breakfast: Beef & broccoli stirfry with kimchi. Yeah get those fermented foods in, mama! Also, a bunch of blueberries.
Lunch: As previously shown below, chicken fried up with broccoli, mushrooms, red onions, coconut aminos, some kimchi on the side. Yes, I finally noticed a perfectly lovely jar of kimchi sitting patiently in my fridge unopened. I am so idiotic sometimes.
Dinner: my daughter took me out to dinner at Urban BBQ! Had a barbecued chicken leg and collard greens. She helped herself to a massive dessert and was utterly defeated by it. Barely even got down half of it. So funny.
Snacks: Some of my Fabulous Onion Chips and a fair wad of nut bark. So good. A big handful of steamed green beans.
Dessert: 4 dried dates. How lame that this is my notion of dessert now. SIGH.
Notes: Too much nut bark, I think. It’s keto, it’s paleo, but still. I dunno.
Grade: B. I know that BBQ sauce was not really ok. But there literally nothing at UBQ that doesn’t have BBQ sauce on it. Unless it is chili with beans or mac & cheese… or corn dogs… which are drenched in chili and cheese. Believe me, the chicken was the best option. But still. B overall for the day.
Food Accountability Post
Breakfast: start the day right with CHILI.
Lunch: working out with Matt, so lunch has to be light. Rawma bar.
Dinner: went out with the kids. Had 1 crab cake and a big wad of green beans, and also permitted myself to snatch 3 excellent french fries from my daughter. Also 2 hand-made chips from my son. SORRY NOT SORRY. Shared some shrimp with my daughter too.
Snacks: 1/2 c. regular mixed nuts. BTW that is no salt. Putting on some fuel for Matt. 1 sausage in the afternoon. A few Go Raw Sunflower Flax Snax — more birdseed, apparently. Also discovered cassava chips at the hippie grocery, so I did have some of those too.
Dessert: 3 mac-a-macs and some chocolate sugar-free ice cream, followed by a side of unpleasant teenager. SIGH. You are not helping my digestion.
Notes: Despite working out like a maniac, I wasn’t that hungry in the afternoon. Interesting.
Grade: A-. A good day overall but again, could’ve done a smidge better. That’s like a theme here lately. Maybe I need to pay a bit more attention. Hmm.
Monday Morning Check In
All in all, a good week! I did eat out with friends at least once and I’m pretty sure that meal was not quite 100% Whole30-compliant. But I did my best to stay on track and both my husband and I must have been about 90-95%. On the down side, sugar cravings continue to bedevil me. Of course, shark week is due to begin sometime quite soon, so that might be the problem there.
It’s weird not weighing in. I do note that my face and neck are looking thin. In particular, the naso-labial grooves are deeper by my mouth. This is the sort of thing I feel a bit ambivalent about. But okay, whatever. I observe it and that is what is there.
OTOH the pressure to fit into my smallest jeans is off now, because my daughter has taken possession of them. They look sensationally good on her! So I regret nothing, at least not with regard to those jeans. I suppose I do regret or perhaps I just feel nostalgic for the flat belly of my own teenage years. How sad that I could not appreciate it at the time. Oh well.
Breakfast today: Fried Banana Pudding from Everyday Paleo. Topped with walnuts, chia, raisins, almond butter and of course shredded coconut. Yes, Jeff, it is all organic. Like oatmeal only even yummier. Also a sensational way to use up tired old bananas! A hit with my daughter. Son is still asleep…
Monday Morning, NO Weigh In
I don’t have the heart to try. Sharks are coming, there was flying, there was pie, let’s just stipulate for the record that the results would be unfavorable and move on from there. Tune in next week for your regularly-scheduled weigh-in.
As I already said, Thanksgiving was just too wonderful to even express. But I want to still fit into my jeans later this month so I need to get back on my grind a bit. Does this mean I will log back on to MyFitnessPal? [thinks about it] NOPE. I just can’t get too interested in logging. I think I just don’t want to anymore. I’m just gonna try to focus on staying Paleo and maybe eating more greens and less squash. I took sweatforit’s advice and got myself some tea with dandelion root in it to detox and de-puff myself a bit. It’s surprisingly tasty tea, actually. It’s Yogi Tea, DeTox flavor. “Supports Healthy Liver and Kidney Function,” it says here. Well, we’ll see.
My daughter took possession of my fave jeans from Chico’s. There’s something not quite right about a girl of her young age wearing anything from Chico’s, that bastion of suburban-mom-wear. But they look great on her and I know, of course, how comfortable they are. So the upshot is, I bought myself more jeans Saturday evening (amusing myself while my husband was at a HeroClix event) and I tried to pick them with an eye to things my daughter might like to steal from me. JCPenney’s had an excellent selection of petite jeans but pretty much all of them were rather low-cut for my taste. I bought some anyway. They are comfy but there is a loaf situation around my midsection that I am not totally okay with. Hopefully my daughter will take the bait; her tummy is nice and flat and she looks great in low-cut jeans.
I will just take a moment now to say, WOW, the insanity of sizing in women’s clothing is really annoying. I see why it drives some ladies into a frothing rage. I have jeans in my closet in size 2, but those were “short” rather than “petite.” In petites at JCP, I ranged from a 4 up to a 10. Over at Land’s End they were having a sale on shirts (OH YEAH) and I was a small in one style but an extra-small in a different style. How can I ever order from their damn catalog again, now I see that I have no real idea what my size is anymore? And don’t tell me to take my measurements, either. Obviously my measurements did not change appreciably in between trying on 2 different styles of shirt, now, did they? And yet… there it is. Anyway. I had no trouble finding some nice things to buy, so I feel happy and very thankful. But the sizing thing… annoying.
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