Whole30 week 3 is done! I have completed 21 days of my Whole30 challenge! That means Whole30 week 3 has come to a close and I have 9 more days of the challenge! I am very proud of myself! I have gone without chocolate, bottled fruit juice, chips, gum, and mints for 3 whole weeks!!!
Challenges
Whole30 week 3 was pretty good! The biggest challenges I faced was running out of food to cook and craving red meat! I cooked up some steaks last week that turned out pretty well. I had been sticking to ground turkey and chicken for first couple of weeks and could not stop thinking about red meat! My mind kept thinking about juicy hamburgers and steaks. So, I made sure I got them!
My Red Meat Craving
I have never pan seared a steak before but it turned out very well! I enjoyed every bite of that steak! I made hamburgers too! I had never ordered at the butcher counter before to buy meat. Usually I go to Safeway and it is already packaged up. This time I went to New Seasons down the street and what a selection there was to choose from!
I bought 1 pound of grass fed hamburger meat that was delicious! The only problem I ran into was our oven. It’s a temperamental piece of equipment. It’s a gas oven which is very new for me and it is NOT consistent in getting up to the correct temperature. I made the hamburgers per the recipe and put them in the oven. When it came time take them out they weren’t even close to being ready. So, I pulled out the pan and cooked them up the rest of the way. The ground beef was fantastic! I had no idea how much I was missing red meat until last week!
Bare Cupboards
This past Saturday I had bare cupboards and that meant time to go grocery shopping. I had gone through almost all of the meat I bought, definitely all of the veggies, and the canned goods were all gone! It took me all afternoon to get everything I wanted on the list but it was well worth the time and effort!
Now our fridge is packed with all kinds of goodness and the cupboards have the essentials I have been using.
Meat Craving Continues
My meat craving continues! During my shopping trip I made sure to bring home all kinds of great protein choices. I went to Costco and loaded up on steaks, chicken breasts, eggs, and shrimp this time! I am still craving red meat! On Saturday night I made a meat sauce that included grass fed hamburger meat. It was just what the doctor ordered to help with my red meat craving!
New Recipe
The past 3 weeks I have been wanting to try this recipe in the Whole30 book. Every time I cracked it open I discovered I didn’t quite have all of the ingredients. During my shopping trip on Saturday I was able to fill in the missing pieces for the recipe and I tried out the roasted root vegetables with curry sauce! Yes, I said curry sauce! It took longer than I had anticipated but it was well worth the wait!
My Go To Recipe
I’ve noticed in the past week or so I have a go to recipe that is easy and satisfying. It’s my cucumber salad! What’s great about this salad it doesn’t have to have the same ingredients every time.
Here’s the basic recipe:
- 1 Sliced Cucumber
- 2 Diced Tomatoes
- 1/2 of Diced Onion
- 1/2 can of Black Olives
- 1/2 can of Quartered Artichokes
- Whole30 Vinaigrette Salad Dressing
Mix these ingredients all together in a bowl and enjoy!
Sometimes I add avocados, carrots, bell peppers, or even a protein like chicken or shrimp! If you try it out let me know what you think and if you added your own ingredients.
Healthy Vs. Convenience
I have come to realize that we are all paying a price that isn’t monetary when it comes to the foods we eat. When you choosing your foods which is more important health or convenience? All the cooking and prepping I’ve been doing through the challenge has been a lot of work and a lot of washing dishes. I enjoy cooking but it got me to thinking about the convenience of prepared foods or going out to eat. Which is more important health or convenience?
I can tell you that convenience used to be important to me. I also didn’t realize all of the prepared foods I had been consuming were all that bad for me. The Whole30 challenge has changed my view on that. I read the labels and make informed decisions of what I am putting into my body. Does that mean that I have to cook everything? I don’t have the answer for that question yet but it is an important topic to think about.
Which is more important to you? Health or convenience?
Some Thoughts
Whole30 week 3 was good and even though I am on the home stretch of the challenge and will have made it to the end I don’t believe that I will go back to eating some of the things I was eating before. I think that I will mostly want to eat the way I have been these past couple of weeks.
Does this mean I am cutting out chocolate or pizza? Probably not, but it does mean that I don’t feel the need to have them like I did before the challenge. It’s kind of weird to say it out loud but I do think this food challenge has changed me! I feel good and I want to keep feeling this way!
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