Whole30 Day 1 - Excitement

So yesterday was my first day of the Whole30. I have a lot of excitement about starting the program. I know it will take a while to see results, but I'm looking forward to the journey. It's a nice break from our regular routine. Whole30 does allow nuts. I'll see how it goes, and I may end up adding some nuts in my diet. If I can get enough good fats through other means, I'm going to try and continue to avoid nuts since Tommy is allergic. He is allergic to eggs too, but so far it hasn't been a problem if we cook some for ourselves as long as Tommy doesn't eat it. I'm also likely not going to use ghee. Even though some dairy allergy people can consume ghee since the vast majority of milk proteins are filtered out, it's not a risk I'm willing to take. Plus I'd rather just use a different kind of cooking fat like coconut oil that fits in the program and Tommy's diet. 

Our pantry was already stocked with a lot of Whole30 compliant ingredients. Like canned coconut milk, avocado oil, coconut oil, coconut flour, meats, fruits, veggies, etc. We already had Aidells Chicken & Apple Sausages from Costco. They're only sweetened with fruit juices, so they fit in the program.  And Wholly Guacamole. So it was a little easier for me to start even though I had only decided the night before. It's not a completely out of the blue decision. I have been thinking about doing Whole30 for a while. I just kept making excuses about why I wanted to wait before starting. I'm glad I finally got over my fear and decided to jump in. 

For breakfast I made Sweet Potato Hash Browns (see below), two eggs and a dollop of guacamole. And Frank's hot sauce! I'm so glad that's on the program. Breakfast was delicious and very filling. The hash browns were a little spicier than I intended. I think next time I'll cut down the paprika a bit. Or try a different seasoning. Plus the hash browns made enough for two breakfasts, so that makes the extra effort required to peel and shred the veggies worth it. I had some of the cream from a can of coconut milk in my coffee. It's not French Vanilla Creamer by any means, but it was better than I thought it would be. For me I like that a lot better than black coffee.

For lunch I cooked up some of those chicken and apple sausages with half of a red bell pepper. I ate the sausage on top of an arugula and pear salad, and used reduced balsamic vinegar as the dressing. I also had a few olives with it. Lunch tasted good and filled me up initially, but I was hungry again two hours later. Looking back I realized that lunch didn't have enough good fats. Good to know.

For dinner we had Meatloaf, Mashed Sweet Potatoes and Sauteed Green Beans. It was sooooo good. And it made a ton, so we have a lot of leftovers. This meatloaf is seriously delicious. And Tommy loves it too. Win win. I went to the gym after dinner, so dinner was my pre-workout meal and then I had a little more meatloaf with some guac for a post workout meal. I went to bed feeling good and full.

Sweet Potato Hash Browns

Makes 2 Servings

1 large sweet potato, peeled
1 small onion
2 Tbsp avocado oil
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp smoked paprika
1/2 tsp salt

1. Shred the sweet potatoes and onion on the large hole side of a box grater, or in a food processor.
2. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook the veggies until browned.