W30D1

Whole 30, Day 1

Hello, everyone! I'm back! (Or at least trying my best to come back.) Life has been a bit crazy lately. Let me summarize... Back in November, I started working part-time as a project engineer. I was supposed to spend 50% of my time on process engineering and 50% of my time on project engineering for a month, at which point, I was supposed to completely transition from process engineering to project engineering. What actually happened was full-time process engineering + part-time project engineering. After a month of this split work, I had full-time responsibilities for both jobs. Another month later and my direct supervisor moved to a different project while I was on vacation. So I was welcomed back from vacation with the responsibilities for three full-time jobs. Let's just say that I've been extremely stressed lately. Add in planning a bachelorette party and an upcoming trip, and my attempts at including healthy foods and exercise into my life were failing miserably. I basically stopped cooking altogether, stopped exercising, and stopped reading health-related blogs. Because I wasn't cooking, I was eating a lot of non-Paleo foods, such as bread and cheese, and subsequently, the frequency of my migraines increased.

As of last week, thanks to the help of my process lead, I am no longer doing project engineering work, so my stress level has decreased a bit since then. With that reduction came a slightly more optimistic attitude for getting back to Paleo. I went to a Paleo lunch meetup on Saturday where my enthusiasm for Paleo was reinvigorated. So my friend Jay (of Health Nuts Anonymous) and I decided to start a Whole 30 today. If you need a refresher, Whole 30 is a 30-day challenge to eat nutritious foods.

The things you can eat:

• Grass-fed meat and poultry
• Wild-caught fish
• Eggs (from free-range, grain-free chickens)
• Fruits (2 servings per day)
• Nuts (in moderation)
• Olive oil, coconut oil

The things you can consume in limited quantities:

• Ghee/clarified butter
• Green beans, sugar snap peas, or snow peas
• Most vinegar (white, balsamic, apple cider, red wine, and rice); stay away from ones with added sugar

The things you have to cut out:

• Grains (wheat, corn, oats, quinoa, rice, etc.)
• Sugar - real (honey) or artificial (Splenda)
• Dairy
• Legumes (this includes peanuts)
• Alcohol
• Tobacco
• MSG, Sulfites
• White potatoes
• Seed Oils and Vegetable Oils
• Sex With Your Pants On (Read below for more details)

Check out the full "Can I Have...?" List here

What is the benefit of cutting out these foods?

• Physical Improvements: "body composition, energy levels, sleep quality, attention span, mental attitude and athletic performance"
• Psychological Benefits: "changing long-standing, unhealthy patterns related to food, eating and your body image, and a dramatic reduction or elimination of food cravings, particularly sugar and carbohydrates"

Spiced Tuna Steaks

1 lb Ahi tuna fillet
2 tbls coconut oil
Spice Rub:
1 tsp sea salt
1 tsp ground coriander
3/4 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tbls coarse black pepper, freshly ground

1. Cut the tuna fillet into roughly evenly-sized portions.

2. Mix the spice ingredients together and rub over each side of the tuna.

3. Heat the coconut oil in a cast iron, or heavy-bottomed pan. When there are a few wisps of smoke, add the tuna.

4. Cook for 1 minute on each side, then remove from the pan.

5. Slice lengthwise and serve with veggies and balsamic vinegar reduction.

Balsamic Vinegar Reduction
6 tbls balsamic vinegar
1 tsp lemon juice
1 clove garlic, peeled and cut in half

Put the vinegar, lemon juice, and garlic clove in a small saucepan and heat over medium-high heat. Simmer until the liquid is reduced by half. Set aside until you're ready to serve.